My Green Elixir of Life - From Michele Burian-Quintiliano, Harbor Springs

4-6 Kale leaves, hard stems removed
2-4 Chard leaves
Generous handful spinach
6-8 Romaine leaves
1-2 tbsp fresh Lemon
Sea salt to taste
Blend all ingredients in high-powered blender. Strain through mesh strainer. Enjoy.
Notes:
“This is just a guide, experiment with parsley, celery and various varieties of greens and herbs. Some are sweeter and milder like spinach, some stronger and bitter like kale,” said Burian-Quintiliano.
Try adding fruit. After you strain add banana, blueberries, strawberries etc. and return to blender. This is a great way to get children eating greens.
“I started two and a half years ago by making green drinks. It was the beginning of my journey into the raw food lifestyle,” she added, “and is the most important part of my daily sustenance.”  

Onion dip - Dolly Osborne, Conway

2 cups macadamia nuts
3/4 to 1 cup water
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup chunked sweet onion
Parsley to taste
In a Via-Mix blender or food processor, blend macadamia nuts, water, onion and sea salt until smooth and creamy. Start with 1/4 cup of water and add more only if needed, to make mixture blend.
Add the parsley the last few moments of blending.
 

Nirvana Bars - Colleen Lordson, Burt Lake

4 cups ground walnuts
1 cup ground cashews, macadamias or almonds
1 cup sunflower and/or pumpkin seeds
1 cup dried coconut (optional)
1/2 cup raw carob powder (optional)
1 cup raw almond butter (at room temperature)
1/2 cup maple syrup, or more to taste
1/4 cup flaxseed oil
pinch of salt
Toss the nuts, seeds, coconut and carob powder together first. Whip the almond butter, maple syrup, oil and salt together separately, either with whisk or in a food processor. Using your hands, mash all the ingredients together until the nut mixture is completely coated.
The mixture should be fairly dry while you’re working with it, so spend some time really mashing it all together. If the mixture is too wet, it won’t stand up in solid bars after refrigerating. Refrigerate in a short rectangular container for at least three hours and then cut into bars. It’s a raw candy.

Walnut Pate - Jackie Devereaux, Harbor Springs

1 cup soaked raw walnuts (soaked 4 to 6 hours, drained)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon tamari
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
Dash salt
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
1 tablespoon minced onion
Put the walnuts, lemon juice, olive oil, tamari, garlic powder and salt in a food processor fitted with the S blade and process into a paste. Stop occasionally to scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Transfer to a small mixing bowl. Stir in the parsley and onion and mix well. Stored in a sealed container in the refrigerator, Walnut Pate will keep for five days.