Raw food, real world: 100 recipes to get the glow

533 Pages·2005·8.04 MB·English

by  Matthew Kenney

RAW FOOD
real world
100 RECIPES TO GET THE GLOW
MATTHEW KENNEY
AND
SARMA MELNGAILIS
WITH JEN KARETNICK
To Matthew
—S.M
To Sarma
—M.K
To Jon. Zoe, and Remy.
With love and mangos
—J.K.

Contents
Introduction
Get The Glow
Our Story
Why We Gave up Cooked Food and Meat
Stocking Up/Ingredients
Equipment/Techniques
1 NUT MILKS AND SHAKES
2 SALADS
3 SOUPS AND STARTERS
4 MAIN DISHES
5 DESSERTS AND SWEETS
6 BREAKFAST AND BRUNCH
7 CHEESES, SPICED NUTS, CRACKERS, AND CONDIMENT
8 JUICES
9 COCKTAILS
AFTERWORD
THE REAL WORLD
Raw Foods and the Rest of the World
Detox and Our Adventures in Cleansing
It’s Not Just the Food You Eat
Sources
Recommended Reading
Index
Acknowledgements
About the Author
Copyright
About the Publisher
Notes
INTRODUCTION
GET THE GLOW
It Sounds like a promise made in an advertisement for a luxurious
beauty cream-buy this and you, too, can have this fabulous glow-Something
just a little too good be true. But for those Who live the raw food lifestyle
and invest as much thought into the process as into product, it’s too true not
to be good.
People who eat only raw, plant-based foods have an un-mistakes Shine, like a
pregnant Woman in her second trimester or someone newly in love. They have a
radiant, positive energy. It’s easy to spot a raw foodist in a crowd of people
living on the Standard American Diet (SAD… an appropriate acronym!). Just
look for unusually clear skin, glossy hair, and shining eyes.
When you cook foods, the colors and textures change and all the precious
water is burned off. Eating raw food keeps you closer to the earth and connects
you to the original product, the real thing. Think about biting into a perfectly
sun-ripened peach just plucked from a tree. This is the ideal way to eat—sensual,
sexy, and energizing. If we just served fruits and vegetables on plates, of course,
we would not have much of a restaurant or a book, nor any outlet to do what we
love: preparing food that is creative, exciting, and satisfying. We may blend,
chop, and even dehydrate, but still the integrity of the product, specifically the
nutrients and enzymes, remain intact. Eating food that is alive keeps you feeling
alive.
But more profoundly, living on raw foods enables you to effortlessly shed not
only excess physical weight; other, less tangible burdens are lifted. For some, it’s
that overall “unhealthy relationship” with food. For others, it’s the persistent and
lingering fear of disease which we can begin to let go of with the reassurance of
knowing that good health is our natural right and we are now armed to claim it.
Further, there can be an indescribable happiness, along with the sense of
communion, that comes from not eating animals anymore, being less taxing to
the environment, and reducing the weight upon the medical community—in
short, living in a way that lessens the burden on the rest of the world.
But before you slam this book shut and head for the nearest burger counter,
keep in mind that our own transition to raw foods had nothing at all to do with
animal rights or the environment. It was simply about wanting to feel our best
physically. We had no idea about the bonuses that would come along with it, in
particular the incredible increase in overall energy, somehow also accompanied
by a greater sense of peace.
In this book we share our story, our advice, and our recipes in what we hope is
a practical and accessible way. Our introduction to the world of raw foods was a
sudden one. While we both felt like we’d stumbled onto something
extraordinary, it was not always a smooth ride. We are both classically trained
chefs with a shared love of restaurants and good food. Then literally overnight,
we went from cooking and eating all varieties of meat, fish, and fowl, plus dairy,
sugar, flour, and everything in between, to working with and consuming only
raw plant foods—and we did this without really knowing what we were doing or
what to expect. We just recognized that we wanted to do it and that it felt right.
We also happened to discover raw foods when we had the luxury of a great deal
of free time, and so dove into it full force by reading and researching, attending
seminars, participating in grueling and complicated cleanses, and getting to
know the still predominantly underground world of raw foods. Some of these
experiences were more than a little colorful, but throughout, we learned how
ordinary people with regular jobs and social lives can incorporate raw foods into
their daily routines in a meaningful, practical, and delicious way.
In short, it is our bold claim that raw foods can change your life. A raw food
diet is not a trend, a tool, a religion, or some kind of cult. It doesn’t have to be all
about sacrifice or discipline. You can incorporate raw foods into your own
lifestyle to whatever degree, at whatever pace you wish. Just be prepared to feel
happier, sexier, more vibrant, energetic, and at peace with yourself and the rest
of the world, even if that isn’t your intention. And, of course, be ready to
exercise your right to glow.
What Is Raw Food?
The raw food “movement,” a plant-based, vegan lifestyle, has been
around for a long time. It has a bunch of other nicknames—live food, living
cuisine, sunfood cuisine—and there are slight distinctions, though the
polemics spring from the same essential source. But no matter the label, the
connotation is the same: It is a diet comprising naturally grown wild or
organically and sustainably raised fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and
occasionally sprouted grains. Like vegans, raw foodists do not consume
animal products of any kind (with the exception, in many cases, of honey
and bee pollen). However, the raw food lifestyle goes further by excluding
any foods with chemically processed or pasteurized ingredients. Finally,
and most significantly, during the preparation of raw food dishes, nothing is
cooked, at least in the traditional sense.
This may sound limiting to some. But for us, the possibilities that exist within
the raw food lifestyle are both boundless and thoroughly satisfying. When you
are able to enjoy a simple bowl of sweet cherries, or a creamy avocado with a
splash of lime juice and coarse sea salt, it is easy to imagine how a little
creativity can make this food exciting. In fact, raw food has its own cuisine
identity, and it is very much a playful and inventive one. But the real benefit of
raw food, aside from great flavor, is the unbelievable way it makes you feel,
inside and out.