I made myself this yummy dish a few weeks ago and I have been meaning to share it…

I love the Tzatziki sauce!

3-4 Portobello Mushrooms sliced. I marinated the mushrooms in 2 Tbsp of Olive oil and 1 Tbsp of lamb/steak seasoning. You can eat them raw or heat them slightly in a pan on low.

Tzatziki Sauce
1 – 16oz container of grape seed oil veganaise
1/2 cucumber, grated & salted. remove excess water
juice of 1 lemon
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
2 Tbsp fresh dill, chopped

Mix all ingredients and chill for 30 minutes.

Enjoy in your favorite whole grain wrap or romaine wrap. Mine was a gluten-free wrap without any bells or whistles, but feel free to add chopped onion and tomato.

First and foremost, I would like to thank everyone who participated in the contest. Your responses were incredibly motivating, heart warming and inspirational. This, was the first time I’ve done something like this and, I was unsure how it was going to go. Thanks to everyone who sent their personal story in; you made this contest a great success! I truly appreciate your time and sincerity.

Choosing a winner was not easy. Every one of you had your own, unique reason for participating in the Raw Retreat. I believe that all of your concerns, questions and curiosities will be acknowledge and answered during the Retreat.

The winner of the Raw Retreat Free Pass Giveaway, is Tammy Curtin-Sikon. Her story deeply spoke to me. As a mother of 2 beautiful babies, experiencing life with them has been the greatest thing to happen to me. I love being a Mother with all my heart, and I believe she should experience the same.

Once again I can not thank everyone enough for participating. This is a great success, and look out for more contests like this in the future! Below is Tammy’s story. Please take a minute and read it. I look forward to seeing everyone at the Retreat!

-Marisa

How will participating in the Raw Retreat, benefit your health and Impact you life?

“Not only do I want to do this retreat for me but I want to do this for my husband and hopefully soon to be family.  I am overcoming some huge health issues and my husband’s health is deteriorating.  We both have agreed to be healthier all around but don’t know where to start or what to do.

One on my main goals in life is to have a family.  I was a fairly healthy person and I worked out ALL the time.  But for over 7 years I have been trying to discover what was wrong with me.  I had many symptoms that stopped me from becoming a mother the main issues we were trying to solve was my high
blood pressure.  My blood pressure was so high I was on 2 different medications and one I had to take 3 times a days.  My blood pressure was still high on both medications.  All the blood work I was doing came back normal the only problem my doctor said was my weight.  So I did every diet my doctor told me to do for 7 years, and I increased my workouts.  I was eating what I thought was
healthy and working out 7 days and week some times twice a day.  I was so frustrated because my weight stayed the same.  For 7 years I was doing blood test after blood test and nothing.  Then one day we discovered my cortisal was high, this lead me to a new doctor and more tests and finally they discovered I have a rare horrible disease called Cushing’s disease.  Cushing’s Disease was caused by a large tumor on my pituitary and I had surgery to remove the tumor on September 28, 2012.  I have about a year and a half left until I am what they call “ Normal” but I am feeling so much better.  I
still have rough days but I am thankful for every day I have, and I have been told several times that my positive attitude helps me to recover faster than most.  I believe beyond a doubt that this tumor was caused by the environment.  I now want to take control of my life and health and live a healthy and raw lifestyle, however I don’t know how to start or do this.  I started off slow and attended one of your seminars on what Raw is and I bought a Vitamix and I have been making green smoothies and making more raw choices, I now want to take it to the next level.

Not only am I looking at my health but I am looking at my husbands who is the biggest junk food junky ever.  He has finally agreed to try a raw lifestyle and I am excited.  But
I know I only have one shot to turn him Raw, so this retreat will not only help me but my husband.

I want to thank you for reading my story and I only gave you a small look into why attending the retreat will help me and my family.  I have more to share but I wanted to keep this brief for I know you are probably reading many emails.  If you would like more information I would be more than happy to share just let me know.

Oh and by the way when I was diagnosed with Cushing Disease I was told that I would probably not be able to have children, this was devastating to us, but at my last appointment because I am improving so much the doctors are confident that I could possibly have a child but that I will have to be very diligent to live a healthy lifestyle.  So that is also a huge motivation for us as well.

Again, thank you for your time and if you need any additional information please do not hesitate to contact me.”

Tammy Curtin-Sikon

I just had to share this great testimonial this week from a long time friend and client Amy O…

So I wanted to share my raw story with you and others. As you know I have been with you and Piet on and off for 3 years. I started training with you and you introduced me to raw foods. I took a raw food challenge and attended your classes to learn and make food on my own about 3 years ago. I had great success and lost 26 lbs during that 4 week challenge.

So fast forwarding to now…..where I went off on my own and completely reverted back to old habits and just not training anymore or eating healthy.

Now I am back training and started eating healthy but didn’t feel like I was still doing my body any help. So 3 weeks into working out I decided I wanted to do The 30 Day Living on Real Food Challenge again. I just remember how good I felt eating clean. There is nothing like feeling less swollen, no stomach problems, easy digestion, and the amount of energy you gain like it is when you eat raw. Plus the weight loss is a huge plus!

I have been eating raw for 6 days now and in those 6 days I have lost 9.2 lbs!!!!! I feel amazing and I choose eating raw for the purpose of feeding my body the best fuel for it to perform properly and get the best nutrition out of food. I don’t have cravings for sweets, pasta (which I loved) or salty foods. Instead I am addicted to green smoothies!!!! I have 3 more weeks on this challenge but I do believe that my decision to do it past the end of it is already made. While I know every week I won’t lose 9.2 lbs the health benefit far outweighs anything.

Thanks for all your help and most of all for always believing in me even when I didn’t;)

Amy O

I absolutely love HOT Sauce and I figured there must be a way to enjoy a buffalo wing minus the wing! This recipe is super easy and can be made cooked vegan or raw vegan…

Ingredients:

1 large head of cauliflower, cut into florets
1 cup non-dairy milk( I used hemp milk)
1 cup flour(I used almond flour to keep it gluten-free)
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp seal salt
1/2 tsp black pepper

Sauce:

1/2 cup Red Hot
1/4 cup Veganaise

1. Mix milk, flour and spices and coat cauliflower florets
2. Bake in a shallow pan for 30 minutes on 350 degrees or in a dehydrator for 7-8 hours on 105 degrees
3. Allow to cool and drizzle with red hot/veganaise sauce mixture

Enjoy!

I was teaching Cardio Camp at Pure Health and Fitness last week and came up with this killer cardio workout…

Set 1
Treadmill 5 minutes
minute 0-1 / 3.5 mph
minute 1-2 / 4.5 mph
minute 2-3 / 5.5 mph
minute 3-4 / 6.5 mph
minute 4-5 / 7.5 mph

Set 2 on the Floor
Burpees with dumbbell shoulder press
30 seconds on/10 secs rest for 8 rounds (should take 5 minutes)

Repeat Treadmill

Set 4 on Floor
Weighted dumbbell Seal Jacks
30 seconds on/10 secs rest for 8 rounds (should take 5 minutes)

Repeat Treadmill

Set 6 on Floor
Mountain Climbers with gliders under toes (if you don’t have gliders then just do regular moutain climbers)
30 seconds on/10 secs rest for 8 rounds (should take 5 minutes)

Stretch!

Finish up with a Post Workout Green Smoothie! 

What is Kombucha? According to Wikipedia…

Kombucha is an effervescent fermentation of sweetened tea that is used as a functional food. Sometimes referred to as a “mushroom” or “mother”, the kombucha culture is actually a symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast (SCOBY).

Our raw foods teacher and fitness instructor Laura had some benefits to share on why Kombucha is soooooo good for you…

Great info!

Find at your local grocery or health food stores or join us for a Kombucha making workshop!

Today is 3 months since our baby boy Bennet Le Roux came into our lives. I wanted to share this adorable picture of him and give everyone an update.

During my pregnancy I didn’t know how I was going to handle a 20 month old and an infant but God has a special way of making everything work out the way it’s suppose to. His big sister adores him and constantly wants to help take care of him and she has adapted so well. He is the most chill baby ever and sleeps alot! After just 6 weeks he was sleeping through the night!

I’m exclusively nursing him and he eats so well that he doubled in size by his 2 month appointment bringing him to 16 pounds and 25 inches long. The doctor says he’s off the charts and my mom says I have super powered milk (it must be all the raw food

Thank you for all the continued support as we build our family.

Many of you ask me what to do with your nut milk pulp??? Well here you go…

Basic Recipe:

2 c. Almond pulp from making almond milk or any nut milk
3-4 T. Maple syrup
3 T. coconut oil
Pinch of salt
3 T. chia seed soaked in 1 cup water till thickened

• Mix all ingredients together and use in one of the following “variations”.
• Drop dough by small spoonfuls onto Teflex or parchment lined dehydrator trays.  Press dough to flatten.
• Dehydrate at 105 degrees for 12 hours or less depending on your preference
• Halfway through dehydrating, take cookies off the Teflex / parchment sheets and continue to dehydrate till desired doneness.

Variations:

Ginger Snaps:
1 t. cinnamon powder, 1 t. ground clove, 1 ½ t. ginger powder, ¼ c. molasses, more maple syrup to desired sweetness

Chocolate Cookies:
2-3 T. raw cacao powder, more maple to desired sweetness, cacao nibs and or chopped nuts if desired

Orange Spice Cookies:
¼ c. lemon juice, 1 orange (peeled), ½ t. cinnamon. Blend orange with lemon juice and add to pulp and cinnamon.

The Thanksgiving Potluck was great, but the best part of it all was Barbie’s Green Bean Casserole. I had to share this!

EASY RAW VEGAN GREEN BEAN CASSEROLE, www.addictedtoveggies.com
Green Beans
In a mixing bowl combine the following:
1 lb (2 1/2 to 3 cups) fresh Green Beans – sliced on the bias, or chopped however you like
1 Tbsp Lemon Juice
1 tsp Coconut Nectar //or// 1 tsp Date Sweetener
1/2 tsp Garlic Granules //or// Garlic powder
1/2 tsp Onion Powder
Mix all of the above ingredients into a bowl and let marinade for at least a couple of hours. I let mine marinade overnight.

Caramelized Onions
1/2 Large White Onion – thinly sliced.
Toss Onion in a pinch of salt and 1/2 tsp of Canola oil
Dehydrator: Place sliced Onion onto Parchment paper and Dehydrate for 2 hours or until “wilted” looking. Remove and refrigerate until ready to assemble Casserole.
Conventional Oven: Place sliced Onion onto a sheet of Parchment paper, place parchment paper onto a cooling rack, place cooling rack onto a cooking sheet/pan. Set oven to lowest heat possible, leaving the oven door cracked open place your Onions in oven and “dry” them for roughly 1 hour, or until “wilted” looking.

Almond-Onion Topping
Into a zip-lock baggy combine:
1/2 c Almonds
1 tsp Onion powder
pinch of Salt and Pepper
Get out your rolling pin or heavy flat skillet and pound those Almonds into a crumble!

Creamy Mushroom Sauce
You can make this sauce in either a Food Processor or by hand. Please read carefully for *directions to successfully make this by hand.
*By Hand: 1/2 c raw unsalted Cashew Butter
Food Processor:
3/4 c raw Cashews
1 tsp Lemon juice
1 tsp Onion powder
1 tsp Nutritional yeast
1/4 tsp ground Celery Seed (celery salt will work, just be careful with any additional salt)
2 pinches of dried/ground Thyme
*1 or 2 Handfuls of dehydrated Crimini Mushroom – crumbled (you can usually find these pre-dried at any grocery store, just ask!)
Salt & Pepper to taste
*1 c Water
*By Hand: In a large mixing bowl combine all of the sauce ingredients. Crumble your Mushroom into the bowl. Proceed to slowly add your water, whisking as you go. You may not end up needing the entire cup of water, so be careful to not add it all at the same time! Once all of the ingredients have been mixed together move on to assembling your Casserole!
In Food Processor/Highspeed Blender: Combine all of the sauce ingredients including Mushrooms and Water. Puree until smooth – for roughly 3 to 5 minutes. Now get ready to make that casserole!

Assemble & Heating your Green Bean Casserole
Heating with a Conventional Oven:
Set your Oven to its very lowest heat, leaving the door closed until your Casserole has been Assembled —
Add your Caramelized Onions and Green Beans together in a Shallow Casserole dish, spreading them out evenly. Pour your Sauce over/on-top of your Green Beans. Top it off with the Onion Almond Crumble. Place your Casserole dish into the warm oven – leaving the door cracked open – for up to 1 hour. Remove when warmed through and ready to eat!

Heating with a Dehydrator:
Assemble Casserole as noted above in a very shallow Casserole dish. Warm in dehydrator for 2 to 4 hours. When Beans are warmed through remove from Dehydrator and serve immediately!