Practically Raw Pizza

Pizza. It's a loaded word, right? Just take a deep breath, think "PIZZA" and what happens in your mouth? I know. Salivation City.

Practically Raw means 1) easy to make; 2) lots of raw ingredients!

For numerous reasons I rarely touch "real" pizza anymore—poor digestibility, antibiotic-laced pasteurized cheese, white flour and gluten being tops on the list. But there are times when I still crave the stuff; can't help it. Last night, for instance. The calling was strong, but no question: going there would mean trouble. (IBS friends, you know what I'm talking about.)

So I got creative. Poked around in the fridge, pulled out a few ingredients I had on hand and came up with some scrumptious faux pies. No, they don't much look like the real deal (okay, not even close) but the taste is in the ballpark—thanks to flavorful melty raw cheese plus plenty of fresh tomato-garlic-oregano standing in for sauce. And the health upgrade is tremendous. I ate my Practically Raw Pizza with joyful abandon and woke up in the morning with no regrets (always a good feeling).

Practically Raw Pizza upgrades: Ezekiel sprouted grain tortillas, raw sheep cheese, olives (aka "vegan anchovies"), beet sprouts for garnish.

All prepped up.

Assembled & ready-to-heat.

350º for 10 minutes = raw melted bliss.

Top liberally with sprouts to increase life force factor, slice and eat. Yum!

Raw Almond Milk, French Press Style

For years I've shied away from making my own almond milk. For one thing, I'm not much of a milk (of any kind) user, but it's the straining step in particular that always seemed like too much trouble.

Okay, full disclosure. The "nut mylk bag" thing really turns me off. You know what I'm talking about: the reusable fine mesh bag, made of nylon or hemp cloth, that you have to suspend over some type of receptacle, pour your blended almonds into, and squeeze with your hands, again and again?

Not that I mind milking things. I've milked a few cows and goats in my time, for instance, and quite enjoyed it. But the cumbersomeness of the nut mylk bag, the slimy factor, the questionable hygiene, the clean up? No thanks. I do own a nut mylk bag. But truth be told, I've never used it. Not even once!

I've always loved the idea of making my own fresh almond milk, though. And lately I've been dreaming of an almond milk green smoothie, say, with bananas, dates, and comfrey added - yum! I know I could use boxed almond milk, but that doesn't really appeal to me either: too dead and processed.

So, it was with great excitement that I learned, from fabulous N.Y.C. Food Coach Dana James, of a new, bag-free option for homemade almond milk production: the French Press method.

Mais oui - but of course! Why didn't I think of that?

Using a French Press instead of a nut mylk bag to strain the pulp from your blended almonds-and-water mixture is as straightforward and easy as it sounds. I tried it for the first time last night, and I'm sold. You will be, too. Here's the basic recipe:

Raw Almond Milk, French Press Style

1/2 cup raw, organic almonds
water to soak
3 cups fresh, cold water
pinch of sea salt
1 teaspoon honey, maple syrup or agave

Soak almonds eight hours or overnight. Drain and rinse, then add to high speed blender with 3 cups water, sea salt and sweetener. Blend on high for one to two minutes. Pour into French Press, cover and depress plunger verrry slowly. This will take some effort and patience, but go slowly; liquid may gush out if you plunge too hard or fast. Pour fully-pressed almond milk into a clean glass jar and try to use within a few days for maximum freshness: this is a raw and living food!*

All mixed up and ready to go - love that foam!

Post-plunging. Observe strained almond pulp at base:

Serving Suggestion (I had this for dessert, but could be breakfast, too):

Hail Merry Grawnola, Holy Crap Cereal and Jungle Peanuts topped with Fresh-Pressed Almond Milk

* The Sad Truth About "Raw" Almonds
It's been a challenge to find really raw almonds since the almond pasteurization laws went into effect in 2007. Almost all storebought organic almonds are now "pasteurized" with steam, while non-organic raw almonds may be treated with surface chemicals or radiation (scary). It is still possible to purchase unpasteurized, truly raw almonds, however. Californians can buy direct from farmer in quantities of less than 100 pounds, and some online vendors carry them, but the cost is often high. I offer economically priced, really raw almonds through my Community Superfoods shop. Local readers, please email me if you're interested and I'll hook you up!

"Practically Raw" Bean & Guacamole Tostadas

It is deep winter now, iced January, hard earth muffled in snowy white. Winter purifies and wipes clean the slate as we turn inwards, gather ourselves in warm places and think upon lessons of the turning year gone by. The resolutions we may make at New Year's time are simply a recognition of some lacking in our lives. With this awareness, may we know ourselves more deeply, and vow to be more True.

The only falseness in this world is generated by people. Nature is Truth. When it comes to food, this is apparent, for what is food? Real food is honest, natural, a gift from the earth. Fake food is made by Man.

Learning to discern truth from falseness is an ongoing process that may be sharpened in the compression of short dark days. But choosing clean food, nourishing and fresh—whether uncooked/raw, or warm and comforting—makes sense in any season for those of us desiring health, vitality and authenticity. To be a Real Human, feed your body clean and simple, speak no lies, and strive each day to live as fully as possible in the open-heart vibration of Love.

Tonight, I dine on gifts from the earth. Won't you join me?

The following Practically Raw recipe includes a man-made food product of very high quality: Food for Life "Ezekiel" brand sprouted grain tortillas. I eat few grains, always whole or sprouted, usually just once or twice a week at most. See my article on the Eat to Evolve! philosophy to understand why I recommend including only whole grains in your diet, and only in moderation, rather than as the foundation of your daily meals.

Practically Raw Bean & Guacamole Tostadas


A tostada is basically an open-face sandwich using corn or sprouted grain tortillas in place of bread, and served with plenty of salad on top. (I've blogged about tostadas before - see here.) For me, the tostada is a lovely comfort food. It brings life force into the body, along with luscious warmth and savor.

For each person: Wash four lettuce leaves and tear into small pieces. Toss with one half teaspoon of flaxseed or MCT oil, 2 teaspoons of white balsamic vinegar, a light sprinkle of sea salt and a turn of fresh ground black pepper. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, add one smashed and minced clove of garlic. Into this, mash one small avocado with a little sea salt or Herbamare, and the fresh juice of one half an organic lemon. Add a pinch of cayenne pepper if you crave heat. This is your instant guacamole!

Lay 2 sprouted grain tortillas on a baking sheet and top with about one quarter cup of beans (canned organic black beans or homemade "refritos" work well), and a generous sprinkle of grated raw goat cheddar. Bake in a warm oven until the cheese begins to melt. (Vegans may omit the cheese, of course.)

Transfer tostadas to a plate and top each with equal portions of tossed salad and guacamole. If you have fresh cilantro or parsley on hand, chop up a handful and garnish on top. Serve with salsa if desired. Simple pleasure, honest food, tasty meal!

Practically Raw Sprouted Corn Tostadas

Here's something very delicious to make for lunch that whips up in a jiffy and features a brand NEW! product I tried for the first time today: organic Sprouted Corn Tortillas from the Food For Life Baking Company (makers of Ezekiel bread, sprouted grain bagels, sprouted whole wheat tortillas, etc.)

Sprouted grain products are valued for many reasons. Grains are seeds and when they are sprouted, their nutritional value often goes up. The sprouting process initiates the breakdown of protein and carbohydrate compounds in the grains, releasing bound amino acid and sugar components and freeing up nutrients. In this sense, sprouted grains are essentially "pre-digested," to a degree. Another benefit of sprouting is that natural anti-nutrients in grains, such as phytates and protease enzyme inhibitors, are also broken down and degraded in the sprouting process. Finally, sprouting makes grains more alkaline, helping them to favor a preferential pH balance in the body.

All soaked and sprouted grains, as well as sprouted beans and seeds, will offer the above benefits. Sprouting, however, does not remove gluten, a gluey protein that is found in wheat, spelt, rye, and barley. Gluten sensitivity is a rising problem around the world with an estimated 30-40% of people affected. Any food which is made from wheat or any gluten-containing grain, even healthy sprouted Ezekiel bread, still contains gluten.

Corn, on the other hand, is a gluten-free grain. Some people are allergic to corn, but gluten intolerance is not linked to corn allergies, so having a sensitivity to one does not implicate the other. Corn is an ancient New World grain that was sacred to American Indian tribes. Although modern corn has been abused in many ways by agribusiness and industrial development, corn itself is still a high value food, especially when it is organic corn grown in nutrient-rich soils and free of genetically modified organisms.

Delicious Food for Life Sprouted Corn Tortillas are made with only four ingredients: organic sprouted corn, filtered water, sea salt and lime. According to the company, after the corn is sprouted it is ground and mixed with the other ingredients to form a masa, or traditional thick dough, which is then rolled and flattened into characteristic tortilla shapes. The tortillas are baked at low temperatures (250 degrees) before packaging. Each tortilla provides 60 calories of whole grain carbohydrate energy and only 1 gram of fat, plus a little calcium and iron. The flavor and texture is naturally corn-sweet, wholesome, chewy and far moister than some gluten-free tortillas I've tried that crumble when folded.

I forsee this product becoming a new staple in my kitchen and am pleased to be sharing it with you today. I looking forward to creating sprouted corn tostadas with avocadoes and cilantro, with black beans, with tofu-miso paté... but for today, let us begin with hummus, the humble and widely available Middle Eastern sesame-chick pea spread. I used Hot Mama's original flavor hummus in this recipe, but any brand or flavor, including your own homemade raw or cooked hummus, would surely be tasty and satisfying.

Practically Raw Sprouted Corn Tostadas
with Hummus, Salsa & Sprouts

2 sprouted corn tortillas
1/4 cup hummus, your pick of flavor
1 cup alfalfa or red clover sprouts
2 teaspoons salsa
2 black olives

Warm tortillas briefly in the toaster or on the surface of a hot, cast-iron skillet for about 30 seconds to gently soften. Transfer to plate and divide hummus evenly between the two tortillas, spreading out almost to the edges. Top each tostada with half the sprouts, half the salsa and one black olive. To eat, spread the salsa across the center line and fold the tostada in half, like a soft taco. Then, bite in. Yum!

Note: I purchased my sprouted corn tortillas at Green Fields Market in Greenfield, MA and did not receive any product or compensation from Food for Life Baking Company prior to posting this blog. However, Food for Life is welcome to send me free samples and coupons anytime, as I adore their products!

Creamy Green Pea Soup with Dill

"There is nothing so innocent, so confiding in its expression, as the small green face of the freshly shelled spring pea." —William Wallace Irwin, Garrulous Gourmet

The author of the above quote was a man after my own heart. How do I love peas? Let me count the ways.

1) darling little spherical shape
2) cheerful, bright green color
3) cute and sustainable natural packaging (they nestle together in tidy rows like vegetable pearls, snugly tucked into tenderly crisp pods)
4) vines have adorable curly tendrils
5) plant is both delicate and strong: tenaciously clings and boldly climbs
6) softly patterned leaves of graceful round shape are very pretty
7) great raw texture: fresh, firm and crunchy
8) great cooked texture: soft and firmly squishy
9) delicious! (Yes best of all, I love how peas taste! So sweet!)

Sadly, not everyone has experienced the pleasure of eating fresh shell peas. The fairly recent invention of the scrumptious, edible pod Sugar Snap pea has led to a decline in the availability of English (shell) peas, which is a shame since scraping peas off the pod with your teeth and munching down on the resulting mouthful of roly-poly sugary greenness is one of the all time great summertime joys.

Did someone say summer? Sigh. Writing from the dead of winter could be why I've recently found myself craving the bright, fresh lively taste of peas. So when I saw a recipe for fresh pea soup on the delightful raw food blog Raw on $10 a Day or Less, I was inspired.

My version of this Practically Raw soup uses fresh dill, a kiss of lemon juice and frozen, thawed organic baby peas. Frozen peas, like most if not all frozen vegetables, are blanched in boiling water prior to being flash frozen. Blanching yields a "practically raw" pea that is neither cooked nor raw. You can read more about how peas are frozen here.

Dillis a nutritious and medicinal culinary herb whose fresh pungent flavor superbly complements the sweetness of green peas. Flavorful, alkalinizing green herbs are our natural healers, so I always have at least one bunch in my refrigerator at all times, alternating between dill, cilantro and parsley. Creamy avocado lends a rich, velvety smoothness to this quick-to-prepare potage.


Creamy Green Pea Soup with Dill

2 cups baby peas
1 1/2 cups warm water
1 small avocado
1/4 cup chopped fresh dill leaves, and their stems, also chopped
1 or 2 Tablespoons lemon juice (1/2 lemon's worth)
1 Tablespoon nutritional yeast
1/4 teaspoon Himalayan pink salt
a few grinds of black pepper

If using frozen peas, allow to thaw completely at room temperature; then drain in a colander or strainer. Set aside 1/2 cup of peas and about 2 Tablespoons of chopped dill leaves. Add everything else to blender and blend until creamy smooth. Use hotter water for a warmer soup. Taste and adjust seasonings if desired. Divide soup into two bowls and top with reserved peas and chopped dill. (Note: Soup may be gently heated further on stovetop to desired temperature before serving; I like it just medium warm, as it comes out of the blender.)

Practically Raw Baked Potato Salad

Are you planning on baking potatoes any time soon? If so, cook a few extras and use them to make this Practically Raw Potato Salad.

Practically Raw is my fun little way of saying two things: 1) containing a high percentage of raw food, and 2) a raw or raw-based recipe that is simple and practical to prepare. (Stay tuned for my Eat to Evolve Practically Raw Recipes E-Book coming this year!!)

This Practically Raw recipe relies on a pre-baked organic potato. I happened to have an organic baked Yukon Gold potato on hand, but feel free to use any organic baked potato you like (such as red, or even blue or purple potato, if you want to get fancy). I suggest you stay away from Russet and Idaho varieties as a rule, as they are a) too dry and b) too starchy for optimum carb healthyness. Red, blue and gold potatoes are more nutritious, moist and delicious!

Aside from the potato, everything else in the recipe (except the mustard) is raw and/or alive. For instance, instead of mayonnaise, I use mashed avocado and lemon juice, a brilliant idea I gleaned from a fellow Detox Community member over at detoxtheworld.com (that's Natalia Rose's awesome website, fyi). Avocado combines as a starch so its a perfect addition to potato salad. Just mash avocado with lemon juice and add miso and mustard for a tasty, creamy dressing.


Next, add a few handfulls of colorful veggies to the avocado mayonnaise. It's a rainbow for your tummy.


Finally, stir in the diced baked potato. Note: it was easy to peel the skin off the baked potato so I did, but you could leave it on if you prefer.


Here is the recipe I used in its entirety. Feel free to improvise with whatever raw veggies you happen to have on hand... to make this baked potato salad even more practically raw! :)

Practically Raw Baked Potato Salad

1 good sized organic baked potato, sliced and diced
juice of 1/2 lemon
1/2 ripe avocado
1/4 to 1/2 red bell pepper, minced
1/4 bunch cilantro, chopped (a big handful, basically)
1/4 red onion, minced
1 teaspoon miso
1 teaspoon mustard (i used whole grain but dijon would be good, too)

Directions
Mash the avocado with lemon juice, then stir in mustard and miso. Mix this with the red pepper, red onion and cilantro, saving a little minced pepper or cilantro for garnish. Add chopped potato and gently stir everything together. Garnish and enjoy! Serves one as a stand alone meal, two as a side with green salad.

The Properly Combined Sandwich

I adore fresh salads and generally rely upon them as my midday meal of choice. But sometimes I get tired of eating salad every afternoon, simply because I want to take a break from using utensils! In such cases, I want my salad to be somehow contained in a neat tidy package, so I can pick it up and just bite in with freedom and abandon. What I really want is... a sandwich!

Of course, sandwiches are usually made with bread, a food item that rarely appears in my dietary repertoire. This is why I love the Veggie Wrap concept. Any salad combo can be rolled into a nori sheet or large green leaf (think cabbage, collard or romaine) to create a satisfying sandwich sub.

Typically when I don't want the salad in a bowl, I wrap it up this way. But there are days when I crave something more substantial to accompany my fresh raw greens, something chewy and grainy...hmmm. What could that be? Bread, perhaps?

We all know that a standard sandwich involves bread plus a protein filling, say peanut butter, cheese or meat. The problem here is that, as explained in an earlier post, eating bread with protein is a no-no. Starches don't combine well with proteins due to the conflicting types of digestive enzyme environments they require (alkaline for starches, acid for proteins). Eating them together overburdens the digestive system, saps your energy for hours to follow and can lead to gas, bloating and weight gain. The best thing to combine with starches (or proteins, for that matter) is vegetables alone. So what's a lunchtime sandwich craver to do?

Enter the Properly Combined Sandwich (PCS). Basically, this is simply a raw vegetable sandwich on whole grain bread with condiments and avocado, if desired. (The veggies are usually raw but you can use cooked veggies as well from time to time.) To my knowledge, the official PCS title was coined by Harvey Diamond, a natural hygiene proponent, in his bestselling 1985 book Fit for Life. You'll see it used by many others as well, because, well, the concept is here to stay!

So. To create a Properly Combined Sandwich, start with the highest quality 100% sprouted grain bread or 100% whole spelt bread (or wraps) available. Perhaps your local natural bakery can be of service here. If not, both the Alvarado Street Bakery and Food for Life companies make tasty sprouted grain breads, bagels and tortillas that may be found in the freezer section of many grocery stores across the country.

Next, consider fillings. While raw veggies like tomato, lettuce, sprouts are famous typical sandwich supporting players, in the Properly Combined Sandwich they earn starring roles. And top billing goes to that most creamy and delectable of starch-friendly vegetable-fruits, the avocado. (I eat avocados every day I can get my hands on them - they are one of my favorite foods...)

Condiments like stone ground or dijon mustard, organic salsa and miso can also be important features in the Properly Combined Sandwich. Spread a little mustard on your sprouted grain bread, add a layer of sliced avocado and pile high with veggies of your choice: spinach, lettuce, mushrooms, tomato, sprouts, grated carrot, chopped garlic, parsley, red onion, cilantro - the sky's the limit.

I recommend eating one or two open faced sandwiches rather than a single two-slice number to maximize your raw veggie intake. Place a flat leaf of lettuce on top if you need something to hold onto. Alternatively, toss a raw salad with your favorite dressing, add avocado and spoon into a sprouted grain tortilla lightly spread with mellow white miso. Roll, wrap and eat - incredible! Or fill a corn tortilla with chopped lettuce, avocado, green onion and salsa to create a soft taco style sandwich.

A Properly Combined Sandwich is fresh, colorful and delicious. Best of all, it digests beautifully, so it won't cause you to bloat up or gain excess weight. In fact, you may even lose weight eating this way. And with so many veggies to use for fillings, the Properly Combined Sandwich never gets boring! Just remember to save any dense protein items (hummus, raw goat cheese, almond butter) for your starch-free green leaf and nori wraps.

Practically Raw in Winter

Hey baby, it’s (still) cold outside! Here in Western Massachusetts, late February marks the beginning of the end of the iciest two months of the year. For me, by this point in time the cold has seeped so far down into my bones it’s hard to really, truly warm up. Often, the only way to dispel the deep chill is to submerge myself in a hot bath or hop on the mini-tramp for a vigorous rebounding session. These methods both work wonders, provided the timing is right. When it isn’t, there’s always soup.

Everybody knows a steaming bowl of hot, savory soup is quintessential warming winter fare…especially when garlic and onions are involved. In fact, the idea of going without basic warming foods like soup has dampened many an earnest health seeker’s desire to consider giving the raw food detox lifestyle a try.

This is why it’s so important to understand that “being raw” is not the goal of cleansing! The goal is to enjoy the highest states of physical health and alert, energized awareness. Such states can only be achieved when we cleanse and nourish the body with the highest quality, high vibration foods.

Eating heavy, dense foods (animal flesh, cooked beans, nuts, etc.) requires a lot of work, sometimes for several days, on the part of the entire digestive system – from gut to liver to colon. This work slows us down, interferes with the natural flow of energy in our bodies and creates waste that must be eliminated or stored. Conversely, eating light, water-rich plant foods cause no such interference, supports the release of old stored waste from body cells and tissues and enables us to vibrate at our naturally high energetic level.

In other words, a cleansing diet based on fresh, whole raw foods can help us to clear out the food waste and toxins stored in cells and tissues over a lifetime, opening up our bio-electric channels to the free flow of life force energy. Raw foods are critical in this pursuit, but for most of us, especially those new to cleansing, it is equally important to consume high quality cooked foods.

When too many toxins are released into the system due to the overzealous consumption of raw foods, the body can become overwhelmed with poisons. Without giving the body sufficient time and opportunity to eliminate these wastes from the organism, “cleansing” can turn into “autointoxication” and become counterproductive.

Eating cooked vegetables (and fruits) helps to slow down the cleansing stimulated by raw foods without adding to the overall body burden. This allows the eliminative pathways to remove the wastes that are released into the bloodstream as a result of dietary cleansing.

Remember, the cleanest and most detox-stimulating foods are raw fruits, raw veggies and their freshly pressed juices. The next cleanest foods are whole, simply cooked vegetables – prepared by steaming, braising or baking. Rather than a stimulating effect, simply cooked vegetables have a somewhat neutral effect on the body. They pass through the digestive tract quickly and leave no waste behind, providing comfort, satisfaction and nourishment while allowing the body to attend to other needs such as assimilation, repair and elimination of wastes.

When it comes to a long-term cleansing lifestyle, clean food is more important than raw food. With this in mind, let’s talk about warming winter fare. Humans would not have ventured into cold climates without the accompaniment of fire and cooking. Today we live in heated homes with refrigerators and have grocery systems that allow us to enjoy fresh raw food year-round. But that doesn’t mean we want to eat nothing but cold salads all winter, nor should we force ourselves to do so.

If you love soup in winter, take heart! Get comfortable with being practically raw and you can have your soup and eat it too.


Practically Raw Miso Soup

This quick and flexible recipe can be made with whatever you have on hand for veggies. Because the vegetables are added to hot broth and essentially warmed through rather than cooked for any length of time (hence Practically Raw), their high nutrient and enzyme content is maintained. Just be sure to slice everything thinly so that veggies will warm through enough to soften when added to the hot broth.

NOTE: One of my favorite hobbies is to visit Asian food markets and pick up unusual (to me) ingredients: jars of curry pastes and seasonings, packages of seaweeds, fresh young coconuts and other exotic items. On one such visit I was fortunate to find a Thai seasoning called “Instant Seafoods Clear Soup Paste.” This secret ingredient contains chili, lemon grass, lemon juice, shallot, sweet basil leaves, sugar, salt and citric acid and adds a complex and intriguing taste to any soup – no seafood required!

Makes 2 gigantic or 4 average sized bowls of delicious, savory soup.

½ large onion, diced
1 large carrot, thinly sliced
1 celery rib, thinly sliced
½ package of baby bella (or other) mushrooms, chopped
1 medium zucchini, spiralized into noodles
½ red bell pepper, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
½ inch ginger, peeled and grated (optional)
1 Tablespoon miso (barley is nice)
1 teaspoon powdered vegetable broth
1 teaspoon “Instant Seafoods Clear Soup Paste” (optional)
black pepper or cayenne pepper to taste, if more hotness desired

Simmer onion in 2 cups of water for about 15 minutes. While the onion is simmering, prepare vegetables and set aside in a large bowl. (It’s a good idea to start with room temperature veggies if possible, since this is meant to be a warming meal from the prep to the eating.) If you don’t have a spiral slicer for the zucchini, you can use a vegetable peeler to make fettuccini-like strands or simply slice into long thin strips.

Once veggies are chopped and broth is done simmering, remove pan from heat. In a small dish, make a paste with miso, “Instant Seafoods Clear Soup Paste” (if using) and a little warm broth. Add paste back into pot of broth along with bouillon powder and stir to combine. To this seasoned broth, add all the sliced veggies and pepper if using. Stir to mix and allow to sit for a minute or two while veggies warm up and absorb flavors of broth. Taste, adjust seasonings if needed, ladle soup into bowls and enjoy!

Practically Raw! Nutrition Talk Tidbits

Last Wednesday night I had the honor of speaking at Green Fields Market (my local food coop) on the topic of Practically Raw nutrition. We had a terrific turnout (24 enthusiastic, light-filled attendees) and it was so much fun to be together and talk about living the high raw lifestyle.

Following are a selection of Practically Raw ideas we covered in the talk. Try any that sound workable for you!

To begin, let's consider the phrase "Practically Raw!" As you may have guessed, it's intended as a triple entendre:
1) a diet that is made up in large part, but not necessarily entirely, of raw, living foods;
2) a practical approach to eating raw, living foods throughout the day; and
3) slightly cooked food (i.e. lightly steamed broccoli, which may retain a higher nutrient profile than boiled broccoli, as well as some live enzyme activity)

General Suggestions
• Consider eating "light to heavy" throughout the day, with the lightest food in the morning and the largest meal at dinner time. (Helps maintain energy and mental clarity during productive daylight hours; allows for relaxation and release later when needed. For most people, big breakfasts weigh you down!)
• Consider eating "raw till dinner" and have your soothing, cooked "comfort" foods at end of day (when you may need them most)
• Listen to your body! The goal of eating living foods is to optimize health, not get caught up in a food trip. Always be kind and non-judgmental with yourself (and others) around dietary choices.

Practically Raw Breakfast Ideas
• Make breakfast a living liquid meal: ginger-fruit smoothie, green smoothie or freshly pressed vegetable or veggie-fruit blend juice. (please email me for smoothie recipes!)
• During colder weather, eat an ounce or two or raw nuts with bananas and/or dried fruit in the AM to help warm and fulfill the body-mind-spirit complex (may enjoy this 30 minutes or more after juice)

Practically Raw Lunch Ideas
• Enjoy a large raw salad, topped with creamy avocado or a rich seed-based or nut-based cheese, paté or dressing.
• Have a large raw salad with EITHER a cooked protein (such as beans, hard-boiled eggs or sardines) or a cooked starch (such as brown rice or baked potato), or a yummy soup (raw blended veggie soup or cooked lentil, tomato-basil, pureed veggie, miso, etc.)
• Learn to make a great raw dressing using a base of approximately 3 parts extra virgin olive oil to 1 part lemon juice or Bragg's apple cider vinegar. Add garlic, herbs/spices, kelp powder, sea salt or miso, minced red onion, mustard powder, whatever you fancy!

Practically Raw Snack Ideas
• World's Healthiest Snack: raw veggies! Think baby carrots (great for the car and at work), celery, snow peas, etc. May sprinkle with Spike or Old Bay seasoning, or for a treat, enjoy with raw goat cheese.
• Sweet Treat: a piece or fresh fruit OR a few pieces of dried fruit with a handful raw nuts OR a handful of raw nuts with a cup of herbal tea (Suggestion: eat fresh fruit half hour before meals or several hours after, on an empty stomach.)
• Savory Snack: raw flaxseed crackers (like those from Foods Alive!, which were sampled at the talk - many delicious flavors to choose from) or make your own in the dehydrator. (Once you have a dehydrator, this becomes a very easy and practical thing to make.) May spread with raw nut butter or tahini.

Practically Raw Dinner Ideas
• Feeling adventuresome? Try making a delectable (but still practical!) raw dinner such as beet rawviolis with pine nut ricotta (see Euphoric Organics link at right for recipe). Or wrap anything in a nori sheet for instant sushi! Sea veggies are great for alkalizing your blood and supporting healthy thyroid function, lipid & blood sugar levels and smooth digestion.
• Whip up an easy raw dish such as vegetable spaghetti strands created in the spiralizer from fresh zucchini or sweet potato (this stuff is amazing!). Top with cooked or raw tomato sauce, fresh pesto or a creamy, blended nut-cheese sauce. Raw veggie pasta is a surprisingly easy and quick meal to prepare, and will be different every time depending on the sauce you create and the veggies you use for the pasta.
• Old Standby: Salad + large dish of lightly steamed veggies, topped with flaxseed oil and sea salt, or tomato sauce and raw goat cheese
• Comfort Meal: Baked sweet potatoes (I love Garnet Yams best) with green salad and lightly steamed veggies
• Fish Dinner: enjoy baked or pan-fried wild-caught fish or indoor-farmed fish (e.g. catfish or Australis barramundi) served with large raw salad and/or a generous serving of lightly steamed or roasted veggies, seasoned to taste

Practically Raw Dessert Ideas
• Raw Cacao! Try the whole bean, or make some homemade avocado-cacao pudding or raw chocolate with raw cacao powder + coconut butter + raw honey or agave. You can also purchase real, live raw chocolates (like the amazing hearts from Sacred Chocolate - 19 flavors to choose from!) - a fabulous treat.
• Brown rice cakes or Dr. Krackers (100% spelt crackers) spread with raw nut butter or tahini + raw honey
• 70%+ Dark Chocolate (Divine, Green & Black, etc.). Not raw, but easy enough to come by, and a fine finish to any meal!

Have fun experimenting, and please be in touch with any questions or comments! (P.S. Gourmet chefs: check out http://gliving.tv/greenchefs/recipes/category/raw/ for incredible recipes!)

Yours in health and joyful service,
Diana

Practically Raw!

Many people are attracted to the idea of following a raw food diet, but don't know where or how to begin. One may read a lot of books and study a lot of teachings but hesitate to take the next step of putting ideas into action because the ideals feel so extreme. This is why I am a big proponent of taking small steps when changing your diet. Go slowly and honor your personal needs and transition level by applying Practically Raw principles.

Plunging into a 100% raw lifestyle is not something I generally recommend, though there are some who experience success with this approach, at least for the short term. For most of us, a gentle transition to a high raw diet is a better idea for several reasons.

First of all, what is the purpose of eating raw foods? Is the goal to follow a rigid dogma, to live up to someone else's belief system about what you "should" eat or to be able to label yourself a raw foodist? Or is the goal to be healthy and happy?

For me, the goal of eating raw foods is simply to feel great - awake, alive, confident and productive! I don't want to be slowed down on a daily basis by dense food that takes hours to digest or, worse, knocks me out into a food coma. I want my body to be naturally lean and healthy, my mind to be clear and my energy to be bright – every day! I also want to feel connected to all beings, the natural world around me and the energy of life that permeates the universe – every day! A diet based on raw and living foods helps me to feel this way.

Please note, the words "based on" are very key in that last sentence. Personally, at my transition level I find it useful to eat non-raw foods on a regular basis, usually at dinner time. I am partial, for instance, to such cooked delicacies as velvety baked sweet potatoes with raw butter, and spicy-creamy Thai coconut curry (loaded with colorful chunks of just-tender vegetables and mounds of chopped fresh cilantro). Eating cooked foods like these helps me to feel grounded, connected and satisfied in ways that I deeply value. At other times, those needs are less and I prefer lighter fare. This entry, for example, is being blogged on my final day of a three-day juice fast, making me 100% raw presently, and feeling incredible. Meanwhile, I know at some point I will enjoy Thai coconut curry again.

So it’s all in a flow. In time and season, and depending on your life situation, the percentage of raw/cooked food in your diet may change in either direction. What matters most is finding the balance that works for you.

Physically, raw foods are very light and cleansing - fruits in particular. This is a fantastic thing, but too much cleansing all at once can overwhelm the body's ability to detoxify and eliminate the waste matter that is released. Cooked food helps slow down the cleansing process, protecting and respecting your body's reality in the moment.

Mentally, raw foods help to open and clear the mind, as they are packed with very high energy, solar vibrations that sharpen our thought and vivify our nervous system. But in the extreme, too much raw food can cause us to feel "spaced out" and ungrounded. It's wonderful and amazing to feel high on life, but we don’t want our thoughts to be merging with the cosmos while we are operating a car on the freeway with two kids in the back, right?

It's important to eat grounding foods while transitioning into a Practically Raw diet to help us function effectively on this earthly plane. My top picks for grounding foods are earthy root vegetables (foods that literally grow IN the ground - think baked sweet potatoes, grated parsnips or steamed turnips), squashes (which grow LOW TO the ground), and lightly cooked low-starch vegetables (cauliflower, broccoli, green beans, etc). Smaller amounts of cooked/sprouted whole grains (millet, quinoa, brown rice) and beans (if tolerated), and some animal foods (preferably the least dense animal foods, such as raw goat cheese, organic eggs or wild fish) may also be used to help us ground our energy.

Emotionally, we need to be honest with the fact that many of us are literally hooked on processed carbs, processed dairy and dense cooked foods, and going off them cold turkey without any bridging foods (such as sprouted grain bread to replace regular white bread, or raw goat cheese to replace pasteurized cow milk cheese) may backfire.

Socially, we may have systems in our lives that involve shared eating experiences. If we forego cooked food entirely or too suddenly, our inability to participate in these occasions may end up causing personal sorrow or interpersonal tension. It is important to take a stand for your beliefs and be true to yourself, but go easy. As Natalia Rose encourages, let "progress, not perfection," be your guide. Sometimes it is wisest to weigh the trade-offs and just do your best in a given situation.

Many devoted raw fooders guilt trip themselves for eating or craving cooked food, feel shame for caving in to craving, and in some cases even develop eating disorders such as orthorexia or binge-purge disorders all because they are trying to stick to a raw program that doesn't suit the truth of their actual situation, capabilities and needs. The stress this creates is not conducive to health and happiness, and isn’t that our primary goal?

Contrary to what some may preach, cooked food is not necessarily poison! Yes, raw foods are our original foods - there's no doubt about it. Raw foods provide optimum nourishment, life force energy, enzymes and nutrients. But the evidence is strong that humans have spent about 1.9 million years eating cooked foods, too. We are adapted to eating both. (What we are not, and will never be adapted to eating is junk food, processed food, white flour and sugar, artificial colors, synthetic fats, etc.) Furthermore, if we are used to eating lots of cooked food, its sudden absence can turn even the highest quality raw food into "poison" by virtue of its causing too many stored toxins to be liberated from our cells and tissues at once.

So let's be practical! Let's sensibly make it our goal to eat lots of living, raw foods every day, and to honor our own transition level by balancing these foods as required with healthy cooked foods. In this way, the Practically Raw lifestyle can help us meet our physical, mental, social and emotional needs around diet and nutrition with savor, joy and fulfillment.

Yours in the light of radiant health,
Diana