Raw Foods Recipes: Sweets for Easter and Special Occasions

When I first made the connection between the M&Ms and ice cream I was eating daily and the health challenges I was experiencing, it came as quite a shock.  Sure, there were other things contributing to my failing health, but the ones that hurt the most to let go of were the ice cream and M&Ms…especially the peanut M&Ms and the pralines and cream ice cream.  I guess the good news in all that was I did like nuts, even back then.

At the time I was feeling badly enough so I was willing to do anything to feel better.  Brain fog, headaches, post nasal drip and burning in my stomach did not contribute to a happy life.

I proceeded to detox my body, give up all processed food (what would I eat now??)  and vowed that only whole fresh foods would pass my lips.

I stayed true to my decision and most of the time it wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be…except around the holidays.

In my family of origin, Easter was a big holiday, and candy was the focus.  We’d all get a chocolate bunny and those solid chocolate foil wrapped chocolate eggs…and we started eating them right after breakfast.

My grandmother , “Nana”, would cover the top of her dining room  “buffet table” with plastic Easter grass and “hide”  all sorts of candy for us to find.

After I changed my diet, holidays like Easter would bring back the longing for something special and sweet.  Over the years, I developed many recipes to satisfy my sweet tooth.  My focus was on creating the most nutritious whole foods sweet treats possible, and many of the recipes I created contained hidden green foods.  I managed to fool everyone…unless I spilled the beans, no one knew they were eating green spiked candies and brownies.

For years everyone who tasted my desserts has asked me when I’d write a book and share them with the world.  At the end of last year, I teamed up with my dear friend and very talented living foods chef, Karen Osborne, to put together a very special Dessert book called Dessert: Making it Rich Without Oil”

Unlike when I was first starting out on my health journey, there are quite a few raw food dessert recipe books on the market today.  The problem is, most of the recipes contain a fair amount of oil and questionable sweeteners.

Our goal in writing this book was to offer sweet treats made exclusively from whole foods.  They’re naturally sweetened with fruits, dried fruits and freeze dried fruit powders.  Their richness comes from are made rich with whole foods fats like seeds, nuts and coconut – no oil.  Oil is not a whole food, and while therapeutically it’s sometimes used to replenish deficient fatty acids, overall the healthier choice is to use whole food fats to achieve the desired mouth feel and taste.  We’ve found that by using natural thickening foods, like psyllium seeds and a sea vegetable called Irish Moss, you can achieve creaminess and richness with very little fat.

For a limited time, when you invest in Dessert:  Making it Rich Without Oil , e-book or paperback, you’ll get access to a set of video demonstrations of three recipes from the book.

This special offer expires on Monday, April 25.  If you celebrate Easter, order the e-book and you’ll have immediate access to the recipes and the videos so you can make your family Easter treats to remember.

Order the print book and e-book combo by Thursday April 21 and I’ll also send you as a bonus my two favorite Easter Recipes:  Chocolate Easter Eggs and Easter Cookies and a copy of Karen’s video for Fudge Cherry Bursts.

We’ve posted photos of some of the recipes and the complete table of contents here:

https://drritamarie.com/wp-clone/makeitrich/

Eating a health promoting diet need not feel like deprivation.  Enjoy nutritious whole food desserts made with love and pleasing to the whole family.

Love, Health and Joy,

Dr. Ritamarie