My biggest food weakness!

[adiamond]

I absolutely adore potato chips (the salty greasy kind, not the baked one) and popcorn. Those two are going to be my biggest obstacles, as they have been on every diet I've ever tried! I'm okay with fruits, veggies, and other uncooked foods, but sometimes I think I'd sell my soul for a bag of chips. Any suggestions for some raw snacks would best satisfy a potato-chip-oholic? Thanks!

Izzy

[trinity082482]

If you have a food dehydrator why not make your own? Stack your dehydrator full of them so you can store them when you have a chip attack ;)

[Sharon in Colorado]

Try Just Corn, it's a great popcorn sub. Usually in the produce area in health food stores.

http://www.justtomatoes.com/media/product/corn.jpg

[trinity082482]

What is that Sharon? :confused:

[Rawkinlocs]

Believe it or not, KALE chips!

I've been making them and they're really good. There are a few renditions floating around in the recipe section but I make mine teriyaki-style (don't have exact measurements, but here are approximates):

1 head/bushel of kale
Nama Shoyu (maybe about 1/2 c. give or take)
about 1/4 tsp. each of garlic and onion powder or more to taste
couple TBS. of Agave nectar
1/2 tsp. or so of ginger powder
1/4 c. olive oil
1/4-1/2 water

I wisk up all the liquids and spices in a large bowl and set aside. Then, I wash and de-stem/vein the kale (only the large vein right down the middle). Either cut or tear the kale leaves into desired sized pieces, put into the marinade and really mix and squish the mixture into the leaves really well. Then I allow it to sit overnight (usually leave it on the counter and just cover the bowl with plastic wrap or something) and then the next morning, I kinda squeeze out the excess and put on the mesh tray in the dehydrator (make sure to have something under the tray to catch the drippings...I just tear off some of my parchment paper and line the bottom of the dehydrator and then I put the tray of kale on the very bottom shelf right above the parchment.

Dehydrate all day until the next day and they should be nice and crunchy/crispy by then. Even my kids like them. Just taste the marinade before mixing in the kale to see if it's to your liking...I like mine kinda sweet like actual teriyaki so I tend to add a bit of agave until it's like I want it...but if you prefer, you can have them more savory than sweet.


You could use any seasonings you like, though...even spicy. But the kale dries nice and crispy-like. Even my kids like them!

Another one that's pretty good is taking some raw nori sheets (I get mine from Alissa's website), rubbing a little olive oil on them and sprinkling seasonings of choice and dehydrating. Not as crispy as the kale chips, but still good.

I still get my chip cravings too and if I don't have my stash of raw crunchies made up already, sometimes I give in to the chips...but if you can manage to keep those kale chips around and on hand, it just may be the solution!

[mongomango]

If you have a dehydrator, soak pumpkin or sunflower seeds overnight, rinse and let sprout for 5 hours or so. Mix a little olive oil with some salt, garlic powder, and cayenne and with your hands mix the seeds in it until each seed is coated. Dehydrate on paraflexx sheet or waxed paper overnight at 105. I actually let mine dehydrate about 18 hours at a somewhere between 100 and 105. You can make up other flavors as well. Also, the first time you do it go easy on the spices because they become more concentrated as they dry...and use less oil than you think you need because the oil really goes a long way and you can find yourself blotting oil off them when they're done.

[MaryWalker]

Kale Chips . . . . oohhhh! I've got to try that soon.

I've tried making the potatoe chips and they just were not that great.

Zuccini chips marinated in italian dressing from Alissa's book are WONDERFUL also! Alissa's assistants made these for us while at her B&B for class, and I couldn't get enough of them.

[Veganforlife]

Oh, I agree, the kale chips are very good! I haven't tried them your way Rawkinlocs - I'll have to!
The MAIN thing? Don't have any temptations in your house. No chips or popcorn! Get rid of it. And the more raw you eat? The more those cravings WILL go away...

[adiamond]

Oh, these sound like wonderful ideas! I have a dehydrator on its way, but it's not getting here fast enough! I've also ordered the book/dvd set from this site. I have a few un-cook books that I've been referring to, but I find that the "simpler" recipes are very heavy on the nuts (not that I have anything against nuts, love them in fact, but sure sounds like a lot), and one of the books is a bit "too gourmet" for my style, ingredient lists and instructions as long as my arm! Not gonna happen!

I've been raw for several days and no weight loss yet (bummer dude) but I just keep telling myself that this is for my overall health and well being and that the weight loss (also for my health and well being) will come. The most major thing I've noticed thus far is NO ACID REFLUX! For months I've been eating antacids like candy, have a bottle of them in every room, and I've not taken a single one in the 1-1/2 weeks I've been eating raw (cooked dinner throughout of brown rice and lightly steamed veggies). That's almost worth the price of admission.

Thanks again for the chip suggestions. I can't want to give them a try as soon as my 'hydrator arrives.

Izzy

[Vegan Princess]

I eat yam chips every day! I just slice them in the food processor and sprinkle with garlic and salt (whatever chipish flavors you want) and dehydrate for 8-10 hours at 115. They get crispy and they are salty...satisfies my craving. I love them!

[Missrawdiva]

Rawkinlocs, do you have a pic of Kale chips? Sounds good!

[Sharon in Colorado]

What is that Sharon? :confused:

All it is, is dehydrated corn kernels, very light and crispy. Many of us here have contacted them and they have been dried at low temps.

[raw-siobhan]

I found a place online that sells the just corn as well as other "just..." stuff. It says they are freeze dried. Is that alright as far as raw goes? If so, have you all tried more than just the corn? Also is the corn super hard and crunchy or not so ouch-that-hurts-my-teeth kind of crunchy? I am really interested in this stuff.

[Rawkinlocs]

Missrawdiva, the next time I make the kale chips, I'll post a photo.

Siobhan, the Just Corn is not break-your-teeth-hard at all...it's very light and crispy/crunchy. But I had posted once that you can take fresh corn, cut it from the cob and dehydrate it and get the same effect. I had done that before trying the Just Corn and then last weekend I bought a bag for the first time just to try it out and see if it tasted the same as what I made myself and while it LOOKS better than mine did, the flavor and the crunch was the same. So, I'll just make my own. But it HAS to be fresh corn because I think Sharon tried it with frozen and it turned out too hard to chew. But mine with the fresh was a more light and "airy" type of crunch.

[luckitri]

Rawkinlocs, Did you buy that fancy dancy corn kernel remover I saw somewhere? I have a hard time getting the kernels off cleanly - it gets too juicy & I think all the nutrition is leaking out. Suggestions for getting them off easy and completely?

[Rawkinlocs]

Rawkinlocs, Did you buy that fancy dancy corn kernel remover I saw somewhere? I have a hard time getting the kernels off cleanly - it gets too juicy & I think all the nutrition is leaking out. Suggestions for getting them off easy and completely?

Nahhh...I just use a knife. I guess the "trick" would be to use a really sharp knife and get as close to the cob as you can.

[luckitri]

OK. Thanks! Now I think the corn we have been getting at all the stores here in AZ is GE corn because the taste is so nothing. Not even the dogs or chickens would eat it for a couple of years now! I will try the HFS corn. Pricey but hopefully has a flavor.