Ok my question

[bexybexy]

Pretty basic question really - am thinking of embarking on raw food regime - I am quite brave with things like this do not mind giving up all the processed foods. Have 2 queries really - one is what am I allowed to eat? can someone maybe post a complete list of foods I can have? dont need to know recipes etc cos there seems to be plenty of stuff on internet but when I do search for -"what foods can I eat" on raw food diet not much comes up. Just want a basic list really. Also if there are things that are hard to get in supermarkets - advice would be good on where to get them.

My final question is the only reason I never ever last on diets is that I get fed up of having to count calories. Can you eat unlimited amounts of the accepted foods on this diet? that would work for me as the minute i am counting calories then my diet is over lol!

Thanks would really appreciate advice and am new starter to this. thankyou!!!!

[sport]

You can eat any food that has never been heated to over 118 degrees. You will mostly be eating:
Fruit & Veg
Raw nuts and seeds
Greens.
Cold pressed oil, herbs and spices.
This sounds like a very limited diet but it is not. So far today I have had the following
An entire small watermelon (including skin juiced)
Zucchini humous on crackers (lots of it)
Blueberry and raspberry ice cream with walnuts
4 nectarines.
I am only half way through the day.

You do not ever need the count calories. Ever.

[LiveLife]

Agreed. Sport stated it well. There is really so much variety of what you can eat it is ridiculous. Also, if you look around you can find recipes of raw versions of pretty much all of your favorite comfort foods. If I were to show you my grocery list that I made this morning you may be shocked, it is over a page long! So many different vegetables and fruits especially now that summer is here. Counting calories? I don't think so! Eat as much as you want, your body willl tell you when it has had enough nutrients (ie unprocessed food) for now. You will also learn more about your body as you go: some people can eat lots of nuts, some prefer more fruits, etc. Welcome to raw and have fun!

[spicyfull]

I wish you everything you need to Stay RAW..........Welcome to MY World.

[Frugal Raw]

Welcome!! I wish you the best of rawesome health!!

[bexybexy]

Thanks for all the info people. Still a little confused sorry to sound thick here. Understand about fruit and veg can basically buy whatever I want in supermarket as long as its raw veg and fruit and I dont cook it at all. Okay - oils can I have extra virgin olive oil or is there a special oil I have to have and where can I buy it? Someone mentioned crackers - is there a special type of cracker as surely thats been cooked before? As to nuts - raw nuts where do I get them -seen nuts in the shops like brazil, pine nuts etc but are raw nuts easy to find. Sorry I sound stupid but this is very new to me and I just need a list of what I can have and the names and where to buy it as want something that I can live with and dont want to be traipsing around looking for rare ingredients! I am vegetarian so dont eat meat anyway so what do I have for protein?

[snoops]

olive oil - buy extra virgin cold pressed

crackers - most people make their own as you're right anything boxed is processed and not raw.

protein - your body makes protein from amino acids. You do not need to eat meat to get amino acids. They are in everything. All the things you eat in a day supply your body with more than enough amino acids to make the protein you need. A good book to read about this would be "The China Study". Or do searches on protein requirements here - it has been discussed A LOT!:)

[RaeVynn]

If you are near a public library, you can look up Raw books there.
I did that, for the first couple of months... checked out every Raw book our system had!
This forum has a section for recipes. Take a look at those.
Google "Raw recipes" and look through them.
You will get some ideas for the kinds of food items to pick up.
Pretty much stick to the produce section of your local grocery store, and if you have a health food store, food co-op, or Whole Foods store near you, visit there, ask for some assistance from someone that works there.
Yes, you can eat all you want. However, you will find the best results from eating raw if you eat a variety of foods and food types (fruit, veggies, greens, nuts, seeds), rather than just eating one thing (like nuts, for instance).
Many of the raw foods, like raw nuts and seeds, are available online.
You will learn a lot from this forum.

If you can, get Alissa's book/DVD, where a LOT of this is explained in detail.

[Mary Kay]

.....And you are on alissa Cohen's site. It is worth every penny to buy her book, "Living on Live Food."

It is a great book for beginners - is something like 500 pages long, has tons of recipes and answers a lot of newbies' questions. It is the "best bang for your buck" as far as raw food books go, I believe.

Best of luck to you,

Mary Kay

[RawHeaven]

.....And you are on alissa Cohen's site. It is worth every penny to buy her book, "Living on Live Food."

It is a great book for beginners - is something like 500 pages long, has tons of recipes and answers a lot of newbies' questions. It is the "best bang for your buck" as far as raw food books go, I believe.

Best of luck to you,

Mary Kay

Triple ditto!!

The best raw food book I have and I'm not just saying this because I frequent this site. I say it because it's the truth!

[Mandy]

quadrule ditto to that! I got 1 chapter into Alissa's book and it was so inspiring i decided to jump both feet first from a SAD to Raw Vegan!

[juliebove]

olive oil - buy extra virgin cold pressed

crackers - most people make their own as you're right anything boxed is processed and not raw.

protein - your body makes protein from amino acids. You do not need to eat meat to get amino acids. They are in everything. All the things you eat in a day supply your body with more than enough amino acids to make the protein you need. A good book to read about this would be "The China Study". Or do searches on protein requirements here - it has been discussed A LOT!:)

You can buy raw crackers. I've gotten them at the health food store and they are available online.

[Thick]

In addition to raw fruits, vegetables, nuts and greens you can also have--

Bubbies pickles--or other rawly fermented pickle
raw sauerkraut, kimchi, raw olives
raw apple cider vinegar
raw or unrefined coconut oil/butter
raw honey & agave(from a cactus and debatably raw even if marked as such--I eat it)
sun dried tomatoes (excellent for marinara sauces and chili)
dried fruits (no sulfur)

Many people include condiments and spices that are not raw--like tamari, tabasco, mustards etc.

To answer your cracker question--you can make them yourself in a dehydrator and can also be bought in a health food shop perhaps and online. They are very easy and make great sandwiches. A dehydrator can make raw food much easier in a lo tof ways. You can "bake" cookies and pie crusts--lower than 115 (number debatable), warm soups,soften vegetables (spinach, garlic, mushrooms and tomatoes is one of my favorite softened entrees) There are a ton of things you can do with it--visit www.goneraw.com to see some of them.

The other appliance that is really helpful is a vitamix blender. It makes smooth sauces,soups, nut butters, ice cream and most importantly smooth smoothies.

Any vegetable is fine as long as it is edible raw (no white potatoes).

A really good way to get to know what you can have is by looking through the photos only threads here and at other raw websites like http://www.rawfreedomcommunity.info/forum/showthread.php?t=234

I agree atht Alissa's Living On Live Food is a really good book and answers a lot of your questions. Just remember when trying any new recipe that you aren't sure of from any of these sources to make a small batch for your first try--as not all recipes are for everyone=p

Don't worry, nothing's easier than being raw in summer=)

[Thick]

Oh and nuts..well--many are not raw even if labelled raw and the only sure way is to order them or grow them... But, many people eat nuts from the grocer as long as they are not roasted. Including me=)

[LilacLavender]

The only rule is to eat when (and only when) you are hungry...and of course to eat raw

[back2healthy]

Can you eat fish on this diet? I LOVE salmon. Ive seen it on the Alyssa Cohen restaurant home page.

[Thick]

Can you eat fish on this diet? I LOVE salmon. Ive seen it on the Alyssa Cohen restaurant home page.

I think that was a papaya steak!=)