everyday raw chili success!

twice in the last 5 days, i have broke into my copy of matthew kenney's everyday raw and made his raw chili. after many ani phyo delicious chilis (most recently, but also here, and here). it's been fun to find another yummy chili that is easy to make, uses "normal" ingredients and has universal appeal.

reading the reviews on amazon, there is a "not for the beginner" and a "meh" as some responses. i can slightly relate, i suppose, as some of the recipes in this book have a few too many steps, ie using (one recipe) with (other recipe) and then make ("this" recipe) for on top. i need to try more recipes from everyday raw before i can entirely disagree with the discouraging reviews, but the chili recipe on page 78 is a definite win! super easy ingredients to have on hand and it turned out beautifully!

first sampling of the chili was at lisa's birthday potluck on saturday - the first potluck i have been at in awhile that had non-vegan dishes present. gasp! it was nice that this chili fit in easily as i don't think it looks super granola-vegan-ish or much unlike a "real" chili.

i love trying new recipes for potlucks. they always seem to turn out amazing and then i also get to try other people's food creations! so much fun!

 and now, tonight, at my parents' place, we super enjoyed our delicious chili outside:

my mom cleared off the outside chairs so we could all enjoy the remaining sun of the day sans spiders. thanks mom! ^_^ 

i love that you don't even notice it's "raw". my parents said it tasted like chili and they both really enjoyed it. yay! i tried to explain why i soaked and sprouted the raw almonds but i'm not so good with such details. i figured it was the best way to make the almonds "alive" again. just like it wouldn't be so helpful to eat seeds you want to grow vegetables from and you wait until they have sprouted into plants, you soak the raw nut to make it into something nutritionally dense and easily digested. is that accurate? anyone?

"le réfrigérateur toute" smoothie

today's smoothie is not mostly greens, but is mostly green.
it is creamy, ever-so-slightly-sweet and filling!

this smoothie is 1/3 a bunch of parsley, a few sprigs of mint, a couple celery stalks, one carrot, one avocado, one pear, one avocado, two dates (i was worried it would taste like salad), and one cup of filtered water. i have enough for 2 smoothie glasses and well, since paul isn't here and it's basically lunch time, they're mine!

p.s. i went to leanne and liam's super busy potluck last night! at any given point, with all the comers and goers, there'd be at LEAST 30 people there! so, lots of vegan treats to try! i at first was avoiding my allergy list foods (gluten, wheat, cashews, peanuts, etc.) which is super tricky at a potluck (with dishes that don't have listed ingredients and way too many people around to try track down who made what) but i soon figured i might as well see what happens. if i ballooned out into a 8 month's pregnant lady like the last time i had green pepper, i would just go home! anyways... i felt fine! and relieved. my naturopath encouraged me during my last appointment, saying i should not worry about having some of these things during my upcoming quebec trip as for one, eating vegan in QC will be hard enough, but also if i am relaxed about it and relaxed in general, food sensitivities shouldn't flare up too harshly. i think after my next liver cleanse, i want to get my allergies tested again. i'm confident that my "avoids" list is going to keep getting smaller!

oh, but back to L+L's... they have these cool plants that don't have roots or soil or a pot? and they are green! what are these things? are they these tillandsia plants?

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 ^_^

getting rid of your cold...

morning vitamin C smoothie: parsley (couldn't resist as its iron should be more easily absorbed with all of this vitamin C!) and filtered water, camu camu, freshly squeezed orange juice (eek! so amazing! from the juiciest sweetest oranges ever!), mango, papaya...

 and then frozen bananas and some frozen raspberries...

 and later we did several shots of what organic lives puts in their cold/flu shot: e3 live, celery, ginger and camu camu!

coughing and sneezing = gone!