Raw Food Nerd

The Revival Of Raw Food Nerd

2012-01-20T17:10:00.000-08:00

Yes, it is for sure a revival friends- and the best kind at that, one that involves food and pictures of food, and I really cannot think of anything better than that! I've seriously missed this blog and I am ready to bring the goods.

(I wasn't joking when I said I was ready to bring it!)

So, gawd, where to begin? Well, I'm still as nerdy (and raw) as ever but I've given up on that high fat raw gourmet shim-sham. That's right, I've kicked it to the curb in favor of the fruity lifestyle. That means, any of my food that I post pictures of will all be high carb raw vegan; free of salt, oil, spices and heavily based in good ol' fruity tuttie deliciousness.

Hey, don't knock it till you try it. Just because there isn't a whole lotta nuts, seeds, and taste-bud numbing salt and spices doesn't mean my food ain't DAMN good. (Even my Mim, The Salt Queen, loves my cucumber pasta slathered in rich sun-dried (yup, salt free too) mango basil sauce. )

If you want to know more about why I hopped on the 811-train feel free to ask, but otherwise, I'm not really going to get into it. (Check out www.30bananasaday.com for tons more info, recipes, forums, and general guidance) Let me just say though, if you have a digestive issue, it would be in your best interest to really give the high carb low fat lifestyle a 100% chance. That's the main reason why I did it and it has literally changed my life.

As far as this little bloggie goes, a good portion of the food pictures (for now) will be what I am eating, as I'm still in NYC and therefore, it's dinner for one ~~even though it looks like dinner for 10.~~ But you should disband all preconceived notions because I refuse, just down right refuse, to eat anything that doesn't taste good. I know I have said it before, but I am just not one of those people that eats strictly for fuel. So the meals you see will all be combinations of foods that I legit crave and they just happen to be salt, oil, and spice free. I'm a big fan of tahini and hemp seeds so you'll see meals with that too, because low fat doesn't mean NO fat. That would just be crazy talk!

And, of course there will be recipes, lots of recipes. I'm a big believer in sharing the wealth of health. (Still a cheeze-ball, yup.) I also plan to still include reviews on new fangled raw snackles that I find and restaurants that are must eats.

I do think high raw is better than no-raw so sometimes, especially when I am off to California to visit my hubby or TEACH A CLASS (yip! I cannot WAIT to get back into this!) you will see cooked vegan foods popping up on here. Any vegan non-raw snacks, that I can't dive into will surely be ~~devoured~~ taste-tested and critiqued by the husbandry, Kev He's a trust worthy foodie with an equally discerning palette, perhaps even more than mine!! I'm all for it. I think the best thing we can do is cut the meat and dairy - it's toxic and not just for us, but for the planet. I don't care how grass-fed pasture raised your beefychickenducklamb- kabob is, it still died so you could have dinner; baddd karma!

Ultimately, the objective here is still the same: organic, as local as possible, and freaking delicious.

Stay nerdy foodies, and check back by Monday for my Oodles of Noodles post. It's going to be quite the pasta showdown!

Oh Snap, She's Back!

2012-01-01T11:22:00.000-08:00

That's right fellow vegan foodie nerds, after a very long (unplanned) hiatus, I'm back!!

Honestly, I've been meaning to re-start my sadly neglected ~~child~~ blog for some time; no time like January 1st! Right?!

So much has happened in the past year - I moved to NYC for work, planned a wedding, got married in Italy, and gave my diet a huge overhaul! (More details to come on the aformentioned).

In the upcoming weeks expect a serious bloggie turn around because if you thought I was all about food before -- you haven't seen anything yet!! >> certified food geek here <<

Happy New Year!!

It's recipe time!

2010-08-12T14:29:00.000-07:00

Good day foodie peoples!

It's Thursday and I am feeling recipe-ish today. A couple of you asked if I would share more concrete recipes from my little Italian feast a couple posts ago and I figured today would be the perfect day to do just that!

These recipes are from a recent class I taught at the Environmental Nature Center. We did a "Ladies Night" where I made all the toppings and the ladies used Ezekial Spouted Grain Tortillas as pizza crusts. I will say, toasting them up in the dehydrator or oven for 5-10 minutes makes a more authentic 'pizza' crust, but we made due without!

Maiorelli’s Authentic Italian Marinara:

3-4 large Heirloom tomatoes
1-2 cloves of garlic
¼ cup Extra-Virgin, Organic, Cold-pressed Olive Oil
2-3 Tablespoons New Frontiers Pizza Seasoning
1 Tablespoon dried Oregano
1 cup (soaked, unless oil packed) Sun dried Tomatoes
Sea Salt to taste
½ cup fresh parsley, chopped
½ cup fresh basil, chopped

In a food processor combine all the aforementioned ingredients with the exception of the fresh tomatoes, parsley, and basil. Blend until a thick paste forms. Add in your fresh heirloom tomatoes and puree. Taste to make sure it’s well seasoned.

Transfer your gravy (marinara) to a separate bowl. Add in fresh chopped herbs and mix.

Almond ‘Ricotta’ Rustica:

2 cups Organic, Un-Pasteurized, Raw Almonds (Soaked in filtered water over night)
2 cloves of garlic
¼ cup Extra-Virgin, Organic, Cold-Pressed Olive Oil
2 Tablespoons Italian Seasoning or New Frontiers Pizza Seasoning
1 T Garlic Powder
3 Tablespoons Nutritional Yeast
Juice of 1 lemon
Sea Salt to taste
Filtered water as needed

Garnish:
Fresh Parsley, chopped
Fresh Basil, chopped
New Frontiers Pizza Seasoning

In your food processor combine almonds, garlic, and olive oil. Pulse until almonds break down and become grain-like. Add in your remaining ingredients and process until fully combined. Taste for seasoning.

Ricotta should be light and fluffy. Mix in your fresh chopped herbs and drizzle with Olive Oil.

*Option: Blend in Culturelle Vegan Probiotic while processing. Place in a wide-mouth jar (mason jar) and cover with a napkin secured with a rubber band. Store in a dark place overnight. This will essential ferment/culture your Ricotta, giving it a more authentic flavor.

To make the lasagna you will need:

3-4 zucchini sliced using mandoline or veggie peeler
1-2 T EVOO
1 clove minced garlic
sea salt

In your baking dish lay sliced zucchini. Top with EVOO, minced garlic, and sea salt. Toss. Let sit for 1 hour so that the zucchini softens.

After one hour remove your zucchini from the pan. Sauce your pan with gravy and then place one layer of zucchini - making sure to cover the whole pan. You don't want the bottom of the pan to be visable at all. Do another layer of gravy, again covering the zucchini. Then do a layer of ricotta. I like to do dollups of ricotta- gently pressing them down to spread them out. I try not to mix the sauce and ricotta together, but if that happens, don't sweat it. It's still going to taste just as good. Continue layering, placing another layer of zucchini to cover the gravy/ricotta. And keep on going until you run out of zucchini. Do a final layer of sauce and top with dollups of ricotta and sliced heirloom tomatoes. Garnish with chopped basil, parsley, and drizzle of EVOO. I like to let mine sit overnight in the dehydrator set at 105-110 degrees. This is what really gives it that true lasagna mouth-feel and taste. Yum, yum, yum!

Sometimes I like to make different variations of this adding in marinated spinach and arugula or 'sauteed' veggies on top of the ricotta or sauce. You can even use pesto instead of marinara or ricotta. Be creative!

Here is my easy-peasy Pesto recipe just in case you want to switch things up a bit!

Pesto alla Maiorelli:

2 cups walnuts (option to do a mix of walnuts and pine nuts)

2 cups basil

1 cup parsley

1 cup spinach

3 cloves of garlic

1 Tablespoon garlic powder

Juice of 1 lemon

1 Tablespoon sea salt

1 cup Extra Virgin, Organic, Cold-pressed Olive Oil

Combine above ingredients in the food processor adding Olive Oil slowly while the ingredients blend.

*For a thinner Pesto slowly add water.

Hope you enjoy!

Monarch-Stokes Festivities!

2010-08-11T13:55:00.000-07:00

Oh boy, I've been holding this little secret in for a while now...

I'm not fond of secret keeping especially ones like these! So, I have been unfathomably anxious to announce this mega OC event on my blog:

::drum roll please::

Matt Monarch & Angela Stokes-Monarch are coming to give a talk at the Environmental Nature Center in Orange County on August 25th!!!!

Matt contacted me a while back and asked if I would be interested in helping to organize the event and naturally I jumped at the chance. I've been a HUGE fan of both Matt and Angela for quite some time now. I literally check my inbox twenty times a day waiting for The Raw Food World TV Show to pop up!

This is going to be an awesome event and a fantastic chance to learn from two experienced, long-term raw foodists.

A little bit about Matt & Angela if you don't already know who they are:

Matt Monarch, Raw Food Educator and author of 'Raw Spirit' and 'Raw Success' has been eating 100% raw for nearly 13 years. Matt will address the question, "Is the Raw Food Diet for me?" He will discuss overcoming health challenges, why some diets work and some don’t, difficulties that may arise on your journey and the benefits of eating Raw Foods, juicing and colonics.

Angela Stokes-Monarch lost over 150 lbs and overcame morbid obesity with a raw food lifestyle. She will share her message of natural recovery. Angela will discuss healthy, rapid weight loss, how to break overeating patterns, balancing detox with slimming, taking care of the body naturally and addressing the underlying issues.

Just to entice you more, I'll be making some snacks to nibble on during the talk AND Matt and Angela will be selling a whole bunch of products from their online store, http://www.rawfoodworld.com/ -- one of the best places to find below and at cost deals on all your raw food essentials!

This is one of their last events for a LONG time so sign up ASAP! You will NOT want to miss this extraordinary information powerhouse!

To register call 949-645-8489 or email Lori Walen at lori@enc.org

And for questions please email me at maioa827@gmail.com

Unholy Creations of Italian Goodness...

2010-08-04T18:26:00.000-07:00

Ah, if only there were such a thing as virtual 'smell-o-vision- because the aroma of sun-dried tomatoes, basil, and faux oven-baked lasagna has been a constant in the apartment. Seriously, it smelled like when my Mim used to make big pans of Baked Ziti. Mmm, cheeze, saucey, love! It's like a big warm hug of deliciousness.

Lasagna alla Maiorelli:

Mmm, Pesto Stuffed Mushrooms:

Italian food in general is so simple to prepare which makes it that much more difficult to recreate well. The secret? Keep the sauce simple: tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, a little garlic, dried spices and finish off with a touch of good olive oil and chopped basil and parsley. Do not, under any circumstances, puree the rest of the ingredients with the fresh parsley and basil. It muddles the flavors and turns the sauce green. And the ricotta? Culture/ferment it. That's it. It's amazing, spectucular, and really freaking good.

Lasagna, post-dehydration:

It's entirely difficult to abstain from eating the whole thing. You start with small slivers and before you know it there is absolutely nothing left...Oh well, guess I just have to make more, darn!

I also made a whole stinking bunch of cookies while on hiatus. I'm obsessed with the Almond Amaretto Tecchino herbal coffee so that was my inspiration for these cutesy cookies of almond ameratto goodness. A little Almond extract and you've got yourself a sweet little treat; it's almost too easy!

Almond Amaretto Cookie Dough Bites:

These were so soft, chewy, and almond-y. I think next time I might add some of the actual tecchino to the dough to make it taste more like the coffee. yum, yum, yum!

Better Planned Upheaval

2010-08-02T17:44:00.000-07:00

Pardon moi, Raw Food Nerd has been on hiatus for the last two weeks. It's that time again, i.e. better planned upheaval -- except in Season 2 of Alysha: This Is Your Life I've actually got a well-mapped and finalized plan.

I'm moving back home, to New York City- right where I belong. I'll be resuming my old job (the one that so easily filled the emptiness in my heart and gave me purpose).

I feel like a ginormous weight has been lifted off my shoulders; like I can breathe again. Given the circumstances, I've been quite successful in California. However, since the moment my feet (or our tires, whatev) planted themselves in this Sunny State I've had an unquenchable feeling of regret. (I cried all the way from LA to The OC the day we arrived...and for several days after...)

We left everything, everything behind. And while at first it seemed exciting, spontaneous, new - once the realization that this was permanent and not a three week vacation set it, it became even more apparent that perhaps I had made quite the mistake.

And then I realized I'd be living in the OC and not LA and my heart sunk a whole lot more. This was not how I envisioned my new California lifestyle. Wilkes-Mesa anyone?

And I'd have to fly home for Christmas every year...

And I'd have to spend Thanksgiving in CA...

And Christmas would be the only time I would see my family because it is so expensive to fly...

And working for yourself is never consistent...

The list goes on...

California never felt like "home", but more like a self-actualization of who I really was. (Obviously, I'm not the bohemian nomadic type who can just pick up and move without a second thought.)

Unfortunately, there is one MASSIVE con to all of this: Kevin has to stay here for another eight months to finish his masters. The very thought is gut-wrenching and physically painful. We've been together going on seven years and in that time we've spent, at most, five days apart. Needless to say, other than planning and getting mine and Kev's shimmelz together (he's moving into on campus housing, etc.) this is the reason for my hiatus.

It's been a rather emotional time as September is steadfastly approaching; everything is changing once again and neither of us in all our sentimentality take well to change (though you'd never know it). It's hard to picture my day to day life without Kev. It's hard to picture New York itsef without Kev...

We're bothing taking it pretty hard and I haven't felt much like doing anything but hiberating.

Yet, in my heart of hearts I know this is what I have to do...what I really want to do.

Hi, my name is Alysha and I'm in a Bi-Costal Long Distance Relationship. Oye vey!

Anyway, Raw Food Nerd is up and running again; we'll be back with regular scheduled blogging tomorrow-- pictures and all!

The Very Thought...

2010-07-19T23:26:00.000-07:00

And I thought life couldn't get any better...

Then I discovered these at World Market, my most favourite store:

To the untrained eye these look like a 1950s vintage throw-back of the plastic Tupperware containers that my Nana might have used back in the day. But, oh, they are so much more.

These my friends, are not made of plastic. Nope, no plastic to be found on these cute little Tupperware containers that are covered in carrots, corn, and beets (I really couldn't resist. Can you tell? ...because I bought two sets..)

They are made completely of bamboo fibers!!!

Which is a superbly splendid discovery because I really wanted them and I absolutely hate plastic, but, bamboo? Yes, please!

It's environmentally sustainable and an excellent replacement for all things BPA-laden and yuckishly plastic.

Fruit-a-loos, My Papaya, & A Coconut Secret..

2010-07-12T14:10:00.000-07:00

My organic fruit consumption has reached unparalleled and staggering levels this summer. First, with watermelon. And now, with my two most favourite fruits of all time : cherries and figs!!! The pounds of fruit I eat could honestly feed a small country...whether this is a good thing or not remains to be seen.

Seems as though my body knows when I am good and done with a particular fruit though, so I'm not too worried about my fruity grubbing lifestyle. (See crisis of the watermelon below.)

It's official - I am watermeloned out and I am pretty sure my tum is too. Unfortunately, my affair with the juicy deliciousness that is all things watermelon and watermelon juice has come to quite the early end. I was literally devouring an entire 12 lb. beast of a melon everyday after bikram; blending half into juice and eating the rest. After a while, I started to get this surging pain up my entire torso midst consumption everytime I ate it and it was constantly leaving me bloated...and not just watermelon baby belly bloated - like bloatedness that wouldn't go away...ever. (Me + stomach flare-ups = bitchy, irritated, and extremely unpleasant to be around.) I was in a full scale watermelon-coma and it's honestly taken me up until today to feel normal again!

In my quest to make my tum feel better and quell my watermelon hangover I discovered papaya. I've never been a big fan of papaya because well, let's be honest, most of the time it tastes like the smell of throw up! (Not to be graphic, but it really does!) I've only ever liked dried papaya spears for that very reason. However, on a trip to Mother's Market I sampled the most crazy, maple-syrup tasting papaya. Wha-wha-what?! I couldn't resist. I stocked up on that papaya and I've been eating it in both savory and sweet forms daily.

You'd be surprised all the things you can do with papaya - when it's ripe. Pretty sure that's been papayas problem all along. When it isn't that ripe it tastes gross. However, ripe papaya is sweet, juicy, and kid-you-not-tastes like maple syrup.

In an effort to ease my belly flare-up I put papayas digestive-easing and belly-soothing properties to work and created this creamy, sweet, delicious pudding shake:

This was:

Half a papaya peeled and de-seeded
Organic, ripe figs
2 Organic ripe (spotted) bananas
Filtered water for blending
1 T Organic, Coconut Secret Coconut Nectar (holy moly, I need to buy like 25 gallons of this stuff!)

Last week, I was invited to a rather new Raw Food store in Newport Beach. Chele and her crew have definitely tapped into something extraordinary within the raw food community -- they get that people don't want to spend their life savings on going raw! (As crazy as this sounds, it's true, I love the raw food community, but I often feel like they all live in some alternate universe where the economy isn't in the toilet and it's like they think people have got all this spare cash to spend $10 on four slivers of flax crackers.) Their mission: to bring raw to the masses in the most affordable way from those who are just 'raw-curious' to the long-time raw foodist. Everyone I met was incredibly friendly and so knowledgeable. I can't stress it enough: they get it!

The highlights of this gem of a place: (there were so many more than this, but these were the ones that stood out in my mind because in all my years as a raw foodist I don't think I've paid less than $20 for a lb of cacao that apparently wasn't even raw...)

REAL raw Balinese cacao powder for $12 lb
Raw, Organic, Unpasterized almonds $7.50 lb
Sale items: Nut butters from Wilderness Poet $7-$9

And perhaps, my favourite: Coconut Secret. Yeah, pretty much the WHOLE line from the Coconut Aminos to the Coconut Nectar and Sugar Crystals. I've been eyeing this stuff up in the store for months now...seriously, Coconut Secret, where have you been all my life?!

Adios, Agave! Hellooooo, Coconut Nectars. This sap is outrageous. It makes my shakes taste like a cross between caramel and vanilla. Like most things coconut, it's just exploding with minerals and nutrients and it doesn't spike your blood sugar at all. I know, because usually after my nightly shakes which typically contain raw honey and in the old days, agave, I was always starving again within an hour. After using the coconut nectars, I am prefectly content. Not a stitch of returning hunger here!

The Aminos? Just as excellent. It almost has a bit of a smoky essence to it. And it doesn't over power your food with saltiness. This is the perfect replacement for Braggs which is made from soy and contains naturally occurring MSG. Yuck! Thought we were trying to avoid all that crap! I haven't used Braggs in ages for that very reason, opting to use wheat-free tamari or miso instead because it used to make me swell up like a ballon, give me a headache, and I could smell it come out my pores while exercising the next day. I'd be on the treadmill gagging because I smelled like soy sauce at 7 in the morning; not very pleasant way to start the day.

Chele has been working hard to really put Coconut Secret on the map to make it even more available, especially in bulk form. (Hurrah!) Trust me, one lick of this stuff and you're going to need more than just the 8oz bottle. Coconut Secret it where it's at.

Oh, btw. Eclipse was everything I hoped it would be and more. I still like the books better, but it seems las though they got rid of the guy who directed New Moon (thank god, that movie doesn't even pale in comparison to Twilight and Eclipse) and this new guy seems to understand what us Twi-fans want: more jacob/edward/bella/cullen relationship development and less action. Eclipse, does have a fair amount of action, but it fits in with the story. Oh, what I wouldn't give to be K.Stewart for just like TWO minutes.

Time to get moving on dinner!

Total ECLIPSE of The Heart

2010-07-03T14:23:00.000-07:00

It's been a very Robert Pattinson kind of weekend for me thus far. Last night I watched Remember Me and tonight I am going to see Twilight: Eclipse!!!! We had planned on going Wednesday night, but I wanted to prolong the experience as long as possible as I realise that Twilight movies all together are slowly coming to an end. (gasps!) Remember Me is tragically fantastic. Regardless of how you feel about Twilight or R.Patt. for that matter ::swoon:: it's an utterly shocking and wonderful movie; you'll be sobbing at the end.

My kitchen has seen non-stop action this week and I've been prepping food for lots of hungry people. With Summer officially here in California the organic produce is just out of this world which has allowed for a wide variety of water-rich, nutrient-dense veggie packed meals! Raw in the summer is nearly effortless!

This week I threw together a quick Mediterranean-inspired marinated veggie dish with zucchini, mushrooms, and grape tomatoes. I let it sit in the fridge for a few days before I packed it up and set this lovely veg melange on it's way to be enjoyed.

Here it is marinating! Yummm, garlicy-goodness!

Other than Italian, I am an Indian food apologist for sure. I swore up and down that when I went raw I would never abandon my love for Indian food and always indulge regardless of how entirely cooked it was. Well, here I am two plus years later and I've yet to eat any cooked Indian food. Now, raw Indian food, well that is a different story!

I make a mean Vegetable Korma that's jam packed with vegetables and drenched in a super flavourful almond curry sauce. It's the perfect balance of sweet, savory, and slightly spicy.

Can you see the plump little raisins peeking out? You'd be surprised how well raisins and curry taste together!

I was on the curry train last week and still craving sauerkraut, I made a Curried-Dill Kraut that is probably the best I have made yet! Thank goodness I made a HUGE jar because I've been devouring this nearly everyday!

A generous scoop of nutritional yeast on top and I'm in curry kraut heaven!

I used to buy these wee-bittle jars of sauerkraut all the time. When you figure that they were about $7 for a 16oz. jar and the fact that I used to eat at least one a week - that is a pretty large portion of our food budget spent on sauerkraut alone! If only I would have known how easy to was to make my own I could have saved so much money! As long as you've got a good quality sea salt and fresh cabbage, making your own kraut is so simple it's crazy. I would suggest heading over to pure2raw.com and looking up their videos on how to make fermented veggies and kraut because that's how I learned! Thanks girls!

Speaking of ferments, I also made a cultured Sunflower Seed-Tahini Cheeze this week too! Ahh, cheezy love in a mason jar. It smells like onion dip and the small taste I did have (for quality control of course!) was out of this world. It reminds of the nut pates I used to eat when I first went raw.

I'm convinced that tahini makes everything delicious...

Raw Food Nerd Kitchen has not been without sweets this week. In fact, my kitchen has been producing oodles of little treats!

I made a huge batch of Cinnamon & Coconut Sugar Doughnut Holes for Kev to take to a BBQ at school. Apparently they were a big hit, but he could just be humoring me...

This was all that was left...

I also made yet another Strawberry Cobbler since my clients seem to really love them. And I agree, cobbler is the bomb.

This is leftovers. It was much prettier in the baking dish...

And lastly, Almond Amaretto Cookies. I slathered these in homemade Almond, Walnut, and Jungle Peanut Butter. Breakfast cookie anyone?

Raw food = O.K. to have cookies for breakfast in my book!

Hope everyone has a safe, fun, holiday weekend!

P.S. Glad you all enjoyed my Vegas post. I really hope it didn't come off as stuck up or anything, I liked Vegas, it just definitely wasn't what I expected and we all know what happens when you have expectations that aren't entirely accurate! If it's any incentive, gas prices were insanely cheap for some reason...$2.69 a gallon which I really don't understand. Kev and I now have a running joke that we're going to go back to Vegas just to get gas because it is so expensive in California...even though there are oil refineries everywhere.

Vegas Is Not For Hippies

2010-06-30T09:34:00.000-07:00

Nope. It most certainly is not. And if you go there thinking you might find an awesome health food store tucked away on a side street off The Strip... Or buffets piled high with various fruits and a cornucopia of salad options (like I did) you are sorely mistaken. Not even at The Bellagio, not even.

I suppose my idea of what Las Vegas was really like was something out of a movie, say, Sarah Jessica Parker and Nicholas Cage-type Vegas. I pictured only gambling tables, men in suits, women in '80 shoulder-padded dresses -- like a cross between Dynasty and Miami Vice; classy with a drive through wedding chapel and a fake Elvis here and there...

Vegas was a culture shock.

Vegas 2010 is really: People that start drinking at 8:00 A.M., that is, if they've even gone to bed from the night before. They stare like inebriated zombies into dollar slots while chain smoking. They've got mullets and missing teeth. They wear nascar jerseys and acid-washed cut offs and mom jeans. Everyone is ENORMOUS, yet they dress like they wear a size two. Their kids, who I'm positive all have asthma and will surely develop lung cancer from all the second hand smoke thanks to their parents, have RAT TAILS and are running wild like feral children all over the casinos. The old women haven't gotten the memo that they're OLD and shouldn't be wearing mini-skirts and tube tops, especially when they've got a muffin top and a behind the size of Texas.

Oh, what I wish my eyes didn't see.

And the buffets, good luck, because you couldn't pay enough to eat that slop; I've seen better variety and quality at Old Country Buffets and that's saying a lot.

We had planned that on the second day we would buy the all day pass and just eat at the buffets, so in preparation we literally checked out EVERY buffet on the Strip from Excalibur to The Venetian. I had imagined overflowing bowls of pineapple, watermelon, spring mix, avocados galore - I mean, it's a buffet...there's supposed to be OPTIONS. I planned to gorge myself and bring containers for late night snacking.

I would have been lucky to find a piece of ripe melon...

We wound up eating at Whole Foods both days and saving a considerable about of cashola. They must know that there is nothing for Vegans in Vegas because nearly everything from the bars was at least vegetarian. And they had a Burrito Bar with tons of Vegan options and Vegan Veggie Pizza as well...two days in a row. You can't even get that kind of consistency in Cali! Fortunately, I'm a smart biatch and brought my usual stuff with me to Vegas: dulse, my huge farmers market organic cucs, lemons, nutritional yeast, avos. I added some stuff from the salad bar like romaine lettuce, arugula (love this lately), and red peppers and made myself a delicious raw food meal 'on the road' so to speak. I was even able to snag considerable amount of vanilla-cakey coconut date rolls!

Whole ~~Paycheck~~ Foods sometimes makes me very angry with their over-priced products and conventional produce, but they seemingly always come through in travel situations and for that I am so, so greatful!

So what the heck did I actually do in Vegas??

Well, when I wasn't having to plug my nose, hold my breath, and run from inhaling cigarette smoke - Kevin and I walked up and down the Strip, just checking out the hotels and some of the free shows that they offered (Mandalay Bay and Wynn were my favs.) I got Kevin to do Bikram with me and we both got our bums kicked. We did some window shopping in the Bellagio and in the Planet Hollywood mall. And we treated ourselves to some Starbucks Soy Mistos and Iced Lattes.

Hey, if my only Vegas vice was some decafe coffee and soy milk then I'm wayyy ahead of the game! Right?!

Overall, Vegas was...interesting...to say the least. I love love LOVED the heat and all the sun and wish I could have taken it back to California with me. The highlight of the trip for me was definately discovering Rick Moonen's seafood restaurant which only uses sustainable seafood and ingredients. And Susen Feniger's restaurant that uses only organic, all grass-fed, sustainable meats and produce, with no processed food whatsoever. They even had some vegan options (tho wildly expensive) and sweeten their food with agave necter! I'm a Top Chef Master's nerd, sorry, I nearly peed my pants with excitement since RM and SF are incredible culinary masters and they really have done a lot to bring awareness to sustainablity in the reataurant biz.

Not sure if I would go back again, this was kind of like an "I only live four hours away and have to go to Vegas at least once," kind of deal.

Although...I could be persuaded with a room at Mandalay...or the Wynn..

You Know You're Italian When...

2010-06-23T15:13:00.000-07:00

Thank you so much everyone for the well wishes a la the eco-friendly wedding planning and finally settling on a place. I swore I would never do a 'destination' wedding and here I am planning not only the very thing I swore I would never do, but taking on the raw vegan eco-wedding challenge as well. Apparently, I like to do everything the hard way. Alas, I think it's important and I don't think I would feel right otherwise.

This was another busy food week for me. Kevin and I were leaving for Vegas on Sunday morning (more about that later!) so I had to have all food prepped and ready to go by Saturday for early deliveries. Just thinking about it makes me exhausted. I can't believe how fast I was able to get everything done. I had Kev wash dishes (lol) so that cut a considerable amount of time off my work load.

Anyway, last week I finally got around to making what was supposed to be Eggplant Rollatini di Melanzane except there was no rollatini-ing here since all the eggplants I could find at the farmers market were pretty stubby and in no shape for rolling. I just laid them flat, stuffed 'em, and stacked them instead. I guess this was more of a lasagna than anything else, but either way, my sources are telling me that this is turned out exceptionally well.

Eggplant Rollatini di Melanzane

I went for an all out Italian-themed menu last week. Italian is my favourite and I love trying to create raw versions of the food I grew up with. I don't normally use beans, sprouted or otherwise, when making raw food. They never taste the same as the cooked version and I'm just not a fan. However, I figured, 'what the heck' and made this raw minestrone soup. I soaked the beans for almost 48 hours but, didn't sprout them to avoid that strange taste they develop when sprouting and made a tomato, celery, parsley based broth. I loaded it up with a variety of greens and three different types of beans. I have no words. I couldn't believe how similar it tasted to the real thing. Yum yum!

Minestrone Soup

Italian-themed menu's wouldn't be the same without pizza. I veered from the traditional margarita pizza and opted for a white pizza with raw, ricotta cheeze, 'sausage', garlic cashew cream sauce, and lemon-parsley butter on an herby crust. Two thumbs up all around!

White Pizza

We've been getting really ripe, juicy fresh strawberries from the farmer's market lately. I love farmers market strawberries. You can totally taste the difference; they are so much sweeter and make for a mini raw cobbler that is out of this world. I like to put it in the dehydrator so that all the juice from the strawberries turns into this yummy, thick syrup. Pretty sure I've mentioned this before, but it is worth mentioning again. Cobblers have become one of my favorite raw desserts to make. Their simple, but always allow the flavors of the fruit to come through. The only sweetner I added here was some coconut sugar- my new fav. It tastes like graham crackers!!

Strawberry Cobbler

Mangia! Mangia!

Kraut Success, Bowls of Yum, & Thrifty Vintage Delights

2010-06-15T21:24:00.000-07:00

After four days of poking, pushing, and prodding my Jalapeno-Cumin Kraut was finally ready to be eaten today! It turned out magnificently! Oh, it was sooo good, if I do say so myself. It was deliciously spicy, but with a subtle sweetness from the carrots. I threw some on top of my usual bowl of yum, which is a varying amalgamation of cucs, avo, various herbs, zucchini, nutritional yeast, and dulse. I even threw some romaine lettuce on there like a raw food nerd interpretation of a deconstructed taco! (I'm reaching here, totally...)

The kraut is peeking out from behind the romaine!

I make food for other people all day long. When it comes to my own meals, I'm a certified lazy mclazerson. I like things that are simple and fast with minimal ingredients (aka less clean up, thank god.) If I can throw it into the blender and it tastes good together, I'm as good as golden. Don't judge the green ~~mush~~ soup...stew..(stewp???)

So, onto my exciting news!!! Well, I'm finally get married! We've officially set a date, found our location, and are getting the ball rolling on making all the arrangements. We got engaged last August right before coming to California after almost six years, but we didn't want to get married right away since Kev was going to be in Grad School. Let me tell you, a year goes by really fast! I am beyond thrilled. Though, in my mind, this is really just a mild formality. As far as I'm concerned Kevin and I have been 'married' since October 2006 when we moved into our first apartment in NYC together. Once you live with someone and really get to know them, getting married just becomes a nice way to declare your love in front of other people.

(picture from 100layercake.com & onelovephoto.com)

I'm determined to make this wedding as eco-friendly and green as humanly possible. I've already found a caterer who is going to work with me to plan a vegan and raw vegan menu. They also use all local and organic ingredients! My dress will be vintage for sure. Organic flowers. And I'm looking to get seed paper invitations. We're getting married in Sonora, CA which is about three hours outside the Bay Area. It's rustic, indie, vintage, and a bit French Provencal....in other words, everything I've always wanted.

We've been pretty set on getting married in New York City since it's always been our place, but when I looked at the pictures for this location I knew in my heart that this is where I had to get married. We've decided that we're going to get our marriage license in New York that way legally, we'll be married in NYC.

Nearly all our friends and family are on the East Coast so any advise about 'destination' weddings or planning weddings in general would be greatly appreciated. I've already decided that I am not going to get stressed over this in any fashion. I mean, this is supposed to be fun right? An un-complicated celebration, that's what I'm going for!

Time for yummy green smoothie ice cream and The City....and ok, I watch the Hills too, but only because it hilarious to watch it crash and burn...

Lots of yums coming this week!

Itzy Bitzy Kitch

2010-06-15T00:14:00.000-07:00

What I wouldn't give to be able to work in a sizable kitchen with an island; big enough to accommodate two high speed blenders, a monstrosity of a food processor, a dehydrator, stock piles of mason jars & heaps of produce from thy farmers market. I've had it with wobbly make-shift cutting boards over oven tops and hardly any elbow room to speak of. (Hurrah, Top Chef comes back this week!! Sorry, kitchen-talk always makes me channel my inner Top-Chef-worshiping-self. This blog post really has nothing to do with Top Chef, except that their kitchens are enormous and make mine look even punier!)

And yet, my itzy bitzy kitchen still manages to turn out more food than I know what to do with sometimes...wobbly cutting board and shifting blender/food processor no counter space and all!

Last week my impractically small kitchen turned out some pretty delicious raw food goodness:

Strawberry Jam Shortcake Bars

Served warm and ooey gooey straight out of the dehydrator...

I'm a sucker for veggie loafs. They make for super quick and easy meals that are just packed with lots of veg, nuts, and seeds. It's a great way to sneak in veggies that people don't normally like.

This week I did a 'Parmesan' Encrusted Italian-style Veggie Loaf

The veg loaf is so versatile too. You can cut it up and eat it in a wrap or crumble it over a hearty kale salad.

Another yummy delight and an all around raw food nerd fav.: FALAFELS!!!! Raw, vegan dollups of herby deliciousness!

Cumin-Cilantro Falafels

I loooovee cumin...in everything. I mix it with nutritional yeast and add it to my many variations of avo mac&cheeze and my cucumber mash. It's sooo good. I try and eat pretty clean and I don't get too crazy with adding tons of spices to my food, but for someone who really doesn't eat nuts and seeds, I think seasoning is really important. It's a great way for me to remain 'consistant' and basically eat the same thing everyday while still allowing for variety.

On Friday, in the midst of a cleaning frenzy, I decided to whip up a batch of sauerkraut. I haven't had it in so long and I was really craving some. I threw together a rather spicy batch of green cabbage/carrot/jalapeno/cumin kraut.

I've read a lot of conflicting facts about the health benefits of kraut/fermented veggies. I can't imagine that eating what essentially is rotting food can be all that good for you, but it sure tastes good! If my only real vice is some delicious fermented food, then guilty I shall be. lol.

All jarred up and ready to be fermented!

I've been incredibly thirsty these last two weeks which probably has something to do with yoga. Bikram has been so humid and I've been sweating so much...like pouring in my eyes sweating..I go through an entire gallon of water during class. Afterwards all I want is juice, but alas, I am far too lazy to cut, blend, and strain everyday. (Ohhh huroom, I'mmm waitingggg!)

And so begins my love affair with melons of all varieties...watermelon and honey dew make the most insane tasting juice. Maybe I've just been a raw foodist way too long but, it seriously tastes like liquid cotton candy!

The Blendtec has made juice making so easy. Especially when I've got ten trillion blood oranges and tangelos to get rid of. They were like eight for $1 at the Farmers Market. I heart minola tangelos - so tany and tart, but still sweet. Unfortunately, the tangelos had so many seeds it really wasn't worth the trouble of picking them out so I just made a yummy juice instead. Carrot/Orange/Lemon juice. You can stuff so much into that carafe!

I strain it through a nut milk bag and it's fantastic. It's actually still kind of thick which reminds me of drinking pulpy OJ. Although, I think regular navel oranges are the best for making homemade pulpy OJ!

In other, less foodly, news, I am trying to get better with blogging and commenting back! I suck, I know. I'll be better, I promise. Either way, I always appreciate the comments! It gives me some serious motivation to get my tush in gear. (Hence, it's 11:52 PM and I'm writing out the rest of this post that I started on Saturday! Saturday! Oye vey!)

I've also got something very exciting to share this week! No, I'm not pregnant...my bump is strictly from eating too much watermelon...lol

P.S. Has anyone else been watching Food Network Star? Am I the only one who thinks this season is a disaster? I feel bad for the two women, Artie and the Britney Murphy-look-a-like, since they are the only two who really have a shot at this. They should just send the rest home now and let those two compete, Iron Chef-style...

Exercising The Demons

2010-06-08T14:13:00.000-07:00

Pour me a cup of MSM-ed Watermelon Juice and let's call it a day because I seriously (well, we really, but I don't think Kev would be doing this if it wasn't for me anyway...) must be a masochist. I've got one exception in life when it comes to reaching far..far..beyond my threshold for pain and being uncomfortable and that's the sweaty suffering of exercise.

I, however, am not a fan of lingering pain...especially involving my ankles and shins..

This jello-ing of my limbs was brought on by none other than LA's Runyon Canyon perched high in the Hollywood Hills. Apparently, though I have yet to spot one, a lot of celebrities exercise there. After a feast of delicious vanilla cake-esque coconut date rolls and 20 minutes of searching for parking Kev and I made our way to the base of the Canyon:

Let me just say that walking up the street alone to get to the entrance is a workout in and of itself; the hills are insanely steep. So much for Sunday being my Bikram-only rest day...I was dripping sweat after five minutes and my heart was nearly beating out of my chest. We only walked up, but a good portion of the people were running.

Runyon obliterated my ankles..and my shins...and my knees for almost an entire week; I think it was the going down part vs. up that did it since the path we took down was semi-stairs and extraordinarily steep. I was doing double Bikrams for extra stretching because it was the only thing that made them feel better.

Yet, in true A. fashion Kev and I went back to Runyon this Sunday. I know, I'm totally asking for it...

half-way up..

and this is why my extremities turned to jello...

and how Kev got rid of his farmer's tan...

while I stopped for a photograph break with the agave plant behind me...

When we were about 1/2 a mile-1 mile from the very top of Runyon we passed by this loverly little animal sanctuary with two horses and a goat that had been rescued. I used to ride horses and they're my favourite animal. No dogs or cats for me, I'm holding out for my own horse.

My ankles and shins don't hurt nearly as bad as they did last week so I guess muscle memory is kicking in...

Hope you all had a fantastic week. I'll be back tomorrow to share some weekend eats.

Watermelon Baby Belly, Afflictions, & Creamy Dreamy Spirulina Ice-a-cream-e

2010-06-03T18:15:00.000-07:00

I've been pounding down the watermelon lately like it's going out of style. Nine pound watermelon? No prob. And I've got the watermelon baby belly to prove it. I've been eating them everyday after yoga because it's pure sugar water and super hydrating. (Sometimes two in a row! Shhhh!)

To be honest with you, watermelon isn't even one of my favourite fruits. There's that whole "got to wait 15-30 minutes" in between eating it and anything else bit and it doesn't combine well other fruits (or anything for that matter) so you always have to eat it alone. It's kind of a pain in the bum which is why when I eat watermelon I eat watermelon.

Go hard or go home, as they say. I'm that way about everything though, so it doesn't surprise me that I'd find a way to apply this to food.

Actually, I was discussing this with Kev in the car the other day on the way to Whole Foods to get cherries. (Mmm, cherry splendidness. Cherries, dates, and figs are at an even tie for my absolute favorite of all favorite fruits. You should see how crazy I get when figs come into season. I used to buy out the little farm market store on 96th and Lex and eat figs for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. My precious figs, ::le sigh::) Sometimes I think it is a serious personality default (this all or nothingness) because it prevents me from understanding/relating to people, especially since it makes its way into so many areas of my life.

For example, with Bikram. I've watched people walk out right before the last pose - which mind you is on the floor. Why would you spend 85 minutes in a hot, humid room with 30+ other sweating people just to walk out before the end? It's mind boggling to me! I mean, I understand people sitting out poses as we've all been there. Bikram never gets easier no matter what anyone tells you. As someone who goes everyday, it's no walk in the park just because you are consistent. There are some days that room feels like it's on fire and I'm seriously so nauseous I'm positive I'm going to vomit or I'm so thirsty that I don't think I can last another second...but, I do. You always do, because 99% of it is mental.

I have such a low tolerance for pain and being uncomfortable that the only thing that keeps running through my head is, "If I can do it, anybody can." The concept of putting forth that much effort to just give up at the end just seems crazy. I mean, right?

And then there is the more serious aspect to this personality affliction of mine which applies entirely to food. I'm the type of person where if I find out something is bad for me and there is enough evidence to back it up, then I'm done with it forever and cut it out immediately. (There's a replacement for everything anyway...) I can't understand how other people don't do the same (do you seem my problem here...)

For example, rewind three years. I'm on my way to class and there is a little yellow flier stuck to the wall outside the elevator in the EL Building of New School. "Splenda tested on rats...processed with arsenic..etc." Silently, I shrieked in horror since this was my ~~drug~~ "sugar replacement" of choice at the time. From coffee, to splenda cheesecakes (pre-vegan days), to grapefruit. Sometimes I used to just dip the spoon in the bag and eat it like fluffy white snowflakes of tumor-inducing goodness! ::points:: Splenda-holic right here.

After that, I ditched the Splenda. Threw it all away. Haven't had it since.

The same thing happened when I was slathering up an apple with good old conventional Jiff peanut butter (who claims to be so natural) and my dear friend Martin was like, "That has partially-hydrogenated oil, a trans fat that's pretty horrible for you." You know when someone who can pack away some serious junk food tells you there's something deathly in your food, you had better stop eating it.

Little did I know, P.H.O., was in just about everything I was eating..yogurt, dressings, my freaking PB...along with high-fructose corn syrup...interesting..

Further research proved Martin right and I cut out both immediately. Which meant finding an entire new way of eating (yay veganism!) since both are basically staples of conventional American 'cuisine'. And, of course, becoming a compulsive label checker. (Like did you did you know Tofutti, the company that makes those vegan cream cheeses and ice cream bars and all that good stuff, yeah, their products contain partially-hydrogenated oils too! I mean honestly, they are sold in health food stores everywhere! Wouldn't have known that unless I read the label...)

I guess what I am really saying is that I cannot, for the life of me, understand how people can continue living in ignorance when they know how bad something is for them. I mean, I know this is entirely irrational, but it honestly makes me so angry. And this anger comes wholly from a place of concern and love because I just want everyone to be healthy, happy, and live a long time. The pharmaceutical dependency in this country and reliance on conventional doctors to just prescribe and right all our wrongs is devastating.

Have you ever noticed how everyone who eats like crap has some sort of ailment or disease? They are always complaining about something: my shoulder, my back, I've got this cancer and so and so just died of that cancer, I'm fat, I've got diabetes, allergies, etc. It never ends. Honestly, what did you expect after years of abusing your body? I have a hard time feeling any sort of sympathy for people who make bad choices and refuse to correct them.

I know this seems rather bitchy, but think of this as the "Skinny Bitch" or Gillian McKieth's "You Are What You Eat" approach to life and healing the body. I feel like I can say all this because I'VE BEEN THERE. I've had the migraines, sinus infections three times a year, chronic strep throat, digestive problems galore, the list goes on forever...I know what it is like to not be able to lose the weight and feel like crapola all the time. Up until a few years ago, I was that person. And then I found out all these little tidbits of information, changed my habits accordingly, and now I feel excellent.

As Ann Wigmore so candidly wrote, "Why Suffer?"

And this has nothing to do with raw vs. cooked or even vegan vs. omnivore. It's more of the Matt Monarch philosophy: it isn't what you put into your diet, but what you take out. Raw food is a personal choice. Same goes for veganism. And neither of these are strict requirements to being "healthy". If people simply switched to Organics and cut out the shitzel their health would improve ten-fold.

You cannot even cry "taste" here. Health food has comes leaps and bounds since its granola-only days where it's all carrot sticks and celery. I'm a serious food nerd (duh)...like to the point where I dream about food and eating it and how good it tastes. I'm all about flavor biatches! And while I may be able to suck it up and take one for the team by drinking cups of Vitamineral Green alone for greens-on-the-road sake, I'm not the type to just eat food just because it's "healthy". I love food too much to let that happen.

Kevin says I just have an over abundance of will power and that's why it is so easy for me to give up things once I discover how bad they really are. But, I don't think that's necessarily the case. I wasn't always this way. (Like Splenda I had quite the attachment to non-dairy creamer and it's assorted flavors even though my Mim used to plead with me to ditch it because it was nothing more than powdered chemicals. I ignored her for the longest time.) Now, I feel like it's just common sense: how can something with an ingredient list the size of Texas be good for you? Or ingredients that you cannot pronounce or identify as a real food? Does the light bulb not go off?

Maybe 10 or 15 years ago ignorance could be justified, but there is far too much information available today to allow this "blissfully unaware" excuse to be rationalized.

A lot of the time I find myself wondering whether I am simply far too jaded...have I seen to many Food Inc.'s? And read to many Michael Pollan books and Organic Consumer Association Newsletters??

Either way, I know I've got to find some way to let it go because I can only do so much. I'm really not a confrontational person, so peacefully educating people I suppose is the best way to go...
In other, happier news, the countdown to the release of Twilight Saga: Eclipse has begun! I saw the first billboard last week!! I'm marking down the days on my Edward calender! Seriously, I'm going all out in my Twilight gear. I know, so nerdly..

And thanks to my glorious blendtec I've been making this scrumptilly ice cream number every night. It's thick, icy, and the perfect nightly treat. I can't get enough of it!

Spirulina Dream Ice Cream

P.S. Thanks for listening to my rant. I've been mulling over these thoughts for quite some time now and it feels very good to get it off my chest.

Appliance Junkie

2010-05-28T15:18:00.000-07:00

There are few things I love more than food, Bikram, and Kev&Lish car dance parties. Ok, Real Housewives of NY and NJ too. (Am I the only one who wishes they could hire Caroline Manzo as their body guard???)

I've got a serious soft spot for gadgets of the kitchen variety: appliances, kitchen trinkets like ceramic measuring cups, mini-tart pans, Le cruset mini-pots, multi-coloured silicone cupcake molds, etc. I window shop at William-Sonoma and Sur La Table like an OC Housewife at Bloomies.

Luckily, I also suffer from a pretty bad case of shoppers remorse so there is no impulse buying going on in this nerdy kitchen.

With that being said, I've been eyeing those Blendtec Blenders with the BPA-free 96 oz carafes /4 inch blade for quite some time. Bigger green smoothies? Ability to pack that thing solid without having to use a plunger to blend? No more dirty sleeves as I try and scoop out every last ounce of food from the VM carafe? Simply having another high-speed blender to work with? HELL FREAKING YES! Don't get me wrong, love my Vita-Mix, but anyone who watches Matt & Angela's TV Show: Raw Food World can see the differences between the Vita and the Blendtec. By the way, making ice cream (w/nanners and ice) now takes 2 minutes instead of 25 + a whole crap load of cursing.

So, for my very belated birthday my grandparent's generously bought me this beauty which is currently on sale at The Raw Food World store!

And you thought my appliance in-take had reached its max for this week? Well, so did I...until my class on Wednesday...

Rewind to Saturday Night:

Kev and I went to Au Lac (without a doubt, the best, raw food I've ever had!) with two women, Louann and Kim, who have been coming to all my classes - we've gotten to be good friends as they are so sweet and I just adore them! It seriously felt like easter dinner with la familia - I was waiting for someone to bring out the big cannoli or something - tons of delicious food that was passed around and shared. One of the best things Louann ordered for us was the Winter Roll. I wrongly assumed this to be a standard nori wrap, but came as mandolin-ed zucchini! Genius! Once again, channeling my inner Bethenny Frankle, "holy shitballs" it was insanely good. While discussing the nature of the winter roll we got to talking about mandolins and how awesome they were. I briefly mentioned that I didn't have one, but wanted one - so that I could make this winter roll at home, damn straight!

Fast-forward to my Wednesday night "Just Desserts" class at the ENC which holy heck went from seven people to eleven at the last minute!

Louann gives me this:

From Sur La Table, like the Cadillac of mandolins. That's right, thinly sliced layers of zucchini for lasagna and ravi's here I come!

And as if I wasn't entirely grateful already...

During my class one of my other loyal students, Grace, asked me about my food processor. It's a Hamilton Beach, it does the job, but we have a love-hate relationship. Like, I love the fact that it shreds my zucchini and cucs in two seconds flat, but I HATE the fact that it sprays sauce all over the lid as it 'processes'. I told her that it was "alright", but that I was in the market for a new food processor and that the Cuisinart are the best. (My parents have one, my grandparents have one, and I've been complaining to Kev about getting a new food processor for like a year now. Every time we go to Target - I'm window shopping for food processors - no joke.)

At the end of class Louann tells me that she bought me this:

::Heavenly music::

The coveted 16 cup Cuisinart food processor!

Which also comes with the 12 cup AND 3 cup not to mention a whole slew of other kitcheny gadget essentials!

I felt like the Grinch who stole Christmas, my heart swelled ten times its normal size and I was nearly in tears.

Sheer acts of generosity like this make me even more grateful for everything in my life. Talk about spreading good Karma, right?

In return, I'm planning something deliciously splendid and making dinner. It's going to be a raw food feast!

Now, my Rolls Royce of a raw food kitchen is nearly complete...Hurom juicer, someday soon you will be mine!

Dessert Class Blur, Foodie Stress, & Curried Coconut Thai Veggies

2010-05-26T14:03:00.000-07:00

Is it really Wednesday? I mean, that's it? Feels like Friday to me for some reason. However, that's the way it usually is when I have classes coming up during the week. My real life + my food life seem to blur together into a hazy amalgamation of shopping, recipe testing, and overall preparation. Regardless of how many times I teach these classes I always stress over them: Will everything turn out ok? Will people like my food? Do I have enough for sampling?

I've learned that stressing over these things is a total waste of energy. The classes always go really well and people are always happy. I guess, because these are my creations, I feel like the bar is raised a little higher. I am trying to teach people how to make raw food more fun and accessible; I mean desserts are like the raw food gateway drug, so to speak. You can take a total skeptic, give him some raw chocolate or cheesecake or a truffle and he/she automatically wants to know more. The potentiality is enormous! It's a big job that I really do take to heart!

Can you see why I stress despite the fact that I know I shouldn't?

Anyway, I just wanted to thank you all. Your comments a la my dessert experimentation were delightfully touching. You guys are too nice!

With that being said, I thought I would leave you with a quick recipe that I used to eat a lot of back in NYC. If you love curry and thai food then you're going to swoon over this yummy veg bowl. The best thing about it is you can swap out different veggies depending on what you have in the house or what you are in the mood for. I made this for one of my clients this week as it is one of her fav.'s. I used broccoli and carrots because they looked especially good at the FM this week. I put it over cashew cauliflower rice and drench it in a creamy, curried, coconut sauce. It smells and tastes out of this world.

Curried Coconut Thai Veg Bowl Over Cashew-Cauliflower Rice

Sauce:
-meat from 1 young Thai coconut OR
1 can of organic coconut milk
-1 clove garlic
-1 T curry powder
-1 T onion powder
-1/4 t turmeric
-sea salt to taste
(water to blend if you use
meat from young Thai coconut)

Throw all your ingredients into the blender and puree it all together!

Veg Mix:
-1 head of broccoli, chopped
-3 carrots shredded

Toss with a pinch of sea salt and extra virgin olive oil to soften. You can either eat as is with the sauce OR pour the sauce over the veggies, mix, and pop in the dehydrator for about an hour at 110 degrees.

Cauliflower Cashew Rice:
-1/2 head cauliflower
-1 cup soaked cashews
-Sea Salt to taste

Put cashews into the food processor and pluse just to break up into pieces. Add in cauliflower and pulse until it begins to look like "rice". Be careful not to over process into a cauliflower mash - you want a 'grain-like' consistancy.

Fluff with a fork, just like you would cooked rice to make sure cauliflower and cashews are incorporated.

*You can also add parsnips to dull down the cauliflower taste or add pine nuts too!

A great addition to this would be some soft raisins!

Yum, yum, yum!

"Hot and heavy, pumpkin pie, chocolate candy, jesus christ"

2010-05-19T15:01:00.000-07:00

Although this post is hot and heavy, on sweet confections that is...you will not find pumpkin pie, chocolate candy, or jesus christ here - sorry! However, I promise the oodles of yums will not disappoint.

I think it is pretty obvious, I am by no means a pastry queen. My skillz in the kitchen are predominately of the savory kind. I can throw together a green monster of a soup or an apple wood smoked dulse mac and cheeze lettuce wrap in minutes and have it taste out of this world; my raw marinara sauce, fan-freaking-tastic. (I'm not bragging, honestly, it just happens...like divine-kitchen-intervention...)

Creamy Green Soup:

Apple Wood Smoked Dulse Mac & Cheeze Lettuce Wrap:

Are you listening Bobby Flay??? I'm ready for my throw down!

However, in the vast arena of raw desserts, I am not as blessed. Coming up with successful pastries that work is often more difficult then what I picture in my mind. Sure, they taste good -- it's not hard to make a tasty combination out of nuts and dates but, actually forming them into food that people want to eat? Well, that's a whole other ball game. And so it begins...

Some time around 1 am, when I know I should be sleeping, I quietly mosey on over to the kitchen and open the fridge- plotting. Unlike Daris from The Biggest Loser, my motives are not to stuff my face until four in the morning and sabotage my chances at winning $250,000- Jillian's words, not mine! Oh no, I gave up late night snacking long ago, I'm here purely for experimental reasons. (And, the fact that, well, I have a "Just Desserts" class coming up at the ENC and I want to make sure I'm super-prepared!)

Exhibit A:

Cacao Nib Walnut Butter Balls Rolled in Coconut

2 cups Walntuts
1 T Cacao Nibs
2 T Clear Agave
Pinch of Sea Salt
Shredded Coconut

To make the walnut butter you simply process them in the food processor for 2-3 minutes. The oil from the walnuts will begin to release and it will start to change from a powdery-flour to a butter. Add your raw clear agave as well as the pinch of sea salt and continue to process. Next, add in your cacao nibs until they are incorporated into the butter. Scoop out and form into balls. They should be rather gooey as that is what makes them so deliciously decadent. Roll in coconut flakes and then freeze or refrigerate depending on the desired texture you are seeking.

Exhibit B:

Oatmeal Pumpkin Seed Cookies Stuffed with Sweet Cashew Butter Cream

Exhibit C:

Double Chocolate Layer Cake w/ a Deconstructed Cashew-Coconut Macaroon Center topped with

Chocolate Ganache and Coconut

Pardon the slightly mangled tin, lol!

Unfortunately, in order to get a photograph of the inside of this layer cake I would have also had to mangle the actual cake instead of just the tin, and I am pretty sure my client would not have been too thrilled. However, she did tell me that this cake is amazing. So, I guess we will all have to suffer without a picture. :-(

I was actually inspired to make this after meeting Ani Phyo, as she has some chocolate cake with chocolate ganache videos on youtube from her dessert book. Naturally, I had to twist it up and make it my own!

So maybe the world of desserts isn't too far out of my territory. After all, I used to man the dessert station at a very fancy restaurant for quite some time...however, I think I'll stick to dishes of the savory persuasion and leave the sweet treats to the masters...like whoever makes the doughnut holes at Au Lac... I'm going to have to go ahead and quote Bethenny Frankle here and say, "Holy Shitballs".

Holy Moley Me Oh My!

2010-05-17T14:52:00.000-07:00

Happy Monday Darlings!

Thank you for all the supportive comments on my last post about devilish Aunt Flow (haha). I know what works for me obviously, might not work for everyone else (or you might be totally content with the state of your period), but I think just putting the information out there is helpful...then you can be the judge and decide what to do with that information!

Anyway, on to the really exciting news! Holy moley I got to meet Ani Phyo this weekend!!! (Thank you Gia!!!) If you don't already know, Ani Phyo is an amazing raw food chef based here in Southern California. She came out to Au Lac (the best raw food restaurant on the West Coast, no joke!) to do a talk/book signing because her new book Ani's Raw Food Essentials is coming out in June (I've had that baby pre-ordered for months!)

I am so excited for what her new book has to offer considering it contains 250 NEW recipes! Me oh my! Come June there's going to be a whole lot of (non-work related) un-cooking going on in the Raw Food Nerd Kitchen that's for sure!

Ani is everything you would expect her to be: funny, down to earth, personable and a true 'chef-spiration'. She's so laid-back and not to be cliche, but, well, zen. I get the feeling that if one were lucky enough to assist her in preparing a meal it would rank somewhere between hanging out with your best girlfriend on a Saturday night and a totally meditative experience. She just exudes positivity, but not in that weird fake way that sometimes afflicts raw foodies. I'm going to be totally '90s here and say, Ani Phyo is cool.

Awful picture of me, but Ani looks great as always!

Aside from her abject awesomeness, she's got some serious kitchen skills. She makes raw food very approachable, especially for the novice raw fooder. In fact, this past Christmas my future mother-in-law made a variety of recipes from Ani's Raw Food Kitchen that turned out so amazing even the non-raw foodies were going crazy over them! [Dear Mom W. I'm still waiting for my Coconut Date Balls! lol] Her recipes are simple, creative, and absolutely delicious. They aren't nut or seed heavy either, which is a big plus for me since I try to avoid all that heavy raw gourmet food anyway.

I really feel so lucky and privileged that I was able to meet her. She is such a bright encouraging light for the raw food community and I think we can all learn so much from people like her.

Thank you again Ani! Can't wait for you to come back to the OC and good luck on your book tour!

"Out, damn'd spot! out, I say!"

2010-05-06T15:29:00.000-07:00

Fortunately (or unfortunately depending on how you look at it) Lady Macbeth was referring to a different type of "spot", however, if Lady Macbeth were not a fictional Shakespearean character, I'm positive, she too would harbor the same negative feelings towards 'Aunt Flow' too.

Disclaimer: There's gonna be some serious discussion about the female menstrual cycle. I take no responsibility for any reactions that may come as a result of reading this post.

So, about a year and a half ago I stopped getting my period after being raw for almost 9 months. That's right, it just stopped. And damn was I happy...and admittedly, kind of scared too.

Aunt Flow and I haven't always had the best relationship. She came at 16 like a tsunami during a huge July BBQ that my parents' were throwing and it only got worse from there. I'm talking fetal-position inducing cramps, cold bathroom floors, many pairs of discarded undergarments, spots on coveted blankets, and raging PMS. No matter what I did, within an hour, I was leaking all over the place. And this would last for a minimum (that heavy too) for two weeks at a time. I was miserable. So, my Mim did what any concerned Mim would do - she took me to the gyno who put me on birth control. This did nothing, other than make me gain a few pounds. So, they upped the dosage because of course to conventional doctors when a problem arises it's prescribe! prescribe! prescribe! That didn't help at all either, unless you consider morning sickness, throwing up in the girls bathroom, and passing out in the laundry room working and normal for a teenager...?

After that, I went off the birth control. And my dastardly menstrual cycle continued, unabated for years to come with the same force; even during my reckless dieting phase!

So, one can imagine the surprise/shock/concern one would feel after years of putting up with an unwanted house guest who seemingly just picks up and leaves....and then doesn't return for quite some time...honestly, I wasn't sure how I was supposed to feel. I mean, society tells us that the female menstrual cycle is a right of passage: Ta-dah! You're a woman now! But, what if that isn't really true? We all know ovulation is necessary, but what if that's all we require to pass into the stage of woman-hood? I mean, if our nose was bleeding for a week every 28 days I doubt we would consider this normal...right?

A hemorrhaging of blood from anywhere can never be normal, at least in my opinion.

Anyway, I went to a local NYC clinic to get my blood tested. I had heard through various sources that often on a raw food diet women do stop getting their period, but since mine happened so soon after starting the diet, I wanted to make sure my hormones were balanced and everything was in check. My blood work came back perfect; now mind you at the time I was eating a modified 811 diet - still eating spices and an occasional raw gourmet meal, but for the most part I had severely cut back on my nut and seed intake.

Once I got my test results back, I was like a woman on a mission: I was going to find out what the hell was wrong with me that I had stopped getting my period. I even went for a pelvic exam to make sure there were no abnormalities on my ovaries or uterus. I tried EVERYTHING to get my period to come back: no fat, low fat, high fat, bikram, no running, raw gourmet, no raw gourmet, eating soy products again, 100% organic, more greens, wild greens, juicing, smoothie feasting, ph-balanced water, vitex, zinc, herbal teas, -- you name it, I've done it. I mean, NYC is a pretty toxic place to live as far as clean air goes. The fact that I could be clean enough to not get my period every month just seemed unreal to me!

However, after a while I started to appreciate the fact that I didn't have to deal with Auntie Flow anymore. Ahhh, bliss. No more forking over the cash for organic tampons and pads. No more PMS. No more spots and discarded under-roos. I felt great physically and mentally so I kind of gave up on my mission. Inwardly and outwardly there seemed to be no visible sign that anything was wrong or that I should be concerned simply because I wasn't bleeding every month. [Since 16, every time I was about to get my period, like a week or so before, I would get a sharp pain in my ovary. And I was still experiencing that same feeling despite the fact that I wasn't physically getting the period -- that's how I knew I was really ok.]

While on my mission I read several ~~thousand~~ articles on women and their periods and how necessary or unnecessary it really is. Some say that the period is like any other detox through the body; toxic blood essentially releasing via the womb. You should read these two articles if you are curious about more concrete information: The Bloody Truth and Diet and Menstruation.

I wasn't sure how true all this was until it happened to me...

If you all recall a few blog posts back I talked about all that cooked squash I was eating...and the hummus..and the diaya cheese. Sometimes I would gently melt the diaya cheese over zucchini in the oven...that month I had more cooked food than I had ever eaten in two years.

And what do you know, the very next month after nearly two years without a period...Aunt Flow came a knockin'!

It was one of the worst periods I had ever experienced, much like those from my teenage years - full force and lasting almost two weeks. And that doesn't even include the two weeks BEFORE my period where I was extremely exhausted, felt weak, lack of appetite, nauseous, etc.

At first, I was entirely confused. What the hell was I doing wrong now that could bring my period back!? Nothing about my diet or routine had changed since moving from NYC to CA. As mentioned, I am pretty OCD about consistency and I simply couldn't figure it out. I was also a strangely befuddled because I had spent so much time and energy trying to figure out how to bring my period back and here she was! And then, one night while on our way to Mother's for snacks, it clicked! The only thing that had changed for me since moving to California was the fact that I had been incorporating the cooked food into my diet the previous month. Ah, ha!

Now, you may be thinking, "Don't blame your period on a couple baked squashes and some hummus! That's crazy talk!" And while you are entirely entitled to your opinion, the proof is in the [raw] pudding, as they say.

This week, I was supposed to get my period again. And while I did feel the pangs of ovulation, I am successfully without period, once again.

My diet has been nearly all raw with the exception of yummy Coconut Bliss ice cream...and hell will freeze over before I would ever consider giving that up.

So what does this all mean? For me, this means, that if I ever want to suffer for a month straight I should just eat cooked food! No, really, this just proves to me how toxic cooked food is to the body. That I tried absolutely everything to get my period back for the longest time, EXCEPT eating cooked food, and all it took was in fact, the cooking of the food. This is not to say that I'll never eat a squash or a sweet potato again. (When I am el prego I plan on going straight to east side bagel on the lower east side and ordering an everything bagel with tofu cream cheese. Yes, you heard me.) However, I'm not going to make a meal of it...or eat it for two weeks straight (my consistency habits be damned).

So you see, the connection between food and body and our toxicity levels really is legit. We experience such a heavy toxic load daily from things that are completely out of our control via the environment or people who don't share the same conscious beliefs that we do..like the woman in line at the grocery store who apparently can't/doesn't leave the house without bathing in her eau de toilette that smells like cucumber melon and nursing home....so why would we want to further pollute our bodies when they already have enough toxicity to process everyday?

So, ladies (and maybe gents??) if you feel a craving for cooked food coming on because you are stressed or pmsing read some raw food blogs to stay inspired and maybe throw together a raw food dessert...or just something tasty...

Like:

Almond Cookie Dough Balls

Or...

Cinnamon Pecan Doughnut Holes Rolled in Cinnamon-Pecan-Coconut Flakes

*** My dear friend Averie of Love Veggies and Yoga requested the recipe for these super yummy doughnut holes and I am never one to deny good friends, good food. Unfortunately, I am not one for exact measurements...I just kind of make a list of what I think something should taste like and throw it together. Also, I make BIG batches for clients and what not so you would have to seriously adjust anyway.

Doughnut Hole:

2 cups soaked almonds

6-7 coconut date rolls

1/4 cup walnuts

1/4 cup pecans

2 cups coconut

1 T cinnamon

pinch of sea salt

Blend in the food processor until you have a dough. Make sure not to over process as you don't want the 'batter' to be super oily. You just want to make sure all your ingredients are incorporated. Form into balls and set aside.

To make the oustide layer:

1/2 c pecans

2 cups coconut

1 T cinnamon

pinch sea salt

Process until you have a powder with little bits of coconut still visable (gives texture). Then roll your doughnut holes in your cinna-pecan-coconut flour mixture.

I keep these in the freezer until I need to use them so that they stay fresh. However, you can eat these straight away (obviously) and if you are going to be serving them with in a few hours of making them you can just keep them in the fridge. These last a LONG time.

Enjoy!

Or maybe even some homemade Cashew and Walnut Butter on top of Cinnamon Raisin Brazil Nut Bread....

Hell, why not some Cheezy Curry Kale Chips??

Or... Walnut Pesto Stuffed Mushrooms too!

Because honestly, I can't think of anything better than never having to deal with Auntie Flow..

The Raw Food Nerd 21

2010-04-30T11:11:00.000-07:00

Don't worry, this survey is not an attempt to avoid writing a blog post due to a severe case of malaise and utter laziness (well, sort of.) I've been meaning to post this survey since I started this darn blog. I guess it would have been more pertinent back then, so that you could get to know me better [food wise], but it's here now! So, this is it, a sliver of me in a raw-oriented survey.

21 Questions

1. Favorite Raw Vegan milk? Most definitely Cashew Milk; it's so creamy and rich, I love it.

2. What are the top 3 recipes you are planning to make? Well, last night I made coconut yogurt which I have been meaning to make for like two weeks. I'm going to eat it over pineapple just like they make at Bonobo's in NYC. Sooo yummy. Also, Jicama 'Potato' Salad and Mini-Quiches. We shall see how they turn out.

3. Most disastrous recipe/meal failure? The first raw recipe I ever tried to make was Ani Phyo's Sun Burgers. All I had was an Oster blender, so I attempted to make the 'burger' meat in the blender. At the time I was unaware of flax seeds gelatinous nature when combined with water. So, in an effort to assist my blender I added water...and more water..and my flax got more and more gelatinous...The result was this goopety goop of flax seeds, veggies, and sunflower seeds. It was a disaster! And, I didn't have a dehydrator at the time so there was absolutely no way I could redeem myself. I wound up eating the slop stuffed inside red bell peppers for like two weeks. It tasted fine, but it was far from even being considered 'burger material.

4. How do you organize your recipes? For as much as a perfectionist as I am, my recipes have no organization whatsoever. They are literally stuffed in a drawer in my kitchen - written on napkins, stray pieces of paper, receipts...it's terrible. The best I have been able to do is get them all inside a folder, but since I am always adding to the pile the folder just keeps expanding and overflowing. Shame on me.

5. Compost, trash, or garbage disposal? I put all food scraps into a separate recycle bag or down the garbage disposal. I need to learn how to compost...we tried once and did it completely wrong...

6. If you were stranded on an island and could only bring 3 foods...what would they be? Avocados, Cucumber, and Vitamineral Greens. I'm assuming that since this is an island I better have access to coconut water, pineapples, and bananas!

7. Fondest food memory from your childhood? Ah, le sigh, Great Meadows --my grandparents making me late night snacks served on fancy china of wheat thins with cream cheese and tea... I swear, my childhood heart remains there. And I am nearly positive that when I pass on someday, my reincarnated soul will drift back to that place.

8. Favorite raw ice cream? Well, if I didn't have to think about price, then definitely Sarma's Cookies N'Cream Ice Cream, hands down. However, I really don't have $18 dollars to spend on a pint of ice cream, so, while not 'raw' Coconut Bliss is surely my ice cream of choice. I just wish their Mint Chocolate Chip didn't have evaporated cane juice because that would be my favourite...

9. Most loved kitchen appliance? It's a tie between the food processor and the Vitamix. I couldn't live without either...

10. Spice/herb you can't be without? The holy grail of herbs, cilantro.

11. Recipe (Cook) book you have owned for the longest time? Always been surrounded by lots of cookbooks. My favourite non-raw is tri-tie between Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking since you can actually sit down and read it like a book, Anthony Bourdain's Les Halles cookbook filled with classic French recipes from the restaurant, and I am hopelessly in love with all things Thomas Keller -- he's just so creative. As far as raw foods go, that one is easy, Ani Phyo and Alissa Cohen.

12. Favorite flavor of jam/jelly? Raspberry w/ the seeds. When we lived in Great Meadows we used to make our own homemade Raspberry Jam. It's still my favorite.

13. Favorite raw (vegan) recipe to serve to an omni-friend? My Chocolate Cheesecake with Walnut Crust. I made this for Kev's birthday like two years ago and my very skeptical future father-in-law all but stopped teasing us about food after he had some...and if I couldn't make anything I would enlist my future mother-in-law to make her coconut date balls. They are literally the BEST. I don't know how or what she does, but I've never had anything comparable.
14. Favorite meal to make? Oh, it's a sloppy mess of deliciousness that I would never serve to anyone else because they would probably gag at the sight of it. I mash avocado with lime and nutritional yeast and cumin and mix it into shredded zucchini and cilantro. It's to die for.

15. Name 3 items in your freezer without looking. Nuts galore, hemp protein powder, frozen organic strawberries.

16. Favorite grocery store? Westerly in NYC.

17. Food blog you read the most. Green and Crunchy. I really admire the way she feeds and raises her kids, truly inspiring blog.

18. What is one ingredient that you've become familiar with that you can't imagine you ever lived without? Oh, duh, Coconut Butter for sure. That stuff is like raw food crack.
19. Most coveted condiment? Whole grain mustard.

20. Best food smell? Sauteed garlic and onions or the smell of a health food store. It's so granola, I love it...like a mix of fresh veggies and fruits coupled with incense.

21. Best cooked food memory that you'd like to re-create raw? Ah, my absolute favourite and the only thing I miss to the core -- Everything bagels with cream cheese and butter. ::drools::

You didn't think I would just post a survey and then just leave you hanging without some serious raw food goodness did you? Geeze, I'm not that lazy this week. I've still been taking pictures...in fact, I have a back log. I made lots of food this week..Veggie Loafs w/ Raw/Vegan BBQ Sauce HELL-O!

Heirloom Tomato Basil Soup

Ok, ready for the ingredients? ....

Heirloom tomatoes, a dash of Himalayan sea salt, and a chiffonade of basil...THAT'S IT! Then I just popped it into the D. for maybe, two hours, and let all the natural flavors melt together. Amazing, sweet, savory, peppery - so simple, rustic, tasty.

Why so little ingredients you ask? I know what you're thinking, "I thought you were Italian!? Where's the garlic?!"

Ah, but you see heirloom tomatoes are so amazing in and of themselves that tampering with them would almost be blasphemous! All they need is a wee bit of sea salt to round out their flavors and the pepper sweetness of basil to compliment.

Trust me, give it a try. You will not be disappointed.

I'm very excited because my copy of If you have to cry, go outside; and other things your mother never told you by Kelly Cutrone is finally ready for pick up at the library! Right in time because I am nearly finished reading Breaking Dawn (to read something besides Twilight! Shocking! I've been reading these books for months now...it's going to be strange not reading about vampires and werewolves!)

Have a splendid weekend everyone!

Food Noise & Life Lessons

2010-04-21T14:31:00.000-07:00

I'm a creature of habit and I thrive on consistency; I need schedules and boundaries to stick to. I've tried (and not tried) to be one of those laid back people who can just close their eyes and let the universe guide them, where ever - just because. And while I put a lot of trust in the universe, logic and reason typically dictate, and I feel wholly responsible for the direction my life takes. All of this was part of the reason why I came to California in the first place...I wanted to live the bohemian lifestyle...I wanted to just pick up and move and start a new life. A lot easier said than done. (After all, they always say if you can make it in NYC you can make it anywhere...well, I'd survived NYC and then some...living it up in CA seemed like it would be cake!)

Life lesson number one: Don't move to a new place unless you really know what you are getting into. i.e. never move without getting a 'real' job first...esp. to a place that requires that you have your own car...

Needless to say, when I left NYC I didn't know what I was really leaving behind...I was unaware of what I was really setting myself up for...

Consistency, schedules, boundaries...they left me high and dry the day we packed up the car and started the journey out here...

Perhaps this is why consistency in my diet is so darn important to me- why it makes me feel better to know what I'm going to be eating from one day to the next. This may be far too personal for a food blog, but I firmly believe that your emotional well begin effects how you view/enjoy your food. I know for sure that I channel a lot of my emotions and energy into my creations; I feel like I hyper-focus on food sometimes as a way to avoid what's really going on (i.e. how homesick I am, the guilt for leaving TT, the regret, etc.)

In any case, these past two weeks the very thought of a green smoothie made me want to gag. I felt extremely fatigued, nauseous, and generally worn out -- like I could have literally slept 24 hrs. straight. Naturally, I pushed on with my usual routine -- writing, making food for clients, going to bikram, gym, etc. I forced down the green smoothies because god forbid I break with routine and not have my daily green smoothie?! I told you, I am a creature of habit and habits are hard to break...not that drinking a green smoothie everyday is a bad habit..but, not listening to your body (or your gag reflex) is...

Life Lesson number two: Do not, under any circumstances, try and over-ride your bodies natural instincts...or else you might find yourself curled up in the fetal position of the bathroom floor at 3:00 A.M. simultaneously sweating bullets and breaking out in cold sweats.

Save for the nightmares of my hair falling out for fear of not getting enough greens, I've been on strict green smoothie hiatus. (Thank Buddha for Vitamineral Greens powder in lemon water...def. not as tasty as a Raw Food Nerd green smoothie, but it was good enough...since I plugged my nose and chugged, of course.)

Life, sans green smoothies, just doesn't feel the same, but I knew we wouldn't be broken up forever...we just needed some time apart. I did, however, start experimenting with a new smoothie, one that as of yesterday I have started to add my greens back into. And oh, yum yum yum! It's banana, ice, almond milk, cinnamon, carob, hemp protein fiber and then sometimes I add slippery elm, burdock, triphala, and licorice root. It's delicious! Not that I am surprised, but adding spinach to my little nightly concoction does not alter the taste one bit! Hallelujah! Green Smoothie train is back in biz!

Life Lesson number three: Forcing yourself to be something you aren't only leads to disaster, regret, and a whole lot of wasted time. i.e. My adventurous spirit (in life) can only take me so far.

In the kitchen, however, it is limitless...

A twist on boring old veggie burgers -- these were topped with cute, petite portobellos as buns and underneath was marinated mushrooms, apple wood smoked dulse, butter lettuce, and tomato. A much happier meal.

right in time for Earth Day too!

Yum nums, garlic-y Marinated Mushrooms.

These were Chocolate Walnut-Butter cups inspired by the wonderfully creative momma of dessert heaven, Averie...

It's true, a little "nooch" (nutritional yeast) goes a loooong way...

And so does a little Carrot Raisin Bread...

or Sweet Sesame Crackers...

Life Lesson number four: Fake it till you make it. i.e I'm going to give this all I have because failure just isn't an option.

On that note, my Strawberry Milkshake recipe was published in Coconut Bliss's newsletter for this month! Check it out!!

Snackafiable!

2010-04-19T15:02:00.000-07:00

If 'snackafiable' were actually a real word, I would deem it worthy to describe the generous assortment of goodies that Kaia Foods sent me (heinously long ago) to review. [Thanks Heidi!] This girl does Cross Fit six days a week AND fuels herself with green smoothies! You know you've got a good company on your hands when the people who actually work there are raw foodists. So, pretty much, Kaia rocks all around!

My heart went a fluttering when I opened my package (I heart snail mail, for sure) and to my surprise there were two bags of granola, seasoned seeds, kale chips, and fruit leathers! I didn't even know Kaia made anything other than granola! Holy moly! If there is a such thing as yummy snack heaven, then I was surely there.

We're certified cereal addicts in the Raw Food Nerd household/kitchen so Kev and I dug into the Cocoa Bliss buckwheat granola first. We get seriously razzed and jazzed over cereal and granola; it's kind of sad actually. I mean, when we were in college we used to celebrate our anniversaries with over sized bowls of cereal-- often eating at least two boxes in one night. (what? moderation? yeah, right!) It's really hard to stop eating Puffins...

Since I consider myself an authority on cereal and granola (second only to Kev who can still down an entire box, on his own...in one night..lol), I can tell you, this stuff is splendidly delicious. If you love chocolate, than this is the granola for you. Kaia Foods does a great job of balancing the chocolaty yumminess and sweetness. When it comes to raw food, texture is paramount and I think that is what makes this granola outstanding. Don't get me wrong, I like when my granola gets nice and soft after it's been sitting in nut milk, but ultimately it's still got to maintain that crunch-factor! Am I right? Perhaps this is why I enjoy raw granola more than the traditional variety made with oats; buckwheat always retains it's crunchability. And I cant help but love how it turns my nut milk into chocolate milk...You'll be going back for ~~fourths~~ seconds no doubt!

These are ingredients we can feel good about putting into our bodies: buckwheat*, agave nectar*, raisins*, dried coconut*, cacao powder*, ground flax seed*, sunflower seeds*, pumpkin seeds*, walnuts*, natural vanilla extract, spices, and mineral salt. (*organic)

I'm not much of a nut/seed person anymore, but I make exceptions now and then for the sake of the blog...such a hard life I live, I know. Anyway, I didn't have to be prodded too much to shovel heaping handfuls of Kaia's Sprouted Sunflower Seeds. They sent me two flavours: Sweet Curry and Teriyaki.

You will notice, the bag of Sweet Curry Sunflower Seeds is missing so I just used a picture from Kaia's website. Yeah, Kev takes them to work and school to snack on and he snagged the bag before I could get a picture. We both LOVE the taste of these seeds.The Sweet Curry has a nice subtle sweetness to it that matches the natural heat of the curry. And yumm, I am obsessed with cumin so I can definitely pick up the notes of cumin in the curry. And the Teriyaki, I cannot get enough of these. It has some heat, but it isn't over powering thanks to the agave and I love the undertones of ginger and garlic. Kev says they keep him full all day long. We both agree that these are out of this world as far as seasoned seeds go!

Oh, the Kale Chip, a much sought after treat for the raw foodist. These are perhaps the best kale chips that I have ever had. The only ones that compare (other than my own of course, ha ha) are the ones that Kev and I got at ChocolaTree in Sedona, AZ. However, those were Cheezy flavored so it's like apples and oranges in my book. These were BBQ Kale Chips which completely put them on a whole other level to begin with and then they had to go and taste EXACTLY like the BBQ potato chips I used to eat pre-raw and vegan. That's hard to do! These are the ultimate snackafiable indulgence! I'm hooked...might give up making my own kale chips all together..lol

I have a soft spot for fruit leathers. They remind me of being a kid on the playground at snack time when I used to desperately (and often unsuccessfully) try and trade my orange for a Fruit-by-the-foot or a Fruit Rollup. Remember those!? Their chemically, dye-tastic and HFC syrup-laden nature was muchly sought after by school kids alike. Fortunately for all us fruit leather lovin' folk Kaia has found a way to not only replicate, but improve an old favourite with new and inventive flavors made from ALL fruit:

Apple Spice: Oh me gosh, takes like apple pie with a kick!

Lime Ginger: I've been on a lime kick lately so this was exceptionally appealing to me. A nice combination of tang (from the lime) and spice (from the ginger).

Vanilla Pear: Reminds me of a dried version of pureed pears. This one was my favourite. The vanilla hits you once you begin to chew; it was like a petite surprise for my taste buds. Ahh, pear. Ouu, vanilla. Yum.

Now if only they had peel out shapes and designs...maybe one day?

Kaia, which according to their website means 'body' in Sanskrit, is a company after my own heart. ::sigh:: All of their food, across the board, is mighty tasty -- not to mention ALL organic. Really, what's not to love?

Coconut Bliss Euphoria & Blended Life Class at the ENC

2010-04-12T14:18:00.000-07:00

Right now, I should be ~~starting~~ finishing my taxes, filling client orders, and/or folding and putting away laundry, but I figure a blog update cannot be put off any longer; it's been all sorts of procrastination over here because I was preparing for my next raw food class at the ENC The Blended Life: The Art of Raw Soups and Smoothies plus weekly menu plans, and a whole bunch of other work-related stuffies.

The Blended Life, if I do say so myself, was the best and most fun I have had teaching a class yet. The women, amazing! They were so wonderful! All so funny, attentive, smart, and generally lovely! They really made my job so easy! I got some great feedback and the general consensus was that they loved the food! Which for me, is always the most important considering all recipes are my own creations. It would be dreadfully embarrassing if they were awful!! Can you imagine...

This class was particularly important to me because it really resonated with how I eat normally. Usually, my raw food classes involve lots of nuts and seeds because that's what people want; they want that raw gourmet transition food-- which is totally fine. It's supposed to be that way in the beginning. Yet, it is a lot more fun for me when I can show people that sure, nuts and seeds are great for getting protein and helping you transition from SAD to raw, but it's really the water-rich, mineral-dense, instant nutrition of soups and smoothies that are going to make raw foods a lifestyle vs. a diet.

What was on the menu? Oh, wouldn't you like to know!

Tomato Basil Soup w/ Garlic Aioli
Dill-licious Cucumber Soup
Lucious Avocado Herb Soup
Corn Chowder w/ Fixins'
Cookies N'Cream Smoothie
Green Smoothie Magic
Strawberry Milkshake
Chocolate Hazelnut Fudge Shake

I told the ladies that the more greens you get into your diet the better. These soups and smoothies are overflowing with oodles of good, leafy greens. I was even able to show them how to sneak those greens into the Strawberry Shake by keeping the tops of the organic strawberries on! You can't even taste it!

Strawberry Shake (using Vanilla Coconut Bliss)

Green Smoothie Magic

This was def. one of their favs.!

The ladies toasting with the Cookies N'Cream Smoothie

And to top if all off, the fabulous people at Coconut Bliss (Thanks Vince and Kiley) hooked me up with a 'Bliss Kit' so they ladies were able to try a variety of Coconut Bliss Ice Cream flavors, take home coupons, as well as a booklet all about CB, and some stickers.

Diving in!

They went wild for the Bliss! Per usual, most cannot believe the simplicity of the ingredients and how creamy the ice cream is for being total diary free! We even discussed how the fact that it is low glycemic makes it perfectly suitable for diabetics, since one women was pre-diabetic, thus proving that you can still be healthy and indulge without guilt!

Look at those happy Coconut Bliss faces!

There was hardly any left, which is good for me, because I have a tendency to proudly devour an entire pint in one sitting...and what was left was eaten for dinner by Kev...

Those were my kind of ladies! There was not a lick of ice cream..or..soup...or smoothie to be found in that kitchen proving once again that raw food is not about deprivation, moderation, or restriction.

Dieting is the devil. Raw food is seriously, guilt-free indulgence with thousands of benefits. You do the math!

This week I've got Kaia food samples to review...mmm, so delicious. <--certified cereal/granola addict.

AND the very first, Raw Food Nerd GIVEAWAY from CSN Stores!!!!

Special Thanks:

Once again thank you to Coconut Bliss for donating the Bliss Kit. You guys rock!

And Lori for taking pictures and as always, sticking around to help clean up! Couldn't

do it without you!

"Where do you work?" Oh..just my kitchen...

2010-04-03T00:49:00.000-07:00

That's right, when you are self-employed raw food chef your kitchen is THE OFFICE. And last week, I spent an awful lot of time in "my office"; I've got Michael Scott aspirations for sure. Except, I actually get work done since I don't have any employees to drag to the boardroom for an impromtu ~~distraction~~ 'meeting' and I'd like to consider myself slightly more self-aware...

I also, finally, fingured out how to work my camera this past week...mm hmm, after 7 months...hey, I never claimed to be any sort of technical genius. Seriously though, I was pretty jazzed! My food pictures will no longer suck!

Anyway, this weeks food got thumbs up all around. I know this is wildly cheesey, but no matter how long I've been doing this, when people like or love my food it sends zings to my heart. It's like a re-confirmation for following my heart.

Kevy McKeverson was partically enthused over my Dark Chocolate Cupcakes with Chocolate Frosting. I went off Ani Phyo's Chocolate Raspberry Ganache Cake recipe sans the raspberries, but added my own twist. I mixed it up with brazil nuts and almonds instead of just walnuts. And I also added shredded coconut and probably wayyy more raw chocolate powder than her recipe called for. The carob powder that I added gave the cupcakes an awesome peanut buttery flavor, so says Kevin, mouth full of cupcake. The frosting in and of itself was a combination of avocado, coconut oil, agave, chocoate, and carob. I've been making chocolate covered strawberries for Kev to take for lunch with the leftovers. Store these in the fridge, the frosting and cupcake firm up quite nicely when kept cold; entirely, mouthwateringly, delectable.

Keeping with the theme of dessert first, I also made a Raspberry Cobbler. Cobblers are my favourite raw dessert to make because they are basically idiot-proof. Not that Kev is an idiot, but he's pretty challenged in the kitchen and I am 99% sure even he could make a perfect cobbler. It's really just whatever nuts or seeds you have on hand and fruit - you can even use thawed out frozen fruit! I like to pop my into the dehydrator overnight on a low temp. to let the flavors marry and oh, do they marry. The juices from the fruit slowly seep out and create a thick natural syrup, esp. with raspberries. So very scrumdillyuptious, you would not believe!

Pre-'Bake'

Post-'Bake'

I also made No-Bake Oatmeal Raisin Cookies. As I mentioned in my last post, I gave them an extra protein punch by adding SunWarrior Vanilla Protein Powder to them. I've always felt more connected to the savory aspect of raw foods, something about the science of dessert making that has always intimidated me. Not to mention, making raw desserts can get pretty pricey! You know, with all that coconut oil and nuts and what not; there's just a lot more that can go awry! However, I think I've finally found my raw dessert groove! Hallelujah!

Now, on to the savories!

Before going raw I was known to sneak several vegan falefels from the hot foods bar at Whole Foods. Sorry, but if you've been to Whole Foods Union Square during lunch...or well at any time really...or even worse, Columbus Circle you know just how long those lines get! I couldn't help snacking! They were so good!

My raw version of this zesty Middle Eastern delight is wayy better for you than those still-fried vegan knock-offs. These are so light and fluffy and just busting with herby goodness! And if you have leftover batter you can use it as a pate in a sandwich or turn it into a burger pattie! Mmm, mine are hella-packed with cilantro and cumin, two of my favourite herbs/spices. I stick these on a tray and dehydrate over night which creates a nice crust for the outside, while the inside is still slightly soft.

I made a homemade Cucumber Dill Tahini Sauce, Quoina Tabouleh, Lemon Parsley Flax Crackers (pictured below with my Sweet Sesame Crackers, and Garlic Zucchini Hummus to go with these for a Middle Eastern Platter.

I also made Sour Cream and Chives Dip for extra flax crackers...

And plain Sour Cream for my Mexi-Platter which included Red Cabbage Tacos stuffed with Taco Meat and Homemade Pico de Gallo.

While I love making raw gourmet, I've kind of moved beyond this transitionary period. I perfer a much more simple diet and I stick primarly to whole foods with much less of a focus on nuts/seeds for the bulk of my diet. I find I feel much better eating this way; there is much less transit time of food for digestion purposes, the nut-heavy stuff and I really don't jive anymore. I treat myself now and then, but most of my dinners look something like this. Essentially it is my version of Mexican Mac N'Cheese. I think it is one of the best things I have created and the best part is, it's SO simple. Takes me less than five minutes to make.

This is zucchini, shredded and mashed with avocado, lime juice, a dash of ACV and loaded with cilantro and cumin. I've been eating this every night for over a week now. I simplely cannot get enough of it, especially the cumin and cilantro. The mashed up avocado is what makes this really creamy like mac and cheese and the acid from the lime and ACV starts to break down the zucchini making it nice and soft. This is really good with a dash of curry too...

I'm ending my night with this awesome Chai Spice Tea Blend concotion I found at my Co-op in Santa Monica:

I found this while persuing the asiles at the Co-op while waiting for Kevy to come back from the vegan restaurant where he was getting his lunch in SM last Saturday. I love Chai in all forms - cookies, tea, ~~slathered on a boot fashioned to be a cookie??.~~ I, shamefully, used to drink that boxed chai stuff like it was liquid gold. This blend is infinately times better. For one, it is green tea and not black so there is so residual caffeine after shock that leaves you up all night. Secondly, this is totally medicinal! If you can read the label, they've added reishi mushrooms, cordyceps, and maitake mushrooms!! All super healing for you body, great for energy, immune system, etc. And, it is sweetened with agave and honey! No refined sugar in this baby! And of course, it's full of Indian chai spice..what could be better?

I've been making homemade nut milk and adding 1 tablespoon of the Chai Tea Blend, 3 tablespoons of carob, and 3 tablespoons of Vivagave (1 of Original/ 2 Vanilla). I blend it up until it gets nice and toasty. It's so deliciously good and great to have when you are slightly hungry at night, but it is too late to eat anything...

They have two other blends, one is for energy and the other is for aphrodisicial purposes - all chai flavor, but with different medicinal blends.

The price? $6.50!

I know, I was equally shocked. I was sure it would be at least $12-$15. I even double checked when we rang up the rest of our stuff.

It's insanely good.

Well, TGIF...or mmm, TGIS since it's offically Saturday as I wrap this baby up!

We're off to Santa Monica this weekend (again) with a trip to the Co-op for Chunks of Energy and Rainbow Acres-- who seriously only get better and better with each trip! We've discovered that they actually OPEN young thai's for you! No, like really open them, like hack the top off, no dinky little hole that barely fits your straw...does it get any better? Honestly???

Gaga for SunWarrior!

2010-03-30T18:41:00.000-07:00

Well, it's official. I'm obsessed/in love/can-no-longer-live-without SunWarrior Protein Powders. Yup, you heard me; this discerning consumer has fallen hopelessly for good old chocolate, vanilla, and a very delicious stevia and mint-infused Ormus Green.

Last week, the lovely Madison (Thank you Madison! You're the bomb!) of SunWarrior was kind enough to send me a ginormous pile of samples to try including: Ormus Greens, Vanilla Protein, Chocolate Protein, and Activated Barley Powders.

OK, let's be honest --we've all had a fair share of protein powders, bars, and shakes before and after going raw. You know, the ones that taste like you're eating a handful of pennies and have to hold your nose so you can swallow without gagging? And then of course there's the powders that are so chalky and gritty that no matter how many frozen strawberries or bananas or greens you put in that smoothie it's still going to taste...like crap...

I've tried my best to avoid raw protein powders for this very reason choosing to get my protein through lots of fruits, hemp seeds, and dark leafy greens. Though, I will admit, sometimes I've bitten the bullet and caved, only to be seriously disappointed.

My internal monologue while drinking said protein shake goes something like this:

"What? ....This doesn't taste like [insert flavor - vanilla/chocolate/fruity-tutty berry/etc]. This tastes like sand...or gravel...ugh, well, guess you better keep drinking since you've wasted all those other perfectly good ingredients...::gulp:: gulp:: lots of wincing must...finish...one...last....sip!"

And sometimes, I really just can't finish because my mouth is almost numb thanks to the intense chalky feeling coating my taste buds. When that happens I try and pawn my grit-tastic smoothie off on Kev...I'm horrible, I know..

Fortunately, SunWarrior has established a pretty good reputation for themselves as being one of the best protein powders on the market. Their products are organic, completely raw (not heated over 90 degrees), and one of the most easily absorbed, assimilated, and digested powders. This is really important to me since I usually have my smoothies after a Bikram sweat-fest where I've burned anywhere from 800 to 900 calories a session. Needless to say, when I leave the studio I'm starving and need to refuel ASAP.

I'm also pretty busy during the day and on my feet a lot (I’m a total slave (willingly) to my kitchen) so I need something to keep my energy up as well as keep me focused. SunWarrior is just overflowing with antioxidants, tocopherols, and a host of vitamins like riboflavin, thiamine, niacin. And, of course, can't forget the protein at an extraordinary 15 grams per scoop! That's above and beyond your necessary daily dose for sure!

(Upon reading their website, I found this astonishing little fact: SunWarrior has a 98% correlation rate to Mother's Milk!!! How cool, right?? It even says that it is acceptable for infants to drink, so this would be really great for moms who are in a pinch or who don't/can't breastfeed but who also don't want to subject their little ones to Enfamil ::shudder:: Have you ever looked at the ingredients in that junk? No wonder why babies are sick all the time and spitting up! The first ingredient is corn syrup solids! Now, someone, please tell me how that can be healthy for a growing baby?? Especially since it's not organic which undoubtedly means GMO corn. Yum.)

So, I got down to business testing all sorts of Green Smoothie combinations using the various SunWarrior protein flavors. These two combinations were my favorites. They are thick, creamy, nutrient-packed and absolutely amazing. (All smoothie ingredients are Organic.)

Vanilla-Berry Crunch

• Bananas
• Frozen Strawberries
• Frozen Mango
• Cali. Oranges
• SunWarrior Vanilla Protein Powder
• Ormus Greens Powder
• Vanilla VivAgave Powder
• Spinach
• Topped with: Bee Pollen for an excellente crunchiness!

Chocolate-Mulberry Hemp Creamy Dreamy Shake

• Frozen Bananas

• Young Thai Coconut Meat

• Spinach

• SunWarrior Chocolate Protein Powder

• Ormus Greens

• Topped with: Mulberries, Hemp Seeds, Cacao Nibs, Bee Pollen, Coconut Flakes, & Gojis

You will notice that I've added SunWarrior's new product Ormus Greens to both my smoothies. In my book, the more green goodness, the better! This stuff is the bomb. It's like Vitamineral Green, but it has a minty-stevia flavor instead of that slightly bitter taste that often accompanies Vitamineral Green. (Don't get me wrong, I love Vitamineral Green. They are a great company and I think their products are awesome, but on taste alone, Ormus wins this one.) After two days putting Ormus into my smoothies there was a noticeable difference in my skin. The few spots/blemishes I had (oye, Bikram) were virtually gone!! I love products that work from the inside out to help heal your body. It's like a double-duty product: green-love nourishing all of my organs!

Raw Food Nerd Overall Review:

As you can tell, I am utterly smitten by all that SunWarrior has to offer. Aside from the obvious high quality of their product, the taste is unlike any protein powder I've ever had. The vanilla is sweet and bold. The chocolate is reminiscent of a homemade almond butter cup with a drool-worthy nutty taste that I found utterly delicious. The Ormus Greens, wonderful and minty and packed with an impressive list of good-for-you greens. What other protein powders have merely attempted to do, SunWarrior has mastered. And as I mentioned above, while most protein powders are chalky and gritty and washing your mouth out with soap would be more appealing idea -- SunWarrior is so silky and smooth it's almost wrong! ...Well, the good kind of wrong, of course... I would say, that if you like Vega's products, then you will definitely like SunWarrior-- since that is the only other protein powder that's in the same league as SunWarrior.

I don't really have any cons to offer. In normal circumstances I might say price, since a bag is about $50.00. However, when you consider quality of production, ingredients, taste and the fact that the average bag contains 2.2lbs -- the initial hit to the wallet, even for those on a budget, is negligible in my opinion.

Guess my only real con is that I've run out of samples!

Extra Benefits of SunWarrior:
• Gluten-Free
• Produced in Eco-Friendly Manner
• GMO-Free
• Cultured, so its rich in probiotics
• Helps control weight
• Non-mucous forming unlike Whey
• No animals were harmed in the process

I'm hooked...I mean, I've even added Vanilla SunWarrior to my clients batches of Oatmeal Cookies for that extra protein-punch!

Dear Santa Monica, I really LOVE you!

2010-03-22T16:07:00.000-07:00

Kevin and I are hopelessly in love with Santa Monica. From the parking to it's walk-ability, the beach, and our sister Co-Op that is teaming with raw food granola, chunks of energy, and spices galore -- we're utterly smitten. Since we discovered that our San Diego Co-op card works in Santa Monica as well, we've been going there every weekend for the past month. We just get our snacks and walk around for hours checking out stores, hitting up the goodwills, and walking along the beach just talking.

Then, on the way home we hit up our favourite health food store in Culver City, Rainbow Acres to stock up for the week. This store is rediculously awesome as they always have tons of sales going on. For the past few weeks they've had Zico Coconut Water on sale for $2.49 for a Liter! Hold me back! Hold me back! I've had an ongoing coconut water obsession since I was first introduced to Bikram like 3-4 years ago and anytime I can get it on sale I go a little bit crazy. I'd probably buy out the whole store if Kev wasn't there to reign me in!

Here are some of my finds this weekend:

I had only ONE MRM Enzyme left! Ahhh! So instead of going into a panic because the Co-Op didn't carry them, we bought these instead: Organic Tummy Soothers! And soothe they did! They are gloriously packed with ginger, fennel, coriander, peppermint oils, etc. No added sugar either! We paid $4.99 for the pack and I haven't seen these anywhere else so I can't really compare the price, but they work, so I consider it a good deal.

Pardon my slice of leg. This was bulk raw granola by the people who make all the Go Hunza products. This was a mix of Really-Raw Austrian Pumpkinseed Granola and Really-Raw Mulberry & Walnut Granola. It was a whooping $14.99 a pound which I am not a fan of BUT, if you buy it online or already packaged from a health food store it is only about $5.00. For me, this is a HUGE splurge and I don't buy very much. Unfortunately, here, taste rules over price. The granola has a great crunch to it, and still some bites are chewy and soft. I used to be a big cereal eater, like I'm talking about eat-nearly-a-whole-box-in-one-sitting kind of cereal eater and this stuff is so delicious that I'd like to eat the whole bin...You cannot ask for a better raw granola!

Mmm. they also make this other bar that I am madly in love with:

It's soft, slightly sweet with a splendid Vanilla flavor to it. What makes this bar so life-altering is that after you taste the vanilla, this little spicey bite comes through and hits the back of your tongue -- like a little zing to match the fruitiness. Loooveee it. It's really filling too so when you pay $3.00 for a bar, it's like you are getting a whole meal packaged into this great bar! And i'm pretty much down for anything that has chia in it so I was sold even before I tasted it...

Ugh, I worship GoHunza...

On the way to Rainbow Acres we stopped at this other health food store that we've never been to before called Vitamin Warehouse. It was very tiny and mostly well, vitamins, but we did find some steals.

Organic Hempseed for $4.99!!! I've honestly never paid less than $8.00 for any brand of hempseeds. We couldn't pass these up. Hempseeds are my fav of all favs! I use them in everything; sauces, burgers, shakes, smoothies, on top of smoothies, granolas, you name it!

From the same store, this Shaman Organic Aloe and Orange hair gel for anti-frizz. We got it for .99 cents! Yes, you heard correctly, .99 cents. It smells divine! I normally don't put all this goopy glop in my hair anymore, but when I go home and the water is different, I always need a little something. The man from this store was so sweet! I don't think they get that many customers so I was happy to purchase from him and support a little store. What a doll, he told us if we couldn't find anything we needed to call him and he'd order it for us!

And then from Rainbow Acres we got a bunch of stuff like the liter of Zico that I mentioned, but my prized purchase from that night was a green juice that I got for $1.75 made fresh that morning!

Granted it is in a plastic bottle and I am pretty sure some of the nutrients have oxidized from sitting, I think any green juice is better than no green juice.

During the course of our travels Kevin got really hungry so we decided to go to this raw restaurant in Santa Monica that we've heard a lot about called Better Life Cuisine. We ordered our food to go since we still wanted to walk around. My opinions on this place are mixed. I told Kevin to stick to getting desserts because 85% of the time when you go to a raw restaurant here in Cali. the portion sizes are grossly small, like they are serving a mouse or something. He would have none of it. So he ordered the Manicotti against my better judgement.

The result: This.

This was literally five slices of zucchini rolled with an overly watery mock ricotta topped with gravy and sprouts (???). The portion size was appetizer AT BEST. The price, ::gasp:: $11.00!!!!!!!!! Insanely, disgustingly, awfully, not worth it AT ALL. I watched the guy make it and with it my zen, calmness slowly but surely diminished. Why does raw food have to mean a sacrifice of protion size? I understand people need to make money, I'm a raw food chef too, but when I charge my clients $11.00 for a meal I give them $11.00 dollars worth. Kev said it was nothing to write home about; it didn't taste bad, but it also wasn't that good -- straight from his mouth. We were both confused about why there were sprouts. The biggest turn offs were that the food was FREEZING and within two seconds of getting out the door it turned into a watery mess, manicotti no longer recognizable. We agreed, when it comes to raw food LA area we stick to Sun Power Natural Foods in Studio City. Best raw food. Best price. Great portions. God, I miss my NYC raw foods.

His manicotti came with a side so we ordered the Egg Salad:

What the manicotti lacked, this egg salad could almost make up for. It was creamy with chuncks of celery and bits of onion that were surprisingly not overpowering. It tasted so authentic I could hardly believe it. There was even something slightly soft in there that resembled an egg-y texture that has me totally stumped. I've got to find out what it is! Unfortunately for Kev, the portion of this egg salad was, if you can believe it, larger than his manicotti portion! Poor Kevy! He hates egg salad too so he basically just ordered this for me. Seems like, if you are going to go to Better Life Cuisine I would stick to this kind of stuff over the actual "entree" as this was out of this world!

We also ordered two desserts: Oatmeal Cookie and Spirulina Macaroon

The Oatmeal cookie was just o.k. and it didn't really taste anything like an oatmal cookie. In fact, it actually tasted like apple pie (???) which I didn't mind, but I was kind of looking foward to the Oatmeal, so it was slightly disappointing. Kev did not like this at all. He said it was too hard to chew. We paid $3.00 for 2 cookies. Not so sure I would do that again.

And the macaroon was pretty bad. It didn't taste like anything, not even coconut! And it fell apart as soon as I picked it up. I love macaroons and to be honest, I think they are pretty hard to mess up so this left me quite befuddled. Maybe it was just a bad batch? I'd like to give them the benefit of the doubt...

Maybe I'm just too used to Pure Food and Take Away macaroons (::swoon::) or this awesome little company, Emmy's Organics that makes these wounderful macaroons that they sell on the East Coast. They are wildly delicious -- chewy, chewy, chewy and sweet! Wonderful! The lady and her husband like make them out of their own kitchen as a side project! The Vanilla Chai was always my fav. but they make a really yummy Mint Chocolate Chip.

Overall opinion: I do not think the food is worth the price esp. since the portion sizes were so small. I have no problem paying when the food is really good. I mean, I'd sell my soul for a Sarma $6.00 Mallomar and I'd pay big bucks (like way more than its already $14.00) to sink my teeth into Quintessense's Fofu Benedict, but for this place, ugh, ::sigh:: there is nothing I would really deem worthy. The egg salad was redicliously good, but that is about it. The only other thing I'd like to go back there to try are the Cinnamon Buns and now I am equally weary of that! My advise, order at your own risk.

Oh, and by the way, if it were me that ordered the manicotti I would have taken it back and asked for a refund or a slice of their bread to go with it to at least bulk up the meal. But, alas, my Kev is not that type. I guess this makes me a biatch, but I feel, hey, i'm the one paying for this, shouldn't I get what a pay for? In the very least an entree sized portion???

I mean, you get more for your money when you order a freaking Nori roll than with this portion of manicotti, that's kind of pathetic...

Have any of you ever had this experience at raw food restaurants? How do you react esp. when the food you get isn't that great??

I look foward to your responses!!!

In the words of Lisa Simpson,

Mulch Love,
Raw Food Nerd

P.S. Check out and enter these great giveaways that some of my fav. bloggers have going on:
HiHoRosie's Blog for Prana Bars!
Kristen's Raw for Raw Vegan Protein Grenades by Sirova!
Rawstar Diaries for The Bobble Water Bottle, Goji Cacao Berry Tea, and yummy Vanilla Bean Paste!
A Bitt of Raw for Vivapura gift pack giveaway!
Loving Veggies and Yoga for a super cool lunch box give away!

Product pictures from product websites/google images unless obviously taken by RawFoodNerd.

Hot as Hellation!

2010-03-22T00:53:00.000-07:00

I knew I came to California for a reason. This past week the weather has been absolutely amazing. Really hot during the day, warm at night, and occasionally a gentle breeze to take the edge off. This is how I always expected Cali. weather to be. Finally! It's back to shorts and t-shirts for moi!

On Wednesday Kev had off from work and with finals being over, he's now on Spring break. We decided to go to Newport Beach and lay out in the sun. I know this seems like a wild delusion, but it wasn't until I went raw that I was acutally able to do anything besides burn. I've been ghostly pale my entire life, almost sickly. And it's pretty hard to get anything more than an artifical spray tan when you live in NYC; nor is it really "in" to be tan -- we kind of strive for pale...it just goes better with black, what can I say?) It wasn't until Kev and I were in Nice (France) basking in the Medd. sun that we realized, holy heck, I, Lish - Pale-y McPalerson, could even muster some color other than white. It was true, I was, dare I say it dark (Well, dark for me at least. You should see my brother, Matthew, in the Summer he can easily pass for Mexican!! I'm so jealous.) Finally, The Melonin Gods had blessed this girl with some color!

I attribute this to a long-standing bout of being anti-tan to multiple vitamin deficiencies due to the Standard American Diet and an ongoing battle with anemia, aka iron deficiency thanks to troublesome female problems. Once I went raw and was able to restock those 'reserves' my body must have finally been able to produce the melonin. I used to think I was just unlucky and somehow my brother got the tan gene, but now I know I was just deficient. Yet another interesting benefit to the raw food diet, lest I ever go back, I'd loose all my color!

Anyway, I literally laid on the beach for 30 minutes and then we walked along the water and by the time we got back to the car I was so tan! Then, I had to go and ruin it on Thursday by laying out by the pool, not paying attention because I was reading, and getting a seriously awakard burn on the tops of my legs, my tum, and a square of my arm! I'll spare you the photos on this one...

I've been REALLY thirsty lately so I've been drinking a lot of smoothies and drinking cocoie water like it's going out of style. [Thank you Henry's for having a buy one get one free sale on Amy&David's Coconut Water!] It has been so hot and my sun burn + bikram has left me feeling slightly dehydrated. I haven't really wanted much else. I have been savouring at least two a day...not to brag, but my smoothies kick some serious tush! They are typically green...it's like gut reaction now...the thought of having a smoothie that is anything but green almost seems like a waste!

Here's a random exception that I had for dessert one night:

The Ba-nan Freezie

*Note: Smoothies are really great to have as a dessert at night because anything blended is really easy to digest and at night, this will likely be a lot easier on your body as it starts to prepare for sleep.

This was frozen banana, homemade Cashew Milk, mesquite powder, Vanilla VivAgave and I topped it off with one of my favs -- Bee Pollen.

Bee Pollen is considered a complete food and is actually 40% protein! I've read that it contains virtually all nutrients required for humans! Sheesh! I love it because it adds a real "crunch" to my smoothies!

Here is some interesting information about Bee Pollen that I found from this lovely website:

"Bee pollen contains all the essential components of life. The percentage of rejuvenating elements in bee pollen remarkably exceeds those present in brewer's yeast and wheat germ. Bee pollen corrects the deficient or unbalanced nutrition, common in the customs of our present-day civilization of consuming incomplete foods, often with added chemical ingredients, which expose us to physiological problems as various as they are numerous.

Pollen is considered an energy and nutritive tonic in Chinese medicine. Cultures throughout the world use it in a surprising number of applications: for improving endurance and vitality, extending longevity, aiding recovery from chronic illness, adding weight during convalescence, reducing cravings and addictions, regulating the intestines, building new blood, preventing infectious diseases such as the cold and flue (it has antibiotic type properties), and helping overcome retardation and other developmental problems in children. It is thought to protect against radiation and to have anti-cancer qualities. NOTE: Babies under 18 months should not be given raw honey or raw bee pollen.

Nutrient deficiencies and all the health problems they cause are recognized worldwide as a growing problem. Because bee pollen contains all the nutrients needed to sustain life, it is being used on an ever larger scale for human nourishment and health. Science teaches that bee pollen contains many substances that combine to make it a healthy, nutritious, complete food. There are numerous reports from medical experience that conclusively show the benefits of bee pollen exceed that of a simple food item. And the bees do most of the work.

Bee-gathered pollens are rich in proteins, free amino acids, vitamins, including B-complex, and folic acid. "

Yet another green smoothie topped off with Bee Pollen:

Swamp Monster

This was bananas, oranges, lemon, pineapple, mango, spinach, and water topped with Bee Pollen. Perfectly perfect post-Bikram smoothie that keeps me full all the way until dinner.

Now before you start throwing questions at me about not really being Vegan because bees are animals too, well, I agree. And 95% of the time I am Vegan. I don't eat any flesh products at all. However, when it comes to raw honey and bee pollen [sustainably harvested and organic, of course]--where the medicinal properties are of such extraordinary levels that to disregard them simply because it would render me no longer "vegan" -- well, as my Uncle Patrick used to quote often from his favourite show In Living Color "Homey don't play dat!" (I wanted to be a Fly Girl like Jennifer Lopez for like years growing up...that, and chief of my own Native American tribe! I was a...~~totally-weird/insanely odd~~ unique child.) I believe us bee product consuming Vegans are affectionately deemed "bee-gans" these days.

This week I also made some really stellar Veggie Burgers for my clients:

Loaded-Veggie Buns

Usually, I make more traditional looking buns using my Onion-Sesame Bread recipe, but one of my clients really likes my Le Pain de Crudités (which is just a French-y way of saying bread made from raw vegetables lol) and asked me to make buns with the veggie bread instead! B. agreed, these turned out really well. I topped the buns with sesame seeds when they were done dehydrating.

Veggie Sun-seed Mc-Lish Patties

Raw burgers may seem like a daunting task, but they can be as simple or as complicated you make them. My Sun-seed paties are really just that, soaked/sprouted sunflower seeds, veggies, and spices. You don't even need to dehydrate them for that long either! A good hour is enough to gently warm the burger through and get a nice crust on the top. My first summer raw, these were a staple since you can make dozens at a time and freeze them for later on!

Mac-Nut Extra Sharp White Cheddar

This 'cheeze' is seriously out of this world. I make a basic tahini with soaked sesame seeds, garlic, lemon, apple cidar vineager, sea salt, and cayenne and let it ferment overnight. (I set the dehydrator at 95 degrees and leave it with the lid on but not tightened.) Then I make a quick mac-nut sauce from just mac nuts, sea salt, and water in the blender. I combine the two sauces and let it sit overnight in the D. again repeating the fermentation process. The result is a thick, creamy, sharp cheeze sauce. I top the burgers with my Extra Sharp Cheddar, whole grain mustard, and crisp romaine lettuce. So yum!

*Top the sun-seed burger pattie with the 'cheeze' and let it sit in the dehydrator for about an hour - it will really firm up making a more authentic 'cheeze-burger'.

Google images

"What you are about to eat will kill you"

Mmm, gimme a raw vegan burger anyday over that greasy pile of factory-farmed garbage! Who needs it!

Curl through the wide fence cracks...

2010-03-16T02:12:00.000-07:00

I've been listening to the New Moon Soundtrack on a continuous loop for, oh, a week-ish now (Ok, there's definately some Gaga thrown in there too); told you I was obsessed. It's a good soundtrack though -- so much indie splendor I can hardly contain myself. That being said, blog titles reflect nothing more than what I've been listening too.

As I mentioned in Monday's post, we've been hella busy around here.

B's (my one of ten trillion nicknames for Kev. B is short for Bubbie or Bubbles, depending on my mood at the time. There is no rhyme or reason, we just make sh!t up as we go along, really.) been really busy with Grad. school final projects:

One of MANY drafts of the mixed-use community he designed.

He's been hitting the books ( or well, the drawing pad?) and the Lara Bars pretty hard these days.

My future mother-in-law sent us these for Valentine's Day. (Thanks Mom/Dad W. Always looking out for us!)

And we've had to wake up at ghastly hours on Saturdays to hit the farmers market before Kev has to be to work and I head to yoga. Check out the goods:

Most of this went to make Fermented Veggies. They turned out rediculously fantastic. I've seriously put this off for-ev-er because I was really intimidated by the whole process. I suppose it was a fear of messing up or making a mistake, like my veggies not actually fermenting leaving me with 5 lbs of wasted vegetable mush. I did some youtube research and ultimately followed the directions per the Pure2Raw Twins and despite the fact that my kitchen looked like a murder scene when I was through, it was really easy to do! Other videos made this look really complicated and would have required me to purchase special equipment in order to seemingly facilitate proper fermentation (this is probably the reason why I was so intimidated). Yet, the girls make their kraut in something as standard as a large mixing bowl with another large mixing bowl pressed on top!

As a result of the business at La Maison de M.-W. last week (or maybe it was two weeks, they've started to seriously blend together) we ate A LOT of salads...like five-six days in a row, which may seem excessive, but the this salad was realllly good.

Red leaf lettuce, mushrooms, pears, and alternating varities of roasted squash (acorn & butternut) with an Orange-Ginger Vinegarette.

Squash and sweet potatos are pretty much the only non-raw foods that I eat. This was a total experimentation per my ever-sensitive digestive system. Up until recently, I couldn't even eat salad, let alone something as simple as plain, COOKED squash without getting an upset stomach and indigestion. Maybe it was the way I prepared it? (Low temp. with LOTS of ginger) I had no adverse reaction, not even the typical fatigue that I thought would follow. I was doing a lot of reading about food combining at the time and read that pairing starch or cooked food with greens helps digestion immensely, so, I think that probably contributed to the ease in digestion. I really love squash/sweet potatos so to discover that I can now tolerate them made me a very happy little lady!

When I ran out of squash I topped our salads with Zucc Mac N'Cheeze Casserole and Homemade Garlic Tahini:

To make the "casserole" I just uniformly pressed the zucc mac and cheese into a glass pie "pan" (it's not really a pan, but I am at a loss for the correct word!) with a fork and dehydrated it at 110 degrees for maybe an hour to an hour and a half. The top gets kind of crunchy-ish while the underneathe portion of the zucchini remains super creamy; ugh, SOO yum. Zucchini is really the ultimate veg for raw foodists in my opinion. It is so versitile and has the ability to take on so many different flavor profiles. I'd be totally lost without my zuccs!

I've been staying afloat thanks to my ten thousand gazillion trillion green smoothie combos:

...seriously, the possibilites are endless...

This mean-green smoothie machine was topped with Bee Pollen that I picked up from my new fav. health food store in L.A., Rainbow Acres.

And I cannot get through the week without at least one soup..heavy on the Nori and Nutritional Yeast please!

Dill-licious Creamy Avo & Cucumber Soup

::le sigh:: I ate this while watching Twilight the first time.

A melage of cucs, zuccs, celery, spinach, organic red miso, nutritional yeast, garlic, green onion, lemon juice, avo, parsley and LOTS of dill. This is my favourite soup. No matter what I put in, it always turns out shamefully delicious. It's like the can-do-no-wrong soup of all soups!

Honestly, this work crazy-ness really doesn't stress me out anymore. I guess because none of this ever seems like work to me and yoga helps keep me grounded and centered for sure. Making food is really the only thing that has ever made me happy; I feel like it gives me purpose. I suppose we all have our "thing" and this is mine...

"I hear you're living out of state, running with a whole new scene..."

2010-03-14T17:17:00.000-07:00

I am not sure what this says about our personalities, but to date -- Kev and I have never lived in any apartment longer than one year. Each time we move Kev and I both SWEAR that it's the last. We hate moving: the packing, the shleping of crap from one apartment to the next, the unpacking; It's all very stressful. (Esp. since I typically bare the whole of the unpacking duties. Love him to death, but last week he asked me -- after six months living in the same apartment mind you, IF we had any dishes and WHERE they were....?!?!?!? So, unless I'd like to make more work for myself and have to unpack twice, it's just smarter that I assume this task. )

We cannot seem to stay put for whatever reason. Kev's Mom calls us 'nomads'.

This move was signficantly easier since a good portion of our things are still back at home with our parents...at this point I don't even remember what we've left...

Except of course, when I have to bake dozens of mini- vegan muffins for a breakfast event at the ENC and I've got no muffin tins to speak of...

(Mini Vegan/GF Double Chocolate Chunk & Cinnamon Coffee Cake Muffins)

I made Kev eat the one with the chocolate smudge on the side of the paper...right, because I really had to FORCE him. He was hovering the whole time...

...or measuring cups...

Thank Buddha and Mother Earth and the Energy of the Universe for guiding me to the mecca of home shopping aka Ross...and Target...

(And for these fine people that make up my favourite show on all television: Kell On Earth!!! Talk about hardworking, power-girls + AJ Mukamal -- whose seriously got a closet to die for! Yeah, I'm pretty jealous. )

(google images)

...but, I digress...

Anyway, we really just moved to the opposite side of the complex to an apartment with a balcony (now we can start our garden!), vaulted ceilings (ugh, just like the Mountain House. Love it!), and sunlight coming in from every direction.

So other than client orders to fill and a bunch of other work related things, this hath been the reason why I've been so seriously M.I.A. lately.

I've been writing in my head though, does that count for something??

And well, I guess I should come clean about my latest obsession that's taken me away from the computer all together...I am really late in the game on this one, I know...

Twilight Saga!

(google images)

Yeah, it finally happened. I came around. But it was either Twilight or Rush Hour 2!!! Costa Mesa Lib. DVD collection is quite limited to say the least. (Gross understatement!!!)

Twilight, the movie, in my opinion, was much better than I thought it would be since I had no expectations what-so-ever.

And now, I'm obsessed, to the point where I read late into the night, have literary discussions with friends [who I know have read it] about the anti-feminine nature of Edward and Bella's relationship....and find multiple ways to annoy the hell out of Kevin with Twilight Saga/Vampire references. (P.S. Kev, if you are reading this, I wasn't kidding about that framed picture of Edward at Ross. I want it. Please?)

I read New Moon in 2 1/2 days and I am already more than halfway through Eclipse.

I never understood the hype other than the fact that Robert Pattinson is really stinkin' hott. Common, you can't blame me: vampires, werewolves, screaming teenage girls gaga for said vampires/werewolves - this had AWFUL and PLAYED OUT written all over it.

Alas, I've succumbed. Go Team Edward. I am slightly embarrassed that my last two trips to the library have resulted in me checking out books from the "Teen Reading" section, but I really don't care, I am a total Twilight addict.

I've kind of always had a thing for vampires though so I guess it was only a matter of time. I used to make my Grandmere tell me vampire stories all the time. I loved it, but it, uh, wasn't too great for my parents when they'd try to put me to bed and I'd scream bloody murder because I was too afraid to be left alone for fear that I'd be bitten.

Even wayyy into middle school (so..shameful...) I would sleep with my "BB" (my blanket, lord) around my neck that way I would know if anything tried to come through my window/the attic door to bite me. True Story.

Over-active imagination much??

I'm going to see New Moon on Wednesday and ~~dragging~~ taking Kev with me. He's not too thrilled, so I plan on buttering him up by making his favourites: Vegan Smoked Gouda Mac n' Cheeze and Baked Sweet Potato Fries. Works every time!

The Smoked Gouda Sauce isn't 100% raw, as I have mentioned, because I do use liquid smoke, but it is a tiny concession that is well worth it. Trust me, this stuff is the bomb. I have to make blenders full because when I do make it, it must be slathered on everything.

You may remember my Smoked Gouda Stuffed Rosemary Portobellos...

(the finished product w/ Rosemary-Miso Reduction and Homemade Tahini)

or my Sun dried Tomato Sun Seed Burger with dehydrated Smoked Gouda Cheese...

I am pretty sure you could smecher this vegan cheese sauce on a tire and it would taste good...

Smoked Gouda Cheese:

1 cup raw cashews (soaked 2 hours)
1/3 cup of raw almond or cashew milk
1 tablespoon VivAgave (Optional)
1 Organic Red Bell Pepper
2 cloves of garlic (3 if you are using small cloves)
1 green onion/scallion
4-5 T Nutritional Yeast Flakes
2 T Wheat-Free Tamari
1 T Mellow White Miso
Dash of turmeric for color
1 cap of liquid smoke
Sea Salt and black pepper to taste!

Liquid smoke is seriously what gives this sauce a fantastic smoked Gouda taste. You only need a tiny bit of this to impart the smoky flavor so only fill the cap of the liquid smoke and pour into the sauce.

Blend it up and enjoy poured over your pasta of choice. This also makes a great dip for veggies (add less almond milk for a thicker consistency) or a no-cheese fondue! You can change up this sauce by omitting the liquid smoke and adding your favorite spice combinations like curry, basil, or thyme.

When I make this for myself and not Kev, I typically omit the nuts. Oddly enough, using chia seeds to thicken this sauce works just as well. I am sure you can even replace the cashews with sunflower seeds. If you want a more authentic cheese then I would stick with the cashews for sure.

Tomorrow ( I promise, since I've got to make up for this past weekish) food updates/pictures, fermented veggies via Pure2raw Twins, and much more!

Going Vintage!

2010-03-02T15:08:00.000-08:00

I'm feeling a little nostalgic for my City right now, so this post is dedicated to some of my absolute favs. - those that I discovered in the only city other than Paris, that owns a piece of my heart, forever.

If I was in New York right now, the fact that today is the first day of March would mean A LOT more to me. California has been chilly, yet nothing compared to the freezing temps. and snowy days of the East Coast. This time last year I was dying for 60 degree weather and the fact that I'd be able to wear shorts in February. (I have a clear memory of sitting in Barns&Nobles flipping through trashy tabloids and seeing pictures of Natalie Portman walking around LA, elbowing Kev, and saying, "that's gonna be us!" But, alas, I find myself now wanting the opposite...the fact that i've only gotten one season out of my most favourite DKNY coat is just NOT acceptable! And i'm a little miffed that all this snow just decided to happen upon NY as soon as I left...I LOVE the snow. And so to make up for it i've been frequenting South Coast Plaza to window shop and pretending its Madison Ave; definately not the same, but stores basically are. (They've even got an Yves Saint Laurent!)

(thegoodlife.typepad.com)

While i'm pretty much a self-proclaimed food nerd (hence, the inspiration for the raw food nerd, ta-dah!) i've got a gulity pleasure for designer fashion. Yes, i'm aware of the unethical practices that go into making clothes and handbags, but i'm more of a vintage fashion lover. I'm talking old school Chanel, YSL, Vivienne Westwood, Oscar de la Renta, the like. (I once found the most amazing peach sleeveless silk Oscar de la Renta shirt at an outside market in Chelsea for $10.00! This was 7th grade mind you and mmm, yeah, I still wear it every summer.) Good clothes, much like food, are about two things: quality and creativity. To me, vintage fashion is timeless and the classics always remain regardless of trends that come and go. Thankfully, with a bit of thrifting savy, I never had to compromise my hippie green-loving values in order to wear said awesomely vintage designer clothes. It is AMAZING what you can find on a street corner in the West Village or a Good Will on the Upper East Side. Seriously!

(Enter suitable transition word/phrase garnerd from very expensive college education from said prominent NYC school..uhh, yeah!)

For me, NYC is mecca and it is literally busting at the seams with health food stores filled with raw and vegan options. During the three plus years that i've lived/been visiting this glorious place i've made it my personal goal to visit every health food store that the City offered. A few, were better than all the rest and I would go to those every..single...day. They became my "Classics" if you will, like a vintage Chanel suit - you just cannot go wrong.

#1 Westerly on 54th and 7th Ave. It's down the street from Whole Foods Columbus Circle. They have everything from organic produce, to a raw food deli, to the largest selection of raw food goodies i've seen thus far. They have a huge bulk section with grains, nuts, seeds, dried fruit. And they carry all the raw vegan ice cream on the market. This place is by far, my favourite. They are also extremely budget friendly because when produce gets a dent or is a little too ripe they repackage it and sell it at a discounted price. Like I used to get packages and packges of peaches, apricots, apples, cucs, etc. ALL ORGANIC for a mere $1.99.

This place houses some of my absolute favs:

Raw Chunks of Energy
Gopals Power Wraps/Bars
Mrs. Lillians Pies
Hawthorne Valley Sauerkraut
Mock Salmon/Tuna/Crab sandwiches
Garden of Eden (I think) Mustard with sea salt and ACV all organic.
Good Stuff by Mom&Me Almond Bars

I went to New School University (Most people know New School because of Project Runway a la Parsons) in the West Village for my Undergrad. (Watch Degrassi? Remember Ellie, the red haired chick who had the hots for Craig, the musician?? Yup, she was in my Reading for Writers class AND sat behind me at graduation. Also went to school with Olivia Palermo from The City.) and so I was lucky enough to be in walking distance to some freaking grandtastic places.

#2 Lifethyme on 9th and 6th Ave. (Avenue of the Americas):

They have a salad bar filled with raw food combinations and a HUGE prepared raw food section including but not limited too cookies, pies, puddings, burgers, etc. You name it they've got it. They have a full scale grocery store with some great produce options. They also have a juice bar and the guy who does the juicing is the sweetest man ever!

My favs from here are:

Chocolate Chewies
Coconut Chewies
Spirulina Earth pie
Sweet Christine juice
Salads
Spicy Sunflower Falafals

If you aren't raw, but vegan this place is equally as good. They have some of the best vegan pies and cookies i've ever had. Portions are HUGE even for the raw stuff. I mean you could literally eat a slice of pie from here @ $7.99 a slice and not have to eat again for the rest of the night.

#3 Integral Yoga on 13th st. btwn 7th and 8th ave.

This is where I used to get all my spices in bulk as well as raw honey, chia seeds, raw buckwheaties, etc. They are a little expensive in terms of produce and what not, but the bulk options are very reasonably priced. Ouuu, they also have bulk seaweeds, pastas, miso, and tahini.They offer a 10% discount to students and seniors (score!) so that always helped me out. All their spice are from mountain rose herbs and frontiers so they are quality and organic. They have a bar with raw and vegan desserts (though they are skimpy on their slices), but mostly I used to go there to get three things.

The best coconut date rolls the world has to offer (they tasted like vanilla cake with vanilla froasting. I kid you not...lovely picture above, however, not a picture of the prized IY date rolls which are a blonde color.)
Dried mulberries (like CARAMEL!)
Dried banana slices (these single-handedly got me through by far the worst fiction class I ever had to take.)

If you go for those three things and those three things alone your life will have purpose.

#4 Natural Frontiers with a whooping two locations both great for different reasons...24th and 3rd and 81st and 3rd.

I love these two mostly for sentimental reasons. I spent A LOT of time in these two areas last year for my job...that wasn't even really a job because I loved it so much...

Ok, 24th and 3rd while pretty much out of the way of everything always had a few great things that I couldn't go without last summer...

Really excellent ripe bananas
Catelope
Pears

I know, not raw food snacks, but when you are in a crunch i.e. running over to FDR because the 23rd st. xtown never showed up, you'll appreciate the convience of peel and eat simple food. P.S. avoid the 23rd st xtown if you can, filled with CRAZY people.

And 81st and 3rd, which I used to hit up every day because it was very close to my Bikram Yoga studio on 83rd and right around the corner from Kev's work on 78th, houses my most favourite and ongoing food obsession

Chunks of Energy!!!!!!!!!!!!

(From Chunks of Energy website)

They've got other stuff there too, like T.T.'s favourite Yogurt Prentzels, but other than that nothing else really matters. These gems are the most delicious combination of nuts, seeds, gojis, and dates that i've ever had. I've been eating them for years and I still cannot get enough of them. When I say I ate them everyday for MONTHS at a time, it is no exaggeration...I really did. Sometimes, i'd eat them twice a day. Yes, they are THAT good. The best thing about them for me (other than they taste horrifically fantastic) is that I barely eat nuts and seeds other than hemp and chia because they always gives me a stomach ache and make me feel really heavy and bloated, except these!! I can eat like 10 in a row and i'm totally fine -- which never happens! Seriously, I go to a potluck and I have one bite of nut pate and i've done myself in. From what I have read, these come from a small, family produced business in Massachusetts and their ingredients are USDA certified organic and obviously a very high quality. They are not baked at all and are sans any artifical ingredients. They've recently come out with a few new flavors like Lemon-Cashew which my San Diego Co-Op offers. However, that is too far away for me to eat everyday so I am working to bring them to my local health food store, Mother's Market because Californians NEED Chunks of Energy!

The aforementioned food choices are surely oldies but goodies. I've been eating them on a consistant basis for the last three years and I wish I could say I have tired of them or that i'm ready for something new, but I'd certainly be lying. These are classics in my book for a reason. Ugh, trust me, what I wouldn't give for just one chunk of energy or a chewie or yumm, a mock salmon sandwich.

If you live in NYC, be sure to traverse to these shops. You will NOT be sorry.

P.S. Some of you have been asking about my Smoked Gouda Cheese Sauce and I plan to deliver. This stuff is off the hizzy and to deprive others from its grandness would make me a really awful person, lol. So, next post will be all about what i've been eating lately AND the Smoked Gouda Cheese Sauce.

(All pictures from google images.)

Tum Update, Health Food Store Traversing in LA, & Lots of Food!

2010-02-23T14:25:00.000-08:00

Hello All! Hope everyone has been having a good week thus far. I have got tons of pictures to post so I will be quick!

My stomach issues have pressed on since the last time I posted about my enzyme debacle. I thought for sure just going back to my trusted MRM enzymes would work certain overnight miracles, but alas, I should know that most things do not fix themselves overnight! I was still bloated, still uncomfortable, and STILL spitting up food after eating. (Once again, TIM, I know - sorry!) At first I thought it was zucchini, because lord knows I eat A LOT of that. I'm Italian, what can I say, I love my pasta - and that's about as close as i'm gonna get! So I dropped the zucchini, did a day of fasting or feasting really, on smoothies and easy to digest fruits. Ya know, APPLES, bananas, mango, the like. And still, I had a stomach ache. Now, i've had chronic stomach problems for as long as I can remember, but never this intense and long-lasting. Fruit days are usually my "cure-all". After some food evaulation, I realized that perhaps the copious amounts of apples I had been eating lately could be the reason why I was getting stomach aches. Low and behold, on Sunday, no apples and my stomach problems went away!!! I wouldn't say I am allergic, but apples can be very astringent for the body and I think I was just eating WAY to many...like 6 or 7 a day some times 4 at a time!!! I think if I am going to eat apples, I will make applesauce from now on. This week, sans apples, I have been feeling MUCH better.

My good friend from yoga told me this really lovely ancedote since she has the same stomach problems I do: Carrot juice for the digestive system is like mother's milk for an infant. Actually, her doctor told her that. So yesterday, I juiced myself some carrots and lemon and I must say my tum felt a lot better. Even during/after dinner which is when I seem to suffer the most, I felt pretty good. And NO spit ups!!!

Ok, picture time!

Banana, Mini-Papaya, & Mango

Had this for breakfast one day last week! So yum! Papaya is really good for digestion so I try to eat it whenever I can...

Jungle Swamp Smoothie

Another breakfast from last week with spinach, bananas, apple, Vanilla Vivagave, almond milk, california oranges, Vitamineral Green, chia seeds, frozen mango, frozen pineapple.

Alysha's Smoked Gouda Stuffed Portobellos

These are really easy to make. I just marinated the portobellos in miso, tamari, we bit of seasame oil, lemon, and Thanksgiving Herb Blend. I let it sit in the D. for about 2 hours on 110 degrees. Then I stuffed them with avocado, my Smoked Gouda Cheese, sprouts, spinach, and homemade garlic tahini. I poured the leftover sauce from marinating over them. These were SO good; just like the cooked version - soft, juicey, and full of flavor. The rosemary in the Thanksgiving Herb Blend really makes this dish.

Friday Night is Taco Night!

Back in NYC I was a nanny for the most wonderful family (Miss you guys!!) and every Friday was Taco Night. So i've kind of got in the habit of making mexican inspired meals on Fridays now. This was Kev's taco, sporting two Sprouted Grain Ezekial Wraps. One of our favs! I made a quick taco meat using sunflower seeds, cilantro, lime juice, smoke paprika, New Frontiers Mexican Seasoning, garlic, and some fresh jalepeno pepper. I let it sit in the D on 105 degrees for three hours so the outside was crunchy and the inside was soft. This bad boy is topped with leftover cheese sauce from the portobellos, lettuce, toms, and some homemade guacamole. He loved these so much he took them to work two days in a row!

Veg & Guac!

I opted to just have some veggies and guacamole for dinner instead of the full on taco supreme. This was just cucs, toms, and yellow bell pepper with homemade guacamole. My guacamole was filled with goodies like bell pepper, cilantro, lime juice, jalepeno pepper, and a bit of Himalayan Sea Salt. Really simple, super delicious!

Chocolate VivAgave

Ah, my new favourite company VivAgave came out with this Chocolate flavor and I knew I had to give it a try. I've been DYING for some hot chocolate lately because CA has been really chilly! So I threw together some Chocolate VivAgave, lightly heated almond milk, and raw cacao powder into the blender and ta-da! raw, organic, hot chocolate! Take that Swiss Miss! Now if only I could get Sarma to send me some of that Vanilla Cream from the juice bar's Mallomar i'd be in some serious business!

On Saturday we went to LA/Santa Monica to check out some health food stores that I had read about online. Erewhon gets a lot of publicity for being one of the best LA health food stores and while I must say that they do carry just about every raw food product every designed, they are absurdly overpriced. Even the kitch, size of my pinkie raw food shops in NYC, like High Vibe, are not even that overpriced in comparison. Oh well, right! Probably has to do with the rent or something, it is right near CBS studios and I am sure with prime location like that they pay a big leasing fee. Anyway, there are a lot of great health food stores in LA besides Erewhon.

Like, Rainbow Acres - my new favourite LA store!

In all my food nerd glory, I was in heaven. They've got homemade raw tahini, tons of raw food, juice bar, deli, awesomely priced produce, a fantastic bulk foods section, bulk herbs/teas, well priced supplements. They even have this middle section where they keep all their discounted items like shampoos, lotions, conditioner, etc.

One pound of chia seeds for $7.00!!! Haven't been able to find chia in the OC for under $11 a lb. And my favourite, bee pollen. Love it!

Nothing beats the smell of burning patchouli! Seriously, I am a total hippie at heart and I live for all things patchouli; I just love it's earthy undertones. Don't even get me started on frankincense and myrrh...Those are my top three favourite smells aside from woodburning fire. Anytime, I find stuff like this I buy it. These were on sale: Patchouli Shampoo $3.99 and Bergamont/Patchouli Lotion $1.99. These are all organic, paraben, chemical free and definately not tested an animals. Total steal. Can't wait to go back here!

Awesome car.

We stopped at this place, Elderberries, on Sunset to get a bite to eat. Unfortunately, they were not totally up and running just yet. However, the lovely lady who I believe owns it said that they will be up and running by this weekend. She was one of the sweetest people I have ever met! She gave me a free taste of this Raw Pear and Watercress soup that she had created. It was divine! Smooth, cool, and slightly sweet. I cannot wait to go back there and actually eat. I also ordered a "Flufighta" which contained juiced ginger, lemon, and cayenne. Man! This cleaned me out quick. She quickly gave me some juiced green apple to wash it down because I started to tear. haha! She didn't even charge me! The decor of this place alone is enough to make me want to go back. It was very french/victorian which is like me wrapped in a nutshell. If you are in the LA area check this place out. I am going to go back there next time and order food that way I can write a real review, however, this place deserves some early press.

Kev pointing to ZenBunny in Santa Monica. Literally, BEST raw chocolate in the world! I know, with a grandious statement like that I had better deliver, but I wouldn't lie - hands down, THE BEST!

Yay! Semi-straight hair. I have like Shirly Temple-ringlet curly kind of hair and this is about as straight as I can get it. It's longer, this picture just doesn't do it justice, but Saturday was the first time I have even touched my hair in over two months. I normally part and air dry. No styling gels necessary here!

Check out Ginger is the New Pink's blog as she is doing an awesome giveaway!!! It's a Raw Cleanse by Garden of Life. For directions, check out her blog and enter!

I'll be back tomorrow with something extra special. Kev and I have a big food challenge in the works! Should be rather interesting!

Double Postage!

2010-02-16T22:53:00.000-08:00

I'm back again for a second posting of the day! I figured I was due for an update on my tummy troubles and my Valentine's Day post was surely not the place to discuss it!

A few posts back I talked about my latest digestive problems, which have seemingly followed me all my life. Sure, like I mentioned, they've improved while on raw but, I have yet to reach a consistantly happy medium. I have found myself continuingly having to cut out my favorite foods (like nuts, granola, raw breads, etc) because I simply have such a hard time digesting them. As a foodie, this can make my food life very boring and can even make digestive problems worse due to stress. D. Chopra says that your emotions can often manifest themselves in your GI track!

Lately, my digestive problems have been the WORST...I mean, seriously, even I was baffled by the extent of what I was dealing with. Never in my life had my stomach been this reactive. I haven't spit up food since I was a kid indulging in a bit too much sugar! What the hell! The floor and the fetal position have been my best friends this week and last. (Don't ask, not sure why I find the floor so comforting, but for some reason it helps to soothe me...think it stems from my childhood which is a whole other story delving into my nerosis.) I have literally been trying everything from different teas to eating more ginger, taking shots of apple cider vinegar, drinking Kombucha, adding inulin, still taking my regular 2 heaping tablespoons of Vitamineral Green, cutting out nutritional yeast. I mean you name it, i've been doing it. And NOTHING seemed to make a difference and my symptoms were just getting worse and worse

To complicate matters, because of my lack of digesting I haven't been sleeping. And everyone knows how important sleep is to the digestive process and overall health. I wake up fatigued and bloated; certainly not how I like to begin my day!

And then, last night I took my NEW digestive enzyme that I've been taking for the past TWO WEEKS (about the time my tum tooks its turn for the worse). And within 15 minutes, I started to feel like someone was stabbing me in my GIT. I took to the floor, per routine. And then, I realized something....IT HAS BEEN MY NEW ENZYMES ALL ALONG!!!! I did a re-run of the past two weeks and reassessed how/when I started to feel like crap. It was always around dinner time when I usually take my enzymes AND before I go to bed when I take an enzymes again. Duh!

I usually take MRM 100% Plant Based Enzymes and they work beautifully for me. They even contain a proprietary blend of herbs such as ginger, fennel, peppermint, etc. Silly me, I thought I would switch it up and try a new enzyme. I picked up KAL Super Enzymes because it contained HCL and herbs and said it was a double release enzyme for both the stomach and the intestine. This means that part of the enzyme releases its goods in the tum and the other part breaks down in the intestine. It didn't say whether it was veg/vegan which should have been my first indication NOT to buy it, but there was no gelatin and it said it didn't contain anything that was not in the ingredient list. I am guessing that some ingredient not specified was of animal-origin and must have contained some form of dairy. It also burned when I swallowed it, but I thought that was just the herbs or something. Lesson learned. Will be sticking to MRM. Honestly, I want a refund from KAL, i'm so disappointed with this product. Has anyone else ever taken these??

Thanks for all the support and well-wishes during my hellish tummy troubles. Lauren of Ginger is the New Pink has been especially helpful in giving me some tips to help me deal. Thanks Lauren! I will still continue to drink the Rooibos tea, taking Inulin, and eat my raw food because you can never do enough to ensure good digestion!

Speaking of, my lovely Kevinly Kev picked me up two huge heads of red cabbage at the farmers market this weekend so that I can make my own Kraut. I'm excited!! Whenever I eat saurkraut, my digestive issues become almost non-existant...hence my almost perfect, GIT of steel in NYC. I ate kraut by the bucketloads thanks to a wonderful company called Hawthorne Valley Farms from NY. They produce a wide-variety of delicious sauerkraut and I have had the pleasure of indulging in them ALL. I don't even have a favourite because they are all SO good. If you are ever at the Green Market in Union Square, Westerly, or Integeral Yoga do yourself a favor and pick up some of this fermented goodness. Actually, I just found out that they sell buy the gallon now online and I think I might have to purchase some while I wait for my own batch to ferment! I think I am going to be following the Pure2Raw Twins directions for fermenting Kraut/Veggies since they seem to eat them a lot! Kristen's Raw also has an excellent video on making raw, organic, unpasterized Sauerkraut, but she has a crock pot (I guess that's what they call those thingers!) for making her kraut, and I unfortunately, only have mason jars! I'll be posting more on this once I actually get my tush in the kitchen and start fermenting away.

Since I've been dealing with digestive issues my meals have been very simple, but really delicious. I layed off the spices this week and opted for whole foods ingredients like lemon juice, raw garlic, and fresh ginger to flavor my foods. Sometimes it is good to take a break!

Last week I enjoyed this rich, vitamin-packed green smoothie everyday! I called it my Cookies N'Cream since it tasted exactly like the creamy, vanilla shakes I used to enjoy pre-raw and definately pre-vegan.

Cookies N'Cream Smoothie: (all organic)

Raw Coconut Flakes
Almond Milk
VivAgave Vanilla Inulin Powder
Wild Organic Blueberries
Bananas
Baby Bananas
Flax Seeds
Frozen Mango
Spinach

Looks like swamp sludge, takes like love in a mason jar!

As I said my dinners of have been quick to prepare and contain minimal ingredients so as to not tax my digestion.

Marinated Mushrooms and Shredded Zucchini Soup w/ a Lemon-Pesto Broth

Creamy Celery Soup w/ Sunflower Greens & Alfafa Sprouts

Ginger, Curry, Marinated Kale and Nori Strips on top of Creamy Celery, Parsley, & Cilantro Soup

Fresh Ginger and Garlic Asian Marinated Zucchini and Mushrooms

You know, people say variety is the spice of life, but I happen to enjoy my simple, consistant meals. Sure, I may change spices or herbs here and there, but sticking to whole foods and keeping my ingredient list short really seems to work for me!

Hope everyone has a fanastic, short week! Got to love those government holidays!

Valentine's Day & Our New Co-op!

2010-02-16T14:56:00.000-08:00

Hope everyone had a splendid, love-filled Valentine's Day! (No one says you need to have a boyfriend/girlfriend to spread the love!) I certainly did! This is our 7th Valentine's Day together. We never really go all out with chocolates or flowers, but we like to spend the day simply, together. And we always give each other what I call, "Love on Paper." I'm as sentimental as they come i'd much rather have a hand-made card or drawing to save and be able to look back at later on than any amount of chocolate. (I literally have two bins, a folder, and two shoe boxes FILLED with things that we have given each other over the years. This does not include our scrapbook album either! I think I have just about every movie ticket, reciept, baseball ticket, play, concert ticket we have ever gone too!) My Kevinly is very creative and a pretty damn good drawer so he always comes up with the sweetest little notes that remind me how lucky I am to have found my soulmate so early in life. My only request this year, other than LOP, was that we get down to business with two pints of Coconut Bliss. Thankfully, my wish was granted and then some!

For V-day Kev and I headed to San Diego to check out our new Co-op; pretty far for us, about an hour and a half, but there are no other Co-ops in the OC. Total bummer, I know. Aside from shopping at the farmers market every week, we normally have to go to FOUR other stores to find the rest of the stuff we need like bananas, sesame seeds for whole made tahini, etc. It gets REALLY annoying, esp. for Kev because he works and goes to Grad. school so when he comes home and I tell him we have to go to Whole Foods, Mother's Market, and Henry's all in the same night, he is not a happy camper. While I personally don't mind the shopping, as I'd gladly spend all day in the food store just looking around, Kev can only take so much.

My dream is to be able to find everything I need at one place for a decent amount of money. Seriously, is this too much to ask? I'm embarrassed to admit that sometimes we have to go to TWO different Mother's Markets (Irvine AND Costa Mesa) to get what we need, because yes, the same store that is litearlly 10 miles (ish) apart from one another has DIFFERENT items and the SAME items at DIFFERENT prices! Insanity!

We joined the Co-op in hopes to be able to buy all our bulk foods plus the stuff we know we can not get around Orange County, like bulk unrefined, untoasted, seasame oil or my absolute favourite Raw Goji-Chocolate bars that I used to get in NYC and eat EVERYDAY; perhaps the only nut-filled bar that doesn't upset my stomach. They even have bulk herbs like dandelion and kava-kava! Let me tell you, I was in grocery store heaven! Plus, our co-op is very hip and they offer a bunch of raw food classes for FREE and have a deli upstairs that has raw items as well. A+ in my book. Our local health food store, Mother's Market, also has raw deli items, but they certainly do not have a bulk section like our co-op, nor do they carry the herbs I am typically looking for. After paying and assessing our bill we were extremely pleased, esp. since we both got a Coconut Bliss and a Kombucha (typically not part of our normal shop).

Co-Op Items (some not pictured):

Fig, Fennel, & Flax Manna Bread
Organic Dates
Cherry Amertto Coconut Bliss
Dark Chocolate Coconut Bliss
Thanksgiving Herb Blend
Kava-Kava
Cayenne
Curry
Ginger
Dandelion
Burdock Root
Roobios Tea
Collards
Dino Kale
Parsley
Cilantro
Strawberry Kombucha
Gingeraid Kombucha
Vegan Chocolate Haystacks
Oats
Hulled Sesame Seeds
Pint of Raw, Unfiltered, Sesame Oil

All for under $50.00. It only costs us $15.00 to join AND because V-day was also customer appreciation day we got an additional 7% off our bill!

I was also happy to find that they had bulk raw, unpasterized barley miso, seaweeds, organic nuts, agave, wild honey, raw tahini, and Kev's Ezekial wraps for the same price that I usually get them at TJs. Score!

*I took pictures of both the coop, our full Sunday shop, AND San Diego only to come home and find out that I never put the picture chip back into the camera before we left! Duh.

Somewhere in Texas...

Anytime we have to drive anywhere Kev and I are reminded of our cross country trip to CA and how we often spent 8-9 hours in the car, sometimes 6-7 hours straight. An hour and a half is like nothing to us now, and Kev always likes to say, " It is amazing what a little conversation can do to pass the time!" I am greatful to have someone who keeps me as entertained during those long car trips. It reminds me of family vacations as a kid with my little brother, Matthew, and how we used to play "Make Me Laugh".

(Me, Matthew, my cousin Emily in the red)
He's definately not so little anymore! He's nineteen now! Yikes!

We plan to go back to the Co-op every two weeks or so to stock up on said goodies and hopefully continue to cut down on our shopping bill as well as the amount of stores we have to visit to get all that we need. Being a raw vegan is easy, sure, but getting quality Organic foods on a budget sometimes means you have to go a tinsy bit out of the way.

And if you are wondering about gas usage and our carbon foot-print, well, TJs, Henrys, and Costa Mesa Mother's are all in walking/biking distance from our apartment complex so you can be sure that i'm not driving when I go to stock up on food during the day. And, Santa Anna Mother's, is in the same parking lot as where Kev works so he just walks over to pick me up the stuff I need from there sometimes. Being New Yorkers, we are big walkers, so going 2 miles up the street to get groceries and walking there is like cake for us, in fact, we ENJOY it.

Though, I will say, sometimes I try and do to many things at once like going on my no pressure fun run AND grocery shopping..yeah, you try running back from the grocery store with a five pound bag of zucchini, cucs, toms, and poms! Not fun!

I guess you can take the girl out of New York, but you can never take the New York out of the girl...(yeah, sorry, had to hit my cliche quota for the day. woot! sat-is-fied!)

This week is filled with green smoothies, some Asian flare, and my very productive trip to the Costa Mesa library! As if my book reading list wasn't already sky high!

Au Revoir!

New Product Review: VivAgave's Organic Blue Agave Inulin Powder!

2010-02-11T16:04:00.000-08:00

When it comes to food products, I am a pretty simple gal. Give me some some good, whole grain mustard, slightly bitter yet salty tahini, coconut butter, and some Vitamineral Green for good measure and that is about the extent of the pre-packaged/bottled/prepared accountrements that I am willing to buy.

Why you ask? Well, because I like knowing how my food was prepared. I like knowing that it hasn't been sitting on a shelf for eons. And mostly, because I think it is absurd to spend money on products that are horrifically expensive for no reason; flax crackers anyone??? (Talk about overpriced! I can make my own for more than half the cost of those dinky 3.7 oz. bags with a much bigger yield.)

However, there are just some products a girl can't make on her own...like VivAgave's Organic Blue Agave Inulin Powder with Organic Vanilla! I mean, there are blue agave plants all over Costa Mesa, HUGE ones in fact. And I suppose with the right equipment I could...no, nope, sorry, way out of my league. Yeah, so, I'm not about to go attempt to cut one down myself and try and make my own agave. I'll leave that one to the pros!

To be honest, I am not a big agave user myself. I used to put it in everything, and then slowly but surely it became very popular to the point where even my local Trader Joe's was carrying it's own brand. Now, some would say, "This is awesome! Bringing the good, healthy stuff to the masses to replace the processed, refined, chemical sugar junk!" Unfortunatley for me, I am a bit more jaded. I've done a lot of reading and watched my fair share of food related documentaries. I know when something avant-garde in the food world becomes that popular it has to mean that the quality was compromised SOMEWHERE. I wish I was wrong about this, but the wheat, corn, and soy industry in America speaks for itself. Not to mention the fact that a good portion of the "organic" companies in this country are owned by the very conglomerates giving us the toxic food that's fueling obsesity, cancer, and heart disease. I'm a skeptic what can I say?

So when I stumbled upon VivAgave's Inulin Powder in my local Whole Foods I was not immediately throwing them in my cart. I will say, what really caught my attention was the promise of an Organic Vanilla flavor that wasn't just vanilla FLAVORING it was actually Organic Vanilla Powder made from REAL vanilla beans. Like the good shopper that I am, I went home and checked out their website. When it comes to products I am unsure about, I like to do some research first before I buy them. First of all, I wanted to know what the heck inulin was, how was this product actually produced, and where were they sourcing their agave from?? (After that whole agave controversy where some companies were watering down their agave to cut cost with high fructose corn syrup, it was important for me to have these questions answered before I purchased VivAgave's powder -- no matter how enticed I was by the yummy vanilla powder aspect.)

Let me tell you, these guys have done their research! On their website, they have two PDF files that answer just about every question you could possibly want to know about this product. Click here and here and yes, here to find out all the nitty gritty nutritional information about VivAgave Inulin.

So, after looking all this over, I was willing to give their product a try. Back to the store I went! And after a week of using this in my smoothies, on top of some cut up mango and mini-papaya, and in my banana and almond milk cereal bowl, I am hooked!

Taste: Mmmm, DELCIOUS! The agave powder is very light and velvety; it literally dissolves on your tongue. It adds a nice, subtle vanilla flavor to whatever you put it in. Sometimes, vanilla powder can be a little bit over-powering and chemical tasting. Not this stuff! When I put it in my green smoothies it makes them taste like cookies n' cream and who doesn't want that???

Price: I paid $8.99 for 7 oz., but since it works as a sweetener you really don't need that much, maybe a teaspoon. I am not even halfway through the bag and I have been using it everyday. I would say, it is worth the money especially when you consider that most raw vanilla powders go for $12-$14 dollars for a mere 4 oz. It really is a steal!

Commitment to Quality: I like a company who comes forth with this kind of promise and is willing to include all the information they did on their website; they are obviously not trying to hide anything which to me, makes them a very trustworthy establishment. Here is what they say about their product:

"At VivAgave, we use only all natural and organic ingredients—never any preservatives or artificial flavors, colors, and sweeteners. All of our organic products are produced under the strictest quality controls to ensure our customers are purchasing only the highest quality items." (http://www.vivagave.com/)

Would I purchase this again: ABSOLUTELY!

Other reasons why I love VivAgave Powder: This Agave powder is a soluable fiber, which means that it works to create healthy, benefical bacteria in the gut. In fact, inulin is what healthy belly bacteria thrives on! They don't really breakdown in the normal digestive process, which means all that enzyme-rich bacteria makes it all the way to your colon! As someone who is working to heal my digestive system, that was a huge selling point for me. Not to mention the fact that inulin apparently works as a pre AND probiotic; another good aspect in my book. It is also low glycemic, so it would be an excellent, safe sugar replacement for anyone suffering from diabeties or those trying to cut down on processed sugars. It also aids in the absorption of calcium! And well, once again, the vanilla powder. It tastes authentic. You can add it to absolutely anything for a sweet, delicate, hint of vanilla-y goodness. Yum!

It also comes in two other flavors Original and Cocoa:

My Whole Foods was only carrying the Original and the Vanilla, so I haven't been able to try the Cocoa one yet. Though, I am sure it is just as good as the Vanilla!

So, if you are a looking for a healthy way to substitute conventional sugar or just crazy about vanilla like moi, get to your local Whole Foods or health food store and ask them to supply VivAgave Organic Blue Agave Inulin Powder!

Zukay Salad Dressing Giveaway!

2010-02-10T12:55:00.000-08:00

Yay! A fabulous RAW giveaway from Kristen Suzanne of Kristen's Raw!

Zukay was kind enough to offer Kristen's readers a chance to win a six-pack of their delicious salad dressings. If you haven't tried them before this would be the perfect opportunity. They are all vegan, raw, AND fermented which means they are packed with beneficial bacteria and enzymes that are excellent for digestion and keeping a healthy tum!

HERE'S HOW TO WIN:

Leave a comment on Kristen's blog telling her what products or flavors you would to see Zukay put out in the future!
Post a link to her blog on Facebook about the Zukay Giveaway
OR Tweet about the giveaway with a link connecting back to Kristen's blog!

*For the last two you need to leave a separate comment on her page letting her know you have spread the Zukay word!

The contest ends Monday Feb. 15th and Kristen will be announcing the winner on Tuesday Feb.16th!

Click here to enter THE ZUKAY GIVEAWAY FROM KRISTEN'S RAW

I'm really excited about this one! I've entered, have you???

Me vs. The Battle of the Bloat!

2010-02-09T01:28:00.000-08:00

While I may have Abs of STEEL, I definately do NOT have the stomach to match! (Anyone remember those videos? Ah, those were the days!)

Unlike Anthony Bourdain at a BBQ in the Hudson Valley (which is my program of choice at the moment), everything is not going 'swimmingly' for moi. My tum has really been acting up lately and I can't seem to keep anything down. I eat and then I feel bloated. And depending on what I eat sometimes it comes right back up. Lovely, I know. I have been falling asleep around 11 p.m. and then waking up around 1:00 a.m with horrible stomach cramps; then I wake up about every two hours after that. Thursday night was perhaps the worst my stomach has felt since I gave up dairy four plus years ago. I was laying on the floor in the fetal position groaning. I have no idea what could bring on such gastrointestinal distress, but I can definately say that I felt like death warmed over the next morning; totally drained from the whole ordeal.

After much research, I think my problems with low stomach acid have returned...for whatever reason. In New York, I had basically resolved this issue so to have it come back is very annoying. (And then it all snowballs as I start to stress over it and think about it all the time which just makes it worse.) Despite the fact that I have been drinking, or well, sometimes eating, Green Smoothie and Green Smoothies in a Bowl since I began this whole raw food thing two years ago. For those who don't know, Green Smoothies are supposed to fix all that jazz. I have been really bad about rotating greens and have been pretty much using only spinach for quite some time now. The only exception would be when I make soups and I blend in herbs like parsley, dill, cilantro, basil, etc. When I eat salad I mix it up with spring mix, butter lettuce, sprouts, and romaine, but even that is hard on my tum. I love kale, but since I have a hard time digesting it I tend to stay away. I suppose I should be trying other greens in my smoothies, but I like the fact that spinach has a mild flavor and you can't taste the green part at all.

I have been incorporating some healing tea into my diet to see if it works. I have been reading a lot about the powerful healing benefits of ginger so I have been making a detox tea that has burdock, dandelion, fo ti wu, etc. adding a yerba mate tea bag and then steeping fresh ginger in it. I think it is helping to at least soothe my tum, especially at night when it seems to be the worst. I read online that bitter herbs also help stimulate stomach acids so I think I am going to start jucing dandelion - a very powerful, bitter, healing herb for digestion. P-p-p-p-p pucker face! haha!

Also, recently I discovered this awesome blog called Ginger is the New Pink. She has Crohn's Disease and is healing herself naturally with a high raw/ whole food vegan diet. She has some awesome looking soups that make me long for all the comforts of home (ya know -- snow, the smell of fire, and the East Coast in general). Check out her blog, she has the cutest pug! Anyway, in one of her posts she references the fact that nightshades, like tomatoes, are known to cause inflammation....and then the lightbulb turned on!! ::hmm, i've been eating a LOT of tomatoes lately...hmmm, previous to this week and a half my tum was doing just fine...ah ha!:: Yeah, so goodbye toms until summer when I can get heirlooms from the farmers market.

That being said, this week has been a tomato fest. I have been marinating them in olive oil, lemon juice, and some garlic powder and popping them in the D. so they are soft, warm, and taste just like they have been roasting in the oven. When they are done, I add them to various dishes. I must say, I am not a huge fan of raw marinara. I've resolved myself to the fact that my Mim makes the best gravy there is and trying to replicate it is impossible. However, these plump little babies really make for a super delicious gravy or soup.

Before:

Toms & Mushrooms w/ Lemon Juice, Olive Oil, Garlic Powder

I put it in the D. for 2 hours on 115 degrees.

After:

Warm 'Roasted' Tomato Salad w/ Cucumbers tossed with Pesto Vingarette:

I ate this like everyday last week...really simple and good.

'Roasted' Tomatoes & Marinated Mushrooms w/ grated Zucchini:

Then I topped it with that marinara gravy I was talking about

and make a really tasty and hearty soup...

I added in some roasted garlic hummus (not pictured because I already mixed it in) that I picked up from Mother's Market deli counter. I don't normally eat that kind of stuff, but, I have been really craving garbanzo beans lately. And, hummus was one of my favourite foods pre-raw. I am not a fan of sprouted garbanzo beans as they taste really funny to me and nothing like regular chickpeas. I think the sprouted variety makes hummus taste chalky and you really don't get the same consistancy. I like to listen to my body rather than being hyper-crazy about being 100% raw. The hummus was simply roasted garlic, tahini, chickpeas, lemon juice and sea salt. All organic, and I know it wasn't sitting in a plastic container absorbing possible PBAs so I am pretty content with my decision. It added a nice little touch to the dish. Yum yum yum!

I have been eating a lot of mangos and these mini-papayas after dinner. The mini-papayas are expensive! Yikes! Papaya is supposed to be good for digestion which is why I wanted to try it. I tried a sample at Mother's and it tasted like strawberries! The ones I have bought do not taste that good and actually have no flavor. I have been cutting them up and combining them with mangos and lime juice. The mangos I have been getting have are really sweet, soft, and juicy lately. Sometimes you get them and they are more yellow vs. orange and they taste like pesticide even though they are organic. France still has the best mangos I have ever had, ironically.

Mini-Papaya & Mango w/ Lime Juice:

Perfect after dinner snack...I would be lying if I said I stopped there. I also had about four or ~~twenty~~ fresh dates after this. They are just SO good! Nice and sweet and soft, just the way they are supposed to be.

Hope everyone had a great Monday! I'm getting into a bad habit of staying up way to late again. I really need to go to bed earlier...