Digestion is A Bitch: Light to Heavy Eating
My father, who recently passed away at the ripe old age of 92, grew up in Germany. Over there they ate a hot meal in the afternoon and at night everyone had sandwiches – which, not for nothing, could be a pretty big deal as well, what with the endless array of cold cuts and fresh breads and potato salads. Dinner is called Abendbrot which, literally translated, means ‘evening bread’ and that pretty much says it all. I don’t think anyone ever thought about ease of digestion and I know for a fact that Alka Seltzer and Pepto Bismal were constants in my fathers medicine chest. As a kid, it…
Think and Grow Raw: Manifesting Health
I thought myself into raw. For me, it was my first big experiment in ‘manifesting’. I started identifying myself as raw long before I really was. You might think, “Wow, that was bold! What a fake!”. But let me tell you… it wasn’t really. I wanted it so badly. And I was ready for it. I figured that if I told people, it would encourage me to further solidify what I claimed to be – if only out of sheer pride and mortification of embarrassment. And it did, too. They say that you dress for the job you want, not the job you have. And if you can imagine something…
Enzymes? The Raw Vegan Booster
I don’t know about your mom but mine was always harping on me to eat my fruits and vegetables. Naturally, she didn’t have a clue about enzymes, but she was, definitely, on the right track. Adopting a diet that’s high in raw vegan foods supports digestive enzyme activity better than any other. Basically, it’s one of the great raw vegan claims to fame. And, undeniably, enzymes are necessary. We need them in the same way that Frankenstein’s monster needed that electrical charge. They give us life. Enzymes are micro-proteins, largely composed of amino acids. They trigger all chemical reactions that go on in our bodies. From digestion , metabolism, detoxification, brain…
The Organic Raw Shopping Experience
Very early on my raw lifestyle timeline, I had myself convinced that I could go 100% raw. I was always trying to eat consciously. Looking at packaging and trying to avoid anything that contained ingredients that I couldn’t pronounce was second nature to me. What I fed my husband and children was carefully considered; even if they clamored for ‘Lucky Charms’, I would undoubtedly force muesli and organic fruit upon them. And it seemed like it would be simple for someone like myself to just go completely raw since I had – for the most part – always preferred fruits and vegetables anyway, albeit not exclusively. Avoiding the Bad Stuff…
What’s So Great About Fermented Food?
Thousands of years ago when refrigerators were yet to be invented, our ancestors depended on fermentation as a method of preservation. This was especially true when it came to preserving vegetables. They relied on the fact that once triggered, chemical changes activated certain bacteria in fruits and vegetables, turning on the production of lactic acid. When lactobacilli just ‘do their thing’, starch and sugar content in fruits and vegetables transforms into lactic acid, a natural preservative. Voila! We have fermented food! Lacto-fermentation is the process that prevents raw organic produce from rotting. Ultimately this happens through the production of enzymes that keep harmful elements like carcinogens and toxins at bay.…
Happiness in the Raw : 8 Mood Boosting Foods
It’s scientifically proven that happiness seems to be more plentiful in people who eat a plant based diet. Maybe that’s why so many other folks are so grumpy! Is everyone else just jealous? Is that why they keep pestering us about our weird diets? Yes, our weird diets. Fruits and vegetables. All Natural. Coming from the earth. Weird. Apparently the raw food diet makes people nervous. Even if it’s just raw till 4. It’s not normal. What’s Wrong With Us? Many of us get really tired of people asking us the same old, tired questions about the raw diet: I know it’s pretty much the same way with vegans too.…
Raw and Ready: Eating In and Eating Out
For many, adopting a raw vegan diet – even if it’s just till four – is scariest because it means that, unless you confine yourself to a salad, there is less opportunity to eat out at restaurants. All of a sudden you represent a minority: meagerly represented and majorly misunderstood by the masses. It’s bad enough being a vegan – but if you add Raw into it, you’re really a Wierdo! You would assume that if the celebrities have caught on – and they have – then what’s the deal with everyone else? Suffice it to say, the celebrities have their own personal chefs. Some even open up their own…
In Praise of Slowness: On the Road to More Raw
I love Raw Food. Its that simple. Although ‘More Raw” is my mantra, I’m not a vigilante. Nor am I going to get on my soapbox and tell anyone that this is ‘The Way’: eat Fruits and Vegetables and You Will be Saved. And there’s no reason to tell you that even if it might be true. For me, it kind of is. And for you, it might be too. You’ll find out for yourself, all in good time. Just don’t be in too much of a rush. It’s not all or nothing. The journey to better health is just that: a journey. And, like all journeys, it takes time.…
- Going raw, Happy Raw, Raw Till 4 Basics, Raw vegan, Raw Vegan Breakfast, Raw Vegan Recipes, Smoothies, Vegan
Happiness is a Loaded Smoothie
Raw Vegan Replacement Therapy… A Smoothie? My first tentative dip into the raw vegan pool was through the process of substitution. A raw green smoothie displaced my usual breakfast – typically something that I would grab off the Bed and Breakfast table after my guests were done eating. I was literally like a dog waiting for scraps. A piece of frittata?! A heel of cinnamon toast!? Give it to me! Now! Hell, I was a one-woman’ ravaging horde – the poster child for the Importance of Eating a Good Breakfast! Leaving my house so early in the morning to prepare food for other people, I would hardly have time to…
Eating Raw: A Primer for the Curious
What does it mean to be eating raw food? When you’re eating raw, you are eating food that has not been “cooked”. Typically, you are eating fruits, vegetables, nits, seeds, legumes, sprouts and grains in their natural state. If they are heated or processed at all through blending, juicing, food processing or dehydrating, they are never heated over 118 degrees Fahrenheit. What are raw and living foods? Raw and living foods constitute those foods that are provided by nature, organically grown and consumed in their original, uncooked state. They are the considered to contain the highest nutritional contentment of all plant foods and include fresh fruit, vegetables, nuts, seeds, legumes,…
