Raw food suggestion needed?

[ag_dwh]

I have started having raw diet for 2 of my 3 meals.
I need some suggestion.

1. Can I sprinkle some salt or spice on my cut fruits and vegetables.
2. Can I steam some of the vegetables, like beans, cabbage etc.
3. Can I cosume honey or sugar.
4. How to make fruit smoothies.

[juliebove]

Seasonings are fine.

Steaming is cooking so it wouldn't be raw.

Honey is not vegan and is debatable. Sugar is not raw and some is not vegan.

I don't drink smoothies so I can't help you there.

[crystalmoon]

Hi I use agave nectar instead of honey as I am vegan. It is pricey so when I cant afford it I use date soak water or make a date paste from water & dates processed together. How about getting some seaweed flakes & using that as a sprinkle for over veggies?
You can make a raw veg soup & then warm to body temp by using a dehydrator or putting soup in a pot over hot water in a pan, bain marie style.
I have read quite a few threads about favorite green smoothies...if you use the banana search engine at the top of the page you should get lots of answers about smoothies. I havent really got into them yet so will be doing a similar search soon ;)

[sport]

If you are planning to make 2 of your meals raw then the best way to have the third meal would be steamed veg.

Salt is not good for you so I would suggest that you use as follows.
1. Use either Celtic Sea Salt or Himalayan Pink
2. Use as little as you can get away with.
3. Gradually reduce the amount that you use.

Refined Sugar is extremely bad for you. You should aim to use sweeterners that do not effect your glycemic indix. Agave is best. Stevia is acceptable. Again you should try to keep it to as little as you need.

Having said all of that, you are going to have to transition and all of the above are ideals so you will not expect to get to that point for some time but it is what you should aim for. At this point I never use salt and the bottle of agave in my kitchen is more than a year old and more than three quarters full.

[EZ rider]

2. Can I steam some of the vegetables, like beans, cabbage etc.That would cook the foods and make them worthless.

[raw_danceruk]

1. Can I sprinkle some salt or spice on my cut fruits and vegetables.

I only use sea salt, about once a week or less. I think its fine during transition

Spices, raw, whole spices and fresh herbs yes - can grind in a coffee grinder or prepare your own "lazy garlic" or chilli mixes


2. Can I steam some of the vegetables, like beans, cabbage etc.

steaming= cooking


3. Can I cosume honey or sugar.

You can buy agave from Alissa's store, which is raw

or use dates for natural sweetening

4. How to make fruit smoothies

You can blend or process any combination your imagination allows!

I would follow basic food combining rules- melon alone not mixed with other fruits (you may or may not be sensitive to this)

You can use water as a base or fresh raw juice or nut milk..possibilities are endless - try searching the recipe section, sure there are lots of ideas there


Raw-k on :o

[DavidZaneMason]

The above responses are great! Remember that there are no Raw Food Police! LOL. The is no ONE way. Eating this way CAN be as simple as just having goals.....and eating more of the fresh fruits and vegetables YOU love. The fresher the better. Go for unprocessed in ANY way...wherever you can.

-During your transition period....whatever you need to feel comfortable in increasing your LIFETIME balance of fresh, raw plant foods.......I say is 100% all right.

-David Z. Mason

[subbacultcha]

I have started having raw diet for 2 of my 3 meals.
I need some suggestion.

1. Can I sprinkle some salt or spice on my cut fruits and vegetables.
2. Can I steam some of the vegetables, like beans, cabbage etc.
3. Can I cosume honey or sugar.
4. How to make fruit smoothies.

Just to reinforce what everyone else has said:

Salt and spice is fine, just make sure it's pure sea salt and not table salt!

Steaming means not raw. But it's probably the next best thing, so I guess you could do it while transitioning.

You can eat raw honey - it will probably say 'raw' or 'cold-pressed' on the label and will be solid at room temperature. You can also use raw agave nectar which has a milder flavour.

All you need to do to make a fruit smoothie is blend up fruits with water or fruit juice. Soft fruits like ripe peaches, mangoes and bananas work well. You may also want to start incorporating green smoothies (fruit blended with leafy greens) into your diet.

Hope this helps x

[bodaflower]

That would cook the foods and make them worthless.
I don't think it would necessarily make them worthless, they would still fairly healthy, losing some nutrition and changing their makeup, yes, but not completely worthless. just not as good as they could be =)

[EZ rider]

OK maybe just worthless then they were before but not completely worth less.

[EZ rider]

IMO foods that have been cooked, processed, and/or complicated through recipes have lost some of their fresh raw qualities and are worth-less.