Raw Deal

Today is day 3 of a 1-month raw food experiment. I don't plan on making a permanent life change, I just want to see what it's like (same as the couple times I went purely plant-based for a month or two). The part I'm most excited about is cutting out all the processed crap for a while- wheat thins, sugary candies, 'reduced fat' ice cream, etc. While I wouldn't say I had a *bad* diet, I definitely haven't been eating super well lately. Also, this makes it much harder to go out for dinner or drinks (no beer or distilled spirits) so it should lighten things up on the pocket book as well. Best of all, I a partner in crime and I think it will only get easier as the days pass.

The primary foreseeable problem is that I have a couple of dinner parties to attend in the next couple weeks. I don't like the idea of telling people, "Oh, I can't eat that. I'm raw. My body is a temple." So, I'm willing to compromise to a certain extent in the interest of tact.

Day 1 was a little rough. We started out following Alissa Cohen's book "Living On Live Food" which has a 30-day get-started menu outline. Day 1 included "Fettuccine Alfredo." It's made with long, thick strips of zucchini as the 'noodles' and an absurdly rich sauce made with cashews, pine nuts, and macadamias. Not only was it rather expensive (pricey raw nuts), the sauce was so rich that we couldn't eat more than a few bites without feeling ill. We both felt kinda 'ooky' until mid-day yesterday.

Breakfast has also been a bit unsatisfying thus far. We've been making "green" smoothies with stuff like collard greens, kale, spinach, or lettuce. They turn out sorta bitter. I'm going to make one with just fruit tomorrow. Must remember to pick up some blueberries and apples.

So far I've been enjoying the frequent salad consumption. Nama shoyu (raw soy sauce) works very well as dressing. Last night I made a simple dressing with olive oil, honey, cider vinegar, salt, pepper, and lemon juice. Tasted awesome.

We started sprouting grains yesterday evening. The plan is to try and make 'bread' in the dehydrator this weekend. I could definitely go for something dry and/or crunchy.