going raw

My newest health kick has been to eat more raw food...I sort of became obsessed for awhile reading all I could online and looking at all kinds of recipes...there is so much out there. It was actually a bit overwhelming but I have found a few recipes I really like and make regularly.

The whole idea is that eating foods in their natural state, raw, is healthier and easier for our bodies to digest and use. Once a food is cooked or heated to a certain temperature the natural enzymes are destroyed and therefore your body isn't able to use those enzymes for proper digestion. I have read different numbers as far as the temperature goes...anywhere between 105-118 degrees seems to be the number. Here are some good websites to help you get started and answer the questions you will have:

Beautiful On Raw
Eat Raw
Rawmazing

Studies have shown that eating a raw food diet can reduce your risk for cancer and can aid in the treatment for fighting cancer. Raw foodists also have a lower chance of having any kind of cardiovascular problems. If the SAD (standard american diet) is linked to causing all the heart disease, diabetes, obesity, cancer, etc, then the best thing to do is stay as far away from the SAD as possible, right? I'm thinking eating more raw food is the complete opposite of SAD and the road I want to be on as far as lowering my risk of those health issues for me and my family.

Why not eat our food the way God created it? We are always messing with things trying to make it better, particularly to food, adding so many other ingredients (I suppose to make it taste better) that the original nutrition in the food item gets lost and often times the food item itself isn't even recognizable anymore.

I don't have a desire to go 100% raw...for me that would be impossible. My personal goal is to make all of our snack foods raw and more raw side dishes for meals. So maybe that would equal out to about 50-75%. Combined with the shakes we've been having...I'd say thats good for me. It is definitely hard to get used to it and to get used to such a different way of cooking/baking. I do like using the food dehydratoer and I am still experimenting with different recipes finding what we like.

You can be a lazy raw foodie by basically just eating an apple with lunch or more salads with dinner, or you can go all out and start sprouting/soaking your nuts and seeds. Start using the food dehydrator to create all kinds of unique desserts and even make your own crackers and chips. However you choose to do it...just eat more raw.

It just makes sense to me...why cook your apples, when you can just pop an apple in the blender, add some cinnamon, coconut and dates...and in about 30 seconds you have tasty, nutritious, applesauce:)

You'll see...the results will be RAWsome!

* just wanted to mention that, although I wish I had, I did not make the raw blueberry peace pie. I actually couldn't find the recipe for that particular pie, but this raw blueberry pie recipe

seems pretty simple.