dinner with kassie!

after what feels like forever (ie WEEKS and MONTHS too long!), i got to meet up with kassie tonight for dinner at eternal abundance. a bonus was that it was customer appreciation day which means 15% off grocery and book items. we both picked up zimt raw chocolate bars to eat on the way home. YAY!
we both had the raw kale caesar which is definitely deserving of its recognition in the straight's golden plate awards - though i think it should be ranked best salad in vancouver!

i also had the green goddess smoothie. YUM! (oh, i can't WAIT to get to make green smoothies again!)

i am so in love with this place. and i am so happy i have another friend stoked about it. i had the large salad, a smoothie, a chocolate bar and a big bag of organic produce for $43! it is possible to eat amazing and not go broke doing so. YAY!

p.s. before i forget to mention, i just watched hungry for change last night and i think it is free to watch for just a couple more days. i found some of the clips a bit repetitive (like they show a trailer intro first and then you remember verbatim what was said earlier) but the messages are excellent ones. there are good points about why diets don't work and why we should care how we are in the inside (not just thoughts and attitudes, but actual organs and blood and all them guts), not just want to improve our outward appearance. it comments a lot on how our "food" today is not really food. i think it is a must-see for everyone who does not yet form a connection between diet and health. it is not entirely vegan which makes the message less extreme, i figure, for meat-eaters. i now want to watch crazy sexy cancer as its creator (and cancer survivor), kris carr (who is featured in hungry for change, along with david wolfe and jon gabriel), is super inspiring.

tao organics

you may recall the company tao organics when they were working inside buddha-full making the burgers and kale chips and selling their products in karmavore as well.
recently (in the last few weeks!), they have opened their OWN cafe and it is actually quite close to buddha-full which means it is quite close to the sea bus and lonsdale quay in north van. yay!
me and emilee went on monday after work and it was glorious! i wish i had taken pictures inside the shop. it's tucked away in a courtyard and has windows on the multi-layered ceiling (think lovely natural light) when you first enter. there is bright blue seating outside as well as several tables inside beside the open kitchen and a couple coolers and shelves of take-home goodies.
me and em shared each a parvati roll (collard wrap with sweet raisin chutney - i used to buy the chutney at karmavore ^_^). super delicious! em mentioned she enjoyed the moist, vibrant flavour.
we both ordered lemon macaroons and ate them before (and after!) our meals after finding out that they didn't actually have cashews in them like the menu (that was getting redesigned as we ate!) said! we loved the big chunks of dried coconut flakes!

photo: avocadowalnutlovely on instagram

photo: avocadowalnutlovely on instagram

 emilee had the sushi for dinner and i had the gaia burger (which i had before at buddha-full. so delicious!)

it was awesome to get to eat at yet another raw, organic-friendly place in greater vancouver! YAY! and we were super impressed with the prices. my burger was $6.50 i think and i took home a big bag of kale chips for paul for the same price. our macaroons were $1 each! and i love that there are cashew-free options and agathe does not use green peppers at all (hurrah!) and i don't think she uses peanuts or gluten. i'm still hesitant about tamari and such, even when it is wheat-free... why doesn't it claim to be gluten-free? i'm still pretty new at all of this allergen stuff. it's easier to avoid things when you don't have to be militant. curious if after my next liver cleanse i will have even less allergies!

eek! thank you vitamix!!!

i am OVER THE MOON. just got off the phone with vitamix (10 minutes or less call) and i am being sent a new blade agitator and blade with wrench so that i can replace mine that is not turning in my wet container. i couldn't believe this was considered covered under my warranty since i was immediately admitting how stupid i was for using my tamper without the lid!
i then asked if i could buy a replacement tamper to hopefully receive at the same time (me and paul are DYING to have green smoothies again!) and my helpful agent said i get one free tamper included in my warranty! so i will receive that for free too!
eek! eek! eek!
it's funny, i was getting so nervous about the cost, i was thinking i should call russell food first because at least they are local and i could bypass shipping costs. i guess i will have to wait until my next stupid accident to use them. but hopefully i am going to be so present and aware from now on, that my vitamix will get to happily blend forever more...
THANK YOU, VITAMIX!!!

i am so sorry, vitamix.

dear vitamix,
i stupidly used the tamper today in my vitamix without the lid! i don't know WHY i thought this was a better idea than taking some lettuce out of the blender.
long story short: i have shattered the end of my tamper and the blades don't want to turn so much anymore. i tried out my dry container and that seemed to work after a little bit of a warm up.
i am worried that i have damaged the motor and wet container!
what can i do?
i realize the warranty (i purchased my machine in january 2011) doesn't cover stupidity, but i am hoping i can repair my machine rather than have to save up for a new one! is there anywhere local i can take my vitamix in for repair? what are my options?
i love my vitamix!
i appreciate any advice you can give me.

sigh. so i am juicing again. for now. not as easy and quick as putting it all in the blender.
the website says i should get a response within 4-5 days. it appears i am not the first person to do this and it sounds like they have excellent customer service and that this broken drive socket repair could be $102. if it's that, i am soooo relieved. we'll see!

p.s. can't help but feel like my blender has cut me off from green smoothies. it was like, 30 days? that is IT!!!

day 30 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

wow, has it been 30 days already? in some ways, it feels way longer.
i know i will continue to do the green smoothie daily but i can't say i really am inspired to post it every single day!

haha. this doesn't look so appetizing but this is a series of shots as my smoothie progressed from mostly red kale (used one bunch total) and some navel orange (used 3 in total - just removed the peel and seeds), to more orange and finally, i think it was 4 frozen bananas!
this was my 'safe' smoothie. was craving it yesterday and i got what i wanted! didn't use water again and the texture was great. paul approved too. so it is a win! ^_^

day 29 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

today's smoothie was a head of romaine lettuce, 2 rainbow carrots, a nub of ginger, an orange, a pear, and 1.5 frozen bananas.

loved the texture of this one! didn't use any water, like yesterday and that helped keep the smoothie portions to 2 glasses. just had to blend in a couple stages to get everything to fit in the blender! i think the orange pulp and carrots really helps pull the textures together to make a smooth smoothie type blend. the frozen bananas help as well, of course.
not sure i like the ginger in this one which is weird because i love it in my parsley blend from earlier this week and i love it in a frozen banana/mango "tropical" style smoothie. who knows.
think i gotta pick up some kale today to do a kale/orange/banana drink tomorrow, like the simple yet delicious drinkme smoothies you can get in the freezer section of organic grocery stores. ^_^

day 28 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

i was excited to try some new (to me) snacks at whole foods in bellevue today where sarah and i met leanna for lunch. including these raw vanilla coconut ice cream pops! YAY! super good.

when i got home, i made this green smoothie which paul says is his favourite yet! i used the tops of the bunch of rainbow carrots we got from spud when they didn't have the beets i ordered!
oh yeah, the smoothie:
*carrot tops (the greens! of a whole bunch of rainbow carrots! inspiration here)
*2 carrots
*1 pear
*2 navel oranges
*2 blood oranges (small)
*1 frozen banana
*some mint leaves

paul was fine with the pulpy texture because it was thicker. i didn't use ANY water for this one! so pleased i used the greens i don't usually do anything with. next challenge is to use the tops of radishes before they get all wilted and mushy.

day 27 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

today's morning smoothie was romaine lettuce with celery, cucumber and apple. i didn't think i would have time to have a smoothie before leaving in the morning so i was excited! and paul didn't have to make a smoothie for himself as i left a glass of it for him too ^_^

at lunch, i had another green smoothie!!! i was in seattle with sarah and we went to chaco canyon where i had the ginger sesame bowl which was delicious and oh-so-perfect for how hungry i was by then! i was really impressed with how easy it was to order despite my allergies. (note: friday i had a re-test of allergies and i have a much shorter list now - HURRAH!!! - but i have to avoid gluten/cashews/peanuts/green peppers/honeydew always along with my "wouldn't-eat-anyways" dairy products, coffee and meat) i got the "really green smoothie" to go, which was kale with apple juice and banana. yum!

later that afternoon, i got to check out jodee's desserts which was awesome. i could eat some raw cookies, macaroons and raw taco chips. all super good. didn't like the raw chocolate so much (felt it should have a stronger taste - more bitter, more sweet - anything!). everything else had cashews in it though there were smoothie options. pretty near by, also in the greenlake area, is the chocolate shoebox where i got some costume-looking green flats for $24. and a bunch of fun (and unhealthy!) snacks, like cocomels and caramel popcorn. yum!

day 26 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

today's smoothie is basically a repeat of yesterday's (loved it!) but i added one apple:

day 25 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

today was my perfect green smoothie. paul wasn't totally into it (he blended his with more water  - he's not keen on drinks you have to chew! hehe) but i really appreciate that he wants to drink healthy things ^_^

(all the tall glasses were in the dishwasher so we had to do a couple refills!)

so today was... a couple stalks of celery, about half a long english cucumber, a parsley bunch, a nub of ginger and the juice of one lemon.

this is the juice of my one lemon.

figure today is a good day to point out the importance of having seeds in your citrus fruit! david wolfe says (in his sunfood diet success system book) that :"a good quality citrus fruit should contain 14-15 seeds, even if the fruit is small in size. the more seeds in citrus, the better. the less seeds in citrus, the more hybridized or grafted is the strain. after you purchase or pick them, keep citrus fruits in sunlight or on the windowsill so they remain at their maximum nutritive value and quality. the more ripe and sun-exposed the citrus fruits, the sweeter and less acidic are its contents."

and i think it makes common sense, yes? you want to eat the most natural food as it simply must be the most nutritious and healthy! healthy plants want to (and can!) reproduce. can seedless plants reproduce? hmm... thinking not. buying organic guarantees that you are buying non-genetically modified produce. just one more reason to buy organic, just saying.

so, as much as seeds can be a drag, i'm totally happy to see them when i open up my fruit. it means i have a good one ^_^

day 24 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

kinda wishing i didn't make a green smoothie today.
i started by squeezing fresh orange juice and goodness, would it have been AWESOME just to drink that. and why didn't i? well, because i was going to use it for this green smoothie!

 

this smoothie was going to just be the fresh orange juice with collard greens. neither of which i tried on their own. then, i remembered i had a bulb of fennel i hadn't used yet so i added a few stalks of that. not knowing how it tastes in a smoothie as i've only ever used it in salad (which is delicious, btw!). then i was kinda freaked that it tasted too strong like having an onion-aftertaste kind of strong. so i added an asian pear and a frozen banana and an avocado. now i'm just drinking it slowly. whew. it's intense. if it didn't have the aftertaste, i would be into it. but yikes. i should really start slow when adding new ingredients. 

 

paul hasn't commented on the taste. but he didn't like the texture so he had to blend it with apple juice again.

i gotta do something safe for tomorrow's smoothie!

day 23 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

happy st. patrick's day!
as good of a day as any to have a GREEN smoothie.
green beer though? ech! never understood why someone would want to add food dye to something.

too bad mine today didn't look so green. i didn't even think of it when i added frozen raspberries (been cleaning out the freezer!) and a frozen banana to the head of romaine with 1 cup of filtered water...

day 22 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

today's smoothie was some remaining collard greens, romaine lettuce (i feel like i haven't used romaine in awhile), an asian pear, 2 kiwis (they were getting kinda soft), mint leaves (not as much as yesterday) and an apple with 1 cup of filtered water.

i loved the texture - the pear and kiwi added a light grittiness. paul found it too thick (and not ice cream smooth-type thick!) so he blended it with some apple juice.

i love that making a green smoothie is a daily tradition now. next week, as i am spending one night in seattle, paul is going to have to make at least one of his own ^_^ i'm curious what he will concoct!

day 21 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

i'm having one of those days where i'm just in awe of people who think cheaper food is better value. i realize most people don't want to think of where their food came from or how it was made but i'm continually amazed that people can think cheap food that you have to eat way more of and feel sick after, is the better deal. granted, i do tend to eat more food than i need, but i am working on that. when i don't focus on my enjoyment of eating and let my stomach tell me when to eat, i really don't need much. which is kind of annoying sometimes! but that's how you make a real food, organic lifestyle affordable. and make nutrition actually possible for your body!

so what has inspired this ramble? well, next week i'm planning to go down to seattle with a friend and i was just looking for some new places to go and have been focussed more on the gluten-free vegan choices. i have been to flying apron bakery so i was excited to see a place i hadn't been to before: jodee's desserts. jodee used to make all the raw desserts at thrive and last year opened her own place in greenlake. in effort to see if i could find out if she relies on cashews for her desserts (still don't know), i looked up her place on yelp.

i'm dumbfounded by some of the reactions. it reminds me of when i was demoing raw organic products like coconut water and people generally take things without inquiring what they are. or they see a name they recognize like "macaroon" and don't ask any questions. i suppose that having the same names as the indigestible stuff they are used to could be misleading. i have to remind myself that there are still people out there that don't know what gluten is or dairy (??? i know!) or sugar. reading "compared to something with actual butter, sugar, and all the "standard" ingredients you will find in baked goods, this isnt even close." kind of frustrates me as that isn't the point. it's like how i have felt being on this elimination diet for 2 months. though i can't eat some things, it's really not a big deal. i eat other things. and i enjoy other things. as a long-time vegetarian, i'm not looking for something that is going to taste exactly like meat. why? i'm over it. i don't want it! and though sometimes i have enjoyed "novelty" food, it isn't food i typically search out.

i was also taken aback by the but the flavor was a pungent artificial lime comment. um, this would definitely be the one place where they wouldn't be using artificial flavours!!! people are so detached from what food is and what it should taste like, they don't even know the flavours of real foods anymore? imagine kids growing up on watermelon gum, banana candy, apple lollipops and "pink" flavour finally trying some real fruits. what are they going to think?

i was trying to find prices for jugo juice and booster juice and all those places to compare as people also like to complain about paying $7 for a smoothie. i have always been amazed at being able to get a raw, organic, superfood smoothie at organic lives for just $7. i'm not sure what people expect food to cost. i feel so guilty when i think of how far some of my food choices have travelled to get to me! nevermind the packaging and shipping costs, what about the labour and production costs to the farmer? and maybe the smoothies at the chain places are $6, but what are you paying for? how much sugar is in one of those drinks? or dairy? i'm always amazed at the people who insist that a fruit smoothie needs a sweetener added to it. yuck! and that ice needs sugar to be able to blend. headache, anyone? why ruin a good (for you) thing? and wouldn't you rather pay a bit more for something that is going to sustain you in a good way rather than pollute your body?

i felt like an alien at work the day a lady was lamenting over her $6 jar of 'natural' peanut butter that was taken by airport security. i recall the times i have spent 3 times as much to get a jar of organic, raw almond butter! i appreciate the work involved to make such a thing and the cost to acquire raw and organic almonds! yes, it's exciting that the natural peanut butter is just made of peanuts (i remember when i first discovered whole foods and would make the trip out to west van so i could grind some peanuts for my own butter to take home!) but when i think of moldy legumes with pesticides, toasted to not taste the toxicity - yikes. i don't know how people are so hung up on it. especially when there are so many other options out there (like jungle peanuts! support heirloom crops! save plant variety!). and especially when so many people are deathly allergic. why would i want to ingest something that could put someone else at risk? i have thought about it many times on the bus... if i happened to have peanut breath or had touched peanuts and then someone with the allergy was nearby, could i risk harming them?

i recall sherry strong comparing fuel for your body to fuel for your car. you wouldn't put crap fuel in your precious car - why do you think it's okay for you? you can replace cars but your body is really the only one you're going to get! the most nutritionally-dense, organic foods you can eat will sustain you the best, heal you and keep you the most healthy! why eat something you're not so sure about?

i'm super excited for summer when i can be buying even more produce directly from local farmers. that's how you get cheap organic food! how else? well, i always suggest to people to even start with one organic thing. (perhaps one or all of the dirty dozen!) i really believe that if more people bought just even one thing that was organic, even more of a demand for organic will surface and the price will continue to go down! i'm so happy when i see organic produce for sale cheaper than conventional! that's how it should be! it sucks that the cost to certify as organic is so expensive. because really, to produce organic food, you don't need anything but knowledge! no pesticides or seeds to buy every year.

okay, i really need to cut myself off here and get into today's smoothie. ha. i'm still on a high from my liver/gallbladder cleanse! i feel so much more energetic and productive and content! and this all from giving my liver a bit more space to do its thing? oh yeah! i'm already super excited to do my next one! monday morning i wasn't so sure i could do it again but now... oh yeah! definitely!!!

so! today's green smoothie!

it was a blend of red leaf lettuce with some collard greens, mint and pear and one sambazon unsweetened organic acai berry smoothie pack and i ended up adding 2 frozen bananas. it was a weird taste. maybe too minty? but no reaction from paul so maybe it wasn't anything unusual.

day 20 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

today has been a wonderful day off. i was up early and feel so accomplished and it's barely mid-day now. yay!
for today's green drink, i blended 1 cup filtered water with almost a whole bunch of mint, my remaining kale, a bunch of red leaf lettuce and 2 apples. yep, i am still enjoying apples. (just not apple juice on its own! hehe)

and since i didn't mention it yesterday in my long post, i have to mention it today! on monday, i received my first grocery delivery from spud and it was so exciting! i am already excited to peruse online to figure out what to get next week. i LOVE that on the bill they print out (on the other side of their newsletter) how many kilometres your food travelled to get to you so you can keep track! though i really only find that accurate for produce. but that's so awesome just for that. (ie just because someone's warehouse is here in vancouver doesn't mean that the actual food stuffs were grown and processed here, like say coconut water).

one of our bins. the produce bin! 

i'm pretty proud that i have been eating more local (or at least north american) produce as of late. though today i put some bananas in the freezer and will probably add one to a smoothie tomorrow. but it feels soooo great to eat stuff that grows where i live! i hope someday i live in an apartment with green space for gardening or at least some south-facing light!

anyways... i used lots of mint today in my smoothie (which was super yummy) because i got an extra package of it FOR FREE since they were out of the basil i wanted (which was taken off my bill) and i wanted to get some organic lives chocolate macaroons but they were out so they substituted the lemon macaroons with a discount! ah, and their small (raw, organic) coconut waters on super special right now - about $3.50 each! (usually they are at least $5). LOVE IT.
i generally go get groceries (mostly produce) 3 times a week which gets annoying sometimes. i love that i can get the biggest trip out of the way (and delivered to me!) especially with annoying bulky things like toilet paper or heavy stuff! hurrah!
my friend phil told me about spud the other day and then i was curious as i have seen their trucks around. then he showed me that if i used his promo code, he would get a $25 credit and i would get the same but over 4 orders. and delivery is free in my area if i spend at least $35. no problem! especially having fun stuff like gluten-free bread (made almost entirely of quinoa and brown rice flour) from glutenell in their warehouse! yum! it was amazing having a "bread" again yesterday for the first time in what feels like forever. i liked it slightly toasted best, with garlic and avocado and raw sauerkraut. DROOL. hehe.

day 19 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

wow. what a day.
so last night was my liver/gallbladder cleanse as per andreas moritz's book and wow, do i feel good (and relieved) now!

**a great post about liver/gallbladder cleansing can be found here**

i did my green smoothie later today because i was so excited to eat and drink other things first.

paul's request was more of a fruit taste which i figured i would have when i combined 2 kiwis, a head of green leaf lettuce, an apple, an avocado for creaminess and a couple pieces of dried mango. i still really tasted the lettuce so i tried to fix by adding a pear, some ground vanilla, lucuma and then some dried wheatgrass powder (i was feeling guilty about adding so many sweet things). so then i was left with a grainy smoothie which i added apple juice to for paul anyways! i should have just drank it as is for myself and then have done the juice addition for him. sigh. i know for next time. it's fine. i just wish i had kept it more simple. i enjoy simple tastes more!

so anyways.. this morning was the defining moment of my cleanse. i had to drink my final 2 glasses of epsom salt water (the WORST thing in the world. it is NOTHING like himalayan salts which people have asked and i probably would enjoy. it tastes like POISON.). my mom didn't think i would be able to do the olive oil/grapefruit last night before bed but that was like a nice salad dressing and was NOTHING like the epsom salt water. and 4 glasses of! by this morning, it was really a test of willpower and commitment and i feel so great for having passed! i found i could down the glass in 4 gulps but both times, the 3rd gulp was the hardest and i thought i would throw up. but wow, when i was done that 4th glass and my next thing to look forward to was my freshly squeezed orange juice after not eating since 1:30pm the previous day? heaven! i started thinking about the juice truck's newest smoothie offering of a "key lime pie". i didn't try it today (as i got a "creamsicle" at organic lives instead) but i hope to tomorrow if possible!

i am currently reading dr. gabriel cousens's conscious eating, which is brilliant and inspiring by the way, and this morning really was a true moment of appreciation for my food. i enjoyed that orange juice like never before (and it wasn't just because of my UFO squeezer) and i'm thinking i'll have to do it more often! but going without food and knowing that i was hungry and that i needed it and wanted it and that i would have to wait afterwards until i was allowed to eat, made me enjoy my fresh fruit juice moment all the more. i feel a bit silly as it wasn't even a full 24 hours of a fast but that is a lot for me. i get really edgy after 4 hours of no food even. (i feel bad for paul who was such a great sport these past 24 hours!)

so... i am happy to report i got to see many of the tiny liver bile stones! scary to think they were in me and there are still stones left. but it's encouraging to know that my prep for the night (i feel like the anticipation was the most thought-consuming!) and the wretched epsom salt water was all made worthwhile when it produced the results promised. i can do it again and i will. until i am stone-free!

i grossed out paul earlier by showing him one of the green pea-like pebbles. and i came home this afternoon to him proudly showing me his pebble he eliminated. which turned out to be a glob of his matcha powder that must have just been left in his mug. sigh. he is the best.

oh and... just have to say... the pre-cleanse colonic that day was not mortifying and uncomfortable like i expected. and i think i was flying on my way home as i made it home in record time with no effort ^_^ i am happy to report i do not dread my follow-up one in a couple days!

i really wish that i wasn't unusual in my quest for best health possible. i recommend everyone read both books i have mentioned. i marvel that people would opt to have their gallbladder removed, an ORGAN in their body, and not remove their problem! i don't see the harm, though i do see the discomfort and commitment necessary, in trying a natural method (or 2 or 3 or 4) first and then, as last resort only, opting for surgery or other drastic modern medicine methods.

i feel blessed with the opportunity to explore healthy options for myself as i don't appear to have a life-threatening disease to worry about. i am grateful i have challenged modern medicine's prescriptions for myself thus far and have felt and seen incredible results. i hope that my efforts will protect me as long as possible. i hope that my efforts and interests will inspire those around me to be proactive with their bodies' health as well!

day 18 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

today is day 18 of green smoothie days but also day 6, and day, of my liver/gallbladder cleanse! eek! i am SO sick of apple juice and grateful i don't have to drink 1 litre per day at least until i do this cleanse again!
so this morning i made a smoothie quite similar to yesterday's but i took a photo. hurrah!

this smoothie is, as pictured, kale, green leaf lettuce (plus a wee bit of leftover romaine), and 2 gala apples (i didn't have any other fruits to blend plus i figured, reluctantly, that any extra apples i could consume would help for tonight's cleanse!). it blended quite foamy like a juice!

day 17 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

i forgot to take a photo of my smoothie today AGAIN! gah.

i am on day 5 of my 6 days of prep for my liver/gallbladder cleanse tomorrow. eek! so i think i have been thinking more about that.

anyways! today's smoothie was half a bunch of kale with half a bunch of romaine lettuce with one apple and one pear. i was taking it to go and was worried it was going to be bitter because of the big kale smell, but it ended up being perfect!

day 16 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

today's smoothie was one bunch of collard greens, 2 apples, 1 pear and a sprinkle of frozen mango.

day 15 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

today's smoothie was a whole bunch of dandelion leaves and because they have such a bitter medicine-like taste, i added some ginger, a pear and frozen banana and sampled it and then added frozen mango and an apple too! eek! but it worked! we had these this afternoon and i think dandelion would be better in the morning. just a thought.

day 14 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

somehow forgot to take a photo this morning! guess i'm running out of ideas to make the green smoothie look different!
anyways, today's smoothies for paul and i were made of a bunch of red chard (without the stems), an apple and a pear. yep!
i'm on my 2nd day of drinking a litre of apple juice in the morning. whoa. 4 more days until my liver/gallbladder cleanse. eek!

day 13 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

wow, day 13! i can't believe it!
well, today i made a less-sweet smoothie. i used an apple, pear, avocado and parsley.

the texture was a bit weird - not quite solid like a smoothie and i had to "drink" most of it with a spoon. oops.

 i didn't want to wake paul this morning so his smoothie was in the fridge until later when i blended it with a bit more water (i used 1.5 cups of filtered water) and a frozen banana.

day 12 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

today's smoothie was a few leaves short of a bunch of kale, 1 apple and 1 mango. trying to switch up the fruit and not rely on the frozen banana so much!

and... as to be expected, it was delicious!

within hmm, just over 12 hours (including sleep time), i have read andreas moritz's the liver and gallbladder miracle cleanse in anticipation for the cleanse i am doing on monday! eek! i have been curious about such a flush for quite some time and one of my friends already has a few done. i will most likely write about my findings as long as not too graphic ^_^ but basically i am super excited to see what happens and kinda nervous to see what kind of stuff i have been carrying around. last night when i was reading, i realized that i have been overeating again (i was so good when i first started the elimination diet in january - mostly probably because i hadn't figured out what i could eat yet!) and i worry about the stress i am putting on my digestive system! hopefully this weekend will be the start of something good for me! 

day 11 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

i somehow forgot to take a photo of my parsley smoothie this morning! for me and paul, i had just over a cup of filtered water with about 2/3 of a huge bunch of parsley, a few remaining leaves of romaine, a sprinkle of frozen mango chunks, 1 anjou pear and 1 frozen banana.

guess i'll just have to add some other photos instead!

so... first... a pleasant surprise when i went for tea this morning at delany's and learned i could get an unsweetened green tea latte with soy. they leave out the vanilla syrup and it is truly unsweetened (unlike starbucks whose matcha still is sweetened. as an aside, anyone remember when starbucks used to add that wretched "melon"-flavoured syrup to their matcha? ech!). and i actually got soy when i ordered it. hurrah!

and now my lunch today. such a treat to get to be home for lunch! it's nice getting to make food for paul too ^_^ so this salad is: collard greens, kale, red cabbage, beet, red onion, radish, carrot, basil, and avocado with (cold-pressed) flax oil and fresh squeezed lemon. yum!

day 10 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

today's smoothie was a bit of romaine lettuce, collard greens, frozen banana and mango.

food highlights of today include grabbing a gluten-free cookie sandwich with friends at edible flours...

i can't believe that i can eat things here. paul thinks that i just buy treats for him (which i do - today i got him a donut, cinnamon roll and "cheese" croissant) and then have to watch people eat. but look at this sign! the icing filling was sweetened with agave and the cookie is made with quinoa/white rice/almond/tapioca flours... all flours i can have on my limited food sensitivity diet! hurrah!

 this cookie is a bit much (at least 2x too much) for one sitting but well, that didn't stop me from eating the whole thing. we all just craved vegetables afterwards!

so we went for some groceries at greens market. i haven't been in awhile and really have to go more often! we couldn't believe the different products that we don't see downtown at whole foods. ha. we're food nerds. but seriously. cultured almond milk yogurt (from amande)?  and raw "bagels" (homegrown living foods) that i previously only found at buddha-full? and raw crackers i hadn't seen before (foods alive)! and organic avocados 2 for $2! excitement!

p.s. emma - can you see the zimt? ^_^

day 9 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

today's smoothie is a bunch of green chard (leaves only) with one pear and two frozen bananas and 1.5 cups of filtered water.
paul took his to go ^_^

is it lame that i think it's important to drink green smoothies and drinks in public to start conversations about healthy eating (er, drinking) and challenge perceptions of ease, expense and enjoyment of such drinks? (yay alliteration!) i love that in vancouver, it's becoming easier and easier to buy a freshly made green smoothie while you're on the go (thinking organic lives, gorilla food, juice truck, eternal abundance, buddha-full, sejuiced, indigo food, whole foods, etc. ooh and i'm sure soon-to-be-open tao organics will too!), if for some reason you didn't get your green drink in the morning ^_^ 

day 8 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

today's is a kale with pear and frozen banana smoothie.

super delicious, as always the way with these green smoothies! nothing much new to report here except paul said my skin looked good today. hurrah!

and just thinking today about one of many things i LOVE about my vitamix blender is that it has this tamper that lets me blend so many chunks of things without having to add much water. i can continue to push things down into the blade and wow, this smooth green drink is so easy! just sayin.

happy friday!

day 7 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

i went to work today. and i feel better though still quite hoarse.
paul was up this early morning so we had smoothies together. they looked more brown than green but the green was there, i promise!

doesn't look all that appetizing, does it? 

green looks way better. 

but what if i told you this one had a mellow chocolatey creaminess to it? 

this one is red chard leaves, romaine lettuce, frozen banana and sambazon pure acai (hence the chocolate-berry flavour hint).