Cookbook Thursday: 'Practically Raw' reissued

            Looking to eat healthier? Andrews McMeel Publishing has reissued in a new full-color edition Chef Amber Shea Crawley’s “Practically Raw: Flexible Raw Recipes Anyone Can Make.”

            Dishes range from almond butter-sesame noodles, vegetable korma masala and a Spanish garden paella to comfort foods such as strawberry cheesecake gelato and “Just-like-grandma’s banana pudding.” And then there are those recipes perfect for summer: numerous styles of hummus, kale chips and easy soups such as the chilled watermelon soup and a spicy curried carrot-coconut soup.

            I’ve included an interesting recipe for pizza kale chips, proving what Chef Amber writes, that “you can make kale taste like whatever you want.”

Pizza Kale Chips

From “Practically Raw: Flexible Raw Recipes Anyone Can Make” 

1/4 cup sunflower seeds, soaked for 2 to 4 hours and drained

1/4 cup hempseeds

1/4 cup nutritional yeast

1/4 cup sundried tomatoes, soaked for 30 minutes and drained

1/2 large red bell pepper, seeded and chopped

1 clove garlic, peeled

2 tablespoons lemon juice

2 tablespoons filtered water

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional)

1 bunch kale, tough stems removed, roughly chopped (6 to 8 cups)

Directions: Combine all ingredients except kale in a high-speed blender and blend until smooth, adding a splash of water if needed to blend. In a large bowl, combine the kale and the pizza sauce. Use your hands to massage the sauce all over the kale, making sure it’s coated completely.

Make it Raw: Arrange the kale in a single layer on a Teflex-lined dehydrator tray. Dehydrate for 8 hours or overnight, until crisp.
            Make it Baked: Preheat the oven to 300 degrees and grease a baking sheet with coconut oil. Arrange the kale in a single layer on the baking sheet and bake for about 15 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and use a fork or spatula to carefully flip the kale chips over (it’s okay if you miss a few). Bake for 5 to 10 more minutes, watching carefully to make sure the kale doesn’t burn, then remove from the oven and let cool completely.

Chere Dastugue Coen is the author of "Forest Hill, Louisiana: A Bloom Town History," "Exploring Cajun Country: A Historic Guide to Acadiana" and "Haunted Lafayette, Louisiana" and co-author of "Magic's in the Bag: Creating Spellbinding Gris Gris Bags and Sachets." She also writes Louisiana romances under Cherie Claire, including "A Cajun Dream" and "The Letter." Write her at cherecoen@gmail.com.