Thursday, January 24, 2013

Farewell Agave.. Farewell.. Hello Queen Bee..

Farewell Agave.. Farewell.. Hello Queen Bee

I know you are sweet and presented as nice
I know you are sold as healthy but are far from it
I know you ain't raw allthough you try
I know you mess around with my blood sugar and perhaps yours
I know you are used and misused world widely across the RAW world

I know it's just time to move on...

Man oh man, why does it have to be used EVERYWHERE!!!!! ahhh!


Agave is one of the best Advertising triumphs ever pulled on us, the public. You may not be as reactive to it as I am, but in the long run, it will catch up with you. So buyer beware.



Here is an article by Jonny Bowden, PHD, C.N.S that fully explains what Agave is and its dangers...



Debunking the Blue Agave Myth


Oh my sweet innocent Blue Agave, sure you are sweet, but not so innocent after all. 


So what are the options out there, if you choose to be RAW but don't want to use Agave. 



First, well there is RAW Honey (preferable organic & wild). Raw Honey is jammed packed with live enzymes. It is a top superfood and is a great source for concentrated nutrition. It is rich in minerals, antioxidants, probiotics, enzymes and is one of the highest vibration foods!! It has antibacterial properties and some wild honey's have been shown to be anti fungal, anti viral properties as well. Check around your area, you might be surprised to find a lovely organic & wild Bee keeper near you. 



Second, there are Dates (Medjool Dates are a great option. Note- most pitted dates (and ready to use in baking dates) are heated to be pitted, so they are not technically Raw, nor would they give you the goodness and nourishment they can give.)


Third, there are Raw Sugar Cane Crystals. They are sun dried sugar cane crystals and do not undergo the same degree of processing that refined sugar does. They retain most of the nutrients found in raw organic sugar cane. Note- I have not used them very much, so I am not to recommend them as much as Raw Honey and Dates, but I think they are worth experimenting with.

So go on, get the sweet thing going.. have fun in the kitchen, share the sweets with those you love!

And to get you inspired and ready for February.. (yes, its coming, all too soon to a life near you!) here is a lovely recipe that just doesn't last at my house...


Chocolate Superpower Sweet Lovers Halvah 
1 cup raw sesame seeds, hulled
1 TBSP raw cacao powder
1 TBSP Spirulina, Chlorella, or Sea Vegetable Blend (I use Schinoussa Sea Vegetables)
dash of cinnamon
pinch of salt


1/4 cup raw, organic & wild honey

2 TBSP raw tahini 
1 teaspoon Vanilla extract or powder (I like to use powder and stay away from the glycerine and alcohol content of the extract)


Extra raw cacao powder or raw sesame seeds for dipping.




Put the sesame seeds in a food processor and blend until you have made a medium - coarse meal. Transfer the seed meal to a large bowl. Add the powder ingredients (raw cacao powder, Sea Vegs., Vanilla, cinnamon, salt) and whisk together. Then add the remaining ingredients and knead teh 'dough' using your hands. Break off bits of dough and from into balls about 1 inch in diameter. Dip balls into extra sesame seeds. Store the Chocolate Superpower Halvah in the fridge in a tightly sealed container to allow ingredients and tastes to blend.



Getting creative with sweet loves: you can literally add ANYTHING to this recipe and make a great tasting dessert with it! ANYTHING in my world are things like Hemps Seeds, Goji Berries, Inca Berries, Bee Pollen, Coconut flakes, and so on... 1TBSP at a time.



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Quote of the Day
"In the sweetness of friendship let there be laughter, and sharing of pleasures. For in the dewof little things the heart finds its morning and is refreshed." - Kahlil Gibran 
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Book I recommend
"Eat Raw, Eat Well." by Doug McNish






 

Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Happy Happy 1 year Anniversary!!! Time flyes when you are having fun!

Hello Happiness... how are you today?

Well, well I (the Rawllygood blog) turn one today!!!! yeepers! One year of writing with an open heart, often at times, brief at others, but one year has passed since I first made the commitment to my self to do the 40 day Juice Feast in conjunction with the 40 day meditation. And a lot has happened in a year!! One year of healing, exploring, learning, deep breathing, chellation, family times, seeing dear friends times, connecting with new like minded people, liver cleansing, yoga, back to the matt, back to the sun, back to me and sharing it back with you !

Well, Happy 1 year !

To celebrate this joyous wonderful day I would like to share a song by the Dave Mathews Band, that we at our house just love, yes the kids rock to it!! It inspires me to dream and do the things I do, to feel much gratitude for all that I/ we (humans) have dared to do, to feel gratitude for the opportunity to do more and to contribute and support this world to change, to be conscious of my actions and the effect and power they can have.... it's time for you and me and ours to use our potentials and to inspire the next generation to act! So here it goes, the song is GAUCHO.




"Gaucho"

With fire to keep us warm
and tools we made from rocks and bones
A roof over your head
and walls to keep you safe in bed
There must be more than this
So God was born 
and we in his image of fear and love
looked down upon from up above

We gotta do much more than believe
if we really wanna change things
We gotta do much more than believe
if we wanna see the world change

We crossed the oceans wide
built cities to the sky oh Lord
Looked up and we were flying
but will we not survive ourselves

We gotta do much more than believe 
if we wanna see the world change
We gotta do much more than believe 
if we really wanna change things
We gotta do much more than believe
go on try it, go on try it
We gotta do much more than believe 
if we wanna see the world change

What will I say to my baby
Let me show you a movie
we landed a man on the moon
Now you could never believe it
ya we could do anything
We flew to the stars and back
down to the ground hard

Please wake up
Please wake up
Please wake up

[Children singing]
We gotta do much more than believe
if we really wanna change things
We gotta do much more than believe
if we really wanna change things
We gotta do much more than believe 
if we really wanna change things
We gotta do much more than believe 
if we really wanna change things
We gotta do much more than believe 
if we really wanna change things

[Children and Dave singing]
We gotta do much more than believe 
go on try it, go on try it
We gotta do much more than believe 
if we really wanna change things
We gotta do much more than believe 
go on try it, go on try it
We gotta do much more than believe
if we wanna see the world change

Oh my little baby
let me show you this movie
You know we landed a man on the moon
I know it's hard to imagine
but we could do anything
under the stars.

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Quote of the Day
"In the end these things matter most:
How well did you love?
How well did you live?
How deeply did you let go?" - Gautama Buddha

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Announcements
The Winter Feast for the Soul, 40 minutes a day of meditation for 40 days starts today!!

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Book I recommend
LifeFood Recipe Book, Living on Life Force by Annie Padden Jubb and David Jubb.

Monday, January 7, 2013

My wishes for you...

Well, first things first. Happy New Year! a bit late I know.. but my wishes were with you as we celebrated and accepted the comings of the New Year! Life has been busy with everyone at home and I haven't had a chance to sit my bottom down to write. I have missed it. You see, I write to the great unknown out there, but I also write to the very well known in here, and it feels good.

May it bring many blessings to you and your loved ones, may it be filled with laughter and love, may it be filled with radiant health and the gift of joy, may it bring forth the realization of your most heart felt and desired dreams and may it bring you closer to Spirit.

Now that the wheels of the New Year are well under way and the pressure of the famous last 'resolutions' is off, perhaps a more realistic and compasionate look at the year past is possible, perhaps a more honest look within your heart at what you want to bring forth in your life this year is also possible. I find for myself, I have so many dreams and desires in so many directions it's just hard to keep up with all of them! simply impossible, yet I dream away, yet I plant seeds that perhaps will take years to grow and harvest.. yet I feel the heartfelt desire to bring it on, and let things happen and find the balance between living lightly on this earth and grounding deep roots for my breath to spread.

Here are a few of my Resolutions, some are big, some are small... all take inspiration in the creative potential that life has to manifest the seeds we plant.

1.- Be more present (even when I dream!). Be more realistic of where I am at, of the circumstances that are my current reality.

2.- Become a more positive gardener of my mind-garden. Become very aware and conscious of the seeds I am planting today. TODAY is my future in the making. NOW matters more than what I sometimes consciously accept. Focus on the positive, make it grow, nurture and nourish it to the point there is simply no room left for the negative.

3.- Do more things that FEEL GOOD. Yes we all have duties and responsibilities, but often we (i) get lost in them and in taking care of everyone around us (me). And all though, that feels good, it is not the same  as finding things that make me feel really good with an open heart about this beautiful life, away from duties and responsibilities...

4.- Meditate on a daily basis. Deeply connect with nature and Spirit. Have breathing time. Quiet time. Rejuvenation time.

5.- Nourish my heart and listen to the voice within. I don't know about you, but I have periods of great intuition and I have periods of where has my intuition gone?. So nourishing my heart and staying more connected to it is something I want to pursue this year.

6.-Eat Rawllygood Nourishing Deliscious Foods, and of course, share them with you!

7.-Do something totally new to me.  (Nope I can't pull it out of the bag yet!)

8.- I could keep going on, but I think I will stop right here.....

What is your revised version of your plan for this year! I got lots of details to sort out, and lots of details to write down... but I like the element of surprise and organic brewing (if you can call it that) in my life.

Whatever it is, make it honest, make it real, feel it within your heart, take off the family/community pressure 'cause really this is about you and your sense of self, your growth, your ride.

I wish for you days filled with bliss, days filled with rain to wash away what you no longer need and to bring new energy into your lives, days filled with earth supporting your feet, days filled with wind carrying you to soaring heights, days filled with the fire of love, lots and lots of love, and last but not least, days filled with the vibration of your breath reaching every corner of your being.


On that note...
Here is a recipe for a Glass of Bliss Smoothie shall you need it on your many wonderful days ahead.

Glass of Bliss Smoothie

1 banana
3 Tbsp of Raw Cacao Nibs
2 Tbsp of fresh mint leafs (or more for a more minty flavour)
3 dates
1 (or 2) droppers of Marine Phytoplancton
1/2 tsp Schinoussa SeaVegetable Powder
1 tsp hemp seeds
2 cups of nut mylk of your choice (almond is nice and sweet)  or water (Hado water even better! or Almond mylk made with Hado water!)
Pinch of sea salt

Blend it all up, you want to have some of the Cacao Nibs chunks in there. Yum.
Note: my body doesn't need large amounts of protein. So the amounts of SeaVegetables and Hemps seeds are little. If you find your body does well with more, by all means up it up!
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Quote of the Day
"I wish for you the wisdom to live only in present time, pursue only what gives you joy and the awareness of how useful these two choices are. And one more: Let compassion to yourself and specially to others, be always in your thinking and in your actions." CZ 
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Announcements
The 40 day meditation practice that started all this is coming up again. It is called "AWinter Feast for the Soul". Starts on January 15th. It is a wonderful way of connecting to the community at large and to experiment with different paths of meditation, and be supported along the way.

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Book I recommend
"Nourishing Wisdom", a mind-body approach to nutrition and Well-Being, by Marc David.
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