Loving Recipes

I must say a few words about the food involved with the recipes I post here.

In the words of Hippocrates, Let thy food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.

You are what you eat. Choosing the food you eat with that in mind can profoundly affect your life. Making empowered food-choices will help you feel good. It will transform you. It will motivate you to be a better person - to yourself, to others and to your planet. 

The ancient human being would be baffled if he stepped into a time machine and landed in the center aisle of a modern-day grocery store. 

"What is this?" - he would ponder, as he turns a package of sliced bread in his hands. "Perhaps it is a pillow for my head! How nice!" - He concludes as he snuggles up for a nap in the middle of the aisle with that spongy soft loaf of bread under his head. Packaged chips and cookies could be ceremonial noisemakers for all he knows. He might recognize meat in its plastic-wrapped package, but he may wonder why it's so pink, or he may come to the conclusion that the animal was killed, butchered, packaged and delivered to the store that very day. If he did find out, in fact, how many days that package of meat has been sitting there on the shelf, and how many miles that package of meat traveled to get there, and the circumstances and environment from which that package of meat came - would he feel right about eating it? Just a thought... 

 Modern food, food that most of us grew up eating - the processed, refined food-like substances, laden with man-made chemicals and genetically modified organisms  - is unrecognizable by our human bodies (our bodies can't recognize top ramen; in the same way, our ancient human friend wouldn't be able to recognize a modern loaf of bread). Therefore these food-like substances are not processed optimally and they are slowly killing us, one degenerative cell at a time - through cancer, heart disease, celiac disease, diabetes, you name it. We're eating too much food that isn't food, leaving our bodies fat, sick and devoid of much needed nutrients. 

I'm talking about the food that looks like it was made and packaged for space travel. The stuff that has a super long shelf life - the boxed cereals, the refined sugar, the "healthy" energy bars, the modern wheat and soy products, the crackers and soda and the capri-sun juices - the stuff that would be completely foreign to an ancient human being. 

The stuff that comes straight from the earth in it's purist form is what the body needs to thrive. Plants.  Plants do the body good.  Food, that is grown from the earth and not in a lab as a science project, is what will save your health and vitality, as well as the health and vitality of this planet and its creatures. When you open to the world of fruits, veggies, leafy greens and herbs, you open to a world of color, of abundance, of variety, of boundless energy. 

When you take a step back from the world of packaged foods, cruelty and death, you see it for what it is - a prison, created by a handful of people/corporations who spend trillions of dollars on the propaganda and colorful labels that keep the wool pulled snug over our eyes. I'm not telling you to change the way you eat. By all means, eat what you want and feel good about it. I'm simply telling you to not be fooled. Do your own research. Conduct your own experiments. Listen to your self. Realize the connection between what you put into your body and how it makes you feel physically, mentally and emotionally. Tune in.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Carrot-Date-Almond Butter Dip n' Delight

Dive into this deliciousness at snack time if you're in the mood for a treat, it's a great dessert option or appetizer to bring to a pot luck, or make this for a loved one if you're in the mood to share a sweet moment.

(This recipe is inspired by an awesome raw food lady I found on youtube, Megan Elizabeth. Her channel is called "Easy to be Raw." She has shared a wealth of tasty recipes, awesome ideas, inspiration and good information. The link to her recipe is here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gf_4SEtvItY)

Ingredients:

4 dates (give or take), pitted and chopped 

2 or 3 carrots*, chopped

1 or 2 tablespoons Almond butter (give or take, depending on how indulgent you want to be.)

1 teaspoon (give or take) fresh ginger root, chopped or crushed (I like to use a garlic press) 

1 teaspoon cinnamon 

Pinch ground nutmeg (optional)

Pinch  ground cloves (optional)

Splash (or two) of filtered water (optional)

Two apples, sliced

Necessary Utensils:

Cutting Board

Chopping Knife

Blender

Instructions:

Combine dates, carrots, almond butter, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and a splash of water (the water is optional; I use a little to get my blender mixing the ingredients easily) in the blender. Pulse for about 30 seconds so the ingredients mix, then blend until smooth, adding in water as necessary for desired consistency and texture. Stop and taste, and add in necessary ingredients for desired taste, and blend until satisfied with taste, texture and consistency. It should come out pudding-like... Or like a thick smoothie. 

Pour mixture into a bowl, dust with a sprinkle of cinnamon and arrange apple slices on a plate. The apple slices are your yummy-goodness vessels. Dip and Enjoy :)

*The carrots can be substituted with persimmons when they're in season in the fall, and/or pumpkin is yummy, too! Get creative, mix n' match, it's all fun and tasty!