How to eat raw avocado the yummiest way ever: sea salt, garlic, and cilantro
Yesterday was officially Act Stupid Day.
I shared a Coke with Allison at the movie theater, and almost within 10 minutes I developed a cough. I will try to never again drink coke. My body hates me.
What is the difference between a green drink (or aptly named snot drink) and a green smoothie? A green drink is a mix of various green dried plants, such a wheatgrass, spirulina, cracked cell, and different types of plants with high chlorophyll content mixed with water. Very boring. Not something you want staying in your mouth for longer than 2 seconds. I have distinct bad childhood memories of being forced to drink stuff that made me want to hurl. I am a picky eater, and as my parents say, I'm a big "pain in the butt." I agree.
A green smoothie contains 2-4 different fruits: banana, apple, pear, grapes, strawberries, blueberries, etc., water, blended with at least a cup of 1-3 different greens: bok choy, collard, wheatgrass, kale, spinach, red cabbage, turnip greens, romaine lettuce, etc. Herbs (1-2): parsley, basil, mint, cilantro, dill, etc., and wild edibles: stinging nettles, dandelion, chickweed, clover, lambsquarters, etc., are also used if available.
In this smoothie: 2 bananas, 1 1/2 apples, 1 cup blueberries, half bunch turnip greens, half bunch parsley, 1 1/2-inch piece fresh ginger, pinch sea salt and 1-2 cups water all blended finely together. Parsley for decoration.
The first smoothie I made was super easy: 1 cup kale, 1 banana, 1 apple +mint extract. Delicious! The second had some differing greens, but also had ground cloves, cinnamon & ginger in it so it tasted kinda pumpkin pie-y. Greens taste pretty boring on their own, but when you add fruit & herbs it masks the flavor and tastes very yummy.
I prepare the smoothie early in the morning, (takes 7 min. including clean-up) and it makes enough smoothie for 3-4 cups throughout the day so this has saved me an enormous amount of food preparation time. Amazingly, I experience no cravings. I feel full, satisfied, and instead of bloated or a heavy feeling I feel light and energetic. In addition, I've lost 4 pounds, I can concentrate better on schoolwork and notice my vision is better.
So why green smoothies you ask? I hate vegetables and greens. Yuck, ewy, nasty, big problemo. And even though I eat very well on a mostly raw, gluten-free kinda paleo diet, I still felt like I was missing a big part of my nutrition. And this is what I've been exploring and really loving even more than raw food.The first raw food book I ever read was by Sergei & Valya Boutenko and I recently found their mother Victoria's book "The Green Smoothie Revolution." I'd encourage you to read some of the articles on the website; you may change your mind about my crazy way of eating. There is a reason it's called the SAD diet: Standard American Diet. :-P
Here's what she says: http://www.rawfamily.com/green-smoothie/green-smoothie-questions
QUESTION: What are the health benefits of green smoothies?
A molecule of chlorophyll closely resembles a molecule of human blood. According to teachings of Dr. Ann Wigmore, consuming chlorophyll is like receiving a healthy blood transfusion. Many people do not consume enough greens, even those who stay on a raw food diet. By drinking two or three cups of green smoothies daily you will consume enough greens for the day to nourish your body, and all of the beneficial nutrients will be well assimilated. Read article.
Jesse and I volunteering at Missouri Town 1855 for the Christmas Celebration. We pulled homemade taffy, interpreted how Germans would have celebrated Christmas, decorated the tree, caroled and tried to stay warm in the windy 7 degree weather. Stayed away from pagan mistletoe, and looked for the pickle in the Christmas tree.
Must share with you this funny video...made me laugh even before I liked raw food. Here's the Raw Food Kids:
Have a Merry CHRISTmas and remember the true reason for celebration....the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ! He lived a perfect life, suffered under Pontius Pilate, and died a painful death on a cross at Calvary for our sins. He rose again from the dead, He is our Mighty Conqueror! He's no wuss. Unlike Santa Claus, we have a personal God who is involved in our daily lives, loves us dearly, and wants us to desire & know Him more.
In Christ,
Kendle
"I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern the will of God; what is good and acceptable and perfect.
Romans 12:1-2
Ha ha, you saying something about the mistletoe reminded me of a Christmas celebration at Missouri town like 3 years ago. Well there were crackers and apples for some of the decorations and the crackers were obviously stale, one of the girls (im will leave her unnamed) that was there thought it would be funny to shove a old cracker in my mouth. So I was called into the room where the girls were (I knew something was up), I stopped in the doorway and she is like "close your eyes and open your mouth" well I didn't do it because I was dieing of laughter, there was mistletoe hanging in the doorway where I was standing. I thought it was funny but she didn't intend anything that was wrong, I didn't ever tell her what i was lagging about.
ReplyDeleteDid you try the taffy? I wasn't that brave, I trust her cooking but black candy is not appealing to me. I herd about the boyscouts spitting out the taffy after they were waiting for a long time.
That's so funny! I won't do it, but it'd be so amusing to see the look on her face if she knew what you were laughing about.
ReplyDeleteYes, I tried the first batch of taffy and it was great. The second batch spilled. When we finished the last batch that burnt I thought, "Oh, burnt taffy couldn't be THAT bad." Not so very yummy as I thought. I spit mine out too...