I am finally back from Morocco. It seems like I have been gone forever! The first thing I want to get out of the way though, is to post my notes from the Victoria Boutenko talk in Amsterdam. I have to admit that when I first decided to go, I was a bit skeptical. What could I possibly learn in a lecture about green smoothies? After all, I have been drinking them for years! I was pleasantly surprised by the information that she had to offer and I learned a lesson. There is always more to learn, even about the subjects in which you consider yourself an expert. So without further ado, here are the highlights from the lecture.
- Rotate your greens. Each and every green leafy vegetable has a homeopathic dose of toxins. Spinach has oxalic acid, lettuce has opium, etc. This is completely fine for us as long as we rotate a variety of greens. The more choices the better.
- We need more greens than we think. She recommends half a kilo of greens a day. That is more or less a pound, a believe. Victoria also says that if we use these greens in a smoothie, we only need half of that. I imagine that is because we absorb and digest them much more.
- If they are organic, don´t wash your greens. Victoria advocates what she calls “conscious veganism.” By not washing our greens, we consume insects. Conscious veganism includes these insects as a safeguarding measure against B-12 and other nutritional deficiencies.
- Tree ripened fruit. This is also a part of conscious veganism. When fruit is ripened to perfection on the tree, it contains many insect eggs. Consuming these is part of an optimal diet.
- Blending does NOT destroy 90% of nutrients as has been stated by some critics. Fiber is a powerful anti-oxidant. There was an experiment done where a potato was juiced- the juice oxidized before it even left the juicer. Another potato was blended and it didn´t oxidize for days. That is a testament to the antioxidant power of fiber.
- Most metabolical difficulties are due to liver problems. We should cleanse the liver gently using smoothie or juice fasts and colonics. This aids the liver in it´s ability to dump things into the intestine. Healthy liver function is integral to the ability to gain or lose weight.
- Preservative is another word for poison.
- The Candida/Diabetes link. Victoria says that Candida is what happens to the body instead of developing diabetes. It is an alternate pathway. Candida is not good, but it is better than diabetes.
- Diabetes/Fat. Victoria also says that Diabetes is more of a problem of fat than of sugar.
I know there is much more that I forgot, but those are some of the interesting bits that I came away with. I hope they help you, even if it just gives you something to think about.
xx
A few days ago, we made a dish that we were actually quite proud of. It´s not at all complicated, but has a variety of different elements, so it is a little time-consuming. For us this was a plan-ahead type of meal, as we work really strange hours,although it could be tweaked and simplified for an everyday sort of thing.
Too bad you can´t see all the different elements- They ended up kind of squished on top of each other. At least it´s colorful 🙂
It´s got zucchini noodles
crispy sweet and sour cabbage (thinly sliced cabbage, tamari, lemon and agave marinated and dehydrated)
stir free cauliflower, red pepper and leek (veggies marinated in olive oil, sesame oil, tamari, garlic, salt and pepper and dehydrated)
grated carrot
homegrown sunflower sprouts
almond butter sauce (almond butter, tamari, ginger, lemon juice, white miso, tamarind, cayenne, curry powder, cilantro)
In other news, we are getting ready for Amsterdam round 2. Last year, we didn´t get the chance to go to either of the raw restaurants. So we just decided we had to go back. This time it is all working out perfectly, and we are even going to a Victora Boutenko lecture.
We´ve got yoga and raw food center, Unlimited Health http://www.unlimitedhealth.nl/
and Mastercare Live foods and superfoods http://www.rawfoodcafe.nl/
I hope to take lots of pictures, have lots of fun and report back on the raw scene in Amsterdam. Yay!!