Archive for April, 2010

RAW MOTHER’S DAY CONTEST: Treat Your Mom like a Queen for a Day!

There’s nothing that we appreciate more than the opportunity to spread love and good vibes out into the universe. Many of our readers celebrate Mother’s Day. We thought this would be an excellent chance to really get some positive energy flowing! For many of us, thoughts of our mom bring happy memories and a deeper kind of love. That’s why we’re teaming up with Hail Merry to treat your mother like a queen this Mother’s Day! Read the article below for more details and instructions on how to enter.

What’s the Story Behind Hail Merry Organic Snacks?

Hail Merry was created by Dallas raw food chef Susan O’Brien. Ms. O’Brien’s products are dehydrated at very low temperatures in order to protect the essential oils and living enzymes found in her organic raw ingredients. Her core philosophy is to bring awareness to the powerful benefits of healthy oils, which we must obtain from our diets. These plant based fats like Omega 3 & Oleic Acid can actually improve our cholesterol profile, reduce inflammation, and make our hair & skin more radiant. They prefer to add spices to their snacks instead of sugars for added flavor. Before deciding on this giveaway, we had the opportunity to sample the Blonde & Chocolate Macaroons, along with the Cranberry/Orange granola, and it was absolutely delicious! So good to taste and so good for you too! Their snacks were recently named in the Top 5 Vegan Foods Even Carnivores Will Love according to the Houston Press. Visit the Hail Merry website and see for yourself, be sure to check out their rawmazing products too!

THE RAWMAZING PRIZE!!!

We’re offering a grand prize of the Queen for a Day tote for you to gift to your Mom. This is the ultimate expression of love for your “rawness”. The Hail Merry burlap tote filled with so many goodies she will beam with appreciation for days! The ensemble includes:

• 3 Grawnola 369 Cranberry/Orange Zips
• 3 Blonde Macaroon Zips
• 3 Chocolate Macaroon Zips
• Woman’s Short Sleeve T-shirt-specify size (not pictured)
• Woman’s Ball Cap
• Hail Merry Burlap Tote

The grand prize is valued at $95 and you can win it for your mom for FREE! Two runners up will get either 1 Blonde Macaroon Zip or 1 Chocolate Macaroon Zip.

HOW TO ENTER
Comment on this article to tell us why your mom is RAW-mazing! What makes her shine and what makes her special? We want to know so we can help spread the love and treat a lucky reader to the ultimate gift for mom. We’ll be excepting entries until Friday, April 30th, 11:59pm EST. Only one entry per person please (multiple entries will disqualify you). Winners will be chosen through a random number generator and notified via email.

MORE ABOUT HAIL MERRY
Hail Merry Website: http://www.hailmerry.com
Hail Merry Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/hailmerry
Hail Merry Twitter: http://twitter.com/hailmerrysusan

Summer Salad Series: Raw Beets

This summer we are doing a series of light, refreshing, energizing salads! Perfect to entertain with and eat in warm weather. Our second salad, Grated Raw Beets, is sure to add some color to any menu! It’s modified from a recipe we found on Vegetarian Times and it serves 6 people. Raw beets taste similar to raw carrots in that they’re sweet, juicy, and crisp. Jicama, a Mexican root vegetable that looks like a large, pale, round potato, is crunchy and mild when peeled and eaten raw. If you can’t find jicama, simply substitute cubed cucumber in this salad.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups grated jicama
• 2 cups grated raw beets (3 medium beets)
• 1 avocado, thinly sliced
• 1 navel orange, peeled, sectioned, each section cut into thirds
• 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
• 3 Tbs. fresh orange juice
• 1 Tbs. lime juice
• 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp. ground coriander
• 11/2 Tbs. olive oil
• 1/4 cup raw pumpkin seeds (optional)

Directions:
1.Place beets in medium bowl along with jicama, avocado, orange, and cilantro.

2. Whisk together orange juice concentrate, lime juice, cumin, and coriander. Whisk in oil. Pour over beet mixture, and toss to mix. Season with salt and pepper, if desired. Sprinkle each serving with rawpumpkin seeds.

Healing Requires Presence & Awareness

Piera Bonventre is a Homeopathic Practitioner, raw food connoisseur and a travelling yogi. She also tweets energy healing and daily yoga instructions- encouraging you to include yoga anytime of day. Piera will be our in-house yoga instructor, providing insight and direction into this unifying form of movement. Here’s what she has to say:

Einstein said:

“‘A human being is a part of the whole universe, a part limited in time and space.

He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness.

This delusion is a prison, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us.

Our task must be to free ourselves from this by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.”

-Albert Einstein, ‘What I believe’, Forum and Century issue 84 (1930)

As a homeopath, holistic nutritionist and Reiki practitioner I have learned immensely about myself  through my practice and mainly from my patients.  They are some of my greatest teachers.   I have learned that each and everyone of us truly thrives when given love and compassion. That without these 2 invaluable things, healing cannot transpire.

We may experience different events, symptoms and diseases in our lives.  However underlying all disease manifestations lies a deficiency and imbalance . This deficiency and imbalance is what sets off our internal innate healing mechanism to go in disarray.  Deficiency comes in many forms, from what is lacking in our diets, to what is missing in our living environments and personal relationships.

When I began to practice I was focusing on finding the right prescription whether it be the homeopathic remedy most indicated, or the right supplements or the right diet to best suit the patients needs. All this is very important and does play a huge part in my work today.

However now I truly dedicate myself to being first and foremost present with my patients during our consultations and interactions.

Truly present. And with compassion, awareness and love.

I listen with my soul and heart first , and then with my mind.  I observe with my soul and my heart first and then analyse with my mind the details and symptoms of the case.  And I “feel” the patient’s energy and vibe with my intuition and tune in to their concerns instead of concerning myself with deciphering the right prescription.

Conventional medicine may call this quakery or airy fairy BS.

But the more I work with my own soul and heart, the more I see my patients benefit and reach greater levels of personal healing.  I truly believe that just allowing my patients the opportunity to share, and verbally express what they are going through is a huge initiation to their healing efforts.  The ability to express their concerns at much longer lengths than the usual conventional 15 minute appointment with their M.D  begins to open doors they haven’t even attempted to unlock in ages.

When I look into their eyes, I sense they appreciate my acknowledgment of their pain.  More importantly though, when I look into their eyes I connect with their internal wisdom.  I observe the love that so desperately wants to be expressed and fully loved back.

Everyone has their own journey to take.

Their path unfolds according to their own level of awareness and how much they allow this awareness to come into being at any given moment.

The more present we become the far more healing we can achieve.  The more present we become the far more LIVING we actually experience.  Coming to each moment with presence allows us to experience the only thing we have that is certain in this life.  Which is the present.  This is the key to liberation from suffering and the endless states of pain we may believe we never will overcome.

A dear friend of mine shares his insight on presence with me, whenever he feels I may need a bump back into alignment.  He just simply mentions to me in the most loving tone:

“It is what it is, and remember where ever you go, there you are-so love it all”.

How do you bring presence to your daily life? to your interactions? to your work? to your relationships?

Your soul is calling.  Have you answered?

Travel Lightly,

Piera

Your Guide to Green Supplements

There’s a lot of buzz out there about green supplements and what they can do for you. We thought it would be a great idea to do an article on the benefits of green supplements as well as an overview of what you’ll find in green supplements. Green food supplements are one of the most amazing and all natural food supplements that you can. Not to mention, taking this health food supplement daily has excellent benefits.

What are green food supplements?
These all natural food supplements use the power of nature to help provide your body with the vitamins, minerals and enzymes it desperately needs. Providing these through diet alone can be quite difficult so these supplements are well worth taking.

What is contained in green food supplements?
Green food supplements are made from super green foods which help to alkalize, energize and nourish the body’s cells along with balancing the body’s pH level. Listed below are some of the main ingredients contained in green food supplements.

• Chlorophyll which is contained in the green part of plants has been found to aid in the healing of intestinal ulcers, liver disorders, eczema, gastritis, asthma, constipation, bleeding gums, and burns.
• Alfalfa which is one of the most mineral rich green foods contains Vitamins A and C, thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium, and phosphorus which are all needed to maintain a healthy body.
• Barley grass is another of the super green foods used in these all natural food supplements. Barley grass is a source of chlorophyll and it supports the body’s immune system and helps with cleansing.
• Green tea is also used. This is a very powerful antioxidant and has been shown to help with diabetes.
• Kelp is a seaweed that is used in green food supplements. Kelp is a rich source of vitamins and minerals and this seaweed has been used in the treatment of under active thyroid problems.
• Spirulina is high in protein and it helps protect the body’s immune system as well as lowering cholesterol and helping to stabilize blood sugar levels.
• Tumeric root is an antifungal and an antiparasitic. It helps to cleanse the blood and has been used in many herbal medicines.
• Wheatgrass is another of the super green foods which helps to create a very unfavourable environment for bacteria.

As you can see the wide variety of green foods used in these amazing supplements really can make a difference to both your body and your health. Your goal however, is to start using them and see the difference for yourself.

Resource:
What can Green Food Supplements Do For You? – Nutritional Supplements Health Guide

Oranges: Taste the Sunshine!

With all the sunshine that’s on the horizon, we figured now would be a great time to talk about the nutritional value of oranges. Juicy and sweet and renowned for its concentration of vitamin C, oranges make the perfect snack and add a special tang to many recipes; it is no wonder that they are one of the most popular fruits in the world. Oranges are generally available from winter through summer with seasonal variations depending on the variety.

Oranges are round citrus fruits with finely-textured skins that are, of course, orange in color just like their pulpy flesh; the skin can vary in thickness from very thin to very thick. Oranges usually range from approximately two to three inches in diameter.

Oranges are classified into two general categories-sweet and bitter-with the former being the type most commonly consumed. Popular varieties of the sweet orange (Citrus sinensis) include Valencia, Navel and Jaffa oranges, as well as the blood orange, a hybrid species that is smaller in size, more aromatic in flavor and has red hues running throughout its flesh. Bitter oranges (Citrus aurantium) are oftentimes used to make jam or marmalade, and their zest serves as the flavoring for liqueurs such as Grand Marnier and Cointreau.

Health Benefits

• Vitamin C: You may already know that oranges are an excellent source of vitamin C-just one orange supplies 116.2% of the daily value for vitamin C-but do you know just how important vitamin C and oranges are for good health? Vitamin C is the primary water-soluble antioxidant in the body, disarming free radicals and preventing damage in the aqueous environment both inside and outside cells. Inside cells, a potential result of free radical damage to DNA is cancer.
• Cold Prevention: Vitamin C, which is also vital for the proper function of a healthy immune system, is good for preventing colds and may be helpful in preventing recurrent ear infections.
• Fiber: Oranges’ health benefits continue with their fiber; a single orange provides 12.5% of the daily value for fiber, which has been shown to reduce high cholesterol levels thus helping to prevent atherosclerosis. Fiber can also help out by keeping blood sugar levels under control, which may help explain why oranges can be a very healthy snack for people with diabetes.
• Natural Fruit Sugar: In addition, the natural fruit sugar in oranges, fructose, can help to keep blood sugar levels from rising too high after eating. The fiber in oranges can grab cancer-causing chemicals and keep them away from cells of the colon, providing yet another line of protection from colon cancer. And the fiber in oranges may be helpful for reducing the uncomfortable constipation or diarrhea in those suffering from irritable bowel syndrome.

How to Select
Oranges do not necessarily have to have a bright orange color to be good. In fact, the uniform color of non-organic oranges may be due to injection of Citrus Red Number 2 (an artificial dye) into their skins at the level of 2 parts per million. Whether organic or not, oranges that are partially green or have brown russetting may be just as ripe and tasty as those that are solid orange in color. Avoid those that have soft spots or traces of mold. And, because oranges are among the top 20 foods in which pesticide residues are most frequently found, buy organic oranges whenever possible.

Choose oranges that have smoothly textured skin and are firm and heavy for their size. These will have a higher juice content than those that are either spongy or lighter in weight. In general, oranges that are smaller will be juicier than those that are larger in size, as will those that feature thinner skins.

How to Store
Oranges can either be stored at room temperature or in the refrigerator, depending upon your preference. They will generally last the same amount of time, two weeks with either method, and will retain nearly the same level of their vitamin content. The best way to store oranges is loose rather than wrapped in a plastic bag since if exposed to moisture, they can easily develop mold.

Orange juice and zest can also be stored for later use. Place freshly squeezed orange juice in ice cube trays until frozen, and then store them in plastic bags in the freezer. Dried orange zest should be stored in a cool, dry place in an airtight glass container.

Recipes

• Citrus Splash Salad
• Karen’s Christmas Punch
• Juice Recipes with Oranges

Resource:
Oranges – World’s Healthiest Foods

Raw Veggie “Stir Fry”

We found this fabulous recipe on website Rawmazing. If you want something with a little spice and a lot of flavor, this rawmazing dish is for you. For this recipe you need a food processor. It is fun, fast and the flavors are great. Don’t be intimidated by the parsnip rice. The flavor is very mild and when combined with the other ingredients, makes a great meal.

Parsnips are full of vitamin C, have tons of fiber and are high in folic acid. They are a good source of niacin, magnesium, thiamine and potassium. They also have vitamins B6 and E.

Rice:

• 2 C Chopped Parsnips
• 2 Carrots
• 1/2 C Pine Nuts
• 3/4 C Broccoli, Chopped
• 1/2 C Mushrooms, sliced

Finely chop parsnips, carrots, and pine nuts and place in bowl. If you are using a food processor to do this, you will want to do each separately. Combine with chopped broccoli and sliced mushrooms. (mushrooms not pictured)

Sauce:

• 1/4 C Olive Oil
• 1/3 C Sun dried Tomatoes (soft)
• 1 t. Chili Peppers (dried)
• 1 1/2 t. Curry Powder
• 1 T Nama Shoyu
• 1 T Agave (Optional)

Combine all ingredients in food processor, process until well combined. Stir into “rice mixture”. Enjoy!

Source Information: Recipe and photographs are copyright 2009 Susan Powers www.rawmazing.com. All Rights Reserved.

Summer Salad Series: Citrus Splash

This summer we are doing a series of light, refreshing, energizing salads! Perfect to entertain with and eat in warm weather. Our first salad, Citrus Splash, is sure to be a delight! It’s modified from a recipe we found on Vegetarian Times.

Ingredients:

Dressing

• 2 Tbs. raw agave syrup
• 1 1/2 Tbs. lime or lemon juice
• 1 Tbs. Nama Shoyu (unpasteurized soy sauce)
• 1/2 tsp. seasalt
• 1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes

Salad

• 2 oranges or blood oranges
• 1 grapefruit
• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped arugula
• 1 shallot, peeled, thinly sliced crosswise, and loosened into strands (1/4 cup)
• 1 Tbs. coarsely chopped mint leaves
• 2 Tbs. raw sliced or slivered almonds, for garnish
• 1 Tbs. raw sesame seeds, for garnish

Directions
1. To make Dressing: Mix all ingredients together in bowl. Taste for balance of sweet, sour, salty, and spicy, adjusting seasonings as necessary. Set aside.
2. To make Salad: Slice ends off oranges and grapefruit. Stand fruit on cutting board, and slice away skin from outside with knife. Cut fruit segments from membranes, and transfer to bowl; toss lightly with arugula, shallot, and mint. Toss with Dressing. Serve garnished with peanuts and sesame seeds.

Affirmations for Health & Wellness

Affirmations are statements of acceptance that one uses to allow the manifestation of your destiny. They are powerful and positive thoughts and statements that you send out into the universe. That positive energy reaches far beyond what the eyes can see and can do wonders in your life. To do positive affirmations, you need to eliminate the negative around you. If you come into such energy, you must find ways to not let it hold you back from what you are trying to accomplish. That energy should not stick to you.

You must first believe that YOU CAN manifest your destiny. It must be a positive, powerful belief. Not just a “maybe I’ll try this and see if this works.” Having the right thoughts and visualizations can help you to create the life that you want. Many of our readers are interested in changing their lives for the better through holistic health and wellness. It’s partially changing your lifestyle and eating routine, but it is also about changing your mind. Let’s focus on changing the way we think, on allowing more positive energy in our lives, and in turn also giving us the positive energy we need to affirm and achieve our goals.

Before You Begin
There are several areas of our lives that we can apply affirmations to. For this article we are going to focus on our health and wellness. As you work with the affirmations provided below, remember to:

• Use the present or past tense. Do not use the future tense. You want your mind to know it has already happened.
• Be POSITIVE. Use the most positive terms you can. Never use negatives in affirmations.
• Write them down. As you are learning to do these, write them down so you will remember exactly what you want to say.
• Believe. Always believe that what you saying is happening. It may seem weird or even difficult at first, but with practice you will change your mind. The more you believe, the stronger the affirmation.
• Repetition. Being repetitive and persistent helps to set them i your head and into your own unconscious being. Do you want to change your life? Then speak your life into existence.
• Time. Always have a specific time daily set aside for your meditations, affirmations and visualizations. This will help set a pattern for you so you can do them daily. Make them a part of your life. Make the time.

Affirmations for Your Heath
Here are some affirmations to get you on your way to optimal health. These will more than compliment and enhance the strides you are already taking. One ounce of the right thoughts get way more done than a million ounces of action.

• I have the power to control my health.
• I am in control of my health and wellness.
• I have abundant energy, vitality and well-being.
• I am healthy in all aspects of my being.
• I do not fear being unhealthy because I know that I control my own body.
• I am always able to maintain my ideal weight.
• I am always able to maintain my ideal weight.
• I am filled with energy to do all the daily activities in my life.
• My mind is at peace.
• I love and care for my body and it cares for me.

Resource: Affirmations http://www.mjbovo.com/Affirmations.htm

We’ve Got Raw Cookie Dough!

If you didn’t grow up on raw foods, perhaps you remember being a kid and being absolutely smitten to have the left over dough after a batch of cookies was placed in the oven. Some of us over here used to sneak spoonfuls of it when mom wasn’t looking. Or perhaps as an adult, you’ve brought some cookie dough with all intentions of actually baking it, but it became an instant snack that was always in easy access range in your fridge. No matter your memory, don’t think that just because you are transitioning into raw foods that you have to give up the taste of some of your ol’ time favorites. You’ll just be having a healthier version instead, something that is actually good for you and taste GREAT too!

This raw chocolate chip cookie dough is sooo super easy to make, it would be a fun project to do as a family, or something you can easily prepare on your own. Trust us, it’s worth it. This recipe makes about 20 cookie dough balls.

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup dates, pitted
• 1/2 cup raw cashews
• 3/4 tsp vanilla extract
• handful of raw cacao nibs

Equipment:
Food Processor

Directions:
1. Measure out the nuts and then pulse them into the food processor until they are nothing but little confetti pieces.

2. Then add the dates into the food processor and pulse them until they have completely blended with the cashews

3. Add the 3/4 tsp of vanilla extract and continue to pulse until you can see the mixture sticking together

4. Take the mixture out of the food processor and lay it onto a cutting board. Sprinkle in your raw cacao nibs using your hands to knead the “dough”.

5. Use your hands to grab individual pieces of dough and roll them into circles (or you can use a melon scooper if you have one).

6. Once you have enough cookie dough balls, place them on a plate and into the fridge for 1-2 hours (or the freezer for 30 minutes if you are in a hurry).

7. That’s it folks! We promise, it taste just like cookie dough, but with no additives or bad ingredients in there. All healthy, all natural, all raw, all good for you. Enjoy!

Sweet & Spicy Mango Salsa

Made this as an appetizer for a group gathering of friends and it went over very well! This recipe is super easy to make and has just the perfect blend of spice and sweetness. An amazing flavor combination, and an ideal appetizer dish for entertaining. One of the clever attributes to this dish is the size of all the spices (such as red onion, peppers, etc) in comparison to the chunky mango pieces.

Ingredients

• 1 mango, pitted and diced
• 1 large yellow bell pepper
• 1/2 red bell pepper
• 1/2 red onion (chopped)
• 1/2 cup cilantro
• 1 green jalapeno (or 1/2 depending on spice preference)
• 2 tbs lime juice
• 1/2 tsp paprika

Equipment
A food processor is not required, but will be helpful with chopping ingredients into small pieces.

Directions
1. Once you have all your ingredients rinsed, chop up the bell peppers first. Use the food processor to get the pieces to the right size. Place the chopped red and yellow bell peppers into a mixing bowl.
2. Then use the food processor to finely chop the jalapeno pepper. Add this to the mixing bowl.
3. Chop up the red onion and cilantro into small pieces (use the food processor to help). Add this to the mixing bowl.
4. Use a wooden spoon to gently mix the ingredients together.
5. Use a knife to cut down your mango and then chop it into little chunks. Add all the chunks to your mixing bowl.
6. Gently mix in the mango chunks. Add the 2 tbs of lime juice and 1/2 tsp of paprika to the bowl and continue mixing.
7. This salsa is so amazing you can eat it right then and there, or let it sit in the fridge for a couple of hours so the ingredients can further absorb the flavors.
8. Serve and enjoy!