Raw Girl, Real World Part 2

Miss Part 1?

So now, the big question: how do I stay raw and have a normal life at the same time? Isn’t it expensive? Do I miss things? Is it hard when I eat out? What about dates? Holidays? Do I “cheat”? These are all good questions. And here are my answers.

 

1)      Cost: Done right, eating raw shouldn’t be too costly. It CAN be, that’s for sure: nuts are expensive, and the superfoods advocated by many raw foodists (raw cacao; organic mulberries and goji berries; green powders and supplements; pricey nut and coconut butters) add up. My advice is to invest in a few of these things at the start. I love chocolate (and still eat Green and Black’s 70% dark chocolate), so I bought raw cacao on day one. I also invested in green powder in lieu of the multivitamins I’d been taking (and find that it never upsets my stomach they way they did). But I’ve never gotten too caught up in supplements and specialty products. It’s tempting—there are some awesome raw chocolates, crackers, and other treats on the market. But I limit my spending to what I really need. If you’re eating a balanced raw foods diet with lots of greens, supplements shouldn’t be necessary. I buy nuts from the bulk bin at my health food store, along with dried fruits, and I always shop according to sales (whether it’s a special on agave nectar, oils, or Larabars, which are a raw fave of mine).

 

I make a list of all the produce I’ll need on Friday and shop on Saturday; for the last four months, I’ve spent no more than $40-$50 per week. Given that I bring lunch to work and tend not to spend money on dining out (a challenge here in NYC), that means I’m spending less than ten dollars a day on all my food. Not bad. And with the money I save, I get to treat myself to dinners at Pure Food and Wine every now and then.

 

2)      Social situations: Is it hard when I dine out?

 

It can be. Some restaurants are stubborn about bringing me a sizeable raw salad or steamed vegetables when I ask. They’re not always great about additions (I tend to ask for avocado with my salads at dinner for extra fat). This is annoying; there’s nothing more absurd than being told by a waiter that, sure, the chef can sous-vide a duck breast or roll out pasta dough, but he can’t throw a big salad together. For the MOST part, though, I find that restaurants are helpful in combining some raw veggies to make a great salad, or steaming some for me.

 

Dates? I don’t sweat it. If a guy begins to look at me askance on date #1 because of my lifestyle, he probably won’t have much patience by date four or fifteen—which means it would be doomed, anyway.

 

This said, I’ve never dated a  vegetarian, let alone a raw foodist, so I can attest to the fact that eating raw around a shameless carnivore should not be a relationship bummer—not if he or she has an open mind. Too many women allow friends and significant others to dictate what they eat. Well guess what? At the end of the day, you’re the one ingesting the calories and toxins in that food. So don’t be swayed. What you choose to eat is deeply intimate, and it shouldn’t be ruled by other peoples’ tastes. Sure, it’s nice to share the experience of eating with loved ones. But that doesn’t mean you can’t be eating different things.  I have to have a lot of business lunches for my job. It’s sometimes awkward to explain why I’m not ordering a burger, but hey. It’s my body, not my lunch date’s.

 

3)      So what DO you eat?

Plenty of fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and the occasional sprouted grain. Lots of avocadoes and oils for healthy fat. What I eat most of is greens; if you had told me a year ago that I’d go through two bunches of raw kale each week, I’d have laughed. But I do. There isn’t a vegetable I don’t like, and I find that a variety of veggie dishes each week keeps me totally satisfied.

 

A given week will include tons of salads and various raw dressings (which I like to get creative with); nut pates that will go into sushi, collard-green wraps, on top of salads, stuffed into tomatoes or peppers, or used in vegetable stacks, or “rawzania” (for a great recipe, check out the PURE FOOD AND WINE cookbook (see photo below), or this one: http://www.aniphyo.com/2008/10/28/rawsagna-recipe-from-bizarre-foods/); raw soups with avocado or veggie bases (check out this post http://thesunnyrawkitchen.blogspot.com/2007/09/simply-raw-soups.html); raw smoothies, raw puddings, and tons of fruit. I plan menus loosely on weekends, but I also go with the flow. A general misconception is that raw “uncooking” entails hours of prep work, sprouting, soaking, and dehydrating. It really doesn’t have to. Keep it simple with the kinds of foods above, and you should have no trouble staying satisfied.

 

4)      Do I cheat? Do I miss things?

 

Nope. This is partly because I no longer really crave the hot foods I was so used to—whole grain pastas, tofu, and the like. Those foods have a healthy place in many diets, but they’re no longer an important part of mine. Eating raw has never been about “restriction” for me. Sometimes friends will say, “Oh right, you can’t eat that.” Well, sure I can. I just don’t want to. Eating raw and vegan is a choice I’ve made whole-heartedly. To all of you who are considering a raw diet but are certain you’ll miss muffins or pasta or steak every now and then, I’d suggest that you give it a shot. You may be shocked at how infrequently those things call your name after you make the switch.

 

And if they still do, try to eat raw as much as you can, allowing yourself to eat the cooked foods you do want when you really want them. I attribute my success in living raw to the fact that I’ve allowed myself freedom. Too many raw foodists sabotage themselves with unrealistic restrictions: I’ll eat 100% raw all the time; I’ll drink nothing but juice till dinner; I’ll never allow myself cooked food again. There’s really no need to approach it this way. If you’re eating mostly raw most of the time, you can enjoy a baked potato or a piece of chocolate once in a while. In fact, you’re way more likely to stick with the diet by doing that, rather than limiting yourself to green juice 90% of the time and binging on snickers bars or Taco Bell the other 10%.

 

My transition to living and eating raw was easier than most because I had been a vegan, and a stickler for whole foods, in the first place. But I think it also worked because I never saw it as a sacrifice. When I wanted steamed veggies or sweet potatoes, I ate them; if I needed a cup of hot soup, I made some. And as I got deeper into raw eating, I realized  (to my delight) that I rarely wanted cooked foods anymore. Even now, I try not to deny myself things that I want: I eat dark chocolate or fruit when I’m craving sweets (my weakness!), and I make gently warmed soups to get through the winter.

 

Giving myself some leeway has allowed me to remain consistent. So many women can attest to the extreme poles of trying to live healthy: radical diet strategies followed by splurges; eight mile runs followed by a week of skipping the gym; shiny resolutions followed by months of guilt for having given up. In my experience, nothing matters more than realistic expectations and consistency in maintaining a healthy lifestyle. So, have a thirty minute workout every day for a week rather than a three hour gym bonanza on Saturday. Eat mostly raw and vegan and have a cooked dinner, rather than fasting for a week and cleaning out the fridge on Sunday.

 

Most importantly, don’t think of eating and living healthy as a phase or resolution; think of it as a gradual process of incorporation. Whenever anyone asks me how they can begin to live raw, I tell them to eat one more raw meal a day than you normally would. If you’re used to a breakfast of egg white omelets, grains, or yogurt parfaits, try having fruit or a raw smoothie instead. (You’ll be amazed at how much energy you have in the morning!) Skip the sandwich for lunch and have a giant salad, full of healthy fats. Then challenge yourself to two raw meals a day, and maybe even three. Imagine yourself adding more raw food, rather than subtracting cooked. The less you focus on the notion of “giving up” things you like, the easier and more fulfilling it will be.  It shouldn’t be totally easy; living a healthy life always incorporates a certain amount of effort, willingness to challenge oneself, and resolve. The notion that we can all shovel whatever we like into our bodies in moderation isn’t true; we need to think harder about what we eat, even in small amounts. But eating more raw food should also feel liberating, and fun, and not like a prison sentence.

 

If you do manage to incorporate more raw foods into your lifestyle, I don’t doubt that you’ll experience some of the same clarity and energy that I have. Most of us are busy people, weighed down by professional and personal stress. Eating raw will allow you to free yourself from the stress brought on by hard-to-digest food, lacking in nutrients. Living raw imparts an incomparable lightness and energy into everyday life. 

 

It will also allow you to challenge your conceptions about food and the role it plays in your lifestyle. The notion of a raw food diet makes many people uncomfortable because it challenges two of our most fundamental assumptions about food and eating: first, that a “hot meal” is necessarily a comforting, good one; and second, that fine dining means elaborate preparation through heating and processing. My favorite part of raw “un-cooking” is that it has taught me to appreciate foods in their purest, least adulterated form—minus the heavy sauces, minus the grilling and sautéing, minus the overwhelming seasoning. The best raw food chefs out there could give any five-star restaurateur a run for his or her money—have dinner at Pure Food and Wine or Quintessence one evening, and you’ll appreciate the artfulness than can go into raw food.  But experimenting with raw foods means a whole new appreciation of the taste, textures, and possibilities of ingredients in their simplest form.

 

It also means freedom from cravings, slumps in energy, and food addiction. I encourage all of you to at least experiment with more raw food in your life. You have nothing to lose, as they say, and everything to gain.

 

If you have questions, feel free to contact me (or Melissa, who knows a thing or two about raw foods herself)! Good luck with all of your own journeys towards health.

 

Gena’s 5 foolproof recipes:

1)      Carrot-Avocado Bisque

2 cups carrot juice

1 avocado, pitted

2 tsp nama shoyu

1 tbsp. olive or flax oil

1 tsp. fresh ginger or ½ tsp. dry

Blend all ingredients in a blender or food processor. Garnish with fresh parsley or cilantro if desired.

 

2)      Raw Chocolate Pudding

1 Avocado, pitted

6-10 dates (depending on size of dates and desired sweetness), soaked if necessary

4 Tbsp raw cacao or 2 Tbsp. carob powder

½ cup water

 

Place all ingredients in a food processor (or blender, but food processors work much better for this recipe) and begin blending. Drizzle water in, stopping to scrape sides of bowl if need be, until the mixture resembles a thick, chocolate pudding. Let it continue mixing until well combined, and adjust sweetness with agave.

 

3)      Massaged Kale Salad

About 3-4 generous cups washed and chopped kale

¼ avocado

2 tbsp olive oil

1 lemon

1 small tomato, chopped

½ large carrot, grated

Sea salt

Pepper

 

Pour 2 tbsp (more if needed) olive oil over kale, and sprinkle with sea salt as desired. With clean hands, “massage” the kale so that all of the oil is coating it and it begins to “wilt.” Throw in the avocado and massage it, too, so that the whole bowl of kale becomes well coated with oil and avocado. Sprinkle on lemon juice as desired (I like a lot), and throw in tomato, carrots, and any other veggies you desire! Top with nutritional yeast or sesame seeds if you like. I modify this salad a lot, but it’s a crucial staple in my diet.

 

Almond Milk (from RAW FOOD, REAL WORLD)

1 cup almonds, soaked

4 cups water

¼ cup agave

Small pinch of sea salt

1 tbsp lechitin (optional)

Vanilla extract (optional and to taste)

 

Put all ingredients in a blender and blend on high for about two minutes. Strain through a cheesecloth and then check for sweetness—if necessary, add more agave and give it another whirl. If you don’t have the energy to strain it, then don’t—it’s delicious as is!

 

Green smoothie

2 bananas

3 leaves kale, bunch of spinach, or 6 leaves romaine

3/4 cup ice

1/3 cup water

1 tbsp lechitin (optional)

1 small squeeze agave

 

Combine all ingredients in a blender on high. I drink this smoothie almost daily. Over time, you’ll adjust to the taste of greens and you can add twice as many!

 Just so you guys know, I (melissa) put in google images of similiar raw food recipes.  The pudding is Sarma’s from Pure Food and Wine and the Kale Salad is one of my favorite recipes from Chef Russell James.

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