Raw Restaurant Review: Cafe Bliss in Victoria, British Columbia

To our delight we learned that a raw restaurant, Cafe Bliss, opened its doors two years ago right in downtown Victoria. Yay! The cafe is small and charming and was totally packed; I could not believe how many people kept buzzing in and out of the place! So nice to see in these times when so many little niche businesses are struggling. The server could hardly catch his breath but seemed otherwise to be having a good time, literally hopping from one end of the counter to the other.

They had a specials board which I thought was a smart move, as we find that fixed menus can quickly get boring, especially when it features a small amount of items. At Cafe Bliss they keep changing their soups, pizzas and what they call the 'Hearty Bliss' entree in order to feature seasonal ingredients. In fact, I was told that starting the following week their entire menu would be seasonal. Sounds promising!

We started off with a daily special drink: a Lucuma Creamcicle. It was made with orange, lucuma, banana, vanilla and almond milk. I thought it sounded like an interesting mix but found it a little bland and under-sweetened to my taste.

Next came a Cream of Cauliflower with Mango, Cashews and Curry served with Bliss Crackers and 'Butter'. The soup was warm which was a pleasant surprise, the consistency was nice and creamy and the cauliflower flavor not overwhelming. We were particularly impressed with the butter which was super tasty. We were told is made with olive oil, garlic and sundried tomatoes. Hum, sounds simple enough; I should try recreating it at home sometime!

We then went with the Hearty Bliss Burrito: Pumpkin Seed Refried Beans, Fresh Salsa, Avocado, Sprouts and Cashew Sour Cream served in a cabbage leaf with a Yam Cracker.

The Burrito was to live for! It was super flavorful and the spicing was just right. Yum! Too bad it was so small, I would have gladly devoured two of those babies! The Yam Cracker was slightly sweet and very crunchy. Double yum!

We would have liked to try their Burger but sadly they were out, so we opted for the daily pizza made with Fresh Herb Pesto, Spinach, Green Olives, Red Pear and Red Onion topped with Smoked Black Pepper Sauce.

The pizza however was a disappointment. The buckwheat crust, contrary to what the menu said, was not thin at all but nearly 1/2" thick and hard to the point of being difficult to eat. It was actually so thick that, as can easily happen with buckwheat, it tasted slightly fermented. As a result it was challenging to appreciate the toppings' flavors which were already quite subtle. I must admit that it was a bit of a strange combo, though.

By that point we were quite full but they had such a beautiful and appealing sweet display that we just HAD to somehow make space in our tummies. We took one glance at that Chocolate Cake with Cashew Vanilla Cream and simply couldn't resist a piece!

It was everything a raw cake should be; light, not too sweet and the almond pulp gave the cake layer a perfect texture. It was decorated with cacao nibs which not only made it pleasing to the eye but also gave the dessert a nice crunch. 

We found the food at Cafe Bliss rather pricey considering the size of the servings, but all and all it was a very positive experience. We would gladly eat here again!

Delightfully Raw on Vancouver Island: Part I

Sorry guys if I haven't been too talkative lately... We were hanging on Vancouver Island and I was waiting for this phase of our travels to be over before telling you all about it.

Returning to Victoria
We left Anacortes, weaving our way through the gulf islands, (you can peruse pictures of our journey here) and got off the ferry in Sidney, British Columbia about 3 hours later. We then proceeded to what turned out to be our smoothest border crossing yet.

I'd tried to determine what fresh produce we could bring with us on the official Canadian Food Inspection Agency website but they sure don't make it very clear. In the end we decided to play it safe and hardly took anything with us. Having said that I did push the envelope a wee bit and marinated a huge container full of veggies the night before, figuring that if they were ever to check they'd think they were cooked. ;-) We also transformed the last of our avos into guacamole and tomatoes into salsa. As it turned out the border guy was super friendly and didn't give us any trouble whatsoever.

And so we headed south on highway 17 towards Victoria where Don and I used to live. It's actually where we met when I first relocated from Quebec to British Columbia in 2000. We drove right by Elk/Beaver Lake park just across the road from where we shared a house. To our surprise, Kylo started scratching at the van's door, obviously recognizing the place. You see, we used to walk there with him pretty much every day. We decided that some fresh air indeed sounded like a mighty good idea so we stopped for a stroll.

It was strange to return after over 10 years. I couldn't help but think of the person I was back in those days; so excited at the prospect of a new life opening to me. It's also during that period that I first started dabbling into raw. While I was doing a master cleanse the people next door had a yard sale. Browsing through their books I found one about raw foods. I've forgotten the name of it now but it was a small thing. About half of it was devoted to explaining the premise behind the raw lifestyle and the other was some simple recipes. Anyhoo it totally spoke to me and I took it home. A few months later I was beginning my raw journey in earnest.

Our next stop was a health food store called Lifestyle where we used to shop. I was rather dismayed at the price of their organics and how sad these looked, especially after the wonderful farmers markets we visited in California. While browsing around I noticed that they had a book section so on the spur of the moment I thought I'd talk to somebody to see if they'd be willing to carry my Delightfully Raw. The man that I approached happened to be the one in charge of that kind of stuff and was immediately interested. In fact he bought 9 books right on the spot! Woo hoo! What a positive note to begin our Canadian travels on, I thought!

One of the main incentives for us to come to the island was to spend time with Don's daughter, Amber. She lives in Victoria and we hadn't seen her since 2008 so we arranged to drop by before going camping. As we usually do, we had no fixed idea of how long we'd be staying, waiting to see how things would unfold. I must admit that neither of us had foreseen, though, that our time with Am would turn out to be so short! She's going to a private massage therapy school that is demanding virtually all of her focus and energy and, as a result, she wasn't feeling up to entertaining guests. At least we got to hang out with her and her roommate Lindsay the next day. We'd lived with both of them for several months prior to moving to the Slocan Valley. We hadn't seen Linds since 2002, yet we picked things up right where we had left off, as if it was only yesterday!

Off to the Boondocks
Before getting out of Victoria we drove to Chinatown to buy some seaweed and to eat at Cafe Bliss, a raw restaurant that opened its doors a couple of years ago. (More about our experience there in this post!) We then headed out of the city and kept following the coast in the hope of finding a quiet spot to bushwhack for a few days. After about an hour or so we were almost ready to turn back and settle for an official campground when I noticed an old RV emerging from a small gravel road. Of course it could have been that they were coming out of their own driveway but we had nothing to loose by checking it out. Sure enough, we soon noticed a few other campers along what turned out to be a service road. We found a space to park further down and away from the others. Wow, were we being guided or what!?! I mean if it wasn't for that camper coming out at the exact moment that we passed by we would have no doubt missed it altogether!

As soon as we got out of the van we were welcomed by the sound of hummingbirds zooming around; a good omen in our books. Unfortunately we soon found out that the next road over led to an active gravel pit and could hear the trucks working on weekdays, but at least we were in Nature and the price was right.

Shortly before leaving the US we invested in an inverter and a deep cell battery that would allow us to use our appliances wherever we go. We could have thought of it earlier and it would have certainly been handy on this trip, but what can you do? It only makes us appreciate it the more! We put our new system to the test for the first time and it worked like a charm! Woo hoo! It feels like such a luxury to be able to enjoy fresh fruit and veggie juices, smoothies and other blended yummies while being surrounded by, well, nothing but trees and birds! ;-)

Puss had a wonderful time exploring the area. She was out and about during most of the day, then would snuggle in with us at night. I love this shot of her; I think it really captures the wild nature that awakens in her whenever she's in the woods.

As we often do when we find ourselves surrounded by wilderness we completely slowed down our pace, spending our waking hours doing exercises, walking, meditating, resting and reading. We had a couple of really miserable rainy days while we were there, forcing us to stay cooped up in the van. It gave us no choice but to chill out which is actually a very good thing. In spite of how much more laid back this trip has been, I felt some accumulated tiredness catch up with me and was glad for the excuse to not do much.

French Beach Provincial Park
After about a week or so we decided to change location and move a little closer to civilization as we had to get online every 3 or 4 days. And so we set up camp at French Beach Provincial Park, about a 20 minute drive west of Sooke. It was one of the better campgrounds we've been to; it offers only water and pit toilets but has nice, mostly private sites among lots of trees. As a bonus we discovered that at this time of year seniors only pay half price. Yippee!

There were various paths leading from the campsites to the beach. I love the rain forest; everything is always soooooo lush and vibrant!

Our site was only a short walk away from the ocean. In fact we were so close that we could hear the soothing sound of the waves crashing rhythmically against the shore. The forecast had been predicting rain but to our surprise (and delight!) Mr. Sun joined us instead! Woo hoo!

Kyky at the beach

There was a great big fallen tree right behind our site and it quickly became Puss' most favorite place to explore and hang out.

Bamberton Provincial Park

We'd planned to go back to Victoria to spend a couple of days, but that wasn't meant to be so instead we just picked up the stuff we'd left at Amber's and headed further up island. The Victoria Day long weekend was coming and we had no intention of being anywhere near campgrounds as these would undoubtedly be totally packed and buzzing with activity. We figured we could still get away with spending the Thursday night at Bamberton Park before the long weekend craziness hit.

We had a quiet spot right next to a trail that led to the lake shore.

On the Move Again
When we left the next morning, the campground was full by 10am!!! Eeek! We were sure glad that we were out of there! We continued north, pausing briefly in Duncan to buy some groceries. Later in the afternoon we made a little detour through Qualicum Beach as we wanted to go to Rawthentic Eatery (review coming up!) Don was turning 63 years young that day, so it proved to be the perfect birthday treat since I couldn't whip him up some wicked raw dessert.

The drive to the Comox Valley was absolutely beautiful! We saw glimpses of the Pacific and the Gulf Islands, brand new ultra bright green leaves and snowy mountaintops.

We'd made arrangements to meet our host Pat at Zen Zero - a vegan cafe in Courtenay that offers some raw options. From there we followed her to the nearby community of Comox where she lives. The town is right on the water and offers a lovely view of yet more snowy mountaintops.

When we first talked about the possibility of our visiting the area Pat had offered us to stay at her mother in law's house, as Margaret is now living in a retirement home. Once again, Life seemed to have another idea as at the last possible minute something came up and the space was no longer available. For a while we thought that we wouldn't have a roof over our heads but Pat was determined to find a solution. She invited us to stay at her house which she shares with her hubby, Doug, and her two beloved doggies, Skeena and Maggi-May. The place is real teeny and has no spare bedroom, but since we were prepared to sleep in the van that wasn't an insurmountable obstacle. After emptying the van we had a late dinner of a simple salad and Pat's famous Banana Pudding, a staple of hers. It's super easy to prepare, is full of goodness and oh-so-colorful!

Pat's Banana Chia Pudding

A few hours or overnight I soak 1 Tablespoon each of chia, flax, sesame & sunflower seeds in 1/2 cup of water.

In a food processor I pulse chop the following ingredients, one at a time, & put each into a mixing bowl (each ingredient is optional - do any or all):

blueberries
raspberries
apple
mango
bananas (for a single portion use 1 or 2 bananas - more to make a larger pudding)

Sometimes all I do is the banana with apple & perhaps one other fruit - raspberries or blueberries - whatever! & that still tastes fabulous - has a bit of texture.

A House to Ourselves

When we got up the next morning we learned that another possible accommodation had turned up. Her friend Arabella has a house for sale that is empty at the moment and she graciously offered us to stay there. The only hick up was that our animals wouldn't be welcome inside. It was an offer that we couldn't refuse, though, and we quickly found an answer to the furry situation. Kylo stayed on the patio and Puss in the van during the day, then in the evening we all hung out and slept together in the van. And so we had this great big house all to ourselves for an entire week! Woo hoo! What a blessing!

Walkies

Pat is such a sweet heart! She came over every day, bringing us bottles of delicious green smoothie and treats for Kylo and Puss. We'd then drive to one of her two favorite parks in order to walk with our four legged friends.

We mostly went to what Pat calls the 'Mack&Mac' - officially the Mack Laign Park that joins with MacDonald Wood - in Comox. It's a lovely lovely park by the water with lots of trails among the lush green forest. Kylo and Maggi-May (poor Skeena the great Dane had to stay home as her back end has gone) just adored their walks there!

Pat caught me taking the above pics. 

More rain forest lushness.

Posing in front of an old growth. Don pointed out that these look like teenagers compared to the Giant Sequoias that we saw in California.

Meet Pat!

We also went to the horse trail in Courtenay a couple of times, which meanders through the woods...

 

... then takes us along a river.

Kyky, who's no big water lover, even went for a little dip!

Raw Feasting at Arabella's
One evening the owners of the house where we stayed, Arabella and Fraser, came over for dinner. They have attended retreats at Tree of Life in Arizona and have experienced the health benefits of including more raw in their diet. We started off the meal with a Smokey Tomato Soup that turned out to have a little more of a bite that I would have liked. (I guess not all chipotle peppers are equal, eh?) I thought I'd remedy to the situation by adding more tomato and zucchini, but Arabella likes spicy and wanted to try the original version. She loved it! It was still quite hot even after I doctored it but it was still a hit. Phfew! *wiping her brow*

Pat had thoughtfully brought Don the perfect birthday gift: an absolutely gorgeous wooden bowl that she found at the thrift store. We truly couldn't think of a better pick as Don has been eating out of wood plates and bowls for over 30 years.

Next we had a Mexican style entree. Pat brought dehydrated crackers, guacamole, salsa and cashew sour cream and I contributed Not 'Refried' Beans and Corn Chips.

At last I was able to make a special birthday sweet treat for Don: a slight variation of my Blueberry Dream Pie with fresh blueberries and raspberries folded in. Yummy!

I think I'll stop here for now or this will turn out to be waaaaaaay too long of a post. Part 2 of our adventures on Vancouver Island coming right up!

Time To Head Back: The Journey North Part II

Sorry guys! It took a little longer than I expected to put out this post. We've been camping and without much internet access ever since our return to BC. No matter, I'm now back to wrap up our adventures in Washington state and on American soil!

Carmella Meets Frank

Sometime during our travels last year someone pointed out to me the trailer for the movie May I Be Frank. The documentary follows the transformation of Frank Ferrante, a 54 years old, obese, depressed and addicted man originally from Brooklyn. To me, Frank's story is such a fantastic example of how truly magical Life is! Back in 2006 on a gloomy day he 'happened' to stumble into one of the Café Gratitude locations in San Francisco. When he was asked the question of the day: “What is one thing you want to do before you die?”, Frank replied, “I want to fall in love one more time, but no one will love me looking the way I do”. Ryland, the waiter, his brother Cary, and Conor, his best friend, were immediately inspired by the possibility of helping Frank. For the next 42 days they did a sort of reverse 'Super Size Me'; Frank eating only raw food, practicing gratitude, visiting local holistic practitioners, and getting a weekly colonic.  

The few minutes' worth of trailer made readily apparent how good hearted and honest Frank was, and I was curious to witness in greater detail the story of his astonishing transformation. And so as we traveled this year I kept checking where the screenings of the movie would take place around the US, hoping there would be a fit with our schedule. Amazingly I discovered that May I Be Frank would be shown near Seattle exactly when we'd be passing through. (No small feat considering how completely unpredictable our itinerary has proven to be!) 

And so Tiffany (who we had also met during previous visits) and I headed out to the new Thrive Wellness Center in Sedro Wooley to attend the screening of the documentary. (Yay!) I could hardly wait to finally watch the movie and found myself unusually excited as we made our way there. Perhaps because of the metamorphosis that I also experienced thanks partly to my eating more raw food, I could sense that it was somehow important that I meet Frank. I'm still not clear as to why him exactly; I'm sure there are lots of people out there that have undergone a major physical/psychological change.

On the May I Be Frank website they speak of a "miraculous transformation" and that it truly was. As a result of this spontaneous and heart driven experiment - a healing journey that continued much beyond those initial 40 some days - Frank released 110 lbs and got "a new body, a clearer mind, and most importantly, a soaring spirit." (I mean look at that picture to the right. Isn't he just glowing?) The movie did a wonderful job at capturing the process in a realistic, honest and very powerful way. I particularly appreciated how it highlighted the fact that it's not only a matter of changing the food you eat but also the way you think and feel about yourself.

We were able to appreciate the extent of Frank's transformation for ourselves when he joined us after the movie in order to answer a few questions. I recognized in him the same good nature and contagious sense of humor I had seen on screen, but otherwise he seemed like an entirely different person. He is now so vibrant and joyful and full of life and, well, even sexy! ;-) Such a dramatic contrast with the sick and defeated man who walked into Cafe Gratitude years earlier!

 

Eating healthy while on the road can be at times very challenging (we can certainly attest to that!) and Frank has since put on a few pounds. However he shared with us that after reading a couple of paragraphs of The China Study that very afternoon he had decided to fully commit to a whole food plant based diet. Hee hah!

I later had a chance to meet Frank and it was a special moment. When I walked up to him we silently looked into each other's eyes for several seconds. We then exchanged a long, warm hug. Without my knowing, Tiffany captured snippets of our connection.

 

During the movie I was especially touched by a scene where Frank shares with Matthew Engelhart - the owner of Cafe Gratitude - that one of the things he wished the most was to be of service to the world. Interestingly, this whole project which was so mysteriously delivered to him by Life has proven to be the perfect means to do just that; inspiring people through the movie and the direct sharing of his experience to begin leading a healthier and more fulfilled life. This is very much how I feel about this blog; it offers me such a wonderful venue to share about my own healing journey and hopefully assist others in the process. I am so very grateful for this opportunity to make a difference!

Notice the orbs of light?

 

Fellow health pilgrims on a heart mission.

I had brought my new book along with the intention of offering it to Frank, although I doubted (and rightfully so he confirmed!) that he gets to do much food prep these days, with all his traveling to the many screenings across the country. Still, he said that he'd very much like my book and asked for me to sign it. He also immediately offered me one of his DVDs in exchange, and so we proceeded to sign each other's work. Another unique and special moment.

Isn't this a great shot?

Tiffany was next in line. What a lucky man, eh? Now he gets to hug and be surrounded by more radiant female beauty than he could have ever dreamed of in his 'past life'! ;-)

 

And So We Meet Again
As if this already extraordinary evening wasn't enough, at the movie's screening I also got to meet yet another beautiful and light spirit. Jean has been following my blog for a number of years. She said she almost invited us to Maryland during our last tour when we drove through the east coast, but the timing wasn't quite right. As it turns out Life was to unexpectedly bring us together after all! A few months ago she sold her home back east and, much like us, is now leading a nomadic lifestyle. She recently came to the Seattle area to spend time with her daughter which made me appreciate all the more the timeliness of our encounter. Yay! We felt like long lost friends crossing paths again, experiencing a depth of connection that goes much beyond what the mind can rationally explain.

We got together a second time a couple of days later, giving her an opportunity to also meet Don who hadn't come to the screening. We were all so enthralled in our exchange that before we knew it hours had gone by! Her travels might very well take her later to BC to visit us, The Mystery willing. ;-)

Meet & Greet at Thrive
 Thrive has become a regular stop whenever we come to the Seattle area. We usually just enjoy a meal there together with other friends and raw enthusiasts, however this time we had a little book signing event. Wherever we go I always trust that whoever needs to meet us will be there and I could feel that it was very much the case that night.

Among those who came was Cheryl, better known as Ocean on Raw Freedom Community. She is a super talented recipe creator and is the woman behind the now famous 'Oh My This Is A Tuna!' recipe that has become one of our staples. We'd been brushing shoulders on our forum for years and it was so lovely to finally get to meet in the flesh.

 

It also gave us a chance to spend some time with Karen, mother of the owner Monika, who is in charge of Thrive's Vitality Shop. She is a cancer survivor who healed herself partly with a raw vegan diet. She was no doubt one of the main inspirations behind the creation of Thrive and is now dedicating heaps of energy into her daughter's endeavor to help ensure its success.

Sharing The Raw Buzz

The next evening we did a raw demo for a bunch of Tiffany's friends. Most of them had never really experienced raw foods beyond smoothies and were quite impressed with all the possibilities. In hindsight it was probably one of the smoothest classes that I have given; the location was beautiful (our host Susan lives right on the water), the people were relaxed and interested, and the food turned out great! Yay!

Tiffany was so thrilled at this opportunity to spread the raw buzz among her circle of friends and poured lots of time and energy into it, bless her heart! Her help contributed to making the whole thing go like a breeze.

 

Even the sun came to say 'hi!' just as we were getting started. ;-)

Happy munchers from the look of them!

 

Last Stop: Anacortes
I suppose that, much like last year, our Seattle stop proved to be an eventful one, but it also felt very different in other ways. I was so exhausted from our 6 months of being on the road back then that I was pretty much operating on adrenaline. As was to be expected, I later completely crashed as soon as we returned to Canada. During this trip I was able to stay true to my intention of taking it easy and made sure I did whatever it took to rest along the way, generally keeping myself centered and energized. I consider that quite an achievement as especially on the road it can be so difficult to step away from Life's momentum. I also managed to stay up to date with my blogging which has also been a huge relief; it was such a horrible feeling to always be behind the eight ball last year, not being able to keep up with the stories and pictures that continued to accumulate as we traveled.

And so we said goodbye to Seattle and headed for our last US destination: Anacortes on Fidalgo Island. It was our last drive on a multi-lane freeway (I counted no less than 5 on either side at some point!) and we certainly weren't going to miss it.

Don pointed out an unusual humvee limo passing us by.

Last spring we'd considered going to Anacortes on our way to Vancouver Island, but it wasn't in the cards. And so we had to wait another year before getting a chance to visit Kiki (aka Green Jeanie on RFC). She lives in a beautiful rustic circular home in the woods. In many ways the setting felt so familiar, not only because of the peacefulness of the location but also due to the north west rain forest flora. I couldn't help but flash back to when we used to live on Vancouver Island almost 10 years ago.

As The Mystery would have it, while we were making our way to Anacortes, Kiki was headed to Seattle for a few days. At least we'd managed to hook up with her at Thrive the previous weekend and she kindly offered us the use of her cabin while she was gone. We thoroughly enjoyed this opportunity to reconnect with Nature and downshift gears, so to speak, before heading 'home'. I truly can't think of a more perfect place to end this chapter of our US travels! Of course, the furries could sense it too and immediately felt right at home.

 

King Kyky lounging on the sofa. hehe

We weren't sure whether we'd still be around for Kiki's day off - our original plan was to only stay for two or three days - but when she returned to the cabin we had such wonderful and insightful exchanges that we just HAD to hang around a while longer. One of the reasons Kiki and I had bonded online is that we're both long time Vipassana meditators. I had a sense that our sharing the same practice hinted at a deeper alignment and I was right; the two of us hit it off right away!

Not surprisingly Puss' favorite spot in the entire house was Kiki's meditation cushion. Lovin' all that good energy and metta! ;-)

Kiki is an acupuncturist and herbalist and has just launched a super cool project called Poppy Swap. Loosely based on the eBay model, Poppy Swap is an online market place for herbalists to come together and offer their handmade products. You can find everything from body care, to natural remedies, custom teas and inspired art. What an awesome way to explore the power of cooperation! You guys just ought to check it out and watch it blossom as it undoubtedly will!

Walking In Beauty
Not only does Kiki live in a superb location but she is also surrounded by an awesome community of friends, her 'family' as she calls them. When we first arrived we were greeted by her neighbors, Paul and Laurie, who immediately invited us for tea. They both love the outdoors and let us in on the nice walks to be had in the area. We usually took their dogs, Fozzy Bear and Luna, on our daily escapades in the woods. Fozzy is almost completely deaf and is such a sweet heart. In spite of his old age he always trotted along enthusiastically.

Sunset Walk

We were also invited by Kiki's friends, Bob and Pattie, to visit their gorgeous home made up of several interconnected yurt style buildings. They live just a short walk away from the seashore and one evening we joined Bob on one of his 'sunset walks'. Although the sky was covered the view of the nearby islands was astonishing and we sat in silence for some time, taking all that beauty in. Definitely a power spot!

Here you can see the Olympic Mountains in the distance.

Let's Sit Together
Kiki and Bob get together several times a week in order to meditate (or "sit" in the Vipassana lingo). I was really blown away by their dedication as it can be so challenging to maintain a meditation practice amidst our everyday busy-ness. One evening a few of us gathered in one of Bob's beautiful circular structures.

Notice the living roof?

 

It's always such a different experience to meditate with others and the round space made it the more special and powerful.

In Kiki's Sunny Kitchen
Kiki has an old Excalibur which I mistook at first for a microwave oven (hehe) as the controls are directly alongside the trays. I jumped on the chance to whip up a few things as our stock of dehydrated goodies was getting pretty low.

Don and I made the Nori Snacks which we absolutely adore.

I also played around creating flax crackers based on an ingredient list that Janine had shared with us. They weren't exactly like hers but we are both really happy with the result.

 

Mexi Flax Crackers
3 cups flax seeds, soaked in 1 1/2 cups water
2 cups peeled and chopped zucchini
1/2 cup almond pulp (leftover from making milk)
1/4 cup sundried tomatoes, soaked
1/2 medium red bell pepper, roughly chopped
2 roma tomatoes, roughly chopped
2 green onions, roughly chopped
2-3 garlic cloves
2 tbs lemon or lime juice
1/2 tbs chili powder
2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp or more of North West Fire from Penzey's Spices (chili or chipotle powder would work too!)
1/16 tsp or more of chipotle powder

Blend all ingredients until smooth in food processor.

Spread on teflex sheets.

Dehydrate at 120 for a couple of hours, flip onto mesh and continue dehydrating until completely dry.


And lastly I also tried to recreate Buckwheat Breakfast Crusts that we bought at a health food store in Ojai. When we didn't have access to electricity they made such a nice alternative to smoothies! We enjoyed them with some almond butter, honey and slices of banana.

Sweet Buckwheat Crusts
2 cups buckwheat groats, soaked overnight

1 cup flax seeds, soaked

3/4 cup soft dates

2 tbs water

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 tsp almond extract

1/8 tsp salt

---

1 1/2 cups sesame seeds

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1/2 cup raisins

1/4 cup gogi berries

1/4 cup coconut nectar

1 tbs orange zest

Blend first set of ingredients in a food processor until smooth.

Fold in the rest of the ingredients.

Spread mixture onto one teflex sheet and dehydrate at 120 for 3 hours.

Flip onto mesh, turn the dial down to 110 and continue dehydrating until completely dry.


Surprise Meeting
I knew that our dear friend Livina - the caretaker of the retreat center in the Kootenays where we spent several years - was about to cross into the States just as we would be leaving for BC. Dang, it was strange to be so close yet not quite be able to connect. What I didn't expect however was that The Mystery would indeed present us with an opportunity to meet after all! As I mentioned earlier, we decided to stay longer in Anacortes in order to spend Kiki's day off with her. As it turned out she had to run a quick errand in Bellingham that afternoon which was exactly where Livina was staying! I mean, what are the odds of that? Excited by the synchronicity I gave Livina a call and we agreed to meet at a cafe.

It was so lovely to hook up with her! We hadn't seen each other in months and had lots to talk about. She was also thrilled to finally get to hold a copy of my Delightfully Raw book as she helped to test many of the recipes while I was working on it.

Sailing Home

Well rested from our time in the woods, we finally headed back to BC. We hadn't been on Vancouver Island since 2002 and hadn't seen Don's daughter, Amber, for years so we figured that the time had come for a visit. We woke up bright and early in order to get the ferry across. It was nice, for a change, to just lay back and enjoy the beautiful scenery rather than to be driving. The sky was clouded over and the view wasn't as clear as it could be but it was still lovely regardless. We slowly made our way among the via the San Juan Islands before crossing into Canadian waters.

Getting mighty close to Vancouver Island now!

Sidney, BC lying straight ahead of us.

And that concludes this chapter of our US travels. No doubt that we have lots more adventures awaiting us in beautiful British Columbia. As always, I'll be telling you all about it so stay tuned!