The Organic Climber – Vegetarian running, cycling, swimming, rock climbing and raw foods.

Wow, I’m so sore today after spending the weekend in Arkansas, climbing and bushwhacking through the overgrown brush on the trail. I’m cut (from thorns), bruised (from the rock), and tender all over from climbing the steep lichen covered rock. I haven’t been climbing as much lately so this fun weekend really did me in. But, despite beat down feeling I have decided to bring you a new smoothie recipe.

After a trip to HEB last night we came back with lots of nectarines, one of my favorite fruits. I also had some mangos left over from the pervious week that were not ripe enough to dry for the climbing trip; but, upon returning home they were the perfect ripeness for a smoothie. So, this morning I tossed a couple of nectarines in the blender along with a mango and two bananas, and came up with a delicious smoothie.

The Recipe

• 2 fresh, ripe nectarines
• 1 small mango
• 2 bananas
• 4 TBS of agave nectar
• Optional: greens and, or protein powder
• Ice
• Note: Serves Two

Place all the ingredients into a blender and blend. For super blending power, check out the VitaMix blender, it’s my FAVORITE kitchen tool. Using the link on my web site you get free shipping and I earn a small commission.

RAW Food, Smoothie Tuesday by OrganicClimber
banana, fresh, mango, nectarine, RAW, raw smoothie, smoothie, Vita-MIx, vitamix, Vitamix discount
1 comment

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Whenever people ask me what blender I suggest, I always tell them the Vita-Mix 5200, and this was even long before I was an affiliate (offering free shipping). In my opinion there is no other option if you are going to be making smoothies every day. There are numerous reasons for getting a Vita-Mix 5200, so I have composed a list of reasons to make the investment.

1. Ease of use – It’s just simpler. Just this morning I was trying to make a smoothie using my old Cuisinart blender that my fiancé currently has at her apartment. It was a very difficult process. Ever so often, I would have to stop the blender, take a spoon, and push the fruit back down into the blades. That is rarely ever needed when using the Vita-Mix. The base of the hopper is wide and the blades are flat. Things just blend well in the Vita-Mix! The two horsepower motor will pretty much blend rocks. This ends up being a huge time saver too, as blending your smoothie will only take seconds – and is fuss free!
2. Tamp it down – There are occasions where you will want to blend a large amount of fruit or create something like a sorbet, or a smoothie without much fluid to help the blades turn and process the contents of the hopper. The Vita-Mix comes equipped with a tamper that can be used to press down the contents without having to stop the blender. This is something other commercial grade blenders don’t offer. This again makes for an easier smoothie making experience.
3. Making breads – With a Vita-Mix you can easily knead sprouts and grains to make bread. I have made a couple of different raw breads using the Vita-Mix.
4. Chopping Nuts – The Vita-Mix 5200 is a variable speed blender that allows you to perform tasks such as chopping nuts. I have used this a couple of times to chop nuts for energy bars. It’s also good for creating things like almond flower and grinding flax seed to powder.
5. Breaking down the cell wall – With it’s two horsepower motor, the Vita-Mix blender will break down the cell wall of fruits and vegetables, releasing a plethora of nutrients otherwise not available from chewing.
6. Overall health – Owning a Vita-Mix blender will improve your overall health and well-being. Because of it’s ease of use you will find yourself making delicious smoothies and other wonderful recipes a lot more frequently. The only time I ever don’t make a smoothie for breakfast is when I meet eat at a restaurant with friends. As a result of owning this wonderful machine you will be giving your body wonderful nutrients provided by raw foods.
7. It’s easy to clean – The hopper is not dishwasher safe, but is very easy to clean. Simply place some dish soap in the container, fill half way with water, and blend on high power for a few seconds to a couple minutes and your container is clean.

If you are still using a conventional blender I would strongly encourage you to invest in a commercial grade blender; especially if you are making smoothies on a daily basis. The machine comes with a 7-year warranty. It’s guaranteed to work like new for seven years. For somebody consuming a large amount of raw foods daily and using a blender regularly, performance and a long lasting piece of equipment is key.

Before purchasing my Vita-Mix I did A LOT of research because of the price tag, but I firmly believe I made the right decision. I have never regretted it.

RAW Food, Smoothie Tuesday by OrganicClimber
5200, food, RAW, smoothie, Smoothie Tuesday, Vita-MIx, vitamix
1 comment

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During my recent trip to Colorado I ended up buying a batch of cherries to snack on, but ended up coming home with at least half a bag. So, I decided to use the rest in a new smoothie recipe. This one is great for all you runners, climbers, and other athletes out there. Cherries are a great anti-inflammatory. In it’s concentrated format, it has 10 times the strength as one aspirin; and, it’s all natural! To make this an even better recovery smoothie, I added chia seeds to help boost energy levels. You could take it a step further and add flax seed, but I didn’t want to mess with the flavor too much.

I don’t typically buy cherries that often, but this smoothie was so tasty, I could easily see myself buying more and throwing them in the freezer. Simply adding them to my normal daily mixed berry smoothie would be a welcomed treat. The tart, sweet taste just hits the spot, and the hint of vanilla I added via a flavored rice protein powder just stepped this recipe up an extra notch. So enough talking up the smoothie, enjoy this delicious and powerful recovery smoothie, or just simply drink it for no other reason but to enjoy it.

The Recipe

• 1/4 of a 10oz bag of mixed berries
• about 5 oz of fresh cherries (or fresh-frozen cherries)*
• 1 heaping TBSP of vanilla flavored vegan rice protein (alternatively you can omit this and simply use vanilla extract)
• 1 TBSP of your favorite greens powder
• 1 dropper full of Liquid Stevia (or some variation of sweetener)
• * Make sure you blend this smoothie very well, especially when using fresh cherries, you want to make sure you destroy the pits and stems of the cherries. This is one instance where having a Vitamix is a huge advantage.

If you happen to be interested in purchasing a Vitamix, doing so through clicking the links on my website actually helps me out. I get a nice little commission, and you end up with free shipping on an amazing, must have machine for any raw foodie, vegan, or smoothie addict. (coupon code for the free shipping on a Vitamix 5200 is 06-004609)

Smoothie Tuesday by OrganicClimber
anti-inflammatory, berry, cherry, inflammatory, RAW, smoothie, Vita-MIx, vitamix
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Okay, I know it’s Wednesday, but I’m long overdue for a post. Life has been extremely busy lately. I have been gearing up for a move that will hopefully take place soon. I recently posted Getting confirmation on living the dream, but sometimes plans change. I have come to realize that often times we plan out a path, but God has something else in store for us, big surprises and sometimes disappointments. But in my case, I was thrown a huge curve ball and was pleasantly surprised. To make a long story short (I will post a longer version later) I will be moving to Austin, rather than Colorado, to pursue the girl I first fell in love with nearly two years ago. All I am waiting on before making the move is the sell of my house, which SHOULD happen pretty soon. But I also have to remember that the way I want things to happen may not be best. This could be held up for another month or longer. It has already drug out for two months.

Anyway, on with the smoothie recipe. Yesterday I got back into the climbing gym after not having been in over a week, and prior to that I was lucky if I was getting in the gym once a week. This season has not been filled with as much climbing as I had hoped for. Despite being out of prime climbing shape I decided to run 4×4′s with my climbing friend Scott. Basically you take turns climbing the same route four times, you have on to the next route and repeat the process. You do this until you fall. So, we decided to climb 5.9 routes after warming up on an easy 5.7 climb. We managed to finish 12 laps without any falling, but we both had our first fail at lap 13.

So, we continued on with our 4 laps, getting as high as we could each time. After finishing this, we moved on to bouldering after cooling down on some easier routes. So, in all I climbed about 19 routes and four boulder problems. All this to say, I did A LOT of climbing for being out of shape. I guess it goes to show I wasn’t as out of shape as I thought, but needless to say I needed a good anti-inflammatory recovery smoothie.

This smoothie is chock full of anti-inflammatory goodness and protein. As I have mentioned before pineapple contains bromelain that can be used to help treat sports injuries, trauma, arthiritis and other types of inflamation. I also added ground flax seed as well for a balance of omega three and six. The omega three contains the anti-inflamatory properties needed. So without further or do, here is the recipe…

The Recipe

• About 1/4 – 1/2 a 160z container of chopped or frozen pineapple
• 6-8 fresh strawberries
• 1+ cups of hemp milk
• 1 TBSP of raw tahini (optional, it didn’t affect the flavor much)
• 1/2 TBSP of your favorite greens powder
• 1 TBSP of hemp seed protein

My guess is this smoothie has around 18 grams of protein, I’m not sure what the carb count is, but my guess is around 54 grams, giving you a nice 3 to 1 ration. If you desire something closer to 4 to 1 just eliminate the tahini and replace the hemp milk with water or rice milk.

And don’t forget if you are considering buying a Vita-Mix 5200 blender you can get free shipping by clicking through the links here on my site. Granted these coupon codes are all over the internet, but by clicking through here I actually get a commission. I would be very grateful if you purchased through me! This blender is a powerful workhorse, a purchase you won’t regret if you are eating a lot of raw foods and making lots of smoothies.

  

  

  

  

Climbing, Health & Fitness, RAW Food, Smoothie Tuesday by OrganicClimber
anti-inflamatory, austin, carbs, Colorado, dream, free shipping, pineapple, protein, recovery, smoothie, strawberry, Vita-MIx, Vitamix discount
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This has become one of my favorite raw recipes. It is in fact, my go-to recipe when crunched for time. These tacos are super easy to make and don’t require much prep time at all, especially if you already have the bbq sauce pre-made. With such a succulent flavor, you will be making this tacos again and again.

To make these tacos, simply take two leafs of romaine lettuce and drizzle raw tahini and raw bbq sauce down the center of the leaf, secondly add slice portabella mushrooms, onion strings, kalamata olives and any other desired topping. Then wrap up your taco and enjoy!

The bbq sauce comes from Rawdawg Rory’s web site and his recipe for a “Portabella Burger.” Here is my slightly modified version of the recipe.

BBQ Sauce Recipe

• 1/2 cup of tomatoes
• 3 sun dried tomatoes
• 3 medjool dates pitted
• 1/4 clove of garlic minced (or one small clove)
• 1/2 tbsp of stone ground mustard
• 1 tbsp of chili powder
• 1/2 tsp of paprika
• 1/3 tbsp of onion granules
• pinch of black pepper
• pinch of cayenne
• pinch of sea salt

Directions: Blend all ingredients in a Vita-Mix or food processor. If you are interested in purchasing a Vita-Mix you can get free shipping through my site, there are also special holiday promotions going on right now.

Some of you may be wondering where I get raw tahini. There is a local “whole foods” type store that I usually get it from. I was also able to order it from another vitamin-organic foods store when my usual source did not carry it. The product is made by Artisana.

Uncategorized by OrganicClimber
delicious, discount, free shipping, muschrooms, onions, portabella, RAW, raw tahini, red onions, sauce, succulent, tacos, tahini, Vita-MIx
3 comments

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I spent this past weekend hanging out in Austin with friends, in fact, it was the same friends that first peaked my interested in raw foods. On Sunday morning before church we made a really delicious smoothie. It just so happened that the night before they held a game night and one of the participants brought grapes to snack on. There ended up being a lot left over and we used them in our smoothie the next morning.

Grapes alone weren’t going to be enough, so we ended up adding raspberries, banana, hemp milk and vanilla flavored hemp protein. I didn’t record the exact ratios, but there were more grapes than the other ingredients, we also made enough for four people at once, so I will give my best guess for a single serving.

The Recipe

½ cup of grapes
¼ cup of raspberries
½ banana
¾ cup of hemp milk
2 TBSP of vanilla hemp protein powder*
*Alternatively you could use regular hemp seed protein and add about a teaspoon or more of vanilla extract.

This smoothie was tantalizingly delicious! The added vanilla flavor (along with the hemp milk) was perhaps the best part. I had never thought about using flavored hemp protein powder, but I think I will definitely have to add that to the mix. I apologize there is no photo for this one. Perhaps I will make another one on my own later this week and take a photo.

Remember, if you are interested in purchasing a Vita-Mix blender you can receive free shipping by using the link above. That is a $25 discount. The purchase also helps me out!

RAW Food, Smoothie Tuesday by OrganicClimber
banana, grape, hemp, protein, rasberry, RAW, smoothie, Smoothie Tuesday, vanilla, Vita-MIx, vitamix
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Ever since I purchased a Vita-Mix blender I have enjoyed making my own nut butter. I recently started adding other ingredients to enhance the taste. Initially I just started with just honey, then one day I added coconut oil, and what resulted was purely amazing! The sweet satisfying flavor will have you making batch after batch. My last climbing trip to Arkansas was the first time I ate this recipe, and let’s just say I only came back with half a jar. It’s that good!

For those of you that don’t have a high-speed blender such as the Vita-Mix or Blendtec you can use a food processor, you just have to process A LOT longer. I was never able to obtain a satisfactory consistency when I made them in my food processor, but I recently saw a blog that had a very creamy mixture from a food processor. They key is patience, and processing for up to 15 minutes. That is why the Vita-Mix is so amazing. It will only take you about 3-4 minutes of blending to obtain a nice creamy texture.

Anyway, without further or do, here is the recipe for creamy almond goodness.

Recipe – Raw Almond Butter – Honey & Coconut Flavored

• 3 cups of raw almonds (you can also use cashews in place of a cup, or do half-and-half)
• 1/2 cup of cold pressed olive oil (extra virgin)
• 1/4 cup of coconut oil
• 4 TBSP of raw honey (or raw agave nectar for 100% vegan option)

Pour all the ingredients into the blender, staring with the almonds. Process for two minutes using the tamper provided with your Vita-Mix to push the almonds down into the blades. After two minutes dial the speed of the blender down and let the motor cool off a bit, then finish processing for up to two minutes until a rich creamy consistency is obtained. By the end, the nut butter should be smoking from the heat of the blades working hard. Warm almond butter is the best kind in my opinion, so enjoy it while you can, just don’t burn your tongue!

For those opting to use a food processor us a spatula to scrape down the sides of the blender periodically. If you are not patient enough to spend a good amount of time waiting for a creamy consistency, you can stop once you get a moderately smooth consistency. It will be a bit chunky, but still spreadable. Either way, the flavor is still delightful.

This recipe is great for every day use! It goes great in smoothies, on apples, celery or on raw flat breads and sprouted grain tortillas.

Uncategorized by OrganicClimber
agave nectar, almond, blendtec, butter, coconut, cold pressed, creamy, ezekiel, grain, honey, olive oil, smooth, sprouted, tortillia, Vita-MIx
1 comment

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Recently I had a couple of requests for a homemade Larabar recipe. After loooking at their Web site I realized these would be a piece of cake to make at home. They even had all the ingredients listed on the site, so I wouldn’t even have to go buy one to figure out what was in them. However, I was walking through the Cupboard the other day and decided to buy one just to try them out. They were exactly what I expected based on the ingredients, which we will cover for the Apple Pie bar.

One thing that surprised me was that the ingredients are not organic. Although they are “RAW” they are still not most healthy option. The version I made it home is 100% Organic and 100% RAW. This is not only healthier than their non-organic counterpart, but they are better for the environment because the ingredients used are not sprayed with pesticides.

Anyway, lets get to it. Here is the list of ingredients and quantities I used:

• 1 cup chopped dates (could possibly need a couple more depending on the size of the dates)

• 2/3 cup of raisins

• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped chopped walnuts (I used my Vita-Mix on the lowest speed)

• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped chopped almonds (I used my Vita-Mix on the lowest speed)

• 1 coarsely chopped chopped apple (I used my Vita-Mix on the lowest speed)

• 1/2 TBSP Cinnamon (I am actually going to recommend using more, the cinamon flavor was not quite as strong as the ones I bought in the store, but taste the mixture and adjust to your liking)

Now for the directions:

1. Place the dates in a food processor and pulse using the S blade until a paste is formed
2. Add the rest of the ingredients minus the cinnamon and then process until all ingredients are well mixed *
3. Add the cinnamon and process again. This is where you will adjust the amount of cinnamon to your liking. (the nice thing about making RAW foods is your mixture will taste the same after dehydrating or freezing)
4. Using cookie cutters (or any other thing lying around the kitchen you can use as a mold) spread the mixture into your mold using a spatula.
5. Once you have your mixture in the mold place it on a Teflex lined dehydrator tray, then remove the mold. For my mold, I used the lid to a large canning jar. This allowed me to place it face down on the dehydrator sheet and then remove the outer edge, leaving the lid on top of the “pattie”. I then twisted and pulled that off and then repeated the process until I had five patties total.
6. Now dehydrate at 105 degrees for about 24 hours. After 12 hours flip them over on the tray and remove the sheet, leaving them to dry on just the mesh for the remaining 12 hours.
7. If you don’t have a dehydrator you can refrigerate or freeze them overnight, although I tried this with one pattie and did not have much luck (may not have been thick enough). I saw a few other blogs online that used the overnight refrigeration method. Although I am pretty sure you would have to serve them immediately.

And there you have it, homemmade Laurabars. I know for sure the dehydrated bars will pack well for road trips, backpacking, and climbing trips. The thicknes of my refridgerated version may not have been thick enough to solidify well. You may also try baking them at a really low temperature, just remember to keep it under 115 degrees if you want to keep it RAW.

If Apple Pie is not your thing then just visit the Larabar Web site and find your favorite bar, all the ingredients are listed right there. Then just do some guess work at how much of each ingredient to put into your homemade version. Remember, you can always change it up the next time you make it. It is also better to start out with less of a particular ingredient since you can always add more.

Hope you enjoy these tasty RAW treats!

*NOTE: After actually eating one of these this morning I am going to suggest not blending in the chopped nuts and apples into the food processor. Rather, after creating the date paste dump all the ingredients into a mixing bowl and stir thoroughly.  I found the final product to “mushy”. I think having the nuts and apple chunks mixed in with the date paste will help make them a more solid consistency. Just make sure your apple and nut pieces are not too large. This mistake could have also been why my refrigerated bar did not solidify properly.

Climbing, RAW Food, Recipes by OrganicClimber
Climbing, dehydrated, homemeade, Lara bar, Larabar, Laura Bar, RAW, Vita-MIx
4 comments

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