While the ingredients in this recipe, might be more appropriate for Tu Be’Shvat then for Hanukkah, this is an excellent dessert to eat post latkes and sufganiot. This delicious, light, and creamy dessert, is both egg free and gluten free, and it will also help you to metabolize the fatty foods that we so lovingly consume on this holiday of oil. Whoops, I meant holiday of light, not holiday of oil, then again… Anyway, eating agar (seaweed gelatine), with your holiday meals, can help you to incorporate both the elements of the light and the oil into your festivities.
Those of you who prefer ingredients that they know, simply replace the agar and kudzu with five tablespoons of cornstarch. In my opinion, if your weight, health, and appearance matter to you, it’s worth making a trip to the health food store to pick up these “exotic” ingredients. Agar, like all seaweeds is used to help digestion and to help with weight loss, it also helps to remove toxic wastes from your body (ie. rancid oils used in deep-frying your latkes and sufganiot). Other benefits to using agar- it is a great source of calcium and iron, and besides that it is anti-aging, it will give you great skin and hair as well.
While you are in the health food buying your agar-agar, pick up some kudzu (arrowroot) as well. Kudzu is an excellent addition to any meal involving fried foods. When consumed, some of kudzu’s complex starch molecules enter the intestines and relieve the discomfort caused by over-acidity and bacterial infection. Medical research has shown kudzu to be helpful in connection to, indigestion and heart burn, as well as numerous health conditions such as, high blood pressure, blood sugar regulation, chronic migraine headaches, shoulder and neck pain, high cholesterol, blood clots, sinus troubles, acid reflux, indigestion, heartburn, stomach ulcers, colitis, hangovers, allergies, alcohol addiction, bronchial asthma, skin rashes, heart disease and neurological disorders.
Women however have a special place in their heart for kudzu as it has been shown to have a strong effect on the body’s hormonal system and can help regulate estrogen levels – of primary importance to post menopausal women to help in preventing bone loss, estrogen related disorders, and cancer.
Ingredients:
1 liter (4 cups) almond milk (I used the organic Adama brand, which like most brands, has some sugar in it)
1 tsp honey
2 tbsp rose water OR orange blossom water
3 1/2 tbsp kudzu
1/4 cup cold water
4 tbsp agar-agar
1/4 cup shelled and coarsely chopped unsalted pistachio nuts (for garnish)
pomegranate concentrate
Dissolve the kudzu in cold water and allow to sit for five minutes.
Heat the almond milk in a saucepan over a low flame. When the liquid reaches a slow boil, add the honey and the orange blossom/rose water. Slowly sprinkle in the agar and stir continuously until the agar flakes have completely dissolved (approximately five minutes). Stir in the kudzu and continue mixing for one minute more.
Pour half a cup of the mixture into eight wine glasses or ice cream cups. Allow to cool slightly, and then refrigerate for one hour.
To serve, garnish with the pistachio nuts and drizzle with the pomegranate concentrate.
Serves 8