Today’s Observations
I’m preparing to fly to my parent’s house tomorrow in Castle Rock, Washington for my Dad’s 80th birthday party.  I will be gone for four days, and I expect that this will be the most…. shall we say, interesting challenge of my 30 day raw experiment.  Castle Rock is a small rural town who’s claim to fame is that it is the last real town on the road up to Mt Saint Helens – the site of the most recent volcanic explosion in the continental US.  Other than that, the most happening thing in Castle Rock is cinnamon roll Mondays at the Senior Center.  No Young Thai Coconuts there.  Not sure I can find a mango either.  I do plan to take a couple organic apples with me and my julienne peeler – oops, not sure that will make it through security.  I better rethink that.   In any case, this is a big event in Castle Rock, as my parents are part of the brick and mortar of that small town. You can be sure the party will get a write up in the local paper.  I expect it will go something like this…  “Mary and Myron Nelson hosted an open house for Myron’s 80th….  Guests enjoyed their choice of ham and swiss or turkey and Velveta finger sandwiches accented with a dab of Miracle Whip.  A lovely vegetable platter of celery, baby carrots, cherry tomatoes and green peppers was served with a delicious ranch dressing.   To drink, guests sipped Hawaiian punch or Folgers coffee.  The crown jewel of the event was a beautifully decorated white birthday cake with butter cream frosting and a replica of Mt. Saint Helens in the middle.  The cake was served with mints and nuts.”  Perhaps now you have a better feel for the challenge that lies ahead.  My next entry will be from on the scene.  Wish me luck.

Today’s Menu
Strawberries and Bananas for breakfast
Salad with Kale, red peppers, celery and cashews with creamy Thai dressing for lunch
Snack – Coconut, mango, raspberry smoothie
Trader Joe’d Garden Salad with pecans for dinner
Cinnamon, banana, maple smoothie for desert

Today’s New Recipe
Some of you know about my Almond Milk Debacle of Day 6.  Well, I thought it was time to get back on the horse and try something with nut milk again.  I have my friend Laura Taylor, who is a macrobiotic chef, to thank for her encouragement to try making cashew milk.  I guess this is the ‘beginner’ nut milk.  Anyway, it was super easy and actually tasted good.  And if you forget to soak the cashews, you can actually get away with just throwing them in the blender as is.  I modified Laura’s recipe a bit to make it a bit thicker.

Laura’s Cashew Milk
1 cup cashews, soaked for 4 hours
4 cups water
1 tablespoon agave (optional)

Blend on high speed until milky (30-60 seconds).  No need to strain.

Pam’s Cinnamon, Banana, Maple Smoothie (4 Yums)
1 cup cashew milk
1 frozen banana
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon maple syrup

Blend until smooth and enjoy.

Today’s Affirmation
I am grateful for and grounded in the love of my family.

Today’s Observations
Today is the first day of Autumn.  Although we don’t have the dramatic changing of the seasons here in SoCal that I experienced when I lived in Boston, I still enjoy the reminder of change… a new season, a new day, a new opportunity.  This morning while I was doing yoga, I went to do a pose that has always come easily for me – plow pose. I was surprised and a little disheartened that I could barely get my feet over my head, let alone go into a decent plow pose.  I’m so out of ‘yoga shape’ I thought…  my back is stiff, my hips are tight, and my legs are crooked. This evening I had a session with my Pilates teacher and I told her how stiff I was and how I couldn’t even do the things I used to do so well.  The lesson she shared was simple, yet profound… She said that she has learned to accept her body each day exactly the way it shows up, and that today is a new day with a new body, and that, while today’s body may not be able to do some of the things it did yesterday, today’s body is full of new possibilities. I love that… and think it is a fitting lesson for the first day of Autumn… a new season, a new day, a new body… full of possibility and potential.  And so today I enter Autumn as a season of acceptance and anticipation, as I look forward to the newness each day brings.

Today’s Menu
Orange, Mango Salsa for breakfast
Avocado Soup for lunch
Snacks – apple
Beet Ravioli for dinner with Cardamom Ice Cream for desert

Today’s New Recipe – Beet Ravioli with Pine Nut ‘Goat Cheese’
I’ve wanted to make this recipe from Living Raw Food for a while, so tonight I invited a friend over who was a willing participant in my experiment.  We both liked it a lot.  It is a bit rich, so you can’t eat a lot, but the flavors were very good.  You really do need a mandolin for this one in order to get the beet slices as thin as possible.  And although it may look like a lot of steps and ingredients, it actually is pretty easy to make.  I made half a recipe for 2 people and it was more than enough. All together, this gets 4 Yums. Enjoy!

Pine Nut ‘Goat Cheese’
4 cups pine nuts, soaked for an hour or more
1/2 cup olive oil
2 medium shallots (I used green onions)
Zest of 1 lemon
21/2 teaspoons sea salt
Freshly ground pepper

Put all ingredients in a high speed blender of food processor and blend until very smooth.  Reserve 1/2 for the sauce.

Rosemary Cream Sauce
1/2 the pine nut goat cheese
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 clove garlic
1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary
3/4 cup filtered water
pinch of salt and freshly ground pepper

Puree ingredients in high speed blender until smooth.  This is yummy.

Assembling the Ravioli
2 medium beets, peeled
2 tablespoons oive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
2 tablespoons balsamic vinigar
Microgreens or other herbs for garnish. (I did a nice salad of microgreens on the side.)

Using a mandolin, slice the beets very thin (1/16″).  If you want, you can place them all in a stack and cut into even squares.  I just left them round.  Place in a bowl and cover with remaining ingredients and let marinade for 30 minutes if you can (I did not).  Lay half the beet slices on a plate, add a rounded teaspoon of the nut mixture, and top with another slice of beet to make the ‘ravioli’.  Spoon sauce onto the plate, and arrange ravioli on top.  Garnish with rosemary and serve with salad of microgreens.

Today’s Affirmation
I accept my body exactly how it shows up today, knowing that today is full of new possibilities.

Today’s Observations
Today I treated myself to a far infrared sauna.  If you’ve never had one of these things, you have got to try it.  Infrared sauna is mentioned in a lot of literature about detoxification.  Rather than heating from the outside like a conventional sauna, this sauna heats you up from the inside out.  This heating from the inside out, helps toxins move through and out of the body.   Besides detoxing, the infrared sauna also boosts the immune system, improves cardiovascular health, can reduce stress, enhance weight loss, and a whole host of other great things.  But, in addition to feeling sort of euphoric and cleansed afterward, the thing I love most about the sauna is how it makes my skin feel – soft as a baby’s bottom.  The sauna increases collagen production, which is the stuff that makes your skin soft and supple.  When paired with a raw food diet, which is notorious for hydrating your skin and giving you that raw ‘glow’,  I feel like I’m walking around in a new skin suit… and I’m lovin’ it.

If you’re interested in trying out the infrared sauna and you live in SoCal, I encourage you to check out the sauna at Integrated Wellness in Corona Del Mar.

Today’s Menu
Apple and banana for breakfast
Kale Salad with avocado and mango for lunch
Snacks – apple, cardamom ice cream, coconut water
Avocado Soup with Orange, Mango salsa for dinner
Cardamom Ice Cream with soaked raisins for desert (yauum)

Today’s New Recipe
I love raw soups, and I particularly love raw avocado soup, so when I  saw this recipe in Living Raw Food, I had to try it.  Unfortunately, it was a bit disappointing.  The soup itself is a bit bland, but the thing that saves it is the Orange, Mango Salsa.  I think a few modifications would make this recipe better, so I’ve included those in my modified recipe below.  Enjoy.

Avocado Soup (3 Yums)
2 cups chopped cucumber, skin and seeds included
3 ripe avocados
2 cups OJ
2 cups water
1 small shallot or green onion
2 stalks celery, chopped
1/3 cup lime juice
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 large handful ciliantro
1 tablespoon sea salt

Blend all ingredients in blender until smooth.

Orange, Mango Salsa (3+ Yums)
3 Oranges (preferably blood oranges if available)
1 large ripe mango, diced small
1 small red bell pepper, diced small
1 handful cilantro, finely chopped
Salt to taste
I’d also add about 1/2 of a jalapeno pepper, or more if you like the heat.

Peel and segment the oranges, then dice the segments in small pieces.  Add all other ingredients and toss in a bowl.

To serve, place a small amount of salsa in the middle of a bowl and pour the soup around it.

Today’s Affirmation
Everyday my body is moving toward a more perfect expression of perfect health.

Today’s Observations
I promise this is the last time I will talk about bodily fluids, but this is so amazing that I have to share it with you.  Whenever I have eaten beets in the past, I have had the experience that I’m guessing most of us have had -  red urine.  In fact, I once had a friend who rushed herself to the hospital, thinking she was bleeding internally, when in fact, all the diagnostics pointed to the fact that she had had beets for dinner (true story).   I always thought it was just a given… red in, red out.  But a while ago I read that this is only because the body is not fully and properly digesting the beet.  On a raw diet,  the proper levels of hydrochloric acid are reestablished in the stomach – this helps digest food properly.  In addition, when you eat raw beets, all their enzymes are available to aid in their complete digestion, so everything is absorbed and used up in the body.  Well, between last night and today, I have eaten three good sized raw red beets in my Orange Beet Salad, and I am here to tell you that I have not even seen a hint of pink – not a hint.  I am blown away.  To me it is a testament to how efficiently our body works when we nourish it with life giving, enzyme rich, living foods.  Very cool.

Today’s Menu
Coconut, Mango, Raspberry Smoothie
Orange Beet Salad with grated apples, grated carrots, and pistachios
Salad of avocado, celery, jicima, red pepper, and green onion with lemon, olive oil, salt and pepper
Raw Cardamom ‘Ice Cream’

Today’s New Recipe – Cardamom Ice Cream
Last year I had the opportunity to eat at Pure Food and Wine in NYC – the most amazing raw food restaurant on the face of the planet.  The food is absolutely gorgeous and incredibly delicious, and the presentation is spectacular.  The last time I was there, I had an Indian-spiced trio of raw ice cream – pistachio, cinnamon, and cardamom.  Cardamom is a spice I grew up with, as it is used heavily in Swedish cooking.  I used to love it in my mom’s rice pudding with cardamom and raisins.  Anyway, I wanted to recreate that and the results were delicious.  I think next time I would add some soaked raisins to the mix when I put it in the ice cream maker.  This recipe is rich, and can easily be cut in half.  Also, if you don’t have an ice cream maker, you can put it in a bowl in the freezer and stir every 15 minutes until I reaches the proper consistency – probably 2-3 hours.  This is my modification of the vanilla ice cream recipe from Living Raw Food.

Cardamom Ice Cream (4+ Yums)
2 cups cashews, soaked  for 4 hours
2 cups coconut meat
1 cup water
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup agave
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 teaspoons cardamom
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 cup coconut oil at room temperature

Put all ingredients except the coconut oil in the blender and blend on high until completely smooth.  Then put on low and gradually add the coconut oil.  Chill mixture thoroughly in the fridge, then  process in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturers instructions. When you serve, it is great with just a few pistachios sprinkled on top.  Enjoy!

Today’s Affirmation
I love my body.  I love my body.  I love my body. I love my body.

Today’s Observations
I’m at the end of week two, and I’m feeling really good.  Eating 100% raw gets easier every day.  I find that I am satisfied on much less food than I was eating when I fell off the wagon.   I’m glad I’ve challenged myself to make a new recipe each day and I’ve implemented a morning routine that I love.
Let’s run the numbers:
14 days raw
12 new recipes
5 pounds lost
1 lost yoga mat found :)

Today’s Menu
Sarma’s Favorite Green Shake for breakfast
Raw Potato Salad (See Day 5) for lunch
Orange Beet salad with an avocado and orange for dinner

Today’s New Recipe – Orange Beet Salad
I had some beets hanging around in my fridge, so I thought I’d give this a try.  The recipe comes from The Raw Gourmet, but Nomi Shannon.  I’ve always loved cooked beets, and I’ve juiced beets, but I’ve never eaten them raw like this.  This dish was good, but it needed a bit more flavor.  I threw in a couple extra ingredients, but I think I’ll have to try adding a few more things to the left overs to see if I can make this a winner.  The funnest part of this was using the mandolin for the first time to slice up the beets.  It was actually pretty cool.

Orange Beet Salad (2+ Yums)
3 cups grated beets
Juice of 1 orange
Zest of 1 orange
1 Tablespoon maple syrup
1 Tablespoon olive oil
Pinch of salt (I added a little more)
I added one diced green onion

Toss all ingredients together in a bowl.  Let sit for a few minutes so the flavors can blend.

Today’s Affirmation
Today’s affirmation is simple, yet powerful.

I am grateful.

Today’s Observations
I had a serious date with the commode this afternoon.  I’m not sure if it was something I ate, or if i had a bug, or if I’m experiencing another round of detox, but in any case, it took me by surprise.  Don’t get me wrong… I’m actually kind of grateful for it.  It was like getting a colonic without paying the 75 bucks.  And I feel lighter in my loafers to boot.

So as long as we’re going there, is it possible for us to have an honest conversation about this without giggling or being grossed out?  One of the advantages of eating raw is, what is sometimes referred to as, “quick transit time”.  That’s a fancy way of saying, you put something in your mouth and it comes out the other end pretty quickly.  The reason for this is the high water and fiber content of the food.  The advantage is that the waste stuff that is toxic to our bodies, has less time to hang out and do bad things (can you tell from my scientific explanation that I was a Bio major?)  The ideal, according to Ayur Vedic medicine, is that we visit the commode after every meal.  It gives you somethin’ to shoot for doesn’t it?  In any case, let me just say by way of personal observation, that all of the above is true. And in fact, it gives one a sense of… well, accomplishment in a funny way, to know that your body is working as it was designed.  I have a personal motto that has inspired me along this raw journey, and on this lucky day 13,  I offer it to you with great affection.

If it comes out green, you know you’re clean.

Today’s Menu
Avocolada and mango for breakfast
Salad with Creamy Thai Dressing for lunch
Snacks – apple, guacamole with cucumbers for dipping, pecans
Sarma Melngailis’ “Favorite Green Shake” for dinner

Today’s New Recipe
A green smoothie seemed like the right thing to have tonight after my afternoon experience.  This comes from Sarma Melngailis’ new book, Living Raw Food.  I am sharing with you my modified version.  Rather than adding the agave or Stevia as she suggests, I’d rather add a pear or apple balance all the citris in this shake.

Favorite Green Shake (3 Yums)
1 grapefruit, peel cut away
2 lemons, peel cut away
2 limes, peel cut away
2 cucumbers, chopped (I left the skin on)
1 big bunch parsley or ciliantro (I used half of both)
Handful of other greens – Kale, spinach, collard, chard
1-2 pears or apples
Optional – Vanilla extract, stevia and/or agave to taste.

Blend all citrus and cucumber, and fruit into a liquid.  Then add greens and blend on high until bright green. Add vanilla and sweeteners if you’d like. Enjoy!

Today’s Affirmation

I honor my body’s remarkable ability to cleanse, heal, and restore itself to a state of perfect health.

Today’s Observations
I am in the middle of that vortex called Menopause.  One of the well known symptoms of being in this vortex, is hot flashes.  OK, can we just establish right here and now that hot flashes are the weirdest thing I have ever experienced?  When all my friends were having hot flashes and I wasn’t, I thought, “Bring ‘em on.” (given that I always tend to be on the cold side).  But when they finally arrived, they weren’t what I imagined at all.  It reminds of the year I spent in Chicago, making my way through the fridged snows of Winter and the chilly, unpredictable Spring thinking – I can’t wait for summer to get here.  Then it arrived and it was nothing like this California girl had ever experienced -  it was a sticky, horridly humid, can’t-get-away-from-it kind of heat that makes you want to take all your clothes off and lay on the floor in front of a fan…. Come to think of it, that is exactly what a hot flash feels like.

What’s my point.  My point is that my hot flashes have diminished significantly.   To be honest, they had started to diminish a little before I started my 30 Day Raw experiment, and then they actually got worse the first few of my 30 days (detox perhaps?).  But last night… last night I slept through the night like a baby.  Let me put this in context.  Just a month ago, I couldn’t get through the night without being awakened 3 – 5 times with hot flashes, throwing the covers off, sweating like a non-Swede, and fanning myself with the nearest issue of Dwell magazine until the internal firestorm passed.  That didn’t happen last night, and I don’t know if it has anything to do with the fact that I have been raw for 12 days now, but I’m just sayin’…. I noticed, and I liked it.

Today’s Menu
Avocolada
Salad with Creamy Thai Dressing
Snacks – apples
Mango for dinner

Today’s New Recipe
I’ve been wanting to try this recipe for a while, just ‘cuz i like how it sounds :)  It comes from one of my favorite raw books, Raw Food Real World.  I’m not sure this is my favorite smoothie ever, but it was definitely good and a fun experiment.

Avocolada (3 Yums)
1 avocado, peeled and pitted
3 cups diced
2 cups coconut water
3 Tablespoons Agave
3 Tablespoons lime juice
Pinch of salt
The recipe calls for 1 tablespoon of coconut butter and 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract.  I did not add these, but I did add about half a handful of Cilantro.

Blend in the blender until smooth and enjoy.

Today’s Affirmation

I joyously embrace all of life’s experiences.

Today’s Observations
Today was the first day I tried my new morning routine.  I got up at 5:30 (the key is to NOT hit the snooze button), took a shower, reminded myself and my body of how good it feels to do sun salutations on my yoga mat (albeit a pretty rusty version of a sun salutation), made a list of the 10 things I am grateful for, and took my regular morning walk.  It felt great to start the day this way and I found that once my feet hit the ground, my body followed quite willingly.  It is really just my head that wants to stay in bed longer.

This was also the first day in… I can’t remember when… that I did not watch any television…. and I survived.  I survived not knowing who won America’s Got Talent.  I survived not seeing who got eliminated from Top Chef.  I’m not saying that I will never watch television, but it was a good reminder that I have choices over how I spend every minute of my day, and I’m glad for the choices I made today.

What does this have to do with going raw for 30 Days?  Everything… and more than I know.

Today’s Menu
Coconut, Mango, Raspberry Smoothie for breakfast
Macadamia Nut Hummus with red pepper slices for lunch
Snacks – apple, nectarine, grapes
Thai Salad with Creamy Thai Dressing for dinner

Today’s New Recipe
I got home late and needed to whip something up quick, because I was starving.  Of course I was tempted to forgo a new recipe for today and just eat an avocado – but I’m glad I didn’t, because I think I may have found a new favorite.  I love the flavors of Thai.  I’m one of those people who loves Cilantro – I find that it is one of those love-it or hate-it kinds of foods.  Anyway, this one is easy to throw together, and you can easily add to it or leave things out if you don’t have them in your fridge.  The dressing is killer and one I plan to keep on hand.  This is my modified version of the recipe in Everyday Raw.

Thai Salad (4 Yums)
2 handfuls of salad greens (I used 1 head of romaine, chopped up)
1/2 a handful of cilantro
1 cup pineapple, diced
1/2 cup soaked, finely sliced sundried tomatoes
1 avocado, sliced
1/2 red bell pepper cut into thin strips1/2 cup thinly sliced young coconut meat
1/2 cup chopped raw cashews
Sea Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a bowl, or arrange nicely on a plate and top with Creamy Thai Dressing to taste.  I just put it in a bowl and ate the whole thing!

Creamy Thai Dressing (4+ Yums)
This makes 21/2 cups, so you can easily cut the recipe in half if you want.
3/4 cup sesame oil
1/2 cup nama shoya (unpasteurized soy sauce)
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup lime juice
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 cup raw cashews
4 Thai bird chilies or 3 tablespoons red chili flakes (I didn’t have these, so left them out and it was still delicious)

Today’s Affirmation
I’m gonna try out a new thing here.  Rather than focusing on challenges, I’d rather create and share an affirmation for the day.  So here is today’s affirmation…

I consciously choose how I spend each and every moment of my day.

Today’s Observations
Detoxing is contagious.  I’m finding that as my body is detoxing itself and bringing in new energy and vitality,  I’m also wanting to get ‘cleaner’ in some other areas of my life.  I expect that I will experience this in different ways in different areas of my life, but the first one that has come to the fore is how I spend my evenings.  What I have noticed is that my evenings have become filled with more and more television, starting around 8PM and ending sometimes after midnight as I watch a combination of previously taped shows and then ‘whatever is on’.  I want to be more deliberate than that in how I spend my time. So, for this week, I want to invite new energy and vitality into my routine by going to bed by 10:30 PM and getting up at 5:30 AM.

Today’s Menu
Smoothie – Meat and water of one coconut, one mango, 1/2 cup frozen raspberries (my favorite)
Left over Tabouleh for lunch
Snacks – pear, pistachios, pecans
Macadamia nut Hummus for dinner with veggies

Today’s New Recipe
I’ve wanted to learn to make a raw version of hummus, and it just so happened that I had all the ingredients on hand to make it… and it was super easy to make.  After I made it though,  I remembered that sometimes I have a hard time digesting nut ‘cheeses’ and dips – oops.  So I ended up just having about a 1/2 cup.  It was pretty good, but needed a bit more flavor, so I added a few “amendments”.   I’ve indicated my additions below.

Macadamia Nut Hummus (2+ Yums)
11/2 cups macadamia nuts, soaked for 1-2 hours
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
11/2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1/4 cup raw Tahini
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup water
1 small clove of garlic
I added about a teaspoon of cumin, some more salt, and pepper to taste.

Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth and creamy.  Enjoy!

Today’s Affirmation
I embrace a well-being in all its forms.

Today’s Observations
Today is the first day I feel like I struggled a bit… mostly because – I know I’m starting to sound like a broken record – I did not plan well for the time I was away from the house.  I had a gig this afternoon and only had a smoothie before I left the house… with no lunchbox.  Of course, around 2:00 I got really hungry and went in search of food.  The first stop was the deli next door, hoping they might have a salad or a piece of fruit – but there was nothing but cured meats and cheeses – strike one.  Then I got in my car, which drove itself instinctively to an old favorite – Baja Fresh.  When I got there,  I remembered that their garden salad has cheese, and tortilla strips – and if I ate that, I’d have to confess it on my blog – strike two.  I decided my best option was to find a good ol’ grocery store where I could pick up some fruit.  Stater Brothers came up on the GPS, so there I went.  Now I’ve grown accustomed to buying organic whenever I can, but given that there were no organic fruits available,  I bought non-organic raspberries, peaches, bananas and apples.  Can I just say…  organic tastes so much better.  I don’t think its my imagination… it really does.  And I actually started sneezing when I ate the apple, which made me wonder what was on it. Apples are one thing I really try to buy organic whenever possible because they are so heavily sprayed with pesticides.  In any case, I was grateful for the nourishment, but found that my energy level really took a hit because I waited so long to eat.  Planning ahead for my food is one skill I look forward to developing better as part of my 30 day raw experiment.

Today’s Menu
Green Smoothie with cucumber, pears, ginger, parsley and raspberries
Banana, raspberries, peach, apple for lunch
Snack -  I had one of those goraw seed bars.  It was dry and disappointing.
Tabouleh salad for dinner with some pine and macadamia nuts
Banana and raspberries with raw chocolate sauce for fun :)

Today’s New Recipe – Tabouleh
Last year I had a consulting gig in NYC.  While I was there, I discovered a great little Greek restaurant that had a Tabouleh salad I loved because it was mostly parsley, no bulgar, and incredibly flavorful.  Tonight I set out to to recreate that dish… but honestly, I don’t think I quite hit it.  I think I put too much parsley in it.  But I learned a lot and know what I can do to improve it next time.  This recipe is a modified version of the recipe in  Living Raw Food by Sarma Melngailis.

Tabouleh Salad (3 Yums)
3 cups tomatoes. diced
3 cups cucumbers, diced
3 – 5 cups parsley, finely chopped – adjust to personal taste
1/2 cup diced onion (yellow, red, or green)
1/4 cup lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
3 Tablespoons olive oil
1 Tablespoon salt
Pepper to taste

Mix all together and enjoy.

Today’s Affirmation
I joyously cultivate new habits.