green smoothie experiments.

yesterday's smoothie is the remainder of my romaine lettuce, a few red chard leaves, a peach and a plum (and 1 cup of water as it's a smoothie for one!)

i have to say i'm getting kind of tired of romaine in my smoothies and i can't even say i do it that often. 

so this next one is sans romaine and is made of the greens of one bunch of radishes, one peach, one nectarine and 1 cup of water.

it smells a bit like peach and tastes very light and fresh. a bit garden grass-ish but it blended so light like a frothy juice, it's refreshing!

i just started reading a book from the library, the 80/10/10 diet by dr. douglas n. graham, and there's a nectarine on the front (with cucumber and lettuce) - perhaps that will have to be my next green smoothie, when i'm ready to drink lettuce again! ^_^

from the beginning of "80-10-10"

first of 3 pages of reasons it makes sense to be vegetarian, according to dr. douglas n. graham

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 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 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).

day 6 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

so i stayed home sick today. i couldn't talk this morning without tears and my head congestion reached an all-time high. (i have been on-off sick for the past 3 weeks. super annoying)
anyways... i got to make green smoothies for paul and i when he was actually up too. so that was a nice perk. and not to be gross or anything (TMI?), but i felt like i managed to ooze out at least half of my congestion after drinking this drink this morning! YAY!

this smoothie was blended kale and romaine with ginger, frozen banana and mango. i think i will have to switch up the fruit component tomorrow as i have been relying so much on b+m. but they are so good!

i realize posting a photo of my green smoothie every day could get a bit repetitive so i'll try switch it up! ^_^

day 5 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

this morning when i blended my romaine lettuce, red chard leaves, frozen banana and mango, i used 1.5 cups of filtered water instead of the 1 cup i did yesterday. paul did not like how his frozen smoothie yesterday thawed out into mealy chunks. and today i gave it to him right when i made it rather than putting it in the freezer for him until he got up ^_^ and it worked well. half-asleep, drinking his smoothie! hehe
we'll see if it works again tomorrow.

i'm upset tonight because i went out for tea to sweet obsession and i ordered a chai latte with soy milk (as i wanted something a bit more than plain tea - everyone else was having desserts which i of course would not be eating) and it seemed to be so pure white but i didn't think anything of it until my face and ears were feeling super hot. but the worst was seeing the bill and the lack of charge for the different "milk". and then the waitress confirmed she forgot about the soy. so now i have this crazy stomach ache and i find it hard to stay upright. i'm drinking kombucha and hoping to wake up tomorrow with it out of my system. it's hard psychologically because i am very careful to not consume ANY animal products but it is also hard because dairy is included in my elimination diet on the "definitely avoid completely" list and i can't help but worry that i have messed up my 6 weeks of commitment to this. and 2 nights ago i had a couple bites of hummus that ended up having sun-dried tomato in it (and tomato is on my "avoid" list!) and my hands immediately dried up and have been cracking ever since. it's also freezing out but i can't help but think it's related.

anyways... come on, probiotics! balance me out!

day 4 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

this morning's smoothie was a 1/2 head of romaine, 1/2 bunch of dandelion greens with one bosc pear, a frozen banana and some frozen mango. i used just 1 cup of water this time and ended up with the perfect amount of smoothie for paul and i!

i still can't believe my elbow rash/eczema is gone. excited to see what other things start happening! so yeah, i am still super excited about doing this green smoothie thing. it's hard to keep it to myself.

last night, an old man on the bus asked what i was reading ("raw and beyond") and then we got in a big conversation about processed foods and why people don't seem to make the connection between their health and what they eat. i was really excited we were of the same opinion. and i think everyone probably does make this connection as well, if they stop and think about it, but i just think most people don't bother to!

my band/good mates were joking that i was high (i have a good 10 minutes of ramble about green smoothies i want to tell everyone around me now!) but i know they understand too.

green smoothies for life! ^_^

day 1 of 30 green smoothie days in a row

so i have a new plan.

i have just changed my blog name from "keep on raw in the real world" to "get real". get real just seems more appropriate. being 100% raw isn't all that realistic and doesn't seem to be as important to me anymore as continuing to eat "real" food in a way that benefits my body the most.

my inspiration is victoria boutenko's green for life. i guess you just can't eat the same thing all the time or get into food ruts and her update on her (already!) classic book makes sense! i am also reading her raw and beyond (ie not being so consumed by consuming only raw foods) book which has been super inspiring.

basically, fresh organic greens are the most important food group that the majority of us are not getting enough of, or at least in an absorbable-by-the-body way. there really should be a food group called "greens" and at the very least, produce should have an extra category for them beyond fruits and veggies. (as an aside - has anyone else noticed in yaletown's choices market, they have been renovating, that the organic section has switched places with the conventional produce? last night i had picked up everything i needed and then noticed that i didn't have any organic things in my basket and had to put everything back to start again! i felt totally tricked. or oblivious. ANYWAYS.)

i don't even know where to begin with the green smoothies and not being so focussed on 100% raw (not that i have been the last year or so but still... it's been on my mind). first of all, i have thought that i ate a fair bit of greens... but... apparently if i am not chewing them to the point of them becoming a creamy swirl in my mouth, they are of no use to me and could even be harmful. (i'm going on memory here so perhaps you are best to take the book out of the library yourself... i'm going to have to commit to buying this one, i figure! 3 weeks is going to come up fast!) anyways... by blending your greens, you get all the goodness you need out of the greens in the first place, including the fibre. ah, and she addressed the proper food combining thing... fruit is fine with the greens (makes it easier to drink them while you are acquiring a taste for them!) because greens are not vegetables and they are not starchy. and oh goodness, i can't wait for the neighbourhood farmers market to start up again in the summer when i can get fresh beets and carrots and all... all of these root veggies whose green TOPS have more goodness in them than the root? i wasn't always excited to use the tops in salads and such. blending them into the freshest of smoothies is way more appealing and exciting!
and... her point about chimpanzees: we share 99.4% the same genes as chimps, why don't we eat like them? super super good point. and they don't eat many root veggies. not to say they avoid them, but they only eat them if there isn't an abundance of greens and fruits. and nuts and oils are to be eaten sparingly.
i totally identified with victoria's recount of her raw diet health "plateau"... reaching a certain level and then seeming to regress in a way. or having small health issues pop up. and i totally related to her saying how she would be eating super heavy stuff at night, like nuts and things, and not feeling satisfied.
and i'm super curious about the results of doing one green smoothie per day for 30 days, at minimum! it looks like doing that and eating your normal way (vegan or not) can reap the same benefits of a raw diet. i would love to have stronger nails and hair and more energy like i did when i first went raw! and to not have the desire to eat late at night!

wow, i feel like i'm at a book club meeting about victoria's books and i'm discussing them with myself. what a ramble! i guess i am just too excited to be practicing some of these ideas that totally make sense to me!

i am excited to see what happens as i do one green smoothie a day! and i'm getting paul to do it too ^_^ he has been wanting to eat more healthy and i think having one green smoothie a day is going to be the perfect thing for him!

i'm going to keep track on here so that i hold myself to this and see what kind of smoothies i like the best!

today's smoothie (and i somehow didn't take a photo! boo!):

dandelion leaves
cilantro
romaine lettuce
pear
frozen mango
frozen banana

yum! some spiciness from the dandelion and overall, so refreshing. even took some leftovers to work to drink 2 hours later and it was still exciting!

i forgot how paul hates cilantro so i didn't leave him any of my smoothie but i had thawed out a drink me "ruby" smoothie that i didn't drink at work so that was his greens smoothie today! kale, orange juice, raspberries and beets. and i learned from my readings yesterday, that if your pee changes colour after consuming beets, you have low stomach acid. interesting huh? (or is that just interesting to me...)

if i could eat this in a restaurant, i'd be most pleased!

so this was lunch yesterday! another ani phyo delight, from p145 of ani's raw food essentials: tomato chili with taco nut meat (bean-free). i only had 1 tomato so i don't imagine i had quite the 3 cups asked for and i didn't use corn but... success! i used less chili powder than asked for since i had stuff from organic lives and wow, i still felt a punch in the head from the chili! it's powerful!

for the taco nut meat (p146), i used brazil nuts instead of walnuts and it was DELICIOUS.

i served the chili on top of some romaine and put half an avocado on each of our plates to calm the chili a bit.

 and yah, this couldn't be better if someone else made it! the PERFECT meal!!!

 and well, a couple hours later, i couldn't resist trying to make a cashew cream with lemon and vanilla to spoon over strawberries with cacao nibs!