Knowing when to pass

I recently bought two kinds of persimmon (that's a persimmon tree..pretty huh?), hachyia and fuyu. I had heard such great things about this weird little fruit and the store we were shopping in happen to have them so of course I grabbed a few. I googled them to see how to eat them (how dorky am I!) and then sliced one open. I did the hachyia one first. They are longer, shaped somewhat like a top or dredel. The fuyu are more squat...like a tomato. Hmm. Well the only way to really describe it is to combine the dryness that cranberries create with the milk tounge. Yeah. It was very dissapointing. The fruit itself was very pretty but when I ate some it dried out my mouth and left a grainy film on my tounge and cheeks. Later on I found out that you are supposed to wait until the fruit is SUPER soft. That was not the case with mine. I decided to juice one tonght and it didn't work so well. Oh well. I wasn't too attached to the idea of them anyway. They certainly aren't local which means they are going to be blasted with ripening agents any way. Yum.

I've been living off of tomato, cucumbber, and avocaado salad lately. Super delicious and doesn't take a lot of items. One of each and I have 3 bowls worth! I've been increasingly dissapointed though (seems to be a theme for this post ;) ). Tomatos are not in season. That's just it. However, people continue to want them so they are around all year long. So what right? Well that just leaves for a lot of nasty produce. The last 6 tomatos I have cut open have been super grainy (to the point of seeing the grain while I'm cutting), seeds have been non exsistent, and when there have been seeds they have been shocking green. to the point of questioning the freshness. The sad thing is most people would/do think this is normal. Knowing why I can have a tomato in November and knowing why it's as craptastic as it is grosses me ou. Do I stop buying them? Of course not. I'm just like every other person out there and like tomatos on my salads, in tacos, and on sandwhiches. Should I stop? Umm duh. Yes. I've been thinking more and more about eating locally which would suck n my area. Especially as a vegetarian much less as a raw-er. I've been spoiled with having access to loads of organics. That doesnt't help any. I know what kind of quality I could be getting. It irritates me that in my area it's not more abundant. That there isn't much variety. That foods are sub par. It's not surprising more people don't like fruits and veggies. They're getting fermented crap on a stick! Humans know when a food is good and grainy green tomatos are not! I look forward to moving back to Colorado just so that I can eat better. Believe me when I say I am in an area of meat and potatos. And maybe corn.

The sweet stuff

I'm not a big sweets kind of gal. Sure I'll have sugar (I'm addicted to Pepsi) and don't mind the occasional candy or cookie or other sugary concotion but for the most part I am happy without them. In the 3.5 years we've been together I have bought one bag of sugar and it got left behind a few moves ago. I made cookies once and that was 2 years ago for Christmas baskets. If I have the desire to bake anything I have no other option than to grab a box of Betty Crocker something or other. We just don't do them.

Today I was sitting ehre wanting something sweet. I had just got done reading something online about starting raw doing gourmet type meals so that you 1. don't get bored right away 2. get into the flow of things regarding meals and preparation and 3. keeping satisifed while your body detoxed and you could rely on it's true cravings to kind of guide you (as opposed to "false" ones that happen BECAUSE you are detoxing and it's flooding your system). I went over to livingfoods.com and browsed through their sweet stuff and decided on ice cream.

I used this recipe and used up the remaining pineapple from yesterdays lunch (just a fruit salad..you're not missing out on a good picture of anything). I put the pineapple in a bag and twisted it shut and stuck it in the freezer around 3ish. I can't quite remember. I pulled it out about an hour ago, cut off the skin, chopped it up, and threw it in my food processor with my s blade. I didn't want to wait for it to partially thaw so I didn't. Come to find out the bag had a small hole in the bottom so while it was frozen it was closer to the partially thawed state anyway.

I am floored. This stuff is FANTASTIC! You can't tell it's not "real" ice cream. It tastes just like it and has the same consistency. The best part? Even though it melts it doesn't melt like ice cream. It goes more to a yogurty form. The munchkin had a small bowl and didn't eat a lot and it sat here for about an hour now and is still thick! I will definitely be making this again! I made a ton though and need to finish this up before I make a new batch. I want to make something the mother in law can have as well so I need to figure out a diabetic friendly fruit. She likes ice cream a lot and I don't want to kill her in case she eats a ton of it. :)

(This is after sitting for an hour..I should get a pic of it in the freezer)

The warning about it being sweet is dead on. The amount I made is going to last forever because of it. It's not something you eat in large amounts. I'm so pleased with it, I wish the man was as excited about it as I am. hehehe

A different kind of salad

Going towards a raw based diet we sometimes rely on salad since it's easy and we can get a ton of stuff in without thinking about it. Leaf salads get boring though. My mother in law makes a fabulous cucumber and tomato salad that she picked up in Chile on her mission. I've since seen it on recipe sites as a greek salad (a real one...not the attempt Americans do). Who knows! She makes it every Sunday for Sunday dinner and we love it. Last night we got home late so we called her up to see if she would make it for us if I brought over the cucumber and tomato. She said sure. Now I know the recipe and I can make it BUT she uses a salsa in it that I don't know how to make. It's jalepanos, jabernos, lemon juice, and something else. This stuff is BRIGHT green. And HOT! It's fabulous. I'm going to learn how to make it on the next time she makes up a batch and I can't wait. Anyway, we had some last night and the husband mentioned that he liked saucy salads. So for lunch I attempted to make a saucy salad.




Saucy Salad

2 carrots- shaved
1 large cucumber- shaved
6 radishes
2 stalks celery
3 florets of broccoli
1/2-1 cup raw pumpkin seeds

Avocado sauce

1 large avocado
olive oil
1/2 lemon
salt
pepper
chives
basil
1 clove of garlic

Shave carrots and cucmber. Slice in half and chop into bite sized pieces. Slice radishes and celery and broccoli. Toss together.

Cut avocado and scoop all the meat out and out in a blender. Blend for about 30 seconds to soften. Add in olive oil and squeeze lemon into the blender. Blend for a minute and then add in spices. Keep blending while you chop garlic into tiny pieces. Turn off blender and add in garlic. Blend until all the spices are mixed. (Note: you can add in as much olive oil as you like to get desired thickness). Add avocado sauce to the veggie mix and stir until all vegetables are coated. Top with pumpkin seeds and mix them in.

Salt and pepper to taste.

With those amounts it was enough for two large bowls for 2 adults. The nice thing is it works with any veggie combo you can think of! Super tasty! I wish I had more. I will definitely be making more. I think I'll do some for Sunday dinner this week. I'll have to do a ton though. This made a large amount but with the amount of people there on Sundays I'll need to do about double. Thats fine though..this would be a welcome left over. :)

Stuffed

Lunch ended up not being cucado soup. I tried to get a good picture of it but the natural browning of fruits and veggies kicked in and it was no longer green. It was grey. Mottled, dead grey. It was gross. Oddly enough the tot tried it and liked it whereas the night before she tried it and then hid it so she didn't have to eat it. :)

Instead we had stuffed tomatoes. They were tasty and hearty! But not a gut heavy hearty. And since I strayed from the recipe (I don't follow directions hehehe) here's what I used:

Stuffed Tomatos

1 carrot

1/2 cucumber- peeled

1 handful mushrooms slices (I say slices since that was I had bought the other night)

4 radishes

3 broccoli heads (I pulled them off one chunk/stalk)

4 tomatos (2 per person so more if you need them)

1 teaspoon lemon juice

chives

salt

pepper

basil

Cut tomatos in half and scoop out the insides and put them in a bowl. Using a grater/food processor grate all the veggies. Add to the tomato pulp to this mixture and stir well. Add in spices and lemon juice and mix one last time. Scoop into tomato halves. Enjoy!

Super easy and tasty. When I made them I had misread the part saying to cut them into halves and just cut off the bottom like a lid. That way they were more like cups. I wish I had cut them in half but mostly for ease of eating. These were kind of bulky.

See? Don't they look tasty?

Experiments in soup

Last night we had salad for dinner (huge and tasty! I love my salads!) and wanting something "more" I looked up soups. There was one the other day that sounded so good so I tracked it down.

Cucado Soup
2 large cucumbers (peeled)
1/2 avocado
1 tsp. lemon juice

And then I stray from the recipe. :) It called for parsley or something like that. Whatever it was I didn't have it (it was a tame flavor). So I added chives and some salt.

Blend until liquid and smooth.

It was....different. The flavor needs some tweaking. He thought it needed salt and pepper but I don't know if that's what it needed. Maybe something like a mint. It has a very smooth even flavor but it's not quite a discernable flavor. I don't know. Neither of us ate very much so it got stuck in the fridge. It doesn't seem like much but it makes a good amount. Definitely enough for me, him, and a little for the tot. I think a big gtting used to thing is the fact that it was cold and traditionally soup is hot. I know there are some cold ones out there but they aren't very common. Knowing this was a "soup" and having it was cold as it was was hard to wrap our minds around. I think I might throw it back in the blender today (it thickens as it stands it seemed) and try it again at lunch. I think it's just a matter of getting used to it.

This was a green food too. :) I'll take a picture at lunch so you can see the color. Pretty shocking to dip your spoon into green soup.

Mmmm

And now for the white stuff!


We got another coconut last night. The first one we got had a crack in it that we didn't notice. By the time I opened it the water had evaporated and the meat was starting to go bad. So last night when we got groceries I grabbed another one. They had 3 there and one was cracked and getting mold on it from sitting in its water. The other one looked like it might have had a crack but was hard to tell.

The one I did grab was full of water! A ton. I opened it for lunch (perfect timing too...one of the eyes was getting soft in a questionable way) and filled a large glass (the same one in my green stuff post) almost completely! I tasted it before I even got it all out since I've never had it before. Even though it was warm it was still really good. I was surprised at how strong it was. I was expecting the same flavor in the meat. I poured out the rest of the water and then cracked open the coconut. I chipped off a piece and was pretty disappointed in the flavor. Although it just makes me wonder what the hell they do to the dried packaged stuff.

I added some of the juice to a smoothie and was sad to have lost the flavor. I did use some strong flavored fruits though so that could have been why. I saved some for the husband to have some. I can see us buying even more though! This is tasty!

Another green drink

It wasn't intentional though.

Apple Juice
3 granny smith apples
1 large grapefruit
1 lemon
1 lime
1 Bartlett pear

Juice and stir! Mmmmm. It turned out green due to the lime and apples. I did scoop the foam off though since the lemon and lime put out a lot more rind than normal. It was good but it was so potent that I scooped it.

I am lovin' the juicer!

Green stuff

Oh Green Lemonade how I love you! (That's drink foam..not chunks :) )

After reading post after post at RawFoodTalk.com (based off Alissa Cohen's book which we don't have lol) about green lemonade I sat here actually wanting one. I did a quick search on the site and found a basic recipe and whipped a couple up for us. This is the first time I've had to rinse all my parts in between making juices. Normally I make up his and then mine with no problems. Not the case here. I wasted a good amount of spinach finding this out.


Spinach (the recipe posted actually said Kale but after a quick use of google found out that they are in the same family so I subbed)
Celery
Lemon
Apples

2 handfuls of spinach, 2 stalks of celery, 3 apples (I used Gala this time around), and 1.5 lemons (peel and all!). Mmmmmm! Aside from the neon green color it tasted just like lemonade! I'm sad that we have no more spinach...I would totally start every morning with that! I think I might post the recipe on the fridge where he can see it and then maybe he'll make it for himself in the mornings. It's supposed to be great for energy. He loves coffee for that extra boost so maybe this can be his coffee replacement.

Last week for lunch we had some pretty unremarkable wraps. My own creation based off some recipes I had been reading. I wanted a sauce for them though so I whipped one up. That's where the loveliness was!

Avocado dressing (or spread depending on how thick yours turns out)

1 large avocado
2 teaspoons olive oil
dry chives
basil
sea salt
pepper
1 lemon (I juiced 1.5 lemons so I have no idea how much I used in regards to tsp./tbls.)

Add avocado and olive oil to blender and blend until mixed together. NOTE: It will not mix entirely right away. It will still be slightly chunky. Add in seasonings and turn on blender. While running add in lemon juice (you can do this before turning it on..I find it mixes easier if I do it this way). Blend until smooth.

It turned out sooo good! I had a bit much lemon juice though. If that's the case you can always add in more avocado. As written there it'll be more spread like vs. dressing like. You can make it thinner though. I wouldn't do it. This was great like this! I spread it onto some lettuce leaves and then topped them with shredded carrots, cucumber, and radishes. Then I folded/wrapped them up. Super simple and super tasty. I plan on making this again but am going to use different leaves. I used plain ol' lettuce ones (can't remember the variety) so it had a spine which made folding/rolling them difficult. The spines split in half (which I knew they would) so these weren't nearly as neat and tidy as I wanted. I also had rinsed my veggies well and then didn't wait for them to dry. I shredded them first and by the time I got the spread made and on the leaves all the water from the washing and the natural water in them had settled into the bottom of my food processor making them wet. I think next time I'll rinse, dry, and then strain the mix before using it. I would love to try these on a seaweed wrap of sorts. It'd make a tasty appetizer for sure.

Raw thinking

We've decided to take the plunge! After a recent business trip he came home ready to make some drastic changes. We have talked about going to a raw food diet before but never got the momentum. This last trip though sealed the deal.

We went grocery shopping last night (I managed to eat most of the food we had while he was gone) and went all out. We got the appliances we needed (a new blender, a food processor, and a a juicer...we also got some new tupperware and salad bowls) and then went and got groceries. So far so good! We had a big ol' salad last night with some homemade dressing. The dressing wasn't raw (olive oil, vinegar, chives, thyme, and one other spice I can't remember) but it was fantastic! We're working on getting our spices raw and trying to see if we can get olive oil and vinegar raw as well.

He had a fresh juice this morning and then another one at lunch. His detox has kicked in (like last night after dinner) but we knew it would be fast for him. It's crazy to see what a real juice looks like color wise...not bright and fake. And not cheek puckering sweet/bitter/sour.

Day one:
Salad with romaine lettuce, apple, orange, almonds, sunflower seeds (and I think necterine).
Salad dressing: olive oil, red wine vinegar, chive, thyme, and another spice

Day 2:
Morning juice: apple, peach (I think), carrots, spinach
Lunch: Juice (apple, orange, 2 carrots, spinach), almond/sunflower seeds/spanish peanut mix

Current weight: 250 (guesstimate on his end)

So far no gut issues other than the detox. Even the Spanish peanuts didn't bug him and peanuts normally do! We were going to wait to switch our drinks since he does get a coffee in the morning but we decided to do it all last night (we had planned on getting milk) and skip those. He did have a coffee this morning but said at lunchtime he can see himself giving it up very fast. Yay!

So the problem with cutting out carbs totally is the blood sugar issues. Keto-acidosis is basically a diabetic coma induced by a lack of carbs. People with blood sugar issues will have a harder time with low-no carbs because of that. So for now the plan is to do a really thorough detox (on him) and get his system clean. Then we'll start with a basis of "pure" foods....foods we know are safe and are good for building up things within the immune system. THEN we'll slowly introduce certain grains/carbs (most likely raw) and do a trial run with each one. A reverse elimination diet basically. We can't do it quite yet but hopefully not having them will stimulate a natural detox that will work for the time being.

Pizza is bad. We know this. We avoid it because of it. It seems to take all of the worst reactions and slam them on him at once. It's not the toppings but the crust. Somethin about the way it's cooked or prepared or something. We have found one place that we can eat at but it's super spendy so we have only had it a few times. Last night though he got Pizza Hut. It was hot and we were all hungry and his son is here so that throws in some tough meals. I knew when he called to tell me not to eat, he was bringing home pizza that things were not going to go well. Sure enough today the bathroom has been occupied by him. It takes away a day at the best but it can take away a few days at a time. This isn't fair to him. So we are going to try some unleavened breads/dough. Those don't seem to bother him so maybe it's the yeast that gets him. Maybe it continues to ferment in his gut and thats where the problems lie.

Tonight we had a super simple dinner. It's muggy here and just kind of poopy weather wise. I got a new food processor today and was feeling inspired. While on the phone I pulled out my Vegetarian Times and saw a fruit salad that sounded great. I tweaked it to fit my fruit selection and it turned out GREAT! So far no reactions in him which is even better.

Summer Fruit Salad
(The original is called Watermelon, Tomato, and Grape Salad...if you would like the original recipe leave a comment.)

1 whole Sweetie melon- balled
1 whole red tomato- diced
2 black plums- diced
1 whole mango- chopped
1 tablespoon flax seed- ground to activate them
splash of lemon juice- to taste
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar/vinegarette
feta cheese- crumbled

Add all the fruit to a large bowl and mix it up. Add flax seed and lemon juice and stir in. Add in balsamic vinegar/ette a little at a time tasting as you go. Stir everything up making sure the liquids are mixed in well. Top with feta and stir lightly to move the cheese throughout. Enjoy!

I wish I had more. I was worried my fruit choices weren't going to mesh well with the balsamic vinegarette (the original just wanted the vinegar) but it was fantastic....everything complimented each other perfectly! It has been requested that the recipe go in the box of good recipes. :)

Sourcing

The lovely thing about the Internet is the instant wealth of information. You just need to know where to look and how to spot a reliable source.

I posted earlier today on a forum I belong too about our food issues. I've posted numerous times about them and never really get what I am looking for. I get lots of artificial quick fixes from people wanting to say something but not sure what. We've had every diagnosis under the sun thrown at us as a result. Maybe it's a gluten intolerance, maybe it's IBS, etc. Nothing was "right" (though I'm sure they seemed that way) because without knowing my husband and being involved in the day to day things it was jsut a guess based off things I could remember at the moment. Things that were the most bothersome at that time.

Our quest to become vegetarian started long ago. He was one for a few years when he was younger and I, while interested, never had the chance. We started talking seriously about it about a year ago. Finances were bad though and we weren't in the best spot emotionally with ourselves and each other. We went veggie for a few months and quickly went back to being omni's. While we felt it was the right choice at the time neither of us were happy with our diet. His food issues suddenly became so obvious it was like we had a room mate. I became angry with him because I couldn't understand what he was going through and why couldn't he just trudge through it. He became angry with himself because he was so controlled by it all. We talked about making the switch again. Still not in the right place we started eliminating things the best we could.

First we tried to stop the gluten. We started buying bread without it (it's listed in the ingredients) and avoided foods that seemed like they would have it. It's hard though since gluten is a wheat based thing and is in a lot of foods. The tricky thing about ingredient lists is that they (the company) only have to list the top 10 or so. Once an ingredient falls below a certain percentage (based off total percentage in the total makeup of the food) they don't have to list it. We quickly learned this was going to be more of anuphill battle than we thought. Gluten is also difficult to get rid of. Once you know there is a gluten allergy EVERYTHING must go. Why? Gluten cross contaminates very easily AND can bind to certain things. Say for instance you make a peanut butter and jelly sandwhich. One spread of the knife across the bread and you contaminate the knife the peanut butter, and/or jelly. The ENTIRE bottles. There are families who once they have a diagnosis have to toss all their dishes and get new because of the cross containation. Teflon really holds it in. So while we thought we were doing so well by not buying items with gluten we were still having issues. Things cleared up/mellowed out for a bit but not for long. Discouraged we went back to wating breads we liked regardless of the gluten content.

Next we eliminated potatoes. Those are a definite trigger in any form (especially for those with blood sugar issues) so it was easy to cut them out. We've managed to not have potatoes in the house for about a year. He is away on business and as a treat I bought some so that I could have a baked potatoe. Sadly, it wasn't that great and the potatoes were small. The bag will be given away in a few days. :)

Next were certain fruits and then certain veggies. Everything has been such a wait and see situation that we'd often get discouraged and go back to our old eating habits. Why were some foods ok one week and not ok the next!? During this time we moved a couple times and were back to talking about going veggie. It was really becoming a pressing point for us, especially since we were almost there due to bad foods and potential bad foods.

We moved on last time and we both swore once we got settled we'd make the switch. We got into a house after some big issues and also got temp. custody of his son. We weren't going veggie for a bit. I was angry, he was eating bad foods, and meals were a constant battle. Figuring out what I could make that would appeal to all of us was a rarity. If we liked it his son didn't. If it was something we could all agree on it made him sick. None of us were happy.

A few months ago there was an event in California that the husband had to go to (business related). We drove out to Idaho where we visited with family for a bit and then he continued on to the event while I stayed behind. Our original plans were he would do all the things he needed to business wise and then swing back by, visit family some more and back home we would go. Once there though our client persuaded him to consider moving there! His trip got drawn out much longer than planned. During that time we both had an epiphany of sorts in regards to diet. I was tired of eating quick foods and nothing felt good to my body. I wanted fresh and I wanted simple. I didn't want chicken fried up in oil next to some over boiled green beans. My husband was realizing that even though my meals were making him sick, they were making him far less sick than when he ate out. Our client there is vegetarian to a degree. If he goes somewhere and it's not his choice (say a business meeting) he will eat fish if there is nothing vegetarian available. However, most clients/business partners know his diet and it's not an issue. My husband was looking forward to eating places with him. He could count on going somewhere that wasn't going to be harsh.

After a few weeks passed I joined him in California where we stayed in a hotel/cottage that had a kitchen. It was more of a wanna be kitchen. Our only cooking unit was a microwave. Realizing this we knew eating was going to be tough. Thats when we took the plunge and went vegetarian. You don't have to cook vegetables after all. :) There have been times when we both crave a hamburger from McDonald's but so far we are loving it! We haven't had any slips except for the occasional thing like yogurt that has gelatin in it. Quickly fixed and on our way we go.

The last time I posted about our food problems someone mentioned the FAILSAFE diet. It was us!!! It was as if someone had snuck into our home and documented everything. I was so thrilled and we started practicing little things here and there. The differences were shocking. This was before his trip to California though and once he got there all that progress had gone out the window.

Tonight when I posted someone mentioned sourcing. Know your sources....organic was better than not and raw was better than organic. Raw organic? Supreme. Fresh was better than boxed and raw was better than either. I pulled up my link for the FAILSAFE diet and re-read everything.

The initial changes to our diet are going to revolve around sourcing. We are going all organic now. We used to get dairy and eggs non-organic due to price but no more. We know he can tolerate certain foods if they are organic so the FAILSAFE principals really work in our case. If we can go raw we will..there is a place where we can get raw dairy and we are going to give them a test run. Ideally we'll make that switch since I have some issues with dairy that could be helped (nothing to do with dairy itself really....thats another post) by possibly going raw. We'll still eliminate grains for now but once our bodies adjust we'll re-introduce raw grains. This includes crackers and pastas and the like.

One of the people who replied tonight mentioned it's all about finding a balance to the tastes in a meal not neccessarily about having everything on the food pyramid. There are three key things to a meal (that makes our brains and bodies feel/think balanced): salty, savoury, and sweet. An ideal meal has all of these. That I think will make it slightly easier when it comes to meal planning. It'll give me a starting point.

I have so much more to say but I'm getting tired and forgetting certain points that I want to get out. Since our initial conversation though I am feeling more optimistic about this. I was feeling so....restricted earlier but I know a good part of that was thinking it was impossible. I know that thinking is in part due to my upbringing. America is fat and does everything to the extreme. Very few Americans have healthy diets. I couldn't get over the fact that we weren't going to have carbs for awhile. It seemed like such an integral part of a diet, how would we survive. One poster made me see how possible it is. Yes it will be hard work but in the end it'll be worth it. It better be damn it. :)

Here we go!

This is going to be somewhat of a food diary. Not in the traditional sense though. This isn't to loose weight. It's not to gain weight. It's to save the guts of my husband. :)

We have food issues. I should rephrase that. He has food issues. What are they? We aren't sure. This is an attempt to figure things out. Things we do know:

1. He has blood sugar issues bordering on diabetic. His mother in diabetic and as a result that increases his chances of having it quite a bit.

2. Certain foods will not always create a reaction. This is directly related to foods he has had prior to the onset of the reaction. The food that triggers the reaction may be a "bad" food or it may be the straw that broke the camels back.

3. Grains/carbs are NOT user friendly.

4. Raw is best in regards to produce.

5. Since switching to vegetarian and more organics reactions are less harsh on his body.

6. He is soy sensitive.

7. It is NOT irritable bowel syndrome, gluten intolerance, dairy sensitivity/lactose intolerant.

Hopefully this blog will help us out. We are about to do another diet overhaul (the first major one being going vegetarian back in March) and as we find out what works and doesn't work I'll be here. Hopefully for others that have major food issues this will help somewhat.