What's in Your Dehydrator?

Making your own crackers, biscuits, foods and treats in a dehydrator may not seem so “Green” but you actually avoid a lot of packaging waste. You also control what goes into or more importantly what does not go into your food. Dehydrators are so easy to use and if you dry your food goodies at 105 degrees or lower you can preserve the essential enzymes, therefore your treats are considered RAW. If you are not consuming enough raw foods why not give a dehydrator a try! You can pick one up for under one hundred dollars.nHere are some great recipes to get you going with a dehydrator:n nRAW Dehydrated Spicy Crackers Soak 1 strip of dried kelp for 10 minutesnSoak overnight-1 cup sun-dried tomatoesnSoak overnight -1 cup sunflower seedsnSoak overnight - 1/3 cup flax seeds in 1 cup of waternnCut 1/2 onion finely. You can use your favorite, white, yellow, red... 1 1/2 to 2 Tablespoons of Bragg's Liquid Amino Acids.nAdd in thyme, cayenne pepper, sea salt, or cilantro to suite your taste. Combine in blender kelp, sun-dried tomatoes, flax seeds, and 1 cup water. You may need to add more water; you are looking for the consistency of crunchy peanut butter. Blend until smooth. Transfer to a food processor and combine onion, sunflower seeds, Bragg's Liquid Aminos, and seasonings. Mix on high until you have a good texture. Spread on dehydrator sheets with a rubber spatula. You may need to keep a cup of water on hand to dip the spatula into to keep moist. Use the spatula to form lines for the cracker break. Dehydrate at 105 until completely dried. nnDecadent Basil Crackers 4 to 5 cups of carrot or vegetable pulp (you get this from juicing!)n1/2 cup basil, chopped or dried palm full cilantro, choppedn1 clove crushed garlicn2 chopped ripe tomatoesnAbout 1 cup of sprouted and crushed nuts (almonds, sesame, sunflower...etc.)nSea salt, dulse or Braggs Liquid Aminos to tastennMake your cracker mixture and spread into your dehydrator with a spatula. You will need to dehydrate for around 8 hours or till dry. What a great way to make food from compost! Use a spatula to spread over sheets in dehydrator and dry until crunchy.n nEggplant Bacon n nThe Non Bacon Baconn1 large eggplant thinly sliced lengthwisen3/4 c. extra virgin olive oiln1 tsp. cayenne if you like spicy!n2 Tbl. honeyn4 Tbl. Ume Plum VinegarnA dash of sea salt and pepper to taste.nLet this marinate for 2 hours.nDehydrate for approx. 9 hours.nTurn bacon over ½ way through. Dehydrate until crunchy. .nThis yummy treat is a great replacement for bacon.n nRaw Food Kale Chipsn n2 head Kale, washed and tornn¾ cup Tahinin¼ cup Tamarin1/4 cup apple cider vinegarn½ cup watern2 scallionsn½ red pepper chopped smalln1 clove garlicn1 lemon (juice of)n¼ teaspoon Sea Saltn1/4 cup of nutritional yeastn nPreparation:nPlace kale in a large mixing bowl. Combine the rest of the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth to get a thick consistency. You may have to add more water. Pour over kale and mix thoroughly with your hands to coat the kale. You want this mixture to be really glued onto the kale.n nPlace kale into dehydrator sheets and dehydrate for 6 hours @ 105 degrees.n nOrganically Yours,nRenay Matthewsnwww.Organix.Me