Step Away From the Stove
by Christina Pirello
What? Is she telling us not to cook? Dream on, kids. I am asking you to explore a new idea to add to your repertoire of healthy eating…raw cuisine. And summer (even late summer) is the perfect time to do it. Vegetables and fruits cannot be any fresher or more alive and hot weather makes it the perfect time to play with your food.
When I became a vegetarian (about a thousand years ago), raw food meant just that, raw. We ate raw fruit and veggies and that was about it, with some sprouts and juice on the side for variety. Now raw has become a ‘cuisine.’ I rolled my eyes when it first came onto my radar screen. And, as with many things in my life…from macrobiotics to running to raw foods…I have been forced to eat my words and explore yet another new (to me) and compelling idea. And the result, as usual, has been amazing.
Now before you get your pressure cookers in a twist, I have not abandoned cooking or my wonderful vegan macrobiotic lifestyle. In fact, incorporating raw cuisine into my life has shown me how perfectly macrobiotics can work. My own approach to eating has evolved so much that I question my personal wisdom on a daily basis. (By the way, when you stop questioning your personal wisdom, well…let’s not even go there.)
Re-Discovering Raw When I first learned about the new version of raw eating, I was struck by the rigidity of it, the all or nothing attitude. The people I first encountered acted as though a sprig of steamed
would throw their bodies into toxic shock and I was put off, to say the least. I thought vegans were a pain! And macrobiotic-types...but these raw-foodists, jeez!
Then I discovered that there are zealots in every lifestyle and I should overlook their extreme attitudes and explore. There was a reason that this style of eating was brought into my frame of consciousness, a reason that I was to become reacquainted with raw food.
In the last five years, I have become seriously re-committed to fitness. With hard work, I re-discovered the same level of fit health I enjoyed when I was in my twenties. And for as long as my body is able, I will hold onto it.
I am a long-time student and practitioner of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and live my life according to the principles of balance. As my body grew fitter, my muscles tightened. My entire being contracted. At first, I felt great but then I noticed that the feeling of ‘tightness’ went from comfortable strength to feeling as though my skin was too small for my body. I had an almost nervous energy and had a hard time sleeping. I grew consistently uncomfortable.
‘You’re too yang,’ said my macrobiotic friends.
‘You’re too dry,’ said my TCM friends.
Both sets of friends said the solution was to give up my ‘extreme fitness’ (as they called it) and take yoga classes. Well, no offense…I love yoga, but not as a workout. I know; I know; there’s power yoga and hot yoga and fit yoga…and I have tried them all and they’re all nice, but there is nothing for me like a great butt-kicking, sweaty, oh-my-God- this-is-so-hard boot camp class to make me happy…but that’s me. I like yoga to relax, meditate and stay flexible.
So since my style of fitness was not changing, I had to look elsewhere. I turned to the place where I always found my answers…food. And I paid attention to balance. I realized that in my newly contracted state, I needed foods that would ‘open’ and relax my body, not dry and tighten it.
I put away the pressure cooker (for the moment) and pulled out the salad spinner. I started small and paid attention to my body’s reactions. Boiling grain was better than pressure cooking, but sprouting felt even better. Lightly steaming vegetables in the morning really revved my engine. Sautéing at lunch kept my energy high and focused for my work in the afternoon. But nothing, nothing except raw food helped me to feel relaxed and open and soft in the evening after I had trained.
So I played. I tried various recipes to see how they made me feel. I went ‘all raw’ for a time, but discovered that I could not sustain my strength and I felt cold and tired. All raw was not for me. After a few months of experimenting and trying new combinations
and ideas, I made my own personal balance…for now. Eating a diet that is about forty percent raw seems to keep me strong, happy and comfortable in my skin.
In the summer months, we spend a lot of time outdoors: running, biking, walking, being. I find that I can use even more raw food during this time of year. Mother Nature provides some her best ingredients during the hotter months, so why not use them to their full and yummy advantage.
As the weather cools, you can be sure I will re-evaluate and move to a diet that has more cooked foods...heartier fare that will keep me strong and warm. Now there are those who might say that you can achieve that balance with all raw foods and I am sure that for some people, that is true. Many do it by adding raw and marinated animal foods to their diets for strength and balance. That is not for me. I can only tell you what I know from my own experience. You must create your own and find your balance within that.
The Raw Foods Approach The underlying principle of raw food is that cooking food at a high temperature (more than 115oF) results in the food becoming acidic. It destroys some of the enzymes and de-natures some of the vitamins and minerals in food making them more difficult to absorb and utilized. Some of this is true and some of it, as Jon Stewart says, not so much.
Raw foods, as the cuisine stands today, is not just about crunching carrot sticks but about balance. Food is marinated, cured, dehydrated or sprouted to begin the process of breaking it down for digestion. It is their form of ‘cooking.’ No matter how you slice it, the raw ingredients are processed to create food that can be properly digested. In raw food, it is done without heat.
Cooking food begins the process of breaking it down, rendering it easier to digest. Yes, some enzymes are destroyed and some other nutrients de-natured. But that is not to say that cooking makes food toxic. If you are a raw foodist and this is your belief, more power to you. It is not mine. I believe that you must combine both raw and cooked, in varying amounts to suit your health and lifestyle to create the robust health and well-being you crave.
Both approaches break down food to ease digestion. Both rely on balance. When our bodies are receiving balanced nutrition, we age magnificently, feel wonderful and eat like kings and queens.
Here are a few raw recipes to get your juices flowing.
Watermelon Salad with Serrano VinaigretteVinaigrette
1 cup Heart Shape Flax Sunflower Olive Oil
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons champagne vinegar
1-2 shallots, finely minced
1, 2-inch fresh Serrano chile, finely minced
1 tablespoon fresh basil, finely minced
Sea salt
4 cups, 1-inch watermelon cubes, seeds removed
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
4 cups fresh baby arugula
Whisk together oil, lime juice, vinegar, shallots, Serranos, basil and salt to taste.
Set aside for at least an hour for flavors to develop.
Prepare watermelon and chill completely.
Mix together tomatoes and arugula and toss with just enough dressing to coat
the leaves. Divide evenly among 4 salad plates. Mound watermelon on top of salads
and drizzle with dressing to taste. Makes 4 servings
Zucchini Fettuccine with Marinara1-2 pounds plum tomatoes, quartered
1 cup packed fresh basil leaves, plus sprigs for garnish
1/2 cup dry-packed sun-dried tomatoes, softened in warm water, chopped
1/4 cup Heart Shape Flax Sunflower Olive Oil
1 teaspoon brown rice syrup or raw honey
1 shallot, minced
Sea salt
Cracked black pepper
3 zucchini, ends trimmed
1 summer squash, ends trimmed
1 red or orange bell pepper, halved, seeded
8 ounces vegan soy mozzarella, shredded
1 cup hazelnuts, coarsely chopped
Place tomatoes, basil, sun-dried tomatoes, 3 tablespoons oil, honey, shallot, salt
and pepper to taste in a blender and process until mixture resembles a fine salsa.
Using a sharp vegetable peeler, peel zucchini and squash on all sides, creating
thin ribbons. Discard soft, seeded centers.
Using a sharp knife, slice bell pepper into very thin ribbons.
Combine squash, zucchini and peppers in a mixing bowl. Stir in ‘sauce’ and
adjust seasonings to your taste. Fold in soy cheese and walnuts and stir gently to
combine ingredients. Serve garnished with basil sprigs. Makes 4-5 servings
Greens with Avocados and SproutsVinaigrette
1/4 cup Heart Shape Flax Sunflower Olive Oil
4 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
2-3 tablespoons black olive paste
2 shallots, finely minced
1 tablespoon fresh basil, finely minced
Pinch sea salt
2 bunches watercress, rinsed well, stems trimmed, cut into bite-sized pieces
Handful alfalfa sprouts
4 ripe avocados
Make the vinaigrette by whisking ingredients together, adjusting seasoning to
your taste. It should be strong and slightly salty. Set aside.
Halve, pit and peel avocados. Thinly slice them lengthwise, keeping them intact.
Divide watercress among 8 salad plates. Using a spatula, carefully transfer an avocado
half onto each plate, pressing gently to fan the slices. Top with sprouts. Spoon dressing
over each plate and serve at room temperature or chilled. Makes 8 servings
Sweet Strawberry Pie2 pounds fresh strawberries, tops removed, quartered
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup Suzanne’s Specialties Strawberry Rice Nectar
Sea salt
2 cups raw almonds
1 3/4 cups pitted dates
Combine strawberries, lemon juice, vanilla, rice syrup and a pinch of salt in a
bowl and toss to combine. Set aside while you make the crust.
Place almonds in a blender and pulse on high until they resemble bread crumbs.
Empty them into a 9-inch pie plate. Place dates in blender with about a teaspoon of
water and pulse on high until well-chopped…it will be a little clumpy. Combine almonds
and dates until they hold together and then press evenly onto the bottom and sides of
pie plate to form a crust. Spoon berries generously into the crust, discarding any
remaining liquid. Refrigerate for 2 hours before slicing into wedges and serve. Makes 6-
8 servings
