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Tuesday, 4 October 2011

Next bit of my journey

I am currently doing Tera Warner's last 7 day detox of the year and am diving right in to day three.

(already started but here is the page it woud otherwise be on: http://www.terawarner.com/detox-cleansing)

I am finding the most challenging part of detoxing 100% raw is cutting ut died fruit, oils, fats, nuts an salt.

The idea is to reduce your stimulation and appreciate the natural flavours of the foods you are eating. I have to say to has really opened my eyes to the tastes of some of the food I am eating like the sweetness of red pepper, and the crisp fresh taste of broccoli and  also braved seaweed spaghetti!

My tips on your first try are  buy small leaves (so kelp, or spaghetti or  something small and not overwhelming)
Soak them, rinse them heaps! the pour boiling water  over them while you prepare whatever else you are planning to eat with your spaghetti and then toss the whole lot to have a raw warm meal!

My sauce/topping was:

chopped eggplant, red pepper and mushrooms
soaked sundried tomatoes (I used the soak water to do the final rinse of the seaweed)
green onion

Pesto/sauce

Basil
Oregano
red pepper
garlic
a dash of olive oil and salt

toss all in a warm bowl and serve!

YUM I dare you to try it, its not that scary I promise!

P.S more on my detox when I have time
Love and life in the meantime

xx

Friday, 16 September 2011

After 100% raw

This week has not been so good.

I have been trying to find the balance between 100% and whatever I need to be at optimal health effortlessly.
And so far I haven't succeeded. With the chosen stress of my boyfriends knee surgery and visiting parents, exciting freedom to go out to cafes and eat ice cream, external temptations and running out of lettuce as well as supplying cooked food for my boyfriends mother has been no small task to try to stay raw.

The day after my raw detox was over my boyfriend took to our favorite cafe where i decided that I felt like a coffee with cream and shared some strawberry ice cream - that was good I will keep small amounts of that.

I now no longer drink coffee and cream is very heavy on me even though through the week I have continued to drink it (not really listening that well am I?)

I continued to keep raw throughout the day at dance until I came home and cooked tea for me and Cameron's mother. I tried to recreate a warm parsnip and pear salad cooked that had been prepared for me raw at a restaurant around the corner.

I should have kept it raw the taste and texture was bland and unsatisfying. I ended up snacking all night on a raw brownie.

And from there it went downhill - eating my boyfriends junk food and even the plastic biscuits I don't normally like or touch eating until I am past full and my mouth feels rough and dry.

I have learnt a valuable lesson.

Cooked food is lethally addictive, unsatisfying, heavy, exhausting, stressful, very easy to get your hands on!

On my to do list is:
Hide my boyfriends stress food(junk food)
Have lettuce on hand
put reminders up to ask myself how I really feel about what I am eating
drink way more water
educate myself more about the five tastes to create satisfying meals
make more raw yogurt (tutorial and pics coming up with next batch)
keep a food combining chart on the fridge
keep the question in my head: Do I want to live my life as a ... eater?
Take time to do yoga, deep breathing and meditation.

Sounds like a pretty good list!

I shall let you know how I tick these off.

On the postive side I have lost half my derriere, am attempting sauerkraut, made a yummy pumpkin pie and nutella, surprised my mum with my genius raw whizz ideas and have got a raw food class to go to next week!

Love to all

Sunday, 11 September 2011

Night 14

It is the last night of our fourteen day 100% detox and I am contemplating the short amazing journey we have had.
I feel like we experienced every challenge, difficulty, experience and joy from the lifestyle of a raw food diet all in two short weeks.
These are some of the things I felt, learnt and I also wish to spend a moment appreciating and thanking those around me.


  • I have felt the joy and lightness of feeding my body the nutrition it needs.
  • The new levels of creativity with food and the effect on my other creative pursuits.
  • The supposed difficulties of eating out and the welcoming surprise of accommodating places around Wellington.
  • The attitudes from various social groups we have and the overwhelming feeling of positively influencing other peoples lives without doing anything but your true and highest purpose.
  • The situations of "caving" and learning how best to deal and prepare for those situations.
  • The surprise on friends faces when they try a green smoothie or a raw dessert and the amazing taste the sense.
  • Learning the importance of a support person or group and how much your eating habits affects your life, social group and family.
  • How raw food challenges everything society believes and that to shove it in their face can create a hostile situation very quickly.
  • The immense love and gratitude I feel for my boyfriend Cameron through this journey and the amount of those gifts I have received back.
  • The difference in my beliefs about what is considered a meal and the simplifying of my tastebuds lifestyle and environment
  • The amazing amounts of energy I have and the improvement and balance in my dancing.
  • The perspective and clarity it has given my life.
  • The yummy healing food I can now happily serve in my house and give to people as a gift of hospitality and love.
  • The new people I met and had a chance to engage with.
I would like to thank my partner in all this Cassie for spurring me on when I was detoxing, tired or craved chocolate, for our daily support and conversations about what we are feeling. The good example she has set for herself and the chance for me to learn her lessons as well as my own. Your a fabulous glowing goddess and this post is for you gorgeous!

We have proven that two normal teenage girls who love coffee, chocolate and ice cream can do it without feeling deprived or tired so go get it girls.

You can do it!

Monday, 5 September 2011

Day 7

Yay half way there!
Today I brought Raw Sushi to school with me for lunch but before I got around to it My Raw Friend (I'm going to nickname her MRF for typing purposes) and I had a craving for more passion fruit macaroons from Little Bird Raw.Organic,Goodness so off we headed down to the organic store to get some and ended up getting blue peas for making a hummus without chickpeas, grapefruit for a mango and pomelo timbale, MRF bought fresh dates for me to try because I had never had one (Buy one today!!) as well as salad clusters (delicious) and then we got to the macaroons...
Well there was vanilla and almonds, caccao and raspberry, passionfruit and maccadamias and chocolate.
We ended up with the chocolate and for those of you that raw chocolate is too dark try these they taste like truffles!
YUM YUM YUM

Successful raw food day.

P.S also found out most wine is raw!

Sunday, 4 September 2011

Journey Day 3/4 again

So yesterday was a learning curve for us both.
We learnt how you need to be prepared in every situation when you go out.
That is how not to cave. Although we don't consider this a failure in  our  goal it was a valuable and probably vital learning lesson in our journey of 100%  raw food.
The night before my friend was out at a bar after her performance was over and shared some chips with another model. She said they tasted like normal and they didn't taste bad. Our main curiosity about eating cooked food again was what will it taste like but obviously a week is too little to tell by our example.
And then I went to a pot luck dinner where I had a brought my big salad and raw dessert but everyone loved it so much that there wasn't as much as I thought there would be for myself. So I decided I would try little bits of a few of the other dishes. Not only did raw food go out the door but so did my food combining skills!
But I got better as the night went on and when my boyfriend and I went to see a friends performance at the local gay bar I found a substitute in soda water and freshly squeezed lime. Not amazing for raw food but better than water.

Today I have been very good in being prepared and resisting temptation while my boyfriend eats French crepes with tons of butter and the wafts of freshly ground coffee and baking swell around in the windy Wellington air. I brought fresh fruit, some dried fruit and nuts with raw dark chocolate, my spicy BBQ kale chips (Russel James) and bought some new tasty raw treats while we were out (which were DELICIOUS by the way).  So I didn't feel left out and to my surprise I was able to buy a freshly made juice at the markets at a coffee stall.

I have now learnt to be more prepared and its easier to constantly have a bit to nibble with you in case there isn't anything you can eat and feel like your ruining the social scene by not consuming anything.

This is all for today, will update you soon with days
Love and life coming your way!
P.S failed on making raw blueberry chocolate truffles but still made great pudding and virgin raw Pina Coladas taste awsome!

Saturday, 3 September 2011

100%

My friend and I have decided on a goal, 100% Raw for two weeks and at the end of that we will reward ourselves with a 100% raw Cappuccino Cake from http://www.fromgreytogreen.co.nz/natures-cakes.html.
I am so excited for that cake!
Right now it is Day 5 and I know I should have started this blog on day one but I was too busy creating yummy new things!
So far I have created:
Chocolate Kale Chips (courtesy of Russel James'es webinar)
Raw Sushi with parsnip rice
Raw Pad Thai (Natalia Rose)
Coconut Kefir (the best!)
Buckwheat bread
both Mango and Apricot jam (an hour ago)
Blueberry and lemon pudding
Paw Paw salsa
Many different smoothies, juices and elixirs.
Tahini salad dressing

All of which have tasted amazing and been relatively simple to make. On my to do list is:
a peanut wrap dish from a friend
more curried cabbage rolls
spring rolls from Natalia Rose
Marbled chocolate orange cake from Russel James
Mango Pomelo/grapefruit Timbale (ditto)
Eggplant burgers
and things that have tahini in it.

I will let you know how I go as these two weeks go by, but so far success! My energy levels are soaring, my skin is evening out and zits are disappearing, my moods have changed and I feel lighter and I have a passion for food I have never seen before!

P.S also on my list is citrus slice, pecan pie and virgin raw pina coladas with coconut kefir.

Sunday, 28 August 2011

This weekend

This weekend I have had plenty of time to experiment and get my hands dirty with raw food.
I'm writing this in the beautiful Sunday morning weather of an unusual Wellington weekend. Feels kind of Mediterranean!

With my boyfriends family here I had had little time to try all my new ideas so I have crammed them all into a couple of days. The ideas just started flowing about Friday midday with aspirations to make raw pecan pie, nutella, crackers, bread and find a raw substitute for hot chips!

So far this weekend I have made raw flaxseed crackers (all gone!) Carrot cake, started coconut kefir, Russel James'es Curried Cabbage Rolls (REALLY GOOD!) bought the ingredients for raw bread, and have coconut meat ready for pumpkin pie and pad thai.

I also just looked through my notes and ideas on raw food and thought wow I have enough ideas in there to make my own cookbook! so when I try them all You may see them up here.

And all these creations were happening while my flatmate was making a sickly sweet white chocolate creation, I haven't touched it yet! My resistance is strong and my own yummy raw treats are better.

I better start making the rest of my list and stop longing for an Excalibur dehydrator and a vitamix.


Lots of love life and raw!


Russel James'es Curried Cabbage
http://therawchef.com/therawchefblog/curried-cabbage-pillows