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This raw pie recipe was inspired (indirectly) by a trip to my favorite grocery co-op a few months back. Rainbow Foods is the mecca of natural food, vitamin, cosmetic, and houseware shopping. I was in the bin section filling and labeling a recyclable plastic bag with quinoa when I looked to my right and saw a girl next to me filling a massive bag with premium organic cocoa powder (it is possible it was carob powder, I just remember it being organic, brown and powdery, and on the pricey side) - she must have had a 10 pound bag of it when she was through.

It is one thing to buy in bulk, but this was something I'd never seen. The smell of the chocolate was wafting through the air and I found myself just staring at her. I really had to know what she was going to make with all that chocolaty powder, so I asked her. She was warm and friendly and said she was taking it back to a restaurant she worked at called Cafe Gratitude. She said she worked in the kitchen there and that I should come try it sometime.

I've been a few times since that day (as I've said before on this site), and these experiences along with my delicious meal at Roxanne's (before it closed) piqued my interest in the philosophy, techniques, and ingredients at the core of raw cuisine. The ingredients in these restaurants are premium, well-treated, and loosely speaking - never heated beyond the point where their nutritional integrity begins to break down. Before I launch into the tasty all-raw peach pie recipe I tried this week, here is a short-list of my favorite raw foods books, links, etc.

Favorite raw/living food cookbooks:

- Living Cuisine written by Renee Loux Underkoffler: If I could only have one book on raw/living cuisine, this would be it. Living Cuisine is encyclopedic in scope and covers the hows and whys of the living foods philosophy. Unlike many voluminous cookbooks that robotically dole out facts and information, Renee's voice comes through loud and clear in her recipe construction, choice of ingredients, and pairings. The recipes I've tried are well-balanced, packed with bright flavors, and many/most of them don't require special equipment like dehydrators. Recipes on my list to try in the near future include: Mermaid Miso Soup, Sweet Pea Mole and Fresh Figs on Jicama, Creamy Cantaloupe Milk, and Sun and Moon Burgers. Renee's website: Euphoric Organics.

- Rainbow Green Live-Food Cuisine by Gabriel Cousens: I haven't had a chance to cook from this one yet, but it looks pretty good - many raw food staples are included here: nut cheeses, pates, dehydrated crackers and breads. If you've cooked from it and have any favorites, let me know.

- SmartMonkey Foods, The Art of Raw: A cute little spiral-bound, limited-edition volume available through the SmartMonkey Foods website.

- Favorite raw website: We Like It Raw
My favorite raw food blogger and one of the earliest food-related audio/podcasters Dhrumil Purohit provides a clean, well-lighted place for raw-food enthusiasts. He logs audio dispatches from restaurants, posts relevant news links, and shares plenty of pictures.

I made the Peaches and Cream Pie from Living Cuisine this week. It was rich, fragrant and delicious. Wayne ate half of it before I had a chance to take a picture of it. He kept shaving little slivers off it when I wasn't looking in hopes that I wouldn't notice - which is fine...until eventually HALF of the pie was gone. You could call it a pie, I made it in a scalloped tart pan, so I kept calling it a tart. It smells heavenly - juicy, ripe peaches accented with a lot of cinnamon and freshly grated nutmeg. The filling is light and very creamy - the sort of filling that would also make a delicious billowy cupcake frosting, and the crust was dense, nutty and tasty as well. You would think being uncooked the crust would be unstructured and have a tough time keeping its shape. Not really the case, you chill the pie before serving, and if you cut the pie in the pan it keeps its shape quite nicely in fact. A lot less temperamental than some of the cooked pies I've made in my life.

One tip: don't over-process the nuts used in the crust, there is a point where they stop being crumbly and start turning into a paste. A paste that seeps quite a lot of natural oils. A little bit of this tart goes a long way - I mean it when I say it is rich, and a small piece is plenty satisfying. Eat too much and you won't want to touch nuts for the foreseeable future.

The last thing I will say about making a raw pie like this is that aside from a little prep work like soaking the nuts ahead of time, the pie comes together much quicker than a traditional baked pie.

Raw Peaches and Cream Pie

1 pie crust (recipe for crust follows)
6 peaches
1 cup whole raw cashews (raw cashew pieces can be used)
1/4 cup raw honey
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 tablespoon non-alcohol vanilla extract
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 teaspoons nutmeg
Pinch of sun-dried sea salt

Prepare the pie crust (recipe below). To make the filling: Cut the peaches in half and remove the pits. Peel the peaches and slice into thin slices. Soak the cashews in 2 cups fresh water for 30 minutes. Drain and rinse. In a blender or food processor, blend cashews, honey, lemon juice, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and sea salt until smooth. Fold the cashew sauce into the sliced peaches. Spread the peach and cashew mixture into the pie crust. Allow to chill for an hour or two in the refrigerator before serving.

Pecan Graham Cracker Crust

2 cups pecans
4-6 soft dates, pitted
1 tablespoon maple syrup or raw honey
2 tablespoons raw carob powder
1 tablespoon cinnamon
2 teaspoons ideally ground fresh nutmeg
1 tablespoon non-alcohol vanilla extract (optional)
Pinch sun-dried sea salt

Soak 1 cup of the pecans in 2 cups fresh water for 2-4 hours. Drain and rinse.

In a food processor, chop 1 cup of dry pecans into a fine meal. Set aside. Chop soaked pecans into a fine meal. Cut or break the dates into pieces. If the dates are dry of very firm, soak them in 1/2 cup of fresh water for 5 minutes to soften. Add date pieces, maple syrup or honey, carob cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla (if desired), and sea salt to the ground soaked pecans and chop until well mixed. It may be necessary to scrape the sides of the food processor with a rubber spatula and continue to chop for a thorough consistency. Add the ground dry pecans and chop until well mixed. The dough should be crumbly but sticky enough to hold a shape when pressed. Press the dough evenly into a pie plate or torte pan. It is best to press the dough to the sides of the plate or pan first and then press into the bottom for even depth.

To scallop the edge of the crust: Use the thumb and forefinger of your dominant hand to pinch the edge of the dough successively around the rim of the plate or pan. Use the forefinger or your other hand to press against the pinches to keep them neat and orderly. Fill, frost, and serve with love.

Serves 8 to 10.

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