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The Perfect Holiday Gift for Anyone!

12/8/2013

2 Comments

 
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Breakfast Basket. Photo by Judy Pokras
What could be more loving than giving someone a gift basket of ready-made raw vegan food to eat? Assembling a basket is fun, and is sure to put a big smile on the face of anyone you give it to.

Here at RawFoodsNewsMagazine.com, we're passionate about finding ways to help people eat better -- namely raw vegan -- as raw vegan cuisine is so good for our health, not to mention delicious. Short of sending a personal raw vegan chef to everyone on your gift list (very pricey!), or opening a raw vegan cafe or takeout store near those you care about (also very pricey), a gift basket makes an awesome gift!

A raw vegan gift basket provides a big boost to people who are too busy with their families and jobs to have the time to make raw recipes from scratch. And it might even inspire them to embark on a new food lifestyle.

Here are ideas for three themed raw vegan gift baskets you can give at holiday time. We took photos of our ideas to inspire you.

BREAKFAST BASKET

We suggest you include both of Raw One's delicious granolas: Banana-Walnut Cacao Nibs, and Goji-Mixed Berry. Along with the granolas, it's a good idea to include a package of Nutiva Naturals raw cashews, so that your giftee can make cashew "milk," which is more healthful than cow's milk, and only takes a minute. (See the recipe link below for cashew milk.) Into this breakfast basket, we suggest you also include Navitas Naturals Sun-Dried Goji Berries, Sun-Dried Mulberries, and Chia Seeds. The person receiving this gift basket can easily make another flavor of nut milk by blending the chia seeds with one or both types of berries. To round out the Breakfast Basket, add some fresh fruit, like bananas and tangerines (if you're delivering the basket locally), and a couple boxes of herbal or white or green tea. (If you're mailing the basket, depending on how far its journey, make sure the bananas are green, so they aren't too ripe upon arrival, and maybe leave out the tangerines.) Some pretty fabric napkins make a nice finishing touch.
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Crackers and Smoothies Basket. Photo by Judy Pokras
CRACKERS AND SMOOTHIES BASKET

To create this basket, we first lined it with some fun fabric place mats, and put a nice big pomegranate in the middle. We suggest placing the following in it as well: Raw One Turmeric-Nori Flax Crackers, Raw One RawRitos Crackers, Raw One Garlic With a Little Kick Crackers, and Raw One Rosemary-Sundried Tomato Crackers. These crackers are really tasty and you can eat them right out of the box, any time, anywhere.  We also suggest adding Navitas Naturals Superfruit Smoothie Mix Blend (made from goji berries, pomegranate and acai). This highly nutritious fruit blend is perfect for using in a smoothie. (To whip up a quick smoothie, the person lucky enough to get your gift basket can blend some of the Superfruit Blend with some frozen, peeled banana slices.) We've also added Navitas Naturals Pomegranate Powder, which is another nifty ingredient that's easy to add to smoothies, puddings and sorbets, and packs a nutritional punch!
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Snacks Basket. Photo by Judy Pokras
SNACKS BASKET

For a snack-themed basket, you can add the following, as we've done: Raw One Cacao-Incan Berry-Hazelnut Biscotti and Raw One Goji-Cherry Pistachio Biscotti (both of them tasty treats); Stephen James Organics Cocoa Pili Nuts and Stephen James Organics Volcanic Pili Nuts (these are addictive!); Navitas Naturals Cacao Powder (great for making chocolate candy and drinks), and Navitas Naturals Lucuma Powder (a nutritious mildly sweet powder to add to smoothies, nut milks and desserts). You can toss in a few fresh tangerines and, as a finishing touch, add some adorable fabric napkins. We have also added to this basket ECO Lunchbox's Three-in-One food-grade, mirror finish stainless steel lunchbox.

The bottom line is: Have fun with your gift baskets. Make sure they're chock full of raw vegan foods that are bursting with nutrients, and are either ready to eat, or require hardly any preparation. The idea is to make serving healthy food easy for busy people. Don't forget to add some surprises, like pretty fabric napkins, place mats and handy kitchen gadgets.

Last but not least, here's a recipe for nutmilk that you can print out and include in the Breakfast Basket, and a recipe for a frozen banana smoothie that you can print out and add to your Crackers and Smoothies Basket. 

Don't forget to send us photos of raw vegan gift baskets you make for the holidays, and let us know how people liked them! Let us know if you want us to post them with your name and state or country. Happy holidays!
2 Comments
Linda link
12/10/2013 10:46:00 pm

I like this idea also. If time permits, I would include homemade candy, cookies or muffins.

Reply
Judy Pokras link
12/11/2013 12:32:02 am

Thanks, Linda. That's a great idea, and would make a raw vegan gift basket even more special, if people have the time.

Reply



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    Your Blog Writer

    This site's editor and founder, Judy Pokras, has written for many publications, including The New York Times. She's the author of The Little e-Book of Raw Vegan Holiday Recipes (for the Kindle), The Little Book of Raw Vegan Holiday Recipes (a paperback), and the experimental novel, Artist Girl's Cambridge Daze. Judy is also the editor and publisher of Thanksgiving Recipes by Great American Raw Chefs. and writer, producer, and director of the comedy video Anomalies. When she's not working online, Judy loves to dance to disco, decorate in mid-Century modern, and make her amazing raw vegan chocolate ice cream for family and friends.

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