Alissa's book

[raweater]

I have many raw recipe books but not Alissa's (it's not sold where I buy my books). I'm wondering if I should consider it, what sort of recipes does it have? Which are your favorites?

I for some reason have a feeling she has many grain based recipes, I avoid grains as they are quite unhealthy, how much of the recipes have grains?

Thanks

[raweater]

Maybe I shouldn't even have bothered asking, it seems like this book is not available at all in or to Canada. ALL stores that sell it ship to USA only, at least the ones I found, and Canadian book stores don't carry it, at least the one's I've seen.

Silly me: It seems Alissa's own website does ship to Canada, so I would appreciate answers now that I know the book is available to me (this is probably why I don't have it yet, very few book stores, if any, carry it, all other raw books are carried in book stores).

[rawgreenyogini]

I think her book is invaluable.

If you are not interested in purchasing it, what are the chances that you can borrow it from your local library?

What grains she has in her book are always used in the sprouted form.
And you can always make changes to it....:D

[subbacultcha]

Just to warn you, I'm not sure but I think the postage might be VERY expensive considering it is one heavy book. I remember I wanted to buy it off Alissa's site (I'm in the UK) and postage was more than the book. Not that it's Alissa's fault, it's just the way it is.

Well I'm sure everyone who has it will agree its a great book, and a great first book on raw foods. I seem to remember you saying you've been raw for years so I don't know how that will affect your decision.

Having said that, although I am no longer a 'beginner' I still look at it regularly to remind myself why I'm doing this - it's very motivational.

All the recipes are quick, easy, taste good and don't contain many rare or expensive ingredients.

The book does contain a lot of grain recipes, but it contains a lot of recipes altogether so you wouldn't be hard-pushed to find one without them, by any means whatsoever.

[Bananaboat]

I've only recently bought the book. I've made a few recipes and have liked most of them. She does mention and use grains...I'm not sure how many exactly. But there are a lot of recipes that do not have them as well.

Ordering to Canada will cost you a pretty penny. The shipping cost was approx. $20-30...so you'll have to save up for the purchase. I used standard shipping and the book arrived in 3 days to my place in Ontario.

I, too, was unable to find her book in Canadian stores; however, I think some hfs or if you can find a Living On Live food coach in your area, may have the book. I thought there was a hfs in Ottawa that had her book, but I'd have to investigate further. Unfortunately, I live too far away for that to be an option, but maybe that would work for you, depending upon where you live??

[CrazyDelicious]

I am in Canada and her book is not widely available. Several small bookstores in my area said they would order a limited number of copies of the book if enough people wanted it, but I ended up buying it from her website. I bought it a few years ago though, so I can't remember what the shipping costs were.
I would agree that it is a great first book for raw foods. Many of the recipes are simple and don't require too much fancy equipment and are very tasty. I hadn't picked up her book for many months and was mostly making my own stuff, but grabbed it again a couple months back and rediscovered several recipes that I loved then and still love. And there are many recipes that do not feature the grain, including salads, soups, juices, raw meals, etc
Also, almost half the book has text, stories, personal accounts, and before/after testimonials if you are into that kind of thing. (It is a really LARGE book) :)

[Rawkinlocs]

I wrote a post a while back where I gave a pretty good review (IMHO) of Living on Live Food even including the TOC: http://rawfoodtalk.com/showthread.php?t=21157&

What I like about Alissa's book is that it's a very easy read...it's not complicated and it's great for the beginner BUT...it's also great for those not-so-new to raw too. She covers a lot of ground, transitional stuff as well as what to look forward to the longer you've been raw. While here on the forum she really wants to shy away from specific types of raw approaches such as low-fat, etc. you will find that Alissa even addresses some of this in her book...basically that once you have been raw for a while that YES, you will want or perhaps even need to cut back on the recipes and learn to eat more simply...that if you are having trouble getting that last little bit of weight off then yeah, cut back on (but don't totally omit) the fat and things of that nature.

As for the recipes...the range is very great...simple with just 2-4 ingredients to more complex; most of the grain-based recipes are like some crackers and bread recipes (but not all, she has a great deal of crackers and breads that do not use any grains at all) and her chili and Spanish rice uses sprouted barley. But for the most part, I do not find myself having to utilize grains very much at all when making her dishes. Some are heavy...others are light. She has cheezes, sauces, chutney, dips, spreads, condiments, salads, salad dressings, entrees, desserts, breakfast, breads and crackers. I probably have not even made 1/4 of the recipes...there are so many to choose from and I think that they can be suited for just about anyone. Lots of them can be made successfully with substitutions - for example, when I make her Mock Salmon Pate (it calls for 2 cups of walnuts along with the other ingredients) I started using 1 c. nuts and 1 c. carrots. It's GREAT...everyone who tries it loves it and finds that it is much lighter cutting the nuts down. Another one...I don't like mushrooms so in the burger recipes, I often use finely diced zucchini instead of 'shrooms and those work out well for me. So, her recipes are versatile (well, most raw recipes are) but there are some that you may want to do to the "T" but for the most part, they can be made with subs and still turn out great!

So yeah, I'd highly recommend it. Most people that I know who own it find that it is one of (if not THE) best raw book out there because it just covers so much and it's so down-to-earth.

[raweater]

I know shipping will be a lot but I'll order a few other food items if I order it from her site, that will spread out the shipping cost over several different items.

This would also be far from my 1st raw recipe book, I already have about 10, but with each new book I buy I find several more recipes I love, so I'll keep buying some, the more raw recipes I find and love, the easier it is to stay raw.

Most of what I eat is recipes also, I look at my books about daily. I rarely eat something that isn't a recipe.

[buffalogal]

I actually have two of her books!!! I was loaning my first one out so much and always having to track it down. I bought a 2nd one on ebay for 16.00 (brand new condition) plus 3.99 shipping. Now I have one to loan and one to keep at my house. I think I'm going to chain it to the kitchen sink so I can't loan it out, because I have a feeling I'll wind up loaning them both out!!!! (Everybody's always asking to borrow it!!!) Think I'll tell them to buy their own!!! Anyway, sometimes you get really lucky on ebay!!! Just keep your eyes open!! By the way, the book weighs approximately 4 pounds and 10 ounces. (I have no idea what that is in Canadian weights-whatever they use!!):o

[Mump]

I believe the book is available at Journey of Health in Calgary, you could contact Tonya Cole Lightfoot at 403.254.5991 if you don't wish to order through Alissa's web site.

[raweater]

Thanks for the replies.

buffalogal: I did check ebay and all sellers that had it only shipped to USA, but I can setup a favorites search to let ebay let me know when/if one is available to Canada. About lending it, since I run my own business from home I luckily have a business color photocopier and photocopy recipes for friends every now and then, I also copy them for myself otherwise I get my books wet/dirty, so I have almost all my books photocopied in the kitchen, and if a copy gets too dirty I re copy it.

[RawSinger]

Alissa's book is definitely one of (if not the) most thorough book out there on becoming raw and staying raw. It covers a lot of ground. It's definitely worth the investment As the others have said, it has a great variety of recipes and I would say that most of them do not call for grains. A few of my favorite recipes are the Kale Salad and the Banana Ice Cream. When I was a cooked-fooder, I used to eat ice cream every night and the Banana Ice Cream has a very similar consistency.

Be well,

Francesca