If you’ve been reading my blog for awhile, particularly my recipe posts, you’ll know that I’ve recently discovered a love for raw ‘cooking’ and foods. I currently only have 8 raw recipes in my repertoire but I’m constantly thinking up new desserts I can ‘raw-ify’. I know a lot of people out there don’t know a lot about what raw foodism is, so I thought I’d give you a little rundown of what it means to me and how to start incorporating raw foods into your diet. Note: I am NOT a strict raw foodist, or an expert on this topic. These are just my opinions and what I’ve read from other blogs about raw foodism.
In a (raw) nutshell, raw foodism is eating foods that have not been cooked above a temperature around 115-118 degrees. The main type of raw foodism is raw veganism (as many vegan foods are safe for consumption without being cooked), but some raw foodists are vegetarians or omnivores. Raw foods are preferred over cooked because cooking can destroy the healthful enzymes found in the raw form.
Raw vegans eat fruits, vegetables, soaked nuts & seeds and sprouted grains & legumes. The strictest raw vegans follow a diet known as 80/10/10, which is 80% carbs, 10% protein and 10% fat, and eat just raw fruits and veggies.
Raw ‘cooking’ is a bit more complicated than just eating straight-up raw or soaked foods. You need a lot of kitchen appliances, like a food processor, blender, juicer and dehydrator. Raw foodists can still eat crackers and cookies–by using these appliances, they can make healthier, more nutrient-dense versions of these popular items while still staying raw. Dehydrators technically heat foods, but only to 115-118 degrees.
Raw ‘cooking’ involves different ingredients than regular cooking. I haven’t done as much experimenting with savory raw dishes, but I can tell you some of the staples needed to make raw desserts.
- raw, soaked nuts and seeds (especially cashews)
- raw cacao powder
- agave nectar, raw honey (not vegan)
- dates, other dried fruit
- fresh fruit
- chia and flaxseed
- maca/mesquite/lucuma powder
- cacao nibs
- soaked buckwheat
If you’ve ever wanted to try preparing raw meals for yourself, but are worried about how complicated it might be, never fear! There are plenty of easy and relatively inexpensive raw recipes out there for you to try out. Here are some that I’ve made in the past or planning to make soon…oh, and don’t mind my lame attempt at raw humor 😉
Rawcos (raw tacos)
Photo courtesy of My New Roots.
Tirawmisu
Photo courtesy of A Raw Story.
Cheezy Sundried Tomato Kale Chips (dehydrator recipe)
Photo courtesy of Oh She Glows.
My own photo & recipe.
Raw Carrot Cake Cupcakes
Photo courtesy of Choosing Raw.
Rawco Salad (raw taco salad)
Photo courtesy of Oh She Glows.
My own photo & recipe.
So now you have no excuse not to try out raw foods for yourself!
What’s your favorite thing to eat raw? Have you ever made a raw meal or snack?
There are a lot of raw recipes that sound appealing to me,such as “flatbread” or “tacos” for example,but all in all,I could never commit myself to this lifestyle completely. On the one hand,because I could never ever afford it,on the other hand because I’d honetly miss my protein,haha 😉
Oh, I know what you mean! A lot of these specialty raw ingredients are ridiculously pricey and I would miss a lot of things, especially peanut flour!
I always see all these raw food recipes and think they sound delicious but I can’t make any of them! Someday I suppose.
It does kinda suck that so many of them require at least a food processor. I think I’ve seen some recipes out there that are more simple that you might be able to try out!
Wow I had no idea there were so many raw recipes out there! They sound super fun to make 🙂
I think my favorite raw snack is apples and cashew butter– I wish those jars weren’t so dang expensive though haha
I still haven’t tried cashew butter yet but I’ve noticed that it is expensive! Why do delicious nut butters have to cost so much haha?!
Thank you for the information and explanation of this Ashley! I really didn’t realize there were so many raw recipes out there… although I am sure it’s an ever-growing list because I know this movement is a popular one! I like to eat raw almond butter, or dessert/bars of some sort as well
There are a ton of websites out there with lots of raw recipes, it’s kinda crazy! Raw almond butter is definitely a good treat though and not complicated at all!
I’ve never tried a raw meal (only fruits, veggies, and some dried fruit and nuts) but the carrot cupcakes + ‘tirawmisu’ looks delicious! Can’t wait to see some raw recipes you come up with 🙂
I really want to make the tirawmisu…hopefully I will soon and then I’ll post the recipe!
I love raw desserts! And I’ma ll for incorporating some raw foods – I just don’t think it’s a stable thing to do as 100% of the diet (too restrictive and a lot of research has shown that it can be really healthy). I’m looking forward to raw recipes, though! And I’m glad you’re just adding raw foods, not restricting cooked ones. 🙂 Are you still working on getting to healthy? I hope so, I’m rooting for you!
I am still working on it–I actually have a post about it coming out tomorrow!
I’m totally going to have to start incorporating more raw foods in my diet. My roommate is always lecturing me about how I need to go raw and it will heal me completely. I’m just lazy, plus I researched it a bit and I feel like it is expensive. How do you do it on a budget? Complete Jew question obviously lol
Haha it can be a bit hard to do on a tight budget, but if you stick with the more basic things like raw nuts/fruits/veggies it’s not that expensive. And you can get the specialty products in bulk or on websites like iHerb that sell them somewhat cheaper!