Looking for food that fills you up!

[English Tracy]

I haven't posted much lately but have been following threads regularly.

I'm battling with my huge appetite while trying to eat healthily and lose weight. I have lost about 12 lbs but raw food goodies are so wonderful that I have difficulty in not munching at all hours! (If I make Alissa's bluebery cheesecake, I tend to eat most of it and my family doesn't get a look-in.)

Common belief throughout past threads appears to be that reliance on dehydrated foods prevents weight loss.

So, I need recipes for foods and meals (that do not need dehydrating) that will fill me up and make me less likely to constantly eat in between meals.

I would like to be able to have one avocado and some olives every day but apart from that I'd like some ideas of what has worked for other people who have successfully lost weight AND lost the urge to binge on 'bad' stuff.

I think it's best that I eat something every 3 hours or so as I have realised that I cannot survive on 3 meals a day - the gaps in between are tooooo long!!

Thanks.

Tracy

[michigan roman]

maybe look for ways to curb appetite instead of things that make you feel full .
for me green tea , as is claimed by many to do , quells my appetite .

[Raine]

Everytime you feel hungry, drink a large glass of water and then wait at least 15 minutes. It takes about 20 minutes for the brain to receive the signals that the stomach is full.

I also agree with the green tea. Make yourself a pot and sip throughout the day.

[KindnessToAllCreatures]

Congratulations on losing 12 pounds... That's really terrific! (To help put things into perspective, think how hard it is to lug a 10 pound sack of potatoes any distance, a gallon of water weighs about 11 pounds, etc.)

For me, my weakness is Alissa's carrot pecan burgers. I made a double batch the other day in the form of crackers, and, yes, I ate it all in less than 2 days. (A double recipe contains 2 cups of pecans. :eek: I won't be making these again for a while!)

I'm still learning, too. What's been working for me lately is to make sure I always have fresh produce on hand, washed and cleaned in the refridgerator so I can grab it in a moment's notice. I still make dehydrator foods, although generally cracker type things. I make sure to have on hand Alissa's pizza bread, or MadMel's version of onion bread. I then have this in addition to the fresh produce as a filler rather than the central part of the meal.

I don't time how often I eat. I eat lots of fruit during the day, sometimes a smoothie- crackers and veggies for lunch- usually a salad with avocado, tomato, cucumber, etc. with some crackers on the side for dinner. I eat throughout the day as I get hungry.

I'm by no means an expert- This is just what works for me. May you have good health and much happiness on your raw journey! :)

With Love.

[michigan roman]

i guess i could add here that i make trail mix of sun seed - pumkin seed - walnut - almond - raisin - dry dates chopped up - other dry fruit , nuts and seeds which i eat with bananas to feel full + energized .

[Veganforlife]

Green smoothies are a great way to get a lot of food and to fill you up. Check out Victoria Boutenko's Green for Life - good info in it, plus recipes!

[rawstrawberry]

Veggies, I too have a binge personality.

So when you feel the need, get a big bowl of spinach, broccoli, tomato, etc. and munch on that. Eat the greens leaf by leaf takes time and you really cannot overeat veggies. Cucumber and cauliflower are great too!. Other thing is eat high pectin fruits (apples, grapefruit) as that tend to fill you up too!

Raw Strawberry

[wildfae]

I agree with strawberry... fill up on fresh produce, even if you stuff yourself there's not much harm done (besides a possible bellyache)... The produce I avoid (when trying to lose weight) in large amounts are bananas, dates and other really sweet rich ones (although avocados seem to be fine). Eating your salad with lots and lots of greens and eating with your hands, leaf by leaf works great.

Of course, this doesn't cure bingeing behaviour, but I've personally found that once I knew there was food I could eat as much as I wanted of, I lost much of my urge to eat lots and lots of anything.... It's worked for me, over 30 lbs in just over two months ;)

[daisyduke]

I eat bananas when I get cravings or get hungry. It always works.

[lily]

Hey, English Tracy, it was nice to hear from you again, I'd been wondering how you were.

I know exactly what you mean. I have the same challenge -- I want things to fill me up that are more substantial than fruit and vegetables but which do not include nuts.

Last night I had an inspiration. What about making classic falafels, which are, after all, made from raw chick peas, and instead of frying them, try dehydrating them.

Well, they're 'cooking' now and if they work, I think they would be great for filling up on. I will report back in a few hours and give the recipe if I think it's worth it. (They're just chick peas, onion, garlic, parsley and cumin.)

Also, I think raw corn, just cut straight off the cob, might be a good filler. I'm going to try making a thick corn chowder using corn, mushrooms etc and tomatoes to give it juice instead of almond milk.

Oh, and as daisyduke says, bananas, either as they are, or frozen and whizzed into ice cream or with fresh orange juice, as a thick, icy smoothie.

Good luck!

lily

[tvillemom]

I LOVE banana ice cream. I make some about every night to quelch the "after dinner snack" attack. Tonight I added about a small handful of chopped pecans and a SMALL drizzle of maple syrup...tasted just like butter pecan ice cream to me....sometimes I add carob...or whatever I'm in the mood for, afterall...it really only bananas.....by the way, lots of time I just have PLAIN banana ice cream. If you don't know....I just throw some frozen banana chunks into the food processor...no water or anything and just keep processing until you get soft serve style ice cream. :D YUMMY!
Wendi

[Bridle]

Can appreciate where you are coming from. About 10 years ago I was wondering how I would stay on my vegan diet (started to have increible cravings and not feeling full -- especially as the temperature started to drop). Was told to make sure I was getting essential oils and voila no more cravings, less appetite and general surge in well being (find the oils are even more important now that my diet is raw). My suggestion is UDO's oil because it is vegan, balanced and is not refined, bleached or deodorized (most oils are) nor in plastic (all plastic containers leach into the oil -- black are the worst). Because fat leaves your tummy last it makes you feel satiated without relying on nut and dehydrator products. You may learn more at: http://www.udoerasmus.com/firstscreen.htm

[rawpriestess]

when I need something to fill me up, I make either an almond milkshake, or a creamy almond milk based soup, this always fills me up to the brim.


I think it is the oils in the almond milk, but even just the one cup of almond milk that I use in either the soup or milkshake, always fills me up for hours.

now If I eat a handful of nuts, it doesn't do this, it's the almond milk that does it.

so............... you may wish to try that.

also, dehydrated foods do NOT make you fat, I've lost 85 pounds on them, (so far) just make sure to drink plenty of water, to rehydrate the dehydrated foods in your body.

it's that easy.

[lily]

Yep, RP, I think you're right about the oils filling you up. I'm going to try some of your yummy-sounding almond milk shakes.

My falafel made in the traditional way with raw, soaked chick peas, but dehydrated rather than fried, did work well. They came out quite crisp on the outside.

However, I didn't like the taste of them much. When I took from the freezer one of the almond falafels which I'd made previously according to Alissa's recipe (but with all parsley instead of some cilantro), there was absolutely no contest as to which was the most delicious! Those falafel of Alissa's are wonderful and people who don't normally like raw food love them. I hafd a couple with some lettuce and felt really full and happy, which I couldn't say about the chick pea version.

So I decided I'm going to stop worrying about trying to limit my nuts and just enjoy the recipes.

After all, RP, if you can eat them and release a fantastic 85 pounds in -- how many months is it now 5 or 6 ? -- then surely I can shed the 20 odd pounds that are bothering me... and feel full and happy at the same time.

So, sorry, English Tracy, don't think I'm being much help to you. I did make a fantastic bowl of ice cream last night though by whizzing 2 frozen bananas with some vanilla extract and a small handfull of raw cacao nibs and that REALLY hit the spot -- talk about innocent decadance! And very filling.

lily x

[English Tracy]

All responses to my query are welcome. I think I automatically go for avocados and olives because they are more substantial because of the oils in them - yummy too.

I'm going to start being more organised about planning my menus because it's when I have nothing available that I grab anything and overeat.

Tracy

[StudentforLife]

I make an apple crisp. I just chop up 2 macintosh apples and put them in a bowl with a handful of raisins, mix them with honey, then I crush some walnuts with cinnamon and nutmeg and sprinkle the spiced walnut crumblings on top of the apples and raisins. It's amazing! It's very filling and a comfort food.

[English Tracy]

StudentforLife - that sounds very good.Will def try that. Thanks.

Tracy

[jenimac]

StudentforLife, I just have to say thank you for posting that apple crisp recipe! OMG it's soooo GOOD! I didn't even have raisins or nutmeg and it still tastes divine! I had it twice yesterday and again for lunch today. lol. I don't think I'll ever get tired of this. :)