Dehydrating Questions

[agumble]

I just got a dehydrator, and I'm really excited to start using it! I have Alissa's book, but most of the recipes require a couple days of sprouting to do, so does anyone have any simple dehydrated recipes?

Also, in terms of sprouting, is it okay to sprout seeds and nuts and then dehydrate them? Because I sprouted sunflower seeds once, and they just weren't satisfying when soggy.

[Eva]

Do a flax cracker recipe!!! You can just soak the seeds for a few hours and it comes out fine, then the crackers are ready the next day. They're grrrreat for having with salsa or guacamole, and they're soooo easy. :)

And I have a sensitivity to Nama Shoyu & Bragg's, which are apparently living but NOT actually raw (if I understand correctly)... I just use sea salt in their place, and I'm not missing a thing.

And if you don't have Teflex sheets, you can just use saran wrap...

[raweater]

Saran wrap is extremely toxic and makes any food that comes in contact with it very toxic. This goes completely against the point of eating raw. I would highly not recomment using toxic plastic to put your food on.

You can read about the dangers of saran wrap/plastics touching food on various health websites like www.newstarget.com and www.mercola.com

[Rawkinlocs]

I just got a dehydrator, and I'm really excited to start using it! I have Alissa's book, but most of the recipes require a couple days of sprouting to do, so does anyone have any simple dehydrated recipes?

Also, in terms of sprouting, is it okay to sprout seeds and nuts and then dehydrate them? Because I sprouted sunflower seeds once, and they just weren't satisfying when soggy.

Yes, you sure can soak/sprout/dehydrate!

[Revvell]

And if you don't have Teflex sheets, you can just use saran wrap...

Uhhh, well, you COULD but I wouldn't recommend it. Highly toxic.

I think if you look carefully you'll find many recipes where you can dehydrate w/out soaking/sprouting. Strawberry Crepes for example.

Revvell

[Eva]

Posted by raweater: Saran wrap is extremely toxic and makes any food that comes in contact with it very toxic. This goes completely against the point of eating raw. I would highly not recomment using toxic plastic to put your food on.
Ya know what? I've had sooooo many benefits from eating raw which haven't been made null and void by having some of them touch plastic on occasion. BUT hey! If you guys choose not to use it ever, great...

I made that suggestion (which I got from Alissa's book) because agumble JUST got her dehydrator and may not yet have the Teflex.

I wasn't trying to ruffle feathers, just be helpful. :eek::o

[Revvell]

Use parchment paper instead.

Revvell << not a guy. Never have been. At least in this lifetime. :D

[raweater]

Ya know what? I've had sooooo many benefits from eating raw which haven't been made null and void by having some of them touch plastic on occasion. BUT hey! If you guys choose not to use it ever, great...

I made that suggestion (which I got from Alissa's book) because agumble JUST got her dehydrator and may not yet have the Teflex.

I wasn't trying to ruffle feathers, just be helpful. :eek::o

Plastic poisoning is a long, slow poisoning, just like smoking. You won't die after one or even 100 packs of cigarettes, it kills you after doing it day after day, year after year. And with the case of plastic poisoning it's probably much faster than smoking because they are highly toxic chemicals where often just a few milligrams are enough to kill or cause severe diseases.

For example, anything sold in cans have been found to have up to and over 200 times the legal limit of toxic chemicals due to the plastic that dissolves in it, and that's not the mention the legal limit is absurdly high (enough to make you sick) to start with, so imagine 200 times that.

[Rawkinlocs]

A LOT of people feel the same about teflex and the material used for it as some of the feelings that have been expressed about plastic...I mean after all, the mesh sheets and the trays are made of plastic...heck, the dehydrator is made of plastic.

I'm just saying...there is ALWAYS gonna be something wrong with something so everyone has to pick and choose their own battles. Organic vs. non-organic, are garlic and onions toxic or are they beneficial...the list goes on and on and depending on who you ask, there will always be "facts" to back up the person's POV. People can get so stressed out trying to make sure every little minute detail is perfect and pure and we don't even live in a perfect, pure world...the stress alone can kill a person slowly or quickly.

So, while I don't use plastic in my dehydrator...if someone uses it once or twice and then when they can, switch over to teflex or parchment or... then people do what they gotta do just as with the whole organic vs. non-organic...you do what you can with where you are.

I'm not arguing for or against plastic...but just would hate to see a huge debate over it.

[SuBu]

Any misstep with raw is such a far cry from what we were doing to our bodies on SAD that I personally believe we can be forgiving.

[agumble]

I'm sorry this turned into such a big debate! I appreciate all the input, but I think this is one subject where everyone might have to agree to disagree and let people have their own views.

And on that note, if anyone has any additional recipes they would like to share, that would be great :D

[Eva]

The pesto-stuffed mushrooms are pretty "quick" and really tasty.

Tough to screw up too!

I hope you don't mind me suggesting recipes that are tough to screw up. I just screwed soooooo many up when I first got my dehydrator. Maybe you don't need the easy ones, though. :o ;)

[RawSweetie]

Hi all~

May I wade in here and ask for feedback about whether I should ditch my plastic tupperware? Seriously, the issue about plastic toxicity is sort of new to me and now I'm wondering.....not to spark a debate (I share Rawkinlocs' point of view).

How would I store my leftovers instead?

[Rawkinlocs]

Hi all~

May I wade in here and ask for feedback about whether I should ditch my plastic tupperware? Seriously, the issue about plastic toxicity is sort of new to me and now I'm wondering.....not to spark a debate (I share Rawkinlocs' point of view).

How would I store my leftovers instead?
RawSweetie, how about starting a brand new thread about this so as not to take/keep agumble's thread too far off topic...thanks!

Agumble, sorry for your thread being hi-jacked and taken in a different direction.

Quick and easy recipes...hmmm...

- fruit leather (basically blended fruit or a smoothie spread out on the teflex (or parchment ;)) and dried.

- Try the onion bread recipe that is floating around here...it's really easy and there is no sprouting involved and it's GOOD!

- Strawberry Crepes (from Alissa's book) are really simple and delicious

- Any of the burger recipes (well, maybe not the "Meat Loaf" as that has barley) but most burger recipes are just nuts, seeds and sometimes mushrooms and that can be eaten on lettuce leaves rather than making bread or buns.

There are actually quite a bit of dehydrator recipes where you don't have to sprout...OH...Alissa's Easiest Crust Pizza is just flax and other stuff but no sprouting - but I have to be honest, that crust is not my favorite but I do prefer the one with buckwheat and buckwheat can actually be soaked for about 4 hours and then used if in a pinch! :)