Almonds Are A Staple

I finally got out to walk yesterday.  Travis and I walked around the block once and that was all I could do.

Travis fixed us green smoothies for lunch.  I don't know what all he put in them, but I do know it had dandelion greens, grapes, bananas, and kiwi.  The dandelion greens came up as volunteers in a pot of flowers in front of our house.  He also put in five dates.  It was super sweet.

This is volunteer dandelion greens that found a home in our pot of ornamentals in front of our house.

Lunch was green smoothie, watermelon, orange, avocado and a goody ball.  The watermelon is not so good.  I think it's too old.  We bought a new one at Walmart last night.  Hopefully, it will taste better.

I was craving salt last night, so I ate three bowls of sauerkraut.  Dinner was sauerkraut; green salad (made with romaine, cucumber, parsley, chives, oregano, mushrooms, tomato, and orange juice); and almonds.  I had a few bites of watermelon, but it wasn't very good.

Raw almonds are a staple in a raw food diet.  They can be eaten plain or used to make almond milk, almond butter, or a nut cheese.  The entire bottom hydrator tray in our refrigerator is dedicated to raw almonds.  We buy 25 lbs at a time, and 25 lbs will fill the tray to the brim.

When I first went raw I had trouble finding a source for raw almonds.  At first I used almonds from Walgreens which I thought were raw, but they were actually labeled "natural". Labeling laws are quite confusing because now the law allows for pasteurized almonds to be falsely labeled as "raw".  Almost all almonds sold in the United States are pasteurized, thus no longer alive.  Our only recourse is to buy directly from the grower.

Briden Wilson Farm is our current supplier.  They are located in Arbuckle, CA.  It is a family farm where the owners, Tom and Rebecca live in a very small farmhouse with three kids.  This years almond crop is almost ready.  You can order by calling 530-476-3446.  Here is a link to their website:
Briden Wilson Farm

We used to buy from Organic Pastures but their website says they can only sell to people who physically walk into the door.  They recommend buying from a company called Azure Standard.  They look promising, but I haven't ordered anything from them.
Azure Standard

My go-to company, Nuts.Com, assures me their almonds are truly raw.  I have not bought almonds from them, but I have purchased nuts, seeds, and dried fruits galore from them.  They give superb service.
Nuts.Com

Here's a good recipe to try using almonds.

Almond Tomato Dressing

Soak 1 cup almonds

Soak 1 cup sun dried tomatoes (or use fresh tomatoes)

Handful of cilantro

Mix all in Vitamix with water for desired consistency

To health and happiness.

Sauerkraut is Good For You

Lunch yesterday was the juice of four oranges and an orange.  I felt good after the fast, but still weak.  I was dreading driving into Hot Springs for my flute lesson, so it was a relief when Travis volunteered to drive me.  I had a really good lesson which was surprising since I didn't practice very much last week.  Travis went to the mall while I had my lesson.

We went to Kroger on the way home to see what organics they had in stock.  We got cucumbers, zucchini, grapefruit, portabella mushrooms, beets, celery, romaine, carrots, and lemons.  We also got some prepared organic food...veggie burgers, crackers, chili, and vegetable soup.  And we got some chocolate chip cookie dough to take to church....special request from one of the children at church.

For dinner, I had watermelon and orange juice.  Travis fixed himself some organic vegetarian chili with organic stoneground wheat crackers.

It's citrus season!  Oranges, grapefruit, and lemons.

 Sauerkraut is fermented cabbage.  Dr. Fielder recommended back in 2008 that I make it a regular part of my diet.  He, himself, eats it every day.  Our bodies need salt, but not in the crystallized form.  We need the mineral salts in our fresh foods.  However, the salt found in sauerkraut is easily digestible and beneficial for us to eat it.  Sauerkraut is nutritious and is good for digestive problems.  It contains live enzymes in abundance.  It only takes a couple of tablespoons to get all enzymes you need.  It is a good food for the winter when not so many fresh fruits and vegetables are available.  It may also be beneficial for cancer patients.

My favorite brand of sauerkraut is Bubbies.

 The only commercial sauerkrauts to buy are those that come in a glass jar with only cabbage and salt in the ingredients list.  Some will also have water as an ingredient.  That is okay.  I like it better when it has a lot of liquid in it.  Kraut will keep up to a year in the refrigerator if you keep the cabbage pushed down into the brine and use clean utensils.

The ingredients for Bubbies sauerkraut....cabbage, artesian well water, salt.

I have used several brands in the past.  A local grocery store carries Gundelsheim which is convenient.  I like Eden Foods brand, and that is one that Dr. Fielder uses sometimes, too.  My hands down favorite at the present is Bubbies which Whole Foods carries.  My friend, Linda, introduced it to me at one of our raw food potlucks.  It's really tangy, and I really like it!

Enjoying Bubbies sauerkraut for dinner.

To health and happiness.

Busy Summer

For some reason, the summer completely got away from me.  I went to the beach in Florida and directly from the beach to Philadelphia with the family.  A couple of weeks later I went back to Philadelphia and stayed two weeks to help Harris and Amy get their house ready to move to San Francisco.  (I look forward to discovering the fruits and vegetables in the Bay area.)  I went to Shreveport and Dallas with Molly and Ashlyn to go back-to-school shopping.  Then I went to Las Vegas for the National Flute Convention.  I was able to get fresh foods in Philadelphia.  In Dallas we had a couple of meals at Whole Foods.  And in Las Vegas I caught a bus to a Whole Foods and had a meal and brought food back to my hotel room to get me through the convention.  Nevertheless, there was some eating in restaurants from time to time.

When I got home from Dallas, we had a wonderful three-day meeting at our church, but as soon as it was over I started to fast to let my body recover.  I had a head-ache when Dr. Fielder was here in May.  He told me it was time to fast....but I had no time.  This was the first time I had a block of time sufficient to see it through.  On Monday, I went on watermelon only for two days.  The reason for this was so I could go to my flute lesson and Flute Ensemble rehearsal on Tuesday.  Once I go on water only I'm not able to do much of anything.  Starting on Wednesday, I fasted on water only for six days under the supervision of Dr. John Fielder.   I should have fasted longer, but ....no more time.  I broke the fast yesterday with orange juice.  It was delicious.  Dr. Fielder gave me a pep talk on how important it is to avoid restaurants.  There is always a price to pay.  I do know that, but traveling with other people makes it more difficult...at least for me.

This is the first meal...the one to break the fast.

At lunch today, I had orange juice and an orange.  For dinner tonight I had watermelon and orange juice.  Tomorrow I will eat my normal diet.  I got rid of lots of toxins.  It was not pleasant, but better than taking medications.

Our raw food group had a good meeting in July.  The people that come are always so interesting and nice.  Just a fabulous group.

Here I am making lasagna for the raw food group.

Raw Food Lasagna

Travis made green smoothies for the raw food group.

Feasting on raw foods.  Great group.

Here's the recipe for the lasagna I made for the potluck.

Lasagna:
2 zucchini, sliced thin with a vegetable parer
4 large tomatoes, sliced.
2 cucumbers, sliced thin with a vegetable parer.
1 small onion, sliced thin.
4 tbsp. olive oil.
Season with chopped basil, oregano, and sea salt.

Nut Cheese:
1 cup cashews or pine nuts, soaked for an hour or so
2 Tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp nutritional yeast
1/2 - 1 tsp sea salt
Add water as needed to get the consistency you want.  Blend all in the blender.

1.  Make the nut cheese.
2.  Assemble the sliced ingredients.
3.  Layer the sliced ingredients with dollops of the nut cheese.
4.  Season with the herbs and salt.
5.  Drizzle with the oil.

It was a big hit.  I plan to make it again.  Maybe I'll try leaving out the salt next time.

To health and happiness.