About a week ago, Denis, my new BFF, and I drove to Fort Myers to ECHO Farms to check out their edible plants and trees and see what we could get. After a quick stop in Naples for lunch, we headed north on I-75 to Bayshore Rd and arrived at the farm.

ECHO stands for Educational Concerns for Hunger Organization, they are a non-profit organization that educates and trains people that work or volunteer around the world to help communities in need.

It was getting ready to rain so we had to hurry. But the staff at the farms was very friendly and spent time with us showing us all the greens and fruits available.

The prices were reasonable and they had a nice variety of edible greens.  So here are some of the trees and plants they had at ECHO farms:

Avocado Trees! This made me want to have a yeard to plant some of these!

Grapefruits! Our favorites! Once again I caught myself staring at it and wondering how I can grow a grapefruit tree on the beach! LOL

Neem: We bought this little tree and I hope I won’t kill it. Don’t know exactly what I’ll use it for, but I’m sure I be making something!

Tropical fruit trees: As most of you know, Denis and I stay away from tropical fruit as most is acidic. But ECHO had a good variety of tropical fruit trees if anyone is interested.

Jaboticaba Tree: This is one we love, but won’t be growing in our yard anytime soon for sure. But at least now I know where I can get one.

Katuk: This one will be on my salads this week for sure! We got it and it was about $5 bucks! You can get any better than that!

We also purchased two varieties of hot peppers, a moringa plant, spinach plant, and cilantro seeds for next season and worm manure. It was a great trip to the West coast!

]]> http://www.panyvinito.com/road-trip-to-echo-farms/feed/ 1 http://www.panyvinito.com/food-issues-juice-fast/ http://www.panyvinito.com/food-issues-juice-fast/#comments Mon, 30 Aug 2010 15:11:00 +0000 Lina http://www.panyvinito.com/?p=709

Denis and I had wanted to do a green juice fast for the longest time. We do a monthly liquid fast during the full moon and it feels great. So we wanted to know what it was like to just do a green juice fast. We decided this full moon was good time to do it and planned to get all our juices from Josh’s Organic Garden.
We started on Monday and finished it on Saturday. Initially we wanted to do seven days, but I had the feeling I wouldn’t last more than two days. I thought for sure by Tuesday I would quit and go back to eating. Sure enough by day two I was ready to quit, but decided to stick with it because a lot of emotions were surfacing and I wanted to see what else would come up.
Instead of describing how each day went, I wanted to share some insights I had during my fast, not about how my body responded or all the benefits I enjoyed, but the emotions I had to deal with during the green juice fast. We followed Dr. Young’s pH Miracle Cleanse in case you’re wondering.

Empty Refrigerator

Since we decided to get all the juices already made at the Josh’s Juice bar, we didn’t shop and our refrigerator was empty. I hid the truffles we had purchased during our trip to Naples and any other “goodies” I would cheat with.
Seeing the refrigerator with no greens, no food made me sad. I felt like I had nothing in life. Empty. Without a home, without love, without money. I felt like my world was ending because my refrigerator was empty. I immediately told Denis about this and he hugged me and laughed. So I started laughing too. This happened the second day of the fast and it was the reason I decided to keep going.
I don’t know exactly how my brain/mind believes that food equal the meaning of life (apparently). All I can say is that it may go back all the way to childhood but I’m not sure yet.

Not Having to Make Food

The second thing that surfaced in my mind was this. I had extra time in my hands by not having to prepare food and not going to yoga class so I was able to take time for blogging. While I was working on my blog, I kept thinking: “Oh I have to go make food, I better stop typing” and then I would remember: Oh I’m fasting no need to make food. Ten minutes later I would start panicking cause I hadn’t make food yet and it was getting late, but then I would remember I’m fasting, no need to make food. And that continue the whole night.
One of the first reasons I got sold on the “Raw” idea was cause it took less time to prepare food. I’m constantly looking to cut things out so that I can have more time to do other things. And I always feel stressed out about making food. Once this issue came right in front of me, I realized that I think making food is all I do and live for. To feed people. I don’t know exactly how to handle this information, but it was very interesting to find that deep inside I feel food is my ONLY job and purpose in life.

Variety of Food

I’ve always known this about me: I get bored with the same thing over and over. And that’s just not food. Everything. Well except for my partner in life (9 years and still not bored one bit!)… Anyways, so going into the fast I knew that having the same juice everyday wasn’t going to work for me and would probably quit by day two. But this time was worse than ever. I didn’t want to see the green juice even as hungry as I would get, I didn’t want it. Instead I wanted to keep drinking water but not the green juice. I believe one of the reasons why I’m creative in the kitchen is because I have to have variety. Even my lunch salad is different everyday.

Sticking with the green juice fast help me see that my issue with food variety is deeper than I imagined.

Dreams about Food

Going in I had the feeling I would be dreaming about food every night and eating all sorts of junk in my dreams. I actually thought that in the dreams I would want to stop my raw diet. But I was wrong.  One night I had a dream about a carnival, possibly Renaissance fest, where I had to drop off something for work. I walked through the food to where I was going, but no I didn’t stop for any food even thought I was offered a donut. That was one of the two dreams about food I had.

During the fast, I wasn’t even attracted to junk food. I didn’t even for a minute think I would run and start eating a SAD diet again, even a vegan junk cooked diet for that matter. But I did want and was tempted to eat the sun dried olives in my refrigerator, my avocados and some oil. So all doubts that I had about ever “cheating” or going back to a cooked vegan diet are no longer there. I now know that I love my raw food, even under stressful circumstances, I only want raw food.

In conclusion, and now a day after we broke the fast, I’ve got work to do with all this information I collected during this fast. I do have to say that compared to the first fast I ever did (6 years ago, water fast for three days while I was still on a vegetarian SAD diet), I did excellent. But compared to my monthly liquid fast, I did not do well at all. I complained the whole time and didn’t want to drink my juice.

Physically my body felt great, happy, healthy and grateful. I’m going to try it again, possibly the next full moon or the one after. Not having any fruits this week was amazing for my body and it let me know so.

So what’s next? Meditate on all these issues that came up.

About 4 weeks ago, Denis bought 30 coconuts and we had a feast! From drinking the water to making creams, salad dressings, smoothies, soups, etc. The following week he bought 20 coconuts, and the week after that 15 coconuts.

By the end of the third week I couldn’t come up with any more coconut dishes, and Denis had made coconut cream and stored it in the refrigerator. I didn’t want to waste it, and I needed breakfast but was tired of coconut smoothies, so I made cereal!

I soaked some nuts, seeds, goji berries, and raisins in water overnight. The next morning I mixed in the coconut cream with cinnamon powder, maca, mesquite, salt, and palm sugar to taste.

I took it to work and when I got to the office all the flavors had come together rather nicely. So that night I soaked the nuts, seeds, etc but only for a short time. After I rinsed everything, I mixed them in the coconut cream with the same powders, etc and stored overnight in the refrigerator. The next morning I had an amazing breakfast! The flavors of all the nuts, seeds, dried fruit and powders had blended and made an amazing cereal!

The coconut cream was made by blending the coconut meat and water from a young fresh local coconut. You can add extra water or more coconut butter to make as smooth as desired. The water from young coconuts is very energizing and mildly alkaline.

Enjoy!

I don’t know about you guys, but I love eating greens. However when it comes to kale, it’s a little bit difficult to just pop in my mouth and chew it without anything on it.
One Sunday, I was being lazy and enjoying my day at the beach when I got a call that there was no green left at Josh’s market.
So Denis and I ran to the market but it was true, no lettuce was left! There was only two buckets of kale left. So I packed almost all the kale left and bought it. When I got home, I made a nice kale salad but I remembered it was always hard for me to eat it without anything. So I came up with a nice dressing for it. The next day I had the same issue, so I whipped up another dressing!

I came up with actually 5 kale salad dressings that I thought I MUST shared with the world. Spicy Sun Dried Tomato Tahini, Avocado Tahini, Ginger Miso, Sunflower Dill, and Almond Butter Coconut. They all have pretty much the same ingredients and are made the same way.

Spicy Sun Dried Tomato Tahini

5-6 sun dried tomatoes (soak for 10 to 15 minutes)
1 TBS Raw Organic Tahini (you can also switch for raw almond butter instead)
1 Red Chillie Pepper or any spicy pepper to taste
1/2 Tsp organic or natural Mexican seasoning
Salt, garlic, and olive Oil to taste

Mix in personal blender until smooth adding water if needed. Pour over kale salad and add chopped cilantro.

Avocado Tahini

1/2 ripe organic avocado
1 Tbs of Raw Organic Tahani
the juice of 1/2 grapefruit
1 Handful of cilantro
Olive Oil and salt to taste

Put all ingredients in blender and mix until smooth.  Pour over Kale salad and sprinkle some black and white sesame seeds.

Ginger Miso

1 inch (cube) fresh ginger peeled
1 Tbs unpasteurized miso (I prefer brown or red)
1/2 carrot
1 Tbs raw tahini or raw almond butter
1 Date
Salt and Olive Oil to taste
(you can also add chillie peppers to make it spicy)

Put in blender and mix until smooth. If needed, add water to blend. Pour over kale and mix well.

Sunflower Dill

1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1/2 cup dill loosely fit or to taste
1/4 cup olive oil
the juice of 1/2 grapefruit (or lemon)
1/2 Tbs raw organic tahini
Salt and cumin to taste

Mix in blender until smooth. Add more grapefruit juice if needed. Pour over kale salad and massage. Sprinkle sunflower seeds and any other seasonings.

Almond Butter Coconut

1/4 cup raw almond butter
2 teaspoon namashoyu
1 Date
1 Tbs fresh lemon or lime juice
1/4 cup raw coconut milk
1/2 chillie pepper or spicy pepper of choice
Garlic, Salt, Olive Oil, and Curry seasoning to taste

Mix in blender or personal blender. Add water for desired consistency and pour over kale salad. Mix red cabbage with kale for a “Pad Thai” feel. I use this recipe for my kelp noodles to make raw Pad Thai.

ENJOY!

When I started this blog, I decided I didn’t want to rant and be negative. However, lately I’ve been feeling absolutely fed up about people not awakening to what is happening and taking action. I know that part of my frustration is because I don’t want to “convert” people and preach, so I stay quiet and don’t express how much other people hurt me by not participating in conserving resources or protecting the environment.  So in this blog I’m actually going to complain and rant about this situation, and then offer my suggestions as to what people should be doing to contribute to the planet.  Specially raw vegans and people with children!

Warning: If this is the first blog you are reading in my site, please stop now and read everything else cause in this one I have nothing positive to say!… well maybe at the end.

Raw Vegans

Ok, so first let me start by complaining about the people who are raw vegans, and I’m referring specifically to the ones that don’t recycle, don’t re-use, don’t compost, don’t drive fuel efficient cars, and don’t simply care. I go to a farmer’s market on Saturdays and noticed that they don’t recycle at the market. So EVERYTHING becomes trash! Everyone that eats there, uses the plastic containers and utensils provided that later wind up in the trash. Every juice at the market is bottled in plastic as well, which winds up in the trash. I’ve been observing the customers of the market, and they don’t even care, and since I live in my own little “green” world, where everyone recycles and reuses, and doesn’t waste, I didn’t realize how much trash they wind up with at the end of the day.

I brought back all my glass containers for them to reuse and another customer asked me why I did that. My answer is: if they can reuse it and don’t have to purchase more glass containers, they may be able to reduce the price of the butters, olives, etc that are packaged in these glass containers. He was looking at me like I had giving him the best news of his life.

When I sit at the market to eat my food, for which I bring my own containers, utensils, and reusable towels for, I see people drinking juice after juice and throwing away the plastic bottles. Then these same people eat their food and throw away the utensils. Then, they order a dessert or ice cream and take a BRAND NEW PLASTIC utensil which they then throw away again! Oh and if they have another ice cream, then they get a brand new spoon and repeat!

What’s the point in being a raw vegan (of any flavor) if you still an aware ridiculous person that doesn’t care for the environment? This is why I say that food is not all that matters!

Parents

So now for the people with kids! One of the reasons why I choose not to have kids is because there is not much to leave them. Water is going to run out in a few years, if we are lucky maybe two decades. And that’s just one very important resource that I’m using as an example. So why have kids? So that they can suffer for my peers’ and my ancestors’ mistakes and laziness and greed? No thank you!

But if I was a parent, I would certainly be doing EVERYTHING in my power to leave something of substance to my children. And I don’t mean a car, a house, a trust fund; I mean clean water, clean air, stable fauna and flora, a world to live in.

How is it possible to bring a person into this world and be so unconscious and irresponsible? Driving an SUV, living in big house that waste resources, eating shitty food and feeding kids that same shitty food, not being conscious of the impact of every action. Every piece of trash, napkin, paper towel, diaper, toy, clothes, hamburgers, soda, designer coffee, bottle of water you use and consume came from somewhere possibly a natural resource, an animal, or an underpaid person/child in China or Bangladesh.  How will you explain that to your children?

Now that I’ve complained enough and probably got many people (and possibly friends) pissed off, I’m starting a “Green” series of blog posts that can help all of you zombies out there to contribute in your daily actions little by little to wake up and smell the trash you are making. So I’ll post them as I write.

This is How YOU Make Me Feel

Your actions hurt me and the world.  I cry when….

I see you grab paper towels, paper napkins, printer paper, anything paper and forget that was once a tree.

I hear you letting water run and be wasted.

I see you throwing away a recycle or reusable plastic/glass bottle.

I see you uses plastic bag for your shopping and then throwing them away in the trash.

I see you purchase a brand new plastic tupperware instead of reusing containers from other foods.

I see you feed yourself and your children garbage.

I see you contribute to companies that abuse children and workers.

I see you feel up your stupid useless hummer, your porsche cayenne, or your vw toureg‘s gas tank.

I see you water your useless lawn instead of planting food.

I see you vote for people like Sara Palin that kill animals for fun.

If you care about me, your children, your family, and your friends, please take a moment to think about how you can change one thing in your life TODAY and contribute to save resources.

Blessings,

Lina

Raw Food Party

I’ve summarized the questions I get all the time from family, friends, strangers on the beach, at work, in a plane, etc.

What do you eat normally on a daily basis?

For breakfast I eat one of these: fruit smoothie, green smoothie, fruit, oatmeal, ALT (Avocado, Lettuce, Tomato) salad, or a green juice.

For lunch it depends, weekdays a salad because is the easiest to take to work than some fancy raw gourmet dish. Weekends I get fancy or go out to lunch at one of my favorite raw food restaurants.

Dinner is always different. Most times it will be a new recipe or one or favorite meals like hummus, nori rolls, kelp noodles, cucumber noodles, tabouli, and all meals always accompanied by avocado and a bed of romaine lettuce.

Raw Indian Food

Do you miss cooked food?

Not eating the cooked food so much but cooking it. I have been cooking food since I was 11 years old and that way my only creative outlet. The first 6 months I missed eating cooked lentils the way I made them and some vegan spicy Indian foods.

Do you get tempted to eat cooked foods?

No, I may enjoy the smell of cook food I see other people eat or at the beach while I ride my bicycle and the smell all the fried food, but when I imagine putting something cooked in my mouth and eating, I know it’s not for me.

What is the biggest challenge of being raw vegan?

For every person is different. For me the biggest bump on the road was not being able to prepare food and be creative. With cooked food, I was able to go to a restaurant and copy the recipe at home and make it ten times better. With raw food it was hard at the beginning, it was like learning a new language. I had to start from my ABCs and then make sentences until I was able to speak, write, and read fluently! So for me the biggest struggle was in preparing the food, not eating it because I was so attached to working in the kitchen and making from delicious exotic gourmet dishes to your regular fast food favorites.

What do you drink?

Thank God, Orange Juice, & Grapefruit Juice

Well this is tough one because most people struggle with things I gave up years ago. I stopped drinking sodas when I was 11 cause my basketball coach said he would throw us out of the team if  he saw us drinking sodas! When I turned 18, I was drinking a lot of coffee and water all day long, about 8 cups of coffee and 1 bottle of water per coffee cup. And I did it for years until I turned 21. At 21, I started drinking teas cause of the Russian and so I replaced my coffee habit for tea. So I stopped caffeine 9 years ago, and when we started on Dr. Young’s diet, we began drinking a green powder in our water. So now I drink my “greens” from Alkavision or Dr. Broc’s from Dr. Young, fresh non-heated non processed juices made at home or from Josh’s Organic Garden Juice Bar or Glaser. So drinks were not an issue for me when I transition to raw because I had started it years ago.

What do you use to replace sugar or artificial sweeteners?

This is also a hard question to answer for me because I haven’t had regular bleached sugar since I was 12, unless it was sugar included in processed foods that  I consumed. And once I switched to Dr. Young’s diet, I had no sugar at all, not even from fruits and if I wanted to sweetened my tea I would use stevia. I only starting eating fruits again when I became raw, but they bother me, so I avoid most fruits. We also used agave for the first year we were raw, but now agave make us sick too. So what’s left that works for us? Stevia or lucuma powder. Some raw foodists will use honey, but I’m a vegan and I believe honey farms are a form of slavery and therefore I don’t support them.

What about Kombucha?

I love Kombucha! Yeah it’s fermented and it’s not good for me. So I’ve had it for “recreational” purposes, but now I avoid it.

What supplements do you take?

I don’t take any, I started fading them away about 3 years now. But there are other people who may need them, so again, I would recommend to consult a doctor about that. I know a lot of raw foodists that are against supplements or doctors, but one’s gotta do what is good for the body. I let my body guide me and if it needs something, I’ll go directly to the source. For example, if I need iron, I’ll eat foods that have iron and so forth. Lately, I’ve been eating raw tahini by the gallon (JK) so I can guess that I probably need the calcium.

If you have any questions, please send us an email.

Raw Cashew Tofu Salad

Full Moon in Sedona Arizona - 2007

About four months ago, Denis and I decided to challenge our diets and take it one step further. We decided to fast and only eat, or drink in this case, liquids once a month on the full moon.

We noticed that around the full moon it was hard to deal with everyone’s energy. At work, on the road, online, on TV, at the beach, everyone is more stressed than usual.

A liquid fast entails only consuming liquids such as soups, smoothies, juices, water, puddings; basically anything that doesn’t require chewing.

I am a huge fan of soups and smoothies… always been! And preparing only liquid foods was very easy for me.  I also had great help from several books with not only great raw vegan soup recipes but smoothies and juices.

We start our liquid fast about three days before the full moon and so far it has helped us deal with the “Full Moon” energy around us. I have set reminders in my calendars to let me know when the full moon starts so that we can start our fast.

Here are some of the recipes that I make during the liquid fast:

Miso Soup

Green Soup

Borsch

Green Juice Delight

Thank God, Orange Juice, & Grapefruit Juice

Happy Full Moon 2010!

Pickled Onions

When I was growing up, my grandfather used to make these pickled onions once a year. He would make about 1 two-gallon-size jar of these and share with the entire family. He would peel every little onion, wash them, and fill up the jar. These onions would be served with steak and other dishes.

I now eat them with salads and any other raw dish we make for lunch or dinner. I have shared them with friends and even made a few jars to give as gifts for the holidays.

Here is what you’ll need to make these pickled onions:

1 glass jar or Mason jar with cover

Small red, yellow, and white onions (enough to fill up the jar)

1 small beet per jar cut in small cubes

2 garlic cloves chopped

2 Tbs. chopped cilantro

1 small jalapeño pepper or any other hot pepper sliced

Water (enough to cover onions in the jar)

Real salt (1 Tbs. per 1 cup of water)

Peel onions and wash them. Put the garlic, hot pepper, a few of the beet cubes, and half of the cilantro at the bottom of the jar and add one tbs. of Real Salt. Fill the jar half way with the onions and add the rest of the beets, garlic and cilantro. Add the rest of the onions until the jar is full. Add one cup of water and if the onions are not covered, continue to add more water one cup at the time. Add one Tbs. of salt per each cup of water added after the first.

Cover the jar and let is sit at room temperature for four days. Each night open the jar and let the gases out. Replenish the water and salt if necessary. I put a pan under the jar in case that water comes out which happens often and that way I won’t have to clean a mess.

After the four days, put the onions in the refrigerator and use in salads, dishes, etc.

Hope you enjoy this recipe!

10:10

We went to the global premiere of “The Age of Stupid” on Monday September 21^st and as usual, I walked out angry, frustrated, and depressed. Anytime I watch a movie about the environment, I cry and feel hopeless. Mostly because I feel that no one cares and no one is doing enough to conserve the very little resources we have left. It usually takes me days to recover. As we drove home, I decided I was going to be more positive and thought of what else I could do, not just in my lifestyle, but promoting what I’m passionate about. I talk about raw food more than anything else, but I don’t share my feelings and knowledge about the environment. So I’ve come up with these three lists of tips on how to help conserve and be “greener.”

For Beginners

Reusable bottles, bags, and natural soaps

So you already recycle and have changed your light bulbs. Well that’s not enough! Here are 5 tips for beginners.

Reusable bottles

Stop buying bottle water please! It will save you money and help conserve by not making more plastic bottles that will eventually land in our ocean. Get a reusable bottle and a filter and voila! You have bottled water!

Plastic bags

Ok so you probably bought the reusable bags but are forgetting to carry them. I keep at least three bags in my car, one at my office, and two in my purse. I now collect a tote or reusable bag from every place I travel. I actually no longer gift wrap presents but put them in a nice reusable bag, that way the person will get two gifts!

Soaps

Yeah I bet you didn’t know about this. Most soaps contaminate the water supply. There are environmentally friendly soaps that are very reasonable in price, for example, Dr. Bronner’s soap is great because it last for a very long time and it comes in gallon size containers. They also carry a laundry and cleaning Dr. Bronner’s soap called Dr. Bronner’s Sal Suds.

Packaged Food

It creates tons of garbage! So if you can’t cook or don’t have time, look for recycled packaging specially plastic number 1, 2, and 3. However, I strongly recommend starting to fade out microwaveable foods.

Re-Use

Instead of immediately throwing things away, donate or swap with other people. Freecycle.org is a great way to re-use; it’s a way to give away the stuff you no longer want without having to find a place to take it. It’s free and a lot of people can benefit from your “garbage.”

Advanced “Greening”

So you already know more than the average person, here are some advance tips that will prove how committed you are to saving the planet.

Compost

My Compost Bucket

Great way to create less trash and make fertilizer for your plants. If you live in an apartment, there are methods to compost in small places. Once we began composting, we reduced our trash to 1 bag a month for 4 people!

How to Compost

EnviroCycle Composter

Thermostat

Replacing your current thermostat for one that can be programmed for multiple temperature settings throughout the day and week can help save a lot of money and energy thus saving the earth. I recently replaced mine for a three bedroom house and my electric bill went down 40%! Mind you I’m in Florida and summer just ended.

Energy Star Programmable Thermostats

Carbon Footprint

Anytime you travel, there is a carbon footprint. Your car and house also have carbon footprints. To offset these, you can sign up for an inexpensive service that will plant trees.

TerraPass.com

Become a vegetarian/vegan

Yes, it’s time for that big step! Begin transitioning to a healthier lifestyle and save the world at the same time. What a concept! For tips on how to start the process, read my post for tips to transition to vegetarian and/ or vegan.

Collect water

There are two ways to do this. One by collecting water every time you wash your dishes and re-use the water for plants. Two if you have a backyard and can collect rain water, set up buckets outside and use that water for plants and lawn.

Extra Credit

Here are some more tips to earn extra credit in the “greening” path.

Mail

MailStopper - Formerly GreenDimes

I used to recycle all my junk mail until I found Green Dimes. It’s the best $20 bucks I’ve spent ever! I no longer get any unwanted mail.

Plant more trees

Even if you live in an apartment, there are local projects and even national places where you can plant trees or donate as little as $1 for each tree planted.

Drive less

Yes, you may think you already do this but in fact, you may be driving the same amount. Count how many miles you drive a week and reduce them by carpooling, taking public transportation, etc. When I bought my Prius, I also started riding the train to work and carpooling. It becomes a habit very quickly and part of your life.

Buy local food/organic

Support your local organic farmers; it saves the earth because they are using organic farming methods and you are not supporting produce that travels across country using fossil fuels.

Laundry

Replacing the soap used for laundry, the dryer sheets for dryer balls, using a low temperature, and air drying helps tons not to mention will save you money.

I wrote this post a day after I saw the movie but was unable to post it because I didn’t have access to Internet at home. As one of my decisions to do more for the environment, we downsize our living space and moved to an area that reflects our beliefs and lifestyle.

Computer bag, Hiking bag, and Lunch bag ready for our trip!

In the two years we’ve been vegan raw foodists we’ve travel quite often and have been able to eat what we are used to eating at home and not struggle finding food during the trip.

How do we do it? This is a very common question we get asked all the time. In the last trip we took, to DC for the RSF, I was in the plane and decided it was time to write about it. So here are my top ten tips to travel raw!

Plan Ahead

First, check the rules for traveling with foods, liquids, etc as they are constantly changing. If you travel internationally chances are it’s a bit more difficult to bring some vegetables and fruits with you are on the plane. Second, check to find the closest organic markets, local farmers markets, and raw food or vegan restaurants around the area you are staying. We love HappyCow.com because it helps us plan ahead where we will be dining once we arrive at the location. It also shows me all local markets and their contact information. Using this information, we map the places we want to go to and decide where to eat or shop for food.

Helpful tip: Write down the phone numbers and hours of operation of the places you want to visit.

Bring Your Own Food

We always carry Avocados, lettuce, and cucumbers with us for the plane ride. I also include enough fruits, nuts, and seeds for the ride.  So far, we haven’t had any issues at security. We have a lunch bag that qualifies as a carry-on where we put all our food for the plan ride. Yes! You do have to run it through the x-ray but it’s better than the “glow-in-the-dark” food at the airport.

Helpful tip: carry extra bags for compost such peels, seeds, etc.

Olive Oil

We loved our olive oil and can’t live without it. So we’ve emptied and old vanilla extract bottle that is about 2 oz and washed and filled it up with Bariani’s Olive Oil to carry with us in the plane ride. Using the foods we bring and the olive oil, we make ourselves a nice meal sometimes in the plane or at the airport while connecting.

Helpful tip: Go to any food court and ask for a plate or container to use for making your food.

Salt

This is a topic that is very delicate with most people who are healthy. Salt… we like it and we need it. We use Real Salt and carry it with us everywhere. We have it in the car, at work, in my purse, everywhere. So when we fly or travel, it’s always with us.

Helpful tip: Real Salt has a small container that can be refilled.

Traveling Lunch Bag

Water, Green Powder and pH Drops

Water is possibly the most important part of traveling. Since we can’t carry liquids anymore, the first thing we do after the security check is get water. If you are lucky, some airports carry water with a high pH that will help you keep hydrated during your trip. If you are driving, I suggest taking your own water with you in a cooler. We also use a green powder and pH drops to add to the water. This helps us stay hydrated and get all the vitamins our bodies need while traveling. We even carry lemons or limes to squeeze into the water to that it stay fresh… yes that’s more complicated, but we now carry our lemon squeezer!

Helpful tip: if you carry your lemon squeezer (like we do), take it out of the bag during security check and set it on top of your jacket so that they don’t go through your lunch bag.

Dessert

We always do desserts because if you pass the cinnamon bun stand at the airport, chances are you would be tempted to have one. If a fruit serves as dessert, bring apples and bananas as they are the easiest to carry. If you don’t consider a fruit dessert, then bring something sweet for the trip. We like to make nut and dried fruit bags for the trip. Sometimes we carry raw chocolate bars, not good if you are planning to sleep in the plane. Also, we recently discover raw cookies in a package by Go Raw and they are perfect for traveling.

Tea bags

We carry two to four tea bags to drink in the plane and ask for hot water to brew the tea. We like the Lemon Echinacea Throat Coat by Traditional Medicinals the best. Why we drink tea? Most time in planes people are sick and we don’t want to run the risk of getting sick, especially if you are not getting the food your body is used to eating while traveling.

Helpful tip: ask for two cups of hot water to brew one tea bag, they usually server the water in small cups.

Utensils and napkins

We used to ask for plastic utensils at the airport and then put them in a zip lock bag to re-use. We also shared one napkin as we like to conserve and travel as green as we possibly can. We now travel with a small kitchen towel, the size of a face cloth, and keep in the lunch bag during the trip. In our last trip to San Francisco, purchase traveling re usable utensils at Café Gratitude, but you can also buy them at Bamboo Utensil Set To-Go . Ok so you don’t need to buy anything, simply get utensils at the airport and re-use them throughout the trip.

Helpful tip: Carry your salt, utensils, and napkins in the same zip lock bag inside your lunch bag, that way when is time to make your food in the plane, everything is accessible.

Arriving late

So last year we flew on Christmas day and arrived in California at close to midnight and we had run out of the food we carried with us. All there was open in San Fran were Chinese restaurants, and we didn’t think they would carry a salad! So here’s what we did, we ran to a 24-hour drug store and looked for snacks. They actually carried some vegetables rolls and fruits as well as some nuts and seeds. We bought some bananas, water, and pecans and that was our meal. Basically, don’t get depressed, there is always something raw somewhere. Don’t give up!

If everything else fails, buy at the airport

So if you had a last minute trip and didn’t get a chance to pack your lunch bag, buy a salad at the airport. Yes, the “glow-in-the-dark” salads and fruits that have been transported there by so many hands and trucks. We’ve done it once or twice when traveling overseas and brought an avocado to complement the depressing lettuce they sell you at the airports, and we are not proud of it.

Helpful tip: carry your salt and oil and make a nice little meal.

When traveling overseas, the rules may be a little different. You may have to eat all your food before you get to the other country. I also heard a tip from Sergei Boutenko on how to travel to other countries, make a powder of dehydrated vegetables and pack it in your carry on. Ask for a cup of hot water and mix in the powder, with some salt and oil and you have a nice soup. Our local raw vegan farmers market actually sells the powder of a veggie mix that can be used for traveling. Nut bars and other raw treats help hold you until you land but will most likely dehydrate you.

As we continue to travel, we learn more tips on how to continue our lifestyle and enjoy traveling to new places. The best part of traveling raw is the faces of the people sitting next to you watching you eat!

We stayed at a B&B in Mt. Shasta that has a Vita Mix and Dehydrator so we made pizza!