Strawberry Milkshake and Our Cookbook Trailer

June 17th, 2014

The number of amazing people I’ve met through this blog keeps growing. One that I’m very grateful for is Cathryn Fowler, a very kind and health-concious reader, who reached out to me recently about the possibility of doing some video work together. Fate’s doing, as right at that moment I was dreaming about a book trailer. Above is what we came up with – a day of meals from the book – breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert.
The Vibrant Table came out this past week and is now available to buy at bookstores and online. Visit this page for retailer information, a peek inside, press and reviews.

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We came back from Russia last week and, without too much mercy for jet lag, I started preparing for my first book signing and cooking demo that happened this past Saturday. I’m pleased to say that everything went very well. This ‘having a book out’ business is still very surreal to me and it was hard to believe that people will come out to watch me cook. I enjoyed meeting every single reader and hearing everyone’s stories, and hope to do many more of these things in the near future.
Over that busy week, we had this quick and easy strawberry milkshake quite a bit, since the berries are gem-like and irresistibly sweet this time of year.

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There is a Strawberry Milkshake recipe in Sarma Melngailis’ Living Raw Food cookbook that, in my opinion, is the best tasting milkshake on earth. It involves the meat from a young Thai coconut, cocoa nibs and strawberries, which, as you might imagine, makes for a heavenly combination.
Unfortunately, young coconut meat is not an easily obtainable ingredient for the majority of people. I have steady proof of this fact in the form of countless emails and comments with one single question – what does one substitute coconut meat with?

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I found that freshly made Brazil nut milk is the next best thing after fresh coconut meat to use as a base for vegan milkshakes. It’s easy to make at home and is perfectly creamy, thick and delicious. Brazil nuts are also known to be very rich in selenium – an essential mineral to have in our diet – good to know when enjoying this milkshake.

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In other news, I will be holding a free Vegetarian Summer Picnic cooking class at the St. Petersburg Rollin Oats Market on June 26th, 6:15pm. To sign up, call 727 821 6825 or email [email protected]
 Hope to see you there.

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Strawberry Milkshake

to make Brazil nut milk
1/2 cup Brazil nuts – soaked for 2-4 hours
2 cups purified water

Blend the nuts and water in a high-speed blender until smooth. Strain through a clean nut bag or cheese cloth, disposing of the pulp. Keep refrigerated.

to make the milkshake
1 1/2 cups Brazil nut milk
2 cups chopped sweet strawberries
1 frozen banana
2 tablespoons cacao nibs
seeds of 1/2 -1 vanilla bean or a splash of a good vanilla extract
1 tablespoon maca powder – optional

Blend all the ingredients in a high-speed blender until smooth and creamy. Enjoy immediately or refrigerate for up to one day.

Note: When strawberries are really sweet and fragrant, I like to omit banana. That way, the flavors of strawberries and Brazil nuts are more pronounced and the milkshake is lighter. Have your ingredients cold and/or add a few ice cubes.
If you like your milkshakes on the sweeter side, or if your strawberries are not particularly sweet, add 1-3 soft pitted dates and leave in the banana, of course.

Tags: drink, smoothie, strawberry, vegan

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