CHANGE OF DATES for Chocolate Classes

It seems I neglected to take note of the June long weekend!

So I've changed the dates to work around this 

White chocolate skulls with walnut and mango jam brains.
(the one in the bottom right corner didn't take a long weekend break and got eaten first.)

1. Make and temper your own dark, ‘milk’ and white organic, raw chocolate

 NOW Sunday 12th June 1.30 - 4pm

2. Use and create flavours, fillings and textures, mould and dip your chocolate creations  

NOW Sunday 19th June 1.30 - 4pm

3. Create delicious desserts, tarts, ‘cheezecakes’,  chocolate sauces and how to make your own creations  

 NOW Sunday 3rd July 1.30 - 4pm.

TAKE HOME GOODIES FROM EACH CLASS -

 Class 1 you'll have 3 types of organic raw chocolate to eat or use as  tempering seed for the next batch you make.  

Class 2 gives you a box of amazing organic gourmet chocolates (and the ability to recreate them).  

In class 3 you'll take home whatever you couldn't eat - bring takeaway containers!

Dark chocolate with watermelon candy - amazing!

ALSO

RAW FOOD FOUNDATION CLASS

(because it's beyond beginner's and a great starting point)

proposed date

SATURDAY JUNE 25TH 1.00 - 4pm

(bring takeaway containers)

EXTRAORDINARY RAW CHOCOLATE - next classes

gianduja

cointreau goji hearts

Hey everyone!  I haven't quite got the knack of the newsletter/blog subscription yet... 
but I do know when the next classes are!

coconut bounteousness

Be your own chocolatier!

take home gourmet box  - session 2 - you can make all of these and more!

A three part course that will reveal the secrets to:

1. Make and temper your own dark, ‘milk’ and white organic, raw chocolate Sunday June 5th 1.30 - 4pm

2. Use and create flavours, fillings and textures, mould and dip your chocolate creations  Sunday June 12th 1.30 - 4pm

3. Create delicious desserts, tarts, ‘cheezecakes’,  chocolate sauces and how to make your own creations  

 Sunday June 19th 1.30 - 4pm

pear and ginger cheezecakes with choc biscuit base

choc ganache apricot tarts - nut free bases

Each 2.5 hour class is $125  - enrol in all three for only $300

*Ingredients are organic, raw, dairy, cane-sugar and gluten-free, high nutrient, high vitality and top quality – there’s nothing quite like this chocolate.

contact Martine at  heremeraw@gmail.com or 

 0433 600 655 for bookings / enquiries  

small groups - great fun - Hamilton Hill

Working out how to drive this blog.

Hello everyone,

I'm just test driving some new features which I wish I'd known before, and will soon!

In the meantime, here's a photo that may or may not show up in the newsletter - Will find out very shortly.
fingers crossed
Martine x (and Leo)

RAW like sushi

a rare recipe that's looking good today:

 Really really raw sushi

Raw nori sheets, kale and macadamia rice, quick pickle and avocado filling, and dipping sauce

I've had a packet of raw nori in the cupboard for a while now - why on Earth was I so afraid to open it?

Well today I did!  If you look really closely you can see the difference - the rolls on the left have a slightly burnished golden look - they're the ordinary roasted nori - on the right it's a deeper purple/black, that's the really raw one.

I'm usually so impatient with sushi and try to stuff too much in, so the only real secret here is breathe and be gentle.

 The 'rice' is a few leaves of kale with the stems removed 1/3 cup of soaked macadamias blitzed in a hand held stick blender with the nut attachment and just a little liquid to blend it - chiffonade the kale first, and open the mixer up every now and then to help it mix together.  It may not LOOK like it's going to hold together initially, but it will. don't squoosh it.

Easy Pickles

1 Tablespoon umeboshi paste or one plum broken up, cut up 1 lebanese cucumber, slice 2 mushrooms and cut up half an avocado - add a touch of rice vinegar or just use umeboshi vinegar (cheaper than plums but boy I love them!) - let it sit for as long as you can or eat it straight away and knock the leftovers off tomorrow.

You don't even have to make this - you could just add whatever veges you have but this is a spectacular combination.

Lay the nori on a sushi mat (or use a teatowel) gently spread the 'rice' just shy of each end, but right up to the left and right corners.  Then lay the cucumber, avocado then mushroom slices in that order on top along the centre of the rice.


Then breathe, adopt a buffalo stance, take the end of the mat closest to you and flip it up and roll - y'know - it's probably best to check YouTube for 'how to roll sushi', there's a real risk I'll make this sound weird!  There's a bit of a knack to getting the bottom edge tucked in to the top bit, but it doesn't really matter.  Before closing the roll wet the top clear nori edge just to make it stick, then rest the roll on the join before cutting with a SHARP knife.

joy! it worked.

My dipping sauce is equal parts of Bragg's Aminos and lemon juice with a glob of Namida Pure Wasabi Powder - it's lovely, gentler and sweeter, and raw!

Did you know that the 'Wasabi' that you usually buy is ordinary horseradish with food colouring? Check the label, and next time get this http://www.wasabi.co.nz/.

Now don't you get fresh with me...     http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JWsRz3TJDEY

Extraordinary Chocolate

The Chocolate F'Easter was really great thanks to Vanessa, Anna, Cathi, Annie, Andrea, Angela and Janelle - what a fab mob you are  It was the first of what I'm sure will be MANY MORE 

RAW CHOCOLATE WORKSHOPS.

this was a sample box I put together - from left - ginger caramel crunch, goji cointreau heart, 'bounteous' coconut, apricot orange truffle with almond, 'sheep's eye' with watermelon candy  - The big one bottom left is my most excellent 'failure' so far - and leading favourite of most who've tried it - it's ginger crunch with dried banana and agave caramel.  Then there's an orange/apricot truffle again, 4 squares of minty crunch, a gianduja centre, goji heart and another crunchy caramel banana.

The Raw Chocolatiers

We started by trapping a Chocolate Monster, locating the ink sac and removing it immediately...

at low temperature of course

work it, fridge!

lucuma truffle

dipping gianduja

  Focussing, creating, experimenting, delighting - this is tasty teamwork.

Cathi and Annie                                                                                       and I promised it would get silly.
Cathi went home and made these:

GORGEOUS!

next RAW CHOCOLATE workshop coming soon...

Chocolate f'Easter

This Sunday I'll be doing a Chocolate f'Easter workshop, details below.

yep, just the thing I've been working up to.
The minted buckwheat is ready, the ginger caramel is awaiting, the watermelon candy's on its way and the chocolate, OH! the chocolate!! (of course there's more)

*Yes! I mean cacao - raw, delicious, nutrient dense, amazing, delicious, criollo, organic, powerfood of the gods, Theobroma Cacao yes!*

I really ought to make myself a Willy Wonka inspired top hat and velvet suit (later!)

So I've been experimenting with different sources of chocolate, powders, beans, nibs, sweeteners, fillings and things, and I've put together a ridiciously delicious and fun 3 hours of chocolate making.  There are only a couple of places remaining this time, but register your interest as they'll be running again.

(The Coolbellup Library has a waiting list for Ukelele lessons - I recommend getting on that one too via facebook - http://www.facebook.com/notes/cockburn-public-libraries/join-the-ukulele-revolution-not-just-yet-though/10150148488687172  oops, another digression!)

The Chocolate f'Easter on Sunday April 17th will include:

White

Medium

Dark chocolate

Superfood balls

Temper raw chocolate

Hazelnut praline to gnutella

Truffles and textured chocolates

Moulded, filled and dipped chocolates

Knockout cacao and young coconut smoothie

And a simple melt and mix raw choc for when you need it now!

 2 – 5 pm You will take home a box of beautiful hand-crafted gourmet raw  chocolates made by you and a booklet of recipes so you can do it again and again      $120.00      Small classes – Hamilton Hill

Call 0433 600 655 or email heremeraw@gmail.com to grab the last spots or register for the waiting list.

OK now I have to go and test the banana/caramel invention, and I'll let you know how it goes!

Martine  - PS I'm also on facebook as Here Me Raw / Martine Rousset  - -photos with next post.

"LIKE A COW" - say it like that,

 and stand up!

CACAO that's its real name - not the bastardised Cocoa version - that's for the Englishmen of old who couldn't speak properly while retaining their upper lips stiffened then kindly left us with a confused legacy of cocoa/coco.  It's cuckoo - and it still gets me too.  Coco is for coconut, Cacao is for chocolate (Cocoa is cooked and refined and yes it still has antioxidants and health benefits, providing you select quality) - but!

CACAO IS ALWAYS BETTER - so if I say chocolate - this is what I mean.

 Check out those  fruits growing straight off the trunk!

Cut them in half to reveal the cacao bean inside.  David Wolfe recommends growing Cacao as an indoor plant in Perth - does anyone have any viable seed?

And it's raw - heated under 43* Celsius to retain the nutrients.

There's bucket-loads of info on raw cacao online - I'm about MAKING STUFF - so go googling for info.

All right - I admit, I'm also known to be pedantic with a penchant for pronunciation,  spelling and punctuation but that's completely irrelevant here,

although tangents are fun.

SO

I have a chocolate/raw cacao workshop coming up on April 3rd

and I've been playing a lot in preparation for it

and making silly, impractical things like 

white chocolate zombie skulls with mango jam and walnut brains

and easy and delicious things like cacao mousse, berry pie, brownies, superfood balls and smoothies.

So if you're coming to the Cacao class and have novelty silicone ice trays - bring them!

we'll fill them with things like:

*goji/coconut (better than cherry ripe)

*mango jam

*activated nuts

*crunchy minted buckwheat

*any other delights that pop in between now and then - any requests?

Remember these are all gluten, dairy, cane-sugar and additive free

so you can indulge virtuously,

Naturally!