When David Wolfe was visiting Sarasota, (yes, the raw foods guru came to town) I asked him (yes, I spoke to him and even hugged him - what a nice guy he is) what his favorite cacao recipe was. Without even an eye blink he said the $18,000 Smoothie. Like a dolt, I looked at him and said, “What?” He looked back, very patiently, (that’s one of the reasons he is such a nice guy), and told me to go to YouTube to watch it. I did, and since I saw it last week, it has been removed from You Tube. If you can find it, please let me know.
In the mean time I am giving you a link to David World smoothie which will get you started and interesting take on smoothies. I don’t have all the stuff he used in the smoothie - like lots of stuff - but I did add his special ingredient cayenne pepper, and it was fabulous with the cacao.
This week we are doing a special using curry powder. If you look around where you live there may or not be an Indian restaurant. There is only one here in Sarasota, which leads me to believe that Indian food isn’t all that popular in this neck of the woods. Well, here’s the news folks, it’s really good for you, so cultivate a taste for it!
Don’t just take my word for it. When I Googled “curry health benefits” I got 328,000 pages. Come to find out there is a lot of research on Curcumin, a component of Turmeric, which is the major ingredient in curry powder.
If you should be aging (yes, we all are), have a bit of mental slowness, be occasionally seized up with arthritic pain or much of anything else you are not all that happy about Turmeric/Curcumin might be just the thing for you. And the good news is they are making it in capsules!
“Curcuminoids are the most studied and important substances in the spice turmeric root. Curcuminoids include curcumin, demethoxycurcumin and bisdemethoxy-curcumin. Curcumin is the major important component of Turmeric (Curcuma longa) and extensive scientific research on curcumin has demonstrated its potent antioxidant properties. Through its various mechanisms, curcumin supports colon health, exerts neuroprotective activity and helps maintain a healthy cardiovascular system”. Dr Ray Sahelian’s site goes into greater detail about the effects and studies on curcumin, as well as many other health issues.
From an Ayurvedic standpoint Turmeric has been used for centuries.
“To Traditional Ayurvedics, Turmeric is seen as an excellent natural antibiotic, while at the same time it strengthens digestion and helps improve intestinal flora. As such it is a good anti-bacterial for those chronically weak or ill. It’s not only purifies the blood, but also warms it and stimulates formation of new blood tissue. Turmeric gives the energy of the divine mother and grants prosperity. It is effective for cleansing the chakras (nadi-shodhana), purifying thechannels of the subtle body. It helps stretch the ligaments and is, therefore, good for the practice of hatha yoga. Turmeric promotes proper metabolism in the body, correcting both excesses and deficiencies. It aids in the digestion of protein. Externally, it can be used with honey for sprains, strains, bruise or itch. It is tonic to the skin, for which purpose it can be taken internally as a milk decoction. Turmeric is aromatic and a stimulant and has many helpful functions. It is bitter, slightly pungent and a good blood purifier, and works as a tonic to aid digestion and relieve congestion. It has a soothing action on respiratory ailments such as cough and asthma. It also is antiarthritic and acts as a natural anti-bacterial. Turmeric may be added to high-protein food to assist digestion and prevent the formation of gas. It is effectively used to maintain the flora of the large intestine.”Ram Traders.
I got the below in an email. We do not use these kind of carrots at Raw Raw Foods, but I eat them at home. I was concerned, so I checked it out at Snopes.com. a great site to check out the validity of all those urban legends and wild emails.
“The following is information from a farmer who grows and packages carrots for IGA, METRO, LOBLAWS, etc.
The small cocktail (baby) carrots you buy in small plastic bags are made using the larger crooked or deformed carrots which are put through a machine which cuts and shapes them into cocktail carrots . most people probably know this already.
What you may not know and should know is the following: once the carrots are cut and shaped into cocktail carrots they are dipped in a solution of water and chlorine in order to preserve them (this is the same chlorine used your pool) since they do not have their skin or natural protective covering, they give them a higher dose of chlorine. You will notice that once you keep these carrots in your refrigerator for a few days, a white covering will form on the carrots, this is the chlorine which resurfaces. At what cost do we put our health at risk to have esthetically pleasing vegetables which are practically plastic?
We do hope that this information can be passed on to as many people as possible in the hopes of informing them where these carrots come from and how they are processed. Chlorine is a very well known carcinogen. Please let us make this information available to as many people as possible. If you care about your family and friends, pass it on.”
Snopes won’t let you copy their information, but here is the link for the article. Draw your own conclusions.
Here at RRF we use a goodly amount of nuts. They add protein, bulk, taste, nutrition, texture and visual appeal. We always soak them in purified water to release the enzyme inhibitors, then either blend them into a cream, freeze to use later or dehydrate them.But nuts have gotten a bad rap through out the years. Most people think they are not good for you - they make you fat, raise your cholesterol, coat your arteries, you know, that kind of propaganda. Well, I’m here to tell you why they are good for you. Actually, I am going to quote a source who can tell you much more eloquently than I can the benefits of eating nuts.
“More and more research shows the positive impact of tree nut consumption on satiety and weight management, as well as a number of chronic diseases including heart disease
and diabetes,” states Lindsay Allen, PhD, Director of the USDA ARS Western
Human Nutrition Research Center. Dr. Allen was commenting on proceedings
from the Nuts and Health Symposium in the September 2008 issue of the
Journal of Nutrition.
Epidemiologic studies show that consuming tree nuts (almonds, Brazils,
cashews, hazelnuts, pecans, pine nuts, pistachios, macadamias and walnuts)
five or more times per week is associated with a reduced risk of developing
both diabetes and heart disease. In one analysis, individuals who ate the
most nuts had about a 35 percent reduced risk of coronary heart disease.
While the FDA qualified health claim for nuts and heart disease recommends
1.5 ounces of nuts per day, few people actually consume this amount on a
daily basis. In the 2001-2004 What We Eat in America/NHANES survey, 34
percent of those surveyed consumed nuts but most only ate about 3/4 of an
ounce — roughly half of the recommended amount. And, approximately 60
percent of the nuts were consumed as snacks.
Moreover, regular nut consumers do not weigh more than those who do not
consume nuts despite eating roughly 250 additional calories per day.
“Research shows that nuts can actually help maintain body weight,” states
Maureen Ternus, M.S., R.D., Executive Director of INC NREF. “Tree nuts
contain beneficial unsaturated fats (mono- and polyunsaturated fats),
protein and fiber, all of which provide a feeling of fullness.” In
addition, studies have shown that the fat in nuts may not be fully absorbed
and there may be an increase in resting energy expenditure (the calories
burned when you’re resting) with regular nut consumption.”
So there, to all of you who fear to eat nuts! If you want to read more about the benefits of
eating nuts go to this web site Nut Health.
My husband does a fair amount of television watching, and his current favorite is Discovery’s Planet Green, billed as TV’s first all green network. I’ve had a chance to glimpse at it a time or two myself and it’s got a lot of varied and interesting shows. Ed Begley Jr., has a show called Living With Ed, and so does his neighbor, Bill Nye. Remember Bill Nye the Science Guy? His Green Planet show is called, Stuff Happens explaining cause and effect with an environmental take. What’s fun is there is a friendly competition between them, that leads to some laughs.
Unless you have really embraced the ecological movement and have chosen to live in the high pure-air mountains, and have shunned any form of communication with the polluted lower world, you wouldn’t be reading this, but let me tell you, being green is hot. So hot, if you are a celebrity or someone with any kind of renown or status, if you aren’t driving, wearing, living, drinking, eating or using green products or even green by-products, you just aren’t on the A List. Not that many of us care about the A List, but it demonstrates the influence of fame and it’s far reaching effect. Because being green, or at last making an attempt at it, has filtered down to us masses where green is also a buzz word and something people are talking more and more about.
At RRF we have made and eco- commitment and are using degradeable carry out containers and compost all our vegetable scraps - at least the ones we don’t use in our crackers.
I got curious and ‘Goggled’ Green Network. There are 29,900,000 pages - here are some from the list - take your pick, from cleaning to Spas, you are covered.
I suppose this wouldn’t be a proper raw food blog without mentioning raw dog food. My daughter called me today with an interesting site for anyone interested in considering giving their dog a raw food diet. I do not advocate you have your dog eat raw, nor do I scorn the idea. I fed my dog raw meat for the last little bit of his long life and he loved it, but that’s my experience.
I’m not sure about this site, and if it is serious because their recipe for beef tongue is:
Beef Tongue
1 beef tongue
Take the beef tongue and hand it to your dog.
And that’s it. In our over informed world this seems a little sparse on the instructions, but you sure can’t fault it for being unclear.
In their “Raw Feeding Terms” section they have the: Squidgy Ick Factor
Also refered to as the ewwwwwwwww factor. The reaction some humans have when handling RMBs and/or organs. Humans who have this problem must get over it for the sake of their dogs. If you have this problem don’t worry. The more one handles squidgy items the less it will bother one.
This site, Raw Fed Dogs. has some pretty good links though. BTW, raw food for your dog is a big movement… and it’s not feeding your dog vegetables.
The process of selecting a special for the week is no easy task. It requires inspiration, ingenuity, intuition and a leap of faith. This weeks Around the World in 3 Scoops is a perfect example of how all of those factors came into play.
First, in this case Joan, but sometimes I put my two cents in, scourged the many many raw food books looking for inspiration. [We were generously gifted a ton of books from someone who knew someone who was going out of the bookstore business, and we are grateful every day for these gifts].
This week Joan found four things to experiment with, which she made, with some modifications for testing. We have a wonderful helper who is with us at the kitchen most days, she is also an excellent tester with a keen pallet and an uncanny sense for what people might like. I have a friend who is not hesitant to say what she feels, as well as several customers we occasionally use as testers.
So we sat our testers down and served them the Around the World special with the Balinese Soup, and waited. If the comments had not been positive, we would have asked what about the dish they didn’t like including, the taste, texture, after taste, presentation, total look of the meal, and we would note anything relevant which came up in the conversation.
The testers immediate response was first surprise (at the unusual tastes) then yum. We liked this response, so we decided to run the meal and soup as this weeks Special and Featured Item. If the response had been unfavorable, we might have asked what they would have liked to see different, how the taste could be altered (like more or less salt), or any suggestions they might have. Or if it was un-salvageable we would toss the recipe into the circular file - or wastebasket. And the process would start all over again.
What is the most fascinating aspect of testing is how the same food effects everyone differntly. It is mind blowing to me how Joan will hate something I love and visa versa. We have given up trying to perdict what our cousomers will like, and cultivated the philsophy; “You can please some of the people all of the time, you can please all of the people some of the time, but you can’t please all of the people all of the time”.
I have to say that the smoothie I made today for breakfast is an excellent one, and I wanted to share the recipe, such as it is, with you.
1 apple, 1 banana, a couple of big handfuls of spinach - almost to the top of your blender jar, 3/4 teaspoon coconut oil, 1 tablespoon of hemp seed protein powder, a huge tablespoon of raw honey, 3/4 teaspoon of any green powder - I use Pure Synergy, and finally 1/3 a lemon. I peeled the lemon because I had taken the sticker off so I didn’t know if it was organic, but I left most of the pith on. If it had been organic I would have used 1/4 of the lemon, skin and all. I put in about 8-12 ounces of purified water and let my blender do her job.
What is special is the lemon. I learned this trick from Natilia Rose with her recipe for Green Lemonade. It really makes a difference.
I also think you could make this in a regular blender, just cut up your apple into tiny chunks and add the water, or whatever liquid you choose, first. Have a Good Morning!
PS: Today, after my smoothie I went to a NIA class. It was exhausting, but I didn’t get hungry or weak…a good testament for my little recipe. I did go home and take a nap though!
When you begin to explore the raw food world, one of the first things you will see is lots of space taken up with discussions about enzymes, what they are, where you get them and how so many of them are destroyed by high heat.
Not that I’m going to be the definitive voice here, but I am going to give you the low down in bullets, and links for you if you choose to learn more.
• “Enzymes are protein-based molecules that act as biological catalysts,” says David Wolfe. “In fact, enzymes should be thought of as the necessary element in moving stagnation out of the body - whether that is in the form of excess weight, toxins, or even repetitive negative thoughts.”
• Enzymes are found in raw fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and help break down the foods we eat.
• According to the article, Beautifying Your Insides, from the Health Queen, the process starts in your mouth with your saliva. As you chew your food, the enzymes in your saliva begin to break down starchy carbohydrates, thus the reason for chewing your food throughly. “When we eat raw foods, we are able to take full advantage of the enzymes present in the food and our bodies are taxed less to provide additional enzymes to complete digestion. Conversely, when we eat cooked foods, enzymes are destroyed and the full burden to digest the food is placed on the body.”
• As the your meal slides down into your stomach the hydrochloric acid and digestive enzymes go to work digesting what you ate into an ooze which then slips into your small intestine where the pancreatic enzymes do their thing.
• Without enough enzymes, (did I mention they decrease with age, disease and/or stress?) our bodies’ ability to digest food and absorb nutrients is greatly effected.
• Raw food is loaded with healthy vibrant enzymes ready and waiting to help your body be the best it can be.
• You may not have any digestive issues, and be grateful for that. If you do, you can take supplemental digestive enzymes and eat many fresh raw foods. You will feel a difference.
Here is a link to everything about enzymes - from their possible role in autism to leaky gut and more.
When I wrote my first post on Oil Pulling, I never thought I would get the response I’ve gotten. There are lots and lots of you out there who Oil Pull…go figure.
Well, frankly I haven’t O.P’d since I wrote the post, but I’m going to restart. My business partner Joan, faithfully swishes sesame oil around her mouth every day, but she doesn’t say much about it.
I have developed a nasty case of hand eczema. The dr says it is in part due to stress, duh. But I read on this site they say oil pulling will help cure eczema, among dozens of other things, so I’m going to start again, maybe even do it a couple of times a day. The site has good descriptive directions.
If any of you have ‘issues’ you want to fix by oil pulling, make a comment here, make a commitment to do it for, let’s say three weeks, and check back with us every now and then and tell us how you are doing, and what is happening.
and visual appeal. We always soak them in purified water to release the enzyme inhibitors, then either blend them into a cream, freeze to use later or dehydrate them.But nuts have gotten a bad rap through out the years. Most people think they are not good for you - they make you fat, raise your cholesterol, coat your arteries, you know, that kind of propaganda. Well, I’m here to tell you why they are good for you. Actually, I am going to quote a source who can tell you much more eloquently than I can the benefits of eating nuts.
called me today with an interesting site for anyone interested in considering giving their dog a raw food diet. I do not advocate you have your dog eat raw, nor do I scorn the idea. I fed my dog raw meat for the last little bit of his long life and he loved it, but that’s my experience. 
, as well as several customers we occasionally use as testers.
to say that the 
at.
Well, frankly I haven’t O.P’d since I wrote the post, but I’m going to restart. My business partner Joan, faithfully swishes sesame oil around her mouth every day, but she doesn’t say much about it.