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raw food diet

Raw Diet Day Six: Crunchy Munchies and Oozing Yams

by Jenn (j3nn.net) on July 18, 2010

I’m in the home stretch now! Actually, I’m on my last day of the semi-raw diet, but the last post will have to wait until tomorrow. ;)

Raw Diet Day 6 Menu

  • 1/2 cup Cabot fat free cottage cheese
  • Handful of raw cashews
  • Anjou pear
  • Raw nachos “rawchos”: raw flax seed hemp crackers, nutritional yeast, bell pepper, celery, an entire avocado mashed into fresh guac with a squeeze of lime juice, grape tomatoes, Fage Total 0% plain Greek strained yogurt, and lots of hot sauce
  • Roasted sweet potato with raw almond butter (didn’t eat much of it)
  • Ginormous salad with romaine, fresh baby spinach, no salt added cheddar cheese, carrots, grape tomatoes, cucumbers, and sugar snap peas dressed with cold pressed extra virgin olive oil, red wine vinegar, raw honey, fig infused white balsamic vinegar, and black pepper
  • 2 pieces organic nectars raw 70% cacao bar
  • Licks of almond butter
  • 2 slices Sargento reduced fat Swiss cheese with Hellmann’s olive oil mayo
  • PURE organic raw fruit + nut bar

Rawchos (mostly raw nachos)

My “cheez and sour cream” components…

Nutritional yeast is so awesome, but not a raw food unfortunately. Smells like popcorn to me, tastes cheesy.

Tell me fresh guacamole isn’t one of life’s greatest gifts. :D

These were RAWsome!! After a few splashes of Tabasco and a big blob of Greek yogurt, it was a lot like eating regular nachos. LOVED them! Wasn’t too crazy about the raw hemp flax seed crackers due to the earthy taste which doesn’t belong in a plate of nachos, they got extra Tabasco. :twisted: Loved the bell peppers and celery as my chips, though. So. much. volume. I ended up leaving half of the guac and yogurt, but ate everything else. Super delicious!

Something went terribly wrong with the sweet potato I roasted for dinner. I thought I’d be rebellious and have a baked sweet potato with my dinner salad, so I asked my mom to pop one in the oven for me when she made whatever she was eating. She comes up to our office awhile later to inform me that something weird happened to the potato: half of it oozed out! :shock: What the hell????!!

I’ve never seen this happen before. The potato literally exploded and oozed out, but only half of it. It must have had a very high water content or something. So strange. My mom said it was perfectly normal before she put it in. So, I don’t know if I was a little freaked out by it knowing that it exploded in the oven, or if I’m just out of touch with warm, mushy foods, but I took 2 bites and threw the rest out. :? It tasted ok, I just wasn’t interested in it. *shrugs*

Such a shame. I liked the raw almond butter on it, but I just wasn’t feeling it. :(

My salad was phenomenal, though. I love salads, they’re definitely in my top 10 favorite meals, even when I’m off of the raw kick. hehe

By now I am officially done with my raw diet trial, but I still have today’s food to do in an update tomorrow. I’ll give my thoughts and scale results in my last update. I’ll tell you one thing, I have a major energy deficit this week; I’m exhausted! Can’t wait to hit the hay — or eat it!!! No, no, no. I can have cooked food starting tomorrow. SO EXCITED!!!! It feels like Christmas Eve. Can’t wait to sleep and wake up to warmth in my belly. :D

Tagged as: high raw diet, nutritional yeast, raw, raw almond butter, raw diet, raw food diet, raw nachos, rawchos, salad, sweet potato, vegan, vegan foods, vegetarian

{ 9 comments }

Raw Diet Day Two: My Shampoo Smells Appetizing

by Jenn (j3nn.net) on July 13, 2010

Soooooo hungry! Not directly after I eat, but within 2 hours I have been ravenous. And bloated, ugh, SO bloated! Since starting this high-raw diet experiment, my stomach troubles have gotten worse. :( Shortly after eating any type of fruit or veggie my stomach has been reacting badly. I’ve always eaten raw foods in one form or another, but never to this extreme, and apparently my tum tum does not love! I’ve lost 3 lbs, but my stomach is so bloated that my pants feel skin-tight, needless to say I am extremely uncomfortable. :oops: Last night, my entire body felt so weak and sore, as if I was covered in bruises. I’m pretty sure that my irritated, swollen digestive tract is pressing on nerves and other parts of my body. This sucks. Being I’ve kept dairy in while I am doing this trial, it could be that or a combination of the fruits and veggies. Not sure yet. The only gluten I have eaten in 3 days would be in cross-contamination form from oats, but other than that, I haven’t had any other grains. I don’t know if my stomach symptoms are food-related, or if certain foods just aggravate an entirely different underlying issue, but so far this semi-high-raw diet hasn’t been the solution. I’m not giving up on it, though. I’m going to keep going for the remainder of the week.

The unofficial definition of a high raw diet is 80-99% raw foods, obviously I’m on the lesser end of that spectrum with my dairy consumption and various other things, like condiments and nutritional yeast. Most raw foodists that I know of still keep some vegan cooked foods in their diets for 1 or 2 meals a day. I’m typically not one to do things down to the letter, so I modify the heck out of everything I do, lol. For instance, being I’m past the initial 3 days (my blog updates are lagging by a day), I’m going to include one cooked food per day besides dairy, like a potato or lentils, and then eat raw around the rest of my menu. This is the list of “rules” I made up for myself…

Jenn’s 7 Day High Raw Diet “Rules” — that are made to be broken :twisted: !

  • Eat at least 80% raw vegetarian foods
  • 2 to 3, maybe 4 servings of dairy per day is ok (yogurt, milk, cheese)
  • One cooked food per day, e.g., a potato, lentils, or cereal
  • Eat a large variety of foods, not just raw foods bars and raw ice cream
  • Condiments like vinegar, hot sauce, mustard, mayo, salt, pepper, dressings, etc., are ok
  • Coffee, tea, seltzer are ok
  • Keep raw grain servings to 2 or less a day
  • Nutritional yeast is ok
  • Olives are ok
  • You can change your mind and get off this raw ride anytime you want, the food police are not going to arrest you!

:lol: Silly, right? That’s how I roll. ;) Just to clarify: this raw diet isn’t a punishment or a crazy weight loss tactic, it’s simply an experience that I was curious about, and hoped to see some signs of improvement in my health. Raw food diets have fascinated me for a long time now, and while I could never commit to this as a lifestyle, I am sort of enjoying it despite my gripes. Mainly because I know that I can end it anytime I want, and I just might. Last night I was feeling like you do when you’re little and staying over a friend or family’s house for the first time; in theory you’re all excited about it, but as the night wears on you find yourself feeling completely out of your element and wanting to be back in your own bed. That’s how I felt all day yesterday, especially before I went to sleep. I was seriously considering ending it right then and there. Not just out of hunger, but out of the exasperated discomfort I was feeling from whatever I ate. By now I’m all but used to my tummy troubles, but they have definitely increased in the past few days. Whether that’s a coincidence or not, I don’t know. All I know is that I’m looking forward to Sunday, lol. If it gets completely unbearable, I’ll throw in the towel, but I think I can hang for a few more days. I’ll just be hungry. And whiny. :mrgreen:

By the way, I’m also on day 7 of taking Culturelle, and that also hasn’t shown any signs of helping matters. I’ll stick with that, too.

Raw Diet Day 2 Menu:

  • Granny Smith candy apple: almond butter, raw honey, raw sweetened cacao nibs, raw pumpkin seeds
  • 1 small container Breakstone 2% cottage cheese
  • 1 Pure trail mix raw food bar
  • Caprese salad with Price Chopper reduced fat mozzarella cheese, grape tomatoes, basil, fresh baby spinach, salt, pepper, red wine vinegar, and cold pressed EVOO
  • Raw hemp flax seed crackers with raw almond butter
  • Mixed spring green salad with raw defrosted frozen peas, raw milk cheddar cheese, grape tomatoes, red onions, cold pressed EVOO, red wine vinegar, fig infused white balsamic vinegar, and a drizzle of honey
  • Grass-fed yogurt – not eaten, exchanged for another piece of cheese
  • Half-handful of raw cacao nibs

Breakfast

LOVE these organic PURE bars! They’re so tasty.

Breakstone cottage cheese — I wasn’t crazy about this. I like Friendship cottage cheese better. I haven’t had Breakstone in awhile and noticed that it’s much creamier than Friendship, which I don’t particularly like.

Guys, you HAVE to make this raw candy apple!!!! It was AMAZING!

Just take an apple of your choice, core it, slather almond butter on it, sprinkle with raw sweetened cacao nibs and raw pumpkin seeds, then drizzle with raw honey. OMGAWD!! It was DELICIOUS! Tasted even better than any candy apple I’ve ever had. Yum x bajillion! Not to mention, HEALTHY!

Lunch

Yes, Dustin was eating a microwave pizza right next to me. It smelled REALLY good! lol

Raw hemp flax seed crackers with raw almond butter

Pitiful green grapes. They weren’t that firm. :?

The most incredible caprese salad made with: fresh grape tomatoes cut in halves, 2oz Price Chopper low-fat mozzarella cheese (120 cal), 1/2 TBSP cold pressed EVOO, red wine vinegar, and fresh basil from my pot on the deck, tossed with fresh baby spinach and sprinkled with a little salt + black pepper. Wish I had some crusty bread to go with this! :(

The raw hemp flax seed crackers are slimy. I need to take out my food dehydrator and make some of my own!

Dinner

This is the grass-fed lemon yogurt I bought at Mother Earth’s — I didn’t like it, so I swapped it for another piece of cheese. The yogurt consistency was just too liquid-y and I wasn’t feeling the flavor.

Simple leafy green salad topped with raw milk cheddar cheese, defrosted frozen raw peas, red onions, grape tomatoes, cold pressed EVOO, black pepper, and red wine vinegar. Plus a drizzle of raw honey and about a TBSP blue cheese crumbles added at the last minute when my dinner didn’t look like much sustenance, lol.

The salad was delicious, but not very filling. I ended up refilling my bowl with more leafy greens being I had a pool of EVOO + vinegar sitting there, and my tummy was egging me on. hehe This salad also inspired me for today’s lunch, but you’ll have to wait until tomorrow to see it! Ooooh, the suspense! hehe

Ok, I’m going to eat dinner now. I’m really looking forward to this boiled potato with my salad. I can’t wait actually. :D Today’s menu was much better than the first 2 days, so that’s probably why I’m still going through with the rest of this trial, lol. :D

What’s your favorite raw food?

Tagged as: Breakstone 2% cottage cheese, candy apple, high raw diet, organic PURE food bars, raw almond butter, raw food, raw food diet, raw fruit and vegetables, raw honey, raw milk cheddar cheese, raw nuts, raw pumpkin seeds, salads, vegan, vegetarian

{ 16 comments }

I Went, I Saw, I Gnawed

by Jenn (j3nn.net) on July 10, 2010

We saw Eclipse at the drive-in Thursday night!!

First, we had dinner at Andiamo’s in Newburgh:

I had the vegetable lover’s “mini pizza.” Loved the assortment of veggies! Eggplant, broccoli, onions, and the mozzarella seemed like fresh mozzarella, not the plastic-y stuff.

Dustin had the all meat. :roll: Polar opposite pizzas, lol.

What is that green thing on his? Must have fallen off of mine or something. Green usually doesn’t appear on his plate unless I place it there or he drops George Washington in his food, LOL. Andiamo’s is a wood-burning pizza and Italian restaurant, this was our first time trying it. The inside was nicely decorated, and the service was prompt and friendly. Of course, we were the only ones there other than three people in military uniforms. So I can’t say for sure what it’s like when it’s busier. The pizza was really tasty, and REALLY hot. I burned my tongue, it still hurts a little! Totally worth it, though. :D I had 2 slices and took the rest home. We’ll definitely go there again, we liked it.

After we satisfied our tummies, we went to Mother Earth’s with ice pack-filled coolers in tow. My Mother Earth’s mission was simple: I was in search of raw food options, as I have decided that I’m going to do a 7 day raw (vegetarian) food diet, starting on Sunday. Over the Fourth of July holiday weekend I nerded it up and read an entire book in 48 hours. The book I read was called Catching Fire: How Cooking Made Us Human by Richard Wrangham. It was an excellent read that makes a compelling argument. Now, how does a book about the evolution of cooking and humanity inspire me to go on a RAW diet? Well, throughout the book it talks about how raw foods are extremely hard to digest and absorb nutrients from, which is completely true. So I decided to do this 7 day challenge as an experiment, and as a means of losing some water weight by significantly reducing my sodium intake for the week. I need a little jump start in my summer weight loss goal, and to me, this is a reasonable, yet healthy trial. I like to change things up, so I don’t think there’s anything wrong with eating certain ways for a few days or months at time. I like variety, it keeps life interesting. Besides, if you never try out anything new, how will you know what works and what doesn’t, right? Trial and error, for sure!

Before you think I’m doing some kooky detox diet, please note that I don’t plan to adhere to strict calorie limitations; I plan to eat a lot of natural, raw foods in abundance, so I will not be starving in the least. I’m mainly doing this for medicinal purposes. I’m on day 4 of my Culturelle experiment, and to be honest, I can’t tell if it’s making my digestive woes worse, better, or no change. Probably too soon to tell, but guys, my stomach is on the fritz and getting progressively worse. So while I wait to see a specialist, I’m going to do some light experimenting. No, I’m not considering becoming a raw foodist or vegan, or even a vegetarian. I’ll never give up cooked food or seafood, I’m only doing this temporarily, as in a vacation from the norm. I’m mainly doing this to reduce some of the puffiness from eating way too many salty foods over the past month yearsssss, lol. My body needs a break, a dedicated 7 day break. So I’m taking it on a tour of raw foodism.

I’m not going completely raw, though. I’m going to keep 2 or 3 servings of dairy in my diet for the week, mainly in the form of yogurt. I’m simultaneously doing the Culturelle and probiotic experiment. This is also the ideal time of year to do this type of experiment: it’s hotter than hell outside, who feels like cooking anyway?! :lol: Personally, I don’t feel that eating a diet that consists of primarily raw foods is healthier than a cooked food diet or even healthy in general. But I do think that you can take breaks from the ordinary at your discretion and still keep it healthful. Like everything else, it’s the balance that matters most. I know I’m going to miss a lot of my favorite foods, but it’s only for a week. People can (and do) go weeks without food, certainly I can persevere on an overabundance of delicious foods at my disposal.

Aside from the obvious plethora of fresh fruits and vegetables that I’ll be consuming, I also stocked up on a ton of modern raw foods at Mother Earth’s:

Raw nuts and seeds: almonds, slivered almonds, Brazil nuts, cashews, pumpkin seeds

Raw, New york state honey

An assortment of raw food bars — I don’t want to subsist off of these, though. They’re just a one-a-day deal. Americans can even find ways to make raw food unhealthy and full of empty, sugary calories, lol. Not all of them contain sugar or honey, though. Most are just blended fruit/nuts/seeds/grains.

Raw almond butter — this was $10.99, but the organic version was $22 bucks! :shock: I’ll take my chances on pesticides, kthx bYe

Raw hemp and seed crackers

I tried one. They taste earthy, hence the hemp. They’re good, though. I like the texture and can see myself slathering raw almond butter on them, LOL. See? I told you I won’t be starving. :P

I even scored some raw milk cheese!!

Not raw, but I picked up some grass-fed cow yogurt…

…and some sheep’s milk yogurt, just to try it out.

Raw chocolate: just keepin’ it real, gotta haz yummy flavas!

Raw sweetened cacao nibs. OMGawd, these are SO gooooooood!! TOOOOO good!

Grocery store raw food is expensive! How humanity went from free berries in the forest to charging $22 bucks for a jar of almond butter is insane to think about, LOL. The smarter we got, the harder the little corporate cogs churned inside our great big brains. ;) Catching Fire: How Cooking Made Us Human, makes convincing arguments about how cooked, nutrient-rich food made us stronger and smarter. Yes, cooking makes foods lose nutrients, BUT we also absorb the remaining nutrients far better than in the raw state, so it’s a worthy sacrifice. And I say this as someone who is about to embark on a 80-90% raw diet for the next week, haha. Don’t get me wrong, many raw foods are healthy and good for digestion (fibrous), but I believe cooked food is really where we benefit the most. So, believing that, why would I still decide to try raw foodism for a whole week? Why not? It’s fun, it’s experimental, and if I’m truly miserable and feeling ill, I can stop at anytime. It’s not like getting a tattoo, I can change my mind right after my first raw meal if I choose, LOL. And I just might. Who knows? Either way, I’m really looking forward to the artistic and creative aspect of this little journey. Coming up with new and tasty ways to stay satisfied on a raw diet is a challenge that piques my curiosity. If all goes well, I can see myself doing this a few times a year, but never ever on a permanent basis. Ever. No, really, never! :lol:

So, after spending a biz-oat load of cash at Mother Earth’s, we went to the drive-in to see Eclipse. We got there about 20 minutes before it started, it was still light out. We got a great parking space, plus some popcorn and bottled water at the concession stand. We left our car running with the AC on the whole time. There were people smoking cigarettes and burning small campfires on both sides of us, so screw it, we added our own pollution. Yeah, our comfort always trumps our greenness. We’re selfish like that, lol. Don’t judge me. :mrgreen:

The movie started while it was still a little light out, so the first 10 minutes wasn’t the greatest picture. It also started with no introduction; no previews or announcements. Cool, but if you’re not paying attention, you’ll miss a good chunk, lol. LOVED the movie! It was exactly what I expected, and much like I imagined while reading the book. It seemed very short, though. Before I knew it, it was over and credits were rolling. :( I still maintain that the books are better than the movies, especially because the movies skip over so many details that I feel are imperative to the storyline. For instance, Dustin remarked that Edward is a better choice because Jacob will die sooner. But if you read the books, you know there’s more to that than the movie lets on. I’m looking forward to seeing Breaking Dawn! Can’t wait to have all 4 of them on video so I can watch them back to back to back to back. Vampire love marathon! Ch’ea! <3

The acting is kind of lame, but Edward Cullen's hair makes up for the lack of talent throughout the movie(s), lol. I'd still rather watch the high school drama club acting in the Twilight saga than the overrated special effect end-of-the-world movies that Hollywood spits out every 3 weeks. Borrrrrrrrring! lol Don’t even get me started on True Blood. Why people love that show is beyond me. I watched one episode a few weeks ago, expecting it to be Twilight-esque, and what I saw can only be described as: 3 parts Jersey Shore, 3 parts Deliverance, a pinch of Twilight, a generous scoop of the redneck comedy tour, and 3 parts softcore cable porn. I’m not kidding. :| Watching that crap will rot your brain. I couldn’t ignore the HORRIBLE acting, much less the completely ridiculous storyline. At least Twilight is a little believable as far as fiction goes. I would offer my apologies to anyone that likes that show, but I’m afraid I have none. :lol:

/rant

I’m going to enjoy my last day of cooked foods now. I’m looking forward to my little raw food romp, it sounds refreshing! Have you ever done a raw food diet? Did you like it? What’s something that you wouldn’t eat raw? I’d have to say meat, especially chicken. *cringes* Yuck! Lovely mental picture, eh? I’ll leave you with something prettier…

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Tagged as: Andiamo's restaurant Newburgh NY, books, Catching Fire: How Cooking Made Us Human by Richard Wrangham, Culturelle, drive-in movie theatre, Eclipse, grass-fed yogurt, Mother Earth's Storehouse, movies, nuts, probiotics, raw almond butter, raw food, raw food bars, raw food diet, raw foodist, raw hemp crackers, raw honey, raw milk cheese, sheep's milk yogurt, True Blood, Twilight saga, vegan, vegetables, vegetarian

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