The holidays are the perfect time of year to share good food with friends and family. In today’s world of educated food consumers, holiday chefs have the responsibility of preparing delicious foods their guests will enjoy without creating health challenges or too many guilty regrets.

A “healthy holiday” does not need to be an oxymoron. Take the plunge this year and serve your guests some raw, living foods that will taste wonderful, make them feel like a million bucks and involve no guilt—only great nutrition from wholesome ingredients.

Splurge on organic ingredients, a dehydrator and juicer and whip up some fabulous raw food treats for your guests. They’ll notice the difference and appreciate the time, effort and love you put into preparing these non-typical foods. What a gift you’ll be giving your family and friends (and yourself) when you serve fresh food without the added chemicals, pesticides and toxins that are abundant in many of the traditional holiday foods.

Make every meal this holiday season one your friends and family will be talking about for months to come. Celebrate! Indulge! Eat ‘til your heart’s content and feel great, with creative raw and living foods recipes.

Cheesy Raw Dip Ingredients: 2 cups raw cashews 1 red bell pepper ½ tsp Nama Shoyu raw soy sauce 1 tsp lime juice Pinch cayenne pepper

Directions: Soak the cashews in filtered water overnight. Drain the next day and put cashews, red pepper, soy sauce, lime juice and cayenne pepper in the Vita-Mix and blend. Serve with celery, carrot, jicama and cucumber sticks.

Apple Fig Custard Ingredients: 2 cups black mission figs 1 cup medjool dates 2 cups apples 1 cup walnuts

Directions: Soak the walnuts, pitted dates and figs in separate glass jars in filtered water overnight and drain the next day. The almonds will have increased in size and be plump and crisp. The figs and dates will be moist and chewy. Chop the walnuts in the food processor until chunky and set aside. Seed the apples, leave on the skin. Chop the apples in the food processor and combine with the almonds. Next, blend the figs and dates in the food processor into a creamy paste and fold into the nuts and apples. Serve as a pudding or dehydrate this recipe to create a warm and crunchy treat.

Savory Nut Paté Ingredients: 1 cup walnuts 1 cup almonds 1 cup sunflower seeds 1 cup chopped green onions 1 cup parsley 1 cup hemp seed 3 cloves garlic 2 tsp Himalayan salt ½ cup fresh oregano ½ cup fresh thyme ½ cup fresh basil Water (just a little to help form the     mixture into dough)

Directions: Soak the walnuts, almonds and sunflower seeds in filtered water overnight. Drain. Combine all ingredients in the food processor until blended. Serve with zucchini squash rounds. This recipe can also be dehydrated for a warm and crunchy treat.

Sweet Sensation Salsa Ingredients: 2 cups fresh tomatoes 2 cups fresh strawberries 1 cup fresh cilantro 2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice ½ cup chopped green onions 1 Tbsp fresh garlic ½ tsp cumin powder 2 tsp Himalayan salt

Directions: Set aside a few strawberries and cilantro leaves to decorate your salsa. Chop the tomatoes, strawberries, onions, cilantro and garlic and combine with the lemon juice, cumin powder and sea salt. Toss and serve. Hemp ‘n Chia Crackers

Ingredients: 2 cups chia seeds 2 cups hemp seeds 1 cup sun-dried tomatoes 1 cup fresh tomatoes 1 Tbsp fresh garlic 1 cup fresh cilantro 2 tsp Himalayan salt

Directions: Soak sun-dried tomatoes in filtered water overnight and drain. Cover flax seeds in just enough water to come to the top and let soak 30 minutes. They will become jelly-like. Mince garlic and cilantro including stems. Put all ingredients in the food processor and blend into a batter. Put 1 tablespoon of mixture on dehydrator sheet and pat into a flat cracker. Dehydrate overnight at 95 degrees. The longer you dehydrate, the crisper they will be.