As trendy as raw vegan cleanses are in Hollywood these days, it’s really not a good idea to detox. Put away the cabbage juice, friend – it won’t do you any long-term good if that’s all you plan on eating in a day. Plus, your body doesn’t need cleansing – it has its own natural detox system.
Still, there’s nothing wrong with supplementing your diet with healthy, raw fruits and vegetables to promote general health. They’ll make you feel energized and pack in some nutrients you might not already be getting. The first step is knowing what, and how to eat. Try replacing one of your cooked meals with a raw one.
Blend it
•2 cups mango
•1 cup sliced apricots
•1 cup strawberries
•1/2 head of iceberg lettuce
•1 cup orange juice
It’s easier to eat fruit in liquid form, so feel free to go crazy with your blender. You can also add greens like spinach, kale or lettuce, because it’s easy to mask their tastes with a banana or two. This delicious morning smoothie recipe packs a nutritious punch. The ingredients aren't currently in season, but you can save some cash if you buy them frozen. Feel free to share it with your friends!
Make sushi
•1/2 cup alfafa sprouts
•1/2 bell pepper, sliced
•1/4 cup sauerkraut
•1/2 avocado
•3 green onions, sliced
•1/4 cup chopped cilantro
•3 nori sheets
Not only can sushi be raw, it can easily be vegan. You can wrap up some fresh veggies in dried seaweed in less time than it takes to walk to Koi. The sky’s the limit when it comes to possible veggies, so be creative and chop 'til you drop. It would be extra helpful to have a bamboo sushi roller, which you can buy at World Market for $1.99, but you can also roll it by hand and then slice up some bite-sized pieces.
Raw vodka pasta
•2 cups sundried tomatoes, soaked overnight
•1/2 cup cashews, soaked overnight
•1 lime, juiced
•1 clove garlic, minced
•1 tablespoon oregano
•1 tablespoon sea salt
•1/4 cup raw agave syrup
College teaches us to be all-star pasta chefs, mostly because making a quick meal of noodles and sauce costs pennies on the dollar. As much as it feels great to carbo-load, making noodles out of zucchini can be an excellent, vitamin-rich alternative. You can shell out the cash for a fancy spiral slicer to make your zucchini into pasta shapes, but that isn’t required. Slice your zucchinis in half vertically, and then slice the halves horizontally into half moon shapes. Now you have macaroni. A commercial pasta sauce will do, but if you want the meal to be fully raw, blend up these ingredients in a food processor and pour onto your zucchini noodles. Add some chopped tomatoes and a few sprigs of basil onto the finished product.