London

Just returned from a whirlwind trip to London (I was there only 72 hours). I had a great time, but deviated majorly from the raw vegan path of righteousness. Dim Sum and Lebanese food were just too tempting.

I did, however, have one raw meal. On Saturday I met up with the lovely and talented Antony Heaven, of Antony In London (livingrawfooduk.blogspot.com). We ventured north to grab lunch at Dragonfly, a stunning (at least by the looks of their website) raw food restaurant that we learned went out of business when we approached the vacant storefront. It was very disappointing. But, we then headed over to Camden to eat at inSpiral Lounge. It's a vegan cafe with some raw options. It was satifying enough, but just know, should you ever dine there, that you can select THREE side orders and ONE main. Aparently I didn't get this through my American head fast enough, much to the chagrin of the icy sales associate. Still, it's worth the trip if you're in the area.

Coconut Goji Tarts

Antony Heaven never ceases to inspire me. The food he prepares is simple, elegant, and delicious. Whenever he presents one of his creations on his blog, I immediately have to try it. I used to be this way with Ina Garten (of Barefoot Contessa fame) before I went raw. Antony is my raw Ina.

His latest creation is a "Chocolate-Coconut-Goji Tart" which I adapted to be less chocolatey and more coconutty, since i'm not a huge chocolate fan. Here's what I did:
Crust:
3/4 cup of walnuts
3/4 cup of cashews
3/4 cup of dates
1/4 tsp powdered stevia
1/4 tsp salt
Process all the ingredients until crumbly.
Scoop a heaping tablespoon of into a paper-lined muffin tin. Use your fingers to press the filling down into the bottom of muffin cup.
Sprinkle a few goji berries on top of the crust.









Filling:
1/2 cup of shredded coconut
1 banana
1 avocado
3 tbsp coconut oil
3 tbsp cocount butter (I like Artisana brand)
2 tbsp cacao powder
1/2 cup agave
seeds from 1/2 vanilla bean
1/4 tsp salt
Process all ingredients until smooth. Divide equally among the 12 muffin liners. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours so that coconut oil can solidify.


I'm having mine for breakfast!