Do you find yourself asking, "Where should I store these dehydrated crackers?" or "Can I freeze this raw soup?" Good questions! After all, you want to keep your precious raw ingredients & recipes as fresh as possible, right?

In this post, I will discuss best practices for the storage of whole raw foods and prepared raw dishes, along with storage location and types of containers.

Not Storage Material!

Do not store your oh-so-yummy green smoothie in the fridge. You've probably learned this the hard way! Smoothies are best enjoyed straight out of the blender. If stored in the fridge, smoothies lose flavor and texture (consistency). A big ugh to stored smoothies!

Same with raw soups. Don't store your leftover tomato soup in the blender in the fridge (a double faux pas!).

When it comes to storing salad, don't store leafy greens with dressing already on board. They just aren't happy when you do that! Store your fave dressing in a separate container from your salad to avoid sogginess. 

Store your prepared vegetables in individual containers. Each veggie has a different storage time. Shredded carrots won't last as long as chopped broccoli, for example. Plus you want your flavors to stay true, right? So store your veggies separately!

Where & For How long?

Prepared recipes:

Pates & nut-based spreads/dressings: Savory recipes like Walnut Pate and Alfredo Sauce will store well in the fridge (3 days).

Dehydrated savory recipes: Store in the freezer! If you keep dehydrated items in the fridge, they will absorb moisture and go soft. Yuck! So store in the freezer! Toss your dehydrated goodies (like dehydrated burgers, crackers and pizza crust) in ziploc bags and freeze. Eat right out of the freezer or let sit on counter for 5-10 minutes.

Or you can even toss them in the dehydrator, just long enough to warm them up and take any extra moisture out. Dehydrated crackers retain their consistency and flavor extremely well. I recommend letting them cool off after dehydrating, then putting them straight into the freezer. Any nut-heavy dehydrated savory recipe will keep well in the freezer. Not the fridge!

Two weeks is my maximum freezing time for anything, but that's just me.

Desserts: Most of my raw dessert recipes are stored in the freezer (if it says to store in freezer, then make sure you do!).

This is a necessity for these recipes due to their ingredients (like coconut oil). Fruit-based desserts (like pies) store best in the freezer, as the filling will leak into the crust and go all smooshy. I keep my desserts up to 2 weeks in freezer, if they last that long!

However, recipes like brownies and truffles store well in the fridge for up to a week. They store in the freezer equally well. Frozen brownies taste sooo good!

Raw food ingredients:

Here's a little trick I learned: store your fruits and veggies on the top shelf! This isn't so much about storage as it is about "visibility." When you open your fridge, immediately your eyes will be drawn to your healthy raw food items. It's a psychological thing, and it works (for me, at any rate!).

However, I do prefer my fruits at room temperature, not cold. So while I keep these items in the fridge, every day I put the ones I'm going eat on a plate on the counter. It's a good way to keep track of how much I'm eating as well as rotating out the older items.

Onions and root veggies: Store in a dark cool location.

Nuts & things: Ideally in the fridge or freezer, so the oils in the nuts don't go off. However, I store my nuts, along with seeds (chia, flax, etc) and dried fruits in the pantry, grouped together by type so they're easy to find. I also group together my 'wet' items like honey, olive & coconut oils in the pantry, as well.

Containers

I like to store liquid-y items in glass mason jars. Glass is great for not leaching flavors or oils or color from the item (like from sun-dried tomatoes in oil). Glass pyrex bowls with rubber lids (or good old cling wrap!) also work well.

Tupperware is good, along with ziploc bags for goodies like cookies and crackers.

Ideally, store your food items in containers that offer visibility (yes, again with the visibility!). You want to be able to see what's going on inside!

Questions, Anyone?

I hope this has answered some of your raw food storage questions! Please do feel free to share your favorite storage tips and experiences!

You can also listen to the Raw Food Storage Hacks podcast right now!

Does your raw cake or dessert need a little extra oomph? For chocaholics, there's chocolate icing. For purists, check out the plain frosting or the whipped cream. And for the carrot cake addicts, there's the best raw cream cheese icing ever!

So, next time you whip up a cake, try one of these rawkin' toppings!

Raw Frosting

Use this Raw Frosting anywhere you need just a basic creamy frosting or whipped cream. Its subtle (not overly sweet) flavor is best paired with more 'exciting' flavors, like raspberries or pineapple or whatever you can think of, really!

This recipe does require sunflower lecithin (this gives it its nice fluffy texture) and needs to be chilled for at least 3 hours.

Raw Chocolate Icing

This Raw Chocolate Icing is the answer to your prayers... if you're praying for the best ever smooth, chocolate-y and delicious chocolate icing! Super easy to make, this icing is also ready to use as soon as you make it - no chilling required.

Only four ingredients required for this dee-lish chocolate icing. So make a batch and prepare to fall in love!

Raw Cream Cheese Icing

This Raw Cream Cheese Icing is the perfect partner to raw carrot cake. It's everything a cream cheese icing should be: smooth, creamy & divine!

Coconut oil is the key ingredient in this recipe (makes the icing firm and spreadable).

Raw Whipped Cream

Perfect for topping a slice of cake or a bowl of berries, this Raw Whipped Cream is versatile and delicious. Lemon juice is a surprising, but necessary, ingredient in this recipe!

Since it softens up super fast once out of the fridge, treat like ice cream and serve/eat immediately!

Top this!

These toppings aren't just for cakes! Liven up your berries with a dollop of the raw whipped cream. Raw frosting lends itself beautifully to fresh fruit. Or if you're in that kind of mood, scarf the chocolate icing straight from the bowl! It's up to you!

Mornings are a very busy time of day. And breakfast is said to be the most important meal of the day! I know, you've heard this before, but it never hurts to have a little reminder about how to improve your health. Mornings are busy, but my quick and easy raw food recipes for breakfast are just what you need to kick-start your day.

Rawtarian's Silky Green Smoothie

In making this silky green smoothie recipe, you just need to dump in all your fresh fruits and spinach and the rest of the ingredients in a high-speed blender, and blend until it becomes silky smooth in texture. This raw food recipe for breakfast will take less than five minutes to prepare, and it is satisfyingly delicious!

Raw Oatmeal

How about taking your regular oatmeal up a level with this raw oatmeal recipe? You only need a few ingredients for this raw food recipe for breakfast, but it will make for a filling meal to get you going through the morning. You have an option to soak the raisins and the steel cut oats in water overnight to soften them, or just blend them all in the morning together with the chopped apple. It may take a little bit longer to prepare, but soaking will give that smoother and creamier texture to your raw oatmeal recipe.

Rawtarian's Raw Breakfast Bowl

Here’s another raw food recipe for breakfast that doesn’t need any equipment but takes very little time to whip up. Just shred your apple in a bowl and mix it with the rest of the ingredients until the chia seeds and the shredded coconut absorb the cashew milk (or water). Easy peasy and there you have it! Your hearty raw breakfast bowl is ready to serve and eat.

Raw Porridge

This raw porridge recipe is also a very quick to prepare raw food recipe for breakfast. Just add water to your chia seeds in a bowl and stir immediately to prevent it from clumping. Then add honey and coconut and any other ingredient you would want to add, like pumpkin seeds or almonds or whatever your tastebuds prefer. The optional ingredients are just for a little added flavor. Once your porridge is thick enough, you may top it with raw cashew milk or blueberries. Having this raw porridge in the morning is a good start to your long day ahead!  

Morning Round-Up

The morning rush shouldn't deprive you of enjoying your breakfast, so being able to spend less time preparing what you eat in the morning while still being able to make a substantial and tasty meal is very important. And that is what my raw food recipes for breakfast are all about. So go ahead and try one of them yourself, and you won't have to skip on breakfast again!

Cookies. Need I say more? Well, yes, but I don't really need to! Who doesn't love cookies? They make the best snacks, everyone loves 'em (most everyone!), and being raw cookies, these won't leave you feeling guilty about eating too many!

Keep some on hand for lunches or treats, or for serving up to unexpected visitors. It's always wise to have cookies tucked away for any occasion!

Raw Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Tahini is the magical ingredient that makes these Raw Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies stick together and taste 'peanutty.' Note: there are actually zero peanuts in this recipe (because raw peanuts are a no-no). Chunky pieces of almond add to the texture, and cacao nibs are the 'chocolate chips.' 

You can use raisins instead of cacao nibs, but whatever you decide, these cookies are sweet and delicious!

Raw Cinnamon Raisin "Oatmeal" Cookies

While these Raw Cinnamon Raisin "Oatmeal" Cookies don't contain oatmeal, they really do taste like 'real' cinnamon raisin cookies! Trust me on this one, okay? Almonds and honey provide texture and sweetness to this recipe. Coconut oil holds it all together (because it solidifies when it is cold).

Serve these delightfully tasty treats up with a cold glass of almond milk or ... ?

Raw Vanilla Drop Cookies

Super easy peasy cookies and no equipment required! For an amazing sweet fix, whip up a batch of these Raw Vanilla Drop Cookies. These are freezer cookies, so it's easy to keep a batch on hand for guests (or personal emergencies!).

Coconut oil, coconut and tahini (and vanilla, of course!) are the main ingredients that make these cookies so darn delicious!

Best Raw Chocolate Cookies

So named because they simply ARE the Best Raw Chocolate Cookies! Seriously, these are my fave chocolate-y, fudgy cookies! You can mix everything up, form into cookies and eat right away. Or you can dehydrate for a few hours for optimal warm gooey goodness! (I like 'em warm, myself!)

Either way, these chocolate cookies are truly divine.

Raw Lemon Cookies

Just for you, these simply sinful Raw Lemon Cookies. Only four ingredients - cashews, unsweetened coconut, one lemon (only one!), plus a sweetener (maple syrup or agave nectar). Sweet, creamy, and oh so lemony, this recipe will please every lemon cookie lover in your life, including yourself!

Yes, you have to use a dehydrator but don't let that stop you! You simply must try these lovely lemon cookies!

Easy Almond Pulp Cookies

Here's a recipe that will use up your leftover almond pulp, yay! Easy Almond Pulp Cookies are really super easy to make! Mix everything up, form them into little cookies, and dehydrate. The end result is a light tasty cookie that reminds me of a vanilla wafer.

Other ingredients include coconut and a sweetener (maple syrup or agave nectar).

What's your fave cookie?

Chocolate, lemon, vanilla? The flavors of oatmeal, cinnamon, or peanut butter? Whatever your pleasure, one of these raw cookie recipes will surely hit the spot! You'll def. want some on hand for when I pop over, all righty?

Sauces and condiments are staples you don't want to live without as a raw vegan. Well, maybe you do, but I'm betting at least one of the following recipes will catch your eye (and your tastebuds!). Raw ketchup, raw mayo and raw sour cream are all condiments that add pizzazz to everyday recipes. Same with sauces like raw cheese sauce, raw tomato sauce and raw Alfredo sauce.

Now I can hear you thinking, "But these recipes sound like they are hard to make!" Not true. All of these sauces and condiments are whipped up easily in your blender. Plus, they all taste fantastic, so you have no excuse! Which of the following sauces and condiments appeal to you the most?

Raw Cheese Sauce

This dreamy Raw Cheese Sauce is a staple in my kitchen. Serve it fresh out of your high-speed blender while it's still warm! I love drizzling this cashew-based sauce over broccoli... yum!

This sauce takes on a firmer consistency after refrigeration - kinda like cheez whiz!

Raw Tomato Sauce

For a super versatile sauce, look no further than this Raw Tomato Sauce recipe! Think pizza sauce and spaghetti sauce. Serve over kelp or zucchini noodles. Fresh tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes and olive oil form the basis of this recipe: it is quite strong, so a little goes a long way!

This sauce will keep in your fridge for up to three days.

Raw Alfredo Sauce

This creamy cashew-based Raw Alfredo Sauce is another sauce you must add to your repertoire. Believe me when I say that it's superior to the 'real' stuff. It's that delicious! For a quick meal, serve over zucchini or kelp noodles.

All you need is a blender for this recipe - it's super easy!

Raw Ketchup

No fridge is complete without ketchup, am I right? Fresh tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes and dates (secret ingredient!) form the base of this delicious Raw Ketchup. I must add that no veggie burger is complete without raw ketchup, either!

Super easy to make: all you need is a blender.

Raw Mayonnaise

Mayonnaise is another can't-live-without condiment! This Raw Mayonnaise recipe will suit your needs, whether you're slapping some on a veggie burger, or using it as a rich, tasty dip for veggies.

Macadamia nuts are the surprise ingredient in this raw mayonnaise recipe!

Raw Sour Cream

Are you a sour cream fan? Then you'll love this cashew-based Raw Sour Cream recipe! It's super easy to make - all you need is a blender!

Raw sour cream + raw tacos = a win-win taste explosion!

Yes please to sauces and condiments!

I have to eat my broccoli covered with cheese sauce. And my veggie burger slathered with ketchup and mayo. Tacos and sour cream, of course! These are all classic combinations that are tried and true, but you don't have to stop there. Use your imagination for maximum taste sensation!

How to sprout seeds, you wonder? It's so easy! In this post I've explained how to sprout seeds in a simple, step-by-step format.

Follow me and you'll no longer be wondering how to sprout seeds ever again! It's really so easy. Once you've got the hang of it you'll find it easy to keep a jar of seeds on your windowsill 24/7.

My favourite sprouted seeds are the good ol' standby, alfalfa sprouts, but there are many types of seeds that can be sprouted in a similar fashion. The only difference is the time they take to sprout. The process remains the same.

How to sprout seeds:

• 1. Choose your seeds! Most health food stores offer a variety of seeds that can be sprouted in their bulk section. Some common seeds are alfalfa, mung, broccoli, radish, and adzuki seeds. When in doubt, just ask for some "sprouting seeds" at your local health food store.
• 2. Get ready! You'll need a jar that can "breathe." For example, try taking a canning jar. Cover the top with some cheesecloth (cloth with tiny holes in it) and secure it with a rubber band. The cheesecloth doubles as a strainer.
• 3. Seeds in. Throw a small amount (for example, a tablespoon of alfalfa seeds or 1/4 cup of adzuki beans because they're bigger) of seeds into a jar.
• 4. Soak for 6-8 hours (or overnight). Add a couple of cups of water so that the seeds are totally underwater. Leave the jar upright.

Part II

• 5. Drain. Dump out all the water. You should be able to just leave the cheesecloth on and tip the jar into the sink. Water will come out but the seeds will stay in.
• 6. Rinse and drain again right away. This is important because seeds have a layer of "do not grow" protection on them. You want to make sure this layer is rinsed off because it can inhibit their growth.
• 6. Tip jar on angle and leave alone for 24 hours. Place the jar in a bright spot, like on a windowsill. Leave it alone for 24 hours.
• 7. Keep watered. Every day, sometimes twice a day, give them a good rinse so that everything gets wet, but then drain them again right away. Always leave the jar on an angle so that water can get out and air can get in.
• 8. Eat! Once the sprouts look good enough to eat, just start eating! I keep my jar in the fridge once they look ready to eat. I love to eat sprouts on veggie burgers!

All types of seeds look different when they're ready to eat.

Fresh sprouts are a cost-effective and fun way to keep fresh, organic greens in your diet all year long. Know you know how to sprout seeds!

There are times when even raw vegans just miss eating meat, especially when you’re still a newbie transitioning from a non-raw diet. You feel the craving for that meat texture your palate had been used to for so many years.

But don’t despair just yet because these raw vegan meatless recipes will help you forget about eating animal products and think about raw food the next time a craving crosses your mind. And by mock meat, I mean all natural and no processed food involved. Completely vegan and meatless, of course!

Raw mock "tuna" salad

This raw tuna salad recipe’s flavor comes from its vital ingredient – seaweed. Before making this recipe, presoak the seeds in lukewarm water for an hour or so and rinse them well. Get rid of all the water and place all the tuna pate ingredients in a food processor.

Process on high until the pate mixture becomes very smooth. You may serve this raw tuna pate with some chopped onions, parsley, crackers or even an apple. Be creative and find the perfect combination that suits your taste.

Raw walnut pate

This is one savory raw vegan dish you’ll surely love. It’s quick to make and tastes so good it won’t last for too long.

Set aside the soy sauce first and then process the rest of your raw walnut pate ingredients in a food processor until smooth and cream-cheese-like. Add the soy sauce (important!) to the mixture and process again for a bit more. Scoop the pate on cucumber rounds (cracker-style) and they're ready to eat!

Raw taco filling

If you’re still having a hard time transitioning to raw food, it’s great to have flavorful vegan “meat” like the raw taco meat recipe once in a while. It really helps satisfy that sudden craving. This recipe’s ingredients are sundried tomatoes soaked in oil, walnuts, olive oil, chili powder, cayenne pepper, and sea salt.

Simply mix all the ingredients in a food processor until you reach a nice taco filling consistency. I like serving mine on romaine lettuce topped with tomatoes and fresh sprouts.

Raw vegan mock "chicken" salad

So maybe this raw mock meat vegan recipe doesn’t taste chicken-like, but I tell you, the texture is so much like chicken salad! And it’s really comparably tasty in its own raw vegan food right. You’ll need a food processor for this raw vegan chicken salad recipe.

Dump all the ingredients into your food processor and process for only a few seconds. It should still be chunky and not over-processed. Transfer the chicken salad onto a plate and eat up! It’s best to eat it right away because it doesn’t keep well for long. However, you may let it sit for about 30 minutes after processing to allow the flavors to combine. You may also serve it in lettuce wraps and top with optional slices of avocado.

Raw fake "bacon" lettuce tomato sandwich

Do you miss the texture of bacon? Thought so! But you don’t have to go back to eating the typical fatty and oily bacon. This raw bacon lettuce tomato sandwich may not have anything that looks remotely like bacon, but you will be astounded at just how much dulse seaweed can parade as bacon!

To make you very own vegan BLT sandwich raw style, just spread raw mayonnaise or raw ranch on a piece of romaine lettuce, add sliced tomatoes, and finally the dulse seaweed. Put together only when you’re ready to eat for the best raw fake “bacon” experience.

Raw vegan mock meat recipes

Now that you have a list of raw mock meat vegan recipes in your arsenal, whenever you’re having a difficult time during your transition or if you simply want to spice up a recipe with a traditional texture sometimes, you can make one of these standby raw mock meat recipes instead. Before you know it, you’ll probably never even entertain thoughts about meat anymore. Seriously!

Ever want to try out a small version of a Rawtarian recipe to see if you'll like it? Hate wasting expensive ingredients on large recipes? Have a big family or raw food business that you need to prepare large recipes for? Well you're in luck: you can now adjust recipe serving sizes up and down here on my recipes! Ingredient amounts will adjust automatically. Works with both cups/tbsp (customary) and ml/grams (metric)!

I have wanted this feature since 2009 when I first started this website! And I have certainly received countless requests for this, since it is so handy. And this feature is finally here and live on each recipe!

To use this feature, simply click on the small edit (pencil) icon near the "servings" section on each recipe - then you can select your desired serving size from a drop-down menu, and the ingredients will update automaticaly.  (Alternatively, click on the number of servings in the ingredients area, and this will get you to the same drop-down menu.)

I took care to manually set the minimum and maximum size for each of my 100 free recipes and my 115+ TRK recipes. This is because, as you can imagine, some recipes just will not blend or process properly if the size too tiny or too huge! Thus, the available serving sizes vary for each recipe--from as small as 1 serving to up to 50 servings in some cases!

Generally, though, the best bet is to use the serving size that is a best fit yet is as closest to the "default" serving size as possible. Because of course, when multiplying a recipe by, like, 20, things get a little sketchy! But doubling, tripling etc is usually a no-brainer.

For those of you with my apps, this feature will hopefully be included in the next app that I am working on, which will be a new and improved version of my "raw recipes" app.

If you have any problems, bug reports or thoughts about how to improve this adjustable serving-size feature, I would love to hear from you!

Contest now closed. Congrats to Kinsey for winning this sweet nuts.com prize pack!

Oh  yeah, it's time for another fine contest here at The Rawtarian! You know I like to spoil you with goodies, especially RAW GOODIES!

How does winning a raw nuts and sweets variety pack from nuts.com sound?

Pretty darn good? Then keep on reading...

Just a few of the things that are included in your prize pack...

• Organic almonds
• Organic cacao nibs
• Organic cacao goji energy squares
• Raw acai blueberry superfood cereal

And more!

Enter to win now!

To qualify for the giveaway, leave a comment below filling in the blank: "My favorite raw recipe that uses nuts is ____________!"

The winner will be announced on December 3, 2014, so stay tuned!

The Story

You are on a bus full of people. It's traveling fast along a road. It's fun on the bus. Everyone is laughing and dancing and having a good time.

While dancing, you look out the window. You see a yellow sign whiz by. It says, "Caution: Road Closed Ahead. Danger!"

You turn to others on the bus. You say, "Did you see that sign? It said,  'Road closed ahead!'"

The others on the bus just shrug, laugh and keep dancing. "We didn't see a sign!"

You forget about it, and continue dancing. But as the bus rolls along you notice another street sign: "Caution. Road ends ahead. Steep drop. Extreme danger. Turn around immediately."

You turn to your seatmate and point, "There, did you see THAT sign? It said that the road is going to end. Didn't you see the sign?" Your seatmate says, "I didn't see the sign. Are you sure? You must be imagining things."

Next, you see a huge red billboard on the side of the road. "Road ends in 50 meters. Last exit before road drops off! Danger!"

Still, the others on the bus are oblivious to the signs. And the people on the bus start to think that you are the crazy one, imagining signs that they cannot see.

Asking the bus driver to stop the bus to let you off is hard. And watching the bus pull away while you're standing alone on the side of the road is a dark, lonely moment.

Your Journey

But once you start walking something beautiful will happen. You'll see a figure up ahead - another person walking ahead of you.

You pick up the pace to catch up. Finally, out of breath, you're close enough to talk. You ask, "Where are you going?"

They answer, "Well, I was traveling on a bus, but I kept seeing these signs..."

Are you still on the bus? Have you seen the signs? I will walk with you.

Yours truly,