The Raw Lunch

My percussion teacher loved the lunch. He was quite impressed that the food tasted so good. He said for something that was just pure fruits and vegetables, it was delicious.

Here are the pics of the meal I made.


Raw spaghetti with marinara sauce. Spaghetti is made from shredded zucchini. I also added marinated Portobello mushrooms, red peppers and herbs and spices. The sauce is made from tomatoes, herbs, strawberries, pineapple, Nama Shoyu, shallots, olive oil.


Raw chocolate pie in a Brazil nut crust topped with strawberries. Raw carob is used as a replacement to chocolate. Looks good. It was gooood.



My percussion teacher. The smile on his face says it all.

Raw Lunch for my Percussion teacher

Next Tuesday will be my last lesson with my percussion teacher until February. After the exam that day, we will be hanging out and talking about Afro-peruvian music, culture and his upcoming trip to Peru. I offered to make something to eat. I told him that since I'm veg, there will be no meat. At first I was thinking about making a vegetarian version of a Jamaican dish called "Stew Peas and Rice". But I don't want to eat anything cooked that day. I only do that once a week and that's not the day I want to do that. So I've decided to make him a 100% raw meal. It'll be new to him. I'm not necessarily trying to convert him but I know he has no idea what it entails. The menu will be:

Pasta w/ Marinara sauce (the pasta is made of zucchini)
Raw choconut pie
Sorrel

He's going to love it!

Raw Fritters

I have a pretty good recipe for making plantain fritters. It's really good. Tastes like the real thing. Fritters are concoction of mashed fruit or vegetables or fish covered in a batter and deep fried. It's very popular in the English and French Caribbean. My raw version doesn't need a batter and it certainly doesn't need to be deep-fried. I use a dehydrator and it works just as well and keeps the enzymes in tact.

Flu Shot

I see it everywhere: in the news, on bus shelters, in doctor's offices, on the subway. Get your free flu shot. I haven't had a flu shot in years. The last time I had it was in Morocco. I didn't like it and decided not to take it anymore. I figured that I eat wholesomely, try to get plenty of rest and exercise. Even with threats of the avian flu, I'm not compulsed to get it. However, I've been thinking a lot about it for my son. I've been doing a lot of reading on the pros and cons. My son's pediatrician recommends it but he's not pushing me to do. He just told me to think about it. My son is as healthy, if not healthier than me. He is with me almost 100% of the time. I make homemade babyfood, he still breastfeeds and gets plenty of rest and exercise. I rarely get sick, I haven't had a cold and neither has he. As I may be returning to work late February early March. It is possible that my son may need daycare. I'm dreading it. A friend of mine has her child in daycare and I remember the uncle telling me that his nephew always gets sick but then he's fine again. He's in full-time daycare, with other children. Lots of children + enclosed space + germs = maybe I should give my son the flu shot. Ugh.

Recipe Book

For the past few months I've been working on a raw recipe book. There are a lot out there but I think my idea may work. I've been trying out recipes. I made my infamous (at least among raw foodists) tropical grawnola. It is really good. It's a combination of nuts, tropical fruit and agave syrup. Once I make it I have to give it away or I'll eat the whole batch. I thought the granola would taste great with milk (raw almond milk) but I wasn't digging it. I think it had nothing to do with the combination. I'm just not a cereal person even if it is raw.

Tomorrow I'm looking forward to jogging with my baby again. It was raining heavily today. I'll still go out in the rain as long as it is a light drizzle.

Rough Days

A few days ago I was feeling a little down. My studies are tiring me and it's hard taking care of my son. I had a cooked meal and I could feel the changes to my body. Even though I'm not 100%, it's not good for me to eat cooked food in a negative state of mind. I normally choose a day where I know I'll be eating cooked food and I prepare for it. That way it's not a shock to my system. It's usually a vegetable soup. Unfortunately, this wasn't one of those days. I really started to feel sluggish and miserable. I want to fast but since I am breastfeeding, I won't do it. I may have to eat a high raw diet, which is mainly fruits, vegetables and some nuts. Nothing dehydrated for the moment.

Rainbeau Mars/Jogging

I was perusing other blogs on rawfood and I was inspired by a person named Rainbeau Mars. She is a yoga practitioner and rawfoodist who has a baby. She looks fabulous. She is living a very healthy, active, organic life. I like that. Another inspiration is Frederic Patenaude, a fellow Canuck. His website and information is practical and realistic.

I've been jogging with my son in this jogging stroller I won on ebay. It's fantastic. The ride was smooth and my son loved. I need to encourage fitness and good health at a young age. I haven't jogged in a long time and my muscles could feel it. But it's been getting better everyday. I feel a lot better. I'm trying to incorporate jogging at least 3 times a week and the other days will be Ashtanga yoga.

I celebrated with a raw carob/banana smoothie. Mmm...

Winter's Coming

I normally don't do well on a 100% raw diet in the winter. I feel my body needs some warmth. My goal is to maintain a 75% raw diet during the winter months. I will keep eating my greens and making my raw crackers and biscuits. The cooked food part of my diet will consist of vegan soups. I should be fine with that.

Christmas is coming and I dread eating with the family because no one is raw or vegetarian. I'll have to prepare a dish so that I don't feel left out or tempted. Caribbean food still smells good. There is this Jamaican Christmas drink I love called sorrel. It is made from the sorrel plant. The plant is boiled in water and pieces of ginger until there is a deep red colour. While it's hot, you add sugar and sometimes pineapple juice and mint leaves. I'm trying to find a raw version of sorrel. Instead of the sorrel leaves I may use fresh cranberries. Hmm...we'll see.

Why I Chose a Raw Food Diet

All my life I've been trying to find a healthy diet that works for me. I've struggled with my weight and it frustrated me. My relationship with food was complicated. I developed terrible eating habits. I was addicted to certain foods such as refined sugar, and coffee. I became an emotional eater and that led to eating disorders and problems with my weight. It wasn’t until a few years ago, when I went to Victoria and Igor Boutenko’s raw food workshop, I had learned about raw foods. I went to the workshop with an empty stomach but in the back of my mind I thought about the slice of pizza I’d be eating afterwards. I didn’t think raw food could be satisfying. I was in for a wonderful awakening. The food was terrific and the dessert was amazing! My body felt light yet satisfied. I didn’t have that heavy feeling in the pit of my stomach. I realized that this was the direction I needed to take.

Since having a predominantly raw food diet (the odd time I eat sashimi...it is raw :P), my energy has increased, my skin looks great and my eating habits have become more balanced. I still have my ups and downs (especially during my pregnancy) but this is a road I intend to stay on and there’s no turning back.

I'll be documenting my raw journey and I'm hoping to be as honest and open about it. It may not be for everybody but somebody may gain some insight on it.