Seaweed Safety and Spices...

I’m writing from the southern tip of Lake Taupo in New Zealand today...what a STUNNING area – the lake is just vaaaaast :) We’ve been travelling quite a lot the last few days, LOVING the scenery here, marvelling at the myriad hues of green, the enormous stretches of land, land, land, sans human settlements, the gorgeous pristine waters...yummy…we also gave talks yesterday in Tauranga – thanks to ye’ all who came out to play – it was fun :) We’re on our way south now...in fact, we’ve just confirmed we’ll be speaking in Wellington in a couple of months' time. We’ll be at the Crossways Community Centre, (Cnr Elizabeth & Brougham Streets) on Saturday 19 April from 3.30pm to 7.30pm, with a raw potluck after...hope to see you there if you’re in the area – you can see full details and book your place HERE: http://www.purewellbeing.com/index1.html.

on February the 22nd I had:

2 quarts water
juice of 3 mandarins juiced in the mouth ;)
20oz of celery/cucumber/parsley/spinach/lambs’ quarters/carrot juice
bowl of fruit salad with chia gel: papaya/dragon fruit/banana/peach/cherries/blueberries
1 quart water
1 tbsp green powders: wheatgrass and barley grass
bowl of homemade tahini/brazil nut butter mixed with mung bean sprouts, diced tomatoes/garlic, karengo seaweed, stuffed in lettuce leaves and nori sheets
1 quart water

This question came in recently about seaweed:

“I wonder about mercury in seaweed? If we must worry about mercury in fish, wouldn't it be in the seaweed also?”

Hmmmm, thanks for the Q...well, while personally I don’t feel that I ‘must’ worry about anything, I was intrigued about the content of this message and so asked our primary seaweed supplier - ‘Maine Coast Sea Veg’ for their feedback – here was what they had to say on the matter:

“Our mercury levels are so low that we actually stopped testing for several years. We started again in response to customer requests for the information.
The levels for mercury have been consistently undetected at 0.04 ppm.

We do testing for heavy metals every year, at the end of the harvest season. I have attached our Statement of Product Testing for 2007, which is the last year for which data is available. You can also check out the same document in our FAQ section online, at http://www.seaveg.com/faq6.php.

I hope that this is helpful. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. Yours in Health,
Rae Urban”

Hmmmmm, interesting, eh? Hope that helps y’all feel even more yummy about munching on the ocean’s weedy wonders...I am SOOO into seaweeds at the moment, as you may have noticed in my daily food logs ;) Karengo, wakame, kelp, nori – LOVING it and it’s definitely nice to know I’m not massively stacking up my toxin load simultaneously... ;)
Ok, double-whammy food log now, due to being ex communicado on the road for a while there... ;)

on February the 23rd I had:

1.5 quarts water
3 mandarins
16oz carrot/cucumber/ginger/mint juice
bowl of cherries
2 cups carrot juice with Greener Grasses powder stirred in
3 cups water
bowl of fruit salad with chia gel: banana/blueberries/cherries/mulberries
1 quart water
2 cups carrot juice
bowl of avo mushed with diced tomatoes/garlic, mixed sprouts, karengo seaweed & cumin powder, served in lettuce leaves and nori rolls
1 quart water


on February the 24th I had:

2 quarts water
3 mandarins
24oz celery/cucumber/cabbage/parsley/spinach/lambs’ quarters/carrot juice
lettuce wraps stuffed with seed pate (soaked sunflower seeds/sundried tomatoes, blended with garlic), diced tomatoes, sprouts and seaweed
1 quart water
1 tbsp green powders
bowl of chia gel with fruit salad – blueberries, cherries, mulberries and apple
1.5 quarts water

Here’s another recent Q – from Ms. Amy...

“I'm wondering: do you use any kind of spices in your dishes (pepper, oregano, etc)? I'm just curious. I don't know if going without spices is for me, so I'll probably keep them personally, but I was just curious what "real" raw foodies do! Thanks. Making The Transition in Pennsylvania – Amy”

Thanks for the Q Amy :) Well...everyone’s different of course and some raw foodies will use herbs and spices, whereas others aren’t interested in them...I’ll certainly share with you what THIS ‘real raw foodie’ does though ;)
I rarely use spices anymore in foods I make myself – I do go through spates though where I might get REALLY into something – like cumin for example – some of you who’ve been reading this blog for a while might remember I got really into eating cumin with avocado and lime a while back – I was eating it literally every day, then I was just...done, not really interested anymore – though, coincidentally, I did get some out of the cupboard here yesterday in fact and enjoyed a bit with my meal ;) Sometimes I get interested in cayenne pepper and I think that may happen again soon...I feel it coming ;) Cayenne is an extraordinarily healing food – if you’ve never looked into the properties of it, I’d definitely recommend it – especially for anyone in cold, wintery places right now ;) I also absolutely LOOOOOOOVE cinnamon and just got a new bag of it a few days ago, so will start using that again soon, most likely…other than that, hmmmm...I don’t use much myself in the way of spices...
Herbs I enjoy include parsley, cilantro, mint and basil – the first two we use pretty often in juices and sometimes in salads/savoury meals, whereas basil and mint I tend to find more awkward to use in meals – it always seems like when you buy them, they come in huge bunches and unless I make pesto or ice cream or smthg, it just seems like way too much to deal with in one go, so I tend to just not even bother getting either of them ;) I’m not much into using dried herbs myself either... HOWEVER, if I eat some pre-prepared raw food like crackers or smthg that someone’s made, which contain herbs or spices, I usually feel fine about it. Mr Monarch on the other hand has been at this raw game longer than me and is not so enamoured of spices – he’s very sensitive to them and really feels the effect strongly when they’re in foods – he prefers to avoid them. A lot of raw foodists actually don’t feel good about eating herbs/spices – usually it’s people more into Natural Hygiene ideas who feel that way . Here’s a little blurb I wrote recently on spices that might help explain why, if this seems odd to you:

“Spices tend to be powdered forms of certain plants, in concentrations you would not easily come across in nature. Spices are made by powdering down a large amount of some bark, root, or other plant matter. You might even have a spice blend. The concentrated intensity of the spice can throw the body a bit out of balance, as you are getting a much bigger ‘hit’ of this food than you’d naturally be able to get hold of if you were just foraging things to eat in the wild. This can distort taste buds, block your ability to sense when you’ve eaten enough and so encourage eating in excess.”

As for the herbs, well, as mentioned above, some of them just don’t seem that easy to use – if you can’t imagine eating a whole bunch of mint or basil for a meal, some people question the idea of bothering to use them at all...;) Well...different courses for different horses – I hope that’s given you some ideas anyway about raw foodie herb/spice interactions...

One love,
Angela. xxx

Reflections and Rejoice...

WOW...one year ago tomorrow – February the 20th 2007 - I broke my 92-Day Juice Feast...this was my last day in liquid world and this time last year I was busy breaking out the prunes to soak for the next day ;) Here’s a little of what I wrote that day:

"Over the last three months I have lived and juiced through the ups and downs of green juice rejection, pancreas issues, sugar withdrawals, massive mucus expulsion, intrepid hiking trips, housing upheavals and more… You could probably fill a swimming pool with the amount of
juice I’ve consumed…and going by the theory that we ‘go back in time 120 days for each day of juice feasting’, I have gone back in time over 30 years now…which means…I am pre-birth again I guess… ;) well, that’s nice…time to rise like a phoenix again then…"

…wow ;) You can read the whole of that post HERE. It seems I’d also JUST finished editing the Juice Feaster’s Handbook that day too – that crazy juicy energy was obviously working its magic…and what a long way the Juice Feasting world has come since then ;) There are an astonishing number of yumsters out there living la vida liquid at the moment and with the official kick-off of the GLOBAL JUICE FEAST on March the 1st, I suspect supplies of mason jars may very well run dry in N. America ;) To see who’s juicing what, check out the ‘Ultimate List of Juice Feasting Blogs’ compiled by Heidi and Justin over at RawFoodRightNow HERE.
The delightful masters of juicy ceremonies, David and Katrina Rainoshek are doing incredible web-weaving to bring this whole event together and EVERYONE is welcome ;) Just check out juicefeasting.com and you’ll find all the ‘juicy’ details there...(tee-hee ;) BTW – people keep asking if I’m going to JF again now with the global waves...hmmm...to be honest, I’m not sure yet...might be...might do one juicy day a week...I’ll see how it unfolds as the time draws nearer... ;)

on February the 18th I had:

1.5 quarts water
1 quart celery/cucumber/zucchini/radish/carrot juice
bowl of mulberries blended with veggie juice, stirred with fresh blueberries and more dried mulberries to chew on ;)
2 cups water
2 cups rooibus tea
1 cup green smoothie: banana/spinach/weeds
7 little mandarins and 2 nectarines
1 quart water
little bowl of avo mushed with sprouts, diced tomatoes/garlic and karengo seaweed, served in lettuce wraps and nori sheets
3 cups water

Tomorrow - Wednesday, February 20 – also happens to see the Full Moon in Virgo – time for health and healing with a total lunar eclipse, according to the lovely lady of lunar forecasts, Ms. Lisa Dale Miller. Here’s a little of what she has to share about this occasion:

“In truth, we all express our Virgo side when we strive to be our best. Virgo is the healer, the doctor, the nurse, the teacher, the therapist, the worker, the researcher, the scientist, and the engineer. Virgo is the true healer of the zodiac because in its mind, if it causes pain, it warrants attention and a cure. For Virgo, caring comes in the form of finding workable solutions to everyday problems.
This is the Full Moon to celebrate the body and take responsibility for our health. If you are currently dealing with a serious health issue, don’t take anything at face value.
Become an active partner in your healing process. Read the research, ask lots of questions and engage your practitioners in dialogue about your progress. Virgo wants to understand the mechanics of illness so that it can better affect a cure. This kind of questioning may include opening yourself to alternative treatments or new approaches.
By the way, this is the ideal Full Moon to start a weight loss or de-tox program... the Full Moon in Virgo reflects a tremendous desire to throw off unhealthy habits that create sickness and sadness in our lives.
This Virgo Full Moon also gives us all an opportunity to make friends with our inner critic; that slave driver who can be either a helpmate or a hindrance. For those of you with strong Virgo in your charts, this is the Full Moon to tame the perfectionist living inside your head. You know… the one that says, “Nothing I do is good enough.” Those inner voices of self-doubt block the ability to act with conviction. This is the time to talk back to self-doubt and take control! Use this Full Moon to say, “This is good enough!” and get your talent out there.”

Oooohhhh, thank you for that last paragraph, Lisa ;) If MY Virgo has its way, I don’t think ‘Raw Emotions’ will ever be ready for public viewing ;) Breathing deep and extending a friendly hand to Virgo here... ;)

on February the 19th I had:

1.5 quarts water
24oz celery/cucumber/radish/lettuce/cabbage/carrot juice
bowl of magical berry mush: dried mulberries blended with banana and blueberries, with more mulberries and blueberries stirred in
2 quarts water
big handful of cherries
½ a big watermelon
handful of wakame seaweed with pumpkin seeds
1 quart water

Today we walked up Mount Maunganui near Tauranga, in the Bay of Plenty. WOW :) Here are a couple of pics I took from the summit. It was a glorious day for it and so beautiful to see the shimmering waters, the fern-clad hillsides and all the sweaty, smiling joggers ;) The mountain is out on a spit, surrounded on three ‘sides’ by water and there are paths around it, as well as up to the summit. This was an especially yummy trip for me today, as when I was last here, I was not really able to reach the summit. Back in the year 2000 I weighed nearly 300lbs and was staying in this area as a volunteer on an organic farming homestead. On my day off, the ‘grand-dad’ of the family I was with suggested I might like to visit the mountain, then hastily added, ‘you won’t be able to walk to the top though’. I wasn’t sure why...perhaps it was closed that day or smthg...? Then his daughter asked him to clarify why and he bluntly said ‘well, look at her...’ I felt extremely uncomfortable and shamed. Indeed, I didn’t climb to the summit on that day 8 years ago. I did today though ;) ...and it was glorious...and I am grateful...

All love,
Angela. xxx

Monarch Musings, Beans 'n Cheese...

Oooooooo, look what you started – Mr Monarch had such a jolly time with y’all while he was blogging here that he’s been n’ gone’ n’ started his OWN blog ;) LOL...beautiful :) I think it’s marvellous and am very excited to see what he shares there... If you’d like to visit, or sign up to get his posts emailed to you whenever he writes, just follow the link below – (N.B. the email subscription is a 2-STAGE process – be sure to click the link in the email that is sent to you, to verify and start receiving the Monarch Musings… ;)

http://mattmonarch.blogspot.com

on January the 16th I had:

1 quart water
1 papaya with lime juice, 1 mango
1 pint celery/cucumber/zucchini/lettuce/fennel/lemon juice
bowl of avo mushed with finely chopped garlic and cilantro, stirred in with mixed sprouts, lime juice & salt, served with cucumber sticks and romaine leaves
2 cups water
3 cups straight zucchini juice – yummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
bowl of chia gel mixed up with a diced mango and diced dried figs
3 cups water

Time for a little TALK update again for those currently down under or headed this way...we are speaking at Alive Organics in Perth a week from today – January the 23rd from 7pm, then we speak in Adelaide at the Hillcrest Community Centre on January the 26th, from 2pm. You can see full details on Matt’s events page HERE: http://www.rawspirit.org/events.php.
We are also scheduled to move on down to New Zealand and speak in Auckland on February the 16th, then Tauranga on February the 23rd – more details to follow ;)


On January the 17th I had:

1 quart water
big handful of BLUEBERRIES – YummMmMmmmmmmmmm
3 cups watermelon/orange juice
1 pint HARDCORE green juice – red chicory leaves/’tree spinach’/dandelion/unidentified-greens/celery/cucumber/ginger/lemon
bowl of avo mushed with finely chopped garlic and cilantro, stirred in with mixed sprouts & salt, served with cucumber sticks and sunflower greens
1 quart water
3 cups zucchini/orange/ginger juice
bowl of ‘beans ‘n cheese’ :O – dried figs soaked in zucchini juice, blended with tahini and egg fruit, with pieces of egg fruit swirled in...
3 cups water

Ok...that last meal of the day today warrants further discussion...it is absolutely amazing ;) It SMELLS and TASTES exactly like refried beans with cheese...it even LOOKS like it – see photographic evidence to the right... WHO would have predicted THAT one...??? This is the kind of dish I would love to serve to some random person as an experiment, to see if they could guess the ingredients...I suspect there may not be a single person in fact who could guess the ingredients – even raw food chefs... ;) It contains just 4 simple ingredients: dried figs soaked in zucchini juice, tahini, egg fruit. Therein lies the unfortunate aspect of this recipe of course – egg fruit (canistel) is hardly the most widely available fruit…it’s pretty abundant here and in Florida though – maybe reason enough to plan a trip…??? ;) If you DO try this mixture out, we’d LOVE to hear your experience - especially if some unsuspecting volunteer manages to actually guess the ingredients... ;)
(BTW - according to the 'Doctrine of Signatures', it seems this meal would be good for both the male and female reproductive organs, amongst other things. If you haven't heard of the 'Doctrine', you're in for a fun treat - check out THIS LINK sent in recently by reader Sally ;)

One love,
Angela. xxx