Super Immunity (34 page)

For the Icing:

1
cup macadamia nuts

1 cup soy, hemp, or almond milk

cup pitted dates

1 teaspoon vanilla

For the filling, marinate chopped dried apples and apricots in wine overnight (or for at least 1 hour) in the refrigerator. Combine raisins and walnuts in a food processor or blender and add the fruit/wine mixture; process together until combined. Add coconut, cinnamon, and nutmeg, and hand-mix with the finely shredded (but not blended) carrots, zucchini, and beets.

For pie crust, mix 2 tablespoons chia seeds in ¼ cup water and let stand for at least 15 minutes. Combine in food processor into a paste; then set paste aside. Place almonds in food processor and process until very fine; set aside. Process the oatmeal into a coarse oat flour by blending dry; then return the almonds to the blender and mix with the oat flour. Add dates and process until chopped and mixed well with other ingredients. Add chia seed paste and pulse to mix in. Press mixture into a pie plate to form shell.

For the icing, blend macadamia nuts, soy milk, the second batch of dates, and vanilla until smooth and creamy in a high-powered blender.

Makes: 30–40 balls

1½ cups raw cashews

1 cup raw almonds

1 medium Golden Delicious apple, peeled, cored, and sliced

1 teaspoon ground chia seeds

8 dried apricots, minced

Cinnamon (for coating)

Unsweetened shredded coconut (for coating)

Natural, nonalkalized cocoa powder (for coating)

Grind the cashews and almonds into a powdered meal in a Vitamix or other high-powered blender; then add the apple slices, ground chia seeds, and dried apricot, and blend again. To make truffles, form mixture into small balls and roll each ball in either the cinnamon or a mixture of coconut and cocoa powder.

Serves: 12

For the Cake:

1
cups whole-wheat pastry flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

3 teaspoons baking soda

3½ cups pitted dates, divided

1 cup pineapple chunks in own juice, drained

1 banana

1 cup unsweetened applesauce

1 cup shredded raw beets

cup shredded raw carrots

½ cup shredded raw zucchini

3 tablespoons natural, nonalkalized cocoa powder

½ cup currants

1 cup chopped walnuts

1½ cups water

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

For the Chocolate Nut Icing:

1 cup raw macadamia nuts and/or raw cashews

1 cup vanilla soy, hemp, or almond milk

cup pitted dates

cup brazil nuts or hazelnuts

2 tablespoons cocoa powder

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350°F. Mix flour, baking powder, and baking soda in a small bowl. Set aside. In blender or food processor, puree 3 cups of the dates, pineapple, banana, and applesauce. Slice remaining ½ cup dates into ¼-inch pieces. In large bowl, mix sliced dates, beets, carrots, zucchini, cocoa powder, currants, walnuts, water, vanilla, and flour mixture. Add the blended mixture and mix well. Spread in a 9 × 13–inch nonstick baking pan.

Bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. For the icing, use a high-powered blender and combine all icing ingredients until smooth and creamy. Spread on cooled cake.

Serves: 8

For the Crust:

1 cup raw almonds

1 teaspoon finely ground chia seeds

1 cup pitted dates

2 teaspoons water

For the Pie Filling:

½ cup water

½ cup pitted dates

1 apple, peeled, cored, and chopped

2 teaspoons finely ground chia seeds

1 cup frozen wild blueberries, slightly thawed

4 medium apples, peeled, cored, and sliced

1 tablespoon cinnamon

½ cup raisins

To make the crust, combine the raw almonds and the first batch of chia seed powder in a food processor. Pulse until finely ground. Add the dates and water and process until the mixture gathers into a ball. Press the mixture to form a thin crust in a very lightly oiled 8-inch pie plate. Prebake the crust for 5 minutes at 250°F.

To make the filling, combine the water, pitted dates, chopped apple, and second batch of chia seed powder in a blender. Blend until smooth. In a large mixing bowl, combine the date mixture with the blueberries, sliced apples, cinnamon, and raisins. Mix well. Spoon the filling into the pie crust and bake at 200°F for 1½ hours. Chill before slicing and serving.

Acute illness:
A disease with an abrupt onset and usually a short course.

Adenoma:
A benign (noncancerous) tumor that develops from epithelial tissue. Adenomas can grow from many organs and, over time, may progress into a malignant (cancerous) tumor.

Amino acid:
A class of molecules made of nitrogen, carbon, and oxygen. The building blocks of proteins, they are crucial to metabolism. Twenty amino acids exist in nature; the human body produces eleven of them; the other nine must be supplied by food.

Anemia:
A condition in which the body does not have enough healthy red blood cells. Red blood cells provide oxygen to body tissues.

Angiogenesis:
The new growth of blood vessels from preexisting blood vessels. This is a normal process in growth and development, as well as in wound healing; however, it is also a fundamental step in the transition of tumors from a harmless state to a malignant (cancerous) state.

Angiogenesis inhibitor:
A substance that inhibits angiogenesis (the growth of blood vessels). Every solid tumor needs to generate the growth of new blood vessels to feed itself once it reaches a certain size. Thus an angiogenesis inhibitor acts, indirectly, to slow or prevent the growth of a tumor.

Antigen:
Any substance that causes the immune system to produce antibodies against it. Antigens may be foreign substances from the environment (chemicals, bacteria, viruses, or pollens) or may be formed within the body.

Antimicrobial:
A substance that inhibits growth of microorganisms. A class of drugs referred to as antimicrobials consists of antibiotics, antifungals, and antivirals.

Antioxidant:
A substance that protects cells against the effects of damaging free radicals by neutralizing or stabilizing them. Antioxidants are found in fruits, vegetables, nuts, and grains.

Apoptosis:
A process of cellular death in which a cell is signaled to undergo self-degradation. This is the body's way of disposing of damaged or unneeded cells.

Aromatase inhibitor:
A substance or drug that inhibits or slows the production of the hormone estrogen. These drugs are often used in the treatment of estrogen-related cancers, such as breast and ovarian cancer.

Atherosclerosis:
A condition in which fatty material collects along the walls of arteries, forming a thick and hardened plaque. This plaque reduces blood flow to the heart and may result in chest pain and cause heart attack or stroke.

Bacteremia:
The presence of bacteria in the blood. This typically leads to septic shock and can be fatal.

B cells:
Lymphocytes (white blood cells) that play a large role in immune system defense against microbes. The principal functions of B cells are to make antibodies against antigens, perform the role of antigen-presenting cells, and eventually develop into memory B cells after activation by antigen interaction. B cells are an essential component of the adaptive immune system.