On Top of the World!

Just had to share...

I've been detoxing for the past week. Meaning I've given up alcohol, coffee, and cooked foods entirely for 30 days, as well as taking a natural liver cleansing pill. Man, do I feel great! The first few days were difficult, to say the least. I developed a headcold, felt tired and irritable, and generally hated the world and everyone in it. But once I got past that hurdle, say about day 5, I started to feel really amazing. Really calm, clear, energetic and positive.

Today is the end of day 8, and it just keeps getting better. I'd say that the world is conspiring in my favor, but the truth is more complex. The fact is, I am conspiring in my own favor. I've been doing such nice things for myself! I took myself camping on Saturday night, went for a lovely solitary walk at dawn on Sunday morning, attended an inspirational raw food workshop on Sunday afternoon (more to come on that), spent the day pampering myself today, made myself some beautiful raw chocolate delight this afternoon, and participated in an outstanding David Roche yoga class tonight. Wow, a girl could get used to this!

On top of that, I've been really digging into the Green Smoothie Challenge. I've been experimenting with greater quantities of green smoothies, simpler smoothies (more fruit and greens, less additionals), and savory green smoothies/soups. This has been fantastic on top of the rest of my totally raw diet! I've been eating partially raw for a long time, but eating 100% raw for the past 8 days has been eye opening. I just can't believe how good I feel.

I've been doing some reading on food photography, so keep tuned in and I'll provide you with some more fun raw recipes and, hopefully, increasingly more drool-worthy photos. For now, here are a few more green smoothie recipes that I love:

Savory Green Smoothie Soup
5 stalks of spinach
1/2 bunch dill
1/4 avocado
1/4 cup sundried tomatoes
juice of 1 small lemon or 1/2 large lemon
1 cup water (for soup) or 2 cups water (for smoothie)

Blend! I prefer to make this thick, with only 1 cup of water, and to eat it with a spoon as a soup. It makes a quite filling evening meal for me. You could make it thinner and drink it from a glass like a normal smoothie if that appeals to you more.

Caramel Green Smoothie
1 pear
2 apples (sweet varieties)
2 kiwis
1/2 head romaine/cos
a few sprigs coriander
2 Tbsp mesquite powder
1-2 tsp honey
2 cups water

Blend! If you're not familiar with mesquite, it is a beautiful powder made of ground up seed pods of the mesquite tree, and is a traditional Native American food. It has a caramel-molasses flavor - sweet, but low GI, so good for balancing blood sugar. Combined with the greens and fruit here, it should keep you going for hours! Add the honey to taste, depending how much of a sweet tooth you have (if you're like me, you will want the full 2 tsp, as I can't get enough honey - luckily we have many varieties of locally-produced raw honey here in SA).

Raw Chocolate Delight
1 Tbsp raw cacao powder
1 Tbsp raw, cold-pressed coconut oil
1 tsp raw, cold-pressed honey

I like to make this in winter, when my coconut oil is solid at room temperature. Combine all three ingredients in a bowl, and mash it around with a spoon until it comes together into a paste. Eat, enjoy the rich dark chocolate flavor and frosting texture, and in about 10 minutes, you will feel total bliss and lots of energy that should keep going for at least an hour. A great energy boost, smoother than coffee, and a real treat for chocoholics. Not to mention that raw cacao is packed with nutrition, as is coconut oil. Pretty amazing that something can taste so satisfying, make you feel so wonderful, and be so healthy.

Did I mention that I love being a raw freakin' foodie?