I came across this and was pleased and grateful for Tamara Palmer. I was glad she tried and liked our Cardamom Sesame Apple Fig Brackers! I just love surprises like this!
Urban Table brings certified farmers, food trucks and food artisans to the folks in the SF Bay Area.They have some rockin' organic vendors and can be found in multiple locations weekly .www.urbantable.org/ The Jewish Community Center in Foster City is probably one of the nicest JCC's I have seen. What I love about all JCC's I have personally visited or belonged to is they service the whole community, folks of all ethnicity, religion and age. www.pjcc.org/ People were lovin the sun dried chocolate dipped bananas today!
We now have our Amai Raw Chocolate available by the ounce. This offering is for those of you who have desired a high quality raw cacao based chocolate without fillings or basically "naked". There are so many applications besides "just eating" the solid chocolate. Shaved chocolate over desserts adds texture, taste and appearance. It is easy, simply get out your kitchen shredder/scraper and shave the chocolate onto your favorite ice cream type desserts or even into a hot almond milk as a soothing drink.
I love pine nuts If one is a vegan ..they can be easily manipulated into so many dishes to create the essence and flavor of butter. For our Amai Raw Chocolate I am only willing to use domestic and often wild crafted pine nuts. One will be hard pressed to find organic pine nuts. I have recently discovered organic pine nuts from China but have opted out of purchasing them. In this instance I am not as concerned with organic as I am with freshness and the certainty the pine nuts have been stored in a cool or cold environment to preserve the fragile oils in the nut. I have gone to great lengths and expense to get high quality domestically grown pine nuts. .Each season the question is "will there be enough domestic pine nuts available to make our CaraMacaMel variety of Amai RawChocolate throughout the year?" So far, so good!
As far as purchasing and storing pine nuts, be sure whomever you buy your nuts from has them in a cooler and the appearance of the nut is more whitish creamy color without being yellow..If they are yellow and if they have been hanging on shelves (for who knows, how long?) I would venture to say there is the chance they are rancid or on their way to being rancid. Store your pine nuts in the fridge or freezer and of course attempt to use them in their raw state.
Well...I have been a little more educated on the recently (NOT) passed Prop.37..From what I understand they were on the right course but the details and technicalities were too convoluted to effect a YES vote across the board. I understand how folks were influenced to vote No and as suspected, people actually were instilled with fear of even larger food costs.. The way Prop.37 was outlined, even if it did pass, could have been unnecessarily burdensome on small business owners. That aspect and apparently the wording and structure of the Proposition would not have done, in my mind,what it was meant to do. It seems that the big corporate GMO loving folks would have been able to side step the basic disclosure of existence of GMO in their products with a loophole of vague communication on labels.. What I would love to see is a very basic YES or NO statement and disclosure. Either GMO elements are in the food or not , case closed, end of story. Nothing lofty, just as Joe Friday from Dragnet used to say, "Just the facts,Ma'm" Well if we're breathing their is still hope! This is not the end of the story. I believe there will be another and even better designed Proposition where our NO GMO sentiments will have a voice and be effective.
I almost cannot believe it! Are people totally mad? Did the mandatory labeling of GMO foods bill not pass cause voters actually believed their food costs would go up? I am baffled..I realize big business like General Mills, Hershey, Coca-Cola Company, Smuckers ,Cargil went to great lengths and expense to influence voters. I guess it worked. One television ad against Proposition 37 had a pretty sick looking fat Medical Doctor (spokesman) who said Prop 37 was scientifically flawed and if passed, would be costly to consumers. Every time I saw this ad I thought "surely people can look at this guy and realize he doesn't have a clue about health"?
I have to hand it to the owner of Earthbeam Natural Foods a very long standing "health" store in Burlingame CA. Weeks ago David removed all "seemingly " healthy products from his shelves who are owned by some of the above named corporations.He calls these companies "GMO lovers" His stance is, if you support these companies in anyway ..you are supporting the use of GMO's as these companies all support and use GMO. He replaced products from these companies with similar products but from companies with a conscience. I was surprised to find a product I use regularly (San Pelligrino water for one) is owned by Nestle. You might be surprised to know Kashi is owned by Smuckers, Arrowhead (water) Nestle, Honest Tea (Coca Cola) Smart Water (Coca Cola) Dagoba (Hershey) and here is one most people don't know, Lara Bar (General Mills) .if you are in support of the vision of Prop.37 but continue to purchase products from these companies, aren't you feeding their GMO coffers? I think perhaps the only immediate way to effectively influence these massive conglomerates is by not purchasing any of their products.
Well not much to do at this point but be even more scrupulous in my purchasing and sourcing of ingredients.. I buy almost all my personal produce at local Farmers Markets, Whole Foods, and Rainbow Grocery in San Francisco. The raw ingredients for Amai Raw are all Organic or Wildcrafted and GMO free
Well, another great Artisan Day at Williams-Sonoma in Walnut Creek. I was graciously welcomed by Thia Boggs Culinary Specialist. To me, she looks so Williams-Sonoma(ish)! I love being at Williams-Sonoma!
Hello! Welcome! I have spent months trying to get this site up for you and I was beginning to think it would never happen!! So, I am particularly glad to finally be able to share with you what I do and what we have to offer you!
I have been making raw
vegan food for a long time and have fed many people. Amai Raw Chcocolate and
Brackers! are just another form of expression of what can be done with superior
organic raw ingredients. I love raw food
and it's endless applications,and I really love when, people ..like you, "get what I amdoing" and love my food too!! AmaiRaw Chocolate and Brackers!
are so beyond anything "out there" it is hard to convey,with words,
what the taste, texture and quality is
like...it is simply, an experience
Something has to happen
when I start to play around with combinations of flavors, textures and
ingredients. If I don't get ecstatic and find it hard to stop eating what I
have made(cause it is SO good) You are never going to see it. So everything starts
with me. If I love it, then, I want to share it with others! It all starts with a new idea, lots of
incredible whole raw ingredients, enthusiasm, a bit of trial and error until
I reach what I am looking for ..Perfection!!!
From Scratch With Love, Janice
For those of you in the Northern CA area..this Saturday October 27, We will be guest artisans at the amazingly gorgeous Williams-Sonoma Walnut Creek Noon-4 P.M for sampling and selling of Brackers! and AmaiRaw Chocolate..Hope to see you there!
Amai Raw Chocolate and Brackers! can be found in the No.CA area at Rainbow Grocery Cooperative, Other Avenues, Earthbeam, and Oceana Market (Pacifica)
Hello! Welcome! I have spent months trying to get this site up for you and I was beginning to think it would never happen!! So, I am particularly glad to finally be able to share with you what I do and what we have to offer you!