Let us introduce ourselves, we are Lori and Michelle. We live across the pond in the great state of North Carolina. The lovely people at Vivapure asked us if we would like to do guest post on their blog from time to time, and we said of course! A quick history of who we are.

We run and own a gluten-free, vegan and raw bakery since 2007 called Twin Cakes Bakery. We currently ship our products throughout the US and Canada, we hope to be adding the UK to that list soon :) In addition to running our bakery, we also are the creators of Pure2raw our personal blog. Pure2raw is a place where we share recipes, health issues (like skin issues, digestive issues, hormonal problems, etc), photography, our travels, and our love of fitness! We hope you stop by sometime and say hello.

Today we have a recipe that uses one of our favorite ingredients and we know Vivapure loves it too ....

Irish Moss Paste. We love it for so many reasons! To name just one would be because using irish moss paste allows us to reduce the amount of nuts used in recipes. But if you do not have irish moss you can use more nuts to replace it.

We have also done a **video on how we make our Irish Moss Paste** for those who like to see how to make it.

Pure2raw Recipe:

Creamy Cashew Cream (raw, gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, grain-free, low sugar)
prep-time: about 30 minutes (for soaking the cashews
time to make: 5-10 minutes (all depends on your blender and how fast it creams)
tools needed: blender (vita-mix is what we used)
serves: depends 

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup soaked cashew, pieces
• 1/2 cup coconut butter
• 1/4 cup raw clear agave (could also sub for Coconut Nectar)
• 1 tablespoon of vanilla (ours is alcohol free) or pure organic vanilla powder
• 1 tablespoon sunflower lecithin (optional)
• 1 cup irish moss paste (Get The Fresh Irish Moss Hook Up @ VivaPure)
• 1/2 teaspoon liquid stevia
• zest of 1 lemon
• 1 tsp cardamom

Directions: Soak your 1/2 cup cashews in a bowl for about 30 minutes. Rinse well. Then place cashews into your blender along with your coconut butter, irish moss paste, agave. Blend. Then add in your vanilla, stevia, lemon zest, cardamom, and sunflower lecithin. Blend some more till smooth and creamy. Scoop your cashew cream into a bowl or in our case we served them in little coffee mugs.
Enjoy your cream at room temperature or place in refrigerator for a little bit to enjoy cold.

You can even jazz it up some with sprinkling in brownie crumbs, we used Twin Cakes Raw Brownie Bite Promise it is delicious either way!

Substitution ideas:

• have no irish moss then replace with more cashews or another nut like almonds
• may replace agave with any liquid sweetener of choice; if you want to do it all stevia base than you will need to add in about 2-4 tablespoons of water and increase the amount of stevia to your desired level of sweetness
• have no coconut butter then replace it with coconut oil, you might even get away with 1/3 cup coconut oil as it gets harder than coconut butter when chilled
• may replace lemon zest with either lime or orange
• and can use any flavorings you desire (we just love cardamom and use it all the time)

We hope you like our Irish Moss Paste Creamy Cashew Cream recipe as much as we do.

Thanks again Vivapure for letting us share this recipe and be a guest post on your blog!

If you have any questions please let us know.

xoxo Lori and Michelle Pure2raw Twins and Twin Cakes Bakery owners

Hi, I’m Laura and I write a blog over at Keeping Healthy Getting Stylish. I’ve been on a bit of an epic journey when it comes to my diet and health!

I had always struggled with my weight from being a child, and a couple of years ago, after many years of trying, I managed to lose a lot of weight by following what I thought was a healthy diet. After discovering healthy living blogs I soon realised that surviving off lifeless cuppa soups and whey protein shakes was not exactly healthy!

Reading healthy living blogs, and eventually starting my own, sparked my interest in nutrition, and after devouring every book I could get on the subject I started to realise that the way I was eating may not be the best for me. I gradually transitioned from being an animal protein junky to a vegetarian and now, almost completely vegan. In learning more about veganism, I also found out more about the power of raw food. What I learned made so much sense to me and was reflected in how I felt when I ate more raw foods – I had so much more energy and felt so full of life!

Enjoying raw foods also helped me to see food in the context of how it nourishes my body rather than just in terms of how many calories it contains. This has lead to a massive shift in my attitude: instead of chasing skinny, I now just want to be as healthy and vibrant as possible.

I did find the whole world of raw foods a little daunting at first, but after discovering websites like Viva Pure that stocked the ingredients I had read about in my raw food recipe books, I was able to start experimenting! I even invested in a dehydrator so I could enjoy more complex dishes.

I’m still fairly new to raw foods, but I see them as an integral part of my diet, and essential to being able to feel my best. I’m nowhere near 100% raw, or think that I would ever want to get to that level, but I have found a balance that works well for me. Here are some of my tips for easy ways to incorporate more raw foods into your diet:

Get to know Smoothies and Salads

Smoothies and salads are an easy, convenient and delicious way to add more raw foods to your diet. Smoothies make perfect breakfasts, snacks or even meal replacements when you are short on time. Just blend up some fresh or frozen fruit with water, nut milk (or just add a handful of raw nuts or nut butter) and some of your favourite super food powders such as Hemp Protein Powder, Maca powder or Raw Cacao Powder.

You can even super charge your smoothies by making them green! Try adding some green veggies such as kale, spinach or spring greens and blending them with a frozen banana and a tbsp of raw almond butter for a delicious raw treat. I like to make my smoothies extra thick and eat them like a pudding from a bowl, along with toppings!
Salads make excellent raw lunch and dinner options, and they don’t have to be boring either! Start with a base of leafy greens such as romaine, spinach or watercress and add whatever veggies you fancy then add some interesting flavours and textures using nuts, seeds, crumbled raw crackers and a raw dressing. Try combining raw nut butter or tahini with some lemon juice and water until smooth – it’s delicious! My favourite salad at the moment includes raw beetroot with walnuts, fresh figs, raw honey and sea salt!

Don’t be afraid of making Nut Milk

I used to think that making nut and seed milks would be very complicated and time consuming, however they are so quick, easy and cheap to make. Simply soak 1 cup of nuts or seeds in filtered water overnight then drain and rinse and blend with 4 cups of filtered water and super food powders of your choice (try using a little raw carob for chocolate milk) plus try using a tsp of Viva Pure's Raw Sunflower Lecithin to add creaminess and added nutrition. Strain the mix using a nut milk bag and store in the fridge. Enjoy with a bowl of delicious raw granola or add to a smoothie for extra creaminess.

Try out Chia Seeds

I just adore chia seeds! I make a raw pudding with them using nut milk or water with some Raw Cacao Powder mixed in. Left in the fridge overnight, the chia seeds absorb the liquid and thicken up into a luscious pudding that I like to eat with fresh berries for breakfast, snack or dessert.

Indulge guilt free

I have to say one of the greatest things about raw food is being able to enjoy guilt free desserts! I like to blend nuts and dates to make raw balls that taste better than any processed toffees and raw chocolate mousse by blending ripe avocado with Raw Cacao Powder and Coconut Nectar

Be a dip diva!

Raw dips served with some vegetable crudités and raw crackers make a really easy lunch or snack. For a very simple dip combine ½ cup of raw sunflower seeds that have been soaked at least 4 hours with two chopped carrots, ¼ cup of coconut aminos (or soy sauce for a semi raw version) plus some grated fresh ginger. Blend all ingredients in a food processor adding water until it

reaches a dip like consistency. You can also leave this thicker and use as a spread or pate using it as a filling for some raw nori rolls.

Alongside my staple snacks of fresh fruit, vegetable crudités, raw nuts, seeds and dried fruits I have been able to really increase the amount of raw foods in my diet and I’ve been reaping the benefits. I don’t worry about eating completely raw or even having 100% raw meals as I think the important thing is getting in good quality raw food whenever I can, even if that means eating some raw crackers with my soup instead of bread!

I hope this has given you some useful ways of incorporating raw foods into your diet, come along and check out my blog at www.keepinghealthygettingstylish.com for more ideas!

About the Author

Laura Agar Wilson is a 29 year old healthy living blogger writing at Keeping Healthy Getting Stylish. She blogs about her healthy living journey which has seen her lose almost 6 stone and transition to a vegan diet along with her passion for fashion, healthy tasty food and exercise. She recently decided to follow her passion for nutrition by training as a Diet and Nutrition Advisor. She hopes to combine this with her work current work as a Project Manager working with community organisations to promote the benefits of healthy eating and fitness with communities.

All content and images © Laura Agar Wilson, Keeping Healthy Getting Stylish