Raw Vegan Hemp Boursin with Garlic & Fine Herbs

If a food could be louche, it would have to be rich, buttery Boursin: the soft, triple-cream, crumbly cheese spread that is so deliciously smooth and flavorful, one might manage to forget it is a heavily processed commercial milk product, just a few degrees of separation away from Philly.

I’ve had a serious crush on Boursin cheese—the garlic and fine herbs variety—since first being introduced in high school by a certain Melba Toast. Of course, we all were forced to part ways decades ago, citing irreconcilable health differences. But I’ve remained true in my long-standing desire to create a raw vegan version of the classic spread.

Undaunted by several false attempts, I’ve finally figured out the elusive ingredient that makes the recipe work: hemp seeds! Creamy, golden hemp seeds (rather than my usual seed cheese suspects: pumpkin, sunflower, cashew, macadamia) are the secret.

Along with a sublime blend of fresh garlic, lemon juice, and herbes de Provence, hemp seeds make my Raw Vegan Hemp Boursin with Garlic & Fine Herbs taste as divinely decadent as the original.

Enjoy Raw Vegan Hemp Boursin on 100% whole grain bread or crackers, sandwiched between spinach leaves, nestled in romaine, or stuffed into crunchy celery ribs. For sweeter pleasures, consider serving as a dip or spread with sliced Honeycrisp apples. Yum.

Raw Vegan Hemp Boursin with Garlic & Fine Herbs

This recipe makes one cup of finished Hemp Boursin.

1 ½ cups organic hulled hemp seeds

1 small clove of garlic, minced

½ teaspoon Himalayan pink salt or sea salt

1 Tablespoon Herbes de Provence

1 Tablespoon nutritional yeast

2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice

2 to 4 Tablespoons cold water

In a food processor fitted with the S-blade, add hemp seeds, garlic, salt, herbes de Provence and nutritional yeast, and pulse into a crumbly meal. Add lemon juice and 1 tablespoon of water; then process again until the contents begin to form a ball. Use a rubber spatula to scrape what rises up the sides back down into the mixture. Continue adding water one tablespoon at a time, and process the cheese after each addition until you see a color change: from green-gold to ivory white. At this point, only add more water if needed to reach desired, smooth consistency. Be careful not too add too much water at once, or the spread will suddenly turn liquid, in which case it can be used as salad dressing and you’ll have to start again. Store covered Hemp Boursin in refrigerator for up to one week. Freezes well for those who prefer to work in larger batches.

Note: The beautiful 100% whole grain sourdough bread featured in this post was handmade by Dorie Goldman of The Backyard Bakery, who freshly mills her own flour from local and organic grains.

Having purchased my first loaf today at the indoor Amherst Farmers Market, I feel like I won a prize! Moist, chewy and packed with seeds, this dense Danish Rye miraculously manages to be as light as it is hearty. My new favorite bread, hands down.

"Practically Raw" Bean & Guacamole Tostadas

It is deep winter now, iced January, hard earth muffled in snowy white. Winter purifies and wipes clean the slate as we turn inwards, gather ourselves in warm places and think upon lessons of the turning year gone by. The resolutions we may make at New Year's time are simply a recognition of some lacking in our lives. With this awareness, may we know ourselves more deeply, and vow to be more True.

The only falseness in this world is generated by people. Nature is Truth. When it comes to food, this is apparent, for what is food? Real food is honest, natural, a gift from the earth. Fake food is made by Man.

Learning to discern truth from falseness is an ongoing process that may be sharpened in the compression of short dark days. But choosing clean food, nourishing and fresh—whether uncooked/raw, or warm and comforting—makes sense in any season for those of us desiring health, vitality and authenticity. To be a Real Human, feed your body clean and simple, speak no lies, and strive each day to live as fully as possible in the open-heart vibration of Love.

Tonight, I dine on gifts from the earth. Won't you join me?

The following Practically Raw recipe includes a man-made food product of very high quality: Food for Life "Ezekiel" brand sprouted grain tortillas. I eat few grains, always whole or sprouted, usually just once or twice a week at most. See my article on the Eat to Evolve! philosophy to understand why I recommend including only whole grains in your diet, and only in moderation, rather than as the foundation of your daily meals.

Practically Raw Bean & Guacamole Tostadas


A tostada is basically an open-face sandwich using corn or sprouted grain tortillas in place of bread, and served with plenty of salad on top. (I've blogged about tostadas before - see here.) For me, the tostada is a lovely comfort food. It brings life force into the body, along with luscious warmth and savor.

For each person: Wash four lettuce leaves and tear into small pieces. Toss with one half teaspoon of flaxseed or MCT oil, 2 teaspoons of white balsamic vinegar, a light sprinkle of sea salt and a turn of fresh ground black pepper. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, add one smashed and minced clove of garlic. Into this, mash one small avocado with a little sea salt or Herbamare, and the fresh juice of one half an organic lemon. Add a pinch of cayenne pepper if you crave heat. This is your instant guacamole!

Lay 2 sprouted grain tortillas on a baking sheet and top with about one quarter cup of beans (canned organic black beans or homemade "refritos" work well), and a generous sprinkle of grated raw goat cheddar. Bake in a warm oven until the cheese begins to melt. (Vegans may omit the cheese, of course.)

Transfer tostadas to a plate and top each with equal portions of tossed salad and guacamole. If you have fresh cilantro or parsley on hand, chop up a handful and garnish on top. Serve with salsa if desired. Simple pleasure, honest food, tasty meal!

Practically Raw Sprouted Corn Tostadas

Here's something very delicious to make for lunch that whips up in a jiffy and features a brand NEW! product I tried for the first time today: organic Sprouted Corn Tortillas from the Food For Life Baking Company (makers of Ezekiel bread, sprouted grain bagels, sprouted whole wheat tortillas, etc.)

Sprouted grain products are valued for many reasons. Grains are seeds and when they are sprouted, their nutritional value often goes up. The sprouting process initiates the breakdown of protein and carbohydrate compounds in the grains, releasing bound amino acid and sugar components and freeing up nutrients. In this sense, sprouted grains are essentially "pre-digested," to a degree. Another benefit of sprouting is that natural anti-nutrients in grains, such as phytates and protease enzyme inhibitors, are also broken down and degraded in the sprouting process. Finally, sprouting makes grains more alkaline, helping them to favor a preferential pH balance in the body.

All soaked and sprouted grains, as well as sprouted beans and seeds, will offer the above benefits. Sprouting, however, does not remove gluten, a gluey protein that is found in wheat, spelt, rye, and barley. Gluten sensitivity is a rising problem around the world with an estimated 30-40% of people affected. Any food which is made from wheat or any gluten-containing grain, even healthy sprouted Ezekiel bread, still contains gluten.

Corn, on the other hand, is a gluten-free grain. Some people are allergic to corn, but gluten intolerance is not linked to corn allergies, so having a sensitivity to one does not implicate the other. Corn is an ancient New World grain that was sacred to American Indian tribes. Although modern corn has been abused in many ways by agribusiness and industrial development, corn itself is still a high value food, especially when it is organic corn grown in nutrient-rich soils and free of genetically modified organisms.

Delicious Food for Life Sprouted Corn Tortillas are made with only four ingredients: organic sprouted corn, filtered water, sea salt and lime. According to the company, after the corn is sprouted it is ground and mixed with the other ingredients to form a masa, or traditional thick dough, which is then rolled and flattened into characteristic tortilla shapes. The tortillas are baked at low temperatures (250 degrees) before packaging. Each tortilla provides 60 calories of whole grain carbohydrate energy and only 1 gram of fat, plus a little calcium and iron. The flavor and texture is naturally corn-sweet, wholesome, chewy and far moister than some gluten-free tortillas I've tried that crumble when folded.

I forsee this product becoming a new staple in my kitchen and am pleased to be sharing it with you today. I looking forward to creating sprouted corn tostadas with avocadoes and cilantro, with black beans, with tofu-miso paté... but for today, let us begin with hummus, the humble and widely available Middle Eastern sesame-chick pea spread. I used Hot Mama's original flavor hummus in this recipe, but any brand or flavor, including your own homemade raw or cooked hummus, would surely be tasty and satisfying.

Practically Raw Sprouted Corn Tostadas
with Hummus, Salsa & Sprouts

2 sprouted corn tortillas
1/4 cup hummus, your pick of flavor
1 cup alfalfa or red clover sprouts
2 teaspoons salsa
2 black olives

Warm tortillas briefly in the toaster or on the surface of a hot, cast-iron skillet for about 30 seconds to gently soften. Transfer to plate and divide hummus evenly between the two tortillas, spreading out almost to the edges. Top each tostada with half the sprouts, half the salsa and one black olive. To eat, spread the salsa across the center line and fold the tostada in half, like a soft taco. Then, bite in. Yum!

Note: I purchased my sprouted corn tortillas at Green Fields Market in Greenfield, MA and did not receive any product or compensation from Food for Life Baking Company prior to posting this blog. However, Food for Life is welcome to send me free samples and coupons anytime, as I adore their products!

The Properly Combined Sandwich

I adore fresh salads and generally rely upon them as my midday meal of choice. But sometimes I get tired of eating salad every afternoon, simply because I want to take a break from using utensils! In such cases, I want my salad to be somehow contained in a neat tidy package, so I can pick it up and just bite in with freedom and abandon. What I really want is... a sandwich!

Of course, sandwiches are usually made with bread, a food item that rarely appears in my dietary repertoire. This is why I love the Veggie Wrap concept. Any salad combo can be rolled into a nori sheet or large green leaf (think cabbage, collard or romaine) to create a satisfying sandwich sub.

Typically when I don't want the salad in a bowl, I wrap it up this way. But there are days when I crave something more substantial to accompany my fresh raw greens, something chewy and grainy...hmmm. What could that be? Bread, perhaps?

We all know that a standard sandwich involves bread plus a protein filling, say peanut butter, cheese or meat. The problem here is that, as explained in an earlier post, eating bread with protein is a no-no. Starches don't combine well with proteins due to the conflicting types of digestive enzyme environments they require (alkaline for starches, acid for proteins). Eating them together overburdens the digestive system, saps your energy for hours to follow and can lead to gas, bloating and weight gain. The best thing to combine with starches (or proteins, for that matter) is vegetables alone. So what's a lunchtime sandwich craver to do?

Enter the Properly Combined Sandwich (PCS). Basically, this is simply a raw vegetable sandwich on whole grain bread with condiments and avocado, if desired. (The veggies are usually raw but you can use cooked veggies as well from time to time.) To my knowledge, the official PCS title was coined by Harvey Diamond, a natural hygiene proponent, in his bestselling 1985 book Fit for Life. You'll see it used by many others as well, because, well, the concept is here to stay!

So. To create a Properly Combined Sandwich, start with the highest quality 100% sprouted grain bread or 100% whole spelt bread (or wraps) available. Perhaps your local natural bakery can be of service here. If not, both the Alvarado Street Bakery and Food for Life companies make tasty sprouted grain breads, bagels and tortillas that may be found in the freezer section of many grocery stores across the country.

Next, consider fillings. While raw veggies like tomato, lettuce, sprouts are famous typical sandwich supporting players, in the Properly Combined Sandwich they earn starring roles. And top billing goes to that most creamy and delectable of starch-friendly vegetable-fruits, the avocado. (I eat avocados every day I can get my hands on them - they are one of my favorite foods...)

Condiments like stone ground or dijon mustard, organic salsa and miso can also be important features in the Properly Combined Sandwich. Spread a little mustard on your sprouted grain bread, add a layer of sliced avocado and pile high with veggies of your choice: spinach, lettuce, mushrooms, tomato, sprouts, grated carrot, chopped garlic, parsley, red onion, cilantro - the sky's the limit.

I recommend eating one or two open faced sandwiches rather than a single two-slice number to maximize your raw veggie intake. Place a flat leaf of lettuce on top if you need something to hold onto. Alternatively, toss a raw salad with your favorite dressing, add avocado and spoon into a sprouted grain tortilla lightly spread with mellow white miso. Roll, wrap and eat - incredible! Or fill a corn tortilla with chopped lettuce, avocado, green onion and salsa to create a soft taco style sandwich.

A Properly Combined Sandwich is fresh, colorful and delicious. Best of all, it digests beautifully, so it won't cause you to bloat up or gain excess weight. In fact, you may even lose weight eating this way. And with so many veggies to use for fillings, the Properly Combined Sandwich never gets boring! Just remember to save any dense protein items (hummus, raw goat cheese, almond butter) for your starch-free green leaf and nori wraps.