New Year's Eve stock up

I'm normally not one to make resolutions, but this year I decided it was worth a try. So, I joined the 100 Day Raw Challenge on www.rawfu.com.

My game plan is to make sure that the majority of my diet consists of fruit and greens, with nuts and oils etc. kept to a minimum. Just enough to get the benefits, not so much that I get too many calories from fat. I wanna really clean house this year, especially my lymph system.

Today, I restocked the pantry.

I think I will have greater success over this next 100 days if I blog it or vlog it often. As a part of my rawfu discipline, I plan to record my grocery lists and totals. Laborious, yes, but worthwhile research for the argument about raw food being more expensive.

Without further ado:

3.05 lb tub of Pitted Honey Dates @ $5
280 g Pecans in shell@ $3.49
1 fennel/anise bulb@ $1.69
2 x 4.4 oz. blueberries@ $4
1 celery@ $1.69
2 broccoli @ $1.50
4 avocadoes (bagged)@ $2.99
1 smallish cantaloupe @$0.88
1 red lettuce @ $1.49
1 x 3 pc. romaine hearts @ $2
3 ataulfo mangoes @ $0.67
4 vine tomatoes = $2.64
1 green onion bunch @$0.59
5 Asian Pears @ $4.77
1 Date Walnut Round @ $2.49
Bananas @ $2.08
1 English (Mexican) cucumber @ $1.79
2 Red Mangoes @ $0.99
3 lb IdaRed Apples @ $2.99
1 Pineapple @ $2.49

Tax: $0.00 Total: $50.05

I went to the cheapest grocery store in town, and was pleased to find that the produce was not overtly international. Lots of it was at least grown on this continent, barring the obvious i.e. pineapple! I am rather accustomed to buying a high percentage of organic, but I'm going to have to refine my shopping and look for deals. Thankfully, my former employer is an organic food delivery service, and I can take 'last week's greens' at a reduced price.

The chick that rang me through charged me for the pineapple twice. Shall rectify that tomorrow perhaps. Maybe that's how they keep their costs low at that grocery store:)

Hope 2008 was good to you,

Happy New Year!

Really Raw - Dairy Queen and french fries

So, around on the 8th of December, I ate some cooked food at my Art Fair Open House for my new office (cooked carbs!) No biggie. Except that it seems like everyday since then I've had something cooked. Overall, no big trauma, since I've managed to maintain about 60-80% raw on average. I had been working up to raw over the previous 3-4 months, so I've made more headway in my diet than I think I would have had I just jumped from SAD to RAW. I really admire those who can do it, but I've had emotional eating patterns that are well rooted in my family tree, and it was important for me to establish that comfortable feeling with things like whole grains, and veggie soups, rather than DQ and french fries!

The diet that I was raised on was HORRIBLE! Pop (or soda to y'all south of the border) flowed like water in my house, and there was always wonder bread and processed cheese, soy margarines and ground beef. The most exotic fruit we ever had was bananas, or the clementines at Xmas. Every year in our stockings my mom would give us a huge navel orange:)

So, in honour of diet re-patterning, for christmas this year for my family (I have two sisters and 1 brother, and 9 nieces and nephews between them!) I want to make up organic exotic fruit gift baskets. I have a wholesale account with an organic grocery company that I used to work for, so I can get loads of goodies for a lot less than conventional!

They're not going to appreciate it. Okay, some of them might. But, I want the ones I love to be healthy, and to cultivate a love of mangoes and fresh pineapple! I think it will be the first time some of them have ever even had these things.

I'm inspired to strive more and more towards raw. Especially since cooked foods are just plain boring compared to the yummy raw creations I have begun to make. That was a bit of a shock for me...how disappointing cooked foods are after being REALLY RAW!

Namaste all, Thanks for reading!

Really Raw Day - 15 I GOOFED up yesterday!

Yesterday, my boyfriend and I went to a restaurant we usually go to in my hometown. I ordered my usual without thinking, and d'oh! At least it was a salad with a veggie wrap, though the veggies were grilled:(

I'm not defeated or upset...however this is a great learning experience, because I felt pretty crappy for the rest of the day! A wonderful illustration of how much what we eat affects how we feel. I could feel the inflammation creeping back into those familiar places, and my oh my, the tummy ache! I think I have always had a level of gluten intolerance, which explains some of the IBS symptoms I had had for most of my life. So, I've learned my lesson. Once you've felt good after feeling really bad for a long time, you don't want to go back! Though I do believe that if I was in a better state of health digestion wise, my body would be better capable of dealing with such transgressions...

Normally, a slight relapse would be a license to jump off the wagon, with a promise to get back into gear the next day. But, I've learned from my mistake - keep it simple, whole and healthy!

Really Raw Day - Day 13 - Raw Coconut Macaroons

I'm amazed at the extra time I have now, LOL! I've been sticking to pretty simple raw creations thus far, and I must say I'm kinda bored at times. I don't mind the fact that it cuts back on dishes, that's for sure...still, I've gotta try making some more complex raw goodies, cuz I know that experimenting will help me to stick with the program.

Actually, it's bizarre how I don't crave the things I used to. I've baked chocolate chip cookies, brownies, orange cranberry loaf and tons of muffins at work and not had the inkling to indulge.

I'm more likely to crave cucumber or bananas or.,.ooo the tomatoes are fantastic right now. We've been getting them from a local farmer who has a greenhouse nearby and they are so sweet and juicy! Mmmmmm!!!

Raw Coconut Macaroons:

3 cups shredded coconut
1 1/2 raw cacao powder or almond flour
3/4 to 1 cup agave nectar (we used raw honey - start out with 1/2 cup)
1/4 cup coconut oil

Mix together with hands.

Refrigerate until firm, scoop into balls and place on tray...refrigerate, or dehydrate.

*add vanilla extract and use almond flour for a vanilla coconut macaroon.