I-tal is VITAL

[Empress_Yetzion_2012]

Ital or I-tal is food endorsed in Rastafari. The word derives vital, with the initial syllable replaced by I. Early adherents adopted their dietary laws based on their interpretation of several books of the Bible, like Genesis, Leviticus and Deuteronomy. Though there are different interpretations of ital regarding specific foods, the general principle is that food should be organic, natural, or pure, and from the earth therefore avoiding food which is chemically modified or contains artificial additives (e.g., colour, flavourings, and preservatives). Many also avoid added salt in foods. In strict interpretations, foods that have been produced using chemicals such as pesticides and fertiliser are not considered ital. Some stricter diet systems rule out the use of metal cooking utensils, something that Ayurvedic diet followers also avoid. It all depends on what the individual feels is good for the body! Enjoy

[Empress_Yetzion_2012]

1 pound (or half kilo) dried black (turtle) or pinto beans (pre-soaked in water overnight)
2 tbsp vegetable or olive oil
Minced: 1 large onion, 3 cloves garlic, 1 Green bell pepper, 2 Tomatoes, 2 fresh chillies
Herbs: Fresh Coriander
Spices: dashes of black pepper corns (finely crushed), cumin, and ground coriander, crushed hot pepper

Method: Prepare the beans: Inspect them for stones and dirt, rinse, soak overnight and then rinse again. Cook them in a saucepan 1½ - 2 hrs until done. Drain and save a bit of beanie juice in a bowl for later. Mash boiled beans but leave slightly chunky

Fry the onion, pepper, tomatoes, chillies and garlic in the oil for a few minutes in a medium size pot until slightly browned. Add the spices and cook for 5 minutes and then add the beans. Re fry and stir in the beans adding the bean juice bit by bit until creamy fragrant and absolutely scrummylicious Garnish with the fresh coriander

Notes: The recipe at first can take about two hours plus overnight soaking of the beans to prepare, and will feed up to 2 hungry kiddies and a starving Kingman getting home from work. But of course it can be expanded to more servings. Also all that rinsing helps keep the people eating from suffering too much gas!

[Empress_Yetzion_2012]

*Ideal with Refried Beans

4 cups organic wholemeal brown flour
3 tablespoon oil
1/2 cups warm water
Mix oil into flour and with fingertips until mixture has a fine, even texture. Stir in water until dough forms. Knead on a floured surface until smooth, about 20 minutes or more. Knead a few times and divide into 8 pieces (for 10" tortillas), or 12 pieces (for 8" tortillas). Roll each ball out on a floured surface, turning over frequently.

Heat a lightly greased heavy skillet or Tava (Tawah) over medium high heat until "a water droplet flicked onto it dances in tiny droplets". See pic

Place a tortilla in the pan and cook until the top is bubbly and the bottom is flecked with brown (about 30 seconds). Turn it over and cook the other side about 20 seconds. If it puffs up during cooking, just gently flatten it back down with the spatula. Cook the rest the same way. Put in a Ziploc or plastic bag wrapped in a tea towel as you make them to keep moist and fluffy

[Empress_Yetzion_2012]

A standard and almost necessary accompaniment to most Mexican food is salsa. Salsa (meaning "sauce" in Spanish) comes in many different ways, the most common being chopped tomatoes, onions and chilli. "Salsa Fresca" or "Pico de Gallo", as this salsa is often called, is easy to make, especially because it requires no cooking. Just be careful when handling the chillies



Ingredients:
3 - 4 medium sized fresh tomatoes stems removed, finely diced
1/2 red onion, finely diced
1 jalapeño chilli pepper (stems, ribs, seeds removed), finely diced
1 Serrano chilli pepper (stems, ribs, seeds removed), finely diced
Juice of one lime
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro or Coriander
Pepper, Cumin, Ground Coriander to taste

Method: Start with chopping up 2 medium sized fresh tomatoes. Prepare the chillies. Be very careful while handling these hot peppers. If you can, avoid touching them with your hands. Use a fork to cut up the chillies over a small plate, or use a paper towel to protect your hands. Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and hot water after handling and avoid touching your eyes for several hours. Set aside some of the seeds from the peppers. If the salsa isn't hot enough, you can add a few for heat.

Combine all of the ingredients in a medium sized bowl. Taste. If the chillies make the salsa too hot, add some more chopped tomato. If not hot enough, carefully add a few of the seeds from the chillies, or add some more cumin. Let chill for an hour in fridge for the flavours to come together.
Makes approximately 3-4 cups. Serve with tortillas chips, tacos, burritos, tostadas, quesadillas, or of course lathered in a tortilla with …Refried beans!

[Empress_Yetzion_2012]

Ingredients:
2 large ripe avocados
1 tsp lemon juice
1/4 cup salsa (see previous recipe)
2 cloves mashed garlic, dash of cayenne, and chilli powder
Preparation: Mash avocado with a fork until almost smooth, or until desired consistency.
Add the rest of the ingredients and mix until well combined. That's it! Spread on tortilla with some salsa and …Refried bean taco and enjoy!

[I_ziz]

Blessid

Its real good 2 see some TRULY ITAL recipes 4 a change... more time people chat bout I_tality and dont have a clue what it means - LIVING FOOD. i always see dem add some salt or tinned canned ingredients that r dead to I and I. And I and I are only here 2 promote LIFE - not consume death. Yes I!

I give thanx 4 these recipes on a real level sistrin. Especially 4 the salsa... i need more raw food recipes car we cant eat enuff rawness 4 our optimum health!

Keep dem comin empress.. Raaspect!

Blessing shower

[shakim1969]

That Basic Vegan Guacamole looks delicious. Keep those tasty recipes coming.

[Empress_Yetzion_2012]

“He Who produceth gardens, with trellises and without, and dates, and tilth with produce of all kinds, and olives and pomegranates, similar (in kind) and different (in variety): eat of their fruit in their season, but render the dues that are proper on the day that the harvest is gathered. But waste not by excess: for Allah loveth not the wasters” Qur’an 6:141

Many thanks given for replies to the last recipes and due to requests (you know who you are LOL) here are some ideas on the Raw diet. If you hear any negative ideas about this type of diet please feel free to ask and discus in this thread as the whole point is education.

Raw food-ism is a diet choice promoting the consumption of un-cooked, un-processed, and often organic foods as a large percentage of the diet. Personal claims are that there are many benefits from following a raw vegan diet, including weight loss, more energy, clear skin and improved overall health. The diet is based around the principle that eating a diet high in raw food will normalise and alkalise your body which in turn, connects the mind with the body; consequently, for example Ayurveda and the raw diet are very similar…maybe good for meals after a fast, for example:

Fasting and Islamic Religious festive days
Ramadan is the month in which Muslims must fast from sun-up to sun-down. This is meant to experience through sympathy how the poor are without food or water. Followers close their bodies off from earthly demands by denying themselves food and drink. This in turn allows for the nourishment of the soul to in some way enhance spirituality. Eid ul-Fitr - Eid ul-Fitr (عيد الفطر) or The Celebration of the Feast is the holiday celebrating the end of Ramadan and the month-long fast.
Ashura – Ashura (Arabic word meaning "ten") is celebrated by Shi'a Muslims on the ninth and tenth day of Muharram on the Islamic Calendar. It is a day of optional fasting. Jews in the city of Medina fasted only one day, (Yom Kippur) so it was said the Prophet Muhammad would fast too.


*** Islamic brothers and sisters might find some of these raw recipes useful in the early hours of the morning or night before and after fasting each day or when thinking of foods to see you through the day. It’s also a good opportunity to detoxify ***

Warning: I’m not sure if all the below is factual but for safety’s sake the following are said they should be consumed with caution:

* It is claimed Buckwheat greens are toxic when raw, particularly if juiced or eaten in large quantities by fair skinned individuals. The chemical component fagopyrin is known to cause severe photosensitivity and other dermatological complaints (do research to investigate if desired)
* Kidney beans, including sprouts, are said to be toxic when raw, due to the chemical phytohaemagglutinin (research if desired)
* Potatoes: a member of the nightshade family can produce the toxic alkaloid solanine. The flesh of the potato just beneath the skins is usually green if solanine is present, but one may be present without the other. Solanine can be removed by peeling the potatoes (research if desired)
* Alfalfa sprouts contain the toxin Canavanine (research if desired)
* Some types of raw Cassava or Cassava flour can be toxic (research if desired)
* Raw Brassica species can contain Glucosinolate (research if desired)
* Apricot kernels contain Amygdalin, which contains the toxin cyanide (research if desired)
* Raw parsnips contain Furanocoumarin (research if desired)
* Raw foods may contain harmful bacteria, fungi or parasites, which may cause foodborne illnesses (research if desired)

Recipes
Please feel free to alternate or play with ingredients, the idea is to have a variation so the dietary regime doesn’t become boring.

Vegan Raw Zucchini Salad



Optional (1 Tablespoon Liquid Aminos, 4 - 5 green olives, chopped)
2 Zucchini, ideally one green one yellow or any other colour cut in long slivers or julienne
½ Cup Chopped Red Bell Peppers chopped
1 Tablespoons Dulse flakes (type of seaweed)
½ small garlic clove, finely chopped
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
A small bunch Basil leaves, chopped
1 Avocado, chopped

Mix well. Serve on bed of Arugula or rocket greens and top with sprouts.


Vegan Raw Mango Pudding



2 Mangos
¼ cup Lime (Optional)
¼ cup (250 ml) soy, almond or rice milk or cream
Shredded Coconut & Chopped Pecans, to taste

Use a vegetable peeler to peel mangos. Then place a knife flush to one of the flat sides of the mango pit and cut the mango away from the pit. Add 1/4 lime and blend until perfectly smooth and run through sieve to strain out hairs and add shredded coconut and chopped pecans to taste. To complete the dessert, pour into dessert cups and decorate like a work of art with berries or sprig of mint. Also tastes good with just the pureed mango.


Vegan Raw Basil and Hemp Pesto


Ingredients
½ cup Olive Oil, or less if desired
¼ cup pre-soaked Hemp Seeds, Dash of Org. un-toasted Pinenuts or kernels, 1 tablespoon Basil, Chopped Fine, 1 Clove Garlic, Chopped Very Fine or just chuck it all in a food-processor

Preparation
Mix all ingredients together and if desired let sit for 30 minutes to marinate. Then use as a sauce for your favourite pasta or a salad dressing.


Vegan Raw Bindi Masala

Ingredients:
3 cups okra, thinly cut
3 cups tomatoes, small thin squares
1 onion, finely chopped
1 teaspoon ginger, smashed or minced
1 teaspoon garlic, minced
1½ teaspoon chilli powder
½ teaspoon of each spice: garam masala, turmeric, cumin powder, coriander powder,
¼ cup olive oil

Instructions: First you can also soak the onion in water for a while and rinse to diminish the intensity of onion flavour. Mix all the ingredients in a bowl and enjoy.

NOTE: The cooked version is supposed to be eaten with chapatti (see previous post) or over basmati rice. Try it with Essene bread:

Essene Bread



Of all the known breads, the simplest is Essene. The name is said to have come in several Greek spellings from a Hebrew self-designation found in some Dead Sea Scrolls, 'Osey hatorah’ or “observers of the Torah." An ancient recipe for this unusual loaf appears in the first century Aramaic text called The Essene Gospel of Peace (from which it is thought the bread derives its name) . . . In fact it probably dates back from very ancient Afrikan times in Khemet when loafs made from a grain-water paste were cooked on sun-heated stones



Sprouts to Use: Sprout some wheat, grind it up and shape a loaf. Bake it in an oven or on a wood stove - at low temperature and it becomes living bread! The size of the loaf depends on the amount of sprouts used

Ingredients
2 - 4 cups Wheat Sprouts
The root should be about equal in length to the wheat berry. Flax and/or Sesame Seeds

Preparation: Grind the sprouts in food processor if possible. Put the dough in a large bowl (knead for about 10 minutes). Wet your hands and form the dough into oval or round loaves, balls, sticks or buns. Coat a cookie sheet with flax or sesame seeds to keep the loaf from sticking. An alternate way is to dip the bottom of each loaf into a bowl fill with seeds - they will stick to the dough. Always use a cookie sheet and bake at approximately 160 degrees (higher is okay up to 250 degrees, but this will kill some of the enzymes). How long to bake? Well that depends on the shape of the loaf. Thick loaves will take about an hour; smaller loaves naturally will take less time. It should be moist and chewy inside. Do trials until you get it right!

Notes: The sprouting process produces live food. There’s a big gain in vitamins, minerals, and other essential nutrients. No need for yeast, sugar, milk, oil or butter.
You won’t need to knead the dough, although a few minutes of kneading is optional and will produce a superior loaf. You don’t have to wait for the bread to rise.

Delicious! Blessings Iternally

[shakim1969]

Thanks for the raw recipes. I am really trying to eat more raw foods , it is a battle but I am trying.

[Majadi]

Originally Posted by Empress_Yetzion_2012

Ingredients:
2 large ripe avocados
1 tsp lemon juice
1/4 cup salsa (see previous recipe)
2 cloves mashed garlic, dash of cayenne, and chilli powder
Preparation: Mash avocado with a fork until almost smooth, or until desired consistency.
Add the rest of the ingredients and mix until well combined. That's it! Spread on tortilla with some salsa and …Refried bean taco and enjoy!

One of my favorite foods, my family loves when I make this....man you cats are making me hungry!!!

[Empress_Yetzion_2012]

OK … say you need a big energy boost or you a little bit flabby and want to nourish the body but you don’t want to put on the pounds… the Smoothie is a great form of meal and doesn’t fatten you at all especially if it is made Vegan

Super foods Smoothie

This is a partial list of foods that have been described as superfoods. Warning: some of these foods taste pretty Nasty! Yuuck