Closing up shop

I am writing to you today from Bobolink Dairy in New Jersey, where the roosters are crowing and the cows starting to munch on the first small grasses of the spring. As of March I have taken a position as a farm intern/cheesemaking apprentice.

I am milking pasture-raised cows who live off a 100% grass-fed diet (that's Maria to the right), baking rustic breads made from organic flour in a wood-fired oven and generally partaking in the life of the new American family farm.

My Project Raw is officially over. The experiment has forever changed how I enjoy food, and has only fanned the flame in pursuit of good, whole, healthy, pure, delicious, fresh, local, real foods. Many thanks to those who have shared their green smoothie excitement over the past year--I will always love them, too!

Cheers and happiness to you all,
xoRebecca

Raw January: Day 28

Today was a great one--the normal smoothie and salad kind of day. Are you guys bored when I don't make gourmet stuff? Because I usually prefer things that are essential fruits and veggies--pile on a salad with all that stuff and give it to me, and I am happy.

I also made sure to take my remaining bit of St. Johns Wort, which I usually dilute in water. It gives it a floral taste and supposedly promotes emotional wellbeing. Well, my emotions were quite even and positive today, so maybe it works!

10:00 am - 1:30 pm
Bare Bones Green Smoothie: water, collard greens, pineapple. 1 quart.

1:00 pm
Some crappy rice chips I thought looked semi-healthy but probably aren't.

4:30 pm
Salad! Red romaine, baby leaf spinach, red onion, carrot, avocado, mustard, green onion, cucumber, tiny bit of yogurt and bleu cheese

5:00 pm
Cinnamon Apple Tea, Celestial Seasonings style.

6:45 pm
Water with St. Johns Wort
Raw chocolate 78% with Cacao Nibs--the best ever.
8:00 pm
White tea, a Numi brand

Raw January: Day 24, Pudding!

Woo, sorry about that blip. I have been making some really awesome stuff lately.

FOR EXAMPLE: Raw Chocolate Pudding.

I was never a pudding fan before I started eating more raw food, BUT there is something to be said for eating something raw that is made from 100% good-for-you whole foods and it tastes like the real thing. It's really hard sometimes to find raw desserts that don't use dates and nuts in them, so this was really refreshing and chocolatey.

I sort of made this up by taste so I'm not sure of the exact measurements.

Recipe: Rich Chocolate Pudding with Berries

Ingredients:
- 2 young Thai coconuts
- 1/2 cup leftover Raw Hot Chocolate
- 2 tbs raw cacao powder
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1-2 tbs agave nectar or other sweetener
- 1/4 c pure water or coconut water
- Handful raspberries
- pinch salt

Directions:
The first hurdle is conquering your coconuts. There are many ways to open one up. I prefer to drain out all the coconut water through one punctured hole, and then open it up like this. It's really not very difficult; it just takes some persistence. Scoop out all the coconut meat and remove any of the wood-like bits.

Get out a blender and pour your pure water/coconut water and leftover Raw Hot Chocolate mixture in with all the coconut meat and mix it up for 1-2 minutes until it's smooth. Add your remaining ingredients EXCEPT for the berries and blend that on high. You're looking to get it as smooth as possible, and a little whipped/frothy. Taste it and add more agave if it's not sweet enough.

Chill for a half hour or so before serving with some berries of your choice, or some chopped mint leaves. Raspberries are a natural combo with chocolate. It's still good all alone though!

I also made a cauliflower mashed potato recipe that was really tasty and the PERFECT consistency. But I want to try a gravy of some kind and spiff up the spices a little better before I share it. Here's a photo!

Food today! I'm eating very little because I'm not doing much except sitting around doing things on the computer today. I did a half hour of Wii Fit and drove the car for 20 minutes, so I'm not at the pinnacle of energy use today. My sleep is totally normalizing now that I'm not eating after 8, which I will continue.

I'm trying to eat more greens, but the grocery stores are so pathetic it's hard for me to muster any desire to buy their wilty kale. I'm moving to Pittsburgh for a little while, so I'll certainly have my pick of grocery stores there.

11:00 am
Handful blueberries

4:00 pm
Green smoothie, water, baby spinach, collard greens, pineapple, and frozen peaches.

7:15 pm
Cesar salad (romaine, garlic, olive oil, cured anchovies (not mine), raw egg, salt)
Little bit of bread and butter and two broccoli-stuffed ravioli with homegrown red tomato sauce (not raw!)
Rich Chocolate Pudding! sogood

Raw January: Day 17

Woo! I am completely swamped with work! I have been eating a lot of pomegranates (DELICIOUS) and smoothies.

I promise raw blog will return after next week!

We're making our own cured salmon...

Raw January: Day 16

Today I made raw hot chocolate! Are you in disbelief?

"How can it be as creamy?"
"How can that be raw?"
"How is it HOT?"

Delectable, easy, delicious and chocolatey... I'm pleased to be able to present this recipe directly from Meredith's store of gourmet raw fixes. She never fails to delight me with her creativity in food.

Not only is it nourishing with cashew milk (only about 80 calories per cup and with all those good fats and nut proteins), raw cacao is just about my favorite thing. Not to mention that during winter, it's ever-so-desirable to have a warm mug in your hand.

Even when you're raw you can eat things that are hot. Well, maybe not HOT-hot, but warmed. A drink that's 110-115 degrees is still plenty warm to be satisfying after coming in from the snow!

Recipe: Hot Cocoa, courtesy of The Raw Seed

Ingredients:
32 ounces of cashew milk
4 heaping tbs of raw cacao
1/4 cup raw agave, raw honey, or other sweetener of your choice
1/2 tsp ground vanilla bean (optional)
1 tsp salt
1 tbs vanilla extract

1. To make cashew milk, blend 1 cup of soaked cashews with 4 cups of pure water for 1-2 minutes. Pour mixture through a nutmilk bag or kneehigh pantyhose to remove all pulp, squeeze until the pulp is dry and you are left with delicious cashew milk.

2. Pour cashew milk back into a high-power blender, add remaining ingredients and blend for 15-30 seconds until mixed and frothy.

3. To heat the mixture, place in the dehydrator at a desired temperature or heat carefully on a stovetop while carefully monitoring the temperature. If you can comfortably place your finger in the drink then it is below 118 degrees.

4. Pour warm hot cocoa into your favorite mug and enjoy with your favorite person!

*tips for storing: nut milk can be stored in a glass jar in the refrigerator for up to three days. Shake before each use. Hot cocoa can be made ahead of time and stored in a glass jar for 3 days in the fridge.
*experiment with new flavors of hot cocoa by using almond milk, adding mint leaves, or even blending in coconut, delicious!


I personally would love to use coconut next time, and slightly less cacao. And trust me, I am the type of person that put about three serving packets of Swiss Miss into my cup of cocoa! These ground up cacao nibs are STRONG.

Admittedly, everyone's palette is different, so taste before you commit! I ended up doubling the agave to about a 1/2 cup until it tasted right to me.

Here's something interesting:

My dad and mom both had some of the recipe. My dad immediately felt a rush from the cocoa, which he associated with caffeine. I also felt a rush, and it sort of felt like caffeine--but not with the twitching, the anxiety, or acidity in my stomach. I just felt my face--cheeks--rise red, and felt what I can only call (excuse the clinical term) stimulation.

Looking up details on the amount of caffeine in raw cacao is hard. Some people talk about raw cocoa, which isn't necessarily talking about the pure ground cacao nibs--the most pure form of chocolate, chopped up cocoa beans that have ironically been ROASTED (humans can't digest the cocoa bean without heat!). So I don't know who is talking about what most of the time.

I read that there is about 1/20th the amount of caffeine in raw cacao that there is in a cup of coffee (read: 8 oz). I'm getting this information from my cacao supplier, Gnosis, but I can't vouch for their sources.

The source of the "high" of raw cacao is generally accredited to Theobromine:

Theobromine has a similar effect to caffeine, but is about 10 times weaker. Theobromine has diuretic, stimulant and relaxing effects, and can lower the blood pressure by dilating the blood vessels. Theobromine has stimulant properties, similar to caffeine. However unlike caffeine, theobromine does not affect the central nervous system but instead stimulates the cardiovascular system. Theobromine can also relax bronchi muscles in the lungs and can be used as cough medicine - sudies indicate that theobromine acts on the vagus nerve, which runs from the lungs to the brain.

Interesting...

Meredith also has a recipe for raw marshmallows: check it out!

Raw January: Day 15, Cheese Tragedy

Ugh, I spent all day in anticipation for my raw goat milk chevre cheese. Instead of pasteurizing the milk first, I decided to try a raw fresh milk cheese.

Unfortunately, it did not turn out. What remained after its allotted incubation time could never earn the right to be called curds and whey. I am so bummed I messed up that glorious fresh milk with a mistake I can't pin down. I think I had it incubating at the wrong temperature, since my current thermometer only goes down to 75 degrees. SAD NEWS.

I will try again tomorrow with store-bought, pasteurized cow milk instead. If I'm going to be experimenting and screwing up, it might as well not be on the quality stuff straight from the local goat. Details to come!

I bought some more Mason jars and have re-organized my cabinets! Nuts and flax and coconut all in its place--instead of in plastic.

Also tomorrow I cure some fresh salmon gravlax! Salt-curing is 100% raw, baby (though perhaps should be sparingly eaten in a regular raw diet--so much salt)! Once the whole process is completed, I'll be sure to write a detailed how-to, with brilliant photos.

8:30 am
Little amount of leftover Green Smoothie from yesterday.

10:00 am
Larabar, Lemon. On the go!

1:45 pm
1/2 cucumber, peeled

4:30 pm
Jocolat, Choclate, a new cocoa-filled form Larabar is making. For a quick bite on the go again...

6:00 pm
Caesar salad with romaine and a dressing of fresh lemon, garlic and olive oil with anchovies. I avoided the croutons (not quite raw)
Peas, frozen then boiled (not raw)
Walleye, from a friend who caught it in Lake Erie (no it didn't have three eyes), baked with pepper (not raw)

11:30 pm
A whole bunch of cooked crap at a BBQ place. So much for not eating after 8, right? They had a good raw broccoli slaw with cabbage and carrots. Yummy.
Also a Black Chocolate Stout beer.

Raw January: Day 14

Halfway through the month almost. Can't believe it!

Though I fear this blog has become a horribly awful bore--my eating choices have lacked the wide-eyed novelty of last April's first foray into rawness--I promise to step it up. I've already gotten my hands on a super exciting recipe for DELICIOUS, RAW HOT CHOCOLATE. Coming soon, coming soon.

Having a green smoothie while sitting at a desk working is a great thing. No one really wants to be cooped in an office--or in my case, bedroom/cubicle--but if you are, you might as well be giving yourself some really good stuff. I get so hungry in the early afternoons, I just want to eat like a pile of bread. But the green smoothie is totally satisfying taking your time with it.

It's a quart of greens and fruit, so I often drink a lot of water with it, too. Just because it masquerades as a liquid doesn't mean it's a substitute for water! I read about this one woman once who thought because she's on a raw diet she didn't need to drink water--whoa!

I'm not sure why my smoothie was so "whipped" today. See the little separation marks between the froth and the liquid? I didn't put anything frozen into it, so maybe that's the answer. Still delicious though--and SO many greens in there today.

Despite mixing up the cooked and the raw during these past two weeks, I've lost about 9 pounds already--but I'm still 6 pounds away from what I was when I finished raw last year; Have no fear, I am not wasting away. I've been combining my raw-heavy diet with exercise on Wii Fit, stationary bike, and parading my ancient black lab up and down the road. I am really good at the Hula.

Also, because of my ridiculous sleeping habits the past couple weeks (I was up until 3 again last night), I've decided to try to get my body back on a normal routine. I've decided to stop eating anything after 8pm and trying to eat a little something immediately in the morning to kickstart the beginning of the day. If that doesn't do it, I don't know what will.

I made nettle leaf infusion tonight to drink tomorrow. Check out that video above with Susun Weed. That woman is crazy in love with plants and it's awesome. I'm going to let it sit overnight. It tastes like chlorophyll, but it makes me feel super alert and energetic. Not a bad trade.

8:00 am
Water water, hydration. For some reason I've been so parched these past couple of weeks. I am clearly not getting enough water even though I seem to be lapping it up!

1:30 pm - 3:30 pm
Green Smoothie attack!
Ingredients: Water, Kale, Dandelion, Pineapple, Banana, Carrot-Ginger Juice

5:45 pm
Red Delicious Apple (truly delicious)

6:30 pm
Dinner with the parents, out. They ran out of lettuce (what!). Boca burger with tomato and remaining kitchen's lettuce with ketchup and mustard, half the bun.

8:00 pm
Meredith's Raw Truffles & Cinnamon Apple tea