Transition Me: High Carb Low Fat Cooked Vegan Meals for The Frugal Eater

So, on this blog, I talk A LOT about fruit and raw food in general. My name is, after all, RAW food nerd. However, I am well aware that such a lifestyle is not for everyone, nor does everyone desire to be 100% raw. For some, eating fully raw is cost prohibitive or they simply desire to merely only incorporate more raw food or even just add more plant-based foods overall.

Today, I would like to address those issues by sharing one of my favorite simple, healthy, high carb low fat vegan meals that you can incorporate into your diet as you transition to a healthier lifestyle! Over the next few weeks I am going to be sharing more of these types of recipes, because I think it's important for people to see that you really don't have to give up EVERYTHING just to be healthy. All meals are budget-friendly and great if you are short on time because everything can be made the night before or left in your steamer/crock pot to be ready when you get home!

My top most cost effective starches that I recommend as a way to transition to a more plant-based or vegan lifestyle: (unlimited)

• Potatoes 
• Rice 
• Corn 
• Gluten-free pastas (corn/brown rice pasta) 

My first easy transition meal is for baked french fries with homemade salt-free, refined sugar-free, and vinegar-free ketchup. Say what? Healthy fries? Hell yeah!! 

Crispy, no-oil French Fries straight out of the oven are a match made in foodie heaven with this tangy, salty, and slightly sweet homemade Ketchup! Eat as much as you desire without feeling the slightest bit of guilt!


For the French Fries: 
Serves 1-2 people
Pre-heat your oven to 400 degrees 

2-3 lbs of organic potatoes that have been cut in strips and partially steamed for about 15-20/25 mins. -- they should still be firm, but soft enough that you are able to slide a knife in and out cleanly
 (I have found that golden yellow potatoes hold up really well and I generally just cut these in half or thirds, but russets will work just as well too. Sweet potato is excellent as well!) 
1 sheet of parchment paper cut to fit your baking sheet 
Once your potatoes are done steaming, let them cool, and then place them on your baking sheet. 

Season as desired: a dash of black pepper and some chopped fresh rosemary is my favorite combination! 
Bake in the oven until golden brown 

For the Homemade Ketchup:
1 small can of salt-free, Organic tomato paste 
onion powder 
garlic powder 
black pepper
1 teaspoon molasses
1 teaspoon of coconut sugar
1 cup of filtered water

In a mixing bowl combine your tomato paste, molasses, and coconut sugar gradually adding your filtered water to thin out the mixture. You may need to add more then 1 cup of water depending on how thin or thick you want the ketchup to be. 
Mix until the ingredients have fully come together, and you have a smooth, silky consistency. 
Next, add in your spices. I start with 2-3 shakes of onion and garlic powder and a small pinch of black pepper. Then I taste and adjust as needed. 

Chef tip: Don't get hung up on exact amounts when it comes to seasoning in recipes. Everyone's taste preferences are different, so don't worry if the recipe calls for 1 teaspoon of pepper, but you feel like half a teaspoon is enough for you. 

As with most sauce/condiment recipes the longer they sit the better and more flavorful they become, so feel free to make a big batch of this and let it sit in your fridge until you are ready to use it! Just make sure to pull it out 30 minutes before you are going to eat and perhaps add a little more water if necessary to thin it out. 

You can even steam your potatoes ahead of time and leave them in the fridge until you are ready to bake them which makes this meal not only super affordable for anyone on a budget, but also incredibly simple for those who are busy and just want quick, easy meals. 

Pair this with a nice big salad and you have a satisfying, nutritious, high carb plant-based meal that will GIVE you energy and not weigh you down! 

I know I was guilty of this for a long time, but I was convinced that potatoes (specifically) were going to make me fat. They were carb-laden starches after all and I was positive that one bite and I would surely bust a gut turning me obese overnight. Instead, I stuffed my face with bacon, cheese, sausage, steaks, and more cheese. Hmmm...

The notion that starches (or fruit for that matter) make you fat is incredibly FALSE. In fact, it's a blatant lie. One that is pushed by the diet industry, specifically those advocating for high protein, low carb diets like the Atkins and Paleo diets. These are the same people that also say that fruit makes you obese and eating more than one slice of melon a day is "dangerous." Not very credible when you consider that fact that they advocate eating the majority of your calories from animal products, which any MD will tell you is the reverse of what you should be doing if you want to ward off heart disease at the very least! (If you want to learn more about the connection between high protein diets and disease please read Colin T. Campbell's books Whole, The China Study, and/or The Low-Carb Fraud)

And just in case you still don't believe me I'm going to drop some quality info bombs from Dr. John McDougall, MD and author of The Starch Solution:

"A widely held myth holds that sugars in starches are readily converted into fat, which is then stored visibly in our abdomen, hips, and buttocks. If you read the published research, you will see that there is no disagreement about this whatsoever among scientists, and that they say that THIS IS INCORRECT! After eating, we break down the complex carbohydrates in starchy foods into simple sugars. These sugars are absorbed into the bloodstream, where they are transported to trillions of cells throughout the body for energy. if you eat more carbohydrates than your body needs, you'll store up to 2 lbs of it invisibly in the muscles and liver in the form of glycogen. If you eat more carbohydrates than you can use (as your daily energy) and store (as glycogen), you'll burn the remainder off as body heat and through physical movement other than sports, such as walking to work, typing, yard work, and fidgeting.

Turning sugars into fats is a process called de novo lipogensis. Pigs and cows use this process to convert carbohydrates from grains and grasses into calorie-dense fats. That's what makes them so appealing as a food source. Bees do it, too, converting honey (simple carbohydrate) into wax (fatty acids and alcohols).

We humans, on the other hand, are very inefficient at converting carbohydrate to fat: we don't do it under normal conditions. (The cost for this conversion is 30 percent of calories consumed.)  Subjects overfed large amounts of simple sugars under experimental lab rotary conditions, however, will convert a small amount of carbohydrate to fat. For example, both trim and obese women fed 50 percent more calories than they usually ate in a day, along with an extra 3 1/2 ounces (135 grams) of refined sugar, produced less than 4 grams of fat daily (less than 1/8 ounce). That's just 36 extra calories stored as fat per day. You'd have to overeat all of those extra calories and table sugar every day for nearly 4 months just to gain ONE pound of extra body fat." (Pages 112-116)

(Personal interjection: Water-weight from eating high sodium foods as well as eating cooked food and not drinking enough water throughout the day can and will manifest as what looks and feels like fat or weight gain. It's kind of like a David Copperfield illusion in that respect; it feels like it's there, but ultimately, it really isn't. Proper hydration is just as important as what you are and aren't eating!)

"The warning about carbohydrate turning to body fat is a myth and nothing more: In humans, even substantial quantities of refined and processed carbohydrates contribute only a trivial amount to body fat.

The same is not true of animal and vegetable fats, however. ... Fat is the Metabolic Dollar Saved for the Next Famine. After you eat dairy, meat, nuts, oils, and other high-fat foods, you absorb their fat from your intestine into the bloodstream. From there, it is transported to billions of adipose (fat) called for storage...The fat you eat is the fat you wear." (Pages 120-121)

(Dr. McDougall references several clinical studies in footnotes throughout these paragraphs which you can see for yourself in his book, as I have listed the pages for you.)

So why do people think starches make them fat? Well, the answer is simple really: because they cover those starches in FAT. It's not often where you see someone digging into a plain potato or french fries that haven't been fried not only in oil, but often oil plus animal fat. Corn with no butter? WHATTT?!
No, it's covered in butter, sour cream, cheese, bacon, what have you.

This is not to say that ALL fat is bad or that fat is evil and you should avoid it at all costs. Fat is a necessary part of a healthy lifestyle, but HIGH quantities of fat coming from animal sources are what cause people to run into problems. The type of fats you choose to eat are important and overall fat consumption should not exceed 15% (This does not apply to children or pregnant women who require more fat for brain development). The average person typically averages around 42% fat, including vegans and gourmet raw vegans eating lots of nut-based foods and 'cold-pressed oils!'

Here are some healthy fats that are excellent to eat in moderation:

• Avocados 
• Young Thai Coconut Meat 
• Durian 
• Hemp seeds 
• Tahini, Sesame Seeds
• Chia Seeds

• Fresh cracked nuts (Nuts, in my opinion should be kept to a minimum. Once out of the shell they spoil easily, are lower in water content compared to fruity-fats like avos, coco meat, and durian -- and they are particularly difficult on digestion. They are perfectly suitable to eat in small quantities, but not something you should be consuming in large amounts on a daily basis. And if you do, it should be with greens in your salad as part of the last meal of the day as long as you are not eating cooked food during that meal. They should never be combined with fruits if you want to have effortless, smooth digestion!) 

The number one point you should take away from this post (other than my bombin' french fry recipe!) is that you shouldn't be afraid of carbohydrates and you should NEVER deprive or restrict your calories from them. Carbohydrates produce lean, healthy bodies that are full of energy and free of disease!


Don't forget to check out the new website, www.positivelyplantpowered.com where you can sign up for my email and Skype coaching packages, meal plans, and follow my Facebook page for daily updates!

Have a great day guys!

Taco Tuesday! #thebomb

Last week for taco Thursday (I like to be different, ok?)  I posted these bad boys on my IG: RawFoodNerd (Check it out!) and got several requests asking for the recipe.

Romaine hearts as "shells" or "boats" for your favorite dips are an excellent and fun way to eat more greens without always feeling like you have to eat a salad. Chips and guac, anyone? 

So I decided I better share this recipe with you guys too..for taco Tuesday, which I suppose is the more "traditional" weekly celebration of all things taco. The salsa is the perfect combo of sweet, tangy, and a hint of kick to spice things up and the Mexi Mac & Cheeze is reminiscent of sour cream; the perfect cooling agent if you like your tacos especially spicy or if you were like me and used to lob on the sour cream quite liberally. 

Honestly, I don't care when you eat tacos, but you NEED this recipe in your life- it's that good! 

What you will need: (all of my ingredients were organic)

Food Processor

• 1 head of romaine
• 1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes
• 1 juicy ripe mango
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 lime
• 1 large handful of cilantro
• 3-4 zucchini, shredded
• 1 ripe medium tomatillo (optional)
• 4 scallions (chopped; green tops only)
• sliver of hot pepper of your choosing
• 1/2 avocado

Salsafy Your Life: 
In a food processor pulse together your tomatoes, red bell pepper, mango, two of your chopped scallions, tomatillo, 1/2 of the [whole] lime (peeled), cilantro, and your sliver of hot pepper. Set aside until you are ready to assemble zee tacos!

Mexi Mac & Cheeze:
 Peel and chop off the ends of your zucchini. In the food processor, push the zucchini through the blade that allows you to shred veggies (or you can do this manually with a grater)

In a separate bowl mash your avocado, juice from 1/2 a lime, and the green tops from the other two scallions. You want the mixture to be as smooth and creamy as possible

Once you have shredded your zucchini and made your avocado sauce you can now combine the two together, making sure the zucchini and the sauce are fully incorporated. 

I like to add extra cilantro to my Mexi Mac & Cheeze because I am a bit of a cilantro-freak, but you can abstain from adding more cilantro if you choose. I know most people like their Mexican food/tacos spicy so feel free to add more hot pepper if you wish. I, personally, am not that crazy about spicy food so I only add a little just to give it a small kick. 

This is a different version of Mexi Mac & Cheeze where I spiralized
the zucchini instead of shredding it. And then I added in
additional chopped scallions, tomatoes, & red bell pepper. You
can see the flecks of cilantro too! Love the green!

Now, for the best part- assemble and EAT!

 There is nothing better than being able to take your old favorites and make them healthy and Positively Plant-Powered without having to sacrifice an ounce of flavor! 

Learning to Love, Happy Valentine's Day!

I am going to get a bit unconventional here today and choose to acknowledge Valentine's Day as a way we can ALL celebrate not just loving others, but loving ourselves as well! 

Carob-Date Caramel Covered Strawberries!

For an easy sweet treat, that's healthy and delicious, try dipping strawberries in Carob-Date Caramel Sauce (Equal parts pitted dates of your choosing + coconut water + 1-2 tablespoons of carob powder, blend!) and popping it in the freezer for an hour. So much yum!

Learning to love yourself, for who you are AT THIS MOMENT, is so important as you embark on your journey towards a healthier lifestyle. 

Without getting too cliche here, it really is true that your relationship with yourself is the most important relationship you will ever have. If you don't take care of yourself-- your body and mind, what good are you to other people? 

For the longest time I looked at food and exercise as a rewards/punishment system. Even though I was eating a 100% plant-based, vegan, low fat raw diet! My exercise correlated to what I could and couldn't eat; if I did Bikram and then ran at the gym then I deserved to eat two durian, but if I didn't then I was lazy and I wasn't worthy of indulging in my favorite food. This would then correlate to how I perceived my body overall; my abs weren't visible enough, my stomach wasn't completely flat, my jeans felt a bit tighter. Even when it came to normal food consumption, I had rules that I had set for myself in regards to eating and often this translated to this feeling of constantly needing to be moving, expending energy -- earning my food. I couldn't just sit back and relax. I felt manic and stressed. 

In essence, just because I changed the way I was eating, didn't mean that my negative view of myself or my body dis-morphia, that manifested in high school when I began dieting, magically went away as I thought it would. I was still ALWAYS THINKING ABOUT FOOD. And granted, I love food, and I love making food, but the way I was always thinking about food wasn't healthy. 

Food and exercise should never be used in a rewards system situation no matter how healthy you are eating. Food and exercise are about nourishing your body and soul, end of story. 

It wasn't until I got some disappointing blood tests back that I finally was able to take a step back and say, "Woah, what am I doing to myself here?" and "Is this really all worth it?" (Let me be clear in saying that I was never restricting calories- I still ate huge portions and never counted calories.) I realized that this obsessive routine I had created around food and exercise was interfering with what I wanted to do in my life. And I began to look at the larger picture in that, when I look back, twenty years from now, am I going to be happy? Ultimately, the answer was, "no." 

Somewhere along that way I had begun to equate the way I looked, how my clothes fit, etc. with how much I valued myself and in turn, how much the people in my life loved me. I felt like if I looked a certain way then they would love me more. It is a common way of thinking, but extremely deluded, especially since no one in my life EVER gave me a reason to feel that way. I allowed myself to be consumed with negative thoughts, anger, and simply never feeling worthy. 

It took time and a lot of dedication to change 10+ years of thinking, but learning to love who I am, right now, was key. Allowing myself to relax a little and not put so much pressure on myself to be perfect and always in control was another big step. And I think just learning to trust my overall natural instinct again was very important. 

So, on this day of love, if you are feeling unworthy, self-conscious, angry, sad, alone - just take a minute, breathe in deep, and allow yourself to feel all these things. Then exhale them all out, let them go. Really, just let it all go. Tell yourself that you are worth it. Whatever body you are in right now, LOVE IT. 

Once you accept that you are perfect as you are right now then achieving all the other goals you have set for yourself, will be that much more possible. 

Hope you all have a sweet, positive, self-LOVING day! 

What I Eat Wedesday, Raw Vegan Persimmon Pudding & Soft-Serve!

What to do when you've got 40 + pounds of ooey gooey sweet ripe end of the season persimmons left? Well, you make persimmon pudding of course! ...And then you top it with double vanilla soft-serve and mulberry-graham... Boom! The ultimately guilt-free, dairy-free, nut-free power bowl! 

Persimmon Pudding w. Double Vanilla Soft-Serve topped with Mulberry-Graham

Part of living this lifestyle is buying fruit in bulk. And if you are like me, you tend to kind of over do it sometimes when your favorite fruit comes into season! Other than durian, persimmons are my favorite fruit. As you can tell, I am very pro-versility here and I like fruit that can be used in both sweet and savory dishes. (Check out my previous post here for my Butter Lettuce/Zoodles (Zucchini Noodles) w. Tomato-Persimmon Ginger Dressing and here for my Festive Persimmon Salad w. Spicy Persimmon & Sun-dried Tomato Dressing)

This is the ultimate twist on your standard sundae, without the habitual guilty conscious that typically follows. You should never feel guilty about eating nourishing bowls of delicious goodness like this. Fruit is fuel. Not just for your body, but for your brain. Recent studies have shown that fruit raises serotonin levels in the brain and serotonin is a lovely little chemical that keeps us feeling happy; who doesn't want more of that? 

Here is what you will need: 

• 10 ripe, peeled, frozen bananas 
• 5-6 ripe (soft and squishy) persimmons 
• 10 dates 
• 1.5 cups of dried mulberries (Hunza is my favorite brand) 
• 1 cup coconut sugar (optional) 
• a vitamix or food processor 

Instructions: 

In a food processor or vitamix, pulse your mulberries + coconut sugar until you have a crumbly, flour like consistency. Sometimes, if I am craving a bit more texture I will reserve some mulberries and add them in afterwards, only pulsing a couple of times so I still get some lovely chewy bits mixed throughout. 

Put your mulberry-graham to the side in a separate container. 

Next, let's make the double vanilla soft serve! 

I use a vitamin here so it is a bit easier for me because I can throw the bananas in whole and get a great arm workout while using the tamper to push the bananas into the blade. However, if you are using a blender or a food processor, this will be a bit more of a time consuming task. 

For the blender you are going to want to make sure your bananas are a bit thawed and cut into smaller chunks that way it will be easier for the blade to chop them up. I would add 1-2 T of coconut water first to assist in the blending. I would also recommend doing this in advance that way you can throw your soft serve back in the freezer if it gets too melty. 

If you are using a food processor I would suggest also cutting your bananas into chucks and only blending half of the bananas straight through. Then pulse in the rest so that it helps maintain the soft-serve like consistency that we are going for here. 

For the double vanilla kick, I use Vanilla Powder + 1-3 drops Sweetleaf Vanilla Stevia. However, you can feel free to use alcohol-free vanilla extract, whole vanilla bean, or Vanilla-infused Coconut Sugar!  

For the persimmon pudding I throw all my persimmons into the vitamix or blender with my 10 dates and puree until super smooth. 

Now comes the fun part, assembling & eating! 

In nice big bowlI pour in my persimmon pudding. Then I layer on my double vanilla soft-serve. And lastly, I top it with a whole lot of mulberry-graham! Feel free to assemble or add your own little twist to this sundae!

This is a less artfully layered version where I did persimmon pudding, double vanilla soft-serve,  more persimmon pudding and topped it with date caramel and mulberry-graham. 

For more of my daily eats, tips, and recipes check out my Facebook page, Postively Plant-Powered or my instagram: RawFoodNerd. 

Raw Food Nerd, Holiday Edition

It's about that time, the holiday season is officially upon us and that means holiday parties where the temptation to eat foods that are filled with butter, salt, oil, and various unsavory animal products will be at an all time high.

Save yourself, don't make eye-contact with the beautifully decorated sugar cookies and best stay clear of the yule log. They're bad news bears!

But, really, there is no need to stress; It's entirely possible to maintain your healthy lifestyle while still being able to socialize and enjoy the festivities! You just have to know how to navigate the scene and come prepared!

And the best way to do that is to bring foods that suit your own dietary needs that you can also share with others! (This is also a fun way to show skeptics how versatile and delicious eating raw/vegan can be without having to be preachy..)

Here are three sweet, high raw vegan treats and a delicious, colorful 801010 salad that you can take to any party!

I'm a sucker for persimmons. I love that they are crisp and fresh with a sweet caramel, toffee, sugary ooey gooey-ness. Seriously, I look forward to persimmon season all year. And in California I can get them by the box from the LA Wholesale Market for as little as $17! (For those unfamiliar, persimmons average about .99 cents per pound from the Asian Markets in LA, but can average any where from .69 cents to $2.99 per persimmon depending on the store. I'd like to keep my wallet intact so by the box, wholesale style is how I roll.)

Festive Persimmon Salad w. Spicy Persimmon & Sun-dried Tomato Dressing

 Ingredients: 

2-3 ripe persimmons

leafy green mix 

cilantro 

baby cucumbers, sliced thin 

cherry or grape tomatoes, halved 

chopped chive 

chopped leek

Dressing: 

2 ripe tomatoes or 1 cup cherry tomatoes

1/2 orange/red/ or yellow bell pepper

1 green onion 

1-2 persimmons

1/2 cup soaked, oil-free/unsulfured/salt-free sun dried tomatoes

small knob of ginger (to your preference) 

1-2 slices from your favorite hot pepper (go easy, you can always add more spice if you want!) 

Blend your dressing until smooth. Taste and adjust spice if need be. Pour over salad upon time of arrival if you desire to place on the side and allow others to dole out the dressing on their own. 

Date Truffles

Ingredients: 

1 lb. fresh, organic wet-packed dates 

 3 drops of Stevia Sweetleaf Drops (choose your favorite flavor, mine is Hazelnut and Peppermint!) 

1 cup of coconut sugar 

I have a vitamix so I just toss all my ingredients into the vitamix and use the tamper to push everything into the blades until it looks like the consistency of frosting.

Sweetleaf Liquid Stevia Drops are the secret to scrumptious ooey-gooey date truffles. They add heaps of flavor without the addition of funky preservatives or additives. Stevia is completely natural and plant-derived so it won't spike your blood sugar and has, in fact, been shown to lower blood sugar. Thus making it a great sugar alternative for diabetics! It is very sweet so a little goes a long way. These have become essential in my kitchen! 

If you happen to not have a vitamix, using a food processor is an equally successful method.

Transfer to a bowl and begin rolling out your date batter into little-medium sized balls. 

Optional: 

Roll in coconut, carob powder, or more coconut sugar 

P.S. These will go fast, so snag a few for yourself before they are gobbled up!

Coconut Almond Butter Cookie Cups

Ingredients: 

1 1/2 cups of Coconut flakes 

No-salt almond butter
1 cup of Chia seeds
1 cup of Dried mulberries
2 1/2 cups of organic dates 
1/2 cup raw pecans 
1/2 cup of raw walnuts
Dash of cinnamon 
Dash of nutmeg 

In the food processor combine pecans, walnuts, chia seeds, 1 cup of the coconut flakes, cinnamon, and  nutmeg. Pulse until ingredients have the consistency of flour. Add in dried mulberries and dates. Pulse blend until well-combined and ingredients come together as a ball of "dough". Shape into cookie form, top with almond butter and coconut flakes. 
I put mine into cupcake holders for easy transport! You can even "roll" these out, so to speak, and use holiday cookie cutters! 

And lastly, who doesn't LOVE a chocolate pudding? That's right, no one. Chocolate pudding knows no age! This pudding in particular happens to be raw, high carb, with a bit of warming spices to make this especially festive! (I also used carob powder instead of cacao because cacao contains theobromine which acts as a stimulate in your body and creates toxicity. It also stresses the adrenal glands. Too much and the reaction is similar to a caffeine high. Some may find this beneficial during the holiday season as a means of 'powering through', but I find it dangerous and unnecessary. A little bit won't kill you, but people tend to overdo it during the holiday season and it's a much better option to snack on some dates then go crazy with some chocolate, raw or not. Plus, dates are a great source of dietary fibre and rich in the minerals manganese and potassium. They are naturally low in fat and full of antioxidants! Can I get a hell yeah for dates?!)

Below is my favorite brand of dates which can be ordered from the Bautista Family at www.7hotdates.com They sell them wet-packed, which means fresh - they are of the highest quality, organic, and utterly incredible. 

No-Chocolate Chocolate Spiced Pudding

Ingredients 

1 lb of organic dates, pitted

1 cup of carob powder 

2-3 drops Chocolate-flavored Sweetleaf Stevia 

3-4 ripe (spotty) bananas 

water from 1 young thai coconut 

Cinnamon 

Nutmeg 

Cayenne

In a high-speed blender combine all the ingredients from above except for the cayenne. Add coconut water only if necessary as you want it to be thick like a stove top pudding. Blend until ingredients are fully combined and the result is a very thick mixture. If you want your pudding to be thicker add more dates. Now add in your spices, only adding a pinch of cayenne at a time so as not to overpower the pudding. Blend again and taste to make sure your desired spice level has been reached. 

Set in a bowl and leave in the fridge, covered, to rest for a few hours or overnight.

Hopefully these sweet treats will keep you satisfied at any party you attend this holiday season!

Stay tuned for my holiday e-book which will be coming out shortly where you can find these and other recipes like them!

The Unlimited Calorie Mentality

As I mentioned in my last post, eating a whole foods, plant-based lifestyle does not automatically correlate to sacrifice. So, I figured, I would show you how a high carb, low fat, plant-based vegan gets down by posting my general eats.

Now, let me be clear, I'm tall (5"7') but, I'm quiet lean weighing in at no more than 110 lbs of pure muscle. However, I can pack it away, often to the shock of other people who simply don't know WHERE all that food goes!

I can assure you that I eat more food in one sitting than my husband. And I probably eat more calories in a meal then some people eat in a whole day.

On a high carb lifestyle, calorie consumption is of upmost importance. And I personally eat an upwards of 3,000 calories a day (primarily coming from sweet fruit), never, ever calorie restricting. I eat until I am full and satisfied and I don't have to moderate my intake or feel guilty about anything I eat.

*Just to note, all these meals follow proper food combining and are salt and oil free.*

Every morning without question I always drink at least 16 oz. or more of distilled water. I do this to flush out my system after a full night of detoxing, regenerating, and healing. It also hydrates my muscles and gets me energized and ready to work out! Sometimes I add some lemon, which is especially good for removing toxins from the body and also functions as an electrolyte.

After I workout, which either involves me going to Bikram Yoga or running & taking a spin class, I always re-fuel with a juicy, mono-meal. Mono-meal, meaning I eat only one type of fruit until I can't eat anymore. I am melon apologist of the highest order. I love love LOVE honeydew and golden melon. I can effectively count on both hands the days where I have not had some type of melon this year. In the summer, watermelon aptly becomes apart of this wonderous rotation.

When I am eating melon, I usually eat anywhere between 2-3 melons depending on the size. And I will generally eat one whole watermelon on my own.

 My next meal functions as what I like to call 'linner' which is a mash up of lunch and dinner, i.e. late lunch + early dinner. I don't like to eat at night because it makes me feel groggy and bloated the next day. Eating early ensures that my food is completely digested before I go to sleep and thus, I sleep more soundly at night. Also, my body can do what it was intended to do while I sleep, and that's remove toxins and heal versus having to focus on digesting my meal.

That being said, my linner meals are quite large, very high carb. I always make sure to carb-up with a large amount of fruit before I move onto the savory part of my linner - whether it be salad, zucchini pasta, or a savory stew.

Cucumbers w. Mango Herb Dressing + Arugula 

Cucumber Pasta with Peach Nectarine & Heirloom Tomato Salasa

Romaine lettuce, Cucumbers, Grapes w. Lemon Dill Tahini Dressing

 Zucchini Pasta w. Sun Dried Tomato & Nectarine Sauce

Butter Leaf Lettuce Fruitful Salad w. Blueberries & Mango-Cilantro Dressing

(I indulged in that perfectly ripe pile of bananas to the left before I ate this salad! Incorporating fruit INTO my salad is like getting two for the price of one, as i'm able to make sure I carb up AND get my greens in, satisfying my sweet tooth and getting my minerals!) 

Mango & Heirloom Tomato Salad w. Spring Mix, Mint,& Basil 

Two Different Mango-based dressings: Mango-Celery Sage & Mango-Tomato w. Pomegranate mixed in for added crunch!

 Sometimes, I like to just have a dinner entirely composed of sweet fruits. In the warmer months that most definitely means I am eating bowls and bowls of fruit-based ice creams. I have written extensively about my fruity ice creams on this blog so I won't get into too much detail here. These are delicious and loved by all. I have found that desserts are the best way to introduce omnivores to a plant-based lifestyle - it's familiar, approachable, and everybody loves sweets!

Mango-Banana Ice & Papaya-Banana-Date-Cinnamon Ice Cream

 topped with Passion Fruit & Pomegranates 

     

As I mentioned above my "Linner" falls into the late lunch/early dinner category, so by the time dinner actually does roll around I'm usually still not hungry, but more so I crave calories of the liquid variety aka i'm thirsty! As a particularly active person I like to make sure I am topping off my calorie intake so at night I usually go for high-quality juice like Lakewood Organics. Their Pineapple Juice is my absolute favorite! Each bottle is 4 servings and each serving is 120 calories so in one bottle I get nearly 500 calories, huzzah! Not to mention, this juice contains no added junk, it's strictly pineapple juice that has been fresh pressed and the fiber from organic pineapple! In addition, pineapple is notoriously excellent for digestion and it's even better in juice form! Obviously, juicing your own pineapple is numero uno, but I am more concerned with not allowing myself to be under-carbbed than I am with the fact that this was pasteurized; high quality juice is a perfectly acceptable option!

Lakewood Organic Fresh Pressed Pure Pineapple Juice 

Another one of my go-to nightly drinks is fresh squeezed orange juice. There is nothing more satisfying then drinking OJ you juiced yourself- the taste and quality are second to none. I typically juice about five lbs of oranges, give or take depending on their size, which is generally enough to fill my 32 oz Vitamix carafe. OJ is a potent blend of vitamins and a remarkable immune booster. It helps cleanse the body of toxins and when juiced in this way the fiber remains intact so as to aid in cleaning out the system. I love love love orange juice, but don't be confused-- not all OJ is the same. Tropicana and conventional OJ often contains animal by-product in the added form of Vitamin C they use to fortify it. And because their OJ typically comes from oranges that are picked before they were ripe, it tends to be very acidic; both in taste and inside the body. However, while ripe oranges, and fresh pressed juice as shown here are actually alkaline once inside the body.

Fresh-Squeezed Organic Orange Juice

My last and final example, and shhh, don't tell the others - but, my favvvvorite, is raw cane [sugar] juice! You have not lived unless you have tasted this delightful, refreshing, sweet bottle of liquid gold. Cane Juice is actually considered a grass so it totally counts as a green juice! ::high five:: I like to get mine frozen and let it thaw halfway and then I blend the frozen juice with the thawed juice and it's like drinking a very indulgent milkshake. I believe it the ultimate cravings buster. It's also great for pre and post-run fueling! For a more complete description of all the amazing benefits of drinking cane juice click here!

Organic Raw Cane Juice

So there you go, a SMALL sampling of the food I typically consume on a plant-based lifestyle. From my perspective, this is not limiting at all. I believe in eating food that makes me feel like my best self and plants (fruits and vegetables, high carb/low fat) is the way to go if you want to feel like your BEST self too! 

Vegan Pizza FTW

 When people commit to a plant-based lifestyle they assume that sacrifice is inevitable. They believe that teeth-gritting will-power will be a necessity; how else will they manage to power through sans their favorite disease-inducing foods like pizza, hamburgers, and ice cream? The horizon looks bleak, marred by restriction, social anxiety (or fear of missing out), and tasteless rabbit food.

Hey, i'm all for rabbit food - lettuce, carrots, delish! Buuut, if you were to tell me that those were to be the two staples of my diet, I might just cry...no, I can promise you I would sob uncontrollably and be inconsolable for quite some time. Nobody wants to be reduced to carrots and lettuce, that I am sure!

Fortunately, this fear-based ideology surrounding the plant-based diet (surely bolstered by the meat and diary industry who desperately want you to believe the aforementioned in addition to the fact that you will without a doubt develop an array of deficiencies and become malnourished) is a bunch of nonsense! Plants are the most usable and absorbable proteins for the human body and with such an abundance of fresh fruits and vegetables at our disposal, the body is able to get ALL the micro and macro-nutrients it needs from plants alone!

Yes, switching to this type of lifestyle DOES take commitment, but it's all in how you approach it. When I talk to people about adopting a whole foods, plant-based lifestyle I like to remind them that it isn't and never will be about RESTRICTION but, instead, SUBSTITUTION!

Once that negative, doubting frame of mind is ousted - the possibilities are endless!

For example, my husband's favorite vegan and non-vegan junk food was and is, you guessed it: Pizza.

I have watched him eat entire pizzas himself, nay, multiple pizzas. Pre-vegan he could polish off boxes of Red Baron Bagel Bites without blinking an eye. During college he was known to make late night calls to Dominos and order a large pizza and bread sticks for.him.self. and eat the entire thing. This year during the Los Angeles Pizza Crawl he ate vegan pizza from dawn 'til dusk, in various thicknesses, with and without cheese - and at the end of the day he still wanted more.

To please him with homemade pizza, one that is high carb, low fat with no oil or salt is a daunting task. Especially since he is bananas for Diaya cheese (which is really just creatively solidified fat + color).  And i've been promising to wow him with my Cheese-Less Bombin' Veg Pizza for a looong time.

At Whole Foods I found a great gluten-free pizza crust that was made from just brown rice and water called Nature's Hilights. This meant I was able to switch out a crust that otherwise would have contained wheat, yeast, oil, and added sodium. And it's always a plus when you can find products that have a short ingredient list because it means they are less processed.

Next, I bought a BPA-free can of Bionature no salt added tomatoes. It is important to look for low or no-salt when you are buying canned tomatoes. Tomatoes are salty by nature so added salt is really unnecessary and often takes away from the great flavor imparted by all your toppings.

I crushed up the tomatoes by hand, added chopped fresh basil. parsley, thyme, and 1 teaspoon of onion powder.

Then I prepared my veggies! Feel free to make this as simple or as complex as you desire. Get creative and a little adventurous.

A good tip for parents or adult picky eaters: introduce new and different tastes in vehicles that eaters will be familiar with. This will make them less hesitant to try it because they already know, for example, what pizza crust tastes like even if say, this is the first time they are trying red bell pepper. 

 I topped Kevin's pizza with organic mushrooms, artichokes, & red bell pepper. The crust needs to be fully defrosted first and the oven pre-heated to 500 degrees. I popped it in for 10 minutes before I put the toppings on just to make sure it was cooked all the way through. Then I covered it in sauce and veggies and put it back in the oven for another 10-15 minutes; occasionally checking to make sure it didn't burn.

 The result? A masterpiece of rustic deliciousness! #humblebrag The crust, according to my pizza savant of a husband, was crispy along the edges and chewy towards the center, kind of like wood-fired pizza lending itself perfectly to the gently roasted veggies from the saltiness in the tomatoes to the sweetness of the pepper, effectively complimented by the fresh herbs. Despite its cheese-less nature he was satisfied and in true Kevin fashion processed to demolish BOTH pizzas!

Tell me there is even a HINT of sacrifice here! I dare you!


*Bionature picture and Nature's Hilight Pizza Crust Picture from Google Images

Raw Vegan Sorbet

Sorry if this seems redundant, but I've really been loving my soft serve ice kreams as of late. And who doesn't love ice kream? Cool, sweet, light & airy-- It's like infinite possibilities of deliciousness in a bowl.
 
I've always been kind of an ice cream freak. At the height of my disordered eating I could and would polish off a pint for lunch and then two or three bowls of "low carb" ice cream after dinner. In my eyes, low carb meant no impact. (Fat? Calories? Hahhaha!)

And if you weren't previously aware, even though I did give a nod to this in my previous ice kream post, here's why you should chose NOT to eat dairy:

 Dairy is perhaps one of the most deleterious foods. Despite all the hype, dairy is NOT good for building "strong bones." When metabolized, dairy is extremely acid-forming and your body actually has to release calcium from your bones to re-alkalize (counter-act the acidity) which over time causes osteoporosis. Dairy also packs a pretty fatty punch to the gut as it is high in cholesterol and saturated fat; heart disease anyone? Not to mention, it's like pure mucous- which can present a whole new host of problems from allergies, colds, fevers, ear-infections to eczema, acne, digestive distress, inflammation, and even type 1 diabetes.

No thank you! I don't know about you, but the mere mention of mucous, can turn me away from anything! And that's why plant-based ice kreams are the BOMB! You can get all that creamy, soft-whipped lightness of  dairy-laden soft serve without the fat, puss, and degenerative diseases that come with eating conventional dairy.

Now onto the goods, ahhh, summer fruit abundance!

Peaches and nectarines are finally in season and they have been awesome sauce; Hence their inclusion in just about all my ice kream dinners as of late!

 So, here it goes- 'scream on fruity friends!

Mango Peach Swirl 
with Freeze Dried Raspberries

Raspberry & Strawberry Kream

topped w. Frozen Raspberries

 

 Blueberry Raspberry & Mango Nectarine
 topped with Frozen Blueberries

 'Kookies & Kream' Banana Soft Serve

Let me tell you, seriously, there is nothing better than this. Guilt-free, cruelty-free, and readily affordable -- fruit-based ice kreams will transform your notion of traditional "ice cream" and you'll be wondering what took you so long!

How to Make Raw Vegan Banana Ice Cream

There is nothing more perfect than a bunch of ripe bananas, sunning on a window sill all spotty and friggin' awesome, begging to be turned into a big ol' bowl of creamy sweet banana ice cream.

God, I love ice cream. Always have, always will. But common, "real" ice cream (if we can call it that, because...no, no, I'm not going to go there with the graphic verbalization of what milk, cream, etc. actually is. I'll spare you, THIS time...it's a food post after all..) is soooo sup-par and it will never, ever love you the way you love it. Yes, ice cream of the barn yard variety, is an unrequited love story of sorts.

To which you should console yourself with some banana ice cream in all its many variations! Banana ice cream will love you back! Promise!

'Nanner ice cream is kinda like that though, it will never make you mucous-y, or give you acne or that inflamed skin rash that no one can pronounce but we know Kim Kardashian has. Nor will it cause sinus infections or strep throat or any of the other nasty afflictions that spawn from dairy consumption.

So here it is, in all it's glory, the one (the many)--

The Ice Cream:
7-10 spotty ripe bananas
Vanilla bean (powder)

Process your bananas In whatever manner you like; high-powered blender, food processor, champion juicer, hand blender.

Put back in the freezer until ready to eat. Especially if you haven't made the date caramel yet.

Date Caramel Sauce (Aka the how to get people to worship at your feet..sauce):

1lb. Of preferably fresh dates of your choosing
Coconut water, adjusted for desired thickness
Blend/process

Ok, so, I like to use a variety of my favorite dates like bahri, blonde, halaway, etc. and I pit/soak them in coconut water overnight (you can use any kind of coconut water, but the one that makes it taste like friggin' god is Amy & Brian's Coconut Juice- seriously, it's like marshmallow whip. I die.)

But, fear not, if you don't have time to soak them you can just blend them up with the coconut water and it will be just as good.

Serve it up! Ahhh, bliss!

I spoon on gross amounts of date caramel sauce as well as mixing it in. I'm not going to apologize either. I love my sugar and I love my carbs and the best thing about living a whole food lifestyle is that you never have to sacrifice or be a slave to calories and moderation.

The important thing to note is that the carbs and sugar I'm loading up on are fruit-based and not artificial or processed in any way. Remember, your brain runs on sugar (glycogen) and everything you eat needs to be broken down into sugar so that way it can be utilized as energy aka fuel. Why not go easy on your body and just give it the healthy whole food sugar it requires??

Besides, the caramel tastes like marshmallow graham crackers. And you can eat this for breakfast.. Or lunch...or dinner. Mind.Blown.

And then of course, I top it off with black and white mulberries. If you haven't tried black mulberries, get some. They are sweet, yet tart. And remind me of Berry Berry Kix.

And when I'm feeling really wild (ha ha) I like to get a little cray cray and mix in some carob with all my sauce-y 'nanner business. Which looks a little something like THIS:

Just follow the same instructions for making banana ice cream, but add some carob for a chocolate-y twist!

I've always been a Swirl kind of girl so I only mixed a bit with carob.

There are endless variations to banana ice cream! Be creative and "indulge" yourself without every having to feel guilty.

Food guilt is for the birds.