RAW UP North

Apricot Kernels -- a new almond?

2009-07-14T11:56:00.000-07:00

Apricot Kernels are ... FINE!

Chewing a small handful of apricot kernels with mulberries can taste like sweet almond butter, there is almond extract flavor, and can even seem more 'almondy' than almonds.

-- protein, essential fatty acids, vitamins (such as B1, B6, and B17 which is called Laetrile/Amygdalin, etc.) minerals and other trace elements --

a simple Fig (Anjeer) Cake recipe:
* coconut butter or cream in place of ghee?
* and how about a little anise, ginger, lucuma, asafoetida etc?

Also remind yourself that apricot kernels are slightly "controversial" and also remember apricot kernels are unpasteurized (GOOD!) and delicious for you. (Shazzie)

Pasteurized, which many California almonds are, is fancy word for irradiation.

a video about Vitamin B17 "Laetrile" aka "Amygdalin" --> HERE

Vendors:
Nu-Gen Nutrition (from California)
GoHunza.com (cheap; bulk) video of owner
Blue Mountain Organics (more expensive)
Sunfood.com (more expensive, made by blue mountain organics)

a thing for brown foods [funky flow]

2009-04-04T13:56:00.000-07:00

Raiggghhhhht, Ribbit

Brown foods have been making themselves KNOWN to me the past few weeks. One of my best friends is his last name and UPS is proud of being brown. Brown in foods I could not think of many (chocolate is purple but turns to brown) But it's has been a different story lately.

So one day I saw some new fruit called Black Sapote which I'd heard about before, it was heavy for its size with green skin and a green star on top. Like a ribbon. I had a few of them to finish the day and right away felt a wave of great energy. They were ripe [easy to squeeze] and inside was total pudding. Smooth texture almost like mousse when really ripe. And as you eat, you might think about Bill Cosby, or maybe even Tootsie Rolls? Black Sapote is chocolatey. As it is, you could mix cacao in, or even eat with almonds. There's no debate over its chemical content either. "Better than Cosby"

Then I heard from a guy that Carob Pods is an amazing way to get ...protein? I can't find carob yet, but studies (out of France) are beginning to support the protein benefits of carob. They look high in glutamic acid, which is a great muscle builder. Glutamic acid [glutamate, msg] is in a lot of foods to make us feel good and vital, so let's go for the real glutamic acid, and work on finding carob pods I say.

Then, growing all over the place I saw Cassia pods, from the Cassia fistula tree. The pods grow green on the tree, just like Carob, then turn brown and end up on the ground. There are seed chambers inside, separated by discs, you just suck the coffee flavored coated discs and wait a few hours and there you go. Instant toilet explosiveness (the processed powder has been known to cause cramping). The Doctrine of Signatures says that the way a food looks helps you know what it does in the body. Cassia pods look like the large intestine (colon), some REALLY DO, and when you get the effects, the plant simply backs up that theory. (maybe better than any!)

Now this is Prince Fleaswallow and Parappa the Rapper
(the game with a subtle poop theme)

Black Sapote c/o Traveling Vegan Blog
Carob c/o Flickr, Food Navigator
Cassia c/o Chest of Drawers

Sea Beans, Velvet Bean [Wikipedia] or Bat Nuts

flashback: a GOOD Meditation video

2008-11-27T17:59:00.002-08:00

shorter version: Meditação e Projeção Astra
-downloadable to iPod / computer
-includes the meditation only

extended version: bk meditation
-downloadable to iPod / computer
-includes the meditation and additional info on pyramids, etc

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Random Item of the day: Optical illusion art for health

Cucumbers are FILLING!

2008-07-16T10:39:00.000-07:00

My latest craving is organic cucumbers. A cucumber is A MEAL! It's a low-sugar (glycemic) fruit, and tastes incredible with hot sauce. I amped up with chocolate first thing this morning, was still hungry, so I grabbed an organic cucumber. And ate each bite with hot sauce, I finished and it was so filling and satisfying.

CUCUMBER SALAD hypothetical recipe:
Cucumbers
Bean Sprouts
lime
cilantro
dill
julienned jicama
julienned red peppers
chopped tomatoes
Coconut Cream (check out Jenna Norwood video)
salt/pepper
spices/maca/hot sauce
onions, fennel, etc

Raw Cacao here to Save the World ---> ; )

2008-03-17T09:56:00.000-07:00

The BEST FOOD Ever

...is here now, just in time to save the WORLD.
You can literally live on this food, and when in combination with superherbs and superfoods, you have something truly magical. Cacao pods and plants are appearing on eBay and can be grown at home (plant, pod). Combine ormus and superstar planting techniques, and you will have a fruiting cacao tree in just a few short years. I would suggest that we start growing. Cacao is an unadulterated, untampered, sustainable food source.

http://tinyurl.com/2m5k7n
http://tinyurl.com/35466n

David Wolfe on CACAO --->

Truth Caulkins on JING --->

Truth is mesmerizing and tricky to keep up with. Second part of this video is his cacao bar.

Leslie Bega makes Chocolate Milk -->

Here's a link to an amazing Raw Cacao blog (Sunny's Kitchen)

Frida Kahlo ...a RAW FOODIST at heart?

2008-01-23T08:51:00.000-08:00

I made it to the Frida Kahlo show (Minneapolis). It's coming to San Francisco next, then Philadelphia. Kahlo is a visceral and very "earthy" painter. She remained brutally honest with herself in her work. And she is controversial, less nowadays, and even considered inappropriate. What I notice is a compelling love and respect for Mother Earth. I think what fans like is her endurance, and her rebellion, and in the end, she saw love.

She was placed on a high-animal diet, as she depicts here:

Without Hope. 1945

The last room of the exhibit made a lasting impression... her final works.

The Love Embrace ... 1949

CURIOUSLY, her last four paintings were of fruit, and their energy and embrace from the Sun:

Still Life with Parrot. 1951

Naturaleza viva. 1952

Fruit of Life. 1954

Her FINAL painting:

Viva la vida. 1954

"Viva la Vida" - on a WATERMELON... (*)

the CONTINUING SAGA of Green Coconut Kefir...

2008-01-22T20:42:00.001-08:00

WHAT do you do when your car is under eight inches of fresh snow in Milwaukee, WI?

ANSWER: You go to Pick 'N Save and pick up 17 green coconuts. That's what ya do!

By some freak "synchronicity?" (freak-o-nicity) I went with my brother to the supermarket, and, literally walked right into them, a neatly arranged display of green "water" coconuts, just screaming for me! Stupified and in total shock, we grabbed most of them up (this IS...Pick 'N Save, folks) and then bumped into the manager (future orders can be placed on Monday to ensure Thursday store delivery, the only Pick 'N Save in the area who does this, as the manager proudly stated)

They are coming from Florida, not certified organic, but green coconuts go through a RIGOROUS filtration "on the vine" I gotta think they are mighty kosher.

Then I cruised over to Mercado El Rey before I left Milwaukee, and scored another 29 green coconuts, and supercool manager Eddie (I didn't even ask) quoted me "box price" which is $1.81 each (normally $2.68-2.88 each)! I gave him a Sammy Sosa chest salute, actually just a big wave and a huge thanks, and was on my way back NORTH.

ONCE HOME: I carefully popped 9 coconuts for (3 quarts) water, which will take (3) packets of kefir grains, for one WHOPPING glass jar of coconut water kefir. CAN'T WAIT for it to ferment and bubble up...

ALSO while in Milwaukee, Outpost Foods, Saturday free-sample day, the few guys from BURGIES ORGANICS were there pouring samples of their..... line of homemade coconut water kefirs. I mean think about that, a couple guys from a little farm in Wisconsin, making coconut water kefir, for sale next to the organic milk, in glass bottles, at Outpost Foods. Totally bizarre, a coconut weekend in Wisconsin - who'd have ever possibly thunk

It almost seems too easy sometimes, or as if it was ordered ahead in advance. Or at least the Coconut Gods must seriously love me .....I know I love them.

FUNNY RELEVANCE: As we were picking them up one by one, a funny old lady in red pulled up "Those are coconuts aren't they," and was pleased when I affirmed "Yep, these are the young coconuts, these ones are just full of water" and she buttoned-up-the-scene "Oh, they're all the same" and tried to leave-the-room-on-that-note like they do on TV (except she was pushing a cart in this instance), and before I got out a "OH NO, IT JUST AIN'T SO" I kept clamtrapped and remembered the recent article about older people being disagreeable because they are actually "smarter." Yes, yes.

Body Brushing

2008-01-14T14:18:00.000-08:00

Karyn Calabrese stresses in her Raw Food Detox program the importance of body brushing. AND it was praised in a Patrick Timpone interveiw (w/Annie Jubb). (About halfway through the first interview) Body brushing pushes stagnant blood along, and scrapes "toxic" dry skin flakes off your scalp and skin. 80-90% of dust is actually shedded skin flakes (THAZZ NAZZTY). Body brushing REALLY smoothes your complexion, scruffs dandruff out, puts rosy color in your cheeks, and just feels great to do. Karyn advises to body brush every day, always brushing towards your heart, and it's easy to do right before a shower.
Your skin will thank you.

Craving RAW TACOS today

2008-01-14T14:08:00.000-08:00

I just finished up a grueling cross-country ski run, and needed raw tacos. Lots of cumin & good salt + quick salsa (heavy on the cilantro). You just need to have pre-soaked walnuts prepared. This ridiculously quick, simple & easy Matt Amsden recipe makes for a great dinner:
Part I:

Part II:

Jan 22nd Update: Raw Heathy has a huge Jan 13th post on raw mexican food here

MAKING Korean Kim-Chi (with added "kick")

2008-01-11T22:30:00.000-08:00

Today was a day for Kim-Chi. It will take 2+ days to "age", but the fresh ingredients were stocked, and there's nothing like a spicy, fermented taste of Kim-Chi when you need that "Asian Take-Out" fix.

My recipe is loosely based on THIS PROCEDURE and THIS RECIPE both accessible from THIS WEBPAGE (You can use various root vegetables: carrots, turnips, etc. and I notice onions are in the Rejuvinative Foods brand ~ VERY VERSATILE RECIPE!)

THE ART of KIM-CHI:

Take one of your cabbage heads:
Slice wedges off each cabbage head (like in video), then slice each of those wedges down very thinly (the pic on the left shows a wedge having been sliced off, the then being sliced down in the pic on the right)

Fill the crock pot as you chop, work in a little pink salt (~1-2Tbs per 4heads works well)

As you're chopping, take some time and muscle the cabbage & salt together, to release water and soften the cabbage

Now go after your remaining ingredients

Today I used:

4 HEADS of Cabbage ~ thinly sliced
2 TBS Salt ~ Pink Himalayan or Sea Salt are best
5 green onions ~ thinly sliced
INCH or so Burdock root ~ thinly sliced
INCH or so Horseradish root ~ thinly sliced
INCH or so Ginger root ~ thinly sliced/minced

CLOVE of Garlic ~ thinly sliced/minced

HALF a Daikon radish ~ thinly sliced

HALF a medium round radish ~ thinly sliced

1 TBS Dried Red Pepper ~ ground up

1 tsp Cayenne pepper ~ ground up

4 opened CAPSULES Probiotics ~ I used E3 Live's

Now all of the ingredients together...

ADD your favorite water until the cabbage is submerged. "Seal" your cabbage with a plate or tray, and add weight (anything heavy will do) to keep the fermentation air-free and to force water up and out as it ferments, and you can push down as the days go on

Cover, and let it work it's magic for a few days at least (You can put a lid on your crock, and even bag & seal it, as it funkifies!)

When the cabbage is ready, store it somewhere cool or refrigerator. You now have a fermented POWERHOUSE of a food (great in the winter) that will kick you up a notch EVERY TIME you scoop into a nice bowl. The "friendly bacteria" charges into your system, to stake its territory, replenish and revitalize you, and it actually feels overwhelmingly "friendly" to your system. Kim-Chi is a great item for THAI/KOREAN/ASIAN food trippers, when the need for salty and spicy comes, we like the kick!

MAKING Young Green Coconut Kefir

2007-12-29T20:56:00.000-08:00

~the new MIRACLE FOOD~

I subscribe to TheBestDayEver, and Truth Calkins is one of my best favorites. Truth was talking about the "coconut kefir" they brew at Erewhon Foods (the tonic bar) in Los Angeles. I had to figure a way to brew my own. So I found a lady in KEY LARGO, FL with a Certified Organic Nursery and her coconut trees! She sent me 30 coconuts and I was in bizness. Here is a roundup:

Find some Young Coconuts:
Carefully "crack" into them:

Collect the Coconut Water:

Bring the Coconut Water to about BODY TEMP (around 90C):

Take the warmed Coconut Water to the kitchen table:
Stir in Kefir starter (BodyEcology.com) and seal! Let ferment for 36-48 hours at just above room temp (around 70-75C, I keep near vent & covered to do this, temp is ImPoRtAnT). Watch for bubbles to form on top, and the final drink will be bubbly, tangy and a little sour (like champagne). It is MEGA-effective in digestion, glowing and looking great, and apparently hangovers. It's kind of like BT's Kombucha. Friendly bacteria (probiotics) are what we're after in kefir, and I think probiotics are the key to feeling good, looking great, and fighting off ANYTHING.

Carve out the Coconut Spoon-Meat:

Put (hard bits removed) in a high-power blender with 1/2c Maple Syrup, Vanilla, and Ice Cubes for somma the BEST COCONUT PUDDING/ICE CREAM EVER! No Joke

LIVE FOODS in Upper Michigan

2007-12-29T20:13:00.000-08:00

The Marquette Whole Foods Co-Op

SO FAR... Marquette, MI has the best abundance of fresh, live produce. A trip about just every week keeps me and my GREENSTAR running strong. TONS and TONS of fresh, dark green, lots of color, add some tang (ginger, etc) and some sweet (pear, apple, pomegranate, etc) and finish it off with a lemon (no skin) and there's 40oz green juice is HOLDING IT DOWN. Then you just let it do it's magic.

Here's my typical green juice:
4-8 kale leaves
4-8 chard leaves
3-5 collard green leaves
1-2 burdock roots
3-6 curly or russian kale
4-8 stalks celery
1 cucumber
1-2 bunches cilantro
1 bunch parsley
1/2 bunch dandelion greens
1/2 bunch dill
mint leaves
usually something sweet (a pear, apple, citrus or pom)
a big piece of ginger
Kyolic aged garlic extract (4 squeezes)

(bokchoi, fennel, cranberries when available)