This is a very simple but yummy recipe for mulled wine that I make every Christmas. I use organic wine to ensure a premium quality drink :)

In the pan where you are going to prepare the mulled wine, put two cups freshly squeezed (organic) orange juice to simmer with orange, lemon and lime peel studded with 6 cloves, 1 inch ginger (peeled), 1 cinnamon stick, 5 cardamom, a few bay leaves, 1 nutmeg and 1 vanilla pod.

After a couple of minutes of simmering add 3 tablespoons coconut sugar and 1 cup organic red wine and continue simmering for a few more minutes to infuse the wine with the spices. Keep simmering until the sugar has fully dissolved and then add 2 bottles of organic red wine and warm gently until you are ready to serve.

NOTE- you might want to check the sugar content before serving and adjust if necessary.

Psyllium husk is and effective and natural intestine cleansing agent. It is extracted from the seeds coating of the Psyllium plant.

Psyllium husk is a bulking agent (mucilage). When it comes in contact with water, it swells and absorbs anything heavier than the husk- it can absorb anything which is 8 to 16 times higher than its weight. When taken orally, it swells within the intestine to a gel, helping to absorb toxins and speed the transit time of waste through the intestine reducing the toxic build-up that can occur during juice fasting.

It also helps to get out the mucoid plaque out from the body- this is all the combination of mucus-like material and food residue that coats the gastrointestinal tract of most people.

Basically, consuming psyllium husk is an effective, natural and a cheap way to keep bowel free of toxins and healthy.

Get in touch now to start one of our detox packages! detox@blissbites.co.uk

Is that time of the year when is cold outside and we fancy something warm and heating with a hint of Christmas flavour. This is the time for chai spice lattes!

This simple recipe serves 2 people

1 cup water

1 tablespoon chai spice mix (the one that comes with black tea or roiboos tea already)

2 cups nut milk

1 tablespoon coconut sugar

Put the water to boil and simmer with the chai spice for a few minutes. Then add the coconut sugar and nut milk, mix until warm and serve.

Ta cha!

By Rich Havardi

Last Friday 21st September, in partnership with wonderful raw food chef Irene Arango, founder of Bliss Bites and Detox, we ran the first in series of classes focusing on different cuisines from around the world. Entitled ‘World Raw Food Series’. These workshops are designed to teach skills, tips, techniques and recipes so that people can go away and create tasty dishes successfully and with minimum effort and maximum benefit to health and vitality. This workshop included a 2 hour demonstration followed by a sit down dinner and was based around the ever popular Italian cuisine in an intimate little café in Queens Park.

We started off with an introduction and refreshments. We also served some tasty carrot and buckwheat bruschettas topped with tangy tomato salsa and pesto, which didn’t last very long and certainly tickled the tastebuds of our guests!

Irene and myself then gave a brief introduction about our journeys into raw food and the numerous health benefits it has offered us. We have both noticed a profoundly positive change to our energy levels, vitality and overall physical and emotional wellbeing since bringing more living plant based foods into our diet. We do not advocate a strict 100% raw diet, but rather encourage people to increase the amount of raw foods they are eating, to a balance that suits them.

Following the introduction we proceeded to make a number of dishes, with excellent and enthusiastic participation from our guests. I demonstrated how to make the raw vegan lasagne, probably our most popular dish at the organic café I work at and absolutely bursting with flavour. It consists of four layers; a portobello mushroom and sundried tomato ‘meat layer’, tomato sauce, yellow pepper and cashew cheese and pesto, deliciously sandwiched between marinated courgette strips.

Irene, a true expert in creating delicious raw desserts, demonstrated how to make a raw tiramisu, surely a one of the most highly prized sweet Italian exports!

By Rich Havardi

First she made the cookie base, which contained ground almonds, dates and cold pressed coffee. The next layer was a decadent layer of raw chocolate and the final layer was a rich coconut cream, a beautiful blend of fresh coconut milk, coconut oil and cashews. All the layers came together to produce a cake that tasted out of this world!

The other dishes we made were the ever enjoyable and versatile courgette pasta in a pomodoro sauce and sweet beetroot ravioli filled with herbed cashew cheese, drizzled in herb and garlic oil. The food was enjoyed and the company was truly wonderful. Irene and myself really enjoyed the evening and now look forward to the next instalment in the World Raw Food Series which will focus on Japanese cuisine. Visit my Facebook Page for more pictures!

Download some free raw food recipes here as a gift! For more information about us and to keep posted about all upcoming events please visit us!

Rich Havardi – The Raw Foods Company: www.facebook.com/TheRawFoodsCompany

As the days are getting shorter and colder, we have started feeling the need for warming foods. The Portobello mushroom burger is dehydrated for a few hours and served warm- it was just the perfect meal for a lovely evening at home.

For the 'burger'

- 1 or 2 portobello mushrooms per serving

For the burger marinade

- aceto balsamico

- oilve oil

- lemon juice

- himalayan salt

Blend or whisk all the above ingredients and then brush the Portobello mushrooms with it and let marinate for 1-2 hours. Then put the mushrooms on a teflex sheet in the dehydrator at 115 F and warm up for above 3 hours until just before serving.

To serve, put the 'burgers' on top of a raw cracker and top with cabagge leaves or letucce, tomato slices and onion rings. A side salad of spinach and tomato goes very well with it.