Quiet, yes.  But quiet it made me in exchange. The laptop stayed unusually closed, and my mind remained comfortably still as I soaked up the simple complexity of nature around me. I basked in the broad, lazy pastures with resting hay barrels and excited crickets; the frontier-like houses with dirt driveways that crackle deeply from passing cars; the families of cows resting under the shade of lanky pine trees; and then, of course, the gardens. Every house in that pristine setting had a food garden. And as ’tis the season, each garden was absolutely brimming with vegetables, berries, tubers, flowers and all the best bounty that good soil, plentiful sunshine, and a summertime season can offer.

To me, there is something so innately joyous about being able to harvest and gather one’s own food. It’s one of those instinctual “this feels right” type of tasks – you know, like the opposite of walking into a Walmart. And with my dad’s all-organic garden absolutely flourishing this year, frequent harvesting was exactly what I did. Carrots, artichokes, onions, tomatoes, broccoli, squash, greens . . . who knew I was a borderline locust.

Upon nightfall, we’d make grand simple meals of the freshest of fresh vegetables. Here’s what went into our summertime garden salad bowl, which we consumed just about every night. Delicious. When I wasn’t eating it, I was thinking about eating it. Brought to you by nature and what’s perfectly in season . . .

Life Is Good Salad:

INGREDIENTS
2 heads of red leaf lettuce, torn into bite-size pieces
3 cups shredded carrots
1 bunch chives, coarsely chopped
5-6 sweet Persian (miniature) cucumbers, sliced
3 large hierloom tomatoes, chopped
1 large Hass avocado, chopped
1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds

DIRECTIONS
Toss all ingredients together in a large bowl. I dressed mine simply with oil, lemon juice, sea salt and black pepper.
Ah.
Yes.
Perfection.

Chocolate Mint Ice Cream Sandwiches

Another persuasive example of junk food without all of the junk. Luxurious and decadent, yet full of living whole foods, this innovative recipe is loaded with essential minerals and healthy fats.

INGREDIENTS:

(For the ice cream):
½ cup hemp milk, almond milk, or other non-dairy milk beverage
2 frozen bananas
½ medium-sized Hass avocado
2 Tbsp agave nectar
½ tsp peppermint extract
1 Tbsp minced fresh mint
several drops of liquid chlorophyll (optional – enhances green color)

(For the cookie):
1/3 cup raw cacao powder
1 cup almond flour (ground almonds)
8 dates
¼ cup agave nectar
1/3 cup raw cacao nibs, plus a little extra for rolling

DIRECTIONS:

Blend: In a blender, combine non-dairy milk of choice, bananas, avocado, agave nectar, mint extract and fresh mint. Blend until smooth. Stir in liquid chlorophyll if desired. Transfer to a small bowl.

Freeze: Freeze the ice cream for 1-2 hours.

Mash: Combine all of the cookie ingredients in a food processor, and process until thoroughly chopped. Form “dough” into two even halves.

Assemble: Use a muffin tin, and line 6 of the muffin molds individually with saran wrap or tin foil. Sprinkle lightly with cacao nibs. Using one of the cookie dough halves, place a spoonful of dough evenly into the bottom of 6 the lined and “nibbed” muffin molds. Press firmly to form a “cookie.” Next, fill each of the molds evenly with the partially frozen ice cream. Line an empty muffin mold with saran wrap, and use to form 6 more cookies from the second half of the cookie dough, sprinkling with cacao nibs prior to pressing each time. Top each mint ice cream with a cookie to form a sandwich.

Freeze: Freeze sandwiches for 2 more hours. To serve, simply remove ice cream sandwiches from the saran wrap or aluminum foil and serve whole or sliced, if desired. If wrapped tightly, these sandwiches can keep in the freezer indefinitely for future enjoyment.

Makes 6 sandwiches.

Raw, vegan, & gluten-free

©2009 www.JulieMorris.net