In my family the kitchen has always held this gravitating power as if it was the center of the universe. This was the place where we would share our “good mornings”, make and eat meals together, sit or stand around, grieve, rejoice, introduce guests, and even when no one is home I feel attracted to being in the kitchen. There is an energy in this room like no other in my house.

If we choose, our kitchens can be our own playgrounds where we overcome any fears we have of food, moving on, unlearning and learning and just being a child again.

We all know food. We eat it, we prepare it, we pay for it, there are family recipes that possibly have been handed down for years or may be even some are still a secret. There is a relative who is the ultimate chef who should have their own restaurant that we are sure would attract massive crowds.

There is a history we have with food that is more then just personal but defines us in certain ways. Our families ethnic background may play a role in our taste buds or lack of taste. Some people take pride that they grew up on meat and potatoes, thus they are a meat and potatoes person.

I personally grew up with fairly spicy food and always had a sense of pride that I could handle the heat. My family rarely ever ate pasta also, which ended up being a huge help when transitioning into living vegan foods since pasta and bread are typically that hardest things to move away from.

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All of us creatures put energy into getting our food. We have a job to provide ourselves, may be we grow some of our own food, time is taken to buy, wash, prepare, cook and consume.

This energy connects us with food in negative ways from punishing ourselves when we are feeling down. Some over eat, others starve and there are those who prepare massive amounts of food yet barely consume it themselves. This way they can just watch other people, consistently checking on their needs and distracting themselves from looking within. If we are bored, happy, angry, may be we buy food.

Depending on how we want to see the world, ourselves, food; the power of our actions and thoughts has a strong correlation. Once we overcome our fears that create all the negative thoughts that suck us into our own personal hell’s, it can gradually be easier to listen to our bodies.

Believe it or not our body is probably smarter then we are. Once we cut out foods that are not true foods, the bodies message becomes much clearer.

What I have noticed in my living foods journey is that the cleaner I eat, the cleaner I feel. My thoughts have more power to them.

Actions, thoughts and food have a fascinating energy. Working on each alone there is a visible difference, but if you take all three holy guacamole Batman!

I completely accept that most of my ideas feel like it is asking a lot from people to make all these changes. At first it can feel like a lot of no no no, but instead of thinking “I can’t have this” “I shouldn’t think this” please realize that you COULD eat or feel blank but you DESERVE AND CHOOSE to not eat or feel blank.

I choose to be happy, I choose to be healthy, I choose to let go, I choose to love. It might sound far too simple, but the more we apply this to life we can see how many borders and fears have  created within ourselves. All of these walls can be broken down too, it takes some love, care and patience. But like most things in life, the cheap and fast product usually is a waste of energy.

Some of the best days of your life are still to come.

It is easy to disagree with a view simply because it is not how we personally already eat or think. Just because the television says milk is good for you does not mean it is true. Even if your aunt has a genius IQ does not mean you have to listen to what she thinks about food. Try to eat, live, breath, and BE simple. Take baby steps, cut a few things out at a time, read, watch movies, test things out for yourself and be a little scientist 😉

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With all of this in mind I would like to share some books with you that may be helpful with cleansing, detoxing and eating cleaner.

The Raw Food Detox Diet: The Five-Step Plan For Vibrant Health and Maximum Weight Loss by Natalia Rose

Natalia Rose shares a delicious and gradual approach to eating more living vegan foods with a meal plan, yummy recipes with a very casual yet informative approach. For those who are meat eaters to those who have been vegans for years, these recipes are easy and ideal for anyone’s eating habits.

There is a mini quiz where you can see exactly where you stand with how clean you eat. This way, which ever food level you are at there are recipes specially created with those needs in mind.

Some of the recipes vary from sushi, ice cream, rawviolis, chocolate shake,detox salsa, Italian salad, raw ranch dressing and so many more lip smacking goodies!

There are goals, foods to keep in mind to stay away from, what to increase and detox symptoms listed for each level.

Natalia Rose shares some great tips on how to open a coconut, eating on a budget, how much weight one may expect to loss, colonics, tips for a successful fast, and the health concerns with consuming peanuts and soy nuts.

I recently gave this book to a friend who has been vegetarian for years and has dabbled a bit in veganism. I feel terrible admitting this but, this book ruined peanuts for him. So please read these books with an open mind and heart.

Living Foods for Optimum Health : Staying Healthy in an Unhealthy World by Brian R. Clement

This was one of the first books I read about raw living vegan foods that was not a recipe book. I have been a fan of Ann Wigmore, one of the pioneers of living food, she deserves create for the Hippocrates Health Institute. I’d also like to mention that Cherie Soria, the founder of Living Light Culinary Institute (the culinary school I graduated from) studied under Wigmore for some time.

 To make the transition to the Hippocrates Institute’s recommended diet (75 percent raw fruits and vegetables and 25 percent cooked foods–mainly grains and soups), it gives more than 100 recipes and a week’s worth of sample menus, and even instructions on how to sprout your own seeds and nuts.

This books manages to provide scientific evidence without causing a monotone voice taking over my brain while reading. For those completely brand new to vegetarian/vegan/raw food, this might be too heavy of a read. Some of the discovers may scare one completely away from eating more plant based foods.

The book goes over cleansing, food combining for optimum digestion, juicing, sprouting, wheatgrass, exercise any many other topics that relate to health, food and cleansing.

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Depending on where you are on your personal journey will depend on who or what speaks to you. I find that most people like to hear someone’s personal story, especially if they “cured” themselves or found a healthy lifestyle that has turned their life around. If a plant based diet is completely new and a delicious idea to you, consider reading Hungry for Change, and Forks Over Knives.

I have a previous post with some amazing movies. I have two more movies I would also highly recommend, and these are targeted more towards those who are new to a health based diet and are looking for some motivation stories; May I Be Frank and Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead.

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I am a huge fan of following people on YouTube lately, it makes me feel as if I am just hanging out with that person. The casual atmosphere actually helps me retain more information and enjoy myself.

Angela Stokes-Monarch @ Glow With Grace -> A raw vegan mama who enjoys singing, playing with her baby Oria Berry, speaking about spirituality, raw food and healing.

Angela Stokes-Monarch & Matt Monarch @ The Raw Food World TV Show -> Matt’s videos have been the most helpful for me personally with understanding cravings, energy crashes, cleansing, and becoming more spiritually aware. The topics on this channel vary because this couple has been rawkin’ this scene for a while now! Sprouting, nut butters, enemas, healing, home births, you name it they have possibly spoken about it.

I found their YouTube channel to be more helpful then their books but that could just be me!

Another great person to follow is Dan McDonald a.k.a The Life Regenerator @ Life Regenerator -> Dan shares loads of juice recipes, tips on what to juice for cleansing specific organs, juicing on the goal, how to gain muscle while raw, how to loss weight, sticking to ones goals, healing, spiritual/self-improvement, and oooooooooodles more!

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I hope this wasn’t information overload :-X! Thank you all so much for stopping by and taking the time out of your day. Much love ❤ and raw power 😉

Jess