Healthy food for that healthy body

[David Culver]

Greetings!
Today was a new beginning in the Culver household. Judith has taken a raw foods class lately and today we ate two raw foods meals. I'm working on the house and usually about 11 AM I stop to have a snack to stop the grumbling in my stomach.
Today Judith made a raw food smoothie with apple and collard greens. It was pretty good although next time we will leave out the lemon juice and add a date or two for sweetness.
Next we had a raw food burger at lunch, which was like a spread instead of a firm burger pattie. It consisted of celery, onion, cilantro, peppers, flax seed, and sunflower seed. It was really good.
We are basically vegetarians meaning that we never eat red meat and sometimes eat fish and every once and a while a little chicken. I love eating good food because I really love to eat.
The ingredients today were organic from the coop and next year they will be organic from our own garden.
I hope this will be a starting place for discussions of favorite foods, recipes, and hints for preparing those meals. Cheers, David

[Heather K]

Hi David & Judith! I'm a big raw food fan have a few local friends who have also walked that path...Spruce at Inspiration Farm will be teaching some classes at the coop. During these colder months, I like to add a slice of frozen jalapano pepper to my smoothies to add heat to my body! We also have a dehydrator and this time of year is great for slicing & drying vegi & fruit...We have a unit that maintains temp below 118 degrees which keeps it fresh....I think the new vegan restaurant may also have some raw food options in the future.
I am not fully raw at all times now, especially due to what foods are in season and reducing my tropical import foods...One of my friends & I order bulk raw almonds that we soak when we use....Another of my friends, Suki, makes the most amazing delicious flax/vegi crackers and also kale chips!
Oh, and wait till Judith discovers raw chocolate power! Yummies!

[David Culver]

Thank you Heather for responding. I was thinking no one was interested in food. We are just starting our experimentation with raw food and so far it has been good. We tried dehydrated bread and there are crackers in the dehydrator now. Our raw green smoothies each day are really good. I like your idea about the pepper for body heat. I'll have to try it.
We have been drying at about 104 degrees as suggested by the authors of the books Judith has been reading. I am not trying to eat only raw food, but I like what I've had so far. Judith wasn't so hot on the bread, but I think if it were dipped in hummus it would be good. We tried it with guacamole and I thought it was good. I like something with crunch or chew and all of the nuts satisfied that need.
How can I find out about the recipe for the crackers your friend makes? And, what are the raw chocolate items you like the best?
Thanks again, David

[Alys Kennedy]

Hello David,

I have been doing/making green smoothies for about 9 months now, and WOW what a difference it has made in my body...so, if you have any questions about mixing them I may be able to offer some suggestions....I have done a lot of experimenting. I also eat a lot of raw foods, however, I do not do raw foods in winter....I have found through experience, and on advice from a very knowledgable naturopath in Vancouver, that it is best to eat foods that are in season and grow in my climate, and in winter the raw does not provide enough internal heat...so, I just limit my raw to green smoothies during the colder months. I can tell you that my skin has improved immensely since beginning the green smoothies, and my energy has also increased. So, BRAVO to you and Judith!! And, as Heather said, you can add some warming things to the green smoothies - ginger is also a good warmer in your green smoothies.

[Alys Kennedy]

Hi again David! Just read this reply to Heather....if you haven't already, read some of Victoria Boutenko's books or go on line and check out their web site - rawfamily.com - there is a wealth of information there, both in terms of green smoothies (that is how I got started) and raw foods. Boutenko has studied raw foods from the scientific aspect and has loads of information about why it is good for people. And I have their raw cracker - with flax - recipe for crackers if you haven't already gotten one and want it.

David Culver said:

Thank you Heather for responding. I was thinking no one was interested in food. We are just starting our experimentation with raw food and so far it has been good. We tried dehydrated bread and there are crackers in the dehydrator now. Our raw green smoothies each day are really good. I like your idea about the pepper for body heat. I'll have to try it.
We have been drying at about 104 degrees as suggested by the authors of the books Judith has been reading. I am not trying to eat only raw food, but I like what I've had so far. Judith wasn't so hot on the bread, but I think if it were dipped in hummus it would be good. We tried it with guacamole and I thought it was good. I like something with crunch or chew and all of the nuts satisfied that need.
How can I find out about the recipe for the crackers your friend makes? And, what are the raw chocolate items you like the best?
Thanks again, David

[David Culver]

Thank you Alys for the info and inspiration. We will be contacting you soon and get together to learn your green smoothie methods. I really like the green smoothies and I know they just have to be great for us.
Thanks again. David

[David Culver]

Here is another one. Sweet meat squash, olive oil, garlic, basil, and balsamic vinegar. Chop the squash into chunks and bake in a 400 degree oven for 50 minutes. We top it with parmesan or monterey jack cheese and boy is it good!

We got back from Bloom restaurant this evening after watching Justin's sustainability movie that he made and the squash was waiting for us as a leftover. Yum, I sure do like having leftovers.

[Heather K]

Hi David & Hi Alys I hope you'll share the recipees you spoke of here.. .. They will inspire me too...
I often don't keep recipees for what I make as I tend to use whats at hand and do taste balancing.

Some great winter greens from the garden for smoothies & juice that make it through our milder winter seasons are kale, parsley, swiss chard, chives, sorrel, celery, and many of the herbs & wilder greens.....
Although lemons are imported from the tropics, they do have a great way of completing the taste balancing...although sometimes I try the sorrel for that sour taste.

I really like the rich taste of freshly made almond milk as part of the smoothies....When I make it, I often freeze a bunch....I also soak sunflower seeds for the smoothies.....Victoria B also emails out a monthly e-news letter and has written a book titled 'Green for Life'' her husband wrote one titled ' Igor's Live Flat Bread', although I haven't tried the recipee yet....There are many books by Gabrial Cousins and the library carries many of these raw food books....Another sweet book is 'Living Cuisine-The Art & Spirit of Raw Foods' by Renee Loux Underkoffler....And also 'The Hallelujah Diet' by George Malkmus...and more!

[Cindi Landreth]

Hi David
Tris Shirley had a great idea about putting some focus on nutrition and the importance of staying healthy during times when medicine is not as readily available or affordable. I suggested to Tris that we create project or a nutrition education group around this. I hope you will be able to attend the next meeting and share ideas for this to come into fruition!