rawktober: day ten

Today is just one of those days- comfort food. Here's a comic for you while I get back to polishing off my tray of raw brownies. What is your favourite comfort food?

Source: Some genius at poorlydrawnlines.com.

rawktober: day five

I know my posts have been a day or two behind schedule but hey, it's hard to post every day! With school work and the raw food prep (and getting offered free, good-quality beer?) I've been doing, I hope you can understand.

     I feel like I need to tackle the issue of going out whilst on a raw food diet. Yesterday was my childhood best friend's birthday, to be celebrated at the infamous Cactus Club restaurant, and I was faced with the unavoidable scenario of having to go out for dinner with him and his friends. Although I felt uneasy at first, I decided that I couldn't simply chicken out - he would appreciate my coming even if I didn't participate in the eating (which saved me some $$$ too!). So, I ate a big raw dinner before he picked me up, and simply conversed sat at the table with his friends without ordering anything. I sensed out the crowd and, feeling like they wouldn't be the most open to my lifestyle, decided not to talk about my "weird" vegan diet, not to mention my month of raw foods. Conversely, my best friend, who told me is awfully impressed with my rawktober challenge, chose to flaunt it for me. "Olivia's vegan, and she's only eating raw food," he gloated for me. The girl sitting across looked up at me from her burger - wiping a drip of mayo off her chin, - uttered "ew," and continued eating. 

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NEVER WASTE YOUR TIME TRYING TO EXPLAIN WHO YOU ARE TO PEOPLE WHO ARE COMMITTED TO MISUNDERSTANDING YOU.

dream hampton

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Now, I'm not saying that we should hide behind the safety of our blenders at home and avoid any potential such situation! Don't let the fact that you choose not to eat certain foods restrict you from going out with friends to restaurants. If appropriate, use it as a tool to inspire others and share your knowledge and experiences. On the other hand, there are simply (and this is the sad truth) some people who chose not to open up to novelties in terms of eating. I could rant about this for hours, referring to more traditional folks like [my] relatives or some a**holes whose life goal seems to be to put every vegetarian down, but I just ran out of carrots to snack on and I'm getting antsy.

chocolate & vanilla kale smoothie variations

When you can't decide on breakfast, have it all - a saying I live by. The other day, I decided to have raw crepes, raw buckwheat cereal, a smoothie, and a raw bagel with avocado mash for breakfast. 

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EAT BREAKFAST LIKE A KING, LUNCH LIKE A PRINCE, AND DINNER LIKE A PAUPER. 

adelle davis

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Okay so maybe I haven't been entirely true to that statement lately-- I feel as though I've been dining majestically at all meals. But hey, who's to judge? Either way, part of today's breakfast included some smoothies that I never thought of trying before. You see, usually when I think of smoothies, I think of loading in everything I can to make it the most nutrition-packed green goodness possible. I guess "keeping it simple" never crossed my mind, even though I've heard claims that the simplest smoothies are, in fact, the tastiest. Halfway through my blending this morning, I decided to pour out some of my original smoothie into a cup, and add a few more ingredients to the rest to test out a few new flavours. The verdict? Heaven. And for those of you who aren't completely in love with kale (yet) like I am, great news: You can't even taste it!

Note: don't question the kiwi, just throw it in. You can thank me later ;)

The recipes: 

Make one cup of thick smoothie each, or 2 cups thin (if you dilute it with some more milk)

Basic vanilla shake

1 cup kale

1 cup non-dairy milk

1 banana

1 tsp vanilla

pinch of cardamom

sweetener, to taste

Chocolate kiwi shake

1 cup kale

1 cup non-dairy milk

1 banana

1 kiwi

1 tsp vanilla

1 tbsp cacao

pinch of nutmeg

sweetener, to taste

Blend together, pour into glasses, and savour the deliciousness. 

sweet & sour portobello "steak" and cauliflower/carrot mash

Based off Quiche-a-week's delicious recipe. Details to come!

pre-cleanse

I need to reconnect with my body. I've been feeling detached.

With the stress of finals and long hours of studying, I need to start feeding my body good food and good energy as opposed to the vegan muffins, cookies, and rice krispie bars I've been stuffing myself with every day. Yep. I go to a lovely, cozy coffee shop to study every time exam period starts. The only problem? Their delicious vegan goodies. The first few days of going there I just get myself the usual tea. Then, I start up the habit of a muffin a day. A few days later? You guessed it, I've added on a peanut butter stuffed chocolate chip cookies for good measure. Not to mention, a few days ago, I began to add their yummy matcha rice krispie squares to the tally as well. 

When I'm studying, I eat to distract myself. I eat for comfort, and I eat because I convince myself that my brain will work better if I reward myself. But these rewards -- continuing daily for the past 2 weeks -- are costing me my health, energy, and mood. Squeezing in a light workout at the gym a few times a week won't cut it, and otherwise, I've hardly moved my arse an inch, to say the least. It's time for a change.