Author Archives: rawgirl

Cleansing in the New Year…

cleansing

Last year, I began the ritual of juice fasting into the new year.  The aim of the fast was to give my body a rest, clean out my system, affirm release of old habits or blocks of the past year, and renew a spiritual and physical connection. Last year the fast was 10 days. This year, I made it to day 7 and then on day 8 had a strange burning desire for vegetable broth that I couldn’t shake, so I used the last three days to come down off the fast. If your looking for a way to jump start the year, amplify new positive resolutions, or renew yourself spiritually, physically, or mentally, you may want to give fasting a try. Just make sure to consult your doc if you have a special condition and to give your body adequate time to come down off the fast.

If you aren’t a fan of fasting cold turkey on vegetable juice, or would like to ease into it, here are some modifications that may allow you do some form of cleansing in this New Year:

  • Try  starting and ending the day with vegetable juice or master cleanse, and eating a meal mid-day.
  • Eliminate meat for a specified period (3 days to a week)  If you are transitioning into the vegan world, and still eating all kinds of meat, you can use your fast to eliminate red meat and still eat fish.
  • Go raw for a couple days: meaning you consume only fruits and vegetables and/or juices for a specified period of time.
  • Try to go for 3 days to a week not eating any packaged, heavily processed, unnatural foods. Read the labels on everything you consume and try to understand what the ingredients actually are in the food you are eating.  It’s harder than you think… as they say, ignorance is bliss!
  • Substitute morning meals for fruit smoothies with flaxseed or pysilium husk.

For a refresher on the benefits of fasting feel free to revisit this article: Juice Fasting: The Ultimate Tool for Anti-Aging & Spiritual Awakening

** Disclaimer: I am not a doctor. Listen to your body, consult w/ yr doc if need be, and take my advice at your own risk. Side effects may include general joie de vire, a spiritual awakening, or an increase in magnetism & overall sexiness.

Gourmet Raw Vegan Pizza! – Part One

diet

My Finished Pizza on Dehydrator

Most of my raw recipes are quick and require very little equipment, but over the holidays I decided to try my hand at a gourmet recipe.  I bootlegged this delicious  pizza recipe from raw chef Elaina Love, and of course added my own secret ingredients.  If you are a food connoisseur or just someone who loves good pizza, the rich raw flavors in this recipe will win you over fast. It was amazing and disappeared from the dinner table quickly, but as a forewarning, making the crust takes time. The actually prep time is quick but then the crusts have to dry in a dehydrator for anywhere from 8-12 hours.  So this definitely requires planning a day in advance, but is worth the wait and you can also maximize your time if you make a lot of crusts and save them for later in the freezer.  Make sure to have fun and modify ingredients to your taste buds!

Crust Ingredients:

3 cups chopped yellow zuccini, 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil, 1 cup soaked almonds (soak 1/2 cup to get 1 cup when soaked), 1 cup flaxseed meal, 1/2 teaspoon sea salt, ( I added in a bit of yellow curry*)

Sauce Ingredients:

1 cup sun dried tomatoes (soaked briefly), 3 chopped regular tomatoes, 2 dates, garlic clove, 1 teaspoon sea salt, 1/4 teaspoon oregano, 7 basil leaves, 1/16 onion

Here is the cheesy video I watched that breaks  down preparation step by step:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8zg5Jmf3tk&feature=related

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8zg5Jmf3tk]

Best Fresh Juice Spots in NYC

diet

 At this point, I pretty much have every raw vegan spot in every borough in the city committed to memory. Here’s a list of  locations where I found the best organic fresh juice in NYC:

1.  LifeThyme Natural Market (410 6th Avenue @ W.9th Street) Why # 1? Only one name necessary: MELVIN. I am a firm believer  that the energy with which food is prepared greatly affects how well food is assimilated. Melvin, is an incredible dreadlocked man with great energy who has the art of juicing down to a science. I also appreciate that the brother knows how to handle a coconut, which is rare in Manhattan (elsewhere you might end up with pieces of coconut shell in your smoothie). He  is usually found whipping up juice and smoothies for long lines of customers who know him well  in the am hours until early afternoon.  My favorites there: Sweet Christine, Coconut Smoothie with pineapple and banana, & of course a Juice with all greens. 

2. Gobo Restaurant (401 6th Avenue @ W. 8th Street) I stumbled upon the juice at Gobo one day, when Melvin wasn’t around at LifeThyme–it is literally almost across the street. They have very fresh wheat grass juice, and other blends, and every time I have gotten excellent service.

3. Westerly Natural Market (913 8th Avenue @ 54th Street) Although they sometimes take their sweet time making your juice or can’t find a coconut, I still love Westerly. They have a nice range of juices and smoothies, and great vegan snacks to grab on the go!

4. Integral Yoga Natural Foods (229 13th Street between 7th & 8th Ave.) Integral Yoga has been hit or miss in the past. I never really feel great energy there from the people making the juice, but I still stop by if I am in a bind and in the area because they have a range of fresh organic produce and its the cheapest place to get a large celery and apple juice which is the bomb when detoxing!

20 Minute Lip Smacking Vegan Sweet Potato Pie

dessert

While most people were slaving over a hot stove  this holiday season, I kept it cool in the kitchen and still managed to whip up several delictable desserts and a main course in record time, including a Sweet Potatoe Pie which was ready to eat in 20 minutes.  This is a vegan, (almost raw–suitable for those who are less than 100% raw)recipe, as the sweet potatoes used were baked prior to preparation.

In order to make the crust, you need a high speed blender (I use a VitaMix) or a food processor, capable of grinding the nuts.

Ingredients

For the filling:

3 or 4 medium sized baked sweet potatoes (bake before hand until soft)

3-4 cups of dates (these add sweetness so modify according to your sweet tooth)

For the pie crust:

2 cups walnuts, 2 cups pecans, 1/2 cup raisins

Put the dates in a bowl and let soak in hot water.  While the dates are soaking, put walnuts and pecans into your blender or food processor until the nuts are ground into almost a powder (make sure there aren’t huge chunks). You can stop blending and use a spoon or spatula to move nuts around to catch any large pieces that haven’t blended properly. Once the nuts are ground, add in the raisins and continue to blend. DO NOT ADD WATER or you will have a mushy hot mess o’ nuts! To get it all consistent you will have to stop blending and manuever mixture around in order to make a consistent mixture.  Once the raisins and nuts are thoroughly blended, grab pie dish and use your fingers to press the mixture into the the dish to form the crust. Make sure there are no holes.

Then, rinse out your blender and add the dates and the sweet potatoes (without the skin of course) adding a little of the hot water as need. Blend until a creamy, thick consistency,  continuing to add water if needed.

Pour the filling into the crust, and put in the freezer for 5 minutes, 10 minutes max.  Serve & enjoy !!!

Want to have a regular crust and still keep it vegan or vegetarian? Get a premade crust, try the 365 Brand Whole Wheat crust at Whole Foods. To modify you would pop the crust in the oven, and make the same filling while the crust is baking. Once crust is done pour in filling and pop in freezer. Still only 20 minutes!

The copyright of this recipe is owned by Esosa Edosomwan AKA Chef Eazy E. Permission to republish this recipe in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

Anti-Aging SHE-RO #2

aging

They say “black don’t crack,” so Christy Turlington has a lot of explaining to do.  Of course she is a supermodel, but she is still  managing to age with grace and still make the hottest new models look like amateurs. It must be all that yoga.  Whatever it is, I am definitely taking notes.

In a TIME Magazine article in 2001, Turlington said that she practices at home three mornings a week,  and tries to take at least two classes a week. As far as the benefits of yoga, she says: “I was interested in cleaning my body on a deeper level. Yoga really purifies your organs and blood. You feel that. You feel that circulation of energy. But the real lesson yoga gives you is learning how to be present.

My New Health Article on “Quinoa”

diet

Below is a link to my new article about the health benefits of quinoa,  which includes a description of how to prepare it.  http://nutrition.suite101.com/article.cfm/quinoa

Quick Tips for Interesting Quinoa recipes: (it can be cooked or sprouted by soaking)

  • Prepare quinoa and mix in parsley, diced tomatoes, diced mint, garlic, and lemon juice for a tabouleh like dish
  • Use quinoa as a filler for wraps
  • Add quinoa to soup
  • Try quinoa as a substitution for rice in sushi. Wrap in nori rolls (seaweed) with diced and sautéed vegetables.
  • Season with curry, thyme,  & sea salt and mix in with any salad

Anti-Aging SHE-RO #1

aging

Imagine being a grandmother and still looking this fly?

My anti-aging She-ro #1, Karyn Calabrese is a former actress and model, and  now grandmother with two grandchildren. And she might be able to drop it like its hot better than I can…

In an interview in 2005 with ABC, (meaning she is now 62!), Karyn said:

“I’m 58 years old. I don’t know what illness is. I have more energy then I know what to do with. I truly believe it is the life style I lead…I had every allergy known to man. I was a mess — terrible skin, so I became vegetarian first, then I became a vegan, then I met Dr. Ann Wigmore after reading her book. It was the next thing for me to move forward to becoming a raw foodist.”

Karyn owns and operates her own restaurant, Karyn’s Fresh Corner in Chicago. For more info visit: http://www.karynraw.com/

Interview w/ Dr. Fred Bisci

aging

Why do I appreciate Dr. Fred Bisci? He is a natural doctor who has been on a raw food diet for over 40 years, but doesn’t preach raw foods like a fundamentalist! They key points that he expresses in this interview that are integral for living a healthy lifestyle is eating a processed food-free diet with no chemicals or altered substances, whole foods, and living a high quality stress free lifestyle. Basically, the biggest issue affecting your health is what you choose NOT to eat. He also stressed that one can be healthy on a diet that is largely raw but not 100%. I personal have gone back and forth in the past couple years between 100% and 80%-90% completely raw, 10-20% cooked unprocessed foods.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xULmBuCmIPg]

My Article on the Benefits of Juice Fasting

fasting
breville100juicer

Breville, an Affordable $100 Juicer

Check out my first health article on juice fasting!:

Juice Fasting: The Ultimate Tool for Anti-Aging and Spiritual Awakening

 I have  used the power of fasting when in need of  a breakthrough, a break up,  a makeover, a change of scene, or just some inspiration.  It’s incredible to me that during every fast, undesireable conditions, people, places,  habits, fall away in hurry.  If you are plagued by playa-haters, try a fast, and see how quick they loose your phone number.

Tips for a Stress-free Fast

fasting

greenjuicesGot a new juicer and hot date with some sexy green juice for a couple days? I do very soon. Below are some tips that may be useful when embarking on a juice fast.

1) Clean that colon! I missed the memo on this when I first started juice fasting, and it was not fun. When you fast, your body is going to start flushing out toxins. Its important to facilitate this process with enemas or colonics. If you don’t you may feel dizzy, generally ill, or develop acne (if it doesn’t come out the other end, yes it will start to come out on your face).

2) Take a chill pill. If you are a crazy multi-tasker, take it easy. Fasting is not the time to be super woman or take on stressful new projects. Get rest, and it will pay dividends. Also avoiding TV is good, or else during a commercial break you may have a sudden strong urge to “Have it your way!”

3) Inspire yourself  2 go the distance. Find quiet time to read inspiring literature, spiritual texts, or stories about people who overcame by fasting. Your favorite motivational speaker, writer, whoever, listen or read and use use the inspiration to keep you focused on the goal of going within. This is when I wish I had T.D. Jakes on speed dial!

4) Don’t broadcast yr fast. Its always easiest to not tell people you are fasting. I make up other excuses for why I can’t go out to eat or whatever. As soon as you open your mouth you may allow others to fast talk you right out of your commitment.

5)  Ease off. Don’t make the mistake of chowing down right afterwards. You need a period of a least a quarter the amount of time you fasted to come down off the fast properly.

6) Have Patience with any unexpected Emotional Drama. When your body releases toxins, a physical cleansing takes place. I experienced first hand that the release of toxins can also lead to emotional cleansing as well. If you need to cry, scream, whatever, give yourself permission to let it out. Just don’t hurt nobody!

** Disclaimer: I am not a doctor. Listen to your body, consult w/ yr doc if need be, and take my advice at your own risk. Side effects may include general joie de vire, a spiritual awakening, or an increase in magnetism & overall sexiness.