More Winter in the Raw - November 2011

More to say about eating raw, uncooked food in the winter

By Cleo Murray

I felt that there was more to say about eating raw, uncooked food in the Winter.  I recognize that it’s one thing to be a raw foodist in Hawaii, but eating raw food here  in the Canadian cold climate in the winter is a completely different story. 

Raw Vegan expert Gabriel Cousens MD did research in Alaska and found that 95% of the raw foodists were successful.  They did things like increasing their exercise, adding more heating spices such cayenne, ginger, peppercorn and garlic to their food, putting their cold salad into a dehydrator for a few minutes and even warming the dressing for the salad.

  He surmised that when starting a raw food diet, many people release toxins and that that may give you an uncomfortable cold feeling.  But it is temporary.  Actually it turns out that when you go raw, your  overall body temperature drops and it may take some time to get used to the new body temperature.  He says that when you’re eating raw food, your arteries clear up and your circulation improves.  Actually, most people that have been eating raw uncooked food for awhile say that they’re never cold.  They even swim in ice cold water in the winter.  So feeling cold when eating raw seems to be a transitional phase.

Raw food guru, Victoria Boutenko, explains why she thinks that eating a hot meal is actually detrimental to your health:”

She asks, “Would a quarter pound of rice physically keep a 160 pound body warm?  In order to get warmed by it, one would have to fill a bathtub with warm rice and sit in it for 20 minutes.  She goes on to ask, “So why do we feel warmer after consuming cooked food?...When any impure substances get into our blood through the walls of the intestines, they irritate our adrenals…The adrenals immediately begin to produce hormones which stimulate our sympathetic nervous system, which is why we feel awake at first.  They also force our heart to beat faster and to pump larger amounts of blood through our body, which makes us feel warm.  This feeling doesn’t last long and we pay a high price for it.  After 10-15 minutes our body gets exhausted from performing extra work, the heart requires rest, the nervous system becomes inhibited and we feel tired, sleepy and even colder than before.  However, we remember only the feeling of getting warmer after eating cooked food…This harmful practice wears the body out and by the end of the winter many people feel exhausted and depleted…weakened adrenals eventually won’t be able to work properly even at warm temperatures.  For example, most older people feel cold even in the middle of the summer.  During your first raw winter you may experience some cold due to the weakened adrenals, so put on an extra sweater, take a hot bath or do some pushups.  If you will continue staying raw, your adrenals will rest and recover, your capillary circulation will improve, your nervous system and your heart will naturally strengthen without any artificial stimulation.  In a year you will tolerate cold better than ever before”  Does this information from Ms. Boutenko resonate with you??  It does with me.

So, basically any change requires a period of adjustment; therefore, most people make a gradual move to eating raw foods.  Many will never move to a totally raw diet.  As you eat more raw foods, you will enjoy improved health and will probably want to eat fewer cooked foods.

So, now for the “piece de resistance”…a delicious wintertime raw recipe guaranteed to keep your body furnace stoked.  Note the liberal use of heating herbs!

BEST CHILI EVER…

1 – cup kidney beans (sprouted)…soak 1 cup kidney beans in water overnight, drain & rinse.  Continue to drain and rinse 2 x’s a day for 2-3 days until little tails start to show.  You can either add the sprouted beans directly to the following base recipe or cheat a bit and slow cook your sprouted beans at the lowest temperature of your crock pot until tender.  Either way,a sprouted bean has much more nutrition in it than a dry bean.  Once a bean is sprouted  it becomes living and growing and is no longer in its dormant state.

Vegetable Chili Base…

• 2 ¼ - cups chopped fresh tomatoes
• ¼ - cup soaked sun dried tomatoes
• 2/3 – cup chopped celery
• ½ - cup chopped sweet onion
• 1 – cup chopped green pepper
• 1 – slice jalapeno
• 1 – cup cilantro
• ¾ - tsp sea salt
• 2 – tsp. chili powder
• 1 – tsp paprika
• 1/8 – tsp. cayenne pepper
• ¼ - tsp coriander
• 1 tbls. – honey

Blend all the above ingredients for the base, including the soaking water for the sun dried tomatoes, in your food processor or blender and puree.

Combine puree with your sprouted beans and add approximately 2 cups finely chopped zucchini, and ¼ cup finely chopped sweet onion for some added crunch and chunkiness.  If you want extra extra chunky chili, don’t process the Vegetable Chili Base, just use as is.

You simply can’t have only one serving of this…it’s too good!

Now just to leave you salivating for more, I’m going to save my raw pasta recipes for next time.

Enjoy!

Namaste Cleo

Cleo's Bio: Cleo Murray is currently a Vegan Raw Foodist. After 15 years of Veganism she decided to take her nutrition to the next level. She decided to share her radiant health success by giving local Raw Food Workshops and talks. She also had a business in Vancouver as Personal Trainer, Massage Therapist and Reiki Master. She currently lives in Peachland, B.C. (250)767-7623 - Email