Nov12 - 30 day raw food challenge - join anytime of the month!

[Aleesha Sattva]

Welcome welcome welcome!!! :excited:

Welcome to the 30 day challenge and welcome to our new monthly format.

This is our monthly challenge thread. We are choosing to do one (or perhaps split into two) continual threads so we can create a community of support within this challenge. You can join this thread at any time during the month. Don't be shy... we love new posters!!! So if you want to join us... please do!

I welcome people who are already 100% raw to join in the conversation - supporting our challengers in their quest! :cheer:

This thread is specifically for those of you who are eager to commit to 30 consecutive days of eating 100% raw foods and seeing miraculous results!

I will start a new challenge thread on the first of every month. If I forget... send me a quick email and remind me... I'll get the challenge thread online for you quickly.

The focus of the monthly challenge is on staying raw and accountability. Therefore, if you have eaten all raw and then slip up and have something cooked, don't beat yourself up over it or dwell on it - but this is not space to discuss it. You are more than welcome to document it in your journal/blog or ask for help in the discussion area, but it is not necessary (and not allowed) to discuss your slip-up here in the challenge threads, just get right back on track and keep going! This thread is about celebrating what you are eating that IS raw!

I welcome you all to share pics of your dishes, ask questions, share what you are consuming (as long as it's raw). We are here to listen to your emotional and physical challenges. So share share share!!! :hug

OH and the best part of this (not only the support but...) you can subscribe to this thread and get notified every time someone posts to it. This way you will be connected!

So let's get this party started!!!:throwhearts:

[Aleesha Sattva]

Please do not post in this thread until the 1st

[rawbie_kiwi]

challenge day 1 is here woop woop woop. the newbie is mega keen (lol)

well here in New Zealand we are ahead of the rest of the world time wise so I've already started day one as it is as I type 11.53am November 1st.

210 days to go and I head off on an awesome trip and I sooooooooo want ta get my gorgeous back by then.

See you on your 1st November ;)

[rawbie_kiwi]

even though I am new to this way of eating I am already experimenting with my own juicing recipe.

I made a real mix this morning that went like this...

2 handfuls spinach
4 med size carrots
2 granny smith apples
1 zucchini
2 slices fresh ginger
2 small oranges
1/4 pineapple
2 large stalks celery
2tbsps hemp protein powder
2tbsps supergreen powder

last 2 ingreds I mixed with coconut water then poured/mixed into juice

those babies together made a 50 oz / 1.5 litre liquid breakfast was had. LOVE love love it.

For lunch I usually have another juice or a smoothie of berries, banana, apple, orange, spinach, celery, and 2tbsps red powder superfoods.

dinner is always a large salad followed by a fruit salad. I am only on day four of raw food and already down 7.6lbs. I have a LOT of weight to lose so I am thrilled with my start and can't get over how good I feel. Under this fat suit I see my me coming back and she was a whole lotta fun :wow: this is all good. Thanks for having me Leesh and Co.

[Aleesha Sattva]

ohhhh yeah!!!!! We are a few hours behind you. We'll be posting tomorrow LOL

[rawbie_kiwi]

ohhhh yeah!!!!! We are a few hours behind you. We'll be posting tomorrow LOL

LOL I can talk to myself now and again before America turns in to the 1st November :excited:

[nickyleekukla]

First day 100% raw :cheer:

breaky:
sprouted buckwheat groats w
goji berries
dates
flax
1/4 pinapple
kiwi
almond milk

mid-morning:
green smoothie (spirulina, barley grass, silverbeet, kale, blackberries, beet leaves) not the most tasty mixture unfortunately....

Lunch:
Massive salad with seeds and avo

Dinner:
slice of sprouted bread w 1/4 avo
rest of green smoothie
handful of green beans
punnet of tomatoes

[rawbie_kiwi]

First day 100% raw :cheer:

breaky:
sprouted buckwheat groats w
goji berries
dates
flax
1/4 pinapple
kiwi
almond milk

mid-morning:
green smoothie (spirulina, barley grass, silverbeet, kale, blackberries, beet leaves) not the most tasty mixture unfortunately....

Lunch:
Massive salad with seeds and avo

Dinner:
slice of sprouted bread w 1/4 avo
rest of green smoothie
handful of green beans
punnet of tomatoes

Congrats on day 1 ! yee haaa... throw in 4 carrots and two granny smith apples to that smoothie and it will be much yummier. You have too much green so the taste is YIKES! GREEN

[MysticTree]

November is here in the UK too now. I have woken with a headache which is annoying. Drinking water like crazy to see if that helps. October was good. I hope November is as fab. I'll have breakfast when I get to work.

[RawMomma7]

Yay! November is here in the US now too!! I'm in! Hoping to remove at least 10 pounds this month. Going to do a cranberry orange smoothie for breakfast. Love this time of year. 30 days here we come!!

[ReneeH]

Hey Nicky, your breaky sounds FANTASTIC!!!!! Never tried Pineapple in my Buckwheaties!!!! I've GOT to do that!!!!!

I had the most AWESOME thing happen to me yesterday!!! My Sister was visiting me (this is the one who missed my entire raw journey and has only recently tried my food because she was being stubborn and refused to until NOW...how is that possible, right!!!!). Anyway, during my last Raw Class with 2HuskyGirl she sat in for part of my class (I never do classes alone) and lived it!!!! Well, yesterday she was visiting me and actually REQUESTED that I make her the Tomato Ravioli that we made in Class!!!!!!!! I can't believe she's FINALLY on board!!!!!! I even let her try my Enchilada dinner and she LOVED it!!!!! I'm so thrilled!!!!

Here's what I made her:

http://i517.photobucket.com/albums/u336/Pioneerspiritnee/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG_4413-1.jpg

[MysticTree]

fab when that happens isn't it :)
Food looks good as always Renee.

I just had a rather fierce lunch.
I forgot my salad dressing but thought I would make an avo dressing since I had ingredients with me and the bullet in the works kitchen. Oh boy did I over-do the fresh chilli. I hope it will be wonderfully health-giving because it sure was painful lol

[ReneeH]

LOL!!!! Hey Mystic, I just got a mental picture of you eating that!!!

http://i517.photobucket.com/albums/u336/Pioneerspiritnee/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG_4418.jpg

LOL!!!

My Morning Smoothie: Spinach, Banana, and Mango

http://i517.photobucket.com/albums/u336/Pioneerspiritnee/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG_4417.jpg

[MysticTree]

had to take my jumper off and put the desk fan on ... bring on the menopause, I can cope with anything now!

[2 husky girl]

Happy November 1st!

Renee, that's soooo AWESOME about your sister! :cheer:

Here's what I assembled at work this morning for breakfast, blackberry crepes!
http://i1286.photobucket.com/albums/a618/2huskygirl/BlackberryCrepes.jpg

[2 husky girl]

Oops! Picture came out a little too big! Hopefully I'll get it right next time!

[MysticTree]

Big but perfectly formed! Looks delish :)

[ReneeH]

:drool:

Go Girl!!!!!!

Excuse me.... :clears throat: and WHERE is my invite!!!!! :D

And it LOOKS fabulous!!!!!! Nice presentation!!!!! :wink:

[Aleesha Sattva]

oh that looks so yummy 2husky

we had fresh fruit for breakfast and for lunch i just made us a lovely sunflower pate with sundried toms and italian seasoning and plopped bits of it onto our salads. very yummy.

[RawMomma7]

had to take my jumper off and put the desk fan on ... bring on the menopause, I can cope with anything now!

We need a like button and an LOL! button! So funny!

Renee! Those tomatoes look fantastic!

Ate

Pears
cranberry smoothie(cranberries, fresh oj, banana, coconut milk)
lots of sesame cole slaw, lots of it. I think a half a head of cabbage!
bummer, because I really like it the next day too! LOL!

Oh my goodness! All these yummy recipies! Are they all Alissa's? I want those crepes! ROFL! seriously.

[nickyleekukla]

Day 2:

Breaky:
orange, kale and pineapple smoothie

Lunch:
AMAZING raw sushi (http://detoxinista.com/2012/03/juice-pulp-sushi-rice/)
big kale mixed salad

Dinner:
rest of raw sushi
carrot/cuke/silverbeet juice
5 dates

the sushi was soo much fun and easy to make- seriously will be introducing this to everyone!

[robh]

rawbie_kiwi, welcome! Your enthusiasm is great!

nickyleekukla, greetings. Can I point me to the sprouted bread recipe you use?

MysticTree, you did so well in Octoober, I am sure November will be another great Month. How are you feeling? After I stick to raw for a while, I get my raw groove back and I feel great! I hope you are too. I'm looking forward to it.

RawMomma7, welcome. I never though about eating cranberries they are all over the stores this time of year. How did you like them with oranges? I assume the taste is very bitter.

ReneeH, are those tomatoe ravioli in RFFE? That's so awesome about your sister.

2 husky girl, crepes look great is that alissa's filling with the mac nuts?

Aleesha Sattva, it's nice having you here with us this month. Welcome. :)


I have been in these thread since 3/1 and I try to come in here everyday to cheer everyone on (myself included). I am having a hard time remembering to do it lately, sorry about that.

I have been doing well lately. This is my 4th consecutive day at 100% raw. From previous experience, I know at about day 21 or so that I will lose all interest in cooked food. Until then, however, this is very hard for me. I live in a house of cooked fooders. While I disagree with their diet choices, I respect them. Therefore, I do not throw out all their food (like I secretly want to). The situation is less than ideal for me, but I have been strong lately, I feel my resolve getting stronger with each passing day. I cannot wait to get back to where I was. I feel so awesome on raw food.

I enjoy reading what people are eating so I have ideas of what I can eat (like the cranberries).

Lately, I've been eating sprouted oat groats. I soak them for 12 hours and then sprout them for 12 hours. I put them in a bowl with berries and something sweet like raw coconut nectar or raw agave. It's delicious and gives me a nice even flow of energy. It's a nice alternative calorie source from the normal fruits and fats.

This morning, I've had mostly just water. Now (11am) I felt a little hungry so I ate an apple. I have an orange and a banana queued up this morning as well. After fruit, I am good for a while, but them my blood sugar drops and I get this intense hunger. I hate it, but I found if I just ride it out and keep drinking water, it goes away.

When I get home, I have some sprouted kamut. I will eat that much like I do the oat groats. I enjoy those calories because I don't get that drop.

After that, I'm not sure what I'm eating, I'll post it tomorrow (assuming I can remember to do so!)

Have a good day everyone. You are all doing great!

[MysticTree]

Hello all, I had a mild blip yesterday. Ate a teeny bit of bf's supper. It was nice. I don't beat myself up and today I am happily back to 100%. Had guests round for lunch. The men reclaimed fallen wood and I made regular chili which I did entirely without tasting! I'm told it was very nice. I had a huge salad. Seriously, a restaurant would have reckoned it enough for 6 or 8 people! I saw yet another raw chilli recipe online the other day. I'll try it in the week but I'll go easier on the chilli than the avo dressing I made yesterday. Hope you are all having a rawfully good day. Xx

[RawMomma7]

robh - the cranberries come fresh this time of year in produce. I put 1 cup in the blender with the juice of two oranges (made a cup to cup and a half), yesterday's smoothie took 4 bananas to make it sweet enough, the day before it was only two. Maybe the orange juice was sweeter one day to the next? I always taste. Bananas are good calories that stick longer and mangoes too. As a man, you need more calories. Pop a banana, or four or five, into your daily routine.

Today, I started with soaked oat groats, in the DH overnight so they were warm this morning. Probably didn't need warm today though, Texas has warmed back up all on it's own again. Drizzled with almond slivers and honey. Lunch is here, guess I will go off and make a smoothie. Try to use up the bananas as they have all gone speckled and I still can't find all of my food processor parts to make ice cream! Talk to you later.

[2 husky girl]

Everyone is doing so GREAT!

Rawmamma7 and robh - YES! Those are Alissa's crepes! :eat

[ReneeH]

Hey yau'll!!!

ROB, the Tomato Ravioli is in RFFE. It's FANTASTIC and incredibly easy to make.

I've had a RAWsome day with my family and shared some great food with them!!!!

Nighty nite rawbies!!!! :)

[nickyleekukla]

Robh~ the bread's from a local raw cafe so wouldn't have the faintest clue how to make it sorry!

last night at work I had absolutely no energy- not good when you're in a frontline position. I ate quite a bit yesterday so don't know what it could of been from- maybe just withdrawal/ psychological symptoms from no cooked food. Yes I know its only been 2.5 days lol. Did any one count calories when they first started out? Knowing I have to post here is really helping me stick with it :D

Day 3:
breaky: vanilla bean-soaked oats w kiwifruit, flax and almond milk
lunch: massive mixed kale salad with nutritional yeast/ lemon dressing
snacks: almonds and leftover sushi
dinner: kale, spinach, kiwi, banana and cuke smoothie concoction

[robh]

MysticTree, cooking food without eating it is hard isn't it? I am often surprised when I learn what I have made is good. You were very strong to not taste any. It sounds like you are craving the very same food you were making. Have you considered adapting a cooked recipe to raw? You can sprout legumes and have actual beans.

RawMomma7, I am definately going to get some cranberries. I have a list to get at the store a mile long today - heh. On your banana situation, you could dehydrate them. It's a nice change up, I find. The other day, I tried to make the ice cream you're talking about. It was my first time and I left the banana peals on when I froze them. It was a disaster. I did, however, learn a lesson.

2 husky girl, I thought those crepes looked familiar. :) When I make them, I swap the mac filling for rasberries tossed with a little lemon juice. To keep the berries from rolling out of the shell, I smear down a thin layer of raw honey and then apply the berries. The super sweet banana shell and raw honey really pops with the sour rasberries and lemon juice.

nickyleekukla, when you switch to a raw diet, feeling tired and even achy is normal. You may also feel like you have a cold. It's just a transition period, you will be feeling awesome in no time. Whatever you do, DO NOT have any cooked food, the cycle will start all over.


For me, today is day 5 at 100% raw.

Yesterday, I had about 3 liters of water, an apple, an orange, a banana. I snacked on dates and pecans between meals. Lunch was some sprouted Kamut with evoo, salt, pepper, oregano, garlic powder and chopped up sun dried tomatoes. Dinner was a nice salad with a sesame-seed based, mexican dressing (chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, cayenne pepper), romaine lettuce, olives, sliced red peppers, cherry tomatoes and diced avocado. I was feeling a little hungry after dinner so I snacked on probably 10 dried figs.

Everyone is doing great. To all the new people, if you start feeling run down, tired, achy, runny nose, headache, etc, keep pressing on with your raw food diet. Do not return to cooked food. In a few days, you will feel better than ever before. Also, if you are craving cooked food or maybe you might even be sneaking some at night, resist the urge and eliminate the cooked food (even if it's slowly). Once you are off the cooked food for a few weeks, the cravings go away and this becomes really easy.

Good luck today, everyone!

[MysticTree]

luckily I wasn't craving or I would have been caving ;) Treated myself to kale chips from the health food store today. They are on special at the moment and though I had picked up a raw recipe book, by the time I got to the check out, I decided that the price of the book was the same as 3 tubs kale so put the books back and got another 3 tubs kale chips. The first tub was relish and gone very quickly. The rest have to last me the whole of next week! Please keep reminding me to hydrate. I am not thirsty at the moment but really should be drinking more.

[RawMomma7]

I have started a fast, haven't decided if it will be a juice fast or a water fast. I have trouble with hypo-glycemic reactions when I fast completely. I will check in here tomorrow anyway. We are making raw tamales for dinner tomorrow night. I know, probably not a good coming off a fast, but I am really not good at fasting. I get light headed, and black out a bit sometimes, numb hands, dizzy. Weird stuff. Jittery. Maybe all of that is normal detox... I will go check out the fasting thread in the morning. Good night all! :)

[ReneeH]

RawMomma7, I wonder I'd you're drinking enough on the fast to have that reaction... I am guilty if the same thing sometimes.

Check out my Breaky (I LOVE that word!!!!):

http://i517.photobucket.com/albums/u336/Pioneerspiritnee/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG_4430.jpg

It's a new Breakfast Cereal that I made this week for the Raw Detox Box that I sell!!!! It's FANTASTIC!!! It's Dried & Dehydrated Almonds, Pecans, Sprouted Sunflower Seeds and Sprouted Buckwheaties, Dehydrated Apple, dried Apricots and Cranberries, Dates and Dried Coconut with freshly made Almobd Milk. YUMMMMMY!!!!!!!

[MysticTree]

that does look good Renee. I'm fasting again til Tuesday but I had a lovely salad for my late afternoon meal. It was simply enormous - would have fed 12 non raw people! We go to friends on a Sunday every week for a meal and a shower (still not got hot water in the caravan unless we boil pans/kettles!). I always take my own food and was lazy today just making a salad. I still haven't eaten my mango. It looks a likely candidate for breakfast on Tuesday.

[ReneeH]

Thx Mystic!!! Here's my Lunch, Veggie Wrap Sandwich and Carrot Cake:

http://i517.photobucket.com/albums/u336/Pioneerspiritnee/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG_4431.jpg

http://i517.photobucket.com/albums/u336/Pioneerspiritnee/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG_4432.jpg

[ReneeH]

"Oink, oink!!!!!"

http://i517.photobucket.com/albums/u336/Pioneerspiritnee/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG_4433.jpg

Dang!!!!!! only 11 minutes later!!!!!! Shameful!!!!! I know!!!!

Me feels GOOOOOOD NOW!!!!!!! :dance:

[RawMomma7]

Renee!!! Stop!!! You are making me laugh so hard I almost wet my pants!! That looks so awesome! Was it a flax wrap around the outside? Looked great. I was only able to go to lunch time, a little over 18 hours. I was very sick to my stomach.

Ate dates stuffed with walnuts, raw tostadas, salad, and raw broccoli soup today. Full, happy. Love raw food. Love the clarity of mind. Love the peace in my soul. Love the energy. Love that I have lost 5 pounds this week.

and Mystic Tree - where on earth do you live Lady? No electricity or hot water?

[nickyleekukla]

That veggie wrap looks absolutely sensational :drool:

My energy levels were a lot better today, no nap needed lol. I was craving salad so skipped my daily smoothie....

Breaky: apple, buckwheat groats with almond milk, chia seeds, flaxmeal

Snack: bowl of oranges and grapefruit

Lunch: spinach-silverbeet salad w 1/2 avo, tbsp pepitas and nutritional yeast-lemon dressing w a slice of sprouted bread and freshly made almond butter

Dinner: leftover salad from lunch

[MysticTree]

if you are on Facebook, check out "no electricity just a standpipe and a tiny caravan". We have a large caravan now which is so much better. Caravan in British English equates roughly to trailer in US English. Trailer in British English is a small or large, generally open (but sometimes closed) box that you tow behind a car people use them for taking garden rubbish to the tip (US dump).

[ReneeH]

Renee!!! Stop!!! You are making me laugh so hard I almost wet my pants!! That looks so awesome! Was it a flax wrap around the outside? Looked great.



That veggie wrap looks absolutely sensational :drool:


Thanks!!!! It was SO good!!!!

RawMommy7: :LOL: Love it!!!! I totally got a mental picture of that!!!! The wrap is made out of Tomato, Ted Bell Pepper, Avocado, Psyllium Husk Powder, and Sea Salt. No Flax is in it.

Have a RAWsome day everyone!!!! :)

[MysticTree]

Went for bloods this morning. Should get results on Wednesday. They are checking for iron levels, B12 (unlikely to be accurate I suppose), diabetes (not because they think I am but because it's in my family). None of these levels have been checked for years! Water fasting today and already looking forward to my mango tomorrow morning.

[MysticTree]

Thinking of buying RFFE but wondered what the ratio of dehydrator recipes to non-dehydrator recipes are in it? Not having a dehydrator means it really is better not buying a book if it is heavily weighted towards dehydrating.

[robh]

MysticTree, I need to get that book too. Sorry, can't help ya. Thanks for the interesting vocabulary. Now I just need a reason to say: "I'm taking rubbish to the tip with my trailer".

I managed to stay raw this weekend. I'm feeling better and I've lost the water weight and my smaller jeans are back to fitting better.

Today, I've had a lot of fruit: apple, bananas, oranges. I have some chia seeds here, but I doubt I'll do anything with them. I really enjoy fresh apple juice and chia seeds, but no juicer here at work. Also, looks like I've had about 2 liters of water already today.

When I increase my intake of calcium, iron and zinc, I notice I crave cooked food less and tend to be satisfied on raw food more easily. I don't know why, but I just don't get enough of these three minerals. I have to consciously incorporate sesame seeds and chia seeds in my diet. If I forget for 2-3 days, I start having 'meat thoughts' (the iron, I suspect). I have a sesame seed-based dressing at home. I'll probably have that on my salad tonight. Also, maybe I'll juice some apples when I get home (before the salad) and mix chia seeds in the apple juice.

Anyway, best of luck everyone.

[MysticTree]

MysticTree, Thanks for the interesting vocabulary. Now I just need a reason to say: "I'm taking rubbish to the tip with my trailer". good luck with that. I can't say it's an exhilarating experience but maybe it has the edge in a foreign language

[ReneeH]

I spent the day with my Sister who is a professional photographer photographing my food from my raw business!!! The BEST thing about it was getting to eat all the food after each picture!!!! YUMMMMMMY!!!!

She is making a photo sideshow that will focus on my beautiful creations!!! I'm SO excited about that!!! It's going to be 4 weeks in the making, because I have 4 totally different menus! I'll let you guys know when it's all done, but we 're gonna have these photo sessions every week!!!! Can you say BUFFET!!!!! :dance:

[RawMomma7]

good luck with that. I can't say it's an exhilarating experience but maybe it has the edge in a foreign language

ROFL!!! I am going to say it just for the fun of it! My sister lived in England for five years and came back calling my ex the rubbish bin.

stayed raw today. leftover tamales, I rolled them out on teflex (they didn't set up in the husks) and let them get flexible like a flour tortilla and filled them with veg. yummy sandwich. smoothie for breakfast and raw chocolate cheesecake for lunch at Whole Foods Raw Bar. Good crust, but the filling wasn't as good as other times. Have to make my own I suppose.

Sick to my stomach again today, lots of pain in the mid and upper back, kidney? gall blader? liver? any ideas?

Mystic, I will check that out on fb tomorrow. Gotta go to bed, full day of teaching tomorrow.
Robh - yay for skinnier jeans!! Keep it up.

Good night all.

[ReneeH]

Thinking of buying RFFE but wondered what the ratio of dehydrator recipes to non-dehydrator recipes are in it? Not having a dehydrator means it really is better not buying a book if it is heavily weighted towards dehydrating.

Hummm... Well, I would say yes, it's mostly using a dehydrator...although there are some that don't. I don't have it in front if me right now, so I'm just going by memory and from the things I've made from it. The recipes are slightly more complicated than LOLF, using ingredients that may not be familiar to you, such as Star Anise (I had no idea what to do with that before RFFE...). There are a few repeat recipes such as Enchiladas, and Zucchini Pasta.

There are things I love about both books. RFFE has pages devoted to Smoothie and Juice combinations as well as teaching you about raw ingredients whereas LOLF has sections devoted to personal experiences, simpler recipes, and answering questions about the raw lifestyle. The books are very different, yet you can see Alissa's personality in both if them.

If you want more gourmet food, RFFE is the way to go. I can honestly say that the food that I ate at Grezzo was the absolute BEST food I've ever had the pleasure of eating. The fact that Alissa shared those recipes with the world is an extremely special thing. Get both books...they are each worth it to get. :)

[MysticTree]

broke my 36 hour water fast with lovely mango.
4 lbs down this morning but I think part of that is because it is freezing in the bathroom and that has affected the scales. Maybe I should get electronic ones for accuracy but tbh I'm more excited by getting into smaller clothes than I am about a number on a scale :)

I have a tub of kale chips for mid morning snack and Walnutty's coleslaw and avo to make "sushi" with later "a la Renee" for lunch.

wearing nice "new" (charity shop) clothes today and feeling almost as bouncy as yesterday. Yesterday I was on a happy cloud. I wouldn't want to be happier I think so, proof that a sproutarian diet is ott as far as I am concerned.

I have got to a point where I really enjoy my Monday fasts and I don't go overboard on Saturday and Sunday in readiness for not eating on Monday. There is always tomorrow to be eating something I haven't eaten today and that applies throughout the week.

[MysticTree]

Hummm... Well, I would say yes, it's mostly using a dehydrator...although there are some that don't. I don't have it in front if me right now, so I'm just going by memory and from the things I've made from it. The recipes are slightly more complicated than LOLF, using ingredients that may not be familiar to you, such as Star Anise (I had no idea what to do with that before RFFE...). There are a few repeat recipes such as Enchiladas, and Zucchini Pasta.

There are things I love about both books. RFFE has pages devoted to Smoothie and Juice combinations as well as teaching you about raw ingredients whereas LOLF has sections devoted to personal experiences, simpler recipes, and answering questions about the raw lifestyle. The books are very different, yet you can see Alissa's personality in both if them.

If you want more gourmet food, RFFE is the way to go. I can honestly say that the food that I ate at Grezzo was the absolute BEST food I've ever had the pleasure of eating. The fact that Alissa shared those recipes with the world is an extremely special thing. Get both books...they are each worth it to get. :)

Thanks Renee. I think I will give it a miss for now. I have the first book - somewhere in the packing.

[MysticTree]

I managed to stay raw this weekend. I'm feeling better and I've lost the water weight and my smaller jeans are back to fitting better.

Today, I've had a lot of fruit: apple, bananas, oranges. I have some chia seeds here, but I doubt I'll do anything with them. I really enjoy fresh apple juice and chia seeds, but no juicer here at work. Also, looks like I've had about 2 liters of water already today.

When I increase my intake of calcium, iron and zinc, I notice I crave cooked food less and tend to be satisfied on raw food more easily. I don't know why, but I just don't get enough of these three minerals. I have to consciously incorporate sesame seeds and chia seeds in my diet. If I forget for 2-3 days, I start having 'meat thoughts' (the iron, I suspect). I have a sesame seed-based dressing at home. I'll probably have that on my salad tonight. Also, maybe I'll juice some apples when I get home (before the salad) and mix chia seeds in the apple juice.

Anyway, best of luck everyone.

Well done Rob. You should definitely try some watercress. Lots of iron in that :)
I'm getting into sesame seeds quite a bit at the moment too.

Have you made that bread again yet? I'm interested to know if it still tastes as good the second time!

[robh]

MysticTree, the oat bread? I went kind of bonkers with it and burned out on it. I haven't had any for a while. I'm probably due to make raw bread again. lol That happy bouncy feeling you're talking about it what keeps me coming back to raw. It can vary from a mild, happy bouncy feeling to strong wavs of happines that wash over me. When I slip off 100% raw, it fades and eventually negativity and cynicism return. I am surely hooked on raw. :)


Yesterday, was back to the typical fruit-in-the-morning raw and salad in the evening pattern. I did get some sesame seeds and honey in after he fruit. I also had apple juice mixed with chia seeds before the salad.

I am out of grains (just ordered more), so, yesterday, all my carbs came from fruit. I do not enjoy how my body reacts to fruit. I am not knocking fruit. I just think my body processes it poorly. I was hungry all day yesterday. After the bananas especially, I felt like there was a pit in my stomach. Maybe I just ate too much fruit. My blood sugar feels more in balance when I was eating a mix of sprouted grains and fruit.

Today, unfortunately, is going to be another fruit day. I pack a couple of oranges and a couple of bananas, more gound sesame seeds, some honey and some sun butter. I think I'll do the chia/apple juice thing again when I get home. Fingers crossed, I may have a avocado that's ripe when I get home. If not, I'll have to figure out some sort of fat source with my salad.

Have a good one, folks.

[MysticTree]

There is much talk in my office of us getting a dehydrator so we can make kale chips! Three of us love them so much that we are going to make them to share. I'm not sure we can do it on company electricity though so we need to iron out the few small wrinkles left in our master dehydrator plan.

Sushi for lunch. I'm finding the nori very fishy and not in a nice, fresh fish sort of way. More in a rock-pool at low tide and baking sun sort of way. I wonder why.

Trying to down some water at regular intervals but not enjoying it today. I'm drinking somewhere between 3-4 US pints a day at the moment and lots of high water produce. It seems to be enough given the cold weather and relatively low activity levels.

Sorry you burned out on that bread Rob. It sounds as you get really into one type of food and then suddenly get switched off it again. I don't eat the raw crackers I used to like from the health food shop. It's a good thing really because they were so expensive!

[ReneeH]

Hey Rob, how many apples do you juice for your Chia/Apple pudding? I'm thinking of giving it a try this morning. I always use a nut-based milk in mine. Also, do you add anything else to it? Thx! :)

[ReneeH]

Enjoying Donut Holes & Fruit:

http://i517.photobucket.com/albums/u336/Pioneerspiritnee/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG_6739.jpg

Sipping on a Smoothie: Spinach Banana & Strawberry:

http://i517.photobucket.com/albums/u336/Pioneerspiritnee/Mobile%20Uploads/DC200798-DAFD-4237-9C3C-0CC387278B8F.jpg

Sorry Rob!!! I got hungry!!! I'll have to make the Chia Pudding tomorrow...

[robh]

ReneeH, sorry for being slow! I use freshly juiced apple juice + chia seeds - super simple. Just trade the almond milk for apple juice and I bet it'd be awesome.

MysticTree, the community dehydrator, what a cool idea. I hope work lets you have it. I wouldn't have guessed in a million years how good kale chips truly are. I can appreciate the motivation. 4 pints is what I drink a day. The other day, I had like 6, but I was running to the bathroom like crazy. Hope you sort out your nori issue. Doesn't sound appetizing.

[MysticTree]

I think my body is just saying no to nori! I'm gonna have to get a big dehydrator if we are going to share the chips!

[robh]

I love my 9-tray. Depending what you put on them, they can be done quickly. Did your boss say anything about such a device running at work?

[2 husky girl]

Robh: Thanks for the recommendation on the crepes, I'm really looking forward to trying them that way.

[MysticTree]

One of the good things is that one of the people wanting to share is pretty much the owner of the business so we might get to have the dehydrator in work otherwise we will have to have it at her place I think!

[MysticTree]

Raspberries and blueberries for breakfast :)

[MysticTree]

Bloods came back - NORMAL; NO ACTION :)

I realise this doesn't mean my B12 isn't low but the other tests are great. The nose bleeds I have been having would normally mean low iron. Diabetic indications not present and whatever else they were testing for seems ok.
I suppose it would make sense to get some wider tests done and a urine test for B12 would perhaps be in order.

[ReneeH]

That's gr8 Mystic!!!

[MysticTree]

so I am thinking about food for this evening already and I think I fancy raw olives, raw pistachios and kale chips. Does that sound fab or weird?

[ReneeH]

Both!!! It's Fabulously Weird!!!! :dance:

[MysticTree]

it was fab. Sort of like cocktail hour without the silly dresses and the Manhattans :)

[MysticTree]

Where is everybody? Today I am wearing my new-to-me purple and grey stripy top. Clothes are getting baggier again!

Organic grapes for breakfast. Kale chips for snacking on later and a huge avo with romaine and watercress plus cucumber and honey mustard dressing for lunch. I forgot to bring garlic but maybe my work colleagues would thank me for that! Oh and I have some of that slaw left still. It's fermented quite nicely now so I am supposing it's even better for me now than it was and I have some fresh Kohl Rabi too.

Loving Raw just now :)

[robh]

ReneeH, how goes it? I haven't made Alissa's stuff in a while. What's your favorite or most popular dish that you've made from Living on Live Food? (I have that book.) I can start gathering the stuff it calls for.

MysticTree, you're doing great! How much weight have you lost since you started weekly fasting?


Today, is going to be pretty simple - just water!

I too like the concept of weekly fasting. I found, however, that Monday's fasting was only correcting Sunday's transgressions. A better scenario for me is to fast into and through the weekend. I want to water fast Thursday and Friday and then juice fast Saturday and Sunday. Monday and Tuesday I have to physically be at work so I cannot pig out post fast. Those will be 100% raw days. Wednesday, I work from home but that will be a 100% raw day as well. On Thursday, the water fast starts the week up again.

Wish me luck, I find, I can go 2 days without food and not feel a damn thing (not even hunger). On the morning of the 3rd day, however, my head gets weird, my movements start to slow down and I start to fancy a nap. This is where, I think, some fruit juice would pick me up and allow me to continue fasting.

Have a good one, folks.

[MysticTree]

MysticTree, you're doing great! How much weight have you lost since you started weekly fasting?

I'm not sure Rob. Maybe between 20-30 lbs or there abouts. I keep track on what the current weight is but not each loss.

[MysticTree]

Carpaccio of pear and kohl Rabi with garlic/honey dressing and raw black olives for supper. Very pleasant :)

[ReneeH]

Eating a HoTTTT Pizza! Note to self: ease up on the red pepper. Sometimes less is more...

http://i517.photobucket.com/albums/u336/Pioneerspiritnee/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG_4439.jpg

I DO LOVE Pineapples on my pizza though!!!! :dance:

[ReneeH]

ReneeH, how goes it? I haven't made Alissa's stuff in a while. What's your favorite or most popular dish that you've made from Living on Live Food? (I have that book.) I can start gathering the stuff it calls for.

Hey Buddie!

It goes well!!! :). I think my favorite thing in RFFE is the Pizza Crusts. The photo above is that crust. Also, the Breadsticks are AWESOME!!! It's hard to pick a favorite cuz it's all great!!! Pick something and ill see if I made it and tell you.

Hey, remember I posted about the Seminar I'm doing for ME & WE (Motivating and Empowering Women to Excel)? That's tomorrow!!!!! I made a banner for my table:

http://i517.photobucket.com/albums/u336/Pioneerspiritnee/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG_4436.jpg

It's got a photo of my Sandwich Wrap. It's actually 3X5, but this is the proof before enlargement. I'll be giving a 30 minute talk and Raw Demo, then I'll be at a booth so people can ask me questions and buy my food! I'm SO excited!!!!! :dance:

[MysticTree]

love that picture Renee. One day if i ever get out your way i shall order some of your wonderful food :)

[ReneeH]

Thank you! I'll pass that on to my Sister who took the photo for me.

That would be SO great to have you in Texas!!!!! You'd be totally welcomed!!!!!!

Chomping on an Apple...

[RawMomma7]

Hey Everyone,

It's been a taxing few days. Missing y'all. Struggling with raw, Doing green smoothies for breakfast and lunch... dinner has been a struggle. What do y'all do when stress hits and the old self kicks in and just wants to eat for comfort?

[MysticTree]

You need to find a raw food that comforts you. It's different for everyone but if chocolate is your thing, you can get raw chocolate.

[ReneeH]

I totally agree with Mystic! For me, it's the Pizza from RFFE. When I make it, I don't feel deprived at all. Alissa suggests in LOLF that we should have LOTS of raw food choices in the frig to grab in a quickie. What do you have in your frig right now? Is it enough to sustain you? Do you PLAN what you're gonna eat for dinner? That makes a difference...especially if you're struggling. Revisiting my raw books helps me too.

[robh]

MysticTree, congrats on the weight loss. That's great.

RawMomma7, the evenings are the hardest. Sometimes, I have had my salad and I have had my fruit and I have had my nuts and my seeds and I'm looking for something more. I know I can eat as much food as a want so long as it's raw, but I want something different. For this, I keep on hand special, raw treats. Dates are my favorite treat. I also buy this raw cereal. I frequently have almond milk on hand. A little bowl of cereal or a handful of dates (or figs) usually puts that to rest. If you are looking for something warm (comforting) there are several raw soups out there. If you make them with hot water, they come out nice and warm. Be strong. Starting this is so hard. We are here for you.


This morning, I got that raw high again. I get so happy that I start to be silly. I'm working from home today. The wife was laughing at me (with me?). It's addicting. That feeling (and the happiness in general) is what keeps me coming back to raw.

Anyway, today is day 2 of my water fast (can't get more 100% raw than that - heh). Yesterday in the afternoon I felt what I have always called hunger. (Herbert Shelton claims that is not hunger. Hunger is felt in the throat and the mouth - not in the stomach.) Whatever it's called, it sucks. It makes you weak and want to break your fast. I made it through. By 2pm, it was gone. I am feeling it again this morning, but I haven't had much water yet.

I did drop 6 lbs over night. I love that effect! hah

I am really looking forward to some juice tomorrow morning.

Have a good day everyone.

[bonzer]

you're doing great robh! 6 lbs. overnite...wahooo! I can only do 1 day fasts....hypothyroidism...don't want to mess anymore w/ my hormonal changes than I have to. Grats to you for going 2 days already.

I am eating a cantelope....very ripe and delicious

[MysticTree]

Rob you are stellar! I was feeling raw silly yesterday and the day before :) Renee, you are stellar too :) I have never had raw pizza but you make me wanna try it :)Bonnie, how is your list of diminishing conditions doing? I think you were down to 19 before.Heck, we are all fab; group (((((hug))))) everyone :)

[MysticTree]

Rob . . . Have you seen this thread? Worth a try for dipping? http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/showthread.php?71237-You-have-got-to-try-this-chip-recipe!-Almost-like-real-potato-chips!&p=710532#post710532

[freespirit]

Hi all my amazing co-challengers! I'm actually doing a juice fast right now and am on day five! I feel amazing. I took a hiatus from 100 percent for awhile, and I forgot how great it feels- I'm on a permanent high!

My boyfriend has finally given in and is eating mostly raw with me! I'm blown away by this BC he has fought it for so long. It is making my life so much easier- and I'm happy to prepare raw foods for him, I don't like trying to fast with the smells of cooked food permeating through the house.

I love seeing all these motivated happy posts! Raw is so phenomenal- if only everyone could feel like this- the world would be a much happier place!

Lets rock this challenge!

[MysticTree]

isn't it lovely when you have a partner in this. My bf was raw for a while over the summer. It was great. Enjoy your juicing :)

[MysticTree]

got the go-ahead to plug in a dehydrator at work. Good news :) nice raw day. Bit expensive I suppose but kale chips so good and raw chocolate, ditto. Also got some barley miso. It's un-pasteurised and quite good. It's nit as good as the real thing though. Need to research cheesy kale recipes. Very excited :)

[PansyLo]

Hi folks. I kinda fell under the radar for a while and so did my diet BIG TIME.

This is the worst I've been eating in about 8 years. I keep talking to people about "that time i ate raw" and talking about how amazing it was but I keep letting my diet slip further.
I have been ill non stop for 3 months, I've been exhausted all the time, I've been sore and slow and just getting worse.

I've joined a gym but never go because I've always been so tired and ill! I've been falling behind with work because I'm always to exhausted and unmotivated.

So I'm changing my diet. I'm cutting out the horrible meat, dairy and refined foods and replacing them with juices, sprouts and raw superfoods.
It's not 100% but considering what I eat it's a huge step to getting back on track.

[MysticTree]

hello stranger. Wondered where you'd been. If you are on Facebook there is a page called raw Scotland that might help keep you on track. She's very superfood oriented and a few other things that don't match with rft but being local to you might be helpful :)

[ReneeH]

Nice to see you back PansyLo!!!! :hug

Mystic, I'm SO glad you got your dehydrator!!!!!!!!! :cheer: you've GOT to make the Pizza from RFFE!!!! It's to LIVE for!!!

I'm postponing my fast, so I've had Chia Pudding w/Bananas so far. I have a HUGE amount of Bananas, so I froze some and I'm gonna eat the rest. Lots of leftover fruits & veggies to chomp on!!! I'm pretty set for simple raw for the week.

[MysticTree]

I haven't got it yet but perhaps by the end of the week!

[freespirit]

So great to have a raw partner- my best friend is raw too- I'm a lucky girl!
Awesome dehydrator news! I love kale chips, I will go through four bunches of kale watching a movie!

[PansyLo]

hello stranger. Wondered where you'd been. If you are on Facebook there is a page called raw Scotland that might help keep you on track. She's very superfood oriented and a few other things that don't match with rft but being local to you might be helpful :)

I already follow the site but hadn't "liked" it on facebook yet, didn't realise there was a facebook page.

I love the site, it's funny and not all raw food crazy like some sites. It's realistic and encouraging. Scottish humour goes a lot further for me than airy fairy stuff or things that say "you MUST do THIS to be a good raw foodist, THIS is the only right way..." . It just feel a bit off I guess.
There's lots of good books and sites that aren't like that but something very Scottish is more relatable. :)

Added now! It'll be a good reminder to get rawfood updates all the time.

[MysticTree]

I already follow the site but hadn't "liked" it on facebook yet, didn't realise there was a facebook page.I love the site, it's funny and not all raw food crazy like some sites. It's realistic and encouraging. Scottish humour goes a lot further for me than airy fairy stuff or things that say "you MUST do THIS to be a good raw foodist, THIS is the only right way..." . It just feel a bit off I guess.There's lots of good books and sites that aren't like that but something very Scottish is more relatable. :)Added now! It'll be a good reminder to get rawfood updates all the time. and I hadn't realised there was a website.

[2 husky girl]

Robh: Awesome on the loss!
Mystictree: I'm looking forward to hearing all about your dehydrator creations! :)
freespirit: That's great you have a 'partner in crime' now!
PansyLo: Sounds like a great plan!
ReneeH: Hi! Looks like you had an awesome time at the show! :dance:

I had a great, all raw weekend! Sometimes it's hard to sleep with all this raw food flowing through my body. I made a few dishes, but I am most proud of making Alissa's papaya steak and whipped parsnips all by myslef! Here's a picture:

http://i1286.photobucket.com/albums/a618/2huskygirl/PapayaSteak.jpg

[robh]

Greetings everyone.

MysticTree, that's so cool that you're finally going to have a dehydrator. These are my fav kale chip (bbq): http://therawchef.com/therawchefblog/raw-food-recipes-spicy-bbq-kale-chips If you dislike spicy food, you can omit the chipotle peppers.


I had a good, 100% raw weekend.

Today, I woke up thinking I'll water fast again today and tomorrow. It's helping me to get rid of some stubborn pounds.

Good luck everyone! Stay strong!

[ReneeH]

2 Husky Girl!!!!!!!!! That looks FANTASTIC!!!!! Go girl!!!!! :cheer: I'm sure it was DELISH!!!

[RedCedar]

Hi all!

Finally done with the harvest and back home. I have some catching up of posts to do but just wanted to update y'all: stayed high raw (as was my goal) while I was away. As it turns out, several people at the farm were interested in raw foods and spoke to me individually of their interest. So instead of my fear of a public grilling (pun intended), we actually inspired several people to eat more healthfully. The world needs more camo-wearing raw foodists, in my opinion. :D

Looking forward to setting up my kitchen here again. Still looking for steady work and our own (warm) place.

Hope you're all well.

[MysticTree]

Welcome back redcedar. I'm glad it went so well. A lot of the time people don't treat you as a crank if you are quietly happy with the way you live and/or eat. I think some people like the drama they can get out of others by being raw. Mostly people are just curious; even when they come across as hostile.

[HappyMama]

Hello everyone, I just found this forum and am so happy! It's EXACTLY what I was looking for. Years ago I did a low carb forum and the support helped me lose a lot of weight... but nowadays, I am vegetarian and am not so much focused on weight loss as being healthy (although I do need to lose 25 pounds (again).
I did high raw for 6 months last winter and hit my goal weight, stayed there for a while. I lost it quickly. But in all honestly, I need to heal some emotional eating behaviors still. I find I can lose weight ok, but at some point, I seem to float back into old habits... and I gain back some. =( I feel awfully physically when I don't do at least 50% raw, so why do I do it?
I started rawing it up a few days ago and now am feeling more motivated again, but honestly, I had to kick myself in the butt to start again. I guess when you're eating cooked, you don't really feel like changing but I know what feels best and what I thrive on; what allows me to feel satisfied and doesn't make me crave more foods. I'm excited to begin sharing this journey with you all. Thank you for this thread and possibility!

[MysticTree]

Hello happymama. Welcome to rft. I know you will enjoy raw food :)

[MysticTree]

Greetings everyone.MysticTree, that's so cool that you're finally going to have a dehydrator. These are my fav kale chip (bbq): http://therawchef.com/therawchefblog/raw-food-recipes-spicy-bbq-kale-chips If you dislike spicy food, you can omit the chipotle peppers.I had a good, 100% raw weekend.Today, I woke up thinking I'll water fast again today and tomorrow. It's helping me to get rid of some stubborn pounds.Good luck everyone! Stay strong! I don't dislike spicy food but I tend to go milder rather than stinging-hot :) Thanks for the recipe.

[HappyMama]

I LOVE the raw photos you put up here... they look amazing. I never had luck making a GOOD raw pizza though. I'm going to have to try it again. =)
I had a headache yesterday afternoon. It was an all raw day. It funny because I can understand a fast headache, but a raw day headache seemed weird to me. I must really be detoxin'!

Had apple/pear/cinnamon and ginger raw applesauce for breakfast, yummy.

Thank you for the idea about having thing READY in the fridge. I only have veggies and nuts in the fridge, so nothing is really ready. And I tend to run out of ideas quick, so I need to have my raw books ready and some food prepared.

Have a wonderful day everyday! :heart

[PansyLo]

^ Sounds great! Welcome to the forum!! :dance:

I didn't have much of a start yesterday except that I had salad with everything I ate.

I'm a firm believer in not wasting food, it makes me annoyed and a bit disappointed to see any sort of food going to waste so I will still be finishing up a few un-raw foods over the next week or so.

Today I had a nice smoothy (simple banana, strawberry and blueberry) for breakfast and I'm going to have some herbal tea then salad for lunch! No idea about dinner, I'm so glad to have a half decent blender that I'll maybe pick something up from the shops for a raw dinner too.
My old blender belonged to my flatmate so when I moved I didn't have one, my brothers have given me theirs and it's a lot better than my old one!! It's a big heavy glass thing. I swear when I opened it though it smelt like something had died in there. Had to clean it thoroughly before use.

Anyway!! Here's to being back on the healthy track! :woot:

[MysticTree]

Health and safety course. Course ok but bus service dreadful. 45 mins wait for bus that should turn up every 20 :( I stuck to my water though however I am looking forward to bed.

[robh]

That sucks about the bus MysticTree. Also, congrats on staying on the water. Fasting makes my body feel great but it takes dedication and it's not comfortable. Good job. :)

I see we have a new person! Welcome! I hope you hang around. We see so many new faces come and go.

PansyLo, I am so glad to see you back. Good job on the blender score. Maybe you could give the un-raw food away?


I have been trying to fast, but I keep eating food in the evenings (100% raw food, but still).

More and more, I am noticing how positively my body responds to high-water foods. I have been juicing carrots, celery and tomatoes. After I drink it, my body just feels great. It's like a happiness that radiates from my insides. I have noticed the same after eating melons, oranges, grapes and fresh fruit juices like apple juice.

Yesterday, I fasted for most of the day and then had some veg juices. After that, I ended up eating a concoction of ground sesame seeds, almonds, raw coconut nectar, goji berries and almond butter. It tasted delicious, but as soon as it hit my stomach, it started to hurt. Maybe it was just too much after fasting.

I was messing around with cronometer. I think I can get nearly all of my nutrition in only 600 calories. It would mostly be water from juiced carrots, juiced celery and some blended items like bell peppers and spinach. I don't want to live this way, I'd just like to lose the last of my belly fat.

Anyway, that's enough rambling. Good luck folks.

[MysticTree]

Rob, you are doing great. Aleesha, amongst others, say no nuts after fasting. Sounds as though you know this from experience now. I got briefly hungry reading the raw food book that came with the dehydrator. It's mostly a bandwagon book that doesn't understand raw and uses ingredients that really get my back up. The comment that kelp noodles are completely unprocessed had me spluttering with despair at the wretched publication. The reliance on xylitol irritated me and the use of capers and other cooked condiments plus the insistence on peeling everything was just unnecessary. This was a book that should have been called the kinda raw recipe book. Don't get me wrong, I do use nutritional yeast and a little organic mustard sometimes but whilst I like balsamic vinegar, it's not raw so I don't use it. I got some good ideas but most recipes need tweaking which is silly for a book that calls itself raw. End rant :)

[PansyLo]

Rob, I think I'm similar with high water foods. I think it's because it has more of a detoxing effect to be getting so much fluid intake, it flushes things out your system? Maybe it's just a hydrated thing!

I can't really afford to give away food either. It'll just mean a more gradual transition while I work through it and fit in raw meals around it. I'm not going 100% raw I'm just making serious effort to clean up my diet and get more raw food into it. Then once I'm comfortable with that I'll maybe take it further.

Today was good!

Breakfast: Smoothy
Lunch: I kinda skipped as I wasn't al that peckish.
Dinner: Salad, lots of trimmings all raw except for a tiny side serving of left over cooked cabbage and onion.

I also went to the gym for an hour long class and the sauna/steam room etc for 45 minutes. I've only been drinking water but I've drank lots of it.

I'm going to be up late working on my portfolio but if I need a snack I'll just have some fruit. :)

Tomorrow will be hard as we've run out fo fresh food. Except lots of tomatoes. I'm thinking some sort of tomato soup? Not sure I have enough ingredients for it though and as I'm at college finding the time to make it will be hard. Lots of fruit? Maybe a nice healthy gluten free cereal with dried fruit and seeds.

[robh]

MysticTree, funny rant. Technically, I am only ever 99% raw because I eat olives that aren't raw and pasteurized nuts. I find those items don't cause me to "go backwards" so I give them a pass. Which dehydrator did you get? My Excalibur came with a dehydration guide. I honestly have not read it, but I'm curious if it's the same book (talks about raw and living foods... and then on the next page how to make salty, dried strips of animal flesh). Also, are you still water fasting?

PansyLo yeah, I don't what causes that feel-good feeling from high-water raw foods. I know that water alone does not cause it for me, though. A gradual transition to raw would certainly use up your non-raw food. The key is to ensure your stock of non-raw food only goes down. :) I so wish that I could eliminate all the bad stuff in my house. Sadly, my family eats cooked food so I am in doomed to stay raw fooder purgatory. Interesting side effect, though, my family is eating better. The really bad stuff like sugary, fatty, salty junk food is not in the house. This is probably because I play a very active role the shopping. :) Anyway best of luck with your transition. From the food you have posted, it sounds like you are on your way.


Yesterday, I drank water for most of the day. Then, I two small oranges. I felt pretty satisfied, but I kept thinking about having some juices when I got home. I was all keyed up on that 600-calories-a-day thing. I had huge, huge juice of 500ml of celery juice, 250ml of tomato juice, 250ml of carrot juice blended with 2 large red bell peppers. I should have blended the peppers more carefully because I have bits of skin in the juice (yuk). I drank the whole thing. It was too much really. A little later, despite my 600 calorie obsession, I had a salad with romaine, tomatoes, avocado and a dash of salt. Then I had a bunch of cashews before bed (so much for 600 calories - LOL).

I woke up this morning at my all time lowest weight since childhood. I am 4 lbs below my 3-month plateau so I'm jazzed about that. I just need to keep on trying to reduce my calories and, if I can't, stick to raw food (which hasn't been hard honestly).

Have a good one folks. You guys are doing awesome. Let's keep this rolling!

[PansyLo]

Today I've had:

Gluten free natural cereal (not 100% raw but is mostly nuts, dried fruit and seeds)
Avocado and orange salad with a very small side of (non raw) lentil soup.

I don't know what to have for dinner, there's not much fresh raw stuff around. There is some cooked vegan curry there. I think until I know if I get paid tomorrow I'm best not buying any fresh food today even though I'd like to :( There's still some fruit, I could just have a small bowl of curry then fruit/a smoothy after.

I would get some sprouts on the go but I'm in London next week (time to look up a raw restaurant as a treat!!) so they'll end up being ready as I'm leaving!

[MysticTree]

Hi Rob, technically I am only 99% ish raw too. I expect a lot of raw fooders are in the same boat - it's one of the reasons why I got so irked by that book. We have enough books extolling the virtues or taste sensation of cooked ingredients without raw books using them with impunity! I got a dehydrator guide much like yours by the sounds of it (I got a L'equip). With it and totally without realising it was part of the deal came this book. Soft cover, specifically about raw food. It was flawed for the reasons I have stated. Plus it really seemed to be looking at the whole thing from a weight loss perspective which I feel is counter productive in the main. I stopped fasting this morning. I expect they were remaindered books!

[MysticTree]

Pansylo, Inspiral is good I believe. They make the kale chips I have been buying. They do other stuff too! There is a raw food delivery company too but I can't remember the name. Speltrong used them when she stayed in London.

[RedCedar]

congrats rob on the weight loss! I just entered my new weight on fitday--i enjoy seeing the descending graph of my weight loss.

lots of stuff goin' on here, but trying to not get overwhelmed. Hoping to have an outing on my own today and get some me-time; that just wasn't possible on the farm. "me-time": on my own, looking at books, not buying any. Walking with ipod on.

some exciting news; looks like we'll be spending some of the hard-earned harvest money on a dehydrator, yay! Do you know how many years I've wanted one? Like, 10. Christ.
Anyone know a good site to buy from? I've always assumed I'd get an Excalibur, but if any of you use another (square type) dehydrator that you prefer, I'd love to hear any recommendations.

While on the farm I had thought I should make more use of my time here in the city (we'd like to live more rurally). One thought was to try and work for a chef/restaurant that caters to raw foodists. Now that I'm back here, I'm a bit intimidated at the thought.

[MysticTree]

Had a lovely conversation about healthy foods at lunchtime today. One of the guys had a fab looking tub of food and I asked him what he had got. I went over to look and he'd got an amazing looking, albeit non-vegan, homemade salad. Anyway it turned out he follows paleo. We chatted about loads of different things relating to our diets and I shared some kale chips with another bloke and he really liked them. One bloke was frowning and tutting about the avocado in the paleo salad and so that took us down another route of diet related discourse. By the end there were probably at least 6 people who learned stuff they didn't know and one of those will probably want to get kale chips. The anti-avocado bloke has a printout from his doc saying they are bad but maybe a seed is sown.

[RedCedar]

Right on Mystic.

[HappyMama]

Hi everyone!

Didn't get a chance to check in earlier today but you've been on my mind! I am down 2 pounds in 3 days of 100% raw... so that's wonderful... my tummy does not feel bloated anymore and my energy is WAY up! =)

What I find is that at the beginning, I need more "comfort" raw food (more nut based desserts etc) but once I get into it, my diet gets simpler and simpler because it does not feel like I am depriving myself... I get over the emotional eating and I just eat to fuel my body.

Red Cedar - I have an Excalibur WITH the timer. Some people regret not getting the timer which is not only what friends have said but also what I read online.... I LOVE mine... but I do have to say that when I use it A LOT, it tends to double my electric bill ( from $40 to $80). I was surprised but I tested to make sure it was really that and yep.. it was that! I still use it of course because then I make yummy stuff! LOL I will be making some kale chips tonight I think.. I just got my cashews. Hubby is also cravings some lemon tarte....

Have a great evening everyone!!!!

[Aleesha Sattva]

*covers eyes cause I'm fasting*

Hi All... just connecting in with this thread to say yes we are 100% raw everyday since we are fasting on raw LIVE juice! mmm mmm gooooooood.

*runs from the room giggling*

[Aleesha Sattva]

it tends to double my electric bill ( from $40 to $80). I was surprised but I tested to make sure it was really that and yep.. it was that! I still use it of course because then I make yummy stuff!

odd... a dehydrator (yes the excalibur) uses the same amount of electricity to run as a fridge. not sure how yours could be costing you so much.


How much does it cost to run the dehydrator?
Your actual cost will depend on your local utility company, and how much they charge per kW/hour. The dehydrators use 600, 440 and 220 watts for the 9,5, and 4 tray models. With our current utility prices here, the 9 tray works out to be about 4 cents and hour to operate.

taken from: http://www.discountjuicers.com/dehydratorcompare.html

So that means you'd have to be running your dehydrator for 41.66 days - 24 hours a day for it to cost $40.

[robh]

There is a power company in our area that charges considerably more for electricity. Maybe that's the difference; you cannot go on dollars alone.

PansyLo, what about taking your sprouts with you? Grown them in a container with a lid and bring it with you.

MysticTree, that's awesome that you got a chance to share about raw food. The paleo diet, I think, is raw but with raw animal products too?

RedCedar, congrats the dehydrator purchase. I have the 9-tray with the timer (love it). The 5-tray with the timer would have been an equally good choice. I bought mine directly from Excalibur. There aren't any "deals" that I could find. If you buy it from them, don't dismay when they neglect to send you a tracking number; they are an old company. Also, best of luck getting some me-time (I know having little ones makes that near impossible).

HappyMama, congrats on the rapid weight loss! also, if that lemon tarte is raw, can you point me to the recipe or the book it came out of?


I did really good yesterday.

Around lunch time, I had a juice consisting of 2 red bell peppers (they juice nicely, it turns out), 6 carrots, 3 celery stalks and 1 tomato (~200 calories). After that, I ended up with 2 oranges and a banana (~300 calories). For dinner, I had the same juice as before. Then I had a single date and single pecan before bed (~50 calories).

Total, I had about 750 - 800 calories. Again, I don't intend to live this way, I just want to get down past this stupid weight loss plateau.

It's working. I dropped another pound this morning. I'm now at plateau -5. I weight 240lbs now, BUT my weight is totally unfair. :( Check this out this men's shirt size guide:



Height Men's Shirt Size
5' 2 " and under SMALL 120 LBS. or Less
5' 3" to 5' 6" MEDIUM 160 LBS. or Less
5' 7" to 5' 11" LARGE 190 LBS. or Less
6' 0" to 6' 2" X LARGE 230 LBS. or Less
6' 2" to 6' 4" XX LARGE 240 LBS. or Less

I am 5'11'' and I now wear a LARGE shirt. Why, then, do I not weigh 190lbs?

Anyway, in addition to my weight loss, now that I have cleaned up my diet and I'm eating "100% raw," I'm getting those raw benefits back. Everything is peaceful. It's like a raw serenity. That and I feel like I'm taking happy pills. My body really enjoys raw food and these emotional benefits are worth all the effort and hard work.

Have a good one, folks.

[MysticTree]

double posted

[MysticTree]

Rob, You are doing fine. The chart is not for you. You are unique and no chart can define you. Ignore the chart and carry on with your plan.

One of the reasons could be that you are healthier than the average 190lb shirt wearer. Maybe you have higher bone density and more muscle :)

[2 husky girl]

Congrats everyone on the weight loss!
Speaking of dehydrators, I pulled Alissa's grawnola (RFFE) from mine this morning and it's so delicious warm! I made it two ways, traditional and in a cookie form. Here are some pictures:
http://i1286.photobucket.com/albums/a618/2huskygirl/GranolaonTray3.jpg
http://i1286.photobucket.com/albums/a618/2huskygirl/GranolaCookies.jpg

[ReneeH]

:Taking a quick peek....)

Yummm! looks good!!! Did you process the Dates, Salt, Vanilla, and Agave this time? It was on the Detox Box this week. Next time try adding some Goji Berries!

:slipping out and back to the fasting room:

[Aleesha Sattva]

There is a power company in our area that charges considerably more for electricity. Maybe that's the difference; you cannot go on dollars alone.

If that's the case then their home must not use any other electricity at all except their fridge. Nothing. Not a light. Not a tv, food processor, blender... nothing. To double the usage because of a dehydrator isn't possible. It just isn't.

[robh]

Good point. Double sounds a bit high. I thought it was $40 more. Even still the price of the additional electricity is far lower than dr bills :)

[2 husky girl]

:
Yummm! looks good!!! Did you process the Dates, Salt, Vanilla, and Agave this time? It was on the Detox Box this week. Next time try adding some Goji Berries!

:
YES! And I massaged them a lot longer too. It came out great! :D

[Aleesha Sattva]

Good point. Double sounds a bit high. I thought it was $40 more. Even still the price of the additional electricity is far lower than dr bills :)

I agree. I'd happily pay whatever I needed to to have my health. Hence why I'm raw... fast... etc. :)

[PansyLo]

I agree, which is why I still try and do as much as I can on a very low budget with very limited time.

Eating raw in London next week will be very challenging. I'm going to be down for the National Demonstration but I think I'll stay longer ^_^ I am going to treat myself to going to a raw restaurant one afternoon/evening. It's tricky finding them, the main one I could find is described as 50% raw :( but I assume that means there will still be lots of 100% raw dishes on the menu! Very excited about that as I've never tried raw food cooked by someone else.

I think eating raw is more important than ever. For political reasons, for health reasons, to have the energy to cope with my current work load, having the mental clarity to learn and absorb as much information as I can.

I'm doing much much better health wise so I think this time round I wont be up and down with my resolve to eat raw. :)

I haven't eaten much today, just had tea, water and a few tomatoes. The tomatoes are the only raw food in the house. I accidentally ate a bit of garlic bread completely forgetting I was changing my diet!!!! It was only after that I realised and thought "What am I doing?!" Oh dear haha!

I know it's not good but I'm really reluctant to eat anything that's not raw even though there's nothing in the house. I'm going to go for a midnight grocery shop I think so I don't have to spend another day not wanting to eat anything.

I'm buying a manual juicer as we speak to go on a very nutritious planned juice fast! That way I can detox nicely, get all the nutrients I need and have a nice start back into raw food. :woot:

[RedCedar]

I'm glad you guys addressed the dehydrator costing so much in electric. that about stopped me in my tracks! We're still planning on purchasing one.

Rob, you mentioned you have a 9 tray. Do you think a 5 tray would be big enough to make plenty of dried food to feed a family of three? "Plenty" meaning, leftovers.

Today was weird. Getting back into the swing of being in the city. Sunny for once, so I took the wee one for a bus ride and we window shopped. no "me-time", but was nice.

Had a big bowl of my version of "cereal": one banana and one apple chopped. sunflower seeds, hazelnuts with pumpkin spice in almond milk with some coconut flakes and a little honey. Not felt like eating much the rest of the afternoon, but got my hunger on now finally. Will have a big salad for dinner.

[PansyLo]

I'm unwell. I doubt it's detox yet.

I had a very small bowl of mostly raw and completely gluten free cereal when I got up, seem to have developed a UTI but now I'm feeling sick and I'm feverish too which I doubt is related.

If I'm to it I'll do a wee raw food shop in a few hours, if not it'll probably just be herbal tea and water anyway.

[RedCedar]

Feel better soon. x

[PansyLo]

^ Thank you. :)

Felt a wee bit better in the evening. Went to the health suit at the gym for a sauna/steam room. That's supposed to boost your immune system. After I felt really sick but it wore off and I had a juice (fresh squeezed orange blended with strawberries and cranberries) and a big salad. :)

I've heard there's a bug around that the ladies at my work said was just like morning sickness and pregnancy symtoms so much so that they would have assumed that's what it was if they didn't know better. Hmm maybe that's what I've got. As long as it's not actual morning sickness!! :bolt

[robh]

Sorry for the delay getting back folks. The weekends are always hit and miss on the computer for me.


RedCedar, for a family of 3, I'd do the 9 tray. It's best money I've ever spent. Also, remember if you turn your stove off, you'll be saving on energy bills as well.

2 husky girl, you are doing awesome. You are putting a lot of work into this. It's inspirational.

PansyLo, good luck at the raw restraunt.

MysticTree, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!!!!! do you remember pasting that Jicama chip recipe a few pages back? I made it two days ago. OMG it is awesome! It's easily in the top 5 best raw receipes that I've tried! It sucks you can't get Jicama, but I think sweet potatoes would work. Also, you need a mandoline. When you slice it, it need to look like rice papper or filo dough that you can see through. I think I'm slicing them at 1/32 of an inch (my mandoline's numbers are all rubbed off). They crips up in the dehydrator. They look, taste and feed just like a ptoato chip!


Raw "Potato" Chips
1 medium Jicama
2 TBS of Nutritional Yeast
2 TBS of olive Oil
2 TBS Apple Cider Vinegar
2 TBS purified water
1/2 TPS Himalayan Pink Salt
1/2 TPS Lemon Pepper
1/4 TSP Garlic Powder

Slice the jicama into impossibly thin see-through slices with a mandoline. Toss remaining ingredients in a bowl and stir it together. Take each thin jicama slice and dredge it through the mixture. Shake the excess off and place directly onto your mesh dehydrator trays. Dehydrate @ 105 overnight.


This morning, I tricked the kids into eating sprouted buckwheat pancakes. I googled a pandcake receipe and substituted the flour and the water for sprouted buckwheat that I've been sprouting the past couple of days. I put raw coconut nectar on them instead of syrup(sp?) and used coconut oil instead of butter. They gobbled them down and even said they were delicous. They were cooked, but healthier than the alternative.

For 100% raw, I have been doing great. I did have a small nibble of the pancakes (shocking similar to the real deal). Yesterday, I had lot of water and then munched on dates and pecans and then some nuts. We were out christmas shopping and dummy didn't bring food. Dates, pecans and nuts aren't bad but I really wanted to do juice. when I got home, I had that juice though, tomato, orange bell pepper, carrots and celery. I munched on grapes after that and then some dried figd. For dinner I had another juice (celery, red bell pepper, carrots and apples - delicious). After dinner, I still had the munchies. I ended up eating some olives more dates and cachews. Also for dessert I made banana ice cream in the food processor.

As far as low-calorie raw vegan, as you can see, I did do so good. The salt, I think, has caused me to put 3 of those 5 pounds back on. Yesterday, I had an "everything in site that's raw" day. Today, I really should do a water fast, but that's not going to happen.

I am attending a raw fooder, thanksgiving gathering tonight. Mu family and the families of 3 other raw fooders in the area are getting together. I won't be water fasting today. I plan on bringing sliced veggies, gaucomole, ranch dip and the stuff to make raw V8.

Have a good one folks.

[robh]

I posted a huge message and got some weird message about a moderator seeing it first - odd.

edit: but this one goes through fine

[MysticTree]

send Aleesha a message about it. It's in a mod queue somewhere :)

[triciaRAW]

starting late in Nov. but early for DEC. My grad school lifestyle is begging for me to get back to 100% RAW. So here I am, 30 day challenge. I love this thread. Thanks guys for having it. Yeah!

Breakfast/ Lunch: So far huge salad, tomatoes, chard, arugula, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, carrots, apple, raw ginger dressing. lots of water and cran water

[triciaRAW]

Going well. Lunch was great. just trying to eat enough!

Pumpkin seeds and pistachios.

Celery, apple, pear, carrots. dried figs.

I have a challenge tonight (on my first night back at 100% RAW) at a dinner party. The social aspect is always the toughest for me. But I know how proud I'll be when I do it.

I'll eat a big salad before I go and drink a bunch of water. So when I show up, I won't be hungry and give in. I'll fill my plate with salad and give my self a big high five!

[triciaRAW]

Morning is going well.

BIG salad. Orange, banana, Pear, Red Pepper, Carrots. Sunflower seeds and Hemp seeds.

Gonna make carrot, pecan, and raisins squares with some pumpkin spice later. super yumm.

Already feeling my energy and spirit returning even after one day of being 100 raw. so great!

[Aleesha Sattva]

send Aleesha a message about it. It's in a mod queue somewhere :)

I'll go search for it. Thanks.

and it's posted.

[MysticTree]

glad you liked the recipe Rob. Monday fasting again for me. See you all later :)

[robh]

triciaRAW, welcome!

Aleesha, thanks for the help. I must have triggered some filter.

MysticTree, I am also going to water fast today.


I've been doing really well on 100% raw. My mom, who has been doing a mostly raw diet, is going to join us for thanksgiving. We will both be 100% raw while everyone else pigs out. It will be nice to have someone else in the house doing it with me.

Like I said before, it's gonna be a water fast today for me. Actually, I guess that's wrong. I'm going to drink only water until around 5pm when I get home from work. Then, I plan to have a juice of red bell peppers, carrots, tomato and celery. Then I'll have the same juice again before bed. I'm hoping this will keep me from snacking all night. Evenings are the worst.

Have a rawsome day everyone!

[MysticTree]

Just feeling so BLAH! today. Want to curl up in bed with a hot water bottle and sleeeeeeep.

Water fasting is going ok. Hoped to go for a walk at lunchtime but raining like billy-o :(

[triciaRAW]

Robh - THANKS for the welcome!

I was tired and stressed and wanting to do do some emotional SAD eating last night. The first couple days are the hardest for me. But I was strong!

I made an avocado salad and then a banana Raw Almond Butter Shake.

Avocados, tomatoes, garlic, onion, cilantro, lime juice, hemp seeds.

Banana, Almond Butter RAW, raw almond milk, figs.

This high cal Delish RAW meal definitely curbed my desires to cheat and binge on SAD food. And I woke up this morning happy and fresh and BEFORE my alarm went off. If I had eaten pizza or a big sandwich I would've woken up with a headache, grogginess, and an overall bad mood.

I love when I'm reminded how much I love doing this!

[robh]

triciaRAW, good job sticking to it! when those cravings and the temptations go away, this becomes so much easier.

MysticTree, I hope you feel less blah soon. It kind sounds like your body wants some rest (brought on for the water fast?)


Today is a typical Monday for me. I honestly don't want to work. Here I am, therefore, killing time. :)

I found a raw chilli recipe on one of the other threads. It sounds really good and I have most of the stuff. I told myself, however, that I was going to do water and juice today. Maybe I'll do the chilli tomorrow.

I dehydrated some sprouted buckwheat over the weekend. Last night, I put some in a bowl with walnuts, almond milk I made and coconut nectar. It was good. (And more affordable than the super cereal I was buying)

Those Jicama potato chips are so good. My wife came home with four Jicama yesterday. I guess I'll be making some of those us. Everyone in the house gobbles them up. They are so good that they seem bad. lol

Anyway, stay strong friends and have a good day.

[MysticTree]

I am so glad you like those jicama chips. I wish I could try them but may find turnip will work. Taking the D to work tomorrow. I have everything bar kale which one of my colleagues is supposed to be bringing.

[robh]

Yeah a turnip should work nicely. The real key is the slicing device. The slices need to be so thin that they tear in your hand if you are not careful.

Which kale chip recipe are you trying first?

[MysticTree]

Cheesy ones to start with. They are my fav. Saw some good looking mushroom patties I would like to try too.

[Aleesha Sattva]

i have never been successful making a flavoured kale chip.

is there one you love more than others? i'd love a ranch flavoured one if possible...

[PansyLo]

I had big laps in healthy food over the weekend. I suspected I would as my boyfriend was round which often equals epic fattening junk food time.

My highlight of today was a smoothy: cranberries, blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, banana crushed ice, pure maple syrup and macadamia nuts. DELICIOUS!!! It's like a berry ice cream milkshake. I added the nuts on impulse but I'm so glad I did as it's deliciously creamy.

The new blender I got from my brothers is fantastic next to the old cheapy plastic thing I had. I'm looking forward to making sauce, soups, pate and other great things in it.

I have ordered a manual juicer which means I'll be able to get so much more out of my juices. Also f I don't want to eat my sprouts (I often don't to be honest, I'm better with micro greens) I can juice them and either mix with something or knock a wee glass back like medicine!

[triciaRAW]

morning: bananas and pistachios

Lunch: red cabbage, raisins, grapes, orange juice, chia seeds

Dinner: chard, spinach, celery, carrots, grapes

keepin it going!

[robh]

Aleesha, after I found these bbq kale chips, the search was over: http://therawchef.com/therawchefblog/raw-food-recipes-spicy-bbq-kale-chips the bbq sauce is killer too.

MysticTree, The cheesy ones are cashews a splash of lemon juice and sea salt? The other alternative involves nutritional yeast (I like it, personally). Let us know how they come out. I am addicted the to bbq ones but a change up is always nice.

PansyLo, your smoothie sounds fantastic. Also, best of luck overcoming the negative influences on your health. I know from personal experience that having others around you that do not share the same dietary goals makes healthy living hard. My wife is actually coming around. She now snacks on nuts and dates as opposed to the "epic junk food". You aren't married and you do not have kids. Rather than having to "work on someone" for years, you have the opportunity to go find someone who already feels the way you do about health. Also, healthy people are good looking so it would probably be win win for you. Anyway, remember that you have choices. :)

triciaRAW, you are rockin'. good job. I too like to eat pistachios. Do you find that they, for some reason, seem to curb the appetite?


If you all have not noticed, I am buzzing this morning. Yesterday, I really felt the water fast was taking me in a positive direction so I skipped the juices at night and went all day on just water. My body responds so positively to the fast. It's the same positive response I get from raw food, but it's so much more intense. It's weird. It's like my mind is on fire. I can't stop thinking. It's like an ADHA kid on crack up there. Also, for some reason, I get insane amounts of work accomplished. I am always really productive in the mornings, but when I'm fasting that productive streak keeps going all day. My work involves critical thinking and problem solving. When I am fasting, those skills are sharper and more focused. I think this is why ancient thinkers like Plato and Socrates recommended fasting to increase mental effectiveness. That's not why I am doing it, but it's a nice side effect.

Anyway, my goal is to continue the water fast for the rest of the day. My personal record is 60 hours of drinking just water. My mom is coming to share a raw thanksgiving with me. She'll be here tomorrow night. That will break my fast for sure, but I may end up breaking it sooner. I'll try to get through today and see what tomorrow holds.

Oh, and a quick note on my weight. When I went back to 100% raw, I bounced right back up to my plateau (245lbs). Yesterday, when I woke up, I was 244, I think. This morning, I'm down to 241. If I can ride this out until tomorrow morning, I hope to see 239. That would be a new record low weight for me.

Keep up the great work everyone. We are doing great!

[MysticTree]

I love the vibe coming through in your post Rob. Keep on keeping on ;)

[robh]

Thanks for the inspiration Georgina. I'm suffering a bit of temptation right now, but I think I can power through it. Are you still fasting?

[MysticTree]

I'm sure you can get through. I stopped fasting this morning. I had the most fabulous salad for lunch. Best salad for ages but really not any different than often before. No idea why it tasted so much better.

[robh]

That's interesting. Maybe your tastes are changing? I've noticed that I can taste the sweetness in pecans and walnuts. I would have never called them sweet before. You posted your salad on one of the other threads ("what do you eat for lunch and dinner" maybe). I should make one like yours and see what it's like. I don't think you left any details on the dressing, though.

I broke my fast late last night. They weren't the best foods to break my fast with (raw cookies that I was making at the wife's request, olives, dates and pecans). I didn't eat much because this was just before I was going to bed. I fasted all yesterday and the day before.

I was 238lbs on the scale this morning. This is my lowest weight yet. I have never been in the 230's either. In the two days that I water fasted, I dropped 6 lbs. I think most of that was water weight from salt. I know that's it's probably going to come back. My body really wants to be at 245, but if I keep at it every week and stick to 100% raw the rest of the week, maybe I can drop that 245 slowly. We shall see where my weight goes this week before the fast starts again.

Anyway, I have some veggies that need to be juiced (celery, carrots, tomatoes). When I'm hungry, I'll probably have one of those. The high water content really makes my insides sing. I really enjoy the juices. I should, also, have a salad. I don't think I've have vitamin K (romaine lettuce) for a while. I should also consume some ground sesame seeds (for the minerals). My new fav ground sesame concoction is ground sesame seeds (3 TBS), goji berries (1 TBS), almonds (2 TBS) and a bit of raw coconut nectar (1 TBS). You can see from the quantities that it's not a lot of food, but it's very filling and very delicious. It's also packed with calcium, iron, zinc, vitamin E and vitamin A.

I dislike eating all day and I know from fasting that that my body can go with food with no problem. I think I will skip breakfast and lunch and just drink water until dinner. I'll have my juice and later my salad and finally my sesame seeds. Also I will surely snack on dates and pecans in there too.

Anyway, sorry for the rambling. I hope all the folks that haven't posted are doing well. Keep up the good work everyone. Your bodies will thank you. :)

[MysticTree]

I think it was just a yesterday thing. Salad is much the same as before even though the dressing is the same.

Well done on the weight loss. Can you not go to bed earlier to avoid late night snacking? What I do is instigate fasting from 6pm to 7am every day. I just don't eat after 6pm. Simple!

[triciaRAW]

Salads with carrots and celery and pumpkin seeds

Raw Pistachios! yes Robh they totally give me my sweet and savory fix. I love em!

Banana and olives (are the olives that I get in the olive bar at whole foods RAW???? anyone?) I needed extra cals and fats.

Fruit shake, strawberries, blueberries, hemp seeds, chia seeds, banana, coconut to top and raw agave drizzle. yum!

live RAW curry crackers that my local health food store sells. They are soooooo good. And I save them for when I need a fix. Oh yeah!

FEELING better. Had some detox feelings like nose drip and headache yesterday. probably also coffee withdrawl :) But I got through it and feel great today and I already feel less bloated all over.

[triciaRAW]

OH! AND i hit the gym for my cross training and weight lifting session. I was like shaking with energy once I got going. It was amazing. I felt focused and great. I wish my gym was open later but alas they were closing early for Thanksgiving.

My starting Weight was a stubborn 164. I'll weigh myself tomorrow morning and see what a few days of Raw has done.

[MysticTree]

Well done Triciaraw. You sound raw-enthused. The olives won't be raw. Some don't worry about this and others just get raw ones usually online. Good news is that they taste better :)

[robh]

triciaraw, you're doing so well. It sounds like raw is kicking in. Stay strong through this holiday (it's a tough one).

MysticTree, I'll give the mini fast in the evenings a try.


Today is thanksgiving and it's going to be tough for me. My mom is here, though, and she's doing raw too. That helps.

Have a good one folks!

[ReneeH]

Rob, if you're awake right now, you should try making Alissa's Nosted Turkey from LOLF!!!! If I celebrated this holiday (I don't), I wouldn't struggle through it!!!! There are SO many recipes you could make right now that would be ready in time for dinner tonight. You just have to make stuff! She has a FANTASTIC dressing recipe made with carrots (not sure which book, but it's in one if them), and there are threads on RFT about uncooking for the holidays. Don't feel left out sitting there with a Celery and Carrot Sticks or a Salad when you don't have to!!!!! You and Mom should make some stuff!!!!

Too bad you couldn't have ordered my Detox Box....

[ReneeH]

Holiday stuffing page 388 RFFE!!! It's terrific!!!

[ReneeH]

ROB & MYSTIC: how are you guys!!!! I've missed you!!!!

I've been on sort of an emotional rollercoster this week and since breaking my fast. I feel good today though...but my ankle still hurts. I just made a new Pizza crust from Judita Wignal that uses sprouted Kamut and flax seeds. I can't wait to try it, cuz y'all know how I loves me some Pizza!!!

Hope everyone's keepin' it RAW today!!! :dance:

[MysticTree]

Hello Renee, let us know how the pizza turns out. I have a busy weekend ahead. First time we've been invite to bf's son's for Sunday dinner. I shall be taking my own!

[triciaRAW]

Feeling good!

This morning.

Shake: Chard, plant protein Raw powder, frozen blueberries and strawberries, pom seeds, orange, chia seeds, and coconut to top it. Soooo Good.

Feeling good. my skin is looking even and my blue eyes look brighter.
It's so weird when that happens. You catch your eyes in the mirror and you're like "do my eyes look brighter?", "yes they do!" "raw is great!"

I feel like I've been needing the calories ie avocados, seeds, oils, and nuts and such this week. I'm feeling like I don't need them as much now which is nice. So this week I'll try to up the greens and see how I do in week 2 with curbing the fats a bit.

Whenever I go 100 Raw is interesting what place my brain is at. Sometimes its hard. (Usually when I'm doing it solely to lose weight, which I know is wrong) This time I really feel great about it and don't feel the social pressure and it just feels right and natural. I'm doing it as a detox for my asthma, skin and stress management. I want to feel more motivated and energetic since I'm pulling 13 hour days sometimes at work/school. I know if I lose any weight that will be a bonus and due to my running and exercise work that I put in. I find myself only seeing live foods as my only food option. The state of mind is a really neat thing. And I do always seem to lose and get down to my healthy weight when it's not the priority. But I know it's hard lose when stressed so I'm not making it the first thing. i just want to feel lighter and happier! And I do.

[2 husky girl]

Looks like everyone is feeling good and keeping up the good work!!! I had such a fun weekend with family and even introduced them to three raw items! My sister and I made the date nut torte two different ways and then almond butter. They were a success!!! :D

[MysticTree]

Off my water fast this morning.

Made raw oat flour ready for my mushroom burgers I'm making tomorrow. Making kale chips later today for me and my two office mates.
Feeling much better today and very happy with raw. Weight loss has slowed but with all the rain, it's been hard to get out and take any exercise. It seems to be 30 minutes chopping wood on a Sunday is the most I get at the moment.

[robh]

Wow, what a busy weekend. My Mom and brother came up from North Carolina and my wife's family from Texas and Minnesota also joined us. We had a great time.

Sorry that I forgot to post everyone. It was all a blur. :)

Renee, thanks for all the support and kind words. I found a raw "meat"loaf recipe that I topped with the raw bbq sauce from the kale chip recipe that I use. I also made up zucchini noodles and topped that with my pizza sauce. I also made up a salad. I made the RTF raw ranch dressing. For dessert, I had some macaroons I made up that I had covered in raw chocolate. I had some extra raw chocolate left over and just pored into into a puddle over craisins and pecans - it made and awesome raw fudge. My mom and I ate very well. We didn't have to sit around eating veggies while everyone else pigged out. I am going to check out that Turkey recipe in LOLF. Maybe that'll be my thanksgiving meal next year.

triciaRAW, you are doing awesome. Also, you are not the only one to mention brighter eyes. I do not experience it, but others do. Raw food is like magic. Also good luck with your stressful situation. It took me a while to figure this out, but when I consistently eat chia seeds (chia pudding usually), my stress levels go way down. I read someplace that it lowers your blood pressure a little. I think that may be the cause. Anyway, I thought I'd share.

MysticTree, I have some portable and oats can you point me to your burger recipe? I'll be water fasting today. My weekend was extended to include Monday.


Okay, thanksgiving weekend, I made it through 100% raw! My mom was also 100% raw Thursday, Friday and Saturday morning before she left. She has been doing only two meals raw prior to this. She said her joint pains were going away.

I have a friend who is epileptic. It's so bad that he frequently has to miss months of work on short term disability. The state won't let him drive until he has been seizure free for 6 months. The doctors have been trying (and failing) to get it under control. He, his wife and kids are living with us until they can get back on their feet financially. We are all really good friend and get along really well. Anyway, I have been slowly trying to introduce the idea that changing his diet could do what the doctors cannot. It has taken me several months, but, he has finally decided to give it a go. He was 100% raw yesterday. Today is his second day. I am really curious how this turns out. With detox and all that other stuff, I am afraid he will give up on it. Also, he's on so many meds that I am curious if his body can improve with all that junk running around in his system. It'll probably fail, but I have my fingers crossed. I'd like to see his situation improve.

Anyway, I wanted to introduce him to some tasty dishes. I came up with this Wild Rice Mushroom soup that's just awesome.

Raw Wild Rice Mushroom Soup

* cashews (soaked a day if you want it really smooth and creamy)
* 100% wild rice (not the blend of rices)
* portobella mushrooms
* raw "soy" sauce like Bragg's liquid aminos, namu shoy, tamari, etc
* apple cider vinegar
* garlic powder
* salt
* pepper

* Sprout some northern wild rice for a day or two until it's tender (mine never grows)

* Blend up 2 cups of soaked cashews in 1 cup of water until smooth (this is more than you'll need, but it's hard to blend a smaller batch)

* Chop portobello mushrooms into small squares.

* In a bowl add a few tablespoons of the cashew cream (it's very thick), a table spoon of ACV, a tablespoon of "soy" sauce, a dash of garlic powder, a pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper.

* stir it together and enjoy

As I said before, I'm water fasting today. Have a good one folks.

[robh]

I got the moderator message again. Is that triggered by a set of words? The first time, I thought it was cooked food talk that triggered it.

[MysticTree]

I got the moderator message again. Is that triggered by a set of words? The first time, I thought it was cooked food talk that triggered it. I think there are a set of trigger words or phrases and possibly links don't help. Message Aleesha :)

[ReneeH]

Yea, I saw your post in the Moderated section. Aleesha will see it when she wakes up. She's still in dreamland dancing with Mr. Sandman!!! :dance:

[MysticTree]

Yea, I saw your post in the Moderated section. Aleesha will see it when she wakes up. She's still in dreamland dancing with Mr. Sandman!!! :dance:
Lucky-Leesh :cheer:

[KareBare13]

Hello there! Have not been on here since my last raw journey. My body has definitely needed the raw back in my life! I am on day 3 ,which means Christmas will be my 30 day anniversary!

I am not having as much trouble this time as I did last time. I think it is because I know what it is like to feel at your best and then completely helpless when not at your best.

So day 3 has not been as tough with the detox as day 2. I had to work a 12 hour day yesterday and it made it much harder to get through the achey feelings and loss of concentration. I am just so excited to get past it!

Thanks for all your inspiration in previous posts!

[MysticTree]

oh Rob, I am glad Aleesha freed up that post. It's a corker :) I'll FB you the mushroom burger recipe cos I don't think we are supposed to post things here really ... I have never quite got the hang of the rules on that here.

[robh]

MysticTree, now that I think about it, I think I used a the T-word (large bird can't fly).

KareBare13, it sound like you're doing great. Keep it up. :) Welcome to the forum, also.


Yesterday, I was supposed to be fasting, but I ate around dinner time.

I had the wild rice mushroom soup that I posted, but I added kelp noodles, diced tomatoes and a little fresh rosemary.

I also tried to make avocado ice cream. I probably should have looked up a recipe instead of trying to "wing it". The end result was so rich that I couldn't eat it.

Let's see what else did I eat. I made this mixture of dried figs and almonds all processed together. I have that in the freezer formed into a log. I had a slice of that. I also snacked on walnuts.

I also had a salad - duh. It was romaine, orange bell pepper, grape tomatoes, rawfoodtalk ranch dressing and about 2 table spoons of this raw spicy coleslaw (called raw slaw) that I found in my grocery store. The spicy slaw and the ranch were nummy together.

I remember after the salad and the wild rice pasta feeling full. I kept eating, however, it was that feeling like I just couldn't find what I was looking for to eat. In the end I had a bowl of pecans and dates.

I think that's it. I have to remember to post my food because that was my big question when I joined the forum: what do I eat? I try to remember that others may have the same question.

Have a good day folks.

[ReneeH]

I'm gonna fast for a while, so I'll be over in that section. I want December to be nut free for me, so I'm planning to jump start that with a fast...definitely for a few days until December starts. Possibly beyond that if it goes well.

I'm expecting some serious cravings for them, so I'm preparing mentally for that. Once I break my fast I will focus on recipes with fruits & veggies only, but I will add some seeds...just no nuts.

So, after my fast ill see you guys over in the December thread!!!!!

:hug

[MysticTree]

9255

Sorry pic is so small. It will click to a bit bigger but my mobile takes small pix and if I go for a close up then it goes blurry so this is taken from a distance then cropped!

[MysticTree]

9256

1/2 cup n. yeast
1 cup soaked cashews
rounded tsp smoked paprika
juice of about one large lemon
sea salt, a generous pinch of
about a quarter cup of dry pumpkin seeds
some water

smoosh it all together and coat two large bunches of kale with the mixture. Dry for as long as it takes :)

They taste like ch1ck3n flavour :)

[MysticTree]

all the best with your fast and December Renee.

[MysticTree]

Stopping when you are full is tricky often times. We have years of programming that tells us to stop eating when our plate is empty. The other problem that compounds the first problem is the use of huge plates and then piling them up. Smaller plates help and always putting food on the plate so that food is not more than a few ingredients high and so that you can still see the plate in places. Second helpings are always possible if you really are hungry when the plate is empty.

[MysticTree]

forgot to take my mushroom burgers to work today. They really are good though a little tweaking of the recipe wouldn't go amiss. I may try to sub the walnuts for sunflower seeds at least in part. The herbs need to be slightly different. Using parsley, thyme and maybe a lemon flavoured herb whilst ditching the strong herbs such as rosemary and sage would make sense. I will also use a greater amount of mushroom in the mix and soften it a bit in the d by itself before assembling the burgers. I used raw oatmeal which I ground myself. I am pleased with that aspect/taste/texture. The large pinch smoked paprika really gave a depth and meatyness which is good unless you don't want meaty! The kale chips were still being talked about today by my colleagues :) If I don't make large batches of those again I may get fired ;) Good raw day today. Ate mush burgers for evening meal and still have one to take to work for lunch. Happy days :)

[RedCedar]

Well, I ended up finding a fantastic deal on a L'Equip dehydrator on craigslist last week. It needs a good cleaning to get rid of a funky smell though. Been battling a head cold the last three days, so that's a fun job on the backburner (heh...maybe that's the cold talking, but that strikes me as funny...yea probably the cold).

Hey there Mystic, ever thought of making a raw version of mince meat pies? I've googled up some recipes but wonder if you've actually given it a shot before? I'd like to make some for my Scouse-spouse this christmas.

[MysticTree]

No I hadn't. I only got my d the other day. A l'equip too and i'm very pleased with it so far. Lemon juice is good for funky smells. I wrote a critique of the mushroom burger but the post has been sucked into a moderation queue - because I mentioned certain qualities of mushrooms and paprika.

[MysticTree]

Where is everyone? Just cos this thread will be out of date tomorrow doesn't mean we shouldn't post in here today :)

Juicy melon for breakfast. Lots of fruit in the fruit bowl at work today and I'll have the last mushroom burger with corn and avo-smoosh à
la Renee :) for lunch.

i've set some portabellos marinating and all is well with the world :)

[MysticTree]

9258

Having very large and happy lunch :)

[ReneeH]

Where is everyone? Just cos this thread will be out of date tomorrow doesn't mean we shouldn't post in here today :)

Yea, MA'AM!!!!! :D



I'll have the last mushroom burger with corn and avo-smoosh à
la Renee :) for lunch.

LOVE IT!!!! :throwhearts:

I broke my fast this morning cuz I got a wonderful bounty from my Rawfully Organic co-op!!!! An all organic FRUIT share!!!!! Ok, it's missing 3 Kiwi's and 3 Persimmons that were SO RIPE and too soft to resist!!!!!! So....I'm beginning my Nut-FREE December 1 day early! See y'all over there tomorrow!!!!!

http://i517.photobucket.com/albums/u336/Pioneerspiritnee/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG_4501.jpg

[MysticTree]

Lovely looking box of goodies there Renee. I had corn and avo smoosh tonight too. Sadly all mushroom burgers gone. I really liked how they tasted on the third day. Almost like one of my most favourite non-vegan pate :)

[ReneeH]

My Nanas missed being in the photo and got jealous, so here's a solo photo:

http://i517.photobucket.com/albums/u336/Pioneerspiritnee/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG_4502.jpg

I'm SOOOO excited about my Nut Free December, look what I got on my toe....it's a BANANA!!!!

http://i517.photobucket.com/albums/u336/Pioneerspiritnee/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG_4504.jpg

I'm so weird!!! I love smelling the butt of my Pineapple!!!!!

http://i517.photobucket.com/albums/u336/Pioneerspiritnee/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG_4505.jpg

[FullyRawKristina]

LOVE THE BOX! :)
Thanks for being such a wonderful co-operator! hugs! :)
Kristina