Friday, September 23, 2011

Changes


Change can be exciting or scary or both at the same time. Life has shown me that change is unavoidable and will happen with or without me.

It’s probably a good idea to be the mistress of my own change than be blown around and have it foisted on me. My latest ‘change’ is the Seven Day detox I wrote to you about the other day. Even those of us who’ve been on the Raw Train for sometime can ‘default’ from time to time. A program like this is perfect for focus and a little life audit. I’ve got a Kiwi Team around me all ready to start next week.

What about you? Whether you’re in New Zealand, US, Australia or Rarotonga this is for you. You’ve got until our Monday morning to sign up for it as it comes down Sunday night US time.

There is no charge to this program and, I’ve been on Tera Warner’s list for a couple of years now and I’ve never had anything pushy or inappropriate yet.

Perhaps it’s the right time to go ahead and get that Vita-Mix you’ve been putting off for a while now. Whilst it’s not a necessary piece of equipment it sure does make light work of a smoothie and blend it to perfection. I never did get used to those little bits of green that didn’t quite break down in my old blender. If you’re in New Zealand, contact me for my Seven Day Smoothie Vita-Mix special deal.

If anyone has Sir Peter Jackson’s ear, please tell him that I would love to join his Foodie Team. I would ply him and his crew with such yummies that they never knew healthy food could taste so good.

Raw vegetable pasta and sauce, marinated vegetables and cauliflower risotto all raw and served alongside his meat and potatoes if he so chose. Follow main course up with cheesecake, date and nut rolls or ice cream – all dairy free, sugar free and totally good for you (him). Perhaps he’d like a smoothie to go on since he’s in too much of a hurry between takes. That’s fine, I can make amazingly tasty smoothies loaded with superfoods that will keep you (him) going for hours. Pure and fresh juices, healthy snacks and foods loaded with intense nutrition because they’re ‘raw’ will see him oozing energy and loosing that pesky weight to boot.

It’s a win-win – Sir P enjoys health, food and energy and we enjoy The Hobbit. Sounds like a good deal to me.

In Health
Christine

____________________________________________________

The Anglo-Far East Company
The Original Private Gold and Silver Bullion Custodian
Your reference: an-001
____________________________________________________

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Can I Still Be Raw and Eat Meat?


In the raw food world there are varying opinions on what it means to be raw. Some say that only 100% qualifies and others are happy with less. Some time back I wrote about this with the motivation to reassure that there were “different strokes for different folks”. I want to reiterate that again as I think it important to be clear where I stand on the topic. Better to fly the flag so there’s no confusion or disappointment with readers.

High raw is my preferred option. I am not and never have been a one hundred percenter. There are, of course, valid reasons to be totally raw but for me it is for a limited time for a specific reason. A detox or time of fasting, or a health crisis that necessitates prompt action, would all justify my being totally raw.
 
One of the books that I promote and have used extensively over the last couple of years is Rejuvenate Your Life by Serene Allison. Recently she added a new forward to her book to explain why she had changed from being exclusively raw for seven years to including some animal products and cooked whole food in her and the family’s lives. She is still committed to a high raw lifestyle.

To all the folk who have bought this book, either the hard copy or e-book, I will send you the addendum.

To those who haven’t, I still totally recommend this book. At NZ$18 for the e-book and NZ$28 for real thing, it is a really good buy when compared to other raw books with many recipes. It has a ‘homely’ feel to it as there are no photos and basic binding but definitely not to be underrated.

Seven Day Detox – How many of you were interested in a Spring Clean detox but found the thought of 28 days a little too much? Well, how about a Seven Day Green Smoothie detox? And here’s the surprise: it’s free. You don’t see that word around much these days. So what have you got to lose? Go on, give it a go.

____________________________________________________

The Anglo-Far East Company
The Original Private Gold and Silver Bullion Custodian
Your reference: an-001
____________________________________________________

Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Feeling Green

Feeling Green. This can mean a few things to the English speaking world that can confuse an English-as-a-second language speaker. For instance, if I said I was feeling 'green' it could mean any of the following.

1. I was nauseous; the shade your face becomes when feeling seasick.
2.Perhaps a little jealous; in a nice way not the nasty sort. The kind of green I'd feel if you told me you were taking a holiday in Rarotonga and leaving me here in the early Spring cold snap.
3. Feeling environmentally inclined - probably the most popular modern application.
4. Feeling green is what you also feel if you are new at something - when I'm sitting among experts in a subject I know little about- like computers.


Context is the only way to know which green the speaker is referring to and usually happens within seconds to someone born into English. It might take a bit of explaining to your overseas student, as we have found.

The kind of green I am thinking about today is how to encourage the intake of green leafy vegetables into your diet. Choose organic or spray-free greens from your shop or market and keep in fridge drawers in slightly damp plastic bags or vacuum containers. Don't buy too much at a time.

Greens can be frozen and used in smoothies. Obviously frozen greens won't be any good for salads or juicing.

Vary your greens; don't use the same one all the time. Different greens have a variey of photonutrients so give your body a wide variety. If you're new at this, stay with the milder flavours such as cos lettuce (romaine) and spinach. It would be a shame to put you off by using the stonger silver beet, collards and herbs. Leave these until you become used to incorporating greens and start samll with the stronger tasting greens.

You can grow some yourself - a couple of pots will take up hardly any room. I have two terracotta pots of spinach on my deck and now Spring is here I will plant a few more varieties in our garden.

You can learn how to forage and get greens for free. Just make sure of what and where you are picking. Find a local who knows what they are doing and learn from them. Don't pick from where there is pollution nearby - traffic and drains. Foraging includes learning to eat some weeds intstead of pulling and dumping/composting. Every area in the world has nutritious weeds particular to it.

Make friends with a gardener and swap goodies for greens.

It took me quite a while to work up the courage to include green in my smoothie. Just the thought of green made me grimace; that was my problem: the 'thought'. It wasn't reality; I assumed the taste of green would take over my beautiful strawberry or chocolate sensation. How wrong I was. One brave day I went forth into my gardern, picked a miniscule piece of green (can't remember what it was) and courageously tossed it into my vita-mix with the rest of my smoothie mix. Whizz, whizz, careful but brave sip - surprise! Not a hint of green to be tasted. From that day I have tossed in anything from several leaves to a handful or so. As long as I can't taste green I am happy. Sure it turns your smoothie an interesting colour but once your mind understands that colour doesn't equal taste you'll never look back.

Put some greens into your juice - spinach and cos are both good. For stronger tastes that need some 'cover' you can add a knob of fresh ginger or a small wedge of organic lemon with skin attached. Please note I said "small", both pack powerful punches and can become a taste-bully in your juice. BTW a teensy tiny piece of coriander is all you need if you feel inclined as I did, to pick a piece growing alongside my spinach - really, really strong! Literally only a sprig required - deep and suspicious questions were directed at me from my not-quite-trusting family!

So there you go - a fifth meaning to the term "feeling green".

Have a great and greener week!  Why not join me in The Green Smoothie Challenge? A great way to spring clean your body as you look forward to summer, alternatively if you are one of my Northern readers, it would be an Autumn clean up to strengthen your body for Winter.

____________________________________________________

The Anglo-Far East Company
The Original Private Gold and Silver Bullion Custodian
Your reference: an-001
____________________________________________________