Raw Ice Cream and Stuffed Shitake Mushroom

Tonight I made raw vanilla ice cream from the recipe in Darma's book. I've had the ice cream at Pure and it is AWESOME. Right now my first batch is chilling in the fridge. Tomorrow I'll put it in my ice cream maker. The hardest part was getting the meat out of the young coconuts. The recipe itself is quite simple - soaked cashews, vanilla extract, vanilla bean seeds, sea salt, purified water and coconut butter. I tasted the unfrozen mixture - it was goooood!

I also made a stuffed shitake mushroom. There is a great little restaurant in Islip - Generation Organics. It's not a raw retaurant, but has a few raw items on the menu. One of my favorite items on the menu is their stuffed shitake mushroom. I marinated the cap of a shitake mushroom in balsamic vinegar. Next I put in the food processor sunflower seeds, cashews, red pepper, tomato, parsley and part of another marinted shitake mushroom. I'm sure I'm missing a few ingredients that Generation Organics uses, but the stuffing tasted pretty good. It will be my lunch tomorrow.

A really great dessert I had recently was made by Arianna who just opened a cafe at Blue Firmament in Rockville Center. Right now the cafe is only open on Saturdays from 11 am to 5 pm. Arianna makes a caramel chocolate pie that is AMAZING. Her speciality is desserts. Arianna is a certified raw chef. She's a wonderful person. I recomment checking out her cafe. She's got lots of good stuff. For her opening, she also made chocolate covered frozen raspberries! WOW Oh, and I cannot forget to mention her banana cream creation. AND her ice cream cake. She makes incredible raw pizza too! Can't say enough good things about her raw creations!

I'm still looking into kombucha. I found a cool websit that has 7-day course on making kombucha that is free. The website is www.getkombucha.com.

Working on Going 100% Raw

Going 100% raw has not been easy for me. I've gotten a lot of support and help from www.rawvolution.com. Their food is awesome!

I've had some setbacks. The holidays were tough and I gave in to all the nasty treats. I'm getting back on track - AGAIN!

I'm looking into Kombucha. I'm thinking about making my own. Any ideas?

Day No. 2

Today is the second day of being almost 100% raw. Breakfast I had a nice juicy peach and later a plum. For lunch I had a wonderful leafy green salad. Tonight I made a nice green juice.

After looking a pictures of myself from the raw vegan hike, I realize I need to do something about my shape. .....round is a shape, isn't it? Well, I'd like to go back on the hike next year and be a before and after! Can I do it? I'll certainly try!

Tomorrow I'll start a new batch of wheatgrass! Maybe sprouts too! Maybe I'll try to make raw ice cream again..... This time I'll remember to put the bowl in the freezer!!!!

I joined some local meetups for hiking today. I'm excited about it. One group does a lot of day hikes on Eastern Long Island. Sounds like a great start for me! There's one this weekend that I'm thinking about doing..........

If I don't go on the hike Saturday, I think I'll get up early and check out the farmer's market in Islip. I've been told to get there early. The raw organic produce sells out fast!

Weekend at the Beach

Well, spent the weekend on the boat at the beach. I tried hard to stay with the raw foods. I had lots of friuts. My husband was waiting to see if I would breakdown and eat meat. The only time I would eat a lot of meat was at the beach BBQing. Well, I got myself veggie burgers!!!! So, I wasn't totally raw, but I had fresh, not frozen, veggie burgers. I also had fruits that I've been dehydrating.

The next time we camp out on the boat, I'll plan better for myself!

Raw Vegan Hike

It's been a while since I posted. I must confess that I did fall off the raw cart for a while, but now I'm back and newly inspired. I came back a week ago from a raw vegan hike - pictures to follow. I backpacked in Oregon for four days with other raw vegans. It was very physically challenging for me. We hiked 30 miles and 3,000 ft vertical. The weather was perfect. Warm during the day and chilly at night. We swam in pristine mountain lakes from by the melting snow! Yes, there was still snow in August! If you want to check out the hike, see www.harmonyhikes.com. Sergei is an awesome young man! His sister, Valya, also went on the hike. I also had the privilege to meet his mother, Victoria. They are wonderful, vibrant people.

I learned new raw recipes from Sergei. I met wonderful people too. My fellow hikers were awesome. Ashland, OR is a cool little town. I got to meet serious hikers doing the Pacific Crest Trail at the hostel I stayed at before and after the hike. I never heard of the PCT before. It is a hike from Mexico to Canada. It can take 5 to 6 months to complete. These hikers have trail names. Three that are memorable are Laces, Good Times and Brit. I enjoyed chatting with them. I know they are still on the trail and wish them much success.

Watch for pictures!

Trusting God

Seems like my family is going thru a lot of trials lately. It can be very discouraging at times, but I have to remember that God has it all under control. At the end of this week, the 30-day notice is up for the guys in my FIL's house. Next we get a court date if they are not out. I know the lesson I've had to learn in this situation is to love my enemies and control my temper. I hear myself saying quite often ".....yeah, but, you don't mess with family!!!!" That's my justification for my temper. I need to sit back and be quiet and think to myself, "....yeah, but, you don't mess with God!!!!" Showing mercy to those that hurt us is hard, but it is not me they ulitmately have to answer to. God has shown me a lot of mercy. Now I need to practice it. Not that I'm to be a door mat, but these two guys living in my FIL's house are just lost souls with drug and alcohol issues. They think they are getting one over on us. I feel sorry for them. They are too young to be throwing their lives away like this.

Next is my financial situation. It's ugly and that's all I'm going to say about that. I know that God is my supplier.

And on a lighter note.......I'm down 32 lbs. I've been a bit naughty. Darn those chocolate cadbury mini eggs! Today I'm back on track. Three more pounds and I'll be at my halfway mark. Pretty amazing!

Where is the Weight Going?

I weighed myself again today. I'm down 26 lbs! I am NOT hungry. I don't binge and I don't have cravings. It is truly amazing. I have never been able to lose weight on my own. I did Jenny Craig over the years twice with great success, but I would slowly put the weight back on.

This morning I was really stressing about the dead beats in my FIL's house. I've calmed down - thanks to Sally aka Justme! Words of wisdom from the Word of God. There is power in the Word! I would have not made it this far in life without knowing Jesus! I have peace.

Know what a diamond is? A lump of coal that has done good under pressure! I want to be a diamond!