Clean, fresh, RAW Challenge for JULY!!!

As far as that salsa/guacamole article - it said this accounts for 3.9% of restaurant related outbreaks. I'm sure the other 96% is from meat but no one seems to be doing an article on that. Our number 1 reason for eating this way is to be healthy. Having amazing health includes having a strong immune system. Eating this way allows the body time & energy to fight off the occasional bad guy because we are not constantly throwing armies of bad guys its way. I don't bother worrying about things like that - there was a time we didn't have refrigerators - I wonder how our species didn't die out without them!! I guess if you do want to make an effort to avoid poisoning from salsa & guac steer clear of places with crappy kitchens or bad food handling techniquies or just make your own

Some of those juice recipes look great but there are definitely some that look like an upset digestive system. I would steer clear of cantalope & flax together, Worcestershire sauce has anchovies and really any melon with anything other than melons would make my stomach knot up.

I had tons of Kombucha the first time I went raw & I know plenty of raw foodies who make their own. Personally that stuff made me feel weird to say the least. I drank it for the B-12 but really I think I got addicted to it. It really doesn't even taste good anyway (like bubbly vinegar - makes me cringe thinking about it!!) I think its just another drug like caffeine, tobacco, and alcohol (which makes sense because it does contain alcohol ). Just another item to steal your money IMHO.

Good tip on the wheatgrass Sailady! Centrifugal juicers & wheatgrass equals a pile of mangled wheatgrass and two drops of juice I have a twin gear and it definitely works much better than my previous juicer but I like to run apples through with them so it kind of carries it and gives it bulk to make sure I'm getting everything I can out of it. Plus it tastes better!! Those hand cranks are probably the best for wheat grass though.

AWh thanks Ummbinat!! That sounds so yummy right now but I just used the last of my carob I should put in the notes on that one that refrigerating the banana for a couple hours makes it much more fun. Yeah everything has been on hold on the new site.

RMC - I like the wheatgrass idea - never thought of that although my blender probably would have just killed itself faster as the grass would have just knotted up around it (it was a piece of junk). Water... well personally the majority of the water I drink is from a brita filter. I don't buy bottled water just because of the waste & cash for it. I think the best option would be water straight from the ground - we have a couple fresh water springs around here but I go through so much I rather not drive all over the world. They are actually more common than you think. However unless its in a fairly untouched area you can't be certain that some type of nasty run off could be contaminating it. Personally I'm saving up for a distiller. Distilled water is the easiest to assimilate & absolutely free of everything....so I guess this would be considered "dead"?

Best path would be to flush the feeling and/or take something alkalizing....so maybe some lemon water. Getting a bit of sun on the face always make me feel better as well - no matter what the ailment.

I'm joining you!! Well kind of By tomorrow afternoon I will be on bananas. I still have a star fruit, 2 passion fruit, and a papaya that I will have for breakfast tomorrow. After that I have about 80 bananas staring at me soooo at least five days maybe more if some more bananas are ripened up by then. YAY!!! I've been wanting to go bananas but everytime I open the fridge there seems to be some type of fruit coming out from the shadows plus my garden has been going crazy but my husband should be home in a couple days so everything can wait for him!! I am really excited for this....I've never done banana island for real...most was like one and a half days.

Here are some SuPer SweEt banana tips to get us in the mood!!

All Bananas, All the Time!

Banana milk: combine peeled bananas with filtered water, in a blender; use enough water to achieve a milk-like liquid; blend until completely smooth.

Banana cream: follow the directions for banana milk, except, use less water, to create a cream consistency, thicker than a milk consistency.

Banana pudding: place peeled bananas in a blender, blend until smooth.

Banana "oatmeal" : mash bananas with a fork until an oatmeal like texture is created; may be served with banana milk.

Warm banana: place peeled banana in a sunny window until it feels warm to the touch; peel and eat. (You may want to use warm banana recipe for banana "oatmeal")

Cold banana: place banana in refrigerator for several hours; peel and eat.

Banana on a stick: carefully insert a wooden Popsicle stick, or skewer, through the center of a banana: half of the stick should be in the banana, half should be exposed, as a handle.

Frozen banana on a stick: follow directions for banana on a stick; freeze for several hours.

Banana kabobs: slice banana, insert wooden skewer through center of each slice until stick is filled, leaving enough wood exposed on each end to hold and eat. Be sure to make several for each person.

Banana hor' dourves: slice bananas, or cut into interesting shapes, place a toothpick through the center of each slice, arrange on an attractive plate or platter.

Banana ice cream: freeze several bananas. Using a high powered blender or a Champion juicer, blend into a creamy frozen treat.

Banana milkshake: combine banana ice cream and banana milk in a blender; pulse quickly; drink through a straw for an authentic experience.

Ants on a log: cut the pointed ends off of a banana, creating a log shape; dice the end pieces into small pieces; sprinkle "ants" on the log; enjoy. Kids really like this one.

Banana novelties: cut and arrange banana pieces on colorful plates to form flowers, trains, clowns, birds, or whatever your favorite shape might be.

Banana split: cut a banana in half in a long, slender dish; top with banana ice cream; may add chopped banana bits and/or banana cream, for added excitement.

Banana cereal: slice one banana into a cereal bowl; blend one banana with water to make banana milk or banana cream; pour over slices in bowl.

Banana necklaces: (warning, this could be messy) slice one or more bananas into fairly thick slices. Using a clean knitting needle, and clean hemp thread, carefully thread banana slices onto thread. When you are sure it is long enough to slip over your head, tie ends of thread. Wear, and nibble when hungry.

Happy Bananas: Eat lots of bananas, and smile!

Great job with your sis Ummbinat! What a wonderful gift to give! If we all just turn on one person to eating more raw foods then soon enough this world will be full of glowing happy people! My husband said the other day "can't we just be quiet vegans?" NO!!! There are so many people I care for and love deeply that are just slowly killing themselves and in the process are living horrible unrewarding lives. If we can just reach out and help one person then its all worth having others ignore us or try to bring us down because they are fearful or ignorant. Not sure if I shared this yet...A really good friend of mine (SAD meat eater) came to me a couple weeks ago and was asking about colon cleanse & detoxing. He saw stuff at GNC and he was trying to decide which one to get. I explained to him how those products are just short term & really a waste of money...they don't strengthen your system but actually weaken. I told him about banana island & he ended up doing it for 4 days. he lost 4lbs (didn't have much to lose) and now goes more regularly then ever (this was his main issue - he was only going at most once a day & usually much less). He reports feeling great, more energy, & adding more raw foods to his diet!! If I wasn't such a loud mouth he might not have asked for my recommendations and he would have his money stolen for a quick fix instead of a life long permanent change. Yay for NATURE!!!