This is a fabulous winter salad. It’s easy to make, plus it’s flavorful, gorgeous and hearty. Give it a try and let me know what you think.

Asian Pear Salad with  Celery and Dill

Ingredients

2 cups Pear, diced.  Any kind is fine.

1 cup celery diced

2 tablespoons fresh dill, minced

Juice of one lime

A few sprinkles of sesame oil to taste (toasted for more flavor or cold pressed for strictly raw)

Salt and pepper to taste

1/4-1/2 cup raw cashews, optional

Directions

Put all ingredients in a bowl.  Toss together and enjoy.

This is a surprisingly delicious salad that is super simple to make and full of nutritional value.

Read about the health benefits of blueberries here.  Read about the nutritional benefits of arugula here.

Arugula Blueberry Salad

2 handfuls of organic baby or wild arugula

1 cup blueberries

1 cup sun dried tomatos

1 cup raw asparagus tips

Dressing

1/4 cup lemon juice (about one lemon)

1/4 cup raw agave

salt and pepper to taste

Toss salad ingredients together with dressing and enjoy.

Corn and Cherry Tomato Salad with Macadamia Nut ‘Cheese’

This is a versatile little salad.  You can either serve it as a salad, or serve it up in endive boats as an appetizer.  In either case, it is a winner!

Corn Cherry Tomato Salad

2 cups corn, (fresh off the cob is best but frozen is ok too)

2 cups cherry tomatoes, sliced in half

2 tablespoons Olive Oil

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Half a handful of chopped cilantro

Half a handful of chopped basil

1 green onion, chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

Place all ingredients in a bowl and mix together.

Macadamia Nut Topping

2 cups macadamia nuts

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 green onion, chopped

1/2 teaspoon Celtic Sea Salt

Place ingredients in food processor or blender and blend but remain coarse.

Assembly

Serve salad with a dollop of nut cheese on top.  Or to serve as an appetizer, arrange endive leaves on a plate.  Place a couple tablespoons of the corn mixture in the endive leaf with a dollop of macadamia nut topping on top and serve. Enjoy.

Kale has more vegetable protein than any other leafy green. Scrunching down Kale is the key to making it edible in a salad. Here I show you how to scrunch it down and make my favorite version of Kale Salad. Enjoy!

Today’s Observations
I’ve had that Whitney Houston song stuck in my head all day…

The greatest love of all is happening to me.
I found the greatest love of all inside of me…..
If I should fail, if I succeed,
At least I’ll live as I believe….
Because the greatest love of all…

I don’t know why it is that songs get stuck in our heads.  But as long as this one kept showing up, it made me wonder why I was singing this song out of the millions of songs I could get stuck with… and it made me wonder if eating raw foods for the past 23 days has anything to do with it.  Raw foods do clear the toxins, and do raise your energy and do raise your vibration – all of which might cause anyone to bust out singing, even if you can’t carry a tune in a bucket.  But I rather like to think the reason is pretty simple – It makes me happy to belt out that song, not caring if I’m in tune or on key.  It makes me happy to sing the words – “the greatest love of all inside of me”.   It makes me happy.  That’s it.  Pretty simple.  And I like being happy.  So I think I’ll just keep on singing…

I found the greatest love of all…

Today’s Menu
Fruit Salad with banana
Simple Apple Cobler
Pear and 2 LARA bars for lunch
Asian Pear Salad for Dinner
Bowl of Watermelon

Today’s New Recipe
I saw an Asian Pear, Celery, Dill salad listed on a menu in the local Castle Rock paper.  I thought it sounded good and I set out to create my own recipe.  I think it turned out pretty good and is definitely something I will make again.  Feel free to adjust the amounts to your own taste as I just kind of throw things together and try to figure out amounts aftarwards :)

Asian Pear, Celery and Dill Salad with Cashews (4 Yums)
2 cups of Asian Pear, diced
1/2 cup celery diced
1/4-1/2 cup raw cashews
2 tablespoons dill, minced
Juice of one lime
Just a few sprinkles of toasted sesame oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Put all ingredients in a bowl.  Toss together and enjoy.

Today’s Affirmation
Today I joyously sing like no one’s listening and dance, like no one’s watching.

Today’s Observations
I am way too happy.  Like giddy kind of happy.  Like if-I-were-you-I’d-be-suspicious kind of happy.  I don’t know what is going on with this food I am eating, but I have been giggling all day.  I suppose its not a bad problem to have – giggling in the grocery store line, giggling while driving when noone is watching, giggling while sitting in the middle seat on the airplane.  It’s just a little embarrassing at times, but it is also contageous.   The truth is, I have a lot to be giddy about…
I’m getting more limber on my yoga mat.
I have a new found energy that automatically wakes me up before 5:30 AM for my morning routine.
I’m spending the next 4 days with my family, and my mom and I always crack each other up.
I have amazing friends.
I have incredible clients.
I have a new skin suit.
I have a scooter that gives me a big ol’ grin every time I ride it.
I live and work in a gorgeous place that, for many, is only a destination.
I have the power of the Universe behind me that says YES to my dreams.
I have just experienced one of the most beautiful days I have ever seen.

So I have a lot to giggle about… a lot to be grateful for.  Perhaps I will think of this as, giggling with gratitude.  Ya… that’s it, giggling with gratitude.  I like that.  LOL

Today’s Menu
Coconut, Mango, Raspberry smoothie for breakfast
Watermelon, Heirloom Tomatoes, Cucumber and Herb Salad
Snacks – apples, nectarine, banana

Today’s New Recipe – Watermelon, Heirloom Tomatoes, Cucumber and Herb Salad
This salad has all the flavors I love – that savory-sweet combination of Watermelon, cilantro, cucumbers, mint, jalapeno.  So for me it was a complete winner and one that will undoubtedly become part of my regular weekly menu.  This recipe comes from Living Raw Food, and I made 1/4 of the recipe for just lil’ ol’ me.

Watermelon, Heirloom Tomatoes, Cucumber and Herb Salad (4+Yums)
8 cups of watermelon, diced
8 cups of heirloom tomatoes, diced
4 cups of cucumber, diced
1 bunch parsley, stemmed and chopped
1 handful cilantro leaves, chopped
1 very small handful mint leaves, chopped
2-3 scallions, sliced
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced
Juice of 2 limes
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
1 avocado, diced
salt and pepper to taste

Toss everything together in a large bowl and enjoy.

Today’s Affirmation
I giggle with gratitude.  I laugh with love.  I jiggle with joy. :)

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
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
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.

Today’s Observations
It’s 8:30 PM and I’ve been going non-stop since 7:30 this morning, including a 10 mile bike ride… with no dip in energy and, in fact, with energy to spare.  I like this stuff!  I like how it makes me feel.

Today’s Menu
An apple and grapes for breakfast.
A garden salad with artichokes and palm hearts from Trader Joe’s.
Snacks – banana, grapes, apples, pecans
Tomato, Fennel, and Avocado Pressed Salad with Caper Dressing for dinner

Today’s New Recipe – Tomato, Fennel, and Avocado Pressed Salad with Caper Dressing
I had so much fun tonight making this salad.  Although this would be just as delicious as an un-molded salad, the funnest part was pressing it into a mold (I used a 10 oz highball glass) and seeing it stand up on the plate.  The key is to press the salad firmly into the glass, next set the plate on top of the glass, then flip it over and gradually lift the glass, leaving the salad standing tall on the plate.

Caper Dressing
1/4 cup capers, smashed
zest of 1/2 lemon
1 green onion
2 grinds of black pepper
1/2 cup olive oil
Place all ingredients in a bowl except olive oil, then add olive oil slowly while mixing with a spoon.

Tomato, Fennel, and Avocado Pressed Salad with Caper Dressing (4+ Yum)
1 Fennel Bulb, cored and thinly sliced
3 large tomatoes, chopped into 1-inch pieces
1 green onion, chopped
1/4 pistachio nuts
1/2 handful mint, finely chopped
1/2 handful, basil leaves, finely chopped
Juice of half a lemon
11/2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 avocado, cut into 1-inch pieces
salt and pepper to taste

Gently toss all ingredients together in a bowl.  Press the salad firmly into a 10 oz glass.  Place a plate over the top of the glass and flip over.   Gently lift the glass,  leaving the tower of salad.  Drizzle the caper dressing around and over the salad. This is the crowning jewel of the salad.  Enjoy!

Today’s Affirmation

I joyously celebrate my new found energy.