Weight of the World
Before I blog about our day's food, I want to thank everyone for their encouraging comments and advice. It is very kind of you all to read, offer ideas, make comments and ultimately show your support. Thank you.
I also want to mention a little issue called weight. My weight has been stable for about 3 years now - it seems I am where my body wants to be. It has dropped during times of stress to where I'd like it to be, but crept back up again. To be honest, I really don't worry about it at all and that's a relief considering I grew up on endless diets forever hating what I looked like. I am so damned happy to not being dieting anymore, let me tell you. I don't consider eating vegetarian or vegan food (or raw food for that matter) dieting. That said, if I lost a kilo or two in all this raw business I wouldn't scoff.
Paul, however, is a different story. He is considerably underweight due to the effects of cancer. I am conscious that going on a raw food challenge for him is a tricky thing. The last thing we need for him is more weight loss. May I also say I am not pushing him to do this - he is all for it and has long wanted to do away with soy burgers and "fake" foods for ages.
So here are our rules: there are no rules.
If I think he needs a feed of wholemeal pasta or brown rice, or grainy bread with his salad, then that is what he will get. He needs the carbs (complex ones, not refined). He needs the calories. I am aware of this and our "challenge" will be modified accordingly. So it's breakfast as usual plus green or white teas and dandelion coffee. And for me it will be the occasional soy latte, gin & tonic or glass of wine. Hey, I never intended to do a raw drink diet... What's more, if the soy sauce I am using is not entirely raw then so be it. The main thing is that our fruit and veg will be raw and from that we will gain the most nutrients. Paul will also do his juicing daily (we already begin the day with a lemon juice, rind, pulp and all).
Day 1. Off to a flying start. We went to our local greengrocer, Pompello, in Seddon and bought up supplies. We also popped into Replenish in Williamstown for some other bits we needed, and Coles because frankly their mangoes looked better and were way cheaper.
Lunch was delicious. It was a "Mex style salad" and consisted:
Corn (taken off two small cobs, raw)
Avocado 1 - chopped
Fresh coriander - 1 bunch
chopped red capsicum
spring onion
bok choy (finely sliced)
cherry tomatoes
lime juice
crushed macadamias to serve
Dinner - surprisingly good (I was worried) "Green Curry Veg wrapped in Cabbage leaves"
Ingredients:
finely chopped: broccoli/ cauliflower/ red capsicum /half a carrot/ 2 asparagus spears
a little grated pumpkin
To this, I made a curry sauce from:
Coconut milk (about 100ml)
3/4 cup soaked raw cashews (soaked for about 1.5 hours - not the 4 hour recommendation... really didn't matter at all)
a handful of Savoury Yeast Flakes (which contain B vitamins)
2 cloves garlic
2 teaspoons of green curry paste (okay, this was from a jar, but no preservatives, addititves etc)
All blended up and poured over the vegetables with a good squeeze of lime (I think I am obsessed with limes)
Curry veg wrapped in cabbage leaves with some extra cashews and eaten with hands. Fresh, tasty, crunchy and amazingly good for you.
Pictures included so you can see the food even LOOKS quite good. Oh, and so does my gorgeous daughter pictured yesterday watching Chitty Chitty Bang Bang on DVD.
I also want to mention a little issue called weight. My weight has been stable for about 3 years now - it seems I am where my body wants to be. It has dropped during times of stress to where I'd like it to be, but crept back up again. To be honest, I really don't worry about it at all and that's a relief considering I grew up on endless diets forever hating what I looked like. I am so damned happy to not being dieting anymore, let me tell you. I don't consider eating vegetarian or vegan food (or raw food for that matter) dieting. That said, if I lost a kilo or two in all this raw business I wouldn't scoff.
Paul, however, is a different story. He is considerably underweight due to the effects of cancer. I am conscious that going on a raw food challenge for him is a tricky thing. The last thing we need for him is more weight loss. May I also say I am not pushing him to do this - he is all for it and has long wanted to do away with soy burgers and "fake" foods for ages.
So here are our rules: there are no rules.
If I think he needs a feed of wholemeal pasta or brown rice, or grainy bread with his salad, then that is what he will get. He needs the carbs (complex ones, not refined). He needs the calories. I am aware of this and our "challenge" will be modified accordingly. So it's breakfast as usual plus green or white teas and dandelion coffee. And for me it will be the occasional soy latte, gin & tonic or glass of wine. Hey, I never intended to do a raw drink diet... What's more, if the soy sauce I am using is not entirely raw then so be it. The main thing is that our fruit and veg will be raw and from that we will gain the most nutrients. Paul will also do his juicing daily (we already begin the day with a lemon juice, rind, pulp and all).
Day 1. Off to a flying start. We went to our local greengrocer, Pompello, in Seddon and bought up supplies. We also popped into Replenish in Williamstown for some other bits we needed, and Coles because frankly their mangoes looked better and were way cheaper.
Lunch was delicious. It was a "Mex style salad" and consisted:
Corn (taken off two small cobs, raw)
Avocado 1 - chopped
Fresh coriander - 1 bunch
chopped red capsicum
spring onion
bok choy (finely sliced)
cherry tomatoes
lime juice
crushed macadamias to serve
Dinner - surprisingly good (I was worried) "Green Curry Veg wrapped in Cabbage leaves"
Ingredients:
finely chopped: broccoli/ cauliflower/ red capsicum /half a carrot/ 2 asparagus spears
a little grated pumpkin
To this, I made a curry sauce from:
Coconut milk (about 100ml)
3/4 cup soaked raw cashews (soaked for about 1.5 hours - not the 4 hour recommendation... really didn't matter at all)
a handful of Savoury Yeast Flakes (which contain B vitamins)
2 cloves garlic
2 teaspoons of green curry paste (okay, this was from a jar, but no preservatives, addititves etc)
All blended up and poured over the vegetables with a good squeeze of lime (I think I am obsessed with limes)
Curry veg wrapped in cabbage leaves with some extra cashews and eaten with hands. Fresh, tasty, crunchy and amazingly good for you.
Pictures included so you can see the food even LOOKS quite good. Oh, and so does my gorgeous daughter pictured yesterday watching Chitty Chitty Bang Bang on DVD.