Gulay Girl

The Juice Fast Journal

2012-01-15T06:10:00.000-08:00

Before Day 1.

That morning, I drank about 1.5 liters of water. Then about 10-15 minutes later, I drank calamansi water. Then after an hour I drank a green smoothie. For lunch I ate steamed salmon and steamed toge (mongo bean sprouts), no oil, no salt, no pepper. Drank lots and lots of water in between. For merienda, I had a banana-strawberry-kangkong smoothie, no water. I think it was about 12 saba bananas, and maybe 2 kilos of strawberries, with the sepals on (that's what you call those green leafy-looking things on the berries right? Oops, I hope my botany teacher isn't reading this!) and the leaves of a whole bunch of kangkong. No water in the actual smoothie. Drank water thirty minutes later. For dinner, I planned to put two watermelons in a blender, but after the first watermelon I felt full! (Maybe it's the fiber from the seeds? I don't throw the seeds out; I let the blender crush them. Don't do this if you are using a regular blender, k? I use a 2-horse power blender) Anyway, I think I'll eat this other melon for breakfast when I begin breaking the fast. Before bedtime, I took some tea to cleanse the digestive system so that the nutrients from the juice for the upcoming week would be more easily absorbed. I put my blender and rice cooker away!
I slept at 10.

Day 1.

I woke up my usual time, around 6, but I didn't get up until 6:30 :)

Pre-breakfast:
I didn't notice if I was feeling sluggish.
No cravings. Although I did make mental notes on where I wanted to eat and what food to order after the fast :)
I took the elevator going up to my floor for a change. (I think I won't take the stairs going up this week to conserve energy. Oops, I did it going to the gym/badminton court around noon.Nope I didn't exercise. I went up without my gear just to say hi to the folks and take this photo as a spectator. :) But it was just one flight in between. . I didn't feel deprived watching them play. I was thinking about something for Saturday.

Woot! I received a barrage of prayer requests. Whoa. How do I pray for them all?
All in all, I drank 6 bottles of juice spaced approximately 2.5 hours from each other, with lots of water in between. Some of the juice I'm drinking isn't organic. I have a feeling the apples are from China. But oh well. It has some nutritional value still. I thought about cashew nut milk someone gave me for free, but I was thinking there would be solids in it. And I want this to be a completely solid-free juice fast. I'm thinking of freezing it to make ice cream after the fast. I could use the vanilla bean I got in Silang, Cavite and the rest of the saba that's almost ripe. Maybe a few cacao nibs. Hmmm hmmm hmm. Oooh yum. Sige :) Anobayan??!!!! I am not supposed to be thinking of food.
Went to PW at 7pm, chatted a bit with folks, but I didn't feel like hanging out so I could get home early and sleep early. I wrote some reflections.Then went to bed.
I wasn't hungry on Day 1! Even though people were talking about food and how much they miss it. I also felt alert. Uh-mazing.

Day 2

I woke up earlier today. Around 4am :) I beat the alarm by 2 hours! I drank .650 l of water, then about an hour later, I drank calamansi water with a bit of probiotics made from honey.
Morning exercise: Sit-ups
A thought I had on my way to work: I think I need to gargle or brush after drinking so I don't stain my teeth with the juice, especially the beet-pineapple juice :)
I wrote only one thing on my agenda for the day. :) Which I finished only half of!
9:23. I am a little hungry. Time for more juice. I am supposed to sip the juice slowly, I think, to let it predigest in my mouth. But oh my. I was gulping down a lot of juice. Hungry hungry.
I'm a little sleepy.
I wanted to hang out after prayer watch, but after a 30-minute meeting I decided go.
Slept at 9:30pm :) Yay!

Day 3

I beat the alarm, but only by a few minutes. I drank a cup of calamansi water. Then I drank another .650 liters of water with a bit of probitics. (Yesterday, the calamansi-honey probiotic concoction didn't taste too good, so I drank the calamansi and probiotics apart from each other)
I am not feeling as alert as I was on Days 1 and 2. I even sent a text to someone it wasn't meant for :P
I have a windburn on my upper lip. I think tomorrow I should use a straw.
I'm going online later to check prayer watch live stream. Then sleeping right away.
I am trusting in God for supernatural strength on Saturday. :)
I'm also a little cold.
Checked in with an accountability partner who is also struggling.
I tell myself to smile intentionally.
On the upside: I was at a meeting and someone told me I looked younger. :) Someone brought green juice to the meeting and offered me some. Another person said, if I drank that I'd start looking like an infant. :) :) :)
I wasn't sure I could make it to PW tonight. I even told someone I'd just catch it on livestream, but I was in Makati in 30 minutes! I was only 3 minutes late. Oh yez! Caught up with my former dgroup leader :) She's the reason I made it to the first ever Volunteers Party in 2011 :) Love it :)
Ugh! I have a zit near my nose. It hasn't erupted but I know it's about to. Oh please, please, don't let it come out on Saturday!
I felt more alert in the evening. Weird.This time I wanted to hang out and 'visit' after PW. As in. But I left right away. Slept at 9:30.

*A sidenote: A coworker's dog started drinking green juice and the mange went away. Hmmm.... Vaughn??? Sydney???

Day 4

I beat the alarm again! This time I woke up at 5. Drank .5 l water. Did some crunches without weights. After 30 minutes I drank .650 liters water with 4 calamansi. Then I drank another 1.5 liters of water with liquid honey probiotics. Got to work at 7:35! I took the escalator but I didn't climb. I just let it bring me to my floor. :) First time in 2012 and in a while :)
Windburn is gone. Zit looks unsure if it wants to come out or not though. Urgggh.
I noticed my lack of alertness yesterday in a draft I wrote in email. So funny when you are not 100% :)
This morning though, I feel more alert, and I thoroughly enjoyed Quiet Time. Looking forward to PW later :)

Day 5

I took a birthday leave from work. The problem with not juice fasting at work and doing errands (I went to LTO to renew my license and did some errands for tomorrow's outreach) is the absence of the water cooler. The physician at LTO said my blood pressure was pretty good. I think it went up a bit though when this lady cut me in the line. Urgh. Why do I let things like this get to me? I should be able to let it go. I look healthy in my new license picture. The zit is still there and it is red, though :( I think I felt dehydrated by the end of the day, even though I was drinking only liquid. So I just drank lots of water in the evening.

Day 6

Outreach day! I'm not hungry. Just super excited. I drank juice and lots of water while waiting for others to arrive, but I don't think I drank enough water, at the outreach. Zit is still there, but it is smaller.
Sooo tired, but feeling uber blessed. I missed PW tonight. I'll catch the youtube video tomorrow. Lots to share. Next time na lang. I slept at 10 but it felt like 11.

You can't see the zit in this pic. Yay.

Day 7

I drank calamansi water. Then .650 l of water. I drank some juice for breakfast and some more water. For lunch, I ate out with family. Mixed reviews about the weight. My sister said I looked the same. My brother-in-law said he thinks I got thinner. I feel thinner, but no one else has said anything really. I ordered a Salad ala Judy Ann (no dressing), then for a main I had a large brown rice risotto (no oil and butter) and Salad ala Fr. JG Bernas SJ (no dressing, no cheese) And for dessert I had another brown rice risotto. Regular. Drank water in between. For a snack, I ate 6 whole pieces of saba. I drank two bottles of juice, .650 liters each, before dinner. I think I'll drink more juice a little later. Tomorrow, I'm back to drinking green smoothies for breakfast :) Yay!

Some observations :

I noticed that I did get a lot of brainstorms this week, but they were big picture brainstorms. I wasn't very detail-oriented, and in fact, I sent a couple of emails/texts to the wrong people and in some emails, the wrong attachments. There's a reason why we are discouraged to not plan anything or make major decisions during a fast! I won't plan any events during the week when I do a juice-only fast next year. My bad for 2012. But lesson learned.

What say we do a juice fast one day a week every week in 2012? :)

Juice-only Fasting : Can a Skinny Person Do It?

2012-01-08T02:12:00.000-08:00

Can a skinny person go on a juice-only fast?

Most literature out there seems to say 'yes', although I ran across a few that say 'no', especially if one has anemia or eating disorders.

For the studies that say 'yes', it is counterintuitive and surprising to read that a thin person can actually gain weight after a fast!

I have several contacts in Raw Food in the Philippines (most were overweight and one who was skinny) who have gone through juice-only fasts and came out healthier in the end. Very interesting eh? :)

I am going to a do a juice-only fast for a week beginning tomorrow. I am 5'1 1/2, 104 lbs. Skinny :) I'll let you know how it goes :)

For exercise, I will stop going to the gym and badminton courts and just take walks and do simple stretches for my back.

I know at least three other people doing the same thing and we will check in with each other daily.

You use steel to sharpen steel, and one friend sharpens another. (Prov 27:17, The Message)

Here are a few before pics:

No running...

No badminton, no gym... (sniff, sniff)

No late night socializing...

Just energy conservation, devoted to things that are Most Important.

An update soon!

Stuff Raw Foodists Like #12: Rawkin' Anniversaries

2011-10-23T03:07:00.000-07:00

rawkin' choc-lit cake

(Sergei Boutenko's recipe from 12 Steps to Raw Foods by Victoria Boutenko)

I celebrated my first raw anniversary to rawkin' results, health-wise! ( a while back, I'll admit - I just haven't gotten around to blogging about it, 'til now ) Thanks to Jhoey of Pinoy Organics who asked about the garden prompting me to blog about it as well as my raw journey the past year. So here goes:

Thank God for helping me discover strength and added health benefits through raw foods!

* I don't have dry, blood-shot eyes anymore (goodbye, artificial tears!)

* I have loads of energy (I signed up for my first badminton tournament ever - I never could before because I always ran out of steam before I could complete the requisite three games; I ran in a race, I am able to go to the gym daily, as well as do 2 15-minute walks a day and I can take the stairs everywhere, even carrying all my abubuts - gigantic lunch bag, purse, badminton bag, water bottle)

*Update: From August-December 2010 I had 2 migraines. January-October 30 2011 I also had only 2 migraines. Compare this to pre-2010 when I had migraines constantly. I also can now survive a migraine without taking prescription medicines.

* I still have a few health issues - maybe I'll blog about them, maybe I won't. I'm still deciding.

Thank God for the nice hobby that was brought about by an excess of compost material! Since I had so much of it, I planned to just fertilize the garden naturally, but soon the soil just seemed to brim with life and gardening just came naturally. I love how now, a year later:

* Our garden is a few degrees cooler

* I got my dad to get interested in gardening as well!

* I have fun remembering all the pesticide-free goodies from the garden I got to enjoy: chesa, avocado leaf tea, mustasa, malunggay, Philippine mangoes, piko mangoes, atis, bayabas, buko, and aloe vera.

* I am part of a Philippine-based raw food support group.

* I am able to assert myself at restaurants

* I am still in awe of the simple joys of getting my hands in the soil to create little grooves for seeds to nestle in, and a garden season later,smelling freshly picked produce

Best of all, I love how gardening itself reminds me of God's hands-on work. He spoke everything else into existence but He man by hand. And even though I often make mistakes - I've caused weeds to die (!), I've forgotten to water plants at times - He never does. He knows just what each plant needs.

Apart from the Vine, no branch can bear fruit.

Stuff Raw Foodists Like #11: Semi-tree ripened, pesticide-free bananas

2011-09-24T01:40:00.000-07:00

yummy!

marudo, red variety

Aren't these great? I have a co-worker whose housemate came from Romblon who got these bananas for free. For free! According to her, the people from her housemate's hometown usually prefer fast food to fresh, free fruit. Wow, would I like to trade places with one of them!

They sure were a nice break from my regular supply of organic, but picked-unripe-from-the-tree saba, lagkitan and lakatan! So much sweeter and creamier too, with a different texture. Ooooh, how I loved them!

This got me thinking - how many of the banana varieties from the Philippines have I actually tried? There are about 7,107 islands in my country but so far, I am embarrassed to admit I have only tried Senorita, lakatan, lagkitan, saba, and those perfect-looking, spotless mutant bananas from the supermarket.

One of my favorite teachers, Bartholomew J. Laihiff, SJ challenged my history class to prioritize exploring the Philippines over venturing out of the country. I realize it is not too late to do this. And when I do, I think I will try to check out wild bananas instead of those pretty lakatans sold at road side fruit stands. (Aside from bananas, there are also a lot more mango varieties to be discovered. And I'm not even talking about hybrids. I was speaking with a farmer from Nueva Ecija and they have red mangoes.)

What varieties of mangoes/bananas do you have in your hometown? What should I be looking out for? Kontactr me!

Now, if I can only find banana-type pushpins for my Philippine map!

Stuff Raw Foodists Like #10: Praying for Other People to (Re)Discover Health through Raw Foods

2011-09-16T20:59:00.001-07:00

Steve Jobs used to be a raw foodist. A fruitarian, to be precise.

Legend has it that he was trying to beat a deadline to come up with a name for his new company, and threatened to call it Apple when they couldn't think of one in time.

He was once a subscriber to Just Eat an Apple, Natures First Law's raw newsletter in the late 90s.

Back when he was an Ashton Kutcher-esque fruitarian

I'm not sure how long he was on an all-fruit regimen but he admitted that sometime later, he became a "garbage can like everyone else" (Got this from Raw Food Controversies, by Frederic Patenaude). In 2004 he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, but surgery helped remove it. There's speculation about what he has now (which caused him to resign from Apple) and what kind of treatment he is receiving, but I am hoping that he somehow gets into raw again! (Not that it is a panacea, but it does help!)

* * *

I'll be honest - I wasn't that impressed with Apple products when I started using them. Even though we were five minutes away from Microsoft in Redmond, and a lot of our "clients" were Microsoft millionaires, my "office" computer was a Bondi Blue Mac - it was so cute, but I hated it because it was always getting bogged down. My good friend Tin got her brand new iPod and Mac laptop bundle on a student discount and in less than a year she had to have the laptop serviced. Although some of my friends are more than satisfied with their Macs and wouldn't ever "go back" to other computers. Good for them :D

Bondi Blue Mac-ing in Microsoft country

I do enjoy other Apple products now - I think having a Kindle (not an Apple product) and Evernote (not an Apple product) on an iPod is one of the best things ever to have while waiting for Filipino time events to start :D

And I loooved Toy Story and Monster's Inc. by Steve Job's Pixar Animation.

Langka Smoothie

2011-09-03T02:46:00.000-07:00

I loooove langka. I especially like in a langka-luya smoothie! (Thanks to Asha Peri for introducing me to do this!). Here is a variation of langka-luya that you can use if you are out of gata :D

Try this recipe and let me know how you like/don't like it. Reviews welcome!

Ingredients:

1-2 cups fresh carrot juice
2-3 cups langka, seeded
1 T fresh turmeric
1 T fresh ginger

Preparation:

Just blend everything in a high-speed blender. Experiment with putting in big pieces of unjuiced carrot :D

or

For regular blenders - Put in the carrot juice and add the langka pieces little by little. Chop the turmeric and ginger before adding them in.

Mulberry Tree

2011-08-27T03:38:00.000-07:00

So how did everyone enjoy the long weekend?

I went on an amazing retreat that I highly recommend. So blessed to have been part of it! Let me know via kontactr if you want to know more about it.

Since other people prepared the food, I wasn't able to eat all raw - had steamed veggies and fish. (Yes, yes, since I am unable to take locally available vitamin B12, I decided to eat raw or steamed fish - usually salmon - once a week) The first night I ate fried string beans and some sauteed fruit and veggies - I think I ate a little bit of the breading so I started to itch, but praise God nothing other than some redness occurred!

Anyhoo, on to the post...

A few days before leaving for the retreat, I enjoyed a mulberry smoothie - thanks to Monina Carandang of Herbana Farms who graciously offered some freshly picked ones from their tree!

Anti-oxidant Mulberry Green Smoothies

Ingredients:

2 cups locally harvested, fresh organic mulberries
4 ripe bananas (or substitute 3 bananas plus half a cup to one cup other berries for an uber anti-oxidant experience)
1 bunch kangkong leaves

Preparation:

Blend everything in your trusty high-speed blender!

* * *

I love these mulberries on so many different levels!

They remind me of when a friend from New Zealand who took me on my first fruit foraging experience in Washington State. Blackberries are not a big deal there. They seem to just grow everywhere, even in poor soil. And no one really minds if you forage.

So a-foraging we went!

(By the way, the blackberry isn't a real berry. It is a compound fruit. Nerd alert! :P)

* * *

And the fact I went foraging helps me forge some kind of kinship with raw Canadian Frederic Patenaude and the many California raw foodists who have foraged before me.

* * *

I also love that these mulberries are cheaper than the blueberries at the health food stores/groceries.

Contact:
Monina Carandang
0921-664-7027
Salcedo Market, Saturdays

(I don't get discounts for advertising Herbana farms. Monina is the daughter of one my dad's law school brods, but I have been ordering from her for a long time even before I discovered this. I usually get my veggies from her weekly, but I couldn't during the long weekend since I was away.)

My Avocado Tree/Bocca B Sunbeam Catcher Beautiful Pink Tea

2011-08-20T03:28:00.000-07:00

This is Bocca B, my teeny little avocado tree who loves feasting on coffee grounds and organic compost!

Bocca B,

my teeny little super tree,

oh how I like thee!

Green sunbeam

catchers make beautiful pink tea -

great for the kidney!

Tea party

guests who try it will all agree -

great tea = caffeine-free!

Ten long years

before you become all fruity -

that's just fine by me!

* * *

Bocca B Green Sunbeam Catchers Beautiful Pink Tea

Ingredients:

7 leaves of the Bocca B

A liter of clean, fresh water (preferably filtered) - not tap water

Preparation:

Bring water to a boil.

Reduce the heat.

Place 7 leaves of the Bocca B tree in the water. Put the lid on the cookware and let simmer until the water turns pink.

Turn off the heat.

Let the tea cool to room temperature.

Pour into beautiful tea cups!

Call all your fellow Anne of Green Gables fans ages 9 and up to have a mostly raw food tea party!

Look Ma, no caffeine! This is waaay better than drinking sugar-laden pretend-tea orange juice!

* * *

(I heard that another kidney cleanser tea is the edible weed pansit-pansitan. I usually like my pansit-pansitan raw, in a green smoothie. But if you want to try pansit-pansitan tea, just steep the pansit-pansitan leaves in a nice tea pot filled with boiling water.)

Can you tell I'm happy that my nephrologist said my kidneys are a-ok? :D

***If you have kidney problems, it's best to listen to your doctor, not to me :D

Unfried rice

2011-08-13T02:52:00.000-07:00

Ingredients:

amaranth, 1 tablespoon or less soaked overnight

millet, 2 or more tablespoons soaked over night

1 cup or more wild rice sprouted

1 carrot

wakame soaked in water, then rinsed

1/2 patola

thyme leaves

1/4 cup red onion or a handful of shallots chopped

few spritzes of calamansi (I like mine sour :))

Bragg nutritional yeast or nut cheeze

angel seaweed from Dr. Tam's Vegan Haus

a dash of extra virgin olive oil (optional)

1 clove of garlic

Preparation:

Cut the garlic in half and rub your salad bowl with each half. Discard garlic.

Toss the rest of the ingredients together in the salad bowl.

*Low fat raw vegans may choose between olive oil or nut cheeze

This recipe contains RDA:
Vitamin B6
Vitamin B12
Copper
Iron
Magnesium
Manganese
Niacin
Pant. Acid
Phosporus
Riboflavin
Thiamin
Zinc

It has trace amounts of:
Vitamin A
Calcium
Vitamin C
Vitamin E

There is no Vitamin D in this recipe.

It is 11% fat, 13% protein, and 76% carbs

Pansit-pansitan Experiment

2011-08-06T02:58:00.000-07:00

I was super excited to take care of pansit-pansitan especially after I tried it in a green smoothie.

It is a local edible weed claimed to have kidney cleaning properties. I heard that a well-known archbishop claims that it removed his kidney stones and he likes to steep it in boiling water for use as a tea.

When I found out some weeds grew nearby, I tried to transplant them, but my first attempt didn't go so well. I remember thinking, how difficult could it be to grow a weed?!

I waited too long before transplanting so they were too dehyrated. This time, I am not taking any chances!

I am planting in living soil (read: composted)...

as well as some composted soil along with some regular soil.

Will the experiment work or not? I guess I will find out soon enough!

Dehydrator Recipe: Tomato-less Flatbread Pizza Crust

2011-07-29T00:28:00.000-07:00

Ingredients:

1 cup almonds, soaked at least 8 hours, soak water discarded, and rinsed

1 cup flaxseeds soaked at least 8 hours, soak water discarded, and rinsed

Pulp from juicing: carrots, parsley, beets

1/2 cup minced red onion (for this recipe, I diced the onion, though. You could probably use less onion if desired)

non-irradiated herbs, such as basil, thyme, oregano, parsley (grow your own or get them at your weekend market!)

Preparation:

1. Blend the almonds and flaxseeds in a high speed blender or a food processor. (Someday, I will own a very nice food processor!!!)

2. Scoop in the pulp from juicing. For this recipe I used the pulp from juiced carrots, parsley, beets and mix well.

3. Mix the almond-flaxseed mixture with the green onions, then add the pulp little by little. (I have small mixing bowls kasi eh). Some people like to mix these with their hands. Rings off, please!

4. Spread onto non stick dehydrator sheets your desired thickness. I used less than half an inch. Dehydrate at 104 degrees F for half a day. Makati is pretty humid. The period of dehydration will vary based on climate and humidity. I can imagine this will dehydrate faster in the States.

5. Flip over and dehydrate 2 hours more, or until crunchy. I never got this far because the aroma was too much and I just had to have it already!

This is a great bread (less dehydration time, more moisture) on its own or as a pizza base (more dehydration time, crunchy, will keep longer) if using the carrot beet parsley mixture. Look up a nice nut cheeze recipe to go with it if desired :D But that will just give you more fat. Your call. Hehe :D

I love that the onions gave it just the right flavor even though no salt was used. Top with basil, thyme or other non irradiated herbs.

Ciao!

This was my pre show dinner before watching Varekai a few weeks ago. I had it with a salad. For dessert, I had Ani Phyo's recipe for coconut breakfast cake. (Breakfast for dinner! Ahluvet!)

Again, raw foodists shouldn't eat this daily. It has more fat than carbs. This is more like a treat.

This recipe contains:

Vitamin A
Vitamin B6
Vitamin C
Vitamin E
Calcium
Copper
Iron
Magnesium
Maganese
Pant. Acid
Phosperous
Riboflavin
Selenium
Sodium
Thiamin
Zinc

This recipe has 60% fat, 28% carbs, 12% protein.
This recipe contains no Vitamin B12 and no Vitamin D.

O, Lettuce Rejoice!

2011-07-22T23:31:00.000-07:00

Assorted sprouts on the window sill. when these get bigger, they will be transferred to individual pots.

Homegrown, organic, 100% love.

What are you growing this week?

Stuff Raw Foodists Like #9: Not Having to Get a Liposuction/Pay for Some Expensive Body Slimming Treatment/Go on a Crazy Diet that Will Make Me Hungry or Irritable Just to Lose Weight

2011-07-15T23:02:00.000-07:00

My size 2 clothes which I gave away to create space for my size 0 clothes!

No liposuctions! Or Marie France visits! Or irritability! Or hunger!

Anyone who goes raw finds that weight loss is really easy. I wasn't looking to lose weight, just aiming to get healthier.

I'm a pear, and because I lived abroad for three years, and didn't have the healthiest habits, I couldn't get rid of glut fat no matter how much I exercised.

Back then, a housemate from China tactlessly commented : you have a big butt. :( I couldn't argue with that, even though it super hurt :(

Fast forward to mid August-December 2010 when I was close to 100% raw, and the healthiest I ever felt.

Post-college, I was a size 0 on top, but downstairs I was a size 2. Going raw (not even going just vegetarian) helped me become a consistent size 0. It is so much easier to buy dresses now, and I hardly need to get them altered!

A word of caution: It is difficult to get in calories on raw, so be sure that you get more carbohydrates than fat, especially when you are exercising. This recipe contains a lot of fat. It isn't the kind of dish you should be eating daily.

* * *

I have a friend who is on a different diet. It is a diet that is high on animal protein, low in carbs, and to top it off, the doctor who designed it says exercise is optional.

Huuuuuuuuuhhhhhhh?!??!?!?!?!

My friend is losing weight, sure, (which is really her goal) but she is always hungry and cheating, and since starting the diet, has gotten sick 4 times, in a span of 7 months.

Personally, I would steer clear of any "health" regimen that says exercise is optional. Exercise is very important. Exercise strengthens the bones, builds muscle, engages the lymph system, creates endorphins, and excretes toxins.

Eating too much meat is also not advisable for Asians. If you have the time or inclination, you might want to read a study that shows that meat-eating, dairy-consuming Asians are prone to osteoporosis (One study is the Cornell-Oxford-China Nutrition Project). In addition, The China Study shows how people eating high protein diets experience more Western diseases, like cancer, heart attacks, hypertension and diabetes. Initially, the study wanted to find out why there was a high incidence of liver cancer in children in the Philippines. The study thought it was due to the high consumption of peanuts and corn containing toxins, but eventually, it was found out that "children who ate the highest [animal] protein diets were the most likely to get liver cancer." (The China Study)

* * *

I am not, I repeat, not a doctor or nutritionist. Whatever I post here is based on my personal experience and research. Be discerning. Not everything raw vegan is healthy either!

Rainy Day Pesto to go with Broccoli-Mushroom Salad

2011-07-02T02:57:00.000-07:00

Ingredients:
leaves of fresh mint (Available at your favorite weekend market)
leaves of fresh thyme (Available at the Salcedo Market)
1 head, broccoli
1 cup or more mushrooms
2 cloves deveined garlic - Slice the garlic clove in half and remove the sprout in the middle. Deveining the garlic is optional.

1 cup walnuts*

1/4 c pine nuts*

1-2 t olive oil

Nutritional yeast to taste (Available at Healthy Options)

Sweetener to taste-raw honey is great (Palawan wild raw honey is my fave!), you might also want to try pitted dates (available at Assad), or a single raw, dried mission fig (available at Healthy Options) I don't really like using agave nectar. Or the other processed "raw" sweeteners out there.

Nori, one-two sheets (Dahon Kusin is selling raw nori!)

Basil or other sweet herbs. My supplier, Shinozaki Yasutaka, gave me a kind of local peppermint that smells like basil but tastes a little minty. Will get back to you on the name again. If I forget, send me a note on the kontactr form.

*Soak the nuts for eight hours in mineral water. Throw out the soak water, then rinse before using the recipe.

Preparation:

Just place everything in a high-speed blender (for a coarser pesto) except for the mushrooms, broccoli, mint and thyme. Use the tamper to push down ingredients to process.

Or, I can imagine this would be creamier in a food processor. Sigh. Would love to own a food processor one of these days!

For the salad, put together broccoli florets from a head of broccoli, about a cup of mushrooms, and (optional): other greens.

This recipe is high in Manganese, Manganese and Phosporus.

It also has trace amounts of:

Vitamin A
Vitamin B6
Vitamin B12
Vitamin C
Vitamin D
Vitamin E
Calcium
Cooper
Iron
Niacin
Pant. Acid
Potassium
Riboflavin
Selenium
Sodium
Thiamin
Zinc

This recipe contains 83% fat, 10% carbs, and 7% protein. Yes, protein.

What To Use When You Don't Have Cheese Cloth

2011-06-25T02:39:00.000-07:00

Sprouting monggo (left) and fermenting nut cheeze (right)

Somebody doesn't have cheese cloth! Well yeah I do but since I moved in I haven't had time to find it. I'm sure it'll turn up! Til then, good ol improvisation will do!

By the way, if you are fermenting cheeze (this is 2 cups soaked almonds and 1 cup mineral water and several spritzes of calamansi, then blended in a high-speed blender, placed on top of a fridge in 90 C-weather overnigiht) this amount is too much for this jar! (I learned as much the very next day)

Pineapple - Malunggay Green Smoothie

2011-06-20T01:20:00.000-07:00

Ingredients:

An entire ripe organic, non-hybrid, non-GMO, fresh pineapple, skin and eyes removed
A few sprigs to many sprigs of malunggay (1 sprig if this is your first time to try this recipe)
2 cups of water or more to taste

For high-speed blenders: Blend everything at once.
For regular blenders: Put in the pineapple little by little and pulse until well blended.

+ + +

This is not a smoothie to make for a first-time smoothie drinker. For beginners, I recommend this smoothie instead. Once you are ready for a malunggay smoothie, use only one sprig. Then build up your taste buds to take two sprigs the next time, and so on.

+ + +

Malunggay can just grow in your backyard if you live in the Philippines. It can also grow in Hawaii. The Philippine consulate in Israel has also tried growing it there - and it has! It sure would be nice if every Pinoy (or the local public school) has this in the yard, wouldn't it?

To prepare, grab a few sprigs and wash carefully. Sidebar: Do you have a 2.5-3 year old at home? Show her how to do this one by one, and sloooooowly. I guarantee you - you will have a very happy camper! Just be patient! S/he will like plucking the leaves off into a bowl until it is ready to be washed.

I don't soak mine in sukang tuba, because I grow malunggay organically at home.

Malunggay leaves have a waxy coating that deter pests and can be grown pesticide-free!

+ + +

An organic pineapple is about P70 each.

Imagine this: for less than P100, you can provide a cancer patient with a pineapple - malunggay green smoothie with the following nutritional, bioavailable benefits:

This recipe has a high amount of Vitamin C, Vitamin A, Calcium, Manganese, Zinc, Selenium, Protein in the bioavailable form of 18 essential amino acids, and trace amounts of:

Copper
Iron
Niacin
Pant. Acid
Phosporus
Riboflavin
Selenium
Sodium
Thiamin
Vitamin B6

When eaten raw (not canned or frozen), and fresh from the blender, and taken alone (not as an accompaniment beverage to a Standard Filipino Diet meal), your body assimilates this recipe's goodness super fast!

Too often, Pinoys equate pineapples with upset stomachs because to begin with, their stomachs are acidic. Pinoys also equate pineapples with opening a can of ______. (Can anyone say "tricalcium phosphate?!). Preservatives in canned pineapples exacerbate the stomach's reaction to pineapples. Slowly alkalize your body with fruit and vegetables, and over time, you will not find eating organic, raw pineapples upsetting. In fact, they will have an alkaline-forming effect on your body. Strange but true!

Raw fruits and vegetables for a cancer patient

2011-06-19T04:20:00.000-07:00

If you have experienced healing from raw fruits and vegetables, please consider sharing this with someone who doesn't have the resources.

http://fruitsandvegetablesformarilou.blogspot.com

Alternately, you can also just forward the link to someone whom you think might help.

Please be warned. Marilou's "after" pic is graphic. Sorry :(

Stuff Raw Foodists Like #8: Not Telling the Guests the Food You Brought to a Potluck is Raw then Watching their Reactions When They Rave About the Food and Ask You How You Made It

2011-06-18T01:26:00.000-07:00

There are few people I can play this trick on now, but whenever I have the chance, I love getting the MasterCard "priceless" jaw-drop reactions!

A favorite recipe I love to share (since it keeps so well), is Ani Phyo's Coconut Breakfast Cake, pictured below with dehydrated blueberries that were rehydrated and blended with dates.

Any berry can be blended with dates to make the yummy sauce :D

The "butter" is made from olive oil and some sea salt and then frozen in a plastic mold. It melted by the time I got to the potluck, (Makati traffic will do that to you!) but it was still appreciated.

The "syrup" is any raw sweetener. In this recipe, I used wild Palawan wild, raw honey.

Another recipe I love to share is Wok This Way Stir No Fry. I've tried the sauce with different combinations of veggies and it is always a winner. I don't use nama shoyu/Bragg liquid aminos, but I always tell the guests they can try it if they want. Instead of agave nectar, I use Palawan wild, raw honey.

Independence from Salt!

2011-06-12T00:00:00.000-07:00

I am going to try to be salt-free in the dishes I have control over from here on out.

Instead of salt, I am going to experiment with the naturally-occurring salty taste in seaweed (dulse, kelp, wakame, nori, and the Philippines' very own lato).

I still have a jar of evaporated sea salt for soaking nuts and seeds with, but this will be purely for soaking now.

Of course, if I am at a raw food potluck or resto, I won't have control over the salt used, but I won't fret over what's outside my sphere of influence.

What kind of ingredients are you seeking independence from?

Happy Philippine independence day! :D

What's on my spice shelves? Top Shelf: sukang tuba, expeller-pressed olive oil, two jars of seeds, Epsom salt, rosewater. Lower Shelf: VCO, organic vanilla (this one has alcohol though. no alcohol-free versions in the Philippines-boo!), Angel seaweed, evaporated sea salt, cinammon and paprika, capers, another bottle of olive oil, tree bark tea, raw cacao nibs

Stuff Raw Foodists Like #7: Flexible Chefs at Non-Raw Restos!

2011-06-04T01:13:00.000-07:00

What's better than being allowed to bring raw baon to a resto that doesn't have raw food selections for you? Restos with flexible chefs!

When I first read that Victoria Boutenko (of 12 Steps To Raw) flashes a raw card whenever she eats out, I wondered if such a thing would ever work in the Philippines. (Has anyone ever tried this?)

I haven't. But I have tried calling a resto in advance, asking what happens if someone in the party had a lot of food restrictions. (Take note, that I have never come out to say that I was it! He he :)) Sometimes I would get a sympathetic head waiter who would tell me to look for him so I could be accommodated. Sometimes I don't. But at least I can adjust accordingly (read: bring my own baon).

So when someone else does the asking for you, in advance, it's nice.

My sister did just this when she booked us a table at Blackwood Bistro in Venice Piazza one Sunday. She forwarded to Chef Goody Jose my raw food guidelines, and Chef Goody gamely rose to the challenge. She told me later it was her first time to encounter this kind of food restriction.

What did she serve?

For starters, she provided shiitake mushrooms on fresh zucchini with olive oil and citrus zest salt on the side.

For my main course, she steamed (ok, not really raw but allowable under the circumstances) asparagus, and served the other ingredients raw/fresh. The onions were really sweet.

For dessert, assorted fruit. The mangoes were yummy. Chef offered a yummy-looking sherbet to the meat-eaters.

As for my meat-eating companions, I know they enjoyed their meals. Huge servings for the meat eaters, I must say. The salmon looked particularly appetizing, but oh well. :D

(Just a sidebar- if you are in Venice Piazza on a Sunday evening, stay outside so you can watch whatever outdoor show they have on. When we went, they had a Mardi Gras. They also have other events. Thursday is ballroom night, I believe. Do ask first because I could have heard wrong.)

Thanks a lot Chef Goody for the accommodations!

The other time I enjoyed a raw meal was at Rainmaker at CVC Law in Bonifacio Global City. This resto is catered by Gaita Fores, one of my culinary inspirations when I was still into cooked food. (Fun memories of Cafe Bola, Pepato and Cibo!) She wasn't there though, so I couldn't be all fan-girlish.

Chef Gerald Montelibano was there and he received not just my raw food guidelines, but some recipes from Gone Raw and a few of the Dahon Kusina classes I attended. (My sister insisted)

From these, he chose to do my beginner's breakfast green smoothie (bottomless!!!!), his own take on raw salad, and Thai-inspired papaya rice.

(Tsk, tsk, someone flunked the marshmallow test for "wait until after the picture before you drink". And this was already after the second glass. Quadruple tsk.)

Thai-inspired papaya rice

It was awesome to have a non-raw chef interpret a raw dish!

Other non-raw restos worth checking out for their accommodations to raw foodists: Cyma, Cafe Mediterranean, Jasmine (at New World Hotel) and the room service at East Asia Royale Hotel in General Santos. None of them are raw restaurants, but quite accommodating. Jasmine and EARH might bargain with you to lightly steam the veggies. I think that is OK. Just remind EARH not to use butter/Star margarine. Steaming for a few minutes only partially removes the nutrients, compared to grilling (which adds carcinogens from the blackened parts of food) or frying (which uses trans fat).

Disclosure: Chef Goody Jose is related to my brother-in-law. My sister is senior partner at CVC Law so of course the chef at Rainmaker had no choice but to do what she said! I don't have any connections with Cyma, Cafe Mediterranean, Jasmine or East Asia Royale Hotel in General Santos and I don't receive any discounts/favors for these mentions.

Stuff Raw Foodists Like #6: Brainstorming Outlets for Your Newfound Energy

2011-05-29T02:53:00.000-07:00

I started going to the gym a few months ago, did my first 3k since college, and I am back to playing badminton! I have also gone on whole day training seminars and still feel I can go on even when my companions feel like going home.

I love the feeling of boundless energy, even when the day is about to end!

And since I don't have household help, I love that I still have energy to do all my chores when I get back home.

I get super motivated at the gym now because of the comments of the gym instructors - that I can push myself harder, "malakas ka kasi eh.", "after the first rep go heavier, then after that rep go heavier." Sometimes I look at the weight I'm being asked to lift, and in my head I'm going, "I can't lift this much!" but I do it anyway and surprise myself. Of course if you are just starting with weights, don't copy me. Please know that I started weights since I discovered I had scoliosis, which was in my preteens. Thing is, I have plateaued in college and never lifted anything heavier than what I was doing back then until now. Eating raw, living food is making such a huge difference in my energy levels.

How has it worked in yours?

Stuff Raw Foodists Like #5: Bye-bye dry, bloodshot eyes!

2011-05-14T21:50:00.000-07:00

Three years ago, I was living in the States, studying and working at the same time. I lived on convenience vegetarian food (lots of soy and microwaving involved) and white bread. Once in a while I'd cook, but on lazy days, I would just opt for vegan bacon, vegan hotdogs, vegan ice cream, vegan burritos - everything junk vegan you could think of!

I thought I was healthy. I was a regular exerciser, I took vitamins. I belonged to a badminton club, and I wanted to be active in the outdoorsy community in Seattle.

One thing I did notice was that I would usually come home from work/school with bloodshot eyes. Even though I used artificial tears (P300 for a bottle that lasts a month) to keep my eyes lubricated (I was told that my eyes were going to be perenially dry after LASIK), it wasn't enough to keep the blood vessels in my eyes from reddening by four pm. I even got an anonymous text from someone who accused me of taking drugs!

When I came back to the Philippines, I started preparing home-cooked vegetarian food more and more. I stopped taking "fake" food, and the redness stopped. My eyes were still dry though.

This all changed when I started eating fresh, raw, organic fruits and vegetables. Aside from the dryness in my eyes disappearing, I was considerably less thirsty. Best of all, my insomnia** disappeared. Amazing!

I still have a teeny bottle of artificial tears in my kikay kit just in case, but so far, I haven't had any reason to use it except for the two months it took to get used to the smog in Manila. Those days, I used the artificial tears thrice a day!

What is in raw, organic fruits and vegetables that helped? The lutein and zeaxanthin that are found in a variety of vegetables!

Lutein is a naturally occuring substance in the retina of your eyes. Prolonged intake of preserved foods such as the convenience vegan foods I "enjoyed" abroad, and not eating enough fresh vegetables, prevented me from replenishing the lutein my eyes badly needed. The salt from chips, french fries, and the typical Filipino diet exacerbated my dry eyes.

Zeaxanthin is also found in our retinas, but they are found in a variety of vegetables and fruit as well.

Thanks to naturally-produced lutein and zeaxanthin in raw fruits and veggies, and lessened artificial salt intake, I am nearing my first anniversary without dry eyes! All these without supplements too!

*I am not a doctor. I am not a food nutritionist. I don't claim to have all the answers to everyone's ailments. I simply have found raw foods to be helpful to me in improving my health and well-being. If you do try raw foods, consult a doctor and/or nutritionist.

**Some raw foodists find that they have so much energy after adopting a raw food lifestyle, they don't need much sleep anymore. I believe that this is different from insomnia. Insomnia sufferers want to sleep, but can't, even if they want to. As a result, they are irritable the following morning, and tend to overeat, since their bodies tell them they need to compensate for the lack of rest. Raw foodists who have an abundance of energy are able to survive on less hours of sleep and still perform well, and are less prone to overeat. Not all raw foodists have completely defeated insomnia though! Not everything raw is healthy, just like not everything vegan/vegetarian is healthy. But that is a different post altogether :D

Aloe Vera!

2011-05-07T22:57:00.000-07:00

Aloe vera is a wonderful ingredient added to organic shampoos! Some non-organic shampoos claim they have it in their ingredients too.

I had a classmate from Tacoma who kept a pot of aloe vera in her house to apply to insect bites and cuts and swore by it!

And guess, what? You know what's coming, right?

You got it!

Some raw foodists love to eat aloe vera too! (As you can see by the cuts we've made!)

I got my pot a while back. Wish I took a picture then, because you'd see how emaciated it looked. And compare it with how it looks now-so much healthier! I fed it some coffee grinds from the nearest hip coffee house*... and a few weeks later, voila! The leaves turned all succulent!

These are perfect for putting in smoothies!

I use a sharp knife to separate the green outer covering from its slimy insides and then scrape the insides off into a bowl or my blender and blend it with some leafy greens and fruit. (Although it's better to use the bowl first to make sure no green prickly parts get included in the smoothie mix!)

*Sosyal ng aloe vera ko, di ba? Even I don't drink signature coffee or any kind of coffee for that matter, but my plants and the worms in my garden do. By the way, I'm not judging you for drinking overpriced coffee. I don't even judge you for drinking coffee, period. I drank it all the time in college. I also lived in Seattle, where people really loved coffee for the coffee, and not so much for the coffee house experience. So my first two years there, I drank it. But I don't drink it anymore because it's bad for my throat. Your throat is probably much healthier than mine. And I'm pretty sure you find my other purchases outrageous too. So stop getting all defensive! :P

When you visit a coffee house, just ask for the grinds - these are just discards the coffee house will gladly give away for free. I guess if you're not a coffee drinker like me you can always buy coffee or cookies for others so that they don't brand you as that crazy lady who eats only raw organic veggies and comes to our coffee house to mooch our coffee grinds!

Stuff Raw Foodists Like #4: Raw Food Books on Sale!

2011-04-29T22:37:00.000-07:00

Can you believe this? Living Cuisine for only P200?!!! Thanks so much to Jen the Nursing Mom for the tip! I got this at SM MOA Booksale. Yay yay yay!

Jen actually has her own copy of Living Cuisine and lent it to me last year. I was but a teeny tot in my raw food journey (I don't wanna say babe kasi baka may umangal! Haha!) and this book, along with Victoria Boutenko's 12 Steps to Raw Foods , was very helpful. While 12 Steps helps one overcome an addiction to cooked foods and provides tips in sticking to the raw food frame of mind with lots of the author's own research in the chemistry of foods, cooked and non-cooked, Living Cuisine details the nutrition info of many common raw foods. Anyone wanting to know where raw foodists get their protein will get more of their question answered here. The book also suggests which items are essentials for the raw food kitchen. I planned my kitchen equipment acquisition program (naks) around her suggestions, as well as the suggestions from Ani's Raw Food Kitchen. I haven't gotten everything I want yet, but I have what I need. I use my Vita-Mix to get most food processing done, but maybe one of these days, I'll get a food processor. And a ceramic knife. We'll see. Wink.

There are many recipes in Living Cuisine, although I haven't tried most of them yet. I did try a dehydrated cracker recipe and it was very easy to make. It used soaked sesame seeds and garlic. It can be very dry, so you might want to add oils and/or water. The original recipe called for lots of spices, which I don't like, so I did the recipe without, and it turned out fine.

Using a rubber spatula to spread the batter evenly...

...like so.

Here is my asymmetric cracker batter on the non-stick Paraflex sheet.

Okie dokie! See you in a little bit! (Or shall I say, 12-20 hours?)

Here is the semi-dry cracker, peeled off the non-stick sheet, turned over, and dehydrated on a naked tray for a few more hours.

Ta-dah!

Yummy crackers to share to my raw and non-raw foodist friends! These were very good on their own. Some might want to make garlic aoili nut cheese dip or salsa, or just plain olive oil.

I made two trays: One tray with thin crackers, and one tray with thicker crackers. The thicker crackers can pass for bread! No lie!

Stuff Raw Foodists Like #3: Sprouted Quinoa

2011-04-23T04:05:00.000-07:00

Where do you get your protein?

Protein is everywhere!

The raw foodist's advantage is that raw fruits, vegetables and nuts come packed with their own proteins in the form of enzymes. Enzymes are a protein that aid the digestion of the food it is part of.

That said, there are some raw foods that are more abundant in protein than others. One of them is quinoa. (KEEN-wa). According to Ian Merber and Vicki Edgson, authors of The Food Doctor , quinoa is the perfect vegetable protein. It also contains calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium and vitamin B3. It is easy to digest, is gluten-free, contains more calcium than milk, stimulates milk flow in breastfeeding, and its lysine content is a potent antiviral agent.

I first tried quinoa in the form of quinoa pasta when I discovered that I had an intolerance to gluten. I got my quinoa pasta from the health food store. The taste was excellent! Way better than rice pasta, in my humble opinion.

Now that I have gone high raw, I buy quinoa in its raw, unprocessed form. These are grains you can find in the grain section of your health food store.

To prepare them, you need to wash them well, then soak them in pure water (in my case, I just use mineral water) overnight in a covered container. The following day, I throw out the rinse water, then I check for tails. If I see those, I rinse them again and they are ready to eat! It is one of the easiest raw foods to sprout!

Look for the tails! Can you see them?

Sprouted quinoa (KEEN-wa) is a really yummy way to enjoy proteins! Some sprouts can be really stinky, but sprouted quinoa has a mild, sweet smell. It can be mixed with almost veggie.

Here's Aileen de Guzman who taught me how to use the sprouted quinoa in a lovely salad.

What are your favorite quinoa recipes?

Stuff Raw Foodies Like #2: Raw Chocolate

2011-04-16T02:47:00.000-07:00

For the longest time, I couldn't eat regular chocolate because I would get laryngitis in winter (almost always February-ask my former coworkers in the Pacific Northwest!) or in August when it rains in Manila. Thank you to Dr. Emmanual Ibay of Makati Med for helping me figure that out that I had to change my lifestyle, including cutting out chocolate (as well as a host of other harmful food) out of my diet. Half a decade laryngitis-free! Yay!

Since starting raw, I've been reintroducing small doses of raw cacao and toasted carob (tastes a little bit like chocolate) into my rotation (very difficult to find raw carob in the Philippines! Kontactr me if you know someone who supplies this locally!). So far so good! I listen to my body though. It knows when too much is too much.

It is interesting to note that there is a group of raw foodists that claim it is a super food, while some other raw foodists say they can do without it, or take only a little.

Here it is as a sauce with nuts and goji berries*.

What are your favorite raw chocolate desserts?

*Have you tried goji berries? These taste fine in a trail mix, but alone? Eeek. They need some getting used to.

They are considered a super food and the Chinese in Manila use it a lot in traditional Chinese medicine. I am glad my dessert is my medicine.How many fad diets can say that about their dessert?

A Young Vermicomposter's Photo Album

2011-04-09T20:50:00.000-07:00

I love composting! I used to save my biodegrable garbage in containers (but now I just use the garbage can - I don't need to segregate garbage in my kitchen anymore because practically all of my kitchen refuse is biodegradable). My preferred method of composting is direct soil incorporation, but now, instead of digging each time, I throw everything in a compost pit that is all soil. (There is a side story about that too, but I don't want to stray too far from this topic which is...)

Now that school's out, your kids age 9 and up might want to consider it as a summer activity! Who knows? It might grow into a lifelong passon :D Hehe! Wouldn't that be something?

With her family's permission, I am sharing the photos and captions (provided by her dad-with minimal editing!) of this young vermicomposter's project last year. For the family's privacy, she will be referred to as MYC - Ms. Young Composter.

Enjoy reading!

First you get TWO bins.
The more opaque the bins the better it is for the in-the-bin community.
(We got lesser opaque bins to see the side and witness how trash is 'transformed' to soil.)

Anyways, to rectify this,
we will wrap manila paper around the bins so they will have their privacy.

Using a drill, put holes around the bin (of the one bin only).

Drill holes on the side-top portion (6 per length, 4 per width)
Drill holes on the cover (14 holes)
Drill holes on the bottom (5 holes).

Holes are for air circulation as well as water to seep through.

Others usually do not do this anymore.
But we covered the holes with mosquito net & sealed it with tape.
Note that this is an indoor bin.
Mahirap ng may makalusot.
hehehe :-)

On the second bin,
put support before putting the other bin on top.
We do this to create space for air circulation.

Now to put the housing bin on top. :-)

Voila!

Then the household trash.
First, create the bedding -- ideal bedding are cut up paper, carton, etc.
Spread it evenly.

Then moisten the paper based bedding.

Then add the kitchen, garden trash.

Mental note.
For next cycle, get gloves for Miss Young Composter
So that it is easier for her to handle trash!!

Plastic gloves!! Hahaha! MYC na MYC!

Spread the garden and kitchen trash evenly.

"Now that is 1 layer of paper trash + kitchen/garden trash.
Now, do the same procedure 3 times."

Add paper trash again, moisten the paper, then add the layer of kitchen/garden trash...
and so on.

Let it SIT for 1 to 2 weeks
before adding 1 kilo worm. :-)

Why sit for 1 or 2 weeks?
To let the decomposition happen.

Hmm.
But after 1 week, I think it is OK already to add the new house mates. :-)

Welcome home, ANCs! :-)

(ANCs stand for African Night Crawlers)

After 1 Week,
looks like the new house is ready. :-)

Game?!

Now to create space on the side.

Then to start transferring the ANC to their new 'house'

it's MYC's turn ...

... to carefully transfer them ANCs

Sige...

... ilipat mo na lahat.

Meet your new pets.
You want to name them?

Hmmm.
Parang mahirap ata pangalanan lahat.
I will call you, NightCrawler One!

Nakakapawis pero tapos na rin!

Bye guys!

Kids ages 9-99! Want to make this your summer project?

Raw Food Prep Class : On the Road to Raw

2011-04-08T03:58:00.000-07:00

Hey hey hey! Good news! For those who missed On the Road to Raw last weekend, there is a repeat tomorrow, Saturday, April 9th! Yay!

I really enjoyed the langka-luya smoothie which can be made into an ice cream (what a hit!). There were so many other memorable dishes, such as the Thai-inspired papaya rice! Yumsters!

Hehe! The group didn't bother to wipe the insides of the bowl for presentation purposes, but you know what, it didn't matter! It was soooo good! And I have to commend them for non-soy version they made for me which is in the little wooden bowl. Instead of Bragg liquid aminos, they used honey.

This is a workshop, so bring your own apron and knife :D Send your helper if you're not the type who likes to get her hands dirty. But really, you are missing out if you don't prepare your own food, and more prone to quit raw if you are dependent on someone else to do this (Unless your name is Demi Moore and you have your own raw food chef!)

If this is your first time to attend a raw food seminar, don't worry about getting hungry! You will feel full after attending. I promise!

They ran out of kelp last time too, so if you are curious about trying kelp noodles - buy them as soon as you walk in the door!

*Disclosure: Asha is one of my contacts in the raw world. I got a discount in the last workshop but only because I don't eat tomatoes and soy - and some of the dishes had these. I don't get discounts for buying any of her other stuff :D I pay full price for my kelp, which I eagerly await!

Stuff Raw Foodies Like #1 : Restos that won't give you a hard time for bringing your own baon if you can't eat anything else on the menu

2011-03-31T03:20:00.000-07:00

Sure, they might serve you perfect (read: scary) veggies, but if you can't have anything else on the menu, they at least won't begrudge you opening your baon :)

My brother's so funny. He told me, "Fran, next time we eat out, you choose the resto, para kami naman ang mag-baon."

almond pate

sprouted wild un-fried rice

Raw foodies: what stuff do you like?

The Beginner's Breakfast Green Smoothie

2011-03-20T02:42:00.000-07:00

The smoothie that started it all for me!

Since quite a few of you have been asking for smoothie recipes, I thought I'd share the one that started it all -

The Beginner's Breakfast Green Smoothie (serves one)

Ingredients:

4 ripe lakatan or lagkitan bananas (save the saba for when you're intermediate!)
1 bunch of organic kangkong, stems removed (soak in a large bowl of water with a little sukang tuba for 15 minutes, then rinse well. (OC peeps will want to run it through a salad spinner before blending, but I am OK with putting it straight into the blender after rinsing if I'm in a hurry)
2 dalandans (skin off, seeds removed)

Preparation:

Blend in a high-speed blender. Or if using a regular blender, add a little bit of filtered or coconut water and pulse until the kangkong gets as fine as possible.

Important stuff to remember:

After drinking your smoothie, wait 30 minutes before you eat your oatmeal or other breakfast. I know most raw foodists just have this on its own, though. I, on the other hand, need to increase my caloric intake because I work out.
Please, please, don't use the smoothie as a drink on the side. It needs to be taken alone so it can be digested at once. When taken with other food, it might end up just fermenting in your stomach. You don't want this happening to you. Trust me.
Some people like to add papayas, berries, ground up flax seeds, and superfoods, but keep it simple when you are starting out.
Don't add rootcrops or vegetables. The exception is the leafy greens. Don't add any kind of melon to your smoothie. Melons need to be eaten on their own. Stay clear of watermelon shakes at a restaurant!
Don't use the same leafy green daily. Very important. Other leafy greens for beginners are curly leaf lettuce, kale, wheatgrass, and spinach. (Alugbati, pechay, arugula, malunggay and mustasa have stronger flavors and are better for intermediates. If in the future you start experimenting with these other leafy greens, know that you can always add more bananas or water to make the smoothie taste better)
The ideal smoothie has less fruit and more greens, but this is a beginner's breakfast green smoothie, made for people who want a yummy first green smoothie experience :P
If you don't like the taste of your smoothie, put it in your compost, or if you have a garden, Victoria Boutenko says just pour the smoothie onto the soil. The earthworms will have a party!
Most dogs like smoothies too!
And oh, the experts say to take your time enjoying the smoothie, even mixing it with saliva before swallowing. I haven't been doing this but I haven't experienced anything bad drinking it really fast.

The original recipe is from Aileen de Guzman. But I tweaked this one so it's simpler. Anyhoo, credit still goes to her for getting me started.

Oooh, and some raw foodies I know started feeding their baby green smoothies at 6 months. How cool is that?! The baby was purely breastfed and is super healthy and happy! Go raw family!

OK, I'm rambling. Will go now :D

Raw food prep classes!

2011-03-02T04:58:00.000-08:00

March 5, 2011 1:00-5:00 pm

Live Food Preparation Class Series

5888 Gloria St. Poblacion, Makati.

Aileen De Guzman

healthspringph@gmail.com

890-9161

0919-2127190

Aileen sells superfoods at the venue. Try the ch-ch-chia! Great for making pre-workout pudding!

March 12, 2011

Simply Raw
10am-1:30pn

Dance or Desserts
3:30-7pm

Dahon Kusina
Creative Space Building
A. Mabini cor Dr. Pilapil Sts., Kapasigan, Pasig City

P750 for a deposit to Creative Space's BPI Account 0419004162
P850 for walk-ins

Asha Peri

leaf-kitchen@yahoo.com
916-0931
0917-861-1212

Simply Raw and Dance or Desserts are workshops so be ready to do some food prepping. If available, purchase the kelp noodles. Yum! I can put a whole package away in one sitting with the recipe Christmas Coleslaw. Mmmm.

*I don't get discounts for spreading the news.

Green smoothies at the gym

2011-02-14T02:07:00.000-08:00

After months of putting it off - I started going to my office's gym. Yay!

Before we can use the facilities on our own, we need to get clearance via a physical fitness test. I hated these things in grade school, but this time around I wanted to fully embrace the experience, even looking forward to the shuttle run. (Naks) Alas, no shuttle run. Gym guy made me do modified push-ups, stretches, sit-ups, toe-touching, and the treadmill for 30 minutes instead.The treadmill was boring. I wanted to go fast but Gym Guy made be do 3.0 kph. Nothing is dorkier than having an emergency stop string attached to your gym clothes while you are going at a granny's pace. I didn't even break out a sweat. I was able to answer a text on my cel. When he wasn't looking and I wasn't paying attention, I accidentally (promise, accidental talaga!) yanked the emergency stop string. So I manually placed the speed to 3.5 kph. The highlight of the treadmill was a short brownout and a cute guy jogging by. (We have a nice oval on the roofdeck of the building, and the track is visible from the treadmills. There is also a badminton court but I can't play unless I "pass the physical fitness test").

I found it amusing when Gym Guy pointed to my bottle of green smoothie when he was taking my blood pressure.

Ano yan? Choco ba yan?

Green smoothie. Gawa siya sa green leafy veggies, saging, mangoes o kaya ibang

fruit, etc.

Blank look.

Masarap siya!

He wasn't convinced. May takip ba yan?

Sheepishly. Uh, wala. Mental note: Must bring a different bottle next time.

He asked me a couple more times during the physical fitness test if the bottle had a lid, but he never went out and said, "Bawal yan", which I think he was itching to say. I guess he was concerned I'd mess up the gym floor. He also made me stop doing sit-ups when I slowed down and I hadn't even finished the 30 seconds yet. Hmmm. Not good. Honestly, I think he was being nice, but I wasn't looking for nice. I was looking forward to having a drill sargeant instill some gym discipline and enforce the rules. Next time, I'll try Gym Guy #2 or Gym Girl and maybe ask about compound exercises. Per Kuya Kevin, this is what I need to gain lean muscle, one of my health goals for 2011. I did some additional searching and found raw recipes from Vegan Bodybuilding as well.

Which kind of gym person are you? Do you like it when your spotter goes easy on you, or do you want to be challenged? What are your health goals for 2011?

*Sorry Gym Guy #1. I appreciate that you were nice. I just need some other kind of trainer who will help me in reaching my fitness goals; someone who will be able to put his foot down when I'm not doing things correctly. I'm sure you are an a-ok person. I just can't have a lax teacher. It's nothing personal.

Help me name this dessert!

2011-02-09T03:25:00.000-08:00

My godsister Berni is craving pinoy food. But she is in snowy Milton, MA and has no access to fresh Philippine mangoes and freshly squeezed calamansi juice, and buko juice! :(

She told me to have some buko juice for her with some vanilla ice cream, and I told her, I'd have something non-dairy, like maybe coconut ice cream.

Here's what I came up with:

3/4 to 1 cup gata, kept in the fridge for 2-3 days*

1 tsp or more raw cacao (I guess you can grind yours but I wanted to keep the texture so I didn't grind these up)

raw honey or agave nectar to taste

soaked sunflower seeds - optional

freshly grated cinammon - optional

*I like it because it gets a little more dense in the fridge when I keep it this long

The question is, what shall I call it? It's not exactly coconut ice cream. And if I call it gata with cacao and raw honey it just sounds....wala... awkward. And long.

Come up with a name and I will reward you with 4 fresh bukos (only if you live in Metro Manila) or USDA organic, kosher-certified, Philippine-made VCO :D (if you live elsewhere). A great way to infuse electrolytes into your system! Metro Manilans can choose if they want the bukos or the VCO.

Use the kontactr form on the right. Subject line: Help me name this dessert!

Include your full name and exact delivery address. If applicable, please inform your lobby guard to accept condo deliveries.

I'll choose a winner by March 4th 2011. You don't have to be a raw foodist to join the contest. :D

Natural bug zappers

2011-01-28T15:55:00.000-08:00

Have you ever wondered why certain bugs like to flock to light bulbs? Apparently, you can use the same principle to attract them to a natural bug zapper in your garden! Take a yellow party plate and smother it with organic homemade glue and voila! The bugs stay on the party plate and not on your garden shrubs.

Hmm... I wonder if this is why fly paper is usually yellow....

Does anyone want to try this?

Or do you prefer letting garden spiders do their work? I was in Silang, Cavite recently and noticed these critters abounding along the highway, by the trees and electrical wires. Noo-neee-nooo!

What about homemade organic pesticide?

What is your favorite way to keep the pests away from your plants?

Simply Raw February 5th, 3-6pm

2011-01-28T15:22:00.000-08:00

Click on the photo to enlarge.

*Disclaimer: This is an advertisement post. I have tried Asha's classes and I think they are helpful.

I don't get discounts and/or freebies for posting these announcements.

Bring a pen! Asha provides a hardcopy of the recipes, but you might want to jot down important info shared during class. A camera is helpful too :D

Also, if you wrote to her beforehand about your food allergies, give her a helpful reminder so that a portion is set aside for you without the allergens. She is accommodating about these, but if there is more than one of you with specific food requirements, it is best to let her know before each recipe is preferred. I can imagine it is hard to keep track! I remember in one class, 1 was allergic to bananas, 2 couldn't have tomatoes, 2 couldn't have garlic and onions, and 1 high-maintenance gal couldn't have tomatoes, potatoes, eggplant, zuchinni, and soy. Good times.

Check the ingredients on your handout so you can warn Asha and/or those assigned to prepared the food. (Yes, it is a hands-on workshop.)

Enjoy! :D

Raw Food Prep Classes

2011-01-22T18:13:00.000-08:00

January 29 - Fermenting

February 12 - Sprouting

Contact Aileen de Guzman for pricing, directions, etc.

890-9161 (0919-2127190)

Please note that the dates are subject to change. Be sure to contact Aileen directly for any last-minute changes.

Aileen's website:

http://healthspringph.blogspot.com/

That's me in the black shirt. I took Aileen's class last year and started making green smoothies soon after! Hers is a really good version for beginners. Thanks to Aileen for letting me steal this photo off her website.

Dance or Desserts? Raw dessert preparation in Pasig!

2011-01-20T06:08:00.000-08:00

Here are a couple of dishes I enjoyed learning at the Dahon Kusina classes: (Asha, I stole the photos off your Facebook!)

This is a yummy dish! It looks hard - (requires making thin slices and rolling) but you can make an un-fancy version that tastes just as good! Use the same ingredients and mix them all together without any rolling or food styling :D Works for me :D Although I've seen unskilled hands do the rolling with spoons successfully!

Chocnut brittle! Yumsters! The recipe for this is really easy, not to mention great way to get VCO into your food prep!

Are you still thinking of going? There are two slots left!

Contact:

Asha
leaf.kitchen@yahoo.com

Or squint really hard so you can read the contact info on the flyer.

We have a winner! (Rawkin' Gift Ideas)

2011-01-01T02:57:00.000-08:00

Congrats to Chin-chin for putting together her own list of Rawkin' Gift Ideas! I am so thrilled she took the time to do this. My favorite item on her list is #10: Organic cotton aprons and towels ! I actually wanted to get some for myself - found some recently while I was at a raw foodist's store, but I didn't have enough cash on hand to buy it and the store owner didn't have a credit card machine.

Anyhoo, here is Chin-chin's winning entry, with everything intact. I just put in a few comments in pink.

Chin-chin, I will be in touch with you regarding the delivery. Just by being the first winner in my blog's first contest, you have an extra surprise waiting for you in addition to the prize items! Congrats!

Chin-chin's list of TOP 10 RAWKIN' GIFT IDEAS :)

1. Lock and Lock food containers and water jugs

-whether it's to store nuts and seeds in your pantry or fruits in the refrigerator or freezer, one can never have enough lock and lock food containers. Lock and Lock also has cool gift sets on sale this season.

Yes! I was at SM before Christmas and they have some Lock and Locks available at a 20% discount. I hope they still have them on sale!

2. Insulated food containers

-for your food and drinks to stay cool when you bring them to work, office, or even just a picnic

3. Raw food books

-there are many raw food books such as "Everyday Raw" by Matthew Kenney, "Superfoods" by David Wolfe, or "The Complete Book of Raw Food." Just double check that you don't give double.

I also like High Raw by Kevin Gianni (a free raw e-book available on his website), Living Cuisine: The Art and Spirit of Raw Food by Renee Loux Underkoffler, and 12 Steps to Raw by Victoria Boutenko.

4. Yoga class gift certificate

-because exercise keeps us healthy and happy

5. Goji berry or Goji berry juice

-instead of the cacao powder, make an extra effort to make it a little more special. Goji berry is a yummy superfood to use in desserts, smoothies or to just eat by itself.

I just bought a trail mix containing Goji berries! Haven't eaten them yet though.

6. Assorted seeds to plant and basic gardening tools

-A variety of seeds for your friend to start his or her own vegetable patch plus some simple gardening tools will serve like a vegetable/herb patch starter kit

Love this!

7. Assorted toiletries from Human <3 Nature

-organic, local, and affordable... how could you go wrong? they also have organic cosmetics available.

I know some of their products aren't organic. Be sure to check their labeling. Some of their items are labeled "natural", and these are not necessarily organic. Gotta appreciate their candor though!

8. Adopt and name a tree after your friend

-when you plant or adopt a tree (there are projects like these such as in La Mesa Water Shed) you can name it. Name it after your raw friends and give them the certificate.

Ooh, please plant a fire tree! Please plant a fire tree!

9. A fruit basket

-but not just an ordinary fruit basket! Make it themed! If you're giving a Christmas gift, make the fruits red and green. If for a birthday, fill the basket with fruits of their favorite color.

Great idea! Raw foodists might not appreciate apples from China. That calls for a separate blog post!

10. Organic cotton aprons and towels

-since raw foodists prepare most of their food, organic cotton aprons and towels for the kitchen will be very much appreciated. Even cotton shirts, too!

Yes, yes! Love it!

Happy New Year everyone! Stay tuned because there will be another contest real soon!

Rawkin' Gift Ideas for your Raw Friends

2010-12-10T18:57:00.000-08:00

1. Live sukang tuba.

Raw foodies who don't yet own ozonators love to use this to soak their fruits and veggies! It's also perfect for making veggie kinilaw, and all the other yummy veggie dishes. We can't get enough of this!

2. Virgin coconut oil.

We love making raw desserts with cold-pressed virgin coconut oil! Almond-chocolate bites anyone?

3. Extra virgin olive oil.

Look for the expeller-pressed kind.

4. Gift certificates.

Healthy Options

5. Potted herbs.

Basil, mint, parsley, oregano, marjoram, etc. etc.

6. Kitchen equipment.

Knives, knife sharpeners, bamboo sushi mats, cutting boards, zesters, storage bins, sprouting jars, compost bins, dehydrators (hahaha, asa pa!). Sky's the limit!

7. Raw food demos.

Sponsor a raw friend's food demo. Or take a class yourself and surprise him/her with your new raw-mazing kitchen skills! Lessons by Bahay Kalipay (I heard they are coming back to Manila in January!) and Dahon Kusina.

What other gift ideas rawk? Let me know!! In the subject line, write "Rawkin' Gift Ideas for your Raw Friends". Please include your full name and delivery address. For condo addresses, please inform guards to accept items on delivery. Deadline for entries is December 31st, 2010 :)

The best response wins a set of 3 pieces of item #5 (Potted herbs) AND and a gift certificate in the equivalent amount of your currency (basis will be Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas rates) at a raw restaurant nearest you. A winning entry from overseas (outside the Philippines) will get item #2 (Virgin coconut oil) plus the gift certificate.

This contest has expired.

Strawberry-Banana Ice Cream

2010-12-04T16:19:00.000-08:00

Watch Ortrud as she demos strawberry-banana ice cream on the Vitamix Blender.

I have since gotten a Vita-Mix blender for myself and I can tell you that this is a great way to rupture the walls of the plant cells in the greens that go in your green smoothies, enabling your body to digest the greens better. (Thank you to Victoria Boutenko for her research on this!)

Let's say you are blending wheat grass with some saba bananas for your breakfast smoothie. If you make two batches, one in your regular blender, and one in your Vita-Mix, you will see the difference. Your regular blender will have little pieces of wheatgrass floating around while your Vita-Mix concoction will have a smooth consistency.

I have wanted a Vita-Mix for so long that I considered asking my sister to buy it for me when she was in the States a few months ago, but I found Ortrud Ting Yao on Google and decided to go with her. It was a little frustrating to get the Vita-Mix on my first attempt because their credit card machine was offline, thereby setting me back by about a week to get it (no worries; it wasn't their fault!) but I can tell you that the wait was definitely worth it!

Is a Vita-Mix blender a kitchen essential for the raw foodie?

This is debatable. Most raw foodies will say you don't need one. If your blender has a "pulse" setting, they will recommend that you use this to blend ingredients well. A regular blender will do.

I personally wanted one for myself because I have used my regular blender at least twice a day for several months now and it gets pretty warm even without running for very long. I didn't want to replace a blender every few months, and I wasn't about to give up my green smoothies. :) Also, the blades of my regular blender wore out in a few months and the greens just ended up moving around in little pieces. Prior to ever considering raw, a vegan blogger I followed recommended it. The promise of a 7-year warranty and was what ultimately sealed the deal.

So it's really up to you! :) I just really like mine :)

12/06/2010

P.S.

Here's a great tip I got from Asha Peri, a raw foodie who runs Dahon Kusina and Creative Space: Use a rubber spatula to scrape the sides of your Vita-Mix so that you prolong the life of your blades.

Happy Birthday Sergei Boutenko!

2010-11-28T07:09:00.000-08:00

Belated happy birthday to Sergei Boutenko! To honor his birthday wish, I am posting his original Green Smoothies video:

What benefits have you experienced after starting a green smoothies habit? Mine are: more energy and no more cravings for Tropical Hut hamburger and Via Mare's fried crispy dilis, vinegar, scrambled egg and white rice. (I only started craving these when I went raw. I never craved these things the year I was vegan and eating mostly cooked food. I never even craved hamburgers the whole time I was vegetarian!) When I stopped craving these foods, I was better able to stay on raw for much longer.

Let me explain. I had made three attempts to go raw in the past. (Two of the three were 99% raw attempts, with only condiments and nori being the only cooked food I consumed) Once in 2008 or 09, when I took my first raw food class, I thought I’d give raw a chance. The raw food class however, was offered by vegetarians who used raw food merely for detox – they never really encouraged going raw full time. I wanted to try going raw full time, but by the time I hit my second week, I was dreaming of eating some childhood favorite meat treats.

I made another attempt early this year, but then it happened again! I was craving meat after my second week. I gave in to the craving and tried eating chicken. Since I was vegetarian for a long time, I could not eat meat without tasting blood. Seriously. Even if it was cooked well enough, I could actually taste it. If bloody taste wasn’t the issue, it was something else, like the meat feeling like carcass. Organic, free-range chicken was a big improvement to non-organic, but the bloody taste was still there. This led me to try kosher meat for the first time. I enjoyed it immensely (no bloody taste, no carcass texture) but it also meant spending a lot more just to keep up the better-tasting meat fix.

When I discovered some health issues in early August, I knew I needed to make a decision. I prayerfully considered going high-raw full-time, which meant really seeking help and not just Googling piecemeal information.

This time, I decided that I would go high-raw instead of 100% raw. I asked for support from family and close friends. I asked God for supernatural help to stay on course and not give in to food cravings. Without any fanfare about my decision, friends, colleagues and acquaintances started forwarding me seminar info for short raw seminars. Most people I met who heard that I was going raw were encouraging. I can count the fingers on one hand those who blatantly challenged my position during that break-in period.

A really good friend saw a post on Facebook I wrote to a contact considering going vegan, and she sent me one of Sergei Boutenko’s Youtube Videos where he mentions green smoothies. I researched a bit more and found Victoria’s book, 12 Steps to Raw Foods: How to End Your Dependency on Cooked Food, which I immediately started reading.

Victoria says that after eating raw for quite some time and experiencing its wondrous benefits, their family hit a plateau, and she felt that even she regressed. This led her to research about what was lacking in her diet: greens, and she found that the tastiest and most efficient way to incorporate greens was to make green smoothies.

The idea of green smoothies was not new to me. I started making smoothies early this year after taking a one-day raw course taught by Aileen de Guzman. Her recipe was perfect for the green smoothie newbie: really yummy, hardly used any water, and used a tolerable amount of greens. (Think 55% fruit, 40% greens, 5% amino acids) It made less than a liter of green smoothie but it was good enough as a stand-alone breakfast item. It did have quite a variety of fruit though. I let other people try the smoothie, and they all liked it! It was perfect for encouraging a few diabetics to get more greens in their diet. The thing was, I did not make them everyday on each of my attempts to go raw.

Victoria’s book paved the way for that aha moment. I was reading about this guy who cured his eczema by eating a completely raw vegan diet, but after a while, he started craving meats. I checked his earlier protocols and found that he was eating mostly fruits, which reminded me of my previous raw diets. I thought I would check to see if the green smoothies would arrest those cravings.

And they did!

These days, my green smoothies are much simpler. The ratio is about 50-50 now. Half fruit, half greens. No added amino acids through flax seeds, no oils, no extraneous ingredients, nada. I try to take into account some rules of raw food combining, and some of the tips Sergei gives in the video as well as tips given by Victoria Boutenko in 12 Steps to Raw. (Although when I’m short on fruit I do break the rules!) I am able to make 2 batches of green smoothies. 1 for breakfast and 1 for dinner, a liter each. Then I also eat more sprouts for lunch, or a snack, or in a green juice. I find that when I eat more greens than fruits, I am able to stave off those irritating cravings. I still haven’t broken into the 60-40 smoothie zone, though. (60% greens, 40% fruit)

All that to say, thank you to Sergei (happy birthday again!) and most especially to your mom, Victoria, for giving me that “aha”! moment. Thank you to my family and friends for your support. And Thank You to God for giving me a chance to take care of my body before it was too late. Thank You for allowing me go beyond just two weeks of high-raw. To You be all the glory!

12/06/2010

P.S.

Just a reminder:

When you make your nutrition-dense green smoothie, plan to enjoy it by itself; do not drink it as an accompaniment to your meal. If you mix it with food that does not combine well with it, your stomach will hate you for it. To be on the safe side, it is best to have your smoothie on an empty stomach. :) I take my first smoothie 30 minutes after I take calamansi water in the morning, and my second smoothie when I get home from work :).

Happy Turkey Day!

2010-11-25T04:27:00.000-08:00

How many turkeys are happy they won't be eaten by the vegans today :)?

Have you ever eaten Tofurky? I loved it! But I sadly can't eat it anymore. (Soy is an allergen for me, plus it doesn't really go with the raw lifestyle I want for myself.)

Have you ever been invited to a dinner and the family who invited you made or bought something special just for you? (Shout out to to the Scrantons in Federal Way, WA and the Birds also in Federal Way, WA!)

How are you celebrating your raw Thanksgiving? What kind of menu will you have? I'm obviously not celebrating Thanksgiving here in the Philippines, but it's nice thinking about the creative lengths people will go to celebrate the holiday somehow.

So many things to be thankful for! May every day be a day of giving thanks.

Pinoy Organics at Mercato Centrale at Bonifacio Global City

2010-11-19T17:43:00.000-08:00

Ladies and gents, if you are able to drop by Mercato Centrale at Bonifacio Global City tomorrow, look for Pinoy Organics at Tent 1. I am grateful to Jhoey of Pinoy Organics for hooking me up with the sprout people (they sell alfalfa, bean, and mustard sprouts) at Alabang Country Club market. Jhoey's Market-to-Plate tour also helped me figure out which herbs to use for making delicious pineapple smoothies. Jhoey says the market runs from Saturdays and Sundays till Feb 11, 2010.

Mercato Centrale at Bonifacio Global City : PINOY ORGANICS

www.pinoyorganics.com

The Vitamix Blender

2010-11-18T04:36:00.000-08:00

A lot of vegans (especially the raw vegans who enjoy live green smoothies) swear by it. If you would like to see for yourself what the fuss is about regarding the Rolls Royce of high-speed blenders - head to the Serendra Christmas bazaar on November 21st for your free live demo!

Credit cards accepted.

Thank you to Ortrud Ting for the tip!

Search Amazon.com for vitamix blenders tnc

Floral Feast at SM Mall of Asia

2010-11-17T02:04:00.000-08:00

Head on over to the atrium section of SM Mall of Asia to check out the Met traveling exhibit of Fr. Manuel Blanco's lithographs of Philippine flowers!

Here's one of a red santan. I love it! We still have a red santan bush from my childhood and it still brings back memories of my playmates and I eating the sap. Don't laugh. You did it too! Aminin!

The exhibit is there for another week before it moves to SM Megamall.

Contact the Met for more info.

I hardly ever go to MOA, but I so appreciate their free wi-fi!

Kudos to Seoul Seoul!

2010-11-06T04:36:00.000-07:00

Seoul Seoul, located on Madrigal Avenue, ATC, indulged my request to have a raw entree. Though not necessarily on their menu, they gave me a delicious combo of their fermented veggies plus some fresh toge with sesame oil and special salt.

Incidentally, there is a new Seoul Seoul Korean-Japanese food mart nearby and was able to get wakame and some nori.

I did not get to take a photo of the meal though. :( Must. be. more alert next time! :)

Why am I not hungry?

2010-11-01T05:05:00.000-07:00

Is this normal for a raw foodie?

October harvest!

2010-10-31T21:03:00.000-07:00

Chili Peppers from the garden! Watch out, hantik!

Sergei's Raw Food Kids video

2010-10-24T20:50:00.000-07:00

I am reading Victoria Boutenko's book, 12 Steps to Raw, and a really good friend forwarded this link to me. She didn't know I was reading the book, but she knows I am exploring going high-raw to address some health issues. Sergei happens to be Victoria's son, who had diabetes before the entire family shifted to an all-raw diet. Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cd1Z4snq2Jo

Vegetarian Celebration

2010-09-17T15:56:00.001-07:00

World vegetarian month is around the corner! Come join a discussion group for local celebrations! Drop me a line at gulaygirl10 at gmail dot com.

Vegan Buffet!

2010-09-03T17:12:00.000-07:00

There is a vegan buffet on September 22. Kita kits?

http://www.facebook.com/#!/photo.php?pid=340740&id=122198197807611&fbid=147967898563974&ref=nf

Chili Peppers!

2010-08-27T03:36:00.000-07:00

E planted these chili peppers and now I have my raw material to make homemade organic pesticide! Thanks E!

She also waters my herbs with rice wash when I'm away. Yay for garden helpers!

Contest time!

2010-08-15T00:05:00.000-07:00

Do you keep a plant on your office desk? What kind is it and how do you keep it alive? Is it low or high maintenance?

The best response wins 3 kinds of herbs to start a mini-garden!

Contest is open to Metro Manila residents only.

Mechanics:

Email gulaygirl10 AT gmail DOT com a photo of your plant on your office desk, a description of its maintenance, and your preferred time for delivery at your delivery address. Include your name and cell number.

One entry per contestant. Forward this post to your friends!

Note: the plant prizes are outdoor plants, not desk plants.

Full-time Gardener Needed!

2010-07-22T01:16:00.000-07:00

I am searching for an honest, hardworking farmhand to work on our suburban garden in Alabang full-time.
Applicant must have farm experience (organic or non-organic), must be from Northern Luzon (preferably), must be willing to undergo additional training for organic farming, and should be willing to relocate to Muntinlupa.

Please email resume to:
gulaygirl AT gmail DOT com

Raw food

2010-07-19T23:16:00.000-07:00

Hey all!

Are you interested in attending a raw food prep class? I have been raw on and off since last year - mostly to get the health benefits! I've met a few people who've become healthier just going on high raw, and they inspire me to keep going!

Portabello burgers. Yummy. These taste really good, even for non-raw foodies!

Basyang

2010-07-19T23:04:00.001-07:00

How'd your garden fare during Basyang?

Grass trimmer

2010-07-19T23:03:00.000-07:00

I am officially scouring the market for a grass trimmer and/or gardening shears!!!

Direct Soil Incorporation

2010-06-20T05:07:00.000-07:00

I am unable to tend to my compost daily, so like I said in a previous post, I keep my organic compostables (all plant material except for human hair and fingernails) in covered catchall jars, then empty them once a week. For my purposes, the easiest and most hassle-free composting method is direct soil incorporation. I am also not in a hurry to plant in this part of the garden, so a slow rehab is really what I'm planning.

Here's what I do:

I dig a hole about 8 inches deep, empty all the compostables into it, then, completely cover the hole with the soil I dug out. I do not water any of the covered compost holes (I started in sunny April) but the official rainy season has started (It's June now) and they've been getting a steady supply of rainwater since then. The grass nearby is growing rapidly and I am pleasantly surprised. (Note to self: must mow the grass soon.) I was expecting results to come in next year (our soil is really in dire need of rehabilitation), but this early, I'm seeing signs of improvement. We even have a new visitor to our garden. Is s/he here to stay?

If it's a sunny day, as soon as I open the catchalls, flies are ready to get at the waste. I empty the containers as fast as I can, then immediately cover up the waste with the soil. Then the flies have a party by the containers unless they are rinsed immediately. On a rainy day, it's much easier to dig the pit and not have any of the flies bother me. Ooh, I so love the rain! And gardening in the rain!

And that's it! I let the items just decompose on their own.

Since there isn't much oxygen involved, it may seem like the nutrients will be considerably less, than if I do basket-open-air composting or turn composting. However, this is the most convenient method for me given my schedule, and the fact that I don't want to unnaturally control the flies.

Anyone else out there doing direct soil incorporation? Anyone noticing dramatic changes in your soil/garden?

How about the basket-open air composters/turn composters/vermicomposters? Any violent reactions? :)

Guess who decided to stop by?

2010-06-09T07:36:00.000-07:00

Aside from the pesky ants, guess who dropped by the garden?

A bayawak! Woohoo!!! (For my readers abroad, that's a kind of endangered monitor lizard) I'm really excited about this development because I'm assuming that the lizard finds the garden a great place to hang out in. I feel even more convinced that composting the slow way (direct soil incorporation) is the way to go. I had the opportunity a few weeks ago to do something to speed up the fertilization process, but I opted to go slow and natural. I love that our endangered friends are appreciating it!

By the way, I'm a little scared to come up close to the bayawak. This gal even had her picture taken by one. Sorry, but not for me, thank you. Maybe I'll be able to take a picture of it one day.

I was a little concerned that Mr. Lonely (the free-range rooster) was going to have a hard time dealing with the lizard, but he's a bit of a bully and will probably make his presence felt. I am glad we don't have any chicks because bayawak like to prey on the hapless little things.

Trivia: When I did my immersion in Pampanga for college, my host family (the dad was Aeta/"kulot", the mom was from the lowlands/"unat") wanted to feed me bayawak. I'm super glad they weren't able to catch any. I didn't realize they were endangered until now. :( Click here for an article on the bayawak recently appearing on the endangered species list.

An epiphany: I don't want to get rid of the ants anymore. I just want to keep them away from the vegetables.

Ants on the ground, ants on the ground...

2010-06-06T04:39:00.000-07:00

I've noticed a lot of ants among the plants lately - some of them are attacking my sweet basil :(.

I want to keep them away, but only using organic pesticides.

Which organic pesticides (homemade or store-bought) have you used for your plants?

Independence Day Iron Chef White House

2010-05-31T19:37:00.000-07:00

Mark your planners! June 12th, 8:30pm (Lifestyle Network) is the Philippine premiere of Iron Chef White House!

Watch Filipina Chef Cristeta Pasia Comerford team up with Bobby Flay, versus Emeril Lagasse and Mario Batali to cook dishes out of the White House organic backyard garden.

Don't Shock Your Plants!

2010-05-28T02:40:00.000-07:00

The plants probably enjoyed the heat the past few days, but I was so ready to welcome the rain today! Hooray, rain!

I used to avoid gardening before 4pm because it was just too hot. After speaking with a few farmers from the north, I now realize that my selfish reason for waiting until it was much cooler, was good for the plants too!

According to James Amparo, who is encouraging other farmers to use organic fertilizer, the best time to water plants is before 9am and after 4pm, (I'm speaking Philippine time here; can't really speak for other climate zones) to prevent "shock". This also explains why farmers get up really early to tend to the farm then "take a break" during the hotter parts of the day, then resume when the temperature goes down. Jhoey from Pinoy Organics has a pretty good analogy for it: A glass container kept in a freezer breaks when hot water is poured into it. James adds that if you see a plant that is withering, let it be, then only water it outside of the 9am-4pm window.

Plants do have an internal heat shock system, but they can only take so much stress. And let's not forget the gardener!

An inspiring thought...(for me at least!)

2010-05-24T06:51:00.000-07:00

A few years ago, I drove 256+ miles with some friends to Tonasket, WA to visit my aunt and uncle's farm. My friends still beg me to take them there. They even ask me if the farm is rented out because they want to go even if I don't accompany them! That was how relaxing, peaceful and beautiful our stay was. Farming is hard work, but you could hardly see the stress in my aunt's face. That made such an impression on us. We all loved our jobs, but it was nice to think about what it would be like to live away from the city and on that gorgeous apple farm and lakehouse.

The lakehouse :)

Rows of trees :)

Canada is just beyond the lake :)

For the time being, I'm perfectly happy being a part-time suburban gardener. But who knows? Maybe I'll farm someday :)

Market-to-Plate Tour Launch May 22, 2010

2010-05-20T01:39:00.001-07:00

Southern gardeners, (or gardeners not from the south who want to take a trip on down)

I am attending this event by Pinoy Organics and Feed 5000. There is a market tour, followed by a cooking demo by Chef Len Santos. Based on the info I've gathered at the site, it seems like a way to connect participants to sources of organic produce, such as rice, at market prices. It's good marketing. (Sorry for the pun) I don't really mind falling for it though - just as long as I get the info on where the herbs and other produce are!

I don't know the organizers personally, but I think it would be great to come since the fee is P1000 and it includes materials and the food tour. What it doesn't include is gardening materials if you want to get your hands dirty. I am bringing my own! I do know that my contact at Pinoy Organics is "Jhoey", and that s/he will be part of the tour, and that a few people attending aren't familiar with BF, hence the many changes to the meeting venue. I'm not posting those here as they are subject to change. Anyway, come!

Avocado-banana dessert

2010-05-17T06:56:00.000-07:00

I was planning to make a smoothie, but I discovered I was out of almond nut milk!
What I made instead was a sugar-free dessert that tided me over to lunch!

Avocado-Banana Dessert

1 organic avocado

1 super ripe banana

Place in a blender then serve immediately. Makes one "creamy" serving.

My To Do List

2010-05-13T07:49:00.000-07:00

#1 Grow garlic, hot peppers, and pechay.

I want the first two items on my list so I can make a homemade organic pesticide! I'm posting this so I can be accountable!

Juices and Smoothies (Book Review)

2010-05-12T02:35:00.000-07:00

If you are juicing and making smoothies for the first time, the best book I would recommend to you is Juices and Smoothies, published by Hamlyn. On its front cover, it says it is the No.1 bestseller, and it's not difficult to see why.

One of my frustrations with books on juices and smoothies is that the ingredients listed are often specific to the US. Though published in the UK, the recipes in the book call for ingredients easily found in the Philippines and US. The recipes don't use the metric system, but blenders often come with the US system anyway.

There are two types of indices: Index of Juices and Smoothies, and Index of Ingredients. It is perfect for me because we usually get an assortment of fruits regularly, but I would rather not pore through a thick cookbook and figure out which of my fruits and veggies can be juiced or processed at any given time. I want to start with what I have then find the recipe ASAP. No problemo with Juices and Smoothies.

If you are wondering, I use a simple Philips juicer and an Oster blender. I am very intrigued by the Matstone juicer and the Vitamix Blender though. I've heard really good recommendations on both.

Jars as a catchall to keep organic compost

2010-05-12T01:38:00.000-07:00

Sandwiches and sandwich spread? Nope! These are my pre-composting containers (PCC) ha! :)

A housemate who was into organic composting kept jars as catchalls for her organic scraps. She was a meat-eater so her jar didn't fill up quickly.

In contrast, I, a veggie lover, have two days worth of scraps in several containers already! These get emptied when I have the time to bring it to the composting site, which is once a week.

What I put in:

Anything leftover from food prep. If I prepare kangkong, the stalks go in. If I'm juicing fruit, the peels, seeds and the leftover pulp goes in. I've also put it in hair, fingernails and eggshells. If it's hair, I usually include the paper that I wrap it in. Have you tried keeping organic scraps for future composting? Send me your pictures!

Howdy!

2010-05-12T00:23:00.000-07:00

I am really excited to start organic gardening!

We have always had our garden in Alabang, but I never took an interest in it until I started to go hardcore vegetarian, which was 2008. I was vegan, living in Medina, WA, and I had a housemate who was into organic composting. She was into green smoothies and making salads, all with ingredients from her garden, while I made most of mine from produce from the grocery. (I wasn't even into smoothies then!) Then a few other friends in the Seattle area showed me lovely, pesticide-free produce from their backyard vegetable gardens. While teaching at a Montessori school, I met parents and colleagues who were into organic products and farmer's markets.

It was only recently that I discovered how enjoyable it is to feel the soil in my hands, being out with Vaughn (our half Belgian-mastiff, half-Doberman), watching him eat mangoes and macopa (yes, he loves fruit!).

Right now there are parts of the garden that need to be rehabilitated because of some soil problems. It has become a bit rocky and sandy. For those parts, I've begun direct soil incorporation organic composting.

In this blog, I'll posting about how I am getting my garden started, the bugs along the way, troubleshooting, updates on the soil rehab project, and just the sheer enjoyment of being outdoors in 90-degree weather all year round!

See ya around :)

Gulay Girl

2010-05-11T22:12:00.000-07:00

Hi there! I started to compost last month! Once I get my camera in working order, I'll be posting pictures!

Gulay Girl