Wednesday, January 20, 2010

culinary boot camp was...

fun today!!! jam packed with more goodies than i can remember. let's see... raisin toast, walnut scones, lemon tarts
and my teammates and i worked well together. any kinks were ironed out. phew, the week has been saved. i am relieved and greatful. just got out of an extracurricular lecture by Jennifer Cornbleet. author of my fave book Raw Food Made EAsy. she did a pineapple upside down cake.
was delish.

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

happiness thru tryptophan

required amount of tryptophan
.2 grams per day according to USRDA study on humans in 1942-1955
spirulina is way high in tryptophan.
57% of 3 gram serving is 1.71 grams of tryptophan!!
tryptophan converts to seratonin
and that is exciting cause seratonin makes you happy!
it also regulates intestinal movements and the remainder has various functions the
reg of mood appetite sleep muscle contraction and some cognitive functions including memory and learning. help regulate homostasis in blood clotting.
other things to eat
sunflower seeds, sesame, pumpkin seeds.
eat and be happy.
it is important to have a good ratio of tryptophan to phenylalanine and leucine. fruits with a good ratio are dates papaya and banana foods with a lower ratio inhibit the production of
seratonin and that includes wheat and rye bread. this info came from the website: selfgrowth.com

Monday, January 18, 2010

i was the leader of the day. felt like boot camp.


in this oh so challenging part of being in the culinary studio. we are expected to commune with three other students and follow recipes. i was the leader of the day. meaning i tell others when to chop, when to blend, when to clean, in what order. phew. hard day, ruffled feathers. too many people energies mostly hard because there is a time limit. Also hard because there seems to be a bit of competition as to whose is the prettiest. so, i stepped into leadership and it was not easy, for goodness sake all we did was make sauces and asian wraps. mine came out disorderly. i felt as if it was more my job to keep my group and food moving forward in a friendly way, that i really did not get to do my normal pretty "Dara" thing. AND i am NOT YET good at wrapping cabbage leaves nice and neat and tight like the table to my right. they are from Japan. so
in light of all that, i survived this monday. did have moments of fleeing. here is my fitting horoscope. tuesday should be better.

Monday, Jan 18th, 2010 -- You might struggle with an inevitable shift of power because you are deeply invested in the status quo. Even if you see the advantage of shaking things up, it makes you nervous when there are too many unknowns. Keep in mind that you won't be able to stop the wheels of progress. Give yourself a few more days and then make up your mind to be a positive part of the change. Once you do, you can assume an important leadership role in the transformation.

reach out beyond myself...


Sunday, Jan 17th, 2010 -- While propitious Jupiter was in your 2nd House of Possessions last year, you may have had an opportunity to increase your personal financial holdings. But the real value of what you gained might have had more to do with your self-esteem. Now that Jupiter is entering your 3rd House of Communication, you must reach out beyond yourself and interact more with others. You have much to offer and much to learn, yet it's up to you to take the initiative.

this was my horoscope for yesterday. in the week that i have been here i have realized a great need of mine to find out about my raw food friends journeys. i have been asking them questions and videotaping. i have also realized that while i love chef-ing, being in my kitchen and nurturing others, i also have a love of communicating what it means to be a raw foodist. it has come to my attention that it is time to step out and communicate what i have learned, learn more and share all of it! this horoscope confirms it.

late night pondering of science of raw food...

every night. after class, we make food in the kitchen of our inn. the Living Light Inn. in Fort Bragg, CA. as i type the rain beats so hard on the roof. (i am in the attic room) it almost sounds like hail) wait. it must be hail. or baseballs. wow. ok well, blog away. at night, after we eat i like to find out what is going on in other raw peoples lives. why they are here on a quest for the best education in living plant based food, or who is at home supporting their efforts here. i have found out a lot, and it is all interesting to me. last night i got a clip of Edgar and Emily telling me a couple of things that they gleaned from the weekend of science/nutrition of raw food. it will give you a bit of what is was like. we have lots more to say. it is 7 pm now. perhaps after some alone time. i need it! i will venture down three little carpeted flights and see who is in the kitchen. i really must also tell you what it is like in the culinary studio under pressure with four other people used to doing things their way. holy----. for now a video from last night...

krispy kale

delicious emmylicious krispy kale. with iron and vitamin B12. did you know that as a raw vegan it is essential to take vitamin B12? it can be found in nutritional yeast, which is all over this now krunchy kale. Emmy coated it with a "batter" of nutritional yeast, cashew creme, salt and then put it in the dehydrator on 125 for three hours. really delicious and beats pringles. she wants to call them Kringles. cute huh? well, it beats Pringles or any other cooked potato. in fact, we learned from Dr.'s Dina that steaming potatoes is the only way to go
as the sugar and acids naturally found in them when heated create a carcinogen known as Acrylomide. yuk. raw plant based for me. so here the kale has its living enzymes and phytonutrients in tact. It totally satisfies any munchies. ttly. DD

Sunday, January 17, 2010

SCIENCE AND NUTRITION OF RAW FOOD

this entire weekend was spent listening to the Dr.'s Dina. Karin and Rick. they were phenomenal
and knew how to make words fly over my head! amazing! although words and chemistry lessons were flying around the room. some did manage to settle on my friends and i. For Edgar, the weight of food that will satiate us made an impression. 2 lbs! so it is best to choose high water high fiber like leafy greens first. they will satiate without an overload of calories. choose them before raw cheesecake. For Emily it was the fact that leafy greens do not thin but coagulate blood. I remember distinctly it is best to eat potatoes steamed as the sugar and acid naturally found in them combined with heat creates a carcinogen. STEAM YOUR POTATOES. so much to share. will do. for now this new blog will need followers. :)