Keepin' it raw!

Ok, that's it. I've decided that the dabbling in 20% cooked food just doesn't work for me. It's 100% raw or bust. Why?? I'll tell you! Look at the picture above. It's a raw egg (without the eggs, of course!) salad, on a crisp romaine lettuce leaf, topped with creamy yummy avocado slices, and fresh cracked black pepper, and some olives on the side. In my mind this is heaven on a plate. It's living, it's juicy, I can taste every molecule of goodness, it sustains my energy, and keeps me inspired. I love the flavours of eating raw. Everything just tastes so much better!! I made a vegetarian chilli for the boys the other night. I sauteed the organic vegetables, and put some bulgur wheat in it for texture, and spiced the sauce up, then slow cooked it for two hours. I had a small taste, and I thought 'meh, it's ok... tastes cooked.' That was my all time favorite recipe, made with love, and it tasted 'ok'? My taste buds have changed. I'VE changed. This is a new me... a new raw me... on a path all my own, and because it's my own, it's up to me to follow it, and I WANT to. :) Look at what else I've created lately... am I not cut out for this, or what?:

Raw pumpkin pie for our Thanksgiving raw food potluck in town. There's no pumpkin in it though! It's pureed sweet potatoe, and lots of pumpkin pie spice, then dehydrated for 6 hours for texture. It rocked. Even the kiddies liked it!


A sweet little lunch I made for myself: Guacamole spread into delicate endive leaves, and olives on the side. This lunch made me feel so happy. :)


Raw snickers bars!! I thought the dates and honey AND agave might be a bit on the swEEEET side, but all combined, these little bars are amazing!!! The nugget part, then the caramel, then the chocolate... wow!! My kids have requested that I make them all the time! They keep really well in the freezer, and taste great frozen. The chocolate sauce is all raw cacao. My mouth waters, and my sweet tooth has been stagnant for many months now. I've awakened the monster!!

This was my hubby's birthday cake. It's all nuts and sweetness. Fresh berries in the middle layer too, and 3 avocados in the chocolate icing. DECADENT. But guilt free!! Only agave for sugar in there.... again a hit.

So, if I can have this much fun, and fuel my creativity, and feel GREAT, and nourished, and spiritually intact on every level, and H1N1 free (hah!), and my kids are grooving on it, and the hubby is after me all the time ;), and my body feels 100% nourished, then I'm going to chose that way of living. Eating some cooked and some raw was too confusing for me. Plus I kept getting hungrier. My body was asking me for food, REAL food, all day long. It became annoying. When I'm all raw, that whole hungry thing simmers right down to small little pangs... pangs that can learn to be patient.

I spend more time in the kitchen, but it's worth it. I'll devote more time towards feeling better. I'm worth it. :)

Eat well, everyone!

Smoooothies!!

It's been awhile, so I'm popping in to say I'm still on track!! I've slid to an 80% raw vegan, but all the same, and not that it's crucial, I still fit into the raw vegan category.

The 80% happened when we went camping. It's funny, because the hubby and I were going to make a documentary on raw camping. We had it planned, but the first day of camping we were pretty much eating some cooked foods to fill our hungry bellies, so it all went out the window. There is something about fresh air and camping and swimming that makes me sooooOOOO hungry!! And we ate way too many nuts and dried fruits, which can be dehydrating. I did manage to get lots of fruits into my body though, and had my glass of lemon juice and MSM every morning first thing. Then I'd mix some Greens + and drink that. Then my breakfasts consisted of gluten free bread, raw almond butter with sliced banana on top, and an apple or some grapefruit on the side. The inlaws had fresh baby blueberries and saskatoons, so that was awesome that they shared. :) The rest of the day would consist of snacking on anything raw I could find, and then for dinner, I'd have a bit of rice, or potato, and one night I made a Quinoia tabbouleh that was amazingly yummy, and I felt reluctant to share. ;)

We just came back from another trip recently. I saw David Wolfe in Calgary! What a trip that was... literally. He blows my mind, that guy. Such high energy, a very clear speaker too. I just need to look more into calcification. When I do, I'll share more. Anyway, that trip we ate alot of sushi and hummus. But also lots of fruit from the Okanagan. I tripped out on nectarines. OMG.... they were so ripe and juicy!

On the way home we stopped in at this wonderful whole foods market in Kamloops. They had everything, but on a much smaller scale that Whole Foods in Vancouver. I wanted to live in that store! Anyway, I picked up Victoria Boutenko's latest book "Green Smoothie Revolution". Since I've been back home, I've been making 2-3 green smoothies a day. The ingredients in all the recipes are simple and easy, and YUM! Lots of flavours. I had a Celery Zing smoothie for lunch yesterday, and it was so delicious! Very zingy.

I figure if I pack the smoothies in, I'll get what I need plus smoothies have more calories than juices. I like my weight where it's at right now. I feel very healthy and comfortable in my skin. Any thinner, and I think I'd be cold all the time, and winter is coming up soon.

The 20% cooked portion of my lifestyle consists mostly of whole grains and legumes. I get wicked cravings for chick peas and kidney beans, whole grain rice, lentils, rice crackers and hummus, some sushi here and there.

To me, this feels balanced. And I like that feeling. :)

Surprises

There are so many Raw recipes that I've tried. Some have flopped, and some have been surprisingly yummy. The hubby decided to try a recipe: Raw Lasagna (pictured above). Despite the way it looked, I actually went back for seconds!! We were supposed to bring it to a potluck, but he talked me out of it. Then by the time he actually got it assembled, the potluck part of the party was over. So, we headed out after having some ourselves. :) The flavours were so rich and dynamic. It had zucchini, layered with cashew cheese and a sundried tomato sauce.

I got my new issue of Purely Delicious magazine, and in it was a recipe for falafels with a tahini dressing and a red pepper hot sauce. We put them on a bed of lettuce and drizzled with the sauces, and sat in complete silence, outside, and ate every last crumb. What lovely flavours! The tahini sauce was so creamy and the hot sauce was HOT. The falafel was slightly dehydrated and had nuts and mushrooms, parsley, carrots, and onions. I think I would add more cumin next time... more falafelly. :)

Been feeling good lately. I went through a hummus extravaganza, wild craving episode. That also involved consuming some rice chips (for scooping). The oils in the rice chips, safflower, I believe, made me break out, and I found that the more I had, the more I wanted. In fact, that's how I used to feel all the time when I was eating cooked food. My body just couldn't reach that happy point of satiation that it does when I stick to raw food. So that was a good learning experience, and definitely worth exploring. Hey, I could have reverted to something worse than hummus and rice chips! I must have needed the protein and carbs from the hummus. And it was a hot week, so the salt on the chips was satisfying. But I'm done with them for now.

Another interesting finding was about sushi. I had made some sushi at home with cooked sushi rice, and raw nori, and organic avocado and veggies. It was yummy, and everything settled nicely. No reactions or grumbles. A week or so later, I was passing the sushi shop and I decided to get some veggie nori rolls, a few had tempura yam, and a bowl of miso soup on the side. I ate about half the sushi and drank the miso soup and I was full. About an hour later, I got a big welt on my forehead, and I had a flat headache on the top of my head, and my tummy was very rumbly and not feeling happy. My guess was that the nori may not have been pure (not raw, but toasted) and possibly from polluted waters? Or perhaps I reacted to the soy (tofu) in the miso soup? Or the soup had MSG? Most likely a reaction to all of these things.

It really made me think. My body is so clean now that an little extra ingredient will set me off. Some may see this as a troublesome issue, but I actually am really appreciating the fact that my body can tell me so clearly that what I put in wasn't good, or healthy. It works as a gauge. When your body is normally toxic, then the gauge isn't working, because it's overloaded and figures, what's the use? When I was eating junk everyday, my gauge wasn't working, that's for sure!

The hubby went out camping with the kids and came back with hives. The kids didn't have any hives, so we suspected it was his body telling him he had too much junk while he was on the trip. He admits to having chips... lots of chips, and even some cow dogs! (That's what we call hot dogs, as we usually try to feed the kids veggie dogs, not cow dogs). But camping is a challenge to eat right if you're not prepared.

That is my next adventure: How to pack for a healthy, raw camping trip for a week! And when you're camping Ukrainian style with the inlaws! I will let you know how that works out!!

In the meantime, I'll be keeping it simple, and staying raw. :)

Pizza and Perogies

I've been feeling rather experimental lately. I drop the kiddies at school, and spend the whole morning in the kitchen, and I am amazed when 3 hours have passed, the kitchen is all cleaned up, and my fridge is stocked with goodies. :) I've been trying to master the perfect pizza crust for many weeks now. I think I'm getting closer!


This crust was made from almond pulp, which I saved from making my almond milk, an avocado, some ground flax, and herbs from our garden. I dehydrated it for 8 hours. I think next time I will leave out the avocado, as it has such a distinctive flavour. The topping consisted of cashew cheeze, a raw tomato sauce, shredded lettuce, chopped kalamata olives and fresh pineapple. YUM! I was stuffed after this lunch!

Perogies!! I made a cashew cheeze with a bit of red pepper for colouring. Next I tried to wrap my brain around slicing the Jicama (a sort of mexican potato) without the aid of a mandolin slicer. I used the single slotted side of my grater and this made long, thin strips. Then I folded the strips in half and cut out half moon shapes with my scissors. This was quite time consuming, but I really wanted the perogy shape. Next, I filled each one with the cheeze, and laid them out very beautifully. This was a dish I took to a recent potluck, and it was a hit. I also made a raw tiramisu that had people buzzing with excitement... literally! Raw chocolate and cinnamon brings out the best in people!!

I've been feeling really good lately. My body is settling out, and I really feel like I've completely adjusted to this new way of living and eating. I've been sticking very close to 95% raw, as I'm finding that cooked foods, and especially gluten products, really do a number on my digestion. Lots of bubble action happening, especially overnight. And sometimes weird rashes on my elbows and dry spots on my cheeks. If I stay with everything raw, I have none of those issues. I prefer not having any issues! :) With all the fruit and local produce available now, it's pretty easy to feel quite satisfied every day. If only nuts and seeds could be cheaper though.... I get dismayed everytime I buy raw cashews or pine nuts or walnuts and pecans. I have been sourcing them out to find the cheapest supplier, and there is a family in Naramata, BC that have a raw food online business, and they seem to be the most competative.

It's worth it to spend a little more. Yummy food that fills your tummy, and then you eat less over time because you're so darned satisfied!! :)

SWEEEEETS!

My beautiful piano teacher / friend invited me to her birthday party. More of a birthday 'ball'! She decided that for her birthday, she wanted to rent the hall, and dance! She also wanted to have decadent desserts. She is a raw foodist, and so I prepared a very decadent raw mango cobbler. Kind of like a crumble, if you will. I know she loves mango, so of all the decadent desserts, one filled with mango had to be the one. The crust consisted of pecan, dates, a bit of salt and vanilla. It pressed beautifully into a pie plate. Then came the 4 mangoes, sliced and then tossed in a date, coconut oil and vanilla syrup. I didn't take a final picture, because all the mangoes were covered in the rest of the crust, crumbled over top. Then I decorated the whole dessert with fresh raspberries. Let me tell you, the ladies at the party, including the birthday girl were asking for seconds and even thirds. The crust tasted like a true crumble... all buttery and brown sugary... and the magoes... wow... combined with the coconut oil and vanilla.... WOW. I'll definately be serving this one up again. :)



Today, just because I felt like it, and because I finally got my hands on a baggie of powdered vanilla at a raw elixer talk I went to with the hubby last Saturday night, I made some blackberry muffins with a lemon blackberry frosting. :) They looked so pretty!! The muffin part was dehydrated for 6 hours... just enough to add a bit of 'crust' to the outside. The frosting... more like a glaze, was made with blended cashew, blackberry juice, lemon juice and agave nectar. Very muffiny. :) I ate two.... and a half. :)


The whole dessert idea has become very exciting to me, as the possibilities are rather endless... and with my powdered vanilla.... extra super yummy. As you know, vanilla extract has alcohol in it... which is ok, but I can really taste it in my treats. I've bought vanilla beans... 3 beans for 5$... they don't go too far, obviously... 3 recipes, that's about it. My bag of vanilla... for 24$, is probably equivalent to 100 vanilla beans. Or more? And it smells out of this world! Yum.

Ok, that's all from sweets land. :) I'm going to go digest my muffins. :)

Yummy Quick Lunch

I rushed home with a half hour for lunch and this is what I came up with. There was a bit of walnut 'meat' (ground walnuts with Braggs and cumin) left over from the night before, so I put it into a cabbage leaf along with some Dijon mustard, diced tomato, lettuce and a side of radishes and mushrooms. YUM!

Wrap and roll, baby! I ate and was off again to a Maypole dance before I knew it! :) :)

Springs

It's a beautiful spring day, and the air has a light scent of warmed flowers. Mmmmmm.

I've rediscovered my legs. :) My walking legs, that is. I've been noticing lately that they've been feeling rather like they're 'spring loaded'. I can walk up hills with a certain lightness, and yesterday I decided to test that. I walked up the seven hills home after I dropped the boys off at school (I left the car there). Then after a couple hours, I walked all the way back and picked them up. Not once was I panting for breath, or feeling flushed. Not once did I stop for a rest. Not once did my heart act up (I have a diagnosed supra ventricular tachycardia condition). My legs were in autopilot and I walked with my head high... the spring air freshening my whole being. The sun warming my cheeks to a glow.

I tackled that hill about a year or so ago. It was raining that day and I had a backpack full of groceries. My heart started acting up at the bottom, and half way up I had to stop and curl into a small ball to try and get my heart to stop freaking out. I was drenched in sweat and cursing myself for even trying, especially with a backpack full. I was eating many processed foods at that time... toast with cheese and jam for breakfast everyday, lots of chips, junk food, junk drinks... vegetarian, mind you, but still a processed diet.

During the snow in the winter, I threw on my boots and tackled that hill for a few days in a row, but at a much slower pace. By then I was eating alkaline foods, so that may have helped some. It was still very tiring, and I was not really grooving on the walk up.

And now, my legs feel like they could take me anywhere. It's an incredible feeling. Not like they're strong and muscular, but that they feel light and springy. I love that feeling. :)

I'm still raw... lately about 95% as I've decided to include some rice cakes or corn cakes here and there to spread my raw almond butter on. The other day I also tried a veggie pate, which had potatoes in it, so it was most likely cooked. It was vegan though. I may also have some cooked chick peas, I've decided, in hummus from time to time, but I do still love my raw zuchinni hummus.

As long as it's vegan (no cheese, animal products, gluten), I may dabble a bit here and there. Otherwise being raw vegan is GREAT. I love how I feel and how much energy I have. I also love how veggies just taste so darn good now... no flavourings, nothing. Just all on their own, they are all so lovely.


Have a beautiful day!