Lately raw food cleanses and detox diets are becoming very popular. Many people are using them to kick start their diet and some people end up converting to a raw food lifestyle.
Many people attempt to a raw food detox diet for 7 to 21 days or more.
People that are able to complete a raw food cleanse generally never go back to their old habits and eat an increased amount of raw fruits and vegetables in their diet.
A raw food diet is based on eating foods that are uncooked or only cooked to a certain degree. An acceptable range for cooking some foods hangs around 104 to 118 degrees Fahrenheit.
The reason that cooking food is bad is because many foods lose their healthy properties once they have been cooked at higher temperatures. The key with a raw food diet is to eating foods in their natural state will be healthier for your body.
What Is Eaten on a Raw Food Diet?
There are many debates and discussions on what a raw food diet entails. Most people that follow the raw food lifestyle are vegans. That means they do not eat ANY animal products whatsoever.
Other raw food enthusiasts will eat some raw animal products such as raw milk, ceviche (raw fish) and other products.
Then there are other raw food lovers that will cook their food to a certain degree while other will not. The choice is ultimately up to the individual on how strict they want to follow a raw food diet.
How To Prepare Raw Foods?
• Soaking (Germination)
Soaking or germination is the process of soaking foods like raw beans, nuts
and seeds in water for a specific amount of time.
• Sprouting
After soaking foods like beans, nuts and seeds, they can be sprouted.
Generally after you have drained off the water and rinsed the food thoroughly, they can be placed in a container and begin the sprouting process.
Different foods have a different amount of time required for sprouting to occur. Be sure to follow any instructions in the recipes provided in this ebook.
• Dehydrating
Some raw food lovers do not eat any cooked food while other will heat certain foods to a low temperature. A common method for “cooking” foods is dehydrating. Dehydrators are enclosed containers that heat foods to a low temperature to simulate “sun drying”.
Many people use their dehydrators to make raisins, sun-dried tomatoes, kale chips and croutons.
• Blending
Raw food lovers generally use their blender and food processors everyday.
They are very useful for making smoothies, soups and so much more.
What Equipment is Used to Prepare Raw Food?
• Blender – for making smoothies, soups, nut butters and milks
• Thermometer - to make sure your foods do not go over 118 F
• Dehydrator – simulates sun-drying
• Juicer – to create powerful and healthy juices
• Food processor – great for creating nut milks and butters What are the Benefits of a Raw Food Lifestyle?
There are numerous health benefits of a raw food lifestyle, including but not limited to:
• Increased energy
• Clearer skin
• Weight loss
• Reduced risk of disease
• Anti-aging
In general, a raw food diet will be much lower in fat and cholesterol and higher in essential vitamins and minerals.
Are There Any Side Effects?
Some people have experienced a detoxification effect when starting a raw food diet. The most common symptoms are mild headaches, nausea, and strong cravings. These symptoms can start immediately and last for a few days. If they last longer than 7 days, then you should stop the diet and consult your physician.
10 Raw Food Breakfasts
Banana Coconut Cakes/Crepes
•
3-4 bananas
• 1 young coconut
• cinnamon, to taste
•
vanilla extract or vanilla bean powder, to taste Blend bananas and coconut meat using coconut water to blend until creamy smooth and thin enough to pour on dehydrator Teflex Sheets.
Dehydrate until dry on the top, flip over and dehydrate until all dry.
Serve with fresh jam.
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SuperFood Shake
1 organic banana
2 tbsp hemp protein powder
2 tbsp hemp nut
1 tbsp hemp oil
1 tbsp coconut oil
1 1/3 cup filtered water
Blend and enjoy. Simple and easy!
Banana Pecan Pancakes
•
1 1/2 cups Ground Flax
• 1/2 cups Flax Seeds
• 1/2 cups Dried Coconut
• 3/4 cups Water
• 1/4 cups Agave or Maple Syrup
• 1/4 cups Coconut Butter
• 1 cup Sliced Bananas
• 3/4 cups Chopped Pecans
Mix all the ingredients together. You may need to use your hands. Shape the
dough into pancake sized patties. Place on the dehydrator shelf with screen.
Dehydrate at 140 for 30 minutes, then 116 for another 30 minutes. These should still be moist.
Raw Cinnamon Buns
Buns:
• 5 Dates
• 1/4 cups Water
• 1 cup Ground Flax
• 1 1/4 cups Almond Flour
• 1 cups Spelt Flakes ***
• 1 cups Chopped Pecans (chopped fine)
• 2 t. Cinnamon
• 3 T. Olive Oil
• 1/4 cups Agave
• 1 cup Water
Soak dates. Blend with 1/4 cups water to make a smooth date paste.
Set aside for later.
Combine flax, almond flour, finely chopped pecans, and Spelt flakes.
In a separate bowl, combine date paste, olive oil, 1/4 cups agave and 1 cup water. Mix wet ingredients into dry. Spread in a rectangle on a non-stick dehydrator sheet. You want this to be a little less than 1/2 inch thick.
Dehydrate at 145 for 30 minutes. Flip onto screen, peel off dehydrator sheet and dehydrate at 115 for another 20 minutes. While the bun is dehydrating, you will want to prepare the filling.
Filling:
• 1 Young Thai Coconut (the white part only)
• 1 cup Cashews
• 1/2 cups Almonds
• 1/4 cups Raw Agave
• 1 T Vanilla (not raw)
• 1/2 cups raisins
Soak Almonds and Cashews for at least 3 hours to soften. Place in food processor with remaining ingredients except raisins, process until smooth.
Stir in raisins.
Assembly:
Place “bun” on parchment paper. Spread filling on bun. You can spread to the edges on the long sides but leave an inch or two on the short sides. Gently roll up the roll. Slice and top with icing. Makes 12.
Icing:
• 1 cups Raw Cashew Butter
• 3 T Maple Syrup (not raw)
• 1 t. Cinnamon
• 3-4 T Water
Mix all ingredients except water. Add water 1 T at a time to desired consistency.
Cinnamon Raisin “Toast” and Hazelnut Butter
• 2 cups Almonds
• 1 cup Sunflower Seeds
• 1 cup Ground Flax
• 1 cup Purred Zucchini
• 2 Carrots
• 1 Apple
• 1 cup Raisins
• 4 Dates plus 1/2 cups Water
• 1 t Cinnamon
Place sunflower seeds in food processor and process until finely chopped.
Place in Bowl. Place almonds in food processor and finely chop. Place in
bowl with sunflower seeds. Add flax and stir to combine. Process carrots and apple in food processor until you get a puree. Add zucchini puree, mix. In blender, blend dates with 1/2 cups water until liquefied. You can soak the dates first to soften. Add to carrot and apple mixture, stir. Stir wet ingredients into dry. Mix well. Stir in cinnamon and raisins. Spread 1/4″ thick on non-stick dehydrator tray. Dehydrate for 1 hour at 145, reduce heat and continue to dehydrate at 116 for two more hours. Flip mixture onto screen, peel off non-stick sheet and continue to dehydrate for about 4-6 more hours or until dry but not hard. This bread will should be a little soft.
Hazelnut Butter
2 cups Hazelnuts
2 T Olive Oil
Process in food processor. ** See Almond Butter recipe for instructions Doughnut Holes
• 2 cups Brazil Nuts
• 1/2 cups Oat Flour (made from raw oats)
• 1 cup Flaked Oats (raw)
• 1/3 cups Coconut Oil
• 1/3 cups Maple Syrup (not raw but used in raw food recipes) Chop Brazil nuts in food processor until fine. Combine dry ingredients in a bowl. Combine wet ingredients, mix together and then add to the wet ingredients. Stir. Squeeze into balls. Roll in Sucanat cinnamon mixture and refrigerate.
Topping:
• 1/3 cups Sucanat (not raw but not processed, used in raw recipes)
• 1 1/2 t. Cinnamon
Combine and put through blender. I use a coffee grinder for this to break up the grainy Sucanat. You can skip this step and just combine the ingredients.
Raw Strawberry Banana Crepes
Crepes:
• 4 Bananas
• juice from 1 lemon
Place bananas in food processor. Add lemon juice and process until liquid.
Pour into 5″ rounds. These should only be about 1/8″ thick so spread mixture if necessary. Dehydrate overnight at 115. Do not over dry these. I start them just before I go to bed. You want them to be flexible. Makes 8 – 5″ rounds Cashew Vanilla Cream
• Pulp from two young coconuts
• 1 cup Cashews, soaked overnight
• splash of Madagascar vanilla
• 1 T Agave (if desired)
Place the cashews in high-speed blender. Blend on high speed. Add the coconut meat and vanilla. Process until well blended. Refrigerate to thicken if needed.
Assembly
Spoon the Cashew Vanilla Cream into half the crepe. Top with berries and add more cream. Fold over and experience joy! Makes 4-6 crepes.
Raw Oatmeal with Goji Berries
• 1 cup Flaked Oats
• 1/2 to 1 cup Almond Milk
• 1/4 cups Goji Berries
• 1/4 cups Chopped Almonds
• Agave or Maple Syrup to taste.
Place oats in glass bowl. Cover with almond milk. Stir in Goji berries. Place in dehydrator at 145 (the food won’t heat above 116) for 30 minutes, reduce temp and continue for another 1/2 hour. You can also start soaking the oats the night before and then gently warm in the dehydrator. Top with walnuts and sweeten to taste.
Blueberry Flax Pancakes
• 1/2 cups flax seeds (ground)
• 1 cup flax seeds (not ground)
• 3 T coconut oil melted
• 1/4 cups agave
• 1/2 cups water
• 1 cup blueberries
• 1/4 cups coconut (unsweetened, dried) Mix all ingredients. Dehydrate at 145 for one hour, flip and then dehydrate for 30 minutes at 114. Makes 5, 5″ pancakes. These are very filling!!
Frozen Vanilla Bliss
• 3/4 cups water
• 2 Tablespoons or more raw tahini
• 1-2 fresh or frozen bananas
• dash of vanilla (optional but really adds to the flavor) Blend all til thick and smooth. Wait one minute or so for the banana flavor to overtake the tahini flavor then drink immediately. Serves 1.
36 Raw Food Lunches &
Dinners
Tomato Basil Soup
• 3 cups tomato puree (6-8 medium tomatoes, see note)
• ¼ lemon, peeled and seeded
• 1 avocado
• Large handful of sunflower or buckwheat sprouts
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
• 1 tablespoon chopped onion (optional)
• 1 small clove garlic, chopped (optional)
• Additional sprouts
• Basil flowers
Wait until summer when you can make this beautiful re soup from fresh, juicy, ripe organic tomatoes.
In a blender combine the tomato puree, lemon, avocado, sprouts, basil, onion and garlic. Blend and pour into serving bowls. Top the soup with sprouts and basil flowers.
Serves 2.
Note: To make the tomato puree: Put the tomatoes into a blender until you have a 3-cup yield. The tomato puree should be chunky, not silky smooth.
Broccoli-Waldorf Salad
2 cups organic broccoli, cut in small pieces 1 apple cubed
4 stalks celery, diced
1 cup grapes, sliced in half
1 cup raw walnuts, soaked
½ cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup cold pressed organic olive oil ½ tsp salt
½ tsp freshly cracker pepper
Add in all ingredients up until the walnuts to a bowl. Mix the vinegar, olive
oil, salt, and pepper with a fork and stir.
Creamy Corn Chowder
• 4 cups fresh corn kernels (approximately 4 large ears)
• 2 cups almond milk (see note)
• 1 avocado, cut in chunks
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons finely minced onion
• ½ teaspoon sea salt
• Corn kernels
• Sunflower sprouts
When corn is in season, make up a large bowl of this delicious soup and watch it disappear! This recipe only takes a few minutes to prepare if you have the almond milk on hand. If you are not accustomed to eating raw food or if you have a delicate digestive system, take just a small serving—the soup contains a great deal of roughage.
In a blender, combine the corn, almond milk, avocado, cumin, minced onion and salt. Blend well. Pour the soup into serving bowls and garnish with a handful of corn kernels and some sunflower sprouts.
Serves 4.
Note: Blend 2 cups soaked almonds with 4 cups of water. Strain.
Fake Salmon/Tuna
• 2 cups almonds, soaked 8-10 hours
• 2 whole carrots
• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped red onion
• 1 1/2 cups finely minced celery
• 1/2 cup minced parsley
• 1/4 cup minced shallot or scallion
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons kelp powder
• 1 teaspoon Dulse powder or granules
• 1 tablespoon liquid amino's , 2 teaspoons Nama Shoyu or 1 teaspoon sea salt
Soak almonds 8-12 hours, drain, rinse and drain again. Put the almonds,carrots and onions through the heavy-duty juicer, using the blank screen. Place mixture in a large bowl, add celery, parsley, shallots, lemon juice, kelp, dulse, liquid amino's or sea salt and stir thoroughly. Shape into a mold or place in a pie crust. Or shape free hand like a fish. Keeps several days, covered, in the refrigerator.
Serves 4-6.
Lasagna
Best made one day in advance. This works best with a pan that measures 9.5"
X 13" X 2"-(3 quarts). Any pan is okay.
• 5-6 zucchini
• 3-4 Cups coarsely chopped Mushrooms (or, thinly slice portobellas or baby bellas)
• 6 Cups Spinach, packed, roughly chopped
• "Cheese layer" 4 Cups Sunflower pâté (recipe below)
• Marinara Sauce
• cheesecloth (all cotton for culinary use) Sunflower pâté
• 3 cups sunflower seeds, soaked 8-12 hours. Sprouted for 2-4 hours
• 1 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
• 1/2 cup chopped scallions
• 1/4-1/2 cup raw tahini
• 1/4 cup liquid amino's, or 2 tablespoons Nama Shoyu, or pinch of sea
• salt with additional water, or none at all
• 2-4 slices red onion, cut in chunks
• 4-6 tablespoons coarsely chopped parsley
• 2-3 medium cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or more to taste) Soak sunflower seeds 8-12 hours, drain, allow to sprout for 3-4 hours (leave out on counter) then thoroughly rinse and drain removing as many of the thin inner husks that float to the top as possible. In a food processor, process the sunflower seeds, lemon juice, scallions, tahini, liquid amino's, onion, parsley, garlic and cayenne until the mixture is a smooth paste.
When thoroughly blended taste and adjust the seasoning. The pâté will develop a stronger garlic taste in a few hours.
Yields a large mixing bowl of pâté. (approximately 8 cups) Lasagna Prep
Thinly slice the zucchini the long way. This can be done by hand or with a mandolin. Marinate for 1-2 hours in a mixture of olive oil, water and lemon juice. You will need enough slices to completely cover the bottom of the pan two times. (you can marinate longer if you want) Place a double layer of cheesecloth in the pan, with at least 6 inches of cheesecloth hanging out on all sides.
Assemble the lasagne
Pat dry the marinated zucchini slices. Fit closely together enough slices to completely cover the bottom of the pan-Don't forget to lay the cheesecloth down first, it is important.
Pour over a small amount of the marinara sauce and spread over the zucchinis (see recipe for Marinara below) Spread out a layer of mushrooms, (use 1/2 the mushrooms) Spread a thin layer of pâté over the mushrooms (use 1/2 the pâté) (it's OK to leave it in evenly spaced blobs it is difficult to spread) Evenly place half of the chopped spinach over the pâté and press firmly into
place.
REPEAT THE FOLLOWING STEPS IN YOUR PAN
• Zucchini slices
• 1/2 of the remaining marinara sauce
• the remaining mushrooms
• the remaining pâté
• the remaining spinach-press in to the pâté
• The remaining marinara- you can also add some chopped tomato and slivered basil to the top
Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
SERVING THE LASAGNA
The vegetables and pâté will have given off a great deal of liquid overnight in the refrigerator. Using the ends of the cheesecloth, carefully lift out the lasagne (it may take 2 people). Drain the lasagne for a few moments (hold it up and allow to drip or run your hand over the bottom)-then either place it in a new pan or have someone quickly pour off the liquid and dry the pan and put the lasagne back in.
Slice and Serve.
Cabbage Roll-ups
• 1 large cabbage leaf
• ½ avocado, cut in chunks
• 2 olives, chopped
• Lentil, pea and/or fenugreek sprouts
• Lemon juice
• Nama Shoyu
• Dulse flakes
• Slivered red pepper
• Your favorite sprouts or greens
A cabbage leaf makes a great “sandwich” for any filling. Softening the
cabbage makes it easier to roll the filling up in it. Any guacamole, pate’, or salad recipe would be delicious stuffed in a cabbage or lettuce roll.
Soften the cabbage leaf by putting it in a dehydrator for 10 minutes or dipping the whole leaf in hot water until soft; set aside. In a small bowl, mash the avocado with a fork and add the olives, sprouts, lemon juice, Nama Shoyu and dulse to taste. Place the mixture on the cabbage leaf. Top with red peppers, sprouts and any other vegetables you have on hand; roll up and enjoy.
Serves 1.
Sun Garden Burger
• 3 tablespoons flax seeds, ground (see note)
• 6 tablespoons water
• 1 cup carrot pulp (see note)
• 1 cup sunflower seeds, ground
• ½ cup finely minced celery
• 6 tablespoons finely minced onion
• 2 tablespoons finely minced parsley
• 2 tablespoons finely minced red pepper These burgers are delicious served in a cabbage leaf bun. Fold a cabbage leaf over the burger with any condiments you like or cut a few squares of cabbage from the large leaves and place the burger in between them. Serve your burger on a plate with some yummy Marvelous Mushroom Gravy. (See note) In a blender, combine the ground flax seeds and water; blend thoroughly.
Immediately pour the mixture into a bowl and set aside. (Rinse the blender container immediately before the mixture left in it hardens and becomes difficult to wash out.)
In a medium-sized bowl, thoroughly mix the carrot pulp, sunflower seeds, celery, onion, parsley, red pepper and Nama Shoyu. Add the flax seed mixture and mix thoroughly. Add more water if necessary so that the mixture can be formed into patties. Form into six ½-inch thick patties. Place immediately into the dehydrator and dehydrate for 4-8 hours, leave them in the sun until warm or place them in a warm oven for 10-15 minutes.
Makes 6 patties.
Note: To grind flax seeds, place them in a clean electric coffee grinder and grind until powdered.
To make carrot pulp, put carrots through a heavy-duty juicer, using a juicing screen. Use the pulp in the recipe; drink the juice or reserve it for another use.
Sunny Roll Ups
• 1 Nori sheet
• 3-4 tablespoons sunflower pate (recipe above)
• 3-4 green olives, sliced
• Wasabi
• 2-3 pieces slivered red pepper
• 3-4 pieces slivered carrot
• Large handful clover or alfalfa sprouts
• Sunflower sprouts
Sunny Roll-Ups are made with square sheets of seaweed called nori, the numerous green seaweed that Japanese restaurants use to make sushi and California rolls.
Assemble the roll-ups as close to serving time as possible because the nori absorbs the moisture from the filling very quickly and can become a bit soggy. Once you are adept at making the nori rolls, your guests will love watching you assemble them.
Lay 1 sheet of nori on a clean cutting board or bamboo sushi mat. Place 3 or 4 tablespoons of the pate’ along the edge of the nori nearest to you. Using a knife or spatula, spread the pate’ in a band that is almost as wide as the nori (stop within ½ inch of the left and right sides and approximately 1 ½ inches deep.
Place a horizontal row of thinly sliced green olives down the middle of the pate’. Squeeze a thin, even line of Wasabi down the middle of the pate’ (it’s
hot, so use it carefully). Place several pieces of slivered carrot or red pepper in rows next to the olives. Place a generous handful of clover or alfalfa sprouts on top (you can use more than you would believe possible; they will compress when you roll up the nori.) Finally, place a small amount of sunflower sprouts on top.
Now you are ready to roll. Starting with the end closest to you, lift the edge of the nori and roll it tightly over the pate’ and vegetables. Pull the roll back toward you once or twice to compress the ingredients in the roll. Continue rolling until a tight cylinder is formed. (This gets easier with practice). If necessary, place a bit of water on the very end of the roll to seal it. Serves 1.
Chili Rellenos with Mole Sauce and Mock Sour Cream Chili Rellenos
• 4 red peppers or Anaheim or Poblano peppers
• 2 cups basic pate’, see recipe above
• ½ cup finely minced carrots
• ½ cup minced celery
• ½ cup minced zucchini
• ½ cup minced onion
• ½ cup thinly sliced mushrooms
• 1 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 cloves garlic, pressed
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon cayenne, or more to taste
• Lemon juice, to taste
• Nama Shoyu, to taste
• Mole Sauce, see recipe below
• Mock sour cream, see recipe below
Cut the peppers in half lengthwise and remove the seeds; set aside. In a large mixing bowl, combine the pate’, carrots, celery, zucchini, onion, mushrooms, cilantro, garlic, oregano and cayenne. Mix thoroughly. Add lemon juice and
Nama Shoyu to achieve the desired taste and consistency. Stuff the peppers with the