rawesome spaghetti marinara

As we draw near to the end of the year and my six week trip to the UK to visit my sister and brother-in-law looms (in a good way!) I can't help but reflect on the year that's been 2013. While I won't bore you with all the ins and outs of my thought life I will say that I am grateful for the people in my life. People have been an integral part of my year in a very good way. Here's two people I'm particularly fond of who last week celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary - my parents...

Next week, my dear mum turns 60 (she won't mind me telling you this, I promise!) so this weekend I'm going to be in the kitchen making her a raw carrot cake with a cashew cream icing as per her request. I love how you can be creative with the measurements and raw desserts still turn out looking and tasting great! So, keeping that in mind, feel free to tweak and adjust this week's recipe according to your own tastebuds. This is my go-to version of a raw spaghetti using zucchini noodles with a tomato-based sauce straight out of the blender. If you want tomato soup, omit the noodles and the veggies. So easy, very tasty and much better for you than that canned stuff.

rawesome spaghetti marinara

spiralled spaghetti

3 large zucchinis

1/2 tsp sea salt

marinara sauce

1 cup filtered water

4 medium tomatoes, chopped

1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes, soaked

1/2 red capsicum

1/2 avocado

1/2 lemon

1 clove garlic

1 Tbs cold-pressed olive oil

1 tsp dried mixed herbs (optional)

1/2 red chilli, deseeded (optional)

sea salt, to taste

cayenne pepper, to taste

vegetables

baby asparagus

spring onion

mixed lettuce

mushrooms 

garnishes

coriander

nutritional yeast

pumpkin seeds 

rosemary

Make the spiralled spaghetti by processing the zucchini into long, thin noodles with a spiralizer or by using a peeler for long, thin strips of zucchini. Place the noodles in a bowl, sprinkle with sea salt and toss. Set aside. Blend all the marinara sauce ingredients together in a high-powered blender and chop up your desired vegetables and garnishes. Gently squeeze the zucchini noodles and discard any liquid. Mix the noodles with the marinara sauce, vegetables and garnishes until all ingredients are covered.  Serve on a bed of mixed lettuce and sprinkle with nutritional yeast, kale chips or pumpkin seeds (also known as pepitas). (You can warm up this rawesome dish in a dehydrator or in an oven on a low setting with the door ajar, if desired.) Serves 2. 

Bon appetit!