NO TIME TO EAT RAW

A common complaint I hear from folks is, "Oh, I'd love to eat raw, but I just don't have the time to prepare all the food."  I thought about this today when I was have a Raw Afternoon, thinking that maybe it was indeed time consuming.  I made 5 raw dishes, and when I finished, I checked the clock, and it took me less than two hours, which included, walking in the door from the market with my produce, assembling my equipment, cleaning and preparing my produce, preparing the dishes. and pausing between dishes to enjoy a cool pale ale.  Not bad if you ask me.

Here is what I made:

1.  My world famous onion bread - or at least it is infamous in the White-Powers Household.
I prepared this recipe first using:
3 large sweet onions - I used a slicer and thinly sliced each down about 1/2 way or until my fingers got nervous of being sliced.  I tossed the slices in a large mixing bowl and marinated them in 1/4 cup Nama Shoyu, and I tossed the remainder of the onion in the food processor with the S blade.

Then I ground (in my coffee grinder)
1 1/2 cups of raw sunflower seeds and
1 1/2 cups of flax seeds
and tossed them into the food processor with
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

Gave it a whirl until it made a paste or dough and then dumped it into the mixing bowl and with my super clean hands (lol) I massaged the dough into the onion rings and the onion rings into the dough.
Then I took this mixture and spread it on two dehydrator sheets with the teflon liner, flattened each down with love, and put them in the dehydrator at 110 degrees until my next addition of the Kale Chips or 1 hour, which ever comes first.

2.  Then I made my Cheezy Kale chips - you have heard this recipe too many times to stay sane, but recall that I use 1 cup of soaked and drained cashews, 1 yellow pepper, a hardy shake of nutritional yeast, cayenne and Himalayan sea salt.

I lined 3 trays (no teflon liner) with these tasty chips and when I put them in the dehydrator, I reduced the temperature to 100 degrees.

I will visit these treats at midnight tonight to flip the bread.  They chips should be done in the morning, the bread in the afternoon, but aside from the grand flip (and removal of the teflon sheets) my work is done here.

3.  Next, some Raw Cashew Hummus using
2 + cups of raw cashews, soaked and rinsed
1/2 cup of freshly squeezed lemon juice
3/4 cup tahini
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 minced clove of garlic
1 tsp ground cumin
1 1/2 tsp nama shoyu

Give it a hardy whirl, salt if necessary - probably won't be, and voila - a great spread for the onion bread!

4. How about some Walnut Pate -- a meaty tasting treat?!
I used 1 cup of soaked walnuts, 
1 tablespoon of freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 teaspoon nama shoyu
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
and a tablespoon of minced green onion

Give it a whirl and smush it into a container.  Not only can this be a spread for crackers or the onion bread, but you can use it like a meatloaf with sauce over it, or crumbled on a salad - it is quite versatile.

5. A salsa that was so good I almost fainted with orgasmic delight when I tasted it.  Wowie Zowie!
Into the food processor with the ever ready S-blade, I tossed:

2 cups diced tomatoes
1 yellow pepper, seeded
a big handful of cilantro - maybe a loosely packed cup
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
a hardy teaspoon of diced ginger (I get the tube of ginger in the produce section of Publix just to make sure I have some on hand -- I have tossed away too many rotted ginger roots in my day)
2 teaspoons diced fresh jalapeno pepper
1/4 cup nama shoyu
1/2 teaspoon ground sun dried lime (first time I have used this - wow! - got them in a middle eastern grocery, put a dried lime in a baggie and whacked it with a hammer, then poured the pieces into my coffee grinder and ground it into a powder.  I put the rest in a jar for another time)
and
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin.

And as we say: give it a whirl, let it be just a little chunky;  I stored mine in a mason jar after my near delirium post-pleasurable taste.  I think it would be poor form to just drink it or eat it like a soup, but it sure was goooooood.

And that's it.  This gives me fixings to use all week.  Add to these dishes, (during the week) a veggie salad, or a wrap, or top spiraled or shoestring  zucchini with the salsa -- many different uses and ideas, just taking two hours of prep time on the weekend.

May you be blessed with two hours of time when you can go to your kitchen, turn up the music (if you like), drink beer (or whatever floats your boat), chop, get your hands full of healthy food, dance around the kitchen like no one is looking and just have one heck of a time, so you can be blessed with a head start on the weeks worth of healthy meals.   It's all good.  Eat it raw!

The oft neglected but yet delectable brussel sprout!

In my previous post, I said I was aiming for 90% raw -- well let me tell you a bit about the other 10% - the oft neglected but yet delectable brussel sprout!  These little powerhouses of health and energy also pack a flavorful punch.

To prepare them, I heated my large toaster oven to 400 degrees.  I washed the sprouts, performed a minor circumcision on each, and halved them.  I placed them on the baking sheet, insides up, gave them a spray of olive oil, and set them in the oven to bake. 

After 4 to 5 minutes, I took out the pan and doused them with a generous bath of freshly squeezed lemon juice, the last of my home grown big juicy lemons (I hate to buy them at the store for the exorbitant price they charge, when my tree produces such grand ones, but alas, growing season awaits.)  I put the pan back in for another 4 to 5 minutes.

I take the pan out one more time and drizzle a hint of dark toasted sesame oil on each little sprout - back in the oven for the finale -- take them out when they start turning golden.  Sprinkle with your favorite sea salt - my current is Himalayan.  And yum.

I ate a generous portion right off the pan (sorry Ms Manners) - and took some cold for dinner last night.  A taste treat due to its mix and marriage of flavors.

Back to raw:

This morning's juice was a blend of a head of Romaine, a leaf of kale, a handful of spring greens, three carrots, an apple and a pear.  What a way to begin a beautiful day!

I am meeting a girlfriend for lunch after Pilates and we are going to Rolling Oats - a health food grocery store and cafe - I usually get vegan soup, but today I will get their Green Drink with a pear - another juiced delight.

And tonight, my supper is the remainder of yesterday's cauliflower, apple, yellow pepper and cabbage mix.  I eat between traumas (since I am a trauma chaplain) and it relieves stress for me to crunch my dinner.  Well meditation and breathing techniques work well too, but there is nothing like a flavorful crunch to ground me too, especially of earth grown produce - truly, talk about grounding.

Wishing you all sunshine and rainbows and perfect health.

Raw and pure sunshine and health

Going Raw

21 Days to my wedding and I am counting down by going raw - at least 90% raw, the remainder, of course, will still be vegan.  I read a great and inspiring book by a great and inspiring author:  Crazy Sexy Diet by Kris Carr.  Google her; get her books.  She is great and her writings are motivating.  Sort of how Skinny Bitch flipped the switch in my brain to become vegan even before I finished the book.

I began my day by drinking 8 oz of filtered water - I wanted to drink 16 oz. but did not have the patience to finish my water.  However, this is an aspirational goal: 16 oz of water each morning upon waking.

Then I had a cup of life! Actually, I juiced it yesterday in an attempt to clean out the refrigerator for today's Raw Challenge.  I juiced carrots, celery, pears, apple, spinach, bok choy, zucchini - and it was really good.  I like to drink my juice in a wine glass just to add that touch of celebration of life.

Lunch:  I combined (photo above):
1/2 head of cauliflower florets
1/4 head red cabbage diced
1 yellow pepper diced
1 red apple diced
some herbs from my meager herb garden - we have had a hot spell in SW FL, and also, some hungry squirrels, but there was a little cilantro, basil, and parsley left for the snipping.
Seasoned with Himalayan Sea Salt and White Balsamic Vinegar

The colors are inviting, and the flavors tease each other and the tastebuds.  With each crunch - just imagine pure sunshine and health.

I also made a Raw Goddess Soup from Kris' recipe -- it tastes great, but it was NOT photogenic, so it remains private.   One would never go raw if I shared a photo of this healthy soup.

Wishing you  a day of sunshine and health.  Support your local farmers - and stay out of the center aisles of your supermarket -- there is nothing good for you there, honest.

1.1.11

Time to kick butt and get it in gear -- even eating a vegan diet, I have allowed my weight to creep up a bit.  So I am buckling down and launching a personal challenge.

I weighed in at 165 this morning -- way too high for a vegan.  My challenge is to lose 15 pounds by March 1st and if I do, I can reward myself with an Ipad.  If I do not, I must weight until I lose 30 pounds before I can get the coveted Ipad.   I do not know what my ideal weight is, but with my height, I think my goal weight is about 125, so there are pounds to go....

Most of you have probably never just, spur of the moment, Googled: Lentils.  But if you did, or if you do, you will see that they are a powerhouse of all sorts of healthy goodies.

Lentils will be a major part of my diet during these next months.  

My breakfast this morning was a sauteed mixture of baby leaf spinach, some previous prepared lentils, some salsa and a sprinkling of sea salt and sesame seed.  Powerhouse!  Breakfast of champions - or at least, this champion.

Wishing you all a year of good health and vibrancy so we can truly live our best lives ever.

Hale to Kale!

The perfect storm:  Vegans, like pregnant women, often get strange cravings.  At least strange to "normal" folks.  Yesterday I woke up craving kale.  Kale, kale, kale.  And when I walked into my local organic/health food market, there by the front door awaiting me was............drum roll............bundles of leafy green, perfect kale. 

Of course, now what to do with it??  I was too lazy to make kale chips.  Inspired by the cooler temperature in the SE, I put together the following No Name Kale Recipe.

Into a skillet (you can start with a soup kettle, but I preferred to start with the skillet and then pour my ingredients into the kettle once sauteed):

I began with a TSBP of olive oil,
one diced Valdalia onion
about 1 1/2 cups match stick carrots
one clove mashed and chopped clove of garlic

and then I sauteed them until soft

I next added 3 diced, unpeeled Yukon gold potatoes and about 1/2 cup of water to keep things from sticking and to help steam the potatoes

about now my skillet was getting full, so into the soup kettle went my mixture.

Now I added:

the bundle of kale, which I previously washed and tore into smaller pieces removing the stems,
and because I had left over in the fridge, I added torn romaine and boston lettuces.

and more water to aid in steaming.

Lastly,
I added: two cans of white beans, (probably any kind of beans you have in your pantry will work just fine) rinsed and drained,
and
red pepper flakes
and
some cayenne to taste
and
some Himalayan sea salt to taste
and the coup de grace:
a decent amount of sun dried tomatoes and the herbed oil in which they were stored --yum -- this added the kicker.

All in all, it was a hearty stew, with a taste of the veggies, some heat and some herbal teasing.  A keeper in my humble opinion.  Kale, kale, the gangs all here -- well, if I had enough left over to invite them, they would be here!

Vegan?? Oh Dear, But Where Do You Get Your Protein.

What vegan hasn't heard this shocked, but oh so concerned, question from our friends and family?  As if we are going to waste away, looking like an outcast from a vampire movie, or the latest Hollywood anorexic.

Ahh, the protein myth.  Isn't it funny how Americans (mostly) are so hung up on protein.  And often, those same well-intentioned folks are waddling on their walkers to the buffet line at All You Can Eat restaurants in search of more "protein" -- with plates piling over with what some of us would call pure garbage.

So what is the skinny on protein?  I know, on this blog, I am probably signing to the proverbial choir....but just in case one protein seeking carnivore is reading, then my time will be worthwhile -- or....if you pass this on to your animal eating friends.

Any vegan/vegetarian book on the shelves today addresses this carnivorian myth, but I dug back in my library for an "old friend" from 1971.  How many of you remember the ground breaking book (literally and figuratively): Diet for a Small Planet by Frances Moore Lappe.

In responding to the myth that meant contains more protein than any other food, she wrote: 

Containing 20 to 25 percent protein by weight, meat ranks about in the middle of the protein quantity scale along with some nuts, cheese, beans and fish.

And whether meat is the only way to get enough protein (especially at those All You Can eat hog troughs, oops sorry)

Americans often eat 50 to 100 percent more protein than their bodies can use.  thus, most Americans could completely eliminate meat, fish, and poultry from their diets and still get the recommended daily allowance of protein from all the other protein rich foods in the typical American diet.  

Why should we care?
I am pretty much a "live and let live" kind of person -- but the crux of this debate is the "live" part.   Those folks who subscribe to this protein myth are those folks who do not understand their dietary needs and do not understand, or care about, how to maintain their health.

And why should we care about that?
Because we are paying for their misunderstanding by the high cost of medical insurance and health related costs passed on to those who care about our own health.  It is a personal responsibility issue.  Maybe we cannot change the bulk of the All You Can Eat folks -- but by living our example of good health, maybe we can make changes in how others choose to live.  Maybe children can be educated to eat healthy - to understand nutrition, to take personal responsibility for their health.  Wouldn't it make for a healthier planet?

It's a good thing I am generally a nice and easy going person because at the hospital where I work, I often walk up to my co-workers when they are eating their dinner (can you imagine eating your dinner in a trauma/er unit with body sounds and fluids all around....but nevertheless...) I ask them, "So, what animal had to die to feed you tonight?"    (or if I am more frisky:  what animal had to die to feed your fat ass?)  Most just reply:  Are you waving the green bean again?  To which I reply:  You Bet!!

If it has a face, don't eat it.  Easy.