Hello everyone!

I've been looking around the BB for the past couple days and gotten some wonderful information from all you guys! My husband, Aron, and I recently decided to eat more raw vegetables - it was just something Aron brought up and with myself trying to cut out all the horrible sweets I normally eat, I was up for it. So I went to get some vegitarian cook books (I wasn't as excited by the raw idea as he was), and I picked up "Raw Food, Real World" because the food looked really good. After reading that book (and finding this community online) I am VERY ready to take raw even further than my husband was intending!

I just ordered a dehydrator but I was wondering a few things...Am I wrong to assume that the dehydrator is really used to make sure you don't get bored eating raw? What I mean is it changes the texture of foods so it doesn't feel like you're always eating the same stuff, and lets you create foods that are like the ones you're used to eating in the SAD (like crackers and breads). I suppose warmth has something to do with it also?

Next, I was fascinated to learn about raw nuts and soaking to "awaken" the growing enzymes, but I was a little confused as to why they are so often dehydrated after the soak. I think it is because the texture after dehydration would be much like the crunch of roasted nuts that SAD eaters are used to, right? Basically I'm just wondering if there's any nutritional reason for doing so. I'd also be interested to hear how often those of you here eat nuts - daily, couple times a week, etc?

My last question has to do with preparation also - blending. That book I read reccommended the VitaMix blender which (as I'm sure you know) is very expensive and I'm wondering how many of you actually use a blender on a regular basis, and if you do - do you use a VitaMix, or a different brand? Basically, are there cheaper versions out there that are as powerful as a VitaMix? Seeing as how this is a total change for me and how I'm going to eat from now on, I am willing to invest in the best equipment for the job but certainly would like to spend the least amount of $ possible.

Thanks so much in advance for being here and listening and helping everyone that posts! ~Jessica

I know what you mean about the blenders, dehydraters, etc. - the book I read recommended those as well and my eyes glazed over, esp when it came to the process for making sprouted nut milks, I was like, what the... no way, not for me.

I know some ppl use all these implements and I'm sure their raw diet looks and tastes a lot more exciting & gourmet than mine.

But do you NEED them? Prob not - esp if you live near a health food store where you can just buy the sprouted & dehydrated foods. But you'll find that the longer you're on the diet, the less of those prepared foods you'll eat. At least that's been my experience.

Good luck to you & your husband!

I don't think you NEED any of these gadgets. . . Although I do enjoy having a blender and a dehydrator. It would be hard to have a green smoothie without the use of a blender. I just make do with a department-store bought blender. It seems to work fine. I'm not willing to shell out lots of money for a VitaMix. I use my dehydrator mainly for preparing food for hiking and camping.

I am new to raw foods, too. Concentrating at first on cutting out the dairy I had on my 17 year lacto-vegetarian diet. Trying to eat mainly raw foods. I don't expect to be perfect at first, but as long as I am making progress toward the goal a cheat here and there isn't going to deter me too much. (I would never eat anything that wasn't lacto veg.)

Anyway, you can get Vitamixers for pretty cheap on Ebay. There are usually lots of listings. Registration is easy, if you haven't registered already, and it's fun! One hint...don't bid until the last minute.

Hi and welcome!

In my experience, you are doing the right thing by gradually adding fruits and vegetabels. I did this for a year before I even found out about the living and raw food diet (so the transition was easier.) So maybe just sliding in with increased fruits and veggies and greens will be a good start.

I was sooo tempted in buying a dehydrator. I am glad I didn't now because I like eating monos and fruit naturally. I also experimented with a blender, that was fun at first, but glad I didn't invest in an expensive one because I don't use it much anymore. I like to enjoy chewing food with the saliva to help the enzymes digest it better. I also felt dizzy after eating smoothies (maybe because it spins around really fast and the molocules are still spinning? I don't know?) Anyway, I say it is o.k. for transition, but don't go expensive unless you really enjoy those things after a long while.

Take it easy!

I think a dehydrator is very useful so you will be glad you got it!

I have a $30 food processor made by Hamilton Beach (that I told my mother-in-law that I wanted for Christmas last year) and a smaller $10 mini-food processor for small batches, and a $10 hand blender for liquids, and a $50 food dehydrator from American Harvest (that I told my hubby I wanted for Christmas 6 years ago) and a Champion juicer that my Dad gave me.

Shhhh, don't tell my food that it didn't go through a VitaMix or dry in an Excalibur.

I use the food processors several times a day, and the others only occasionally. The Champion juicer is the best for making banana ice cream, but you could also slightly thaw the bananas and food process them to make ice
cream too.

If you get bogged down with making recipes remember that raw foodists seem to mostly eat mono. You don't really get that impression from the raw recipe books though because mono eating has no recipes.

What exactly do you folks mean by eating mono? Just one thing at a time? Or unprocessed, or what?

rooneyandmuldoon Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> What exactly do you folks mean by eating mono?
> Just one thing at a time? Or unprocessed, or what?



One thing at a time, as is.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/17/2006 03:09AM by shep252.

So then a salad wouldn't be mono, right?

Thanks for all the comments! It sounds like some raw eaters really like the availability of having these kinds of equipment and some don't care to bother. I think that having them will help my family be better able to stick to our goal (at least 90% raw) even if we don't use them all the time. If one day we're feeling bored with mono-eating (which is certainly the most convenient way to eat) then I can whip up something a little different! I'm definitely going to try to find a more modestly priced blender, though.

Thanks again!
Jessica

rooneyandmuldoon Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> So then a salad wouldn't be mono, right?

IMHO mono eating usually means going to the fruit basket and picking out what you feel like eating, I would guess that more than 50% of the time this is how raw fooders eat, it's simple and there is so little chance of indigestion this way. When I feel like eating heavier things like green, nuts and seeds then I get into recipes. Nothing wrong with food from recipes it's just more work, especially since I feel like I'm eating constantly on raw food.

Jesaroj Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Next, I was fascinated to learn about raw nuts and
> soaking to "awaken" the growing enzymes, but I was
> a little confused as to why they are so often
> dehydrated after the soak. I think it is because
> the texture after dehydration would be much like
> the crunch of roasted nuts that SAD eaters are
> used to, right? Basically I'm just wondering if
> there's any nutritional reason for doing so.

Just to clarify, dehydrating, as far as I know, will never increase the nutritional value of any food. It's just used to make food with different textures or tastes or to make food keep longer.

The only piece of kitchen equipment I have at the moment is a cheap blender which I love for making hemp milk and blended salads (soups).

Rob

--
Rob Hull - Funky Raw
My blog: [www.rawrob.com]

Hello. I use my food processor constantly, blender second and dehydrator not much at all anymore after the winter's astronomical electric bills from daily use of the dehydrator. It also seems to me to be counterproductive to eating raw to put use hours and hours of electricity to produce something to eat. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE flax crackers but I don't make them too much anymore.

In answer to the nut question, I make lots of soaked nut and seed pates, and eat them at least 3 times a week. Also just munch right out of my garden and veggies from the farmer's market. Being a raw food personal chef, I do tend to get into lots of recipes that I concoct while at the farmer's market. As others here have said, I would wait to invest lots of money until you have experimented a while.

Blessings to you on this Journey,
April Myers
The Enchanted Kitchen

You definitely don't need these items to enjoy the raw lifestyle, but they can be fun. For me, the most used appliance is my blender, and the second most used is the food processor. This is because I eat mostly fruit, and make a lot of fruit smoothies.

I made a great salad last night in the food processor. I used the 2mm slicer disc to slice celery into a salad. Then with the S-blade, I processed a pint of strawberries (after removing the stems) into a puree, and used that as the dressing. Yum.

Jesa,

Be careful and make sure you make up your own mind. You don't need any of the appliances mentioned but they make life a whole lot easier. In fact, my two favorite appliances are my ktec blender and my excalibur dehydrator. If you're not familiar with dehydrators the excalibur is king and it is the one that will last you a lifetime. This is the same dehydrator that has been advocated by many raw foodists over the past twenty years including Victoras Kulvinskas and Ann Wigmore. You can find more info on the excalibur line at [www.excaliburdehydrator.com]. Purchasing from their website allows you to extend the warranty to ten years but it will last a lifetime.

My ktec, which is made by blendtec I prefer over vitamix. It's slight smaller with the container on and will fit in any overhead cabinet. It also has over 30+ presets and I find it superior to vitamix. Yes, I've owned them both. Anyway, just do a search on blendtec total blender and you can decide for yourself.

However, where dehydrators are concerned please go with the best and by only an excalibur. Your family will thank you for it.

Peace,

Marcos

Go Vegan for your life, your health, the planet and, most importantly, the animals that we share this wonderful world with!