Rawvolution Book Review and Recipe!

This weekend I had the pleasure of reading Rawvolution by Matt Amsden.  This is a wonderful addition to my raw library, and I recommend it for yours too!  I bought this book pretty impulsively, without checking out the price.  I think it was all the colorful, enticing photography that caused me to grab and go without considering cost.  Although a bit expensive, this book is well worth the price.

I enjoyed this book because it is well-written and simple.  Matt is honest without being preachy, getting personal but not self-indulgent.  He doesn't go overboard with scientific research and facts.  Instead, he gives you logical, condensed explanations of what it means to eat raw and why it is so good for us.  He also provides an extensive list for stocking your new raw pantry, sample raw food menus for entertaining, and tips for traveling.  You also get a glossary, cute icons that make up a legend for each recipe, lots of gorgeous pictures, and, of course, tons of recipes!!

There are plenty of simple recipes as well with easily accessibly ingredients that you could easily start making today.  He does make a great use of thai coconuts, which I can't find at any of my supermarkets, but if you can then you could easily make almost every recipe in this book.  Not too many of the recipes are heavy, nut-based dishes and only a few require dehydration.  Matt presents tons of soups, salads, entrees, breakfasts, and really easy desserts, too!  All in all, I would say this is a great recipe book to have on hand, even for beginners.  

I absolutely could not wait to start exploring Matt's recipes, so I decided to start with something simple that I could make with that I have at home right now.  I choose "Cinnamon Girls," delightful little balls of almonds, raisins, and cinnamon that are super easy to make, cute and yummy.  I'll give you this recipe, but I highly recommend buying Rawvolution so you can try all the others too!  

Cinnamon Girls

2 cups raw almonds, finely ground in a food processor

1/3 cup cinnamon

1/3 teaspoon sea salt (optional)

1 cup raisins

3/4 cup agave nectar

2 tablespoons olive oil

In a medium mixing bowl, combine the almonds, cinnamon, salt, and raisins and stir until the dry ingredients are mixed well.  Add the agave nectar and olive oil to the bowl, and mix until a dough-like consistency is reached.  Using your hands, roll the mixture into ping-pong-sized balls.  Serve as is, or cover and freeze until thoroughly chilled for a more solid consistency.  

Music Fix: Time-Pink Floyd

Eat Happy. : )