The raw life

I realize that I have unintentionally eaten nearly 100% raw for 8 days in a row. By "nearly" I mean I've been eating a few non-raw ingredients like cocoa powder, maple syrup, and 70% dark chocolate, etc. For the past few months I have been following the "slow transition" suggestions as read about in Natalia Rose's books. But during this past week, I just haven't wanted to eat anything else. And it's not that whole "perfectionist" itch I can get...it's just that the meals that I've been craving just so happen to be all-raw. And it feels great! I know I will still eat the occasional baked sweet potato or lightly steamed veggie or piece of sprouted wheat bread. But it's interesting to see that, without even trying or even intending to, I've transitioned closer to an all-raw diet.

An occasion I'm curious to experience will be this Sunday; one of my only vegan friends, Brandi, is coming to visit. She lives out of state now, so I always get really excited when she comes to town because we meet up at my favorite vegan comfort food restaurant, Squid and Ink. When she lived in Seattle, we would go almost every Sunday. But I haven't been to Squid or really eaten "vegan comfort food" at all in the past couple months. I've managed to avoid fried foods, mock meats and soy cheese; three things I used to eat regularly. While I still have a place in my heart and tummy for vegan comfort foods, I don't crave them the way I used to. So I'm curious to see what I will order and how it will make me feel afterward. I predict my appetite won't be nearly as hearty- I used to wolf down my entire plate of whatever I ordered and get dessert. But, then again, I have surprised myself with my ability to binge on foods I didn't even know I could tolerate any more...ahem...Christmas Eve dinner ring a bell? (So ashamed!)

But I feel at peace with my diet right now. I feel like I have control. I feel like I can handle this occasional little splurge. I am happy to eat mostly raw food and I also feel the freedom to eat the occasional non-raw meal, if I so desire. I'm a little nervous that my sense of control will mysteriously disolve and my meal this Sunday will inspire a binge-fest, but I recovered easily from the Xmas Eve mishap, so I now know I can turn any backslide around again.

To remind myself of my power over food-addicitons and binging, I'd like to mention that ever since I've stayed away from molasses cookies from Starbucks, I no longer crave refined sugar treats. I've heard that you will crave whatever you continue to eat. That's why Alissa Cohen, in Living on Live Food, suggests committing to an all raw diet, if possible, because keeping cooked food in your diet keeps the cravings and addiction to cooked food alive. In my personal case, I agree with that to a certain extent. I don't believe there is much harm in occasional cooked veggies and such, and some raw foodists include a few cooked items in their diet, but I do believe you need to keep out all potentially negative foods from your diet, like all refined, processed, and sugary foods. Those are in no way harmonious with your body. I saw for myself; when I ate one molasses cookie, I needed one the next day, or the next week. When I ate refined flour in the form of a pita on Xmas Eve, I was desperately craving the cheesebread Brian ordered at Claim Jumper two days later. I will keep those lessons in mind this Sunday at Squid and Ink. If I start getting violent cravings for fries and mock meats the next day, I'll know why!

As a side note, I'm not saying that a traditional vegan "comfort food" diet is bad; it's just not me anymore. I feel like I've come a long way from when I ate like that every day- I've lost a LOT of weight and feel so much better now that I am on a mostly raw diet. I want to keep it that way!

And now for more news in my raw life: I've joined the Raw Freedom Community Forum. It's an amazing forum with so many recipes and interesting threads. As I don't have any raw friends here in Seattle (or anywhere, for that matter), it's nice to find a place where I can ask questions and read what other people in similar situations have to say. And the recipes, did I mention the delicious abundance of recipes? Yum! The RFC is also where I discovered the version of the Raw White Chocolate Cheesecake I made! The forum also lead me to two awesome blogs (Raw Goddess Heathy and The Sunny Raw Kitchen) that I frequent for their amazing recipes! They are both really inspiring. I've never seen so much RAW in one place! I'm new to the world of blogging and forums, so discovering all of this is really exciting for me. Yes, I feel like a nerd. I get easily excited about this kinda stuff, if you can tell.

And new developments have been making their way through my mind about my future with raw foods as a career. I keep getting more ideas. I'm now thinking of starting my own raw personal chef service. I've read some wonderful tips and advice on the RFC about making a living with raw foods. I also received some very helpful advice from Vanessa Sherwood, who runs a personal raw chef service in Chicago. Oh, and I will probably be taking a raw chef certification course over the summer. There are a couple I have looked into. The most affordable is a simple course taught by a student of Alissa Cohen's certification program. I am also looking into a few others, like one taught by Bryan Au. Since I am already confident in my ability to make delicious, edible, beautiful raw meals, I figure I should opt for the least expensive course to start with. I can always take more expensive programs in the future if I find that I need or desire it. I do not believe that "certification" is completely necessary, but I would just like to experience a class with a fellow raw chef; gain a little more confidence in my abilities.

I would just like to say that I am so grateful for all the help and recourses I have found! It's making this raw food journey more and more enjoyable by the day. Even now, while I sit at home, sick (I'm either experiencing some detox symptoms or I somehow managed to catch the guitarist's of my band The Shy Ones cold), all I want to do is search the RFC for recipes or make sketches and plans of my ideas for my raw business. Oh wait, maybe I just don't have a life haha. Just kidding. This is my life. My life is awesome!