Friday, March 30, 2012

A Fruity with Seeds!


A Fruity with Seeds!


Organic Ingredients
Seeds:
1tb.s Flax Seeds

Fruits:
4 Pineapple slices
1 Banana
5 Strawberries
10 Blackberries
10 Raspberries
1 hand Blueberries
1 Kiwi


Equipment:
Blender or Vitamix

Add all in the blender.

Decorate with Goji Berries

Bon Appétit!

La Reina

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

No Kitchen, No Problem!

It is right that my kitchen is under renovation, but that doesn't mean that raw food can not be prepared.
The easiest thing to start with this morning is a smoothie, and yes, that what I'm mostly drinking in the morning and sometimes during the day. It helps cleansing, and most importantly the digestion cycle.

Today, I have decided to prepare something with coconut water and coconut meat.
Yesterday I bought a young Thai coconut, I wanted to experience the taste.

I have never opened a Thai Coconut before, so I decided to have my first experience, drink its water, save some for the smoothie, and taste the coconut meat.

Preparations took place in my living room!

I googled to check how to open a coconut, and luckily found one interesting site:




Later, I enjoyed the taste. I will buy each time I do my groceries, it is delicious!


Smoothie's Preparation:

Raw Organic Ingredients:

Organic Fruits:
3 big Strawberries
10 Blackberries
Hand of Blueberries
1 Red Pear
1/2 Banana

Water:
1/2 cup Coconut Water

Equipment:
Blender or a Vitamix

I added few Coconut water in the Vitamix and washed the fruits: Strawberries, Blackberries, Blueberries, and Red Pear, all Organic, (I used the bathroom sink... Do I have another choice :-( )

Added the Coconut meat, and a banana and blended all ingredients.

Yummy, it tasted so good.

Try it at home, use your kitchen!

Bon Appétit!

La Reina

RAW Food Tip: Clean out ur fridge or kitchen to motivate u to purity!

Couple of days ago, one of my favorite raw food chef coach sent a tweet about a Raw Food Tip. Which I actually liked, and surprisingly, I was heading this way following my inner inspiration about cleansing and purifying the surrounding. Her tweet was: Clean out your fridge or kitchen to motivate u to purity!

As I am writing, I have someone in the kitchen working on the renovation. It is going to be just perfect to have a new kitchen...
This is how it looks like now, under the renovation
Most of the stuff are outside in the dining room. Now looking forward to a new way of healing and cleansing when it comes to rearranging all the materials, specially when it comes to throwing what ever is old and was hidden in the cupboard. Can't wait for this to happen. Yeyyy!

All the stuff are out
Now with the kitchen's renovation, I can look forward to start preparing different new recipes, as when I started writing, my main focus was desserts, and it is coming my way soon!

I have promised myself to look up for recipes, prepare them myself , take pictures, and post them.

My promise is kept, for me and U.

For now, take the second advice of cleaning your fridge and kitchen, start fresh with the spring, then go in deeply and start the internal cleansing, of your body, soul and spirit.

Live in Harmony, Positivity and Love!

La Reina

Monday, March 26, 2012

My Journey with Raw continues in New York City

During my 2010 vacation, I went to New York City to visit my favorite Aunt.
Since I was in Love with Raw, I asked her to join me to experience an amazing gourmet cuisine at "Pure Food and Wine" located on 54 Irving Place, New York, NY, United States.

The place is very charming, cozy inside, felt like being embraced by their amazing staff who are very welcoming and knowledgeable. 

We decided to chill on their terrace, wide green space, felt like sitting in a garden outside the city.


Looking at their menu, I wanted to experience it all, as every single dish sounded delicious.
*Their menu changes frequently

I don't quite remember the names of their dish which we ordered, but I have the pictures!
I remember we have an appetizer, 2 main dish, 2 desserts and a sangria!

Just looking back now into my personal notes, I have wrote that we had: Spicy Rolls, Lasagna. Mushroom Burger, Banana split and a Ganage Chocolate Tart.


I loved their dish design, the meal, the taste, the atmosphere, everything about Pure Food and Wine was just perfect.


Hoping to visit New York again just to pass by this wonderful restaurant!


Thank you Sarma Melngailis

La Reina

PS: I will try to get some of these dishes' recipes to share them with you :-)
 
Spicy Rolls
Lasagna


Mushroom Burger

Sangria, Cheers!

Banana split

Ganage Chocolate Tart with a Vanilla Ice Cream




Sunday, March 25, 2012

Yellow Fruits & One Green!

Yellow Fruits & One Green!

Pineapple


Organic Ingredients:

Fruits:
4 Pineapple slice
1 Banana
1 Orange
1 Kiwi
1 Mango


Equipment:
Blender or Vitamix

1/2 cup of water

Add all ingredients in the blender.

Decorate with Blueberries and Almonds!
Or choose your own decoration :-)

Pineapple, Banana, Orange and Mango
Bon Appétit!

La Reina

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Invest in yourself, your body and soul not your bank account

When we talk about Investment, the first thought that comes to mind is Money, bank accounts, and being rich; i.e. buying the most expensive clothes, fashion, cars, etc... . Although, it is a fact, that money never buy a life, or even health.

My personal opinion and experience about investment has switched 180 degrees.

I used to be financially oriented, stopped myself from enjoying what life has to offer cause I felt financially unstable, although I had a full time job. I used to be a shop-aholic, spent hours at the store buying, just to buy, still have stuff with tags on that I never used and indulging my stomach and taste by trying every restaurant in the city.

Looking at our world and life in general, sickness, weakness, depression, has overtaken the majority of the population, a big percentage is Sick, i.e. Cancer, Alzheimer, M.S, Tumors, Diabetes, and the list is long. The others are too focused on their work, jobs, and making money to satisfy their thirst for it, but not even having the time to spend it happily, and not even the hour to enjoy it with their loved ones. But the train of life is passing, and some do miss it.

My switch took place almost a year ago, after a burn out from work, a 9 to 5, in a closed office, working hard to bring up new ideas and implement it in a totally closed minded company, where any creative idea takes a two year investment case to see if it can be applied. In addition, with the new rapid technology we live in, any new innovative idea in IT will die in couple of months, so imagine if it takes two years; it will rot. 

Burn out and other health problem pumped the idea to let go everything and have a LIFE.

(I am NOT here to convince you to do what I did)

I took off for a small vacation, had lots of ideas on my mind, and decided to do something for ME.

Returning to our main subject, "invest in yourself, your body and soul", my definition to this statement is to make sure you take care of YOURSELF, not only the others. You are important, and you need to be with YOU.

A friend of mine quoted this:
"When I loved myself enough, I began leaving whatever wasn't healthy. This meant people, jobs, my own beliefs and habits - anything that kept me small. My judgment called it disloyal. Now I see it as self-loving.” ~ Kim McMillen - by Rania  Perfect mind

As said, working hard to make money, drowning our body, mind, and spirit into sickness and tiredness, in a long run, might destroy our tissues, our organs, even our soul.
At least 1 person within your family (or extended) or even circle of friends got sick, and probably spent days in the hospital putting all the money they made to buy health, to be healthy and get rid of the illness.

My first advice to you:

Start investing in your body. Eating healthier today will save you hospital days, medications and illness. Listen to what your body is telling you, i.e. sometimes you might consume a meal which makes you sense strange, aches, and pain.

What to Do:
  • Add more fruits and veggies in your meals, make sure they are organic, bio and specially raw.
  • Have more green leafs, either in a salad or green smoothies, i.e. kale, spinach, chard, chicory, or collards.
  • Add lots of sprouts in your salads and sandwiches.
  • Cut down on sugar, you can consume the sugar from fruits, dried fruits, sweeteners like agave nectar, stevia, maple syrop, or honey, all organic.
  • Drink water regularly, more the 2.5L per day
  • Cut down the daily coffee consumption and replace it with Organic Tea
  • Cut down dairy product consumption, unless you buy only bio products (without the added chemicals, hormones, and additives, etc...) Or Start making your own Almond milk, Cajou Milk, or even Sesame milk. Yummy!!
    • If you want cheese, there is an easy recipe for un-cheese (raw vegan) made from cajou or macademia nuts.
  • Pasta, replace it by the ones made of Quinoa & other ingredients
  • Rice, substitute it with brown rice
  • Bread, probably look for the gluten free.
  • As for the other animal products, make sure their bio. And mostly, cut down your consumption by 75%; i.e. if you eat meat daily, cut it to 3 times per week, for the first 2 weeks, then twice, and so on.
 Other advices will come soon, I am personally still experiencing them, and it feels AWESOME!

Remember, your body, your health and your positivity will drive you in life, make sure your investment starts here.

With Harmony, Love and Positivity,

La Reina


Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Raw Ingredients High in Calcium

Calcium is an important mineral to be included in our diet for strong bones and teeth. When we say calcium, we directly  associate it with the consumption of cow’s milk, but how can vegans get the calcium from?
For you to know more on how we can get calcium by consuming raw food, below is a list of raw ingredients which offers you healthy sources of foods high in calcium.
1- Sesame Seeds:
Sesame seeds
White little seed-wonders are very high in calcium, as well as other important vitamins and minerals.
Raw sesame seeds possess almost 1000 mg of calcium per 100g serving. Tahini butter, a popular sesame seed-based nut butter has 426mg per 100g serving. 
Sesame milk is also high in calcium and other vitamins and minerals.
2- Chia Seeds:
Chia Seeds
Chia seeds are very high in calcium (as well as the beneficial Omega 3 & 6 fatty acids needed for health). A 3.5 ounce serving can provide about 631mg of calcium. Click here for more Chia seeds benefits.
Serve yourself some Energetic Raw Breakfast every now and then :-)  


3- Dark Leafy Green:
 
Kale
From greens to spinach to kale, getting our calcium from dark green leafy vegetables is a an excellent health choice. Spinach ranks very high in calcium, with 291 grams of calcium per cup. A 100g serving of collards packs a 145 mg calcium punch. One cup of steamed bok choy has around 158 mg of the mineral. Kale ranks in with 139mg of calcium and the spicy mustard green has 103mg of calcium per 100g serving.
A green smoothies maybe?
 4- Flax Seeds:
Flax Seeds
Not only high in calcium (256mg per 100g serving), flax seeds are also rich in omega-3 fats. Make sure to use ground or whole flax seeds, as the refined flaxseed oil loses its calcium levels during processing. Flax seeds are also a great way to improve your intestinal health.
It is a reason why I have been adding lots of flax seeds in my fruity smoothies!  
5- Quinoa:
Quinoa
A light and healthy whole grain, one cup of cooked quinoa offers approximately 60-100 mg of calcium, not to mention a high amount of potassium, zinc and protein. (Quinoa must be cooked can not be eaten Raw)

6- Molasses:
Molasses
High in multiple vitamins and minerals, one tablespoon of this thick dark molasses will give you 172 mg of your daily calcium needs. Try it in your Lebanese Fattoush  By Cook and Eat Lebanese






7- Orange: 

Freshly Squeezed Orange Juice
One cup of freshly-squeezed organic orange juice offers approximately 72 mg of calcium. Not to mention plenty of vitamin c, which will significantly improve the amount of calcium your body absorbs. Besides vitamin c and calcium, oranges are also a great source for potassium, vitamin A and beta carotene.

8- Beans:
Beans
Many common beans are high in calcium. Winged beans possess 442mg of calcium per 100g serving. Many white beans are very high in calcium. Most white beans have approximately 175mg of calcium per serving. Navy beans are also a great source of calcium, with 127 mg per cup. These beans make an excellent soup base, when our bones most need the support of calcium.  

9- Broccoli:
Broccoli
One cup of these green florets offers approximately 74 mg of calcium, along with 120mg of Vitamin C which will help your body absorb the calcium. Broccoli also contains a high amount of vitamin K, vitamin A, folate and dietary fiber.  

10- Dried Fruits & Nuts:
Dried Fruits & Nuts
Many dried fruits are high in calcium. In fact, eating five dried figs per day gives you 135 mg of calcium. Almonds are also extremely high in calcium. Raw, or ground into nut butter, almonds hold 266mg of calcium per 100g.
It is a reason why I am adding most of these in my Smoothies
11- Dried Herbs:
Dried Herbs
Who would have thought that adding dried herbs to your dishes would increase your calcium intake? Dried savory spice holds a whopping 2132mg of calcium per 100g serving. Other dried herbs that are calcium rich include dill, basil, marjoram, thyme, oregano, poppy seed, mint, celery seed, sage, parsley and rosemary.
Now you have a perfect reason to add Raw Ingredients to your diet! Get more Calcium!

PS: some of the information are gathered from the internet, some pictures too 

Monday, March 19, 2012

Mission Accomplished! I did it! We did it!

Yes, I have participated in a brave challenge for the most noble cause, for my friend Dan, for his daughter Isabelle, to support and raise money to help kids with cancer and their families.

March 17, 2012, and for the first time, I have skied for 12 consecutive hours , from 12 noon till 12 midnight. As a team of 4 we did 86 descents, I did almost 28 descents, with all my energy and without any previous training.

Thank you Dan, Eric and Stephan for accomplishing this challenge as a team. I am happy that I have been part of this.

As a team we raised almost $3500, I was able to help in with $1745, for that I want to thank each person who has supported me: Rania, Wasseem, Issam, Thomas and few other anonymous names.
and for your kind messages:
"Tres belle initiative! you go girl!!! best of success to you & your team! two thumbs up!"
"Bon courage, I am proud of you"
"Good luck. These kids will really appreciate what you are doing."

Other moral support came for most of my friends and family, leaving comments on my personal facebook page. THANK YOU!!!

More information about the challenge Leucan Defi Ski:

"It is a 12-Hour Ski Challenge, an annual fundraising activity for skiers and snowboarders. Each team of four must raise $400 in donations for Leucan. It is the total amount raised by the team and not by the individuals that allows the team to participate to the Challenge. The Challenge is a friendly activity for the whole family and for skiers and snowboarders of all ages. Each team member must do a minimum of one descent per hour for 12 consecutive hours, from noon to midnight."

Leucan is an association whose mission is to help cancer-stricken children and their families believe in a brighter future.

The association looks after its families at each phase of the illness by providing specific and adapted services. Leucan is present in all walks of family life whether it be at the hospital, at home, at school, in social life or in the public eye, by means of financial assistance, welcome, emotional assistance and support services, information, hosting and support in playrooms, massage therapy at the hospital and in the region, socio-recreational activities, support groups, school life and end-of-life and bereavement follow-up services.


A following blog will revive the beautiful day and experience we 4 had!
 



Friday, March 16, 2012

My Inspiration

When I speak about my inspiration, I refer to the quotes I have been motivated to write 4 months ago, and still on going.

In a previous blog I stated the definition behind the name Raw Love Recipe Quotes:

"Raw - because it is pure from my heart, thoughts and mind.
Love - because I believe it is around in all life elements, and
Recipe - because I create them by adding my own ingredients
"

To date, I have written 29 Quotes.

It touches deeply my soul every time I type, starting from the first word to the end. I get this emotional tangible feeling, an internal warmth aiding my fingers to play around touching every letter with deep sentiments.

I have never thought that one day I will be able to calligraphically project this burst of emotion, passion and love into words, a phrase, or even a quote.

The number one quote which received lots of comments from friends is:

"A Relationship is simply a pure friendship, mixed with tingling emotions, sprinkled with lots of passion and cooked with Love - RH "

The entirety of the world starts with a recipe; planting ingredients together, adding all the positivity, the healing and most importantly the love, will harvest in creating the ultimate world we want to survive in.

Which arose to another quote I believe will nourish a relationship, in any of its kind.

"Planting the seeds at the start in a comfortable relation, nourishing it daily, will harvest a wonderful loving life - RH"

I actually wrote this one replying to a friend's comment about the Marriage Recipe quote, saying "Nice Theory ... let me know when you see it implemented !", which says the below:

"Marriage recipe; add a lot of transparency in communication with a full sensation of belonging, 100% respect, sprinkle daily the love, emotions and live in its charm, passion, and craving - RH"

and this one:

"Marriage is the creation of two in harmony conceived with pure love and coherence - RH"

To sum it up, each quote I composed, by date, goes under an unpredicted sequence, I believe they flow progressively.

Hoping you are enjoying my writing and inspiration, I will leave you with this one:

"Life is too precious; live it up enjoying every second of it. Heal yourself through beautiful thoughts, smile & happiness. Spread the love around! - RH"

PS: RH are for my initials, in case you are wondering!

Live in Harmony, Love and Positivity.

By La Reina

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

More Smoothies

I should start creating a weekly smoothie calendar, to help you get in a routine to fill in your body with good fresh blended Fruits! ..... and Veggies!

Don't know what to name this one - maybe you can help me out!

Water, Goji, Figs, Hemp seeds, Strawberries
Organic Ingredients
Seeds:
1tb.s ground Flax Seeds
2 tb.s Hemp Seeds 

Dried Fruits:
Goji berri (soaked)
2 Dried figs  (soaked)

Fruits:
1 Banana
5 Strawberries
10 Blackberries
1 hand blueberries
Adding Banana, Berries and Flax seeds

Sweetener:
1tbs organic honey

Equipment:

Blender or a Vitamix

1 cup of water




Lastly the Honey



Mix all in a blender, or a Vita-mix
Serves 2

Decorate with Hemp seeds

Bon Appétit!

La Reina

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Need some Milk!

Vegans don't drink animal milk. They have created more Yummier Ones.
Did you know that you can milk the nut? Sesame milk, Almond milk, Cashew milk, and even more!
I decided to try making some sesame milk.
Organic Ingredients: 
Sesame Seeds (soaked for 8 hours)
Vita-Mix
Sesame Seeds
Equipment:
Blender or Vita-Mix
Bag strainer to filter the milk






 Soak the sesame seeds for 8 hours, then rinse them with filtered water.
Add the soaked sesame in the blender with some water, blend until a creamy white look.



Filter the milk using the strainer.
The residue from the sesame milk can be used in other ingredients. 


I used it to scrub my skin! Yes, you can use soaked seeds residue for natural beauty treatments, it actually moisturize the skin


You can add other ingredients to sweeten the milk, or use it to create smoothies, like I did... new smoothie recipe will be added soon.




 PS: A lot of Nut milk are available at the grocery store, but I advise you to just blend them at home.
 

Fruity Smoothie

Smoothie - a good drink to have anytime, any day!

Freshen your soul!

Fruity Smoothie

Goji, Flax seeds, Water, Strawberries, Pear
Organic Ingredients:

Seeds:
1 Tbs of Flax seeds


Dried Fruits:
1 t.t.s Goji berries
2 Dried apricots

Fruits:
Blackberries, Raspberries, Blueberries
Strawberries
Blackberries
Blueberries
Raspberries
1 Kiwi
1 Banana
1 Pear

Equipment:
Blender or a Vitamix

1 cup of water




Adding the Kiwi

Then the Banana












Mix all in a blender, or a Vita-mix

Serves 3 cups




Bon Appétit!

La Reina