This refreshing drink packs in the nutrients!
In a juicer, juice the following:
2 heads of celery
1 large cucumber
5 apples
3 inches of ginger
I added 3 broccoli stems, but you can any green stems such as kale or chard or leave them out.

Pour the juice into a blender and add the following:

10 oz of frozen pineapple
The juice of 2 lemons

Blend untill smooth. Makes 8 cups. There will be some foam. Just skim that off the top when the smoothie settles, and enjoy!

 Benefits of Celery Juice 

Benefits of Pineapple

Pineapple is Loaded with Vitamins and Minerals
The obvious benefits of pineapple are all the vitamins and minerals the fruit is loaded with. Its nutrients include calcium, potassium, fiber, and vitamin C. In addition it is low in fat and cholesterol.

Pineapple Strengthens Bones
One of the benefits of pineapple is that it helps to build healthy bones. Pineapples are rich in manganese, a trace mineral that is needed for your body to build bone and connective tissues. Just one cup of pineapple provides 73% of the daily recommended amount of manganese. The benefits of pineapple can effect the growth of bones in young people and the strengthening of bones in older people.

Pineapple is Good for Colds and Coughs
While many people often take extra vitamin C or drink extra orange juice when they have a cold, few consider eating pineapple. The benefits of pineapple when you have a cold or cough are the same as the benefits of orange juice, but there is an additional benefit of pineapple. Bromelain, which is found in pineapples, has been found to help suppress coughs and loosen mucus.

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After pondering raw food sweeteners and wondering if could make a treat with Yacon Syrup, I created this raw treat to satiate my sweet tooth without messing with my glycemic index.  I think they are better tasting than the ones I make with Agave, so I will certainly keep experimenting with Yacon!

Almond Chocolate Chip Truffles 

The almond pulp left over from making almond milk. A little less than a cup of pulp.
1/4 cup raw cocao powder
1/2 T vanilla powder
1/4 cup Yacon Syrup
3 T melted coconut oil
2 T currants
2 T cocao nibs (the chocolate chips)
1/2 tsp almond extract
Pinch of salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon

Roll into balls and then roll into raw cocao powder to coat the outside.

Freeze for 15 - 30 mins. So they firm up a bit.

They will keep in the refrigerator for one week or they keep in the freezer for 2 months.

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This is my question.

I've read a lot of articles like this in the past year:

Agave Not a Healthy Sugar Alternative After All

http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/health/agave-not-a-healthy-sugar-alternative-after-all-1040266/

I use Agave a lot. When I started the raw food living diet a year ago, I bought many raw-food un-cook books to learn about my new chosen lifestyle. Most all of these books tout the benefits of Agave and proclaim it as the sweetener of choice in the raw diet.

There are clearly two sides of the Agave argument. I try to buy only the really RAW agave (not heated over 115 degrees and therefore un- processed) but it's not easy to find. Manufactures can get away with claiming that it's RAW, but it may not be truly raw. There are tons of Agave Syrups on the market shelves that don't even say RAW, so I definitely avoid those!

It's a bummer that there is so much confusing information out there about how to have "sweets" in you diet in a healthy manner.

Better alternatives might be:

1. Dates - great for sweeten desserts. Cheaper and more flavorful and full of fiber!
2. Stevia is a good alternative, but it's bitter tasting.
3. Yacon Root Syrup-Yacon is a glucose-free but it's expensive (about $14 for 8 oz)  It also has a distinct flavor that some people may not like. I'm learning to like it.
4. Raw Honey - easy to get, not too expensive.
   

"Natural" sugar is "natural" sugar, and if people try to eat as little as they can, and completely avoid the processed stuff like, white processed "table" sugar, high fructose corn syrup and the many others versions of this, and the fake sugars like Splenda, NutraSweet, Aspartame, (which are pure poison) they will better off health-wise. 

I'm not counting sweet fruits in this category of natural sweeteners.  There is so much MORE nutrient-wise in fruit, so getting more fruit in your diet is a good thing. Futhermore, we do actucally NEED sugars. This is great article by David Wolfe about sugar.

I love sweets and do not want to feel deprived by cutting them out completely! I will continue to search for the right sweetener and experiment more with Yacon.

More on Yacon Syrup...

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Greens, glorious greens!

I just can't seem to get enough!

It's impossible to mess this salad up, and you can use any kind of hearty greens.

The squeezing action along with the lemon juice acts in tandem to "cook" the greens down to a fraction of their volume in their fresh state, so "go big" when filling your bowl with fresh greens when you begin this recipe, or you won't have enough to share.

This salad is an easy and delicious way to get nutrient-rich greens into your diet. It also saves in the refrigerator for a few days, so you can make a big double or triple batch and have a perfect meal waiting to be garnished with other veggies of your choice when you are ready to eat.

It's also a great traveler if you want to take a "salad" to work that won't get soggy. The greens just kepp getting more flavorable!

Massaged Kale Salad

This salad can also be made with a combination of raw hearty greens such as the Kale and Beet Greens, Chard, or Spinach.

4-6 cups kale leaves (or other greens)

Rinse and dry one bunch of greens (or a combination), tear it up and place it in a roomy bowl.

Add two or three cloves of finely minced garlic, a light coating of cold-pressed olive oil, the juice of one lemon, salt and pepper.

Now it’s time for the “massage.”

Wash your hands and have at it. Toss the whole lot together and take big handfuls and squeeze the greens. Keep doing this for about a minute. Everything will get nice and juicy and the greens will soften and shrink in volume.

Then you can let it sit for a while. The lemon will ‘cook’ the kale, soften the greens and garlic even more.

Before serving, add whatever sliced of grated veg you have. I like sliced or diced avocado, grated beets or carrots, or diced apple and top with pumpkin seeds or any other chopped nut or seed you have for a bit of crunch and texture.

For an Asian-Inspired version, you can also “marinate” the greens in this dressing:

1/3 cup olive oil, 1/4 tsp salt, 1 clove garlic, 1 T fresh ginger, 1T light Tamari, 1/2 cup water, pinch cayenne.

Make this version a few hours or even a day or two ahead of time.

The marinade will soften the greens and when you are ready to serve it you can toss with the avocado, apple and nuts.

   

Click here to download:

Massaged_Kale_Salad.zip (353 KB)

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My personal choice is to purchase organic produce from local farmers, either at my farmer's market or from a great LOCAL DELIVERY service like ALBERT & EVE, who carefully source from and support local farmers.  Where your food comes from is important especailly if you are concerned about the environment and energy conservation. The carbon footprint of food grown locally is much better for the planet!

Many people across the US do not have as many fresh produce choices as I do living in California, which is why Whole Foods Markets are great for many healthy organic products. If you don't want your food shipped from China or New Zealand or Chili, then just don't buy it.

I have a friend who works for Whole Foods, and she shared this insight about the quality of Chinese organics:

Organic products from China can absolutely be certified organic to the exact same standard as domestic products. While China has had a number of food quality issues in the news in the past year, it does not mean everything grown in the entire country is unsafe. Since 2002, the USDA’s National Organic Standards have governed exactly what can be sold as organic in the US – how it’s grown, processed and handled - regardless of where in the world it’s grown, INCLUDING China. Organic integrity is ensured every step of the way. For example, a broccoli grower in China must be visited and certified to the USDA organic standards by a certifying agent that is approved and supervised by the USDA. If that broccoli is processed in a packaging plant, that plant must also be visited and certified by a certifying agent, who verifies that the handling and ingredients of the product comply with the standard.

This structure is the backbone of organic integrity under the USDA organic standard – everyone who grows or handles organic food must be certified and audited by a USDA-accredited certifier. The USDA then provides audits and oversight of the certifiers to ensure that they are enforcing the standard and upholding organic integrity.

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I feel a keen sense of urgency to help people "wake-up" to the health crisis in this country and help those I can reach by educating on the benefits (and miracles really) of a plant-based diet.

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People always ask me...Where do you get your protein?
This is the big question I get about being on a raw food living diet.

My answer is this: I get more than enough protein from whole, plants-based foods like greens, vegetables, seeds, nuts, fruits and grains in their raw and un-cooked “living” form.

I start my day with a green smoothie: 1 bunch of fresh kale or spinach, some fruit and water in a blender. Pound for pound Greens have more protein than chicken. Greens of all kinds (lettuces, kale, chard, bok coy, spinach, arugula, beet greens, carrot greens, parsley and endive to name some) have an abundance of high-quality protein that allows for a slow and steady synthesis of new proteins, which is the healthiest type of protein to eat because your body can actually USE it.

So for example, in my green smoothie today, I had:

Plants            Grams of protein

2 cups Kale             5
2 cups Collards       8
2 cups Chard          6
2 bananas               2
1 cup blueberries    1
1 apple                    2

Total grams of
Protein                  24

A women needs only 30 grams of protein per day, so before lunch I’m 80% to my daily requirement! A man needs only 40 grams per day.

I also love to snack on sprouted and dehydrated sunflower seeds which I spice-up with a yummy sweet curry seasoning. 1/2 cup of this snack packs 16.5 grams of protein!

My point is, it’s very easy to get well over 40 grams of high-quality plant-based protein each day my just eating fruits, veggies, nuts and seeds!

The idea that “high-quality” protein is only found in and is synonymous with "animal meat" is a myth and marketing concept that we’ve all been “sold” for decades, if not centuries!  Now that I'm all veg, I actually have much more sustainable energy and strength throughout my day, which includes more energy in my workouts! Before adopting a raw plant-based diet, I was a self proclaied "meat-girl"! So that fact that I don't eat meat anymore is shocking to me. But without the animal fleah, I feel much more "powerful" in every way. If you think about it, many of the strongest and muscular animals, such as horses, also eat only plants!

I don't "miss meat", either. Reading Doctor T. Colin Campbell's Book The China Study taught me about all the bad, disease-causing stuff that comes with animal protein.  What's that phrase?....Ignorance is bliss? Well, I'm not ignorant anymore, so I can't blissfully enjoy a steak, hamburger or peice of crispy bacon ever again...not now that I am informed. I highly recommend this book. It changed my life and I even went so far as to get Plant-Based Nutritiion Certified through Dr. Campbell's graduate program taught by Cornell University.

   

Click here to download:

Where_do_you_get_your_protein.zip (104 KB)

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Lately I've been a bit obsessed with greens! I crave them all day long, which has inspired me get a little more creative beyond my usual morning green smoothies.

The fresh mint and kale at the market today was so beautiful, on my drive home I started dreaming of how yummy a mint shake would be and how the kale could not only punch-up the green coloring, but enhance the nutrient content as well.

Fortunately I already had some fresh almond milk in the refrigerator ready to go for this DELICIOUS concoction:

Krazy Kale Mint Shake:

1.5 cups chilled almond milk
4 kale leaves
2 soft dates
1 small frozen banana
1 small bunch of mint - about 20 large leaves.

Blend in a high speed blender - I use a Vita-Mix.

For a chocolate version add 1.5 T of raw cocao.

       

Click here to download:

Krazy_Kale_Mint_Shakes.zip (379 KB)

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With Sunchokes still in season and Asparagus getting into full swing, these two lovelies caught my eye and the imagination of my taste buds today to the Alemany Farmer's Market.

This creamy, raw soup takes 5 minutes to make:

Asparagus Sunchoke Soup

1 bunch of asparagus (ends cut off). Chopped it measures 2 cups.
1.5 cups chopped sunchokes
1 small avocado for extra creaminess (but this is optional)
3 cups hot water
1 clove garlic
juice of one lemon
1/3 cup raw pine nuts
1 T light miso
3/4 tsp salt

Blend everything oh high in a powerful blender (I use a Vita-Mix) until creamy-smooth and warmed.

Add-Ons:These toppings  made it prettier: Cracked black pepper, sliced asparagus tip and drizzle of truffle oil.
12-15 basil leaves added and nice light basil complexity.

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I love Broccoli! In fact, I eat this creamy raw broccoli soup at least once a week.

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