I am new to this Raw diet. I just went cold RAW! I do not have a sprouting system or a Wheat grass jucier. I have a very old blender,Chamion jucier and 1 ajar sprouter. So, How do you find any used supplys? I have a very limited income and buying from the store is very expensive. Also, looking events I am a diabetic.

all help would be appriciated!

Hi there! I am not from Sacramento, but I am from Stockton. I too just starting eating raw. I also am beginning from scratch. I have found some ways around the expensive equipment for now. I figure I can buy one piece of equipment every month or two. A food processor works great (but I don't have one ;o) For now I have modified some recipes simply by grating my vegetables and then if I need to blend, that works well as some of the items will break down more easily.I am sure a spiral slicer makes is seem more like pasta and keeps things more firm, but I figure I am masticating it all anyway. I have decided not to stress until I can buy a juicer next month. Until then I will by organic juices. I have been using a lot of my own pomegranate juice that I froze. A blender works really well for breakfast if you are having a smoothie and I have come up with some creative meals in the blender. I hope this helps. Another thing is to keep it simple. I eat a lot of fresh vegetables. An apple with raw almond butter is great. Artisana has some great products and until I can make my own "butters" I am pretty content. Hope this helps.

Hi, first off - don't worry about expensive equipment... it's really the last thing to focus on at this point. The only piece of equipment I use often is a cheap department store blender.

When you're thinking about what to eat... always think green. Eat some oranges or melon in the morning. Blend a smoothie for work with lettuce or spinach,maybe throw a couple apples in your bag, then have a huge salad at night with cucumbers, leaf lettuce, celery, shredded cabbage, sunflower seeds or sprouts, tomato and lemon juice. You'll be set! That's just an example, but the point is it can be a really basic process of throwing ingredients into a bowl and NOT expensive.

As far as our area specifically, sac, the co-op is a great resource for organic produce as well as a whole shelf of raw foods specifically. Also Wholefoods has organics, agave, and a shelf of raw foods by the bulk section. Additionally, almost all Railey's and Bel Aire stores have an organic section with fresh leaf lettuc, celery,apples, bananas, etc. There is a raw sacramento group, just google it. They get together monthly for potlucks if you want to check it out, they also have an email list which can be helpful because they list raw events, speakers, etc. sometimes.

One last note on sprouting... I've found the easiest, quickest, cheapest, and most sanitary method is to use nylon paint strainers from a hardware store (ace, etc). There about 1-2 dollars. You put the seeds in there after they've been properly soaked in water, and twirl and tie this sac to the top of a bucket handle letting it hang and drip. Every day rinse the seeds well in water and tie it back to the bucket handle. You'll have sprouts in 2-3 days. This method works great with lentils, green peas, and garbanzo beans.

Hope this helps, Sentry