Archive for the ‘Raw Food Prep’ Category

It is biologically appropriate for humans to eat a plant based diet. We know this because we don’t have claws, fangs and short digestive tracts to name a few reasons.

Our pet cats and dogs should eat a raw animal based diet because they do have sharp teeth and the short digestive tracts. And like humans, when they live a mostly raw diet, our pets become amazingly healthy and vibrant and shiny.

One of my fantail goldfish died and it prompted me to move the remaining fish from the small outdoor bog pond to an indoor aquarium. The aquarium set up came with water treatment filter, heater, light and tropical fish flake food. I wondered if it was okay to feed tropical fish food to my gold fish – so I asked online. 

 And I learned a lot.

Where do I find biologically appropriate food for my gold fish? It’s not in the flake food sold at pet stores.

I started reading the labels of the fish food I had on hand.

TetraFin Goldfish Flakes lable: fish meal, ground brown rice, yeast shrimp meal, oatmeal, wheat gluten, soybean oil, fish oil, corn gluten, algae meal, sorbitol, lecithin, potato protein, ascorbic acid, yeast extract, inositol…and then about 20 more words of things I can’t pronounce as well as red, yellow and blue dyes.

Hai Feng Fast Color Gold Fish Food label: (pellets) wheat flour, fish meal, wheat germ, shrimp meal, spirulina, corn meal, soybean meal, L-lysine hydrochloride, algae meal, lecithin, choline, BHT, citric acid, calcium, phosphate monobasic, minerals, 16 vitamins.

Aqueon Tropical Flakes:Whole fish meal (salmon, herring & other mixed fishes), whole wheat flour, soybean meal, whole dried krill, wheat gluten meal, dried yeast, squid meal, wheat germ, corn gluten meal, kelp meal, fish oil, spirulina, garlic, natural astaxanthin, marigold powder, chili powder, spinach … and about 18 more words that are unpronounceable. 

Fish were not created to swim up the plowed rows of a farmers field trying to get at the potato and wheat, rice and soy. I’m on the hunt for awesome food for my little fantail friend. I had some floating anacharis (a water plant) in the bog pond, so I put that in the aquarium. I had it because they produce oxygen – but I’ve since read that goldfish like to eat them. So at least the little guy is getting his greens.

Some may say that worrying about biologically appropriate food for a simple goldfish is taking things too far. Well, people that have fish as pets and love them would disagree. And it’s also the principle of the thing – I’m sick of how manufactures use dyes, wheat, rice, potato, soy and sorbital in everything on the shelf.

It’s not all their fault – the public contantantly demands cheaper prices, so manufactures have to use cheap fillers and cheap lab made ingredients to bring the price down.

If you don’t want that – vote with your dollars.

For a special treat I made some raw ice cream (chocolate and vanilla!) for Christmas. I thought surely this would be one thing the family and nephews would enjoy from my raw world.  I mean look at it!

But I guess my taste buds have changed. For the ones that tried a spoonful, I got a polite smile. One nephew who is used to eating rice milk ice cream, I figured at least his taste buds would go nuts. But alas, no. So, here it is a month later and I still have a small container of vanilla. (The chocolate was finished last night.) So cool, more for me. But gosh, they just don’t know what they’re missing.

Visit the recipe page for my recipe. Don’t let anyone tell you ice cream is just for dessert. A bowl of vanilla with some fresh peaches cut over it makes an awesome breakfast.

In anticipation of the coming hurricane, the store shelves were empty. Many were completely bare. I stopped at the store and called my mom to see if she needed anything – she was craving some split pea soup. So I turned down the soup aisle and had to laugh at the destruction. Not a can of tuna remained. Most of the soups were gone as well. Except for the “healthy version” of the soups – those shelves were still full.

They are stock piling survival food but not ”healthy” survival food. It struck me so funny I pointed it out to a woman shopping. She laughed as she rolled her cart down the aisle and kept laughing. I wondered if she was sharing my humor or maybe she just thought it was funny that some strange lady had to stop her and point it out!   (I spread the joy anyway I can!)

So I rolled around and took photos with my phone. Not a slice of bread to be found in the store. Sugar coated cereal boxes scattered and few. But turn into the produce department and it was full and lush. Bins piled high of lovely produce. Much of the produce would fare just fine if power were to go off. I’ll be dining on apples, grapes and nuts while the cooked fooders are wondering how they will heat their canned soups they stocked up on.

Above is my emergency supply – plenty of raw flax crackers, seed, things to sprout, fresh produce, water, candles and if I am jonesing for some juice… low-tech-Y2k-compatible hand tools.
Here are the photos of the soup shelves. Funny how there are still lots of the the “healthy” versions of the soups. I guess people crave high sodium and fat content during an emergency!
 
And here is the bread aisle! ….

Don’t try to go raw overnight. We have spent years developing eating habits and it may take some time to change those habits. Habits such as what kind of condiments we purchase. Pay attention to the labels. When you run out of a spice or ingredient – look for a raw, fresh or organic alternative. For example: When you run out of salt – look for “RealSalt” or any other natural unprocessed salt. This can be purchased in bulk at Whole Foods, Central Market or found on-line.

Table Salt
The table salt we’ve been using has been striped of its natural minerals in the superheated processing. It has chemical additives. Even “sea salt” has been heated. They have processed salt for our “convenience” so it comes out of a salt shaker nice and easy. Raw, naturally colored salts retain their mineral content and the flavor is much better. Choose Celtic Sea Salt that is light grey in color or RealSalt which is mined in Utah and comes from ancient sea beds that don’t contain any of the pollutions of today’s seas. I use the pale pink RealSalt and keep it in a fat glass spice jar. The consistency is such that I use pinches of it instead of sprinkling through a shaker. (it almost feels moist) Do a side by side taste test and you won’t believe what you have been missing!

SWEETENERS - The good news is that there are lots of alternatives to refined sugar to sweeten your beverages, snacks and and desserts. I personally have to have a little sweet in my herbal teas – I think it brings out the flavor. But you will notice real quick that when you get off the sugary soft drinks (including diet sodas) and reduce your sugar intake – that you start needing less sugar to sweeten a beverage. You become more sensitive to it. 

DRIED FRUITS like raisins, prunes and dates are very sweet. Look for the ones with no added sugar! They are naturally sweet (don’t mess with Mother Nature!) Creating recipes with chopped up dried fruit will satisfy your cravings.

STEVIA is an herb – it’s a little green bush! The leaves are very sweet and we can now purchase it powdered in little packets just like the “pink” and “blue” fake sugar packets. But a word of warning – it only takes a TINY amount. They really need to make those packets half size or produce them in the same packages as the salt and pepper packets found a fast food restaurants! You can find it in bulk as well – it will be white or green. Stevia is an excellent choice for diabetics as the body does not recognize it as a sugar. It is interesting to note that as an herb it is used to feed and heal the pancreas, which is often damaged by refined sugar consumption! Another one of natures miracles.

RAW AGAVE NECTAR is found in jars or plastic bottles like honey. It’s a bit thinner than honey. It’s mild and delicious!

SPICES – I’ve been guilty just like everyone else of keeping bottles and those little cans of dried out spices in my cupboard for years. Dump those jars and refill them with fresh dried. Spices bought in bulk at places like Whole Foods are so much fresher and more flavorful and less expensive because you aren’t wasting money on packaging.
If you have ever sprinkled nutmeg or cinnamon on your hot cocoa or anything else – you are in for a real treat if you purchase a nutmeg grinder and a few nuts to put in the grinder. And grating cinnamon sticks with a fine grater makes the flavor go POW! Many of the common herbs and spices we use in our food prep are easy to grow – I recommend putting them in the ground (in the south) and not in little pots.
Oregano – low ground cover with tiny leaves. So good with Italian style meals. Display a pretty dish with sprigs of oregano and impress your family.
Rosemary – lots of varieties, gets big and bushy. Also wonderful for adding sprigs to decorate your plate.
Basil – Many varieties, grow several and see which grows best for you. The beautiful curly leaves or the purple leaf basil are really strong and fragrant and are very tasty dried as well.
Garlic chives – once established it takes off. A couple of blades of the chive clipped into salads or meals add a nice hint of garlic. Chop some up with tomato and avocado for a great veggie dip.
Peppermint and Spearmint are beautiful ground covers and make great tea. Or just add a few leaves to your regular tea when making sun tea to add some minty freshness.
Using fresh or fresh dried herbs with your food preparation will make your family think you’ve turned into a gourmet. You will have amazing tasting meals and you will receive more nutrients as well as flavor.

The Excaliber Dehydrator is the leading dehydrator for serious raw foodists. Visit their website – it has a lot of great information. They have an article directed specifically to raw foodists explaining about enzymes and temperatures. 

It explains, in depth exactly what temperatures to dry your raw foods, in order to retain the enzymes.

“We have also done some experiments by soaking various seeds, dehydrating them at different temperatures, and soaking them again afterwards to see if they will sprout, and they did, which proves that the enzymes are alive.”