livin' raw

Just to get as much out of this detox as I can (day 18 of 21, hooray!) I have been trying to eat as much raw food as possible.

This frankly is not all that difficult considering what is on the list of what I can eat.

Conveniently I not only live in NYC which is exceptionally detox friendly, but I also am a mere four blocks from the Westerly Market which has prepared raw organic foods.

From what I understand the raw food movement contends that heating fruits and veggies above 116 degrees destroys important enzymes. And I guess these enzymes are good for you or some such. Oh, and the life force is stronger if the food is raw. Yeah.

What is on the menu for today's lunch? Raw organic mashed potatoes. And guess what? Not a spud to be seen. Ingredients are: Cauliflower, cashews, thyme, lemon juice, and sea salt.

Appearance? Looks about right. Consistency? Yep, just like mashed potatoes. Taste? Not that bad. Not great, but I think the fact that it is cold really is detrimental to the flavor. If I trusted myself to heat to a balmy 110 degrees then they most probably would be pretty darn good!

So far my favorite of the raw foods from the Westerly are the beet salad (slivered beets, sunflower seeds, agave nectar, salt) and the mock tuna sandwich (fake bread made from nuts and seeds, fake tuna from slew of veggies and nuts).

To be honest I'm not sure if the raw foods are really making a difference, whether or not my body is digesting more efficiently or absorbing more nutrients. But if I find some stuff that is tasty along the way it can't hurt, right? If it wasn't for the prepared stuff I probably wouldn't have tried doing some raw at all. Besides salads of course.

This definitely isn't a lifestyle I would do full time though. No way no how. I genuinely love hot meals!!