Mushrooms Stuffed With Pistachio Basil Pesto

This is my all-time favorite side dish or raw snack. If you use larger mushrooms (and larger tomatoes for the topping), this could be an amazing main dish to serve with a side salad. Just plan on dehydrating a little longer. The recipe is simple but potent and you will be rewarded ten-fold with amazing flavor that will have you wondering if this is really raw food at all!

I have made this dish for office parties and no one can believe it’s not cooked… I literally serve slightly warmed straight from the dehydrator and people are salivating!  The smell becomes so intoxicating as it dehydrates that it drives me back and forth to the dehydrator for nibbles. It’s the lush combination of mushrooms, basil and pistachio in olive oil that’s such a winner! I have to be really careful not to devour the whole lot before it’s actually finished! You’ll see!

RAW VEGAN RECIPE: MUSHROOMS STUFFED WITH PISTACHIO BASIL PESTO

32 Cremini mushrooms, cleaned and de-stemmed

5 Tablespoons cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil

Filling:

2 cups raw pistachios (soaked for four hours)

1 cup cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil

1 cup basil

5 cloves garlic

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 cup grape tomatoes, sliced thin about 4 slices per tomato (use larger tomatoes for larger mushrooms)

Place mushrooms in a medium-sized bowl with 5 Tablespoons olive oil. Lightly toss till well coated.

Rinse and drain pistachios. In a food processor, combine olive oil, basil, garlic and salt. Puree till dark green in color. Add pistachios and blend to a creamy texture.

Fill the mushrooms with filling in a little mound. Place on non-stick drying sheet on dehydrator tray. Put a mini tomato slice on top of each basil/pistachio mound. Dehydrate at 105 degrees Fahrenheit for 4 hours. You can leave them longer; the longer they stay in the dehydrator, the more intense their flavor becomes. They also keep well in the refrigerator. Just dehydrate to revive the flavor.