Eva’s Raw Vegan Brazil Nut Chocolate Milkshake

Boo! It is my last day with the glorious food bloggers from Uncooking 101. Piggies, if you haven't acquainted yourself with Eva and Venita you are just not maximising your RAWkstar potential. These women ROCK! Their community of passionate raw foodies is pretty inspiring too. Check out their Facbook Page and website and join the interesting conversation on this raw recipe blog. You will learn a lot about the power of live raw foods. As the writer of a vegetarian recipe blog, I have had a wonderful week swapping delicious raw vegan recipes with these ladies. Over at Healthy Blender Recipes we have dipped our snouts in the delectable "better-than-ranch" dressing and the "better-than-tequila" margarita; and the RAWkstars over at Uncooking101 have been snouting down on some of our raw vegan favourites. They featured our Raw Vegan Chocolate Cinnamon Mousse; the Raw Vegan Avocado Gazpacho; our Raw Vegan Zesty Lime Corn Salad; Raw Vegan Broccoli Salad; the Raw Vegan Breakfast Bombs that I shared in one of my Chow Tips; and the Raw Vegan Chocolate Fruit Balls.

I made these little balls of raw Heaven to take as vegan snacks to the Peter Gabriel concert in Santa Barbara last night, and they were confiscated by leering security guards, who I swear, mistook them for contraband "hash" treats! OK, perhaps that was just my nostalgic imagination. I think they were really protecting the livelihood of the toxic omnivore colon-clogging vendors trying to make a living at the Santa Barbara Bowl. However, once Peter transported us all to "Solsbury Hill" the air was smelling festive enough for the neighbours five blocks away to share in the high!  Piggies, it is official. I am IN LOVE….with Peter Gabriel. That man is a poet…..a magician….a wonder. I swear i had to wipe my seat! If you are in the United States, BEG BORROW or STEAL a ticket to one of these shows. A-MAZING!

But I digress. We are celebrating our week with the ladies from Uncooking101, and my love of RAWkstars, not British rockstars. And no self-respecting piggy celebration would be complete without chocolate! Lots of chocolate! When I was uncooking my way through Eva's flavour-filled recipes I realized that a Brazil Nut Milk recipe was glaringly absent from the healthy piggy repertoire. So rather than post my favourite Brazil Nut recipe, I decided to share Eva's "Easiest Chocolate Milkshake Ever", which uses Brazil Nuts as the base. Piggies, if you haven't tried milking Brazil nuts, you are just letting the best in raw nutty life pass you by. Raw home made Brazil Nut milk is a more exotic "mylk" that has to be one of the best kept secrets in the raw vegan world! It is not to be missed! Brazil nut milk is absolutely delicious, nutritious and makes an unbelievable raw milk that is phenomenal in smoothies. Once you taste a smoothie made with Brazil nut milk, you will never look back. It is just to die for!

Like other home made raw vegan milk, Brazil nut milk is easily made by grinding raw soaked Brazil nuts with some filtered water in a high-speed blender, like a Vitamix. What I love about Brazil nuts is that they are picked from pristine forests in the wild, rather then from cultivated plantations. The tree envelopes the seeds and forms a large capsule-like coating similar to a coconut, that, when opened, contains a number of (about 10) three-sided shelled seeds which we know as Brazil nuts. When shelled, these seeds are rich and creamy with a dark brown skin, and are absolutely loaded with beneficial nutrients. Brazil nuts are one of the richest sources of selenium (about 2,500 times more than any other nut), making them a fantastic “complete vegetarian protein” with a full amino acid profile. Just two raw Brazil nuts accounts for the daily requirement of Selenium. Selenium intake has been linked to heart and prostate health; is known to prevent cancer, combat viruses and boost immunity. Some studies have also shown it to have anti-aging properties. OK piggies! That got your attention. They contain the amino acid Methionine, which promotes antioxidant production that combats free radical damage and premature aging. Brazil nuts are also a good source of calcium, iron, zinc, magnesium and Vitamin B.

I try to drink a few glasses of home made Brazil nut milk a week to get my brain food fix! Or I just slip a few raw Brazil nuts into my mouth every day. To make home made Brazil nut milk just soak 1 cup of raw Brazil nuts for about 4 hours and blend them in a high speed blender with 3-4 cups of filtered water, depending on how rich you want your milk. You can then strain the milk with a cheesecloth, nut milk bag or knee high stocking. But I like it rustic and whole. You can then flavour this milk with a teaspoon of vanilla extract, a couple of tablespoons of raw agave nectar and a pinch of Celtic sea salt. If you want a richer, creamier milk you can always add a couple of tablespoons of organic coconut butter. Try making chocolate Brazil nut milk by adding raw cacao nibs, cocoa powder or carob powder. It is scrumptious! Berries, cinnamon, honey or ginger are also spectacular additions. Commercial Brazil nut milk is not available so you will have to make your own. Give it a go! You will not believe how fantastic it is.

But back to this raw milkshake, which I swear has cocaine in it! This is one of my favourite Vitamix recipes! If you are looking for a really interesting raw smoothie or vegan smoothie this is it! The Brazil nuts have a really interesting flavour which sets this vegan chocolate milkshake apart from your hog-standard chocolate shakes. Eva hasn't used any additional sweetener, which I love. But it might not be sweet enough for some piggies. I added about 6 raw pitted dates to the mixture and it more closely resembled a more mainstream flavour. You could also use raw agave, yacon syrup or coconut sugar. Oh My! That was good! I feel a piggy bliss coma coming on. Give this raw smoothie a spin in your kitchen. If not for the taste and ease, drink it for the selenium boost. It is also one of the best gluten and dairy free recipes for children. If you are looking for allergy free recipes, this is a good one. It is gluten free, dairy free, egg free, soy free and sugar free. But certainly not taste free! It really is one of the best Vitamix recipes or blender recipes out there!

Oink Oink to the Uncooking101 community. It has been just s'blended spending the week with you. I will always remember that you were my first "Recipe Trough Swap". 

This recipe published here with permission from Uncooking 101.