Raw for Real

A raw food vegan journey

Posts tagged raw food

9 notes

I’ve blogged this before, but I wanted to share it again. I made a big bowl of isreali salad for dinner, it was soo good! Israeli Salad 2 medium roma tomatoes, cubed 1 1-pound English cucumber, cubed 1/2 medium red onion, cubed, or 4 scallions, finely sliced 3 tablespoons finely minced fresh, flat-leaf parsley Juice of half a lemon 2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil Salt and pepper, to taste

I’ve blogged this before, but I wanted to share it again. I made a big bowl of isreali salad for dinner, it was soo good!

Israeli Salad

2 medium roma tomatoes, cubed
1 1-pound English cucumber, cubed
1/2 medium red onion, cubed, or 4 scallions, finely sliced
3 tablespoons finely minced fresh, flat-leaf parsley
Juice of half a lemon
2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and pepper, to taste

Filed under Olive oil Onion Tomato Black pepper Parsley Lemon Cook raw food vegan

5 notes

Helpful Sources

I lot of people ask me for links to sources on how to get started eating raw foods. So I thought I would compile a list.

Here are some good books that helped me a lot getting started:

Raw Food/Real World

Rawvolution

Raw Living Food

These books not only have recipies, but also have very helpful personal stories of how the authors went raw, and how they got into eating this way.

Other great resources are blogs. Here are some of my favorites:

Choosing Raw

We like it Raw

Sarma’s Raw Blog

There are also online communities and local raw groups. Search on Meetup to see if there are any raw groups in your area.

If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact me. I’m just learning like everyone else, but I would be happy to help!

Filed under raw food sources living food vegan veganism cooking health getting started

0 notes

Getting back to Raw

When I first went Raw, I jumped right into it 100%. My original intention was only to do it as a cleanse, but I felt so good that I kept on going. I was lucky when i decided to go raw because I was still living at home and my mom had always been somewhat of a health nut. So I had things like a good blender and a juicer available to me.

But after moving to a new city and a new apartment, I don’t have the money right away to buy all the kitchen supplies I might need to go back to raw right out of the gate.

So I have to figure out a way to ease myself back into it.

Yesterday I got a copy of Sarma Melngailis’s two books Raw Food/Real World and Living Raw Food. Sarma is the Chef and owner of Pure Food and Wine, which is an amazing raw food restaurant in new york city.

The first book, Raw Food/Real World talks a lot about how she got into raw food, and making the transition.

They have been very helpful to read, and I have made recipes from both books in the past and they are delicious!

I am lucky enough to have a juice bar in the food court of my building at work. But if gets expensive. The more I keep drinking green juice, it really has been helping my body get back to that place of craving raw foods.

Slowly but surely, I am making this transition!

Filed under raw raw food veganism vegan food juice green sarma melngailis

3 notes

Raw Philadelphia

I mentioned in my last post that I moved to a new city. I moved from New York City (the big apple), down to Philadelphia (the city of brotherly love).

But in my head, these citys have had two very different meanings. NYC (home to pure food and wine, and other great vegan and raw foods places) and Philly (home to lots of sports, and cheesesteaks)

I realized that I had moved from raw food mecca (so to speak) to a city where raw was pretty much non existant. And even vegan restaurants were few and far between.

So what’s a girl to do when she is trying to eat healthy?

I thought about it a lot and I came to the conclusion that now I am living like most of the rest of the country. With limited access to raw food communities, and health food stores.

This was the perfect time to start my journey again.

Since going off raw I have been a very bad vegetarian. Eating lots of starch and cheese. Not lots of fresh fruits and veggies.

I need to find a way to get myself back to a good place, but I am starting from scratch. I need to figure out how to eat this way, all while working in an office 9-5 with little access to a good blender or juicer.

This will no longer just be a place to hold recipies, but a journal where I can talk about new foods I tried, raw cookbooks, raw food delivery services, and everything else to help me make this transition back to a healther place.

Filed under raw food raw vegan new york city philadelphia recipes

4 notes

Tomato & Macadamia Mozzarella Linguine Makes 5 starter-size portions Linguine500g carrots (about 4 medium carrots, peeled500g parsnip (about 4 medium parsnips, peeled1/2T salt15 large basil leaves, chiffonade2T Italian seasoning2c baby plum tomatoes, cut into small sections Macadamia Mozzarella1/2c macadamias1/2c cashews1T Nama Shoyu or Tamari2t lemon juice1/4c water 1T nutritional yeast Red Pepper Sauce1/2c pine nuts1 red pepper1/2T lemon juice1T Nama Shoyu or Tamari1T agave Method Turn the carrot and parsnip into thin strands with a mandonline.or vegetable peeler. You can also make spaghetti using a spiral slicer. In a bowl combine the vegetable pasta (linguine)you have produced with the salt and mix well by hand.  Leave to stand whilst preparing the mozzarella. Combine all mozzarella ingredients in a Vita Mix or food processor (a Vita Mix isn’t a food processor, it’s more of a blender but no other blender that I know of is suitable to make the cheese so an ‘ordinary’ processor is the next best thing).  Blend until a creamy texture is achieved, you may need to add a couple of tablespoons of extra water to get it all to mix.  Set aside. Mix all Red Pepper sauce ingredients in a Vita Mix or blender until smooth(blender is ok for this at the mixture is saucier :-) than the cheese).  Again, you may need to add water to get a ’sauce’ consistency. Go back to the linguine and you should find that it has released it’s water and is now softer and has a cooked ‘al dente’ feel about it.  Wash the salt off and dry with kitchen towel or a salad spinner. Transfer linguine to a clean, dry bowl and add the remaining linguine ingredients.  When thoroughly mixed add the macadamia cheese ans mix again by hand to coat all linguine in the cheese mixture. Serve with the Red Pepper sauce.  For the dinner party I built the pasta up in a metal ring that I bought from a cookshop and then removed the ring so you get a pasta ‘tower’.  I then put the sauce in a sauce drizzle bottle and drizzled over the top.  You can also garnish with more chiffonade of basil. (via therawchef)

Tomato & Macadamia Mozzarella Linguine

Makes 5 starter-size portions

Linguine
500g carrots (about 4 medium carrots, peeled
500g parsnip (about 4 medium parsnips, peeled
1/2T salt
15 large basil leaves, chiffonade
2T Italian seasoning
2c baby plum tomatoes, cut into small sections

Macadamia Mozzarella
1/2c macadamias
1/2c cashews
1T Nama Shoyu or Tamari
2t lemon juice
1/4c water
1T nutritional yeast

Red Pepper Sauce
1/2c pine nuts
1 red pepper
1/2T lemon juice
1T Nama Shoyu or Tamari
1T agave

Method

  1. Turn the carrot and parsnip into thin strands with a mandonline.or vegetable peeler. You can also make spaghetti using a spiral slicer.
  2. In a bowl combine the vegetable pasta (linguine)you have produced with the salt and mix well by hand.  Leave to stand whilst preparing the mozzarella.
  3. Combine all mozzarella ingredients in a Vita Mix or food processor (a Vita Mix isn’t a food processor, it’s more of a blender but no other blender that I know of is suitable to make the cheese so an ‘ordinary’ processor is the next best thing).  Blend until a creamy texture is achieved, you may need to add a couple of tablespoons of extra water to get it all to mix.  Set aside.
  4. Mix all Red Pepper sauce ingredients in a Vita Mix or blender until smooth(blender is ok for this at the mixture is saucier :-) than the cheese).  Again, you may need to add water to get a ’sauce’ consistency.
  5. Go back to the linguine and you should find that it has released it’s water and is now softer and has a cooked ‘al dente’ feel about it.  Wash the salt off and dry with kitchen towel or a salad spinner.
  6. Transfer linguine to a clean, dry bowl and add the remaining linguine ingredients.  When thoroughly mixed add the macadamia cheese ans mix again by hand to coat all linguine in the cheese mixture.
  7. Serve with the Red Pepper sauce.  For the dinner party I built the pasta up in a metal ring that I bought from a cookshop and then removed the ring so you get a pasta ‘tower’.  I then put the sauce in a sauce drizzle bottle and drizzled over the top.  You can also garnish with more chiffonade of basil.

(via therawchef)

Filed under raw food Raw Recipe linguine tomato

2 notes

I know I’m hungry, but these next few recipies look sooo good. Wilted Kale Salad with a Creamy Chipotle Dressing Serves 4-6 For the wilted kale 4 heads kale (this will seem like a lot but will wilt down when the salt is added) 2T salt 2c baby tomatoes, sliced 1c hulled hemp seeds For the dressing 3 avocados 2 chipotle peppers*½c olive oil 2T agave ¼c lemon juice *If not using chipotle peppers, substitute with onion powder, cumin, chili powder, garlic powder and tamari/nama shoyu Remove the stems and then wash and cut the kale into small pieces.  Place into a bowl, add salt and start to massage the kale until it wilts and takes on a ‘cooked’ texture. Add the tomatoes and hemp seeds to the bowl and mix in by hand. Blend all remaining ingredients in a high-speed blender until creamy and mix into kale by hand. (via therawchef)

I know I’m hungry, but these next few recipies look sooo good.

Wilted Kale Salad with a Creamy Chipotle Dressing

Serves 4-6

For the wilted kale

4 heads kale (this will seem like a lot but will wilt down when the salt is added)
2T salt
2c baby tomatoes, sliced
1c hulled hemp seeds

For the dressing

3 avocados
2 chipotle peppers*
½c olive oil
2T agave
¼c lemon juice

*If not using chipotle peppers, substitute with onion powder, cumin, chili powder, garlic powder and tamari/nama shoyu

  • Remove the stems and then wash and cut the kale into small pieces.  Place into a bowl, add salt and start to massage the kale until it wilts and takes on a ‘cooked’ texture.
  • Add the tomatoes and hemp seeds to the bowl and mix in by hand.

Blend all remaining ingredients in a high-speed blender until creamy and mix into kale by hand.

(via therawchef)

Filed under raw recipe raw food kale chipolte

1 note

-- powered by eHow.com

This is part of a video series on how to make a simple caprese salad using young coconut meat as the mozzarella.

I bought a young coconut (sometimes called a thai coconut) so that I could try this

Filed under raw food recipe caprese salad coconut video

3 notes

Cashew Chipotle Cheese

I have really been missing cheese since I went raw, and I want to try this recipe on celery or other veggies for dipping.

Makes 2 cups

Ingredients (local and organic whenever possible):
1 tsp garlic, fresh
1/2 tsp sea salt
2 cups truly raw (sproutable) cashews, such as Navitas Naturals Cashews
1/2 to 1 tsp chipotle powder, to taste
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup filtered water

In a food processor, place garlic, salt, cashews, and chipotle, and process into powder. Next, add lemon juice and water, and mix well. Keeps up to a week in your fridge.

(via idealbite)

This recipe seems a little more basic if you don’t like the spice.

Cashew Cheese

- 190 grams (1 1/2 cups) plain cashew nuts (not roasted or salted)
- 60 to 80 ml (1/4 to 1/3 cup) water
- 2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice or good vinegar
- 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- freshly ground pepper

Makes about 1 1/2 cups.

Place the nuts in a salad bowl, cover with fresh water, and let stand for 2 hours.

Drain the nuts and place them in the bowl of a food processor or blender. Add 60 ml (1/4 cup) water and the rest of the ingredients, and mix until thoroughly puréed, stopping to scrape the sides of the bowl every once in a while. Add a little more water and blend again to adjust the consistency, if necessary; the cheese will get a little more solid as it sets.

Transfer to a bowl, cover, and let stand somewhere cool for 24 hours before placing in the fridge, where it will keep for another 5 days.

(via chocolateandzucchini)

Filed under cashew cheese raw food recipe