Monthly Archives: July 2011

Raw Chocolate Crispy Cakes

raw living chocolate crispy

These are little balls of happiness for those of us who still miss chocolate crispy cake.  I can now indulge in a little bit of my childhood without the guilt.  Actually these remind me of refrigerator cake too, because the chocolate has an almost fudgey texture which contrasts delightfully with the crispy buckwheaties.  They’re sweet without being cloying, and then you get a sudden hit of extra sweetness when you encounter one of the raisins embedded in there.  For me, these crispy cakes solve the problem of what to eat at about 7pm when I get the nibbles for something chocolatey.  I don’t always care for raw chocolate in bar form, and find chocolate cake a bit heavy eaten late in the day.  These hit the spot because I get the sweet chocolate hit without the heaviness.  Like most raw goodies, these have a high nutritional value too, as the chocolate gives me a dose of magnesium, there's calcium in the carob and there are Omega 3s in the hemp.  Cakes that are practically medicinal!  I wouldn't eat them later than about 7pm though because they also give energy and I don't want to be bouncing off the walls at bedtime.  Nice for a mid-morning boost when lunch seems a long way off or when you have a huge ironing pile that makes you droop just looking at it.  Raw Living could deliver these with one of those calling cards with a man’s silhouette on it (though some readers probably won’t remember those old adverts) because this lady certainly loves…chocolate crispy cakes!

Like I say in the first video (below), it's nothing less than a blessing to have this knowledge and to be in a position to share it. I've come from a place where the values and beliefs I hold were marginalised and ignored, and to be a part of their growing acceptance and recognition feels like a continuous miracle.

When I do my talks and workshops, I do feel I am mostly stating the obvious, but I've come to realise that in a world where people have a tendency to make things over-complicated, it's the basic common sense information that we need to be reminded of the most. The response I most often get after an event is, thank you for making it all so down to earth and straight-forward.

Here's a message I received from Dwayne Dyer of Jersey, where we put on packed out events for the second year running.

"Hi Kate - I attended your Jersey seminar Friday evening (my wife and I are from NY). Just wanted to say we really enjoyed your session and perspective. Your ability to encourage people find their own place in their pursuit of healthy eating habits, instead of pushing them to stick to a rigid agenda, was really refreshing to hear. The information you shared was incredibly valuable, and well-delivered. Best, Dwayne Dyer, Jersey"

And below are some clips recorded at a talk I gave for the wonderful Tree of Life people in Birmingham earlier this year.

I have events coming up in Scandinavia in August - check the website for full details - I'll be visiting Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Reykjavik. In the Autumn I'm in Liverpool, Winchester and Edinburgh, and then I've got planned a trip to LA and Santa Cruz. My 2012 calendar is already pretty full. In January we're doing the first 20 hour accreditation course in Goa, which is sure to be legendary. A visit to Australia is in the pipeline! As well as return visits to Switzerland and Turkey, various locations around the UK, and new destinations such as Portugal and the Isle of Man.

I hope to meet you somewhere soon; for me this journey is all about building a community of like-minded people who believe in a fairer, simpler, more peaceful way of living. When we get together like this my aim is to inspire but equally to be inspired, and also to be a catalyst for creating the changes we wish to see in the world, and building that up from a wheatgrassroots level.

Sauerkraut RAW!

I go on a lot about alkaline and acidic foods purely because a diet that is highly acidic makes us more vulnerable to developing chronic disease. Acidic foods promote inflammation within the body and we know that inflammation is the root cause of most chronic disease such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes, arthritis at al. Eating a highly acidic diet also allows our intestinal bacteria to get out of whack. You've seen those adverts that promote drinking those sugar-laden drinks that help to restore healthy gut flora right? Well, there's a healthier way to do it. Eat cultured veggies!

Cultured veggies? Yes I know it sounds a little like something that's growing in a petri dish but I'm going to give you some really compelling reasons why they should feature regularly in your diet. But first, here's the lowdown on what the hell cultured veggies actually are. Cultured vegetables are vegetables that have been cut or shredded and left in an airtight environment for several days or longer at room temperature. (Stick with me...I know that doesn't sound overly appetising!) This process allows the lactobacilli and enzymes to proliferate creating a wonder food full of minerals and enzymes (we like enzymes as they are needed for every bodily function).

Here are 8 reasons why you should be eating cultured vegetables:

1. They aid digestion lessening the energy drain on your body (great for anyone that has a weak digestive tract and has a hard time digesting raw foods)

2. They help to eliminate toxins from the body

3. They help to restore a healthy balance of good and bad bacteria within the intestines

4. They help to reduce sugar cravings (hellooooooo this is reason ENOUGH!)

5. Eating animal protein creates toxic by-products in the intestines and by eating the veggies WITH the animal protein, it helps to turn these toxins back into healthy amino acids

6. They are extremely alkalising and cleansing for the body. (They may make you a little gassy to begin with but once you get everything cleaned out then it will all start working nicely!) I had to go there...these things are important! A toxic colon is a toxic body people!

7. They increase your longevity. (As they allow you to reserve your body's own enzymes for digestion, your body is better equipped to repair cells, eliminate toxins, strengthen your immune system etc)

8.They are perfect for pregnant and nursing women as they provide a healthy inner environment for good bacteria and can help alleviate morning sickness! Plus the liquid from the veggies can help relieve the babys colic

The above photos are of some cultured veggies called Kim Chi which is a traditional Korean dish of fermented seasoned cabbage and other veggies. (Fermented just means the chemical breakdown of a substance by bacteria, yeasts or other microorganisms.) At first you might struggle with the idea of roaming bacteria or yeast in your food but these little dudes are actually a good thing as you can see from the reasons above. Additionally cultured vegetables have had profound positive effects on children with autism.

You can make them at home very easily (future blog to come) or you can buy them ready made. If I'm having a good old creativity session in the kitchen I will make it but sometimes I buy it ready-made from Raw Living. If you are completely new to cultured veggies then I would recommend you buy some first to try and see if you like it. It will be a new experience for you as it has a fairly strong flavour but once you try it, I'm pretty sure you'll like it. It has a kind of tangy flavour and can be eaten on salads, as a side dish or on their own and combines particularly well with a protein or starch meal which can be very heavy on the body.

Raw sauerkraut is also another fantastic source of cultured veggies but don't mistake this for the salted and pasteurised version sold in most shops. (The pasteurisation process destroys the enzymes and the salt is bad bad bad!)

If you want to find out more about cultured foods you should check out Donna Gates's The Body Ecology Diet book on the left hand side of this page on the book turnstyle.

Polly xxx

Urduja Manaoag of Raw Vegan Geneva catered for 300 people at a Yoga Conference in Geneva this month, using Raw Living superfoods. Watch the video interview by Carole Walsser here.