What Raw Food is All About

I started this post by doing my homework; that is, procrastinating. For me to write any amount of information that someone else might possibly read on the subject seems utterly ridiculous and it's daunting. There are so many books out there and so many lifetimes devoted to it, there's really no way I can tell you anything of importance.

But I realize that as we move more in the Raw Food direction, it would be helpful for any readers who visit to have a baseline of what we mean when we describe something as "Raw." I'll try to keep it interesting.

Your cj was brought up in a good Dutchy family. Mom and Dad quickly quashed any early inclination I had toward becoming a vegetarian-- "You need that protein! Don't you look at your pork chop like that, you ungrateful little shit, and eat your (boiled to oblivion) potatoes and vegetables!" I was permitted to conscientiously object to veal, but no more. I say this only to reassure you that I was not raised to become a "food weirdo." It is something that I happily chose, because it was finally the right time to do it. And it really doesn't seem all that weird now.

The Raw Food movement has been around for a long time. I won't tell you when it started because historically, it's more accurately described by when we humans started cooking our food, rather than when the crazy-crunchy-hippie-probably-communists-conspiracy-theorizing whack jobs started not cooking it. Throughout history, meat and other foods which require cooking were often prohibitively expensive luxuries for the general population. Fuel was also expensive, so diets included a lot more simple, uncooked and unmessed-with foods. Such as-- GASP!-- unpasteurized, hormone-free dairy products. Can you believe that free-range was once the norm? Or what about non-irradiated vegetables? Do you know which ones in your grocery stores are picked unripe and then "gassed" to produce a ripe-like appearance? Did you know that your "raw" almonds are probably cooked to temperatures of over 150 degrees? It's hard to find a non-biased article about the almonds, but just try googling it for a start. You practically have to go on the black market for food that hasn't been somehow altered-- usually for "safety" reasons.

Raw food enjoys sporadic resurgences as people following the diet go in and out of the media. Right now Sarma Melngailis (who is, incidentally, the most radiantly beautiful woman I've ever seen-- for a blonde) holds the limelight with the cookbook Raw Food Real World, co-authored by her then-partner, Matthew Kenny. You can see these two beautiful people here.

But really, what do we mean when we refer to something as "raw"? The most simple answer is that the food is as close as possible to its natural state, and has not been heated at any point beyond a temperature of 118 degrees F. This is why we protest our almonds being pasteurized. Now, why would we worry about that? Common raw-foodie belief is that cooking food destroys a large amount of the nutrients available when at its natural state. "They" also say that it kills the enzymes that aid digestion and keep your colon happy. Happy colon = good!

If you want to read the health benefits, as well as the cautions (there are some), there is plenty out there. I will not bore you with a bunch of links for that, just go to google and type in "raw food", and you'll have a wealth of information. Read some articles, both pro and con, if that interests you. What I will bore you with is some of the personal experiences I've had.

A few weeks back I posted here that I wanted to start eating one (just one, I felt it was a reasonable goal) raw food meal per day. It's been much easier than I thought. Since then, I have felt much lighter, and my jeans are starting to look just-right again. I don't weigh myself, but I can tell you that my stomach looks firmer and I feel, overall, much less flubby. The stairs at work don't leave me gasping anymore. I'd estimate I've dropped five pounds.

Another effect is on my skin. For years I've had trouble skin. Back when I went to a dermatologist, he insisted that it had nothing to do with diet. All the literature I could find reiterated what he said. I remember one of the last times I showed up in his office; in tears because I was eating better than I ever had in my whole life (in my opinion, that meant more vegetarian, including a lot of organic breads and pasta), and my skin was worse than ever! He was kind about it, but reminded me that it had nothing to do with diet. The trouble is, I knew it did. For example, when I would have the flu and could keep nothing down for a week, miraculously everything cleared up beautifully. If I went camping for a weekend and we just brought certain items, again, clear skin. There was a pattern to it, but I just couldn't figure it out.

Finally I traced the problem to dairy. Eliminating dairy has been so very hard (Brie, feta, parmesan, smoked gouda, come on!!) but eating raw food has been paying off there, too. My skin is smoother and not feeling icky halfway through the work day. Every time I eat dairy, it reinforces the fact that it's been the major culprit all along. Recently I read that a high glycemic-index diet (read, typical Merkan highly-processed, refined-grain diet) is another contributing factor.

When it comes down to it, I like to think of Raw Food as a way to increase our creativity in how we look at meals. It's not about a list of things we can't have. If we want something, we eat it. We're just more aware of when we really want something, rather than when we're just eating it out of habit. Does the crunchy, nutty element in tabouli have to be cracked wheat? No, it doesn't. But does a sandwich sometimes just cry out for fresh crusty french bread? Yes, it does. Do I need American cheese on a burger? No, I don't. But do I really, really want a tablespoon of fresh sheep-milk feta cheese on my salad? Yes, I do. And I feel better about those choices when I make them.

Raw Pesto Collard Greens and Sweet Beet Salad

I had no idea we were so close to a Produce Junction. Four bunches of fresh curly parsley for one dollar? Sweet and firm avocados, three for two dollars? That's insanely cheap! Many recipes beg to be blogged. Today, from the glut of beautiful produce in our fridge, I bring to you two raw, delicious, and lovely salads. You might think it's a little strange to join two salads together, but these are so different in style and flavor, it works. The vivid green of the collards next to the deep red of the beet salad looks lush and velvety, plus they're both full of good things for your body.

For the record, your cj hates beets. Never liked them. There are many things I hated as a child that I've come to love and even crave, such as asparagus, beets, tomato juice, and pickles. Growing up, hating the asparagus and beets I can attribute to my mother's good old-fashioned PA-Dutchy way of cooking things (boil it to a bitter, slimy oblivion), but I still can't account for the tomato juice or pickles. Anyway! Enough rambling.

For the Pesto Collard Greens:

5 large collard leaves, washed thoroughly
1 1/2 TB pesto (I know, the parmesan cheese in pesto is not raw or vegan. Either deal with it or leave it out. I find that the tiniest bit adds so much real-pesto flavor it's worth it, but if you don't, leave it out and add some extra pine nuts and garlic.)
2-3 TB good olive oil (I particularly like "First Lady" from Trader Joe's)
Sea salt to taste.

First, reconsider how thoroughly you washed the collard leaves. Go re-wash them to be safe. Are you sure? Positive now? Okay, fine. Shake or pat off any excess water. Lay all the leaves flat on a cutting board, stems in one direction, overlapping each leaf as you might do with a hand at poker. Let's say five-leaf stud. Start with the nearest leaf towards you and roll them up tightly. This is important as it will help you get a very fine, thin strand as you slice.


When you reach the last leaf, tighten the roll up again, place the seam down, and starting at the non-stem end of the roll, slice the tiniest, thinnest little shreds you possibly can. You will need a good sharp knife to do this. When you get down to the wider part of the stem, you may want to remove them and re-roll the leaves. The stems are still sweet and tasty, but will slightly alter the texture of your salad.


After you've sliced your greens, put your pesto in a large bowl and mix it with the olive oil. I especially like a little extra fresh-grated garlic, but that's not for everyone. Add a bit of sea salt, then toss your greens with the mixture. Mix it so all the greens are evenly coated and glistening and there are no big clumps of pesto. Now, onto the sweet beet salad.




For the Sweet Beet Salad:

1 medium red beet, scrubbed and lightly pared (many people think beet skin is bitter; I haven't found this, but you may)
1 medium carrot, scrubbed
1/3 cup pecan pieces
Juice of 1/2 tangerine
1 TB balsamic vinegar
Tiny sprinkle sea salt
(some diced apples would also be yummy)

Mix the tangerine juice, salt, and the balsamic vinegar in a large glass bowl (do not use a porous bowl or the beet juice will dye it pink!). Let it stand and grate your hands rapidly over a grater. Or the beet. Whichever. Then grate the carrot. Toss the beet and carrot in the juice, then mix in the pecan pieces.

I hope you enjoy. When you make this for yourself, please let us know how it turns out, and what additions or improvements you made!