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Raw Food Adventure: Ignorance CAN be Bliss
February 29, 2012
Ya know at times I wish I didn’t know what I know. Like when I am traveling and have limited options for nutrition and hydration.
Today is day two of a raw food adventure that I have looked forward to for months. The challenge thus far is getting to the Living Light Culinary Arts Institute http://www.rawfoodchef.com/ —it is in a remote location on the gorgeous Mendocino Coast of California.
Day 1 had me on a plane at 8:00 AM, another plane 3 hours later, then a shuttle, then another shuttle, then a taxi. So I spent the night in Santa Rosa, CA and await the next shuttle that will take me the rest of the way.
Plane rides mean water in a plastic cup or bottle. (Plastic scares me). A teeny bag of salted peanuts. I did manage to score a cabbage salad at Wolfgang Puck’s for the second plane ride and amused myself with how devoted I was to each and every bite! When I got to Santa Rosa I was starving but most of the local restaurants were closed for the lag time between lunch and dinner. Finally settled down for some chowder and prawns—I know, not raw, but it seemed like a better choice than say, a cheeseburger! (Which would have been okay with me if it were grass fed beef…)
After an absolutely glorious night of sleep I did some Nia and Yoga then headed off to breakfast. Two eggs (very pale yolks—my hens would scoff!), wheat toast and lovely strawberries. The packet of grape jelly contained first grape juice and the second ingredient was high-fructose corn syrup. I opted to eat the toast dry. Are the strawberries organic? I didn’t ask. Strawberries that are NOT organic usually carry a high level of pesticides. In fact, strawberries are on the list of the Dirty Dozen fruits and vegetables (most contaminated by pesticides) listed by the Environmental Working Group. Learn more here: http://www.ewg.org/foodnews/. Scroll down to the bottom of the page and you’ll see EWG’s articles on the Dirty Dozen.
See what I mean about blissful ignorance?
Now to shower, pack and wander around town until my shuttle arrives at 2:40. Living Light Institute—here I come!
~ Sally
Posted in 
Nourish~Move~Heal
June 19, 2011
Since June 6th, I’ve been participating in a 28-Day Transition to Raw food and it has been fascinating! I’ve been medium to high raw for a few years now and decided that June would be a great month to attempt 100%. No chocolate, (but carob is a fine substitute!), no coffee (well…almost no coffee), no dairy (except I am drinking milk from my goat), and no alcohol. I’ve discovered Kelp noodles, raw Tahini and macadamia based cream cheese.
There have been days when my ego just wanted to rebel against the whole thing and that little voice in my head egged me on toward cheese and crackers, cookies and pasta. I dealt with it by staying with raw choices, though on the heavy end of the spectrum–a big spoonful of cashew butter and a slice of Manna bread for instance. And surprisingly, even though my diet was darned healthy before this effort I have still experienced symptoms of detox!
My interest in raw is simple; I want to give my body every possible chance to thrive in a world full of toxins and stress. I have no intentions of permanently adopting a 100% raw lifestyle–I LOVE trout, salmon and an occasional piece of red meat, (grass fed and finished), as well as coffee and chocolate! Hopefully by the end of this program though I will shed some stubborn and unwanted pounds, learn how to be more creative with preparing raw food and will have broken some bad habits that keep me from my highest level of health.
Today marks the halfway point and I’m confident I’ll make it through the entire program! I look forward to sharing some great tasting and very simple recipes with you in the coming days and some ideas for introducing more raw food into your diet. Stay tuned for the rest of this excellent food adventure…
