Recipe of the Week: BBQ Strips

I love snacks! These days, it's as though I got an internal clock late in the morning, craving something savory before my midday green smoothie. Well, these BBQ Strips have been doing just the trick.

Yet another great recipe that has come my way thanks to Joz. She brought a huge platter at her latest potluck and everyone raved about them. In fact, she tripled the recipe and still there wasn't quite enough! Give these a try and you'll soon see why.


BBQ Squares
Posted by Auntie L on Raw Food Talk here

1 C fresh tomatoes, chopped
1/4 C chopped onion
1 C dried tomatoes, soaked 15-30 mins.
1 C soaked raisins (Joz's yummy variation)
1/2 tsp minced garlic
1-2 tsp minced jalapeno (add more for spicy sauce)
Juice of 1 lemon or lime
2-4 Tblspoon agave nectar or honey
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1/8 beet and/or 1/2 red bell pepper
1 tsp nama shoyu (soy sauce)

1.5 C raw walnuts
1.5 C raw cashews

Blend all but the nuts in a high-speed blender and pour into a mixing bowl. Chop the nuts in a food processor by pulsing the motor; leave them pretty chunky. Stir in the chopped nuts and adjust the seasonings, remembering that flavors intensify when the mix is dehydrated. Spread on teflex on dehydrator tray. Dehydrate until firm, slicing into squares and turning over onto screen, then dry until crunchy. Eat as a snack or as the main dish for a meal.

Auntie L's Notes:
This recipe makes a very mild BBQ square a child can eat. Add more spices if you like it hot! The beet or bell pepper can be omitted, but I recommend either and usually use both for the rich red color they give the squares. I use home-dehydrated tomatoes, but you can use the storebought ones too. The recipe may look complicated because it has a lot of ingredients, but they go together fast and, man, is it good! You should be able to do the whole thing in the food processor, adding the nuts last. If you try that, let me know how it works. I served BBQ squares as the main dish (with a salad, raw corn on the cob, and dessert) to non-raw friends and they loved them so much I had to give them more to take home.

Carmella's Notes:
~ I used cayenne instead of fresh jalapeño, and the soaked raisins recommended by Joz.
~ I went a little heavy on the beet. As a result, my strips turned much redder than the ones Joz took to the potluck (shown below).
~ After about 22 hours, mine still weren't crunchy, but I figured it would take way too long for that. Delicious anyhow!