Sunday Juice

I made this juice on this beautiful Sunday afternoon when I was feeling a bit sluggish- it perked me right up.

7 Carrots
2 Gala Apples
2 Oranges
small handful parsley
1 inch ginger

Put all ingredients through juicer and enjoy! Makes about 25 ounces.

Lemonade Dressing

This is my husbands favorite dressing- he says it taste like lemonade, hence, the name. It's my favorite to make because it's a cinch. 

Equal parts raw honey, lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil. Mix. 

I just pout it all in a mason jar because you can shake to mix and then it's already in a storage container. Viola! 

Broccoli Salad

Broccoli has grown on me over the last few months... figuratively of course. Maybe my body is craving it, or my taste buds are changing, but I seem to want it quite often which is a new development. Here is my latest broccoli creation. So easy, and so yummy.

1 large head of broccoli
2 T. Lemon Juice
2-3 T. Olive Oil
2 tsp Braggs liquid aminos
1/4 cup raw sunflower seeds (not roasted or salted)
Dried Cranberries to taste (I used one sweetened with apple juice- careful not to get once loaded with extra junk)

Chop Broccoli into small florets and put in large bowl. Add Lemon, Olive oil and aminos. Massage liquids into broccoli until it becomes tender. Mix in remaining ingredients and set aside for 10-20 minutes to marinate. Enjoy!

*you'll notice this is a relatively small recipe- you can easily double it. 

Raw Cheese Cake

This is one of my favorite desserts! Before I became high raw, my mom would make my brother and I a cheese cake for every birthday. I didn't have to let go of the tradition of birthday cheesecake! This is a crowd pleaser and has proven the test of my non raw friends taste buds. It's a little pricey to make but worth it especially for special occasions. 


CRUST:
3/4 C. walnuts
3/4 C. macadamia Nuts
1/2 C. dates
1/4 C. dried unsweetened coconut flakes
1 pinch sea sale

Process nuts and dates and salt well. Sprinkle coconut on bottom of pan (I use a square pirex or a circle cheesecake pan 8x8 is perfect) this helps keep cheesecake from sticking. Press crust mixture into pan.

FILLING:
2 C. cashews
1/2 C. lemon juice
1/2 C. coconut oil
1/2 C. agave or honey
1 T. vanilla extract
up to 3 T. water to thin if necessary

Blend all ingredients in a high speed blender until creamy (except water, only use if needed). Pour filling into pie crust and freeze about an hour to let the cake firm up.

TOPPING: 
(I think this topping is best freshly made, so I make it right before serving. If this isn't possible you can alternatively top cheesecake and place back in freezer until ready to serve.)
2 C. frozen organic strawberries (one of the dirty dozen- high priority to buy organic)
1/2 C. dates

Place ingredients in high speed blender. Blend well (if you have a tamper like the one that comes with a vita mix, you will want to use it to assist in the blending).

Recipe inspired by therawtarian.com 

Balsamic Vinaigrette

1/4 C. Balsamic Vinegar
1/3 C. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Pinch of dried chives
1 tsp. Dijon Mustard
3 tsp. Honey
dash of cayenne pepper
dash of black pepper
(for a variation you could use a pinch of garlic and herb seasoning)

Mix all. I mix my dressings in a mason jar because they are easy to shake and store. Store in refrigerator.

This dressing is so quick and easy to make! You can adjust amount of vinegar and oil to your taste. The more vinegar the stronger the dressing of course. 

The power of what you're NOT eating

Wouldn't it be nice to accomplish something great by omission? I'm a driven person, and believe in doing things for the greater good, however, it's a nice break when you can accomplish something by simply not doing something.

I'm often asked questions in reference to what I eat. Do you eat 100% raw? How much cooked food do you eat? What do you eat for lunch? It's time to let the secret out. The secret is what I don't eat! I don't eat processed foods.  Though what I eat has changed greatly in the last year or so, the greater change has been what I do not eat. Processed foods are no longer a large part of my diet. Angela Stokes, who lost 160 pounds eating raw food talks about this "secret" in her free ebook. The less processed foods I consume, the more healthy I am and the better I look and feel.


The number one priority in eating for health, is to eat 100% whole foods. This is not the same as 100% raw. The best foods are whole and organic. If something had to be highly processed or refined- chances are your body has no idea what to do with it and certainly does not retain nutrients from it. A great place to start with your organic shopping list is with the dirty dozen. These are the first items you should transition to buying organically.

How to cut out processed food 101:
1- Buy fruits and vegetables
2- When buying packaged food read the ingredients- they should be items you can identify, pronounce and the list should be short (less than 5 ingredients is a good thing).
3- When buying nuts- buy raw nuts. Nuts already have plenty of flavor and oils, no need for added oil.

Note: Omission of processed foods does not mean deprivation! I still eat brownies, cheesecake, nacho "cheese", Alfredo and much more.  Keep checking the recipe page as I am adding to it weekly.

Give yourself a break and enjoy the benefits of what you're not eating!

Raw Taco's

1 cup Walnuts, chopped
10 Sundried Tomatoes, soaked
1-2 Tbs Olive Oil 
1 tsp Chili powder 
1/2-1 tsp Cayenne powder
1/2 tsp Salt 
*Originally posted by Diamond Health

Blend all ingredients above. You may want to adjust the seasonings to personal taste. I always add extra Cayenne! This is great in on Romaine leaves, or on Ezekiel tortillas (depending on if you want to make it 100% raw). 

Top with salsa, vegan nacho cheese sauce, sprouts and tomatoes. This is one of my families favorites!