It is easy to eat a raw food diet at a wellness retreat in Hawaii staffed by raw food chefs. In real life, there are job obligations, kids to organize and a finite amount of time in the day devoted to food preparation. In my last article titled “Raw Food University” I outlined the different levels of raw food incorporation. Below is a schedule for how to functionally incorporate more raw food into your life.
The schedule below is for people who want to eat raw during the week. Sunday is an important day where some basic items will be prepared for the week. Some evenings will involve 30 minutes of raw food preparation for the next day, chopping veggies, blending or processing. It’s all fun though. Making meals can be a beautiful meditation for living in the present moment.
Table 1. Functional Raw Food Schedule
| Day | Breakfast | Lunch | Dinner | Snacks |
| Mon-Friday | Smoothie | Salad + Raw Tuna | Salad, Raw Soup, Dessert | Kale chips, Fruits + Nuts |
| Sat | You did great! Take a break… Or learn a new recipe today!* For some people Sat and Sun are better days to eat raw because there are less scheduling commitments. | |||
| Sunday | Preparation:Nut milk; Kale chips; Raw Tuna | |||
Note- In most of the country it is winter time. Encorporating some cooked grains or root vegetables into your raw food this time of year is great to keep the Spleen Qi alive! I love to eat my salads with quinoa, buckwheat, red/purple potato or Jerusalem artichoke.
In One Ounce of Chia…
For such a small seed, chia carries a lot of nutrition. When placed in water chia becomes gelatinous. It has a glycoprotein coat that soothes and heals the digestive tract while also slowing digestion. Slowing digestion helps to regulate blood sugar and prevent the spikes associated with improper blood sugar metabolism. Chia has been shown to decrease blood pressure in diabetics and regulate cholesterol levels leading to greater cardiovascular health.
A 1 oz. (28 grams) serving of chia has 11 grams of dietary fiber, one third of the recommended daily intake for adults. Fiber helps bind excess hormones and toxins for excretion, lowers cholesterol and improves overall GI transit time. Nearly 5 grams of omega 3 fatty acids are found in 1 oz. of chia seeds combat inflammation, improve cholesterol, and promote healthy brain, eyes, joints and more. Chia is mineral dense containing 18% of daily calcium, and other minerals like manganese and phosphorus. These minerals promote strong healthy bones, teeth, ligaments and tissues. Protein is packed into chia; 4.4 grams in a single serving of chia, nearly 10 percent of the daily value.
And Now For Some Recipes…
Nut milk
Yields: 4 cups
Ingredients
- 2 cups Raw Organic Hazelnuts/Almonds
- 1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract (optional)
- 4 cups Water
- Nut milk bag for straining
Directions
Soak the nuts over night in glass bowl/jar or for 6 hours during the day. Drain and rinse. Put nuts in blender with 4 cups of water. Blend on high. Strain through the nut milk bag into a glass container. Add the vanilla last and stir.
Kale Kino’ole Smoothie
Ingredients
- 1c kale torn apart
- ½ c frozen blueberries
- ½ banana or avocado
- 1 cup nut milk
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 2 tbs chia
- Optional: 1 tbs nut butter
Directions
Put all ingredients into the blender and mix until blended. Enjoy!
Raw Vegan Tuna Salad
Ingredients
- 2c sunflower seeds (soaked over night)
- 1/2 c chopped celery
- 1 tbs green onion
- 4 tbs lemon juice or Apple cider vinegar
- 2-3 tbs dulse flakes (more for a more fishy flavor)
- 1/4 cilantro (packed)
- 1 inch ginger
- 2 tbs olive oil or flax oil
- fresh ground black pepper
Directions
Add the ginger into the food processor first and blend, then add in the rest of the ingredients. Pulse and blend until the consistency of flaky tuna! Add to salads, raw food crackers or sliced vegetables.
For more recipes like raw soups and desserts, please see my website drarieljones.com
Have a Great Day and Aloha!
References:
1. Huffington Post Canada. 10 Reasons To Add Chia To Your Diet. The Huffington Post. 2013. Available at: http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2013/06/03/chia-seed-benefits-_n_3379831.html. Accessed November 24, 2014.
2. Nutrition Facts. and Analysis for Seeds, chia seeds, dried. Available at: http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/nut-and-seed-products/3061/2. Accessed November 24, 2014.
Dr. Ariel Jones is a native of Vancouver BC and a graduate of BINM (2013). Her practice emphasizes removing the physical, mental and spiritual obstacles to cure while implementing a toxin-free lifestyle for raw, radiant health. Ariel has enjoyed living in Victoria, BC during her BSc. in biology and psychology, Calgary AB and Hilo Hawaii for a post-graduate residency focused on raw food diet, detoxification, addictions and cancer therapies.