I hope you all had a wonderful weekend and a terrific Mommy's Day. I know I did. It was a relaxing and fun weekend and I have never been so happy for lousy weather on Sunday because it meant my son's double header was canceled and I was able to spend Mother's Day home with my family. My parents came later in the day and we had a nice time.

The above picture was my dinner on Saturday. We had one of our favorite neighbor couples over for dinner. They are just the nicest people and we love spending time with them. They all had hamburgers with chips. I made a big salad for anyone who was interested. I used mixed greens, oranges, cucumbers, and pine nuts. I made a lemon dressing from the Raw Food/Real Worlds book It was pretty good.

I also made the Indian Spinach Dip again from Alissa Cohen's Book. I put it in romaine leaves and topped it with some tomatoes. It was very good and satisfying. I ended up dipping some carrots in it later as we played cards for a little snack too. Yum.

Sunday morning I woke up and decided that since it was Mother's Day and I could do WHATEVER I wanted without guilt I was going to watch the new movie I bought called All Jacked Up. I was thrilled that the hubby wanted to watch it with me. He is usually not into this kind of thing.

There was a lot of good information in the movie and there was some traumatic scenes of what goes on in the slaughterhouses. I was crying and crying during that part. I just couldn't stop. Unfortunately there were some pretty slow parts that dragged on and the movie was a bit all over the place but I am glad I watched it and I am especially glad my hubby watched it.

I told my teenagers that I wanted them to watch it for my Mother's Day gift (yes I milked the Mother's Day thing but with 5 kids I have to :o). They were less then thrilled and I had to wake up my 14 year old a few times. :o( We talked about it at the end and they were surprised at how horrible the animals were treated in the slaughterhouse. When I asked them if the movie changed their idea about anything they pretty much told me no. I was pretty disappointed but I did my part by showing it to them and they have to make their own choices in life so what can a mom do?

I got some beautiful handmade cards, art projects from school, 2 apple trees and 2 Raw Cookbooks. I got the above mentioned Raw Food/ Real World book that I've been contemplating purchasing for 2 years now. I've always steered away from it because everything looked so difficult but I decided that it would be nice to have for special occasions. I also got the new book from Fresh The Ultimate Live Food Cookbook by Sergei and Valya Boutenko. I haven't had a chance to look through it yet so I can't say anything else about it.


For dinner on Sunday I made a salad and some pesto pasta with my lemony pesto oopsie sauce. It was fair. I also made Chadd Sarno's Pasta Puttanesca which was pretty good. The funny thing is that while I ate it I would rate it a 6 out of 10 but the taste in my mouth after eating it bumped it up to an 8 or 9. How weird is that? I also made a mango mousse for myself that I enjoyed while everyone had ice cream. Yummy.

After my parents left we watched the Survivor Finale and I have to say we were a bit disappointed at the outcome. I said it was a bad ending to a good season. I won't say more in case my overseas friends haven't heard who won yet. xo

So all in all it was a wonderful weekend. I guess the downside to all this relaxing is that it has carried over to today. I don't feel like doing anything today except taking it easy. I know I have a busy day coming up later so I just feel like being a blob. Oh well, it is Monday.

Ramblings

Every night my husband and I start the routine of preparation for the next day. We get the kids' lunches ready and we prepare all the ingredients for the morning smoothies. My husband likes to make his smoothie at night, put it in a mason jar and put it in the freezer. I don't think you're supposed to freeze them and I told him but he says it works so what the heck.


For a long time I wasn't preparing mine at night and then one day I realized it was crazy to do the work twice and now when I go to have my smoothie each morning I just throw all the cut up stuff in the blender and flip it on. So easy!

I've also been making an extra glass of smoothie each morning and leaving it in the fridge for an afternoon snack. I like to have it ready to go without any preparation. It's like a bonus!


More, More, More

I was so excited when my grocery store had kale in stock again. It's been 2 weeks with nothing. Boo hoo. I decided to make James Russell's Wilted Kale with Chipotle Dressing because I've been waiting...well, 2 weeks to try it.


The recipe calls for 4 heads of kale. I don't care how much it wilts, I can't eat that by myself so I decided not to halve it, but to quarter it. One bunch of kale. I also didn't have any hemp seeds so I used sesame seeds. I took a series of pictures to document the process.


I titled this More, More, More because I felt like every step of the way that is what this dish needed, more. In defense of the recipe, I think if I followed the recipe as written it probably would have tasted better.


Here are my mores:

1. Massaging. I think I should have massaged the kale longer and maybe even let it sit out and marinate for a while like I do with my broccoli rabe. I didn't like the raw taste I would get from time to time while eating it. Blech. I've marinated kale before but I've never had it taste like this before. Massage your kale a long time people. And when you think you're done, massage it some more.


2. Tomatoes - I would have like a bunch more tomatoes in my salad. Maybe if the kale tasted better I wouldn't have wanted more tomatoes but as it was I threw some more in after I started eating it.

3. Just more - I think I would have liked a bit more taste. The chipotle taste was good but I would have liked more. I think it would have benefitted from some garlic or pepper or something. I was thinking about adding more stuff to it as I was making it but as I said before I like the idea of trying things the way they are intended so I know where to go from there.


I usually rate all the things I make with stars. I would rate this one about 2 1/2 out of 4 but with some tweaking I know it would be just what I like. I will also make notes on recipes so that the next time I make it I know what to do differently. It has come in handy many times.

On the Go
I am the queen of eating on the go. I used to be so good at GO-ing to the drive thru or GO-ing to get pizza. Now I am the queen of raw food on the go! I only had a few minutes to prepare before I ran out the door for my son's baseball game today. I mean seriously, it was probably about 10 minutes. In that time I managed to make zucchini noodles, slice up and massage some mushrooms and spinach, and sprinkle on some pine nuts.

I packed it in a container (plastic- bad- I know) and grabbed a container of marinara I had ready and bam! I was out the door.

Now, that probably doesn't seem so fantastic BUT I also managed to get 4 bags of snacks made for my little guys, get the dogs put away, corral the kids to go to the bathroom, get their sweatshirts, coats, baseball mitts, shoes on and loaded in the car. I also got my husband's extra clothes ready, grabbed my coat, packed waters, and got everything in the car and ready to go. Whew! I amaze myself sometimes.


I guess what I am trying to say is that eating a raw and living foods diet doesn't have to be hard. It can be simple and it can be easy. It can be great. If I can do it, anyone can.

For the Love of Broccoli Rabe

I have always had a love affair with this leafy green vegetable. Before I ate raw I would saute it up with some olive oil and garlic with a sprinkle of toasted pine nuts. When I went raw I was so sad that I couldn't enjoy it anymore. Then I found out about massaged kale salad and I skipped the kale and went right to the rapini. I was in heaven. Coming off my juice feast I have been craving this so much I can't stop eating it. In fact I had it for breakfast this morning!

This leafy green has many different names including raab, rapa, rapine, rappi, rappone, fall and spring raab, turnip broccoli, taitcat, Italian or Chinese broccoli, broccoli rape, broccoli de rabe, Italian turnip, and turnip broccoli although it is best known here in the US as broccoli rabe or rapini.

It comes from the Mediterranean and China. I didn't realize that it was so widely used in Chinese cooking. Apparently it is the most popular vegetable in Hong Kong although the Chinese version is said to be lighter green and less bitter in taste. I am most familiar with the Italian style and that is how I eat it.

Although it's name would lead you to believe it is a member of the broccoli family that would be inaccurate. It is actually a decedent of a wild herb and part of the turnip family. It has a nutty, bitter taste rather like mustard greens. It is a source of vitamins A, C, and K, as well as potassium. You can buy it all year long, but its peak season is from fall to spring.

When buying these delicious greens look for bright green leaves that are crisp and not wilted. It will have small broccoli buds that may have yellow flower buds which are edible. Avoid any bunches that have yellowing leaves however.

To prepare the greens for raw dishes you will want to cut off the bottom stems that are tough and discard. Chop the remaining greens and buds up to make them easier to massage. Sprinkle with some good quality Celtic or Himalayan salt and get your hands in there to begin massaging. Of course we all know that the best Italian food is made with love so send your loving thoughts to your greens while you squeeze. You will be surprised at how quickly they will begin to wilt and take on that traditional cooked appearance.

Because some of the stems are thick I prefer to let the broccoli rabe sit out on the counter for a while to marinate and then I let it marinate in the refrigerator overnight. Before eating I either bring it back out onto the counter for a while to take the chill off or I put it in the dehydrator for a bit.

You can keep it simple and just add a bit of good quality cold pressed olive oil and garlic or you can go to town and add all kinds of things like mushrooms, sun dried tomatoes, pine nuts, olives, fresh tomatoes, onion, red pepper flakes. Whatever sounds yummy will be.

Fun, Fun, Fun in the Kitchen

What a wonderful day of eating I had today. I woke up around 7:00 and drove my son to school for his baseball game. I headed off to the store to pick up a few things and it was so fun to be able to go into different sections of the produce aisle.

When I got home I started preparing food for the day. It was so fun. First I made a Sweet and Sour Sauce from Snowdrop that I have made before that I think it so delicious.

Sweet and Sour Sesame Sauce
¾ c nama shoyu
¾ c honey (or agave)
2 cloves garlic
1 pc ginger as big as your thumb (equal to the amount of garlic approx)
2 T sesame seeds
2 T coconut oil
1 t sesame oil
2 t red pepper flakes

Chop the garlic & ginger so it doesn’t jam under your blades, and put all into the food processor and blend till the veggies are well pureed. The seeds will float up with the oils when left standing, that’s ok, just stir when using.

I put some broccoli slaw mix, bean sprouts, shitake mushrooms, cilantro, and green onions, in a bowl and mixed them with half of the sauce. I let it sit out on my counter for the day and get nice and soft. When I ate it for dinner later I drained off the liquid and added some more sauce on top. Yum!

Then I made some more of my special Broccoli Rabe.
1 bunch rapini chopped
celtic sea salt
olive oil
2 cloves of garlic minced
4-6 sun dried tomatoes chopped
6 mini portabella musrooms sliced
red onion chopped
1 med tomato chopped

I simply chop up the rapini and massage it with some celtic sea salt. Then I drizzle some olive oil over it. I added the rest of the ingredients and let it sit on the counter for the day. I will then move it into the refrigerator until the next day. You could put it in the dehydrator to warm it instead.

Last but not least I made some marinara sauce from Alissa Cohen's book, Living on Live Food. I love this sauce. It is so delicous and comes together quickly in the food processor. I made some zucchini noodles with my peeler (I have to get the saladacco!!! ), added some spinach that I massaged for a quick minute and some mini portabellas. I mixed the marinara with it and put it aside. I had plenty of marinara left over.

In less than an hour I had 3 meals prepared and ready to go with enough sauce left over to make at least 2 more dishes too! How cool is that? I was very excited.

The only thing I would have done differently is that I would not have mixed the zucchini with the marinara sauce until I was ready to eat it. It released too much water that I had to drain off and it still was a bit watery when I ate it. It still tasted delicious though. I knew about this but I forgot. It's been a while since I made that.


What a great raw day. I am loving food again and enjoying the ease of preparation and planning. I haven't introduced nuts back into my diet yet for a couple of reasons. The number one reason is that my stomach is a bit tender and nuts are harder to digest so I figure I will just wait and see what happens for a while. I am not craving them yet so I will just enjoy life without them for a while.