Holiday Raw Foods – Celebrating the Oral-Systemic Link

Celebrating the Oral Systemic Link

In the Dental Office

By Bridget Hobart

What do you usually take to a holiday party? Cheese platters are something that I often see (and feast on) at parties. I love cheese and it can actually be good for your dental health (more on that in a future blog!). But as we all know, it’s not the healthiest thing in the world to gorge on. People say they’d like to go vegan or raw but can’t because they feel they would miss cheese too much. I have to admit I am one of those people.

Enter a raw foods dish called: Cucumber Roll, Goat Cheese, Mint Jam.

But let’s go back here a minute and start from the beginning.

We are teaching classes at Coda Health Kitchen, our attempt to bring nutrition into the world of health care and dentistry.  Dr. Stephen Perry, a longtime dentist and owner of Dental Health Colorado, has a vision to integrate nutrition as preventive medicine, right into the dental practice, so he built a raw food kitchen!  You can visit our class schedule on our Healthy Living page.  The recognition of the oral-systemic link is increasingly becoming paramount to quality dentistry and health care.  For more information on this link, visit the American Academy of Oral Systemic Health.

With the holiday’s right around the corner, I wanted to teach a class on what to bring to your holiday party.  I wanted to focus on healthy foods though, because the #1 complaint with holiday parties seems to be about gaining weight.  So I thought it was perfect timing for ‘Holiday Entertaining with Raw Foods’. It’s the first class I was going to teach at Coda Health Kitchen so I wanted it to be memorable. Exciting. Fun. Engaging.

My co-chef/partner in crime, Jess and I brainstormed for days on different recipes. Some were quite involved, some seemed too simple so we got a hold of a raw foods book titled: ‘Everyday Raw Express: Recipes in 30 minutes or Less’. It was a perfect resource. We wanted to incorporate 3 recipes and the class was 1 hour long. We decided to improvise; demo 2 recipes and serve the last (a dessert) walking them through each step, while they enjoyed the Lemon Bavarois with raspberry syrup. Bavarois is another term for Bavarian Crème. It is a thick, creamy custard that is usually made with a heavy cream and gelatin. Our raw version was quite different. Our heavy cream was raw, soaked cashews. We chose this dessert because it was the colors or a candy cane (see the picture with the recipes below).

The attendance was perfect. A small, intimate group of 7 people who came eager to learn and enjoy nutritious food. We served red and white wine and had festive, holiday tunes playing in the background. Everyone loved the raw dishes we selected.  Our guests were inquisitive, engaging and most importantly (to me anyway) seeking to be enlightened and caring about the quality of their own health and the oral-systemic link. We can’t wait for the next Coda Health Kitchen class.

Recipes:

Cream Corn Chowder, Jalapeno Parsley Pesto

Chowder

4 cups yellow corn (fresh or frozen)

¼ cup pine nuts

2 cups nut milk

1 tablespoon miso

3 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons lemon juice

¼ cup agave

Jalapeno Parsley Pesto (see below)

Salt and pepper

Blend all ingredients except Jalapeno Parsley Pesto in a high-speed blender until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with a dollop of Pesto.

Serves 4

Jalapeno Parsley Pesto

1 bunch parsley

¼ cup pine nuts

1 tablespoon lime juice

1 tablespoon agave

½ jalapeno pepper, seeded and diced

3 tablespoons nutritional yeast

¼ cup olive oil

1 teaspoon salt

Pepper

Process all ingredients except olive oil in a high speed blender until combined and chunky. With blender running, add olive oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Makes about 1 cup

Cucumber Roll, Goat Cheese, Mint Jam

Cucumbers

2-3 medium to large cucumbers

Goat Cheese

1 cup cashews

1 cup macadamia nuts

1 tablespoon nutritional yeast

3 tablespoons lemon juice

1 teaspoon salt

Chives for garnish

 

Mint Jam

1 cup mint leaves

1 cup agave

2 tablespoons lemon juice

Pinch salt

Wrap

Peel the cucumbers in alternating strips (you don’t want the entire peel removed). Using a mandolin, cut the cucumber lengthwise into very thin slices.

Goat Cheese

Blend all ingredients except chives in a high-speed blender until smooth. Serve the cheese immediately after blending.

Mint Jam

Blend all ingredients in a high-speed blender until smooth.

Finish

Line a bamboo rolling mat with saran wrap so that it stays clean, and nothing will stick. Line the mat with long cucumber strips, slightly overlapping the strips so that the roll won’t fall apart.

Place about ½ cup of goat cheese across the bottom half of mat (horizontally to the cucumber strips). Roll gently, forming a log. Keep the roll in saran wrap and place in the fridge for a few minutes in order to set before slicing.

When ready to serve, slice the roll into ½-inch-thick medallions and plate. Garnish with a few chives. Serve with mint jam on the side for dipping.

Makes 12

Lemon Bavarois, Raspberry Syrup

Bavarois is another term for Bavarian Crème. It is a thick, creamy custard that is usually made with a heavy cream and gelatin.

Bavarois

2 cups cashews, soaked

½ cup lemon juice

2/3 cup agave

2/3 cup coconut oil, melted

½ teaspoon salt

¼ cup lemon zest

1 vanilla bean, scraped

Raspberry Syrup

2 cups raspberries

6-8 tablespoons maple syrup or agave

2 tablespoons lemon zest

Garnish

2 tablespoons orange zest

Blend cashews, lemon juice, and agave in a high-speed blender until smooth. Gradually add coconut oil and remaining ingredients; continue to blend until smooth. Fill serving dishes half full and allow to set in freezer until partially set.

Meanwhile, make raspberry syrup by blending all ingredients in a high-speed blender until smooth. Pour syrup over partially set Bavarois and top with more Bavarois. Return to freezer until set.

Remove from freezer and garnish with orange zest to serve,

Serves 6-8

Please let us know your favorite holiday raw food treat so we can share with our dental patients! For more on nutrition, dentistry and the importance of oral health, visit the Colorado Department of Health and Environment – Prevention Services.

Bridget Hobart

Coda Health Kitchen Consultant