RAWsome facts!

I get so excited for Saturday mornings. Why? Because I get my produce basket, and each week holds new adventures and recipes to try depending on what pops up in the basket! I am very aware that this makes me a dork:) So on my way home from the gym this morning I was dreaming of the endless possibilities of post workout smoothies I would create when I got home to see what was in my basket. This weeks basket was pretty exciting, we got artichokes (I love artichokes- and I have several ideas zooming through my brain as to what I will be doing with those bad boys), beets, beautiful head of romaine lettuce, potatoes,tomatoes, strawberries, mangoes, apples, pineapples, limes, coconut, mint, and more.  So this mornings smoothie consisted of 8 strawberries, 1 mango, 1 large leaf of kale, 1 c almond milk, 1 tsp of stevia, 1 tbsp of chia seeds, as well as a spoonful of spirulina (a high-protein highly nutritious powder derived from a Hawaiian blue-green algae). Both kids devoured this successful kale concoction, which makes this mama one happy camper. I feel great knowing the health benefits my kids are getting when they consume raw whole foods. Raw food aka uncooked, unheated, unprocessed foods, are an extremely important part of healthy living and eating clean. Don't get me wrong I LOVE to cook which is why I could never go 100% raw but I do try to incorporate something raw in every meal, and probably 60-70% of what I eat in a day is raw. We juice a lot, obviously make smoothies a lot, eat a lot of salads, and snack on a lot of whole fruits, veggies, nuts, and seeds! They are just easy simple ways to get all that rawsome goodness in your body.

Well, what is so good about raw food? First and foremost the enzymes! Enzymes are naturally found in all living food, from plant derived foods to animal meats...the catch is that enzymes can not withstand heat above 116-118 degrees. They die completely. Well shucks, why do we even need enzymes anyways? Enzymes are our bodies handy helpers, they assist in multiple processes throughout the body, most commonly however they help us digest food and absorb nutrients. Let me attempt to explain, our bodies are capable of creating their own enzymes when they aren't consumed. When we eat cooked foods, our bodies break that down (using enzymes), once broken down our body can then use that food to create more enzymes. Simple enough, so why do we have to eat enzymes if our bodies can make their own? Well, this process is complex and lengthy...especially when eating excessive processed foods. Your body is continuously trying to produce enough enzymes to keep your body digesting this so-called "food" that is so loaded with preservatives so that it WON'T break down. If we overeat cooked food then our bodies are forced to work harder by constantly making more enzymes that it's unable to properly heal and maintain the rest of your bodily functions. This, over time, can lead to serious digestive problems, nutrient deficiency, accelerated aging, and weight gain. Giving your body those enzymes via raw food allows those enzymes to go straight to work speeding up that digestive process significantly which essentially boosts your metabolism, and allows for proper absorption of nutrients, keeping you feeling and looking better!

There is a lot of people who say raw food gets boring. NOT SO. First off, there are thousands of fruits, veggie, and nut options. But also, you can prepare a broad array of different dishes and desserts that can be made without over heating. Foods can be blended together and dehydrated at a low heat to create breads, snacks, granola type bars. Cheeses and milks can be made using nuts and herbs. There are recipes everywhere for raw foods. 

We went to Southern California a couple months ago and ventured into a restaurant called 118 degrees. If you can't tell already by the name, it's a completely raw restaurant! It was such a great experience that I immediately went home and got a couple books from the library and read them within days. And then a couple weeks ago we returned to Cali for spring break and it was on our list of MUST DO's! This is some of the fantastic foods we tried! 

Pineapple avocado sandwich with berry drizzle.

My sister with her California kale sandwich

Curry wraps

My son scarfed down his banana honey crepes in no time. 

You can't tell me that doesn't look good! It was all great. A few others we've tried have been strawberry roll ups, Irristable nachos, smoothies, salads, soups, apple pie?! Yeahh FANTASTIC! So throw that idea out of your head that raw foods can be boring. 

I highly advise making an effort to incorporate more raw foods into your diet one way or another. Snacking on fresh fruit, crunching some celery stick, munching on nuts and dried fruits, tossing up some salads, blending up some smoothies, squeezing up some juice, or whipping up some raw recipes...find what works for you. You'll feel great. 

Here is a recipe for RAWsome Lemon coconut melt aways to get you started!

1.5 c almond flour (can make your own by grounding up almonds in blender or food processor)
1.5 c unsweetened shredded coconut
1/3 c coconut flour
Pinch of salt
(combine these dry ingredients)
6 tbsp agave nectar
4 tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp vanilla
A touch of lemon zest
(combine these wet ingredients then mix with dry ingredients)
Once combined beat in 1/4 c & 1 tbsp of slightly melted coconut oil until thickened. Roll into balls, refrigerator for an hour, eat & enjoy!

These got gobbled up quickly!

Often times, people interested in introducing more raw foods will start with a juice and raw foods detox to rid there body of toxins that are stored. I have done a 3 day cleanse a couple months ago and am currently doing the detox again right now. Stay tuned for more details on this, along with some juice recipes tomorrow that you can incorporate into your life.