Raw Food Iron Chef Excitement

One week ago at the Life Rocks Radical Unschooling Conference my friend Mary and I partnered up to compete in a Raw Food Iron Chef Competition! The idea for the event was born months ago when I told my friend and conference organizer, Dayna Martin, about a vegan iron chef that I had staged for my daughter and her foodie friend. The kids had a blast cooking up vegan meals in one hour and being judged just like the popular show on Food Network. Dayna became so excited and the ideas began flowing for us to compete against each other in the first ever Raw Iron Chef Competition! After months of planning and anticipation Stadium Kitchen was set and the live event was thrilling!

A crowed of unschooling parents, many interested in the raw food lifestyle, cheered us on as we prepared the dishes. The secret ingredient was pulled out of a bag and announced to be gogi berries! Dayna's husband, Joe was our MC with fun Alton Brownish comments. The three judges sat in anticipation as we blended, chopped, and processed.

In the end Dayna and her partner Jamie took away first place beating Mary and I out by only one point! My hat goes off to them for some creative ingredients and fancy plating. Birch paper, pine fronds and fresh local spring water, were a few of their secret weapons!

Thank you to judges Josha Grant, Roderick Russell, and Steve S! Your accolades were flattering and your welcome to dinner at my home anytime!







The coveted first place trophy in the foreground as I work under pressure!


Many in attendance have requested the recipes so here they are! Thank you for your feedback and praise!

Our Inspiration was Asian Fusion because Mary was thinking of all American gone raw and I wanted to stay in my speciality, Asian.

The Appetizer was a Thai Curry Soup adapted from Matt Amsden's Rawvolution
3 C Tai Coconut Water
3 Cloves Garlic
One 2-Inch Piece of Fresh Ginger
1/4 C Fresh Lime Juice
1/4 C Raw Flax Seed Oil
1/4 C Gluten Free Tamari
1 Tbl. Curry Powder
Blend all of the ingredients to warm in a high-speed blender.
Garnish with Chopped Avocado, Scallion, Tomatoes, Red Bell Pepper, Marinated Shitake Mushrooms and Gogi Berries

We served slices of raw curry bread and onion bread along with the soup.

The Main Course consisted of a Sushi Burger and Asian Slaw (find the slaw recipe in my post Macro-Raw Harmony)
Sushi Burger
Chop
1 C Celery
1/2 C Onion
1 C Red Pepper
Add to a food processor with
1 C Sunflower Sees
1/2 C Flax
1/4 C Hemp Seeds
Process Well
Add
1/2 tsp. sea salt
2 tsp. basil
2 tsp. parsley
1/4 C water
Mix well and form into burgers. These can be put in the dehydrator at this point for about 6 hours for a more authentic "burger" feel.
We served these on rounds of nori paper topped with a coconut raw rice, mango, avocado, sprouts, and a goji berry ketchup.
The ketchup was made on the spot and one of the best things to come form the competition!
1 C Fresh Grape Tomatoes
1/4 C Sun dried Tomatoes
1/2 C Goji Berries
1 Tbl. Raw Honey
Process in high-speed blender.




For dessert we served a Chocolate Peanut Ginger Dream Pie

Crust:
1&1/2 C Pecans
3/4 C Soaked Dates
1/2 C Cacao
Process in a food processor until the mixture holds together. Press into the bottom of a pie plate.

Peanut Layer:
1&1/2 C Soaked Cashews
1/2 C Coconut Oil
1/2 C Almond Butter
1 Tsp. Vanilla
1/4 C Raw Honey
Blend all ingredients in a high-speed blender and pour over the prepared crust.

Banana Ginger Ice Cream Top:
8 Frozen Bananas
1 Small Piece of Ginger
Cinnamon and Nutmeg to taste.
Process in food processor and top pie.

Gogj Sauce Topping:
1/2 C Goji Berries
1/4 C Raw Honey
1/4 C Water
Blend and drizzle over top.


My dearest friend and competitor Dayna's prayers for a win were answered!





The whole event was filled with love and play and brings great joy to my heart to remember!