Raw Foods Diet & Raw Food Weight Loss Blog

Here it is…the Queen of all Juices! It’s cooling, cleansing, light, easy, delicious, pretty, promotes weight loss, energizing, vibrant, and FUN!

Can one simple juice really be so wonderful for your body? Yes!! Following is the recipe, as well as some highlights about the ingredients and why it’s so great for your body.

Cooling and Cleansing Juice

4 medium apples
1 large lemon
6 medium stalks celery

Directions:
Use only organic produce. Wash apples, lemon, and celery. Cut into sizes that can fit into your juicer‘s opening. Juice all (including skins of apples and lemon) and enjoy!

Nutrition Facts:
Calories: 438
Protein: 4 grams
Carbohydrates: 119 grams
Lipids: 1 gram
Vitamins: 36% of daily needs
Minerals: 21% of daily needs

Lemons are mostly known for their Vitamin C levels, but there is so much more to this fruit than a vitamin. Lemons are known to aid the liver, bringing about cleansing action, aid digestion, support the immune system, inhibit cell division (thus limiting chances of cancer), eliminates many cancer-causing chemicals from the body, dissolves calcium deposits in the body, and aids in weight loss. Not bad for a bright, juicy, sweet-sour fruit!

Celery is incredibly healing for the body. Not only does it decrease the chances of cancer being developed, it’s a delicious way to reduce blood pressure. When juicing, try to use the leaves as well as the stalks, since the highest percentages of potassium, Vitamin C, and calcium are found in the leaves. Celery acts as a diuretic in the body, allowing excess fluid retention to be released. It also helps balance hormones within the body, which can be a welcome benefit for women suffering from PCOS and other menstrual disorders. Note: The hypoglycemic qualities in celery help balance out the sugar from the apples in this recipe. So, many who are sensitive to sugar may actually be able to tolerate this drink.

Just about everyone loves apples and knows the famous quote: “An apple a day keeps the doctor away.” But did you ever wonder why an apple is considered so healthy for the body? In the skin of apples are compounds that protect against cancer. Not only that, apples are known to help prevent alzheimer’s disease, lower cholesterol, protect bones, reduce asthma problems, prevent breast, lung, colon, and liver cancer, and aids in weight loss. All of that from one simple fruit!

As with any food, moderation and variety is the key. Consuming this drink can be very cleansing for the body, flooding your system with much-needed vitamins and minerals. In order to meet all your body’s needs, however, you’ll need to consume a variety of fruits and vegetables. This juice is one I return to often, fully enjoying the light, vibrant feeling I experience after drinking it. It’s a great way to bring a boost of instant energy into your day and I recommend drinking it first thing in the morning for that reason!

What’s your favorite juice recipe? Share it in the comments, now–we’d love to hear from you!

Here it is: Putting it all together. Here you’ll see what we use for our taco shells and how we build up our taco. Quite often, we also make a raw sour creme using cashew nuts and lemon juice. But, for these tacos, it’ll just be meat, salsa, and guac. Enjoy!

Taco Assembly

Use Romaine leaves for your taco shells or, as Wendi says, do a search for making other kinds of taco shells. (A good place to search out raw recipes is the All Raw Directory.) Top with:

• Shredded lettuce
• Taco meat (see previous recipe)
• Guacamole (see previous recipe)
• Salsa (see previous recipe)
• Optional: Raw Vegan Sour Cream (search our blog or the All Raw Directory)

There you go: Celebrate TACO WEEK by making your own tacos!

(And, by the way, we’re celebrating something special today, too:  KDcat turns 15 today!!! )

Here’s the next component in our raw taco recipe — the guacamole. This is Wendi’s favorite component! Enjoy!!!

Raw Guacamole Recipe

• 3 avocados
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1/2 cup lightly packed fresh cilantro
• 3/4 tsp salt
• optional: 1 med. tomato, scallion

Pulse in food processor until “meaty” consistency is obtained. Set aside in a serving bowl for the taco dinner!

COntinuing with our Taco Week, here’s a quick and easy (and delicious) salsa recipe. You can really have a lot of fun with salsa, and can get highly experimental if you like. Almost anything tastes great in salsa. This one is fairly basic, so feel free to spruce it up with some of your favorite ingredients. Let us know in the comments section some of your favorite variations so you may inspire others!

Raw Salsa Recipe

• 4 med tomatoes, chopped
• 1 Tbsp. lemon juice
• 1/2 cup lightly packed fresh cilantro
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. ground coriander
• 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
• 2 scallions
• optional: fresh garlic, onion, chilis, cayenne, etc.

Pulse in food processor until “meaty” consistency is obtained. Set aside in a serving bowl for the taco dinner!

EVERYONE LOVES RAW TACOS!!! So, this week, we’re going to show you FOUR “Makin’ It Monday” videos instead of just one. These were filmed in Berkeley, CA, at our dear friend Carolyn’s apartment. We hope you love these recipes. We actually eat raw tacos quite regularly — especially when tomatoes are in season.

Taco “Meat” Recipe

• 1/2 cup walnuts
• 1/4 cup Brazil nuts (or more walnuts)
• 1 tsp. ground coriander
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• dash garlic powder
• 1 1/4 Tbsp. Tamari or Nama Shoyu

Pulse in food processor until “meaty” consistency is obtained. Set aside in a serving bowl for the taco dinner!