Meredith's Marinated Mushrooms

Many people don't even realize how wonderful mushrooms can taste in their raw form after just being marinated for a short time. No cooking involved for these bad boys! Meredith shares her recipes with you and the idea behind her new book:

My current, and one of the most major projects I am working on is our next book Design your Detox. This is the first book that I am doing that is 100% my vision. It is the way I eat, the way I live, and the way I believe others would benefit from eating. Because it is so close to home, this book  is particularly exciting and challenging. I feel like I have so many things to say it is hard to edit them down! 

My philosophy is really K.I.S.S. Unfortunately, the raw food diet or any healthy diet for that matter, has gotten turned into this incredibly complicated and exclusive lifestyle. Don't get me wrong, gourmet health food is AMAZING and totally has a place; but just like other gourmet foods, it isn't always practical. I believe that you can easily incorporate super healthy raw food dishes into your diet on a daily basis. The principle of detoxing shouldn't feel like a crash diet. You starve for a week and then go back to your regular diet. Yes, when you start eating more vegetable centric meals, you will start to crave them, and a balanced meal won't feel balanced without them. The idea behind Design your Detox is to incorporate healthy meals into your diet as it suites. For some of us we try to eat healthy at every meal (optimal) , but depriving yourself of indulgences every now and then doesn't have to be permanently banned from your life. Eating more raw food shouldn't feel like an all or nothing diet . Most of us do eat some raw food- so what is the big deal? All I ask is ONE meal a day! It is SO worth it and so easy. I could go on, but since I am writing a book on the subject I will stay short. 

The most fulfilling part of a book is getting to taste, and eat- crazy simple, crazy good meals! Here are two recipes that I worked on last week. One is 100% raw and the other incorporates some cooked quinoa. 100% raw is great if you live in a tropical environment, but Maine winters make the challenge feel a little absurd. High protein, gluten free grains like quinoa are warming, balancing and very nourishing- especially in the winter.

Carrot Ribbons, Black Sesame, Shitake
Serves 2-4 

Carrot Ribbons

4 Large Carrots, peeled and run through spiral slicer (Should yield about 8 cups)
½ Head of Small Red Cabbage, shredded or thinly sliced
3 tablespoon Black Sesame Seeds
Juice of Half a Lemon
Pinch of Sea Salt

Shitakes

3 Cups Shitakes, thinly sliced
2 tablespoon Tamari or Nama Shoyu

Sesame Sauce

½ C Tahini
¼ C Lemon Juice
1 tablespoon Miso
2 tablespoon Sesame Oil (or Olive Oil)
1 ½ C Water
¼ teaspoon Sea Salt

¼ Cup Cilantro Leaves
Black Sesame Seeds

Carrot Ribbons- Toss carrots, cabbage, sesame seeds lemon and salt in a large bowl. Allow to marinate while making sauce.

Shitakes- Toss shitakes with Tamari and allow to marinate for at least 10 minutes.

Sesame Sauce- Blend or whisk all ingredients until thoroughly combined, and emulsified.

Assembly- Toss carrot ribbons and shitakes with half of the sauce. You can serve immediately or allow to marinate for 30 minutes. Garnish with cilantro and sesame seeds.

 Black Quinoa, Radicchio, Shaved Fennel, Cremini

Serves 2 - 4

1 Cup Black Quinoa, cooked and drained
1 Small head radicchio, chopped
1 Small Fennel bulb, thinly sliced or shaved on mandolin 
2 tablespoon pine nuts
¼ Cup Fresh Parsley, chopped 
Juice of 1 Lemon
2 tablespoon Olive Oil
1 teaspoon Sea Salt
Fresh Ground Pepper to taste  

Cemini Mushrooms

1 Cup Cremini Mushrooms, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon Tamari
½ teaspoon Olive Oil

Assembly-  While quinoa is still warm, toss all ingredients together. Allow to marinate for a t least 10 minutes before serving so that the flavors combine.

Mushrooms – If possible, marinate mushrooms separately with Tamari and Olive Oil for approximately 10 minutes. Toss with remaining ingredients.