This whole meal started as an attempt to embody four things: quick, tasty, affordable and raw. Eating ounces and ounces of nuts everyday isn't exactly cheap over here (2 pounds of most nuts costs 20 euros or more). Organic seaweed is also pricey, as well as avocados and coconuts. This meal altogether is pretty affordable, albeit still contains some nuts (cashews) but they are not necessary. Naturally, one doesn't always have hours and hours soak or dehydrate time either. Sometimes you just need a quick & satisfying meal.
My husband mentioned few days ago that he misses my tzatziki, the delicious greek meze made of greek yogurt, cucumber and spices. It used to be one of his favorite things with my homemade bread. Ok, an easy way of making vegan and dairy-free, even raw I guess, tzatziki would be to use soy yogurt. It is usually a pretty processed food, and like I've mentioned I like to keep my soy consumption to the minimum. Then there countless recipes for plant/nut yogurts made with rejuvelac, which is made of wheatberries and a no-go for my gluten-sensitive self. Thankfully Ilon Pisara posted a recipe for homemade, purely natural & naturally gluten-free & soy-free, millet yogurt.I figured I could use the millet yogurt I made last weekend.
Homemade Millet yogurt:
2 C millet rinsed over and over again
1 2/3 C filtered water
Rinse the millet grains (whole but hulled) like a dozen times, soak for 24h. Drain and blend until smooth with 1 2/3 C new water. Pour in a sterilized glass container and seal with a lid. Allow to do it's magic in room temp for 48h. Transfer to fridge, will keep for about a week. For sweeter yogurt blend with your favorite fruit and berries right before consuming. I've tried dried dates with blueberries and once banana with gooseberries.
Dairy-free, Gluten-free, Soy-free Tzatziki:
1 C plain millet yogurt
1/2 C cashews
1 C shredded english cucumber (drain excess water)
1-3 cloves garlic (we had 2 big)
2 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
2-3 Tbsp extra virgin, cold pressed olive oil
Himalayan salt, pepper (generously both)
Shred english cucumber. Powder cashews in a blender/food processor, add yogurt, cucumber and flavorings. Taste and adjust to your liking.
Mediterranean olive tapenade:
1 C mixed organic black calamata and greek green olives
1 clove garlic
4 tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp lemon juice
2 Tbsp fresh parsley
Dried (or fresh if you have some) basil, thyme & oregano, ground black pepper
Wrap sauces and veggies in your choice of lettuce! We had (maybe not too Mediterranean) mung sprouts, zucchini, tomato, red bell pepper and used napa cabbage as the wrap because I had some at hand. This dish is so versatile and a lot of fun. And my husband, a real tzatziki fan, really loved these wraps and said it tasted just as good as the real thing =)
Btw, I have a ton of recipes to post from my quick hiatus, so keep coming back.. I'll try to make it worth your while :)
2 comments:
OMG, millet yogurt! How insanely creative!
I couldn't agree more, too bad I can't take credit for that invention! I just thought of some ways to flavor the yogurt, like date-gooseberry yogurt (with dash of vanilla!) and this Greek tzatziki.
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