My dad’s birthday was on Friday, which got me reminiscing about the good old days when my mom would bake cakes and I’d get to lick the mixing spoon when she was finished. Ahhhh. Luckily, I was able to come up with a thick and rich smoothie recipe which not only tastes like dark chocolate cake batter, but also contains large amounts of antioxidants and fiber. You can also eat this like a self-respecting adult:
I put all of the above in my Vitamix and blended for about a minute, or until thickened and smooth. High speed blenders will also slightly warm your smoothie for you! You could tweak my recipe with cinnamon, almond milk (chocolate almond breeze- YUM), molasses, agave nectar, mint, almond butter… endless and delicious possibilities!
I had to put down my POM glass and report immediately that I have discovered the golden recipe for a thick and creamy raw vegan chocolate milkshake. Sweet, frothy, and nutritious… tastes like nostalgia, without the gas and regret:
Old Fashioned Raw Vegan Chocolate Milkshake
1.5 cups (vanilla or chocolate) soymilk or almondmilk
In a high speed blender, combine all above ingredients and increase variable speed. Blend on “high” for one minute, or until shake thickens and becomes frothy.
Beyond amazing. It honestly tasted how I remember “real” chocolate shakes being, thick, sweet, creamy, and filling: Fast food status. If you wanted it even sweeter, you could add more dates, or maybe a tbsp of agave nectar. For mint chocolate, add a couple sprigs of mint. For double dark chocolate, add 1-2 tbsp cacao nibs. For chocolate coconut, add 2 tbsp young coconut. Peanut butter… the potential here is enormous!
By now, you have probably figured out that I am bananas for hemp this week. I had ice cream for dinner again last night, and this time it was Hemp Ice Dream :].
2 tbsp raw, organic coconut flakes (I also sprinkled some on top)
2 tbsp raw cacao nibs
1 tbsp raw agave nectar (optional)
Blend frozen bananas with a tiny bit of water until beginning to mix. Add all other ingredients, process until as creamy as desired. Top with a pinch of coconut flakes, and/or other garnishes as desired. Serve and enjoy immediately.
Trust me when I say this was delish. The color was really cool, like a neutral oatmeal shade, with natural flecks running through. This raw vegan ice cream is a healthy way to satisfy your taste buds and get high levels of potassium, manganese, omega 3s & 6s into your body, as well as a complete plant-based protein.
I have been doing a lot of reading, researching, and contemplating. This week seems to have found me in an introspective state. I’m planning on listening to music & creating some art. And selling some stuff on eBay. I’d like to get rid of a lot of my stuff!
It’s nearing midnight and I sigh at the realization I’ve stayed up too late again. Stress can manifest in subtle ways.
This week has yielded successes with both maintaining my rawsomeness and in deepening a few of my relationships. I’m getting to experience life on a pretty honest and eager level, which is really lucky. Raw food or not, my paradigms keep shifting as I am constantly thinking critically. I feel a much greater appreciation and compassion for all that surrounds me, and also better clarity when it comes to interpreting it.
When I returned to a yoga class last year, I remember thinking that if everyone would just do yoga, the world would be a much more peaceful place. I could probably say the same for a vegan diet, but maybe it’s not just living cruelty-free. Maybe it’s me. I don’t want to act like I know what’s appropriate and right for everyone else; I’m simply exploring concepts which appeal to me, my values, and ethics. Taking the time to consider and honor my own critical thinking has opened the door to even more critical thinking, and with practice has come more skill and clarity. It’s really exciting to experience my days this way, feeling secure and peaceful and positive and hopeful.
That’s not to say that everything happening around me has been blissful; on the contrary, I have been surrounded by a lot of stress in the forms of interpersonal conflict, financial impositions, and family concerns. The difference, however, lies in determining what is within your control (which may be as simple as your perception, in many cases) and dealing with that. My growth, in this way, has been exponential.
I’ll be drinking green smoothies all week. School is ending for a couple of weeks, and I’m going to take advantage of the time to rest and rejuvenate. This afternoon (I usually wait until around noon to take my first meal) I made an outstanding green smoothie, which has become my standby recently:
Healing Protein Green Smoothie
1 cup water (or coconut water, for added electrolyte action)
as much greens as you’d like (I’ve been adding about 1/3-1/2 lb of mixed organic baby greens) (99 cents)
Hemp protein is a superior protein source for us. It is a complete plant-based protein (containing all 10 essential amino acids), which aids in recovery, hormonal regulation, lean muscle development and maintenance, and fat metabolism. In fact, hemp is the plant source closest to our own amino acid profiles. Hemp also contains our ideal ratio of Omega 3s : Omega 6s (1:2), and is one of the easiest proteins for us to digest. This may be because it’s raw, and so has retained its enzymes. Manitoba’s hemp protein might seem a little pricey, but it is well worth the money. I believe hemp has been seriously maligned, probably due to reefer madness. Hemp seed, hemp milk, and hemp protein will not get you stoned, but will provide an outstanding and sustainable alternative to soy, whey, and other protein sources which are usually allergens, and are poorly digested. Trader Joe’s and Nutiva both offer affordable hemp powders (chocolate!).
I feel even better than I did a week ago. My skin, which had been steadily clearing up since transitioning my diet post-quitting smoking & eliminating all drug use (antibiotics, birth control pill, vitamins, anti-depressants), has been clear and free of irritation for about two weeks now. I noticed I would get itchy after eating peanuts, wheat, and soy, so I think that avoiding these allergens has been really helpful. My brother actually commented on how smooth my skin is yesterday. I haven’t given a whole lot of background on this, and I guess I should in a later post, but I had never had any problems with my complexion until this past November, when it just erupted after I quit smoking. It was so crippling to the old self-esteem, and I had struggled to control it with medications (topical and internal) from the dermatologist, skincare products and routines, and by experimenting with my diet. In retrospect, since I am a longtime vegetarian, I think that dairy and cooked carbohydrates were the biggest culprits. It almost seems like I suffered a candida bloom after quitting smoking. All I know is that I cried a lot, hardly saw my friends, and was real sad about the whole ordeal. Luckily, there was a light at the end of the tunnel, which glowed with piles and piles of fresh fruit! Raw food was the answer for me. I don’t use any acne medications (topical or internal) anymore, and feel overall happier.
In addition to my complexion, my nails are out of this world. I stopped drinking milk as a small child, and, brainwashed by media, attributed my short, peely nails to lack of protein and calcium for many years. Last year, they began growing stronger and longer, when I regularly took several supplements (multivitamins, calcium, fish oil, etc.). After a few months, they began splitting again, but since eating high raw and then 100% raw, they are grow so long, so quickly. And without breakage. I have literally never seen them like this. These positive physical changes are so exciting, because they make me feel really encouraged about what must be happening inside my body, you know? And they obviously make me feel better about myself, but that’s sort of a happy extra.
I have been feeling the need to eat lighter or even fast for a few days. Because I have a few bunches of bananas, two flats of mangoes, about eight kiwis, a couple of cantaloupe, and two pineapples ripening, I need to wait until I’ve eaten them so that I don’t waste anything. I believe in the holistic power of periodic but regular fasting, which is another word for conscious, accelerated detoxing. If you’ll remember, I believe that this practice (which requires practice) must be approached in a healthful, mindful manner, and with proper preparation. I’m thinking I may start Friday, which would give me the freedom to relax, journal, and put myself in a healing environment for a few days. However, that might not be long enough to get through my food reserves, so I’m going to play it by ear.
I will leave you with one final thought, which is the polar opposite of fasting: RAWEOS. GAH. Although you know what’s weird? Although they’re raw and 100% delicioso(s), I almost felt like I had a fever after eating them! They’re the most processed thing I’ve eaten in almost 40 days, so I guess my body is like WTH. Took some milk thistle and am hoping to be cooled down tomorrow. That’s what I get for eating… a lot of them. Like maybe 6. HAHA. Will let you know how I’m doing tomorrow. In the meantime:
Easily the #1 question I have been asked over the years. It’s not necessarily our fault that we have become so distanced from our food and the natural world, but when you think about this, it’s a little silly: why would cooked foods and/or animal products contain any more helpful vitamins, minerals, or proteins than raw foods? Raw food is perfection in its ratios of all of the above, packaged perfectly by Mother Nature for our consumption.
If the Food Pyramid advises us to obtain calcium from dairy, and we clearly eat a whole lot of dairy, then why the boom in Osteoporosis? Isn’t that dairy supposed to stengthen our skeletons? Here’s the easy answer: Animal products acidify our blood. This would kill us if we didn’t neutralize the acid. What neutralizes acid in our bodies? Phosphate. Because we don’t naturally produce this, our bodies leech it from our Calcium Phosphate, aka: our bones. So the acid is neutralized, and then you pee out the calcium. Real great! As you might be able to see, we have not been designed to eat animal products. Still not convinced? Read this article, which breaks down why we are anatomically herbivores, not omnivores, and certainly not carnivores. We’ve been duped!
Protein Content of Common Foods (percentage of calories)
Food
Protein
Food
Protein
Apricots
10%
Asparagus
27%
Bananas
4%
Broccoli
20%
Cherries
6%
Cabbage
15%
Cucumbers
11%
Carrots
6%
Grapes, red
4%
Corn
10%
Oranges, Valencia
7%
Kale
16%
Peaches
8%
Lettuce, green leaf
22%
Strawberries
7%
Spinach
30%
Tomatoes, red
12%
Cheese, cheddar
26%
Watermelon
7%
Milk, whole
23%
Potatoes, baked
7%
Egg, poached
37%
Rice, white
8%
Ice, cream, choc.
8%
Spaghetti
14%
Beef, ground (avg)
50%
Source : The 80/10/10 Diet by Dr. Douglas N. Graham
Hmmm. Paradigm shift, my friends! Dr. Doug Graham writes:
In his book The China Study, renowned Cornell University professor emeritus of nutritional biochemistry T. Colin Campbell states that we require only 5-6% of our total calories to come from protein in order to replace the protein we routinely lose, and that “About 9-10% protein has been recommended for the past fifty years to be assured that most people at least get their 5-6% ‘requirement.’”
In addition to the safety margin, this recommendation assumes that people eat their protein cooked. Given that cooking substantially deranges protein and other nutrients, we can safely consume far less raw plant protein and still be assured of sufficient nourishment. Thus, you can see that 10% protein (maximum) is both sufficient and reasonable.
The fact that our protein needs actually run in the single digits (under 10%) often surprises people. Most all of us have unwittingly fallen prey to meat-industry propaganda that would lead us to believe otherwise. Truly, advertising has influenced our perception of reality so widely that the concept of “getting enough protein” is embedded in the culture.
Consuming approximately 5% of calories from protein is difficult to avoid if you are eating enough food to meet your daily calorie needs. All plant foods contain protein, and even if you ate a diet of only white rice, (not recommended) you would still end up with 8% protein for the day! But would it be the “right kind” of protein?
Thesis: I get all the protein, vitamins, and minerals I need from a raw food vegan diet. I avoid calcium leeching, and other health issues and vitamin/mineral deficiencies that could arise from eating a cooked food, SAD diet… surprising as that is!
As I mentioned, I’ve been taking milk thistle with dandelion root three times a day to assist my body’s detox process. I think it’s working. My skin broke out a little, and I experienced a night sweat two nights ago. I also had a nightmare. I’m feeling a little tired, especially in the afternoon, although I’ve been keeping up with my 60 minute walk twice daily, as well as drinking probably 15 cups of water+ each day. As much as these are rather unpleasant symptoms, I’m actually really grateful to be experiencing them. I can tell my body is changing, healing. Expelling all the icky heavy metals and toxins and pharmaceuticals, even if through my skin isn’t the prettiest conduit.
I have to admit I had been probably overdoing it with my fat intake (I’m looking at YOU, almond butter). Nutridiary was making this rather clear, and I was forced to confront it when I decided to consciously detox. Because years’ and years’ worth of toxins from our SAD eating lifestyle, as well as from our water and environment, are stored in our fat cells, eating excessive amounts of nuts and seeds wasn’t exactly helping me to alkalize and eliminate them quickly. At the beginning of the journey, I was trying to be gentle with myself, kind of like, if it’s raw and you’re hungry, fine. Eat whatever, although I have really mainly stuck with ripe fruit. Looking at all the varieties of raw nuts and seeds at the market was so exciting, though, and I wanted to try them all! And so I did. Realizing I could step it up a bit, though, and eat more consistently in-line with Dr. Doug Graham’s recommendation of 80/10/10 (aka: 811), or 80% of calories coming from carbs (fruit), 10% fat, 10% protein. This 10%, or preferably less, fat recommendation is also embraced by mainstream nutritionists, although Americans are definitely in a 40%-ish range. I feel much better when I eat in this 811 ratio, even though cravings might make me desire to do otherwise. Looking at Nutridiary, I can see a couple of days when my percentage of calories from fat was 22% (damn you, almond butter). Yes, it tastes DELICIOUS. But it doesn’t feel so delicious, really. I end up feeling heavy, sluggish, tired, and usually wake up the next AM with a blemish. HATE.
More TMI has been the bloating. Even though I love what I’m eating, and feel very confident that I’m on my best personal path, the pregnant belly isn’t so exciting (NO MOM IT’S JUST AN EXPRESSION). I’m exaggerating a little. After really, a lifetime of insoluble fiber and cooked food, my digestive system is a little WTF at the serious introduction of healthy soluble fibers (fruit, veggies). As a result, by the evening, my tummy is pretty round. Like I said, I am being gentle on myself, however, and realizing this is all part of my body’s transitional process. I just wear looser, softer clothing (which I’m really beginning to prefer to my more mainstream “stylish” wardrobe) and am dealing with it. No makeup really either. That should really blow some of you away who know me well. I’ve read that it should all reconcile within two months. If not, I’m confident it will all be worth the inconvenience. I haven’t gained or lost any weight, even though I’ve seriously kicked up my caloric intake, and regardless of how the bloating makes me feel. Really, I’ve stopped weighing myself completely, seeing as I begin the day with 64 oz of water. I wouldn’t be able to tell what I was weighing! My water, meals, muscle, or fat. So there’s really no point. My days have been revolving around green smoothies, ripe bananas, ripe mangos, and different savory raw soup recipes from the lovely Victoria Boutenko. Been avoiding nuts, seeds, other overt fats like avocado, and dried fruits.
My yoga teacher told me that not all pain is bad; that we try so hard, go so far out of our way to avoid feeling it at all, when really, we should be embracing healthy pain. I think this detox is a healthy pain. I’ll be glad when it’s over, though.
In other news, I started my day with an early morning walk, followed with a green smoothie:
4 ripe bananas
10 leaves red lettuce
handful baby spinach
1 cup water
It was delicious. Now I’m off to the low cost vaccination clinic to have teh Mitten’s shots updated. Getting him in his carrier is always a nightmare, and we’re bringing his BFF Timber to hold his paw through it all.
Wrapping up my first week writing daily about a raw vegan diet!:
I have been 100% committed to eating raw; that is to say, I have not had even one bite of cooked food. Whew. I think my mother has been trying to kill me with her platters of cheese enchiladas and soy egg rolls… in fact, she’s frying some collard greens from the garden right now :/ Though I have been steadfast, that is not to say I haven’t been tempted. I don’t take the first bite, because I have no self-control and one bite could easily become 10. Besides, I’ve been pretty stoked on not having a bloated face and puffy eyes in the AM due to excessive salt intake. I have dealt with any difficulties and/or cravings by eating fruit. Specifically, bananas. Lots of bananas. I eat them plain or blend them with a little raw almond butter, greens, or dates. Oh, dates. You kind of look like cockroaches, but you taste so heavenly. I’ve been tracking my food intake and activity on NutriDiary, mostly to be able to tell the naysayers: I’ve eaten 200% of my daily fiber recommendation, 250% of my daily vitamin A, and 475% of my daily vitamin C already…and it’s only 3pm! Oh, protein? I’ve had 75%- from green smoothies, bananas, a lunch of mangos, more bananas, and some almonds! How’s that animal product treating your diabetes?*
*(That’s not the only reason I’ve been using NutriDiary, of course. I want to make sure I’m getting all my nutrients as well. Being the best, healthiest representative of the vegan diet I can be is very important to me.)
I’ve really gotten into the habit of chugging 6-8 glasses of water upon rising. I noticed that when I guzzled during the day, I would feel bloated, like the water was just sitting on top of my food. Also, not to be all TMI, but transitioning my diet to 100% raw had left me a little stopped up. This morning ritual has made my digestion quick and super clean. I highly recommend giving it a try. I’m not sure if it’s morning hydration, exercising daily, or the abundance of raw foods, but I’ve been able to easily let go of a caffeine habit which has ranged from mild (1-2 cups coffee/tea per day) to severe (3-4 venti black coffees/day + a nasty diet coke addiction) over the past several years, having more energy than I did previously. I have been trying to go to sleep before 10pm, as I read that our bodies do the most healing between 10pm-2am. Taking a cue from Victoria Boutenko, I have also begun turning off all electronic devices in my room, including my cellphone, when I call it a night. With no need for an alarm anymore, I’ve found my nights more restful than ever.
I’m really looking forward to watching my progress over the next few weeks! I hope you have an outstanding holiday; I’m going to go for a walk, then feast on fruit and sunbathe the day away!
