Raw Feast

For my brother's birthday I made (with help from my sous chef, Josh) a wonderful raw feast, Italian style (my brother's request). We had zucchini pesto, zucchini ratatouille, spinach caesar salad, black pepper cashew cheese, olive tapinade, no-wheat thin crackers, and for dessert, delicious brazil nut coconut chocolate things.

What I LOVED was that I created a meal for all non-raw folks that not only filled them up, but they actually LOVED it. There were seconds had and fingers licked and I even had some leftovers (I always worry that non-raw folks won't feel filled up enough). I am enjoying the raw journey more and more.

Josh and I are seriously investigating catering in our near future. I am perfecting and trying out several recipes from all the cookbooks and online recipe sites (my new favorite is Gone Raw!)I'm making the leap to a Champion Juicer and Excalibur Dehydrator, and maybe even a nut milk bag!

I feel good about how I am transitioning. I feel really empowered by the food I am preparing and the alternatives to cooked food that are easily available. Sure, I'll probably eventually go back to simple eating, but raw doughnuts, cinnamon buns, burgers, etc. are nice foods while I make the full switch.

Josh and I went down to San Fran last weekend and I was obsessed with going to Cafe Gratitude since I haven't been there since I've been raw. Man, it's AMAZING. The food is so delicious and made with so much love that I couldn't get enough. I bought the prepbook because I simply didn't have a big enough stomach to hold all the things I wanted to order. Their smoothies are out of this world. We have a very simple raw life at this point, and it keeps us sane, but I do enjoy some crackers and desserts every once in a while so it's nice to have the book to give us ideas.

I also just felt AWESOME being there. Seeing raw food be treated as "normal" made my blood pressure lower. I felt like just myself, not "Becca, the raw foodist". I loved that. In Seattle a few more restaurants are opening up and I hope to offer some catering and delivery food options myself. The community seems bigger and more energetic so I'm eager to see where we can take it.

I'm also in process of applying to be on the Raw Washington Board. This is a big step. I really enjoy raw food and think everyone should at least have a chance to learn about the benefits of raw food and this is a good way to keep me engaged in that process. Plus, it keeps me connected to people who share similar eating habits and I can feel more relaxed about my food, focusing more on the issues at hand.

I had a GREAT Reiki session yesterday and it has been a while since I last had one and this time it felt so much different. I have to attribute that to the fact that I feel way clearer in my body (due to raw food) and so I believe energy moves through me much easier. Lots of things are on the horizon for me and my community and I really look forward to the unfolding ahead of us. Raw food rocks.