Our idea of what constitutes "food" in American culture has become so skewed that it is almost unrecognizable. Our supermarkets are packed with products whose ingredients include unpronounceable chemicals, dyes, bacteria, and growth hormones. They are irradiated without our consent and contain GMOs.It's time to bring back FOOD. Pure unadulterated organic RAW food.This blog is a documentation of my continuing journey on a plant-based lifestyle.

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Tum Update, Health Food Store Traversing in LA, & Lots of Food!

Hello All! Hope everyone has been having a good week thus far. I have got tons of pictures to post so I will be quick!

My stomach issues have pressed on since the last time I posted about my enzyme debacle. I thought for sure just going back to my trusted MRM enzymes would work certain overnight miracles, but alas, I should know that most things do not fix themselves overnight! I was still bloated, still uncomfortable, and STILL spitting up food after eating. (Once again, TIM, I know - sorry!) At first I thought it was zucchini, because lord knows I eat A LOT of that. I'm Italian, what can I say, I love my pasta - and that's about as close as i'm gonna get! So I dropped the zucchini, did a day of fasting or feasting really, on smoothies and easy to digest fruits. Ya know, APPLES, bananas, mango, the like. And still, I had a stomach ache. Now, i've had chronic stomach problems for as long as I can remember, but never this intense and long-lasting. Fruit days are usually my "cure-all". After some food evaulation, I realized that perhaps the copious amounts of apples I had been eating lately could be the reason why I was getting stomach aches. Low and behold, on Sunday, no apples and my stomach problems went away!!! I wouldn't say I am allergic, but apples can be very astringent for the body and I think I was just eating WAY to many...like 6 or 7 a day some times 4 at a time!!! I think if I am going to eat apples, I will make applesauce from now on. This week, sans apples, I have been feeling MUCH better.

My good friend from yoga told me this really lovely ancedote since she has the same stomach problems I do: Carrot juice for the digestive system is like mother's milk for an infant. Actually, her doctor told her that. So yesterday, I juiced myself some carrots and lemon and I must say my tum felt a lot better. Even during/after dinner which is when I seem to suffer the most, I felt pretty good. And NO spit ups!!!

Ok, picture time!
Banana, Mini-Papaya, & Mango
Had this for breakfast one day last week! So yum! Papaya is really good for digestion so I try to eat it whenever I can...

Jungle Swamp Smoothie
Another breakfast from last week with spinach, bananas, apple, Vanilla Vivagave, almond milk, california oranges, Vitamineral Green, chia seeds, frozen mango, frozen pineapple.

Alysha's Smoked Gouda Stuffed Portobellos



These are really easy to make. I just marinated the portobellos in miso, tamari, we bit of seasame oil, lemon, and Thanksgiving Herb Blend. I let it sit in the D. for about 2 hours on 110 degrees. Then I stuffed them with avocado, my Smoked Gouda Cheese, sprouts, spinach, and homemade garlic tahini. I poured the leftover sauce from marinating over them. These were SO good; just like the cooked version - soft, juicey, and full of flavor. The rosemary in the Thanksgiving Herb Blend really makes this dish.

Friday Night is Taco Night!
Back in NYC I was a nanny for the most wonderful family (Miss you guys!!) and every Friday was Taco Night. So i've kind of got in the habit of making mexican inspired meals on Fridays now. This was Kev's taco, sporting two Sprouted Grain Ezekial Wraps. One of our favs! I made a quick taco meat using sunflower seeds, cilantro, lime juice, smoke paprika, New Frontiers Mexican Seasoning, garlic, and some fresh jalepeno pepper. I let it sit in the D on 105 degrees for three hours so the outside was crunchy and the inside was soft. This bad boy is topped with leftover cheese sauce from the portobellos, lettuce, toms, and some homemade guacamole. He loved these so much he took them to work two days in a row!

Veg & Guac!
I opted to just have some veggies and guacamole for dinner instead of the full on taco supreme. This was just cucs, toms, and yellow bell pepper with homemade guacamole. My guacamole was filled with goodies like bell pepper, cilantro, lime juice, jalepeno pepper, and a bit of Himalayan Sea Salt. Really simple, super delicious!

Chocolate VivAgave
Ah, my new favourite company VivAgave came out with this Chocolate flavor and I knew I had to give it a try. I've been DYING for some hot chocolate lately because CA has been really chilly! So I threw together some Chocolate VivAgave, lightly heated almond milk, and raw cacao powder into the blender and ta-da! raw, organic, hot chocolate! Take that Swiss Miss! Now if only I could get Sarma to send me some of that Vanilla Cream from the juice bar's Mallomar i'd be in some serious business!

On Saturday we went to LA/Santa Monica to check out some health food stores that I had read about online. Erewhon gets a lot of publicity for being one of the best LA health food stores and while I must say that they do carry just about every raw food product every designed, they are absurdly overpriced. Even the kitch, size of my pinkie raw food shops in NYC, like High Vibe, are not even that overpriced in comparison. Oh well, right! Probably has to do with the rent or something, it is right near CBS studios and I am sure with prime location like that they pay a big leasing fee. Anyway, there are a lot of great health food stores in LA besides Erewhon.

Like, Rainbow Acres - my new favourite LA store!



In all my food nerd glory, I was in heaven. They've got homemade raw tahini, tons of raw food, juice bar, deli, awesomely priced produce, a fantastic bulk foods section, bulk herbs/teas, well priced supplements. They even have this middle section where they keep all their discounted items like shampoos, lotions, conditioner, etc.


One pound of chia seeds for $7.00!!! Haven't been able to find chia in the OC for under $11 a lb. And my favourite, bee pollen. Love it!


Nothing beats the smell of burning patchouli! Seriously, I am a total hippie at heart and I live for all things patchouli; I just love it's earthy undertones. Don't even get me started on frankincense and myrrh...Those are my top three favourite smells aside from woodburning fire. Anytime, I find stuff like this I buy it. These were on sale: Patchouli Shampoo $3.99 and Bergamont/Patchouli Lotion $1.99. These are all organic, paraben, chemical free and definately not tested an animals. Total steal. Can't wait to go back here!


Awesome car.


We stopped at this place, Elderberries, on Sunset to get a bite to eat. Unfortunately, they were not totally up and running just yet. However, the lovely lady who I believe owns it said that they will be up and running by this weekend. She was one of the sweetest people I have ever met! She gave me a free taste of this Raw Pear and Watercress soup that she had created. It was divine! Smooth, cool, and slightly sweet. I cannot wait to go back there and actually eat. I also ordered a "Flufighta" which contained juiced ginger, lemon, and cayenne. Man! This cleaned me out quick. She quickly gave me some juiced green apple to wash it down because I started to tear. haha! She didn't even charge me! The decor of this place alone is enough to make me want to go back. It was very french/victorian which is like me wrapped in a nutshell. If you are in the LA area check this place out. I am going to go back there next time and order food that way I can write a real review, however, this place deserves some early press.


Kev pointing to ZenBunny in Santa Monica. Literally, BEST raw chocolate in the world! I know, with a grandious statement like that I had better deliver, but I wouldn't lie - hands down, THE BEST!


Yay! Semi-straight hair. I have like Shirly Temple-ringlet curly kind of hair and this is about as straight as I can get it. It's longer, this picture just doesn't do it justice, but Saturday was the first time I have even touched my hair in over two months. I normally part and air dry. No styling gels necessary here!

Check out Ginger is the New Pink's blog as she is doing an awesome giveaway!!! It's a Raw Cleanse by Garden of Life. For directions, check out her blog and enter!

I'll be back tomorrow with something extra special. Kev and I have a big food challenge in the works! Should be rather interesting!




7 comments:

  1. You look gorgeous :) alex and I are going to try the gouda portebello mushrooms sometie this week...yes I eat mushrooms now!! And I am appy your stomach issues have been cured :) keep up the posts miss you tons

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  2. You're gorgeous ma lady! :) Glad to hear you found what was causing your tummy issues. I have yet to try that Viv Agave. I actually forgot to look at my WF. Need.Want.To try that stuff. I will. All your goodies look GOOD! Esp the tacos. Yum!

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  3. So happy to hear you found out what was causing your stomach problems!!! Tacos look great, they are my fav. yum!! Great buys at the store too!

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  4. Aww, Jebs, you've crossed over! lol, I miss you so much!! If you need recipes for anything just let me know, I will email them to you. It is all very easy to make! Yeah, no more eating 20 apples in a row for me! lol. How's work? And Pitt? And your seemingly new wounderful bf? Did my Mim ever get back to you about the catering for Jenn's wedding??? Love you lots!

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  5. Yay! Another LA vegan! I can't wait to go to Rainbow Acres, I go through chia seeds like crazy.

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  6. Glad your tum is on the mend. I jacked myself up pretty good last week with bad food and am still recovering. The healthier I get, the better I feel, but the more sensitive I become, too. Apples, huh? Who would have thought? I didn't realize they were hard on digestion. The gouda looks AMAZING. Do you have a recipe you're willing to share? I understand if it's a secret, but it looks so delicious that I had to ask :)

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  7. Hi there!
    Great post! Thanks for sharing. Sorry to hear you weren't feeling well. I'm so intrigued by the raw foods diet...it's all new to me...and I've been enjoying your blog! Your dishes look super yummy! :) Have a great weekend. I'd be willing to know what it takes to make the gouda also! ;)

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