Reflections on Banana Island

Hey everyone,

I know that I said that I would upload this yesterday, however I decided to pass final judgement I wanted to see how my body would tolerate coming off of Banana Island, and if the effects of the cleanse appeared to be sustained.
I have also broken down this entry into sub headed segments so that you can skip the preamble and get to the good stuff.

Why did you go on banana Island?

For the past few months I had been struggling majorly with my digestion. The symptoms were akin to IBS; bloating, constipation, poor mood, irritability, food sitting poorly in stomach and water retention along with other gross symptoms. It was such a downer considering I had transitioned fully raw in July 2013 and felt great for a period of time. The amount of time I dedicated to healing my body from years of medications, sickness and negligence felt completely redundant because I felt as if food was rotting inside me, (over exaggeration I know) and I looked always distended.

Causes

There are multiple reasons why I believe my digestion got to such a horrendous stage. Stress and poor eating habits are the root of all evil and rely on one another to perpetuate the problem. I was stressed because I was working 16 hours days and as a result had no time to exercise and eat at regular intervals. I was commuting three hours a day and often worked through my lunch hours. This resulted in getting home far too late and eating dinner at nine, only to go to bed an hour later. It is near impossible to sleep well with a stomach full of food. As a result I became stressed and anxious. This lasted five months. Finally my contract ended and I was thrust into the Christmas splendour and with it comes the social gatherings. There was no time to dedicate towards figuring out the cause let alone healing it. Finally January rolled around and I decided to do a seven day juice cleanse. It worked wonders for my digestion, however it was temporary in terms of healing it. It did clear my skin and other ailments though and I would recommend it to others who are interested in detoxifying rather than healing. Dissatisfied I kept reading about Banana island and finally decided screw it, lets try.

Preparation

It is most important to plan the length of time and quantities required. I ended up staggering my banana purchases. For a seven day cleanse I purchased bananas on three separate occasions; three days before,   one day before and two days in. This allowed me to have a consistent stream of perfectly ripe bananas. I based my quantities on caloric requirements. One banana is roughly 100 calories therefore I purchased 20 bananas for each day.

Detoxification

When undertaking a cleanse of any kind many people report some symptoms of detoxification. I honestly can't say that I experienced any symptoms. I felt puffy on day two and my weight fluctuated a few kilograms, this passed within 24 hours. This was on the account of me coming from a raw diet prior so there was very little to detoxify.

Physical results

This is the part everyone is interested in so I won't delay.
Banana Island has healed my digestion, improved my skin and enhanced my athletic ability.
Since completing the cleanse my stomach has become flat and shows some of the muscle definition that I have been working so hard on. During the cleanse I focused on practising better bathroom hygiene, that is, resetting my bathroom clock by allowing myself a period every morning and an hour after lunch and dinner to do its thing. I do apologise for going there, but it essentially was one of the issues that needed to be addressed. moving on...
Secondly, my skin quality improved immensely. I have struggled with acne for the last 12 years and since becoming vegetarian, then vegan, then 80 percent raw, and finally fully raw my skin has improved. It has been an immensely long and tedious process of trial and error. Despite only having minor issues now, the scaring remains. Banana island has helped my scarring fade, not completely, but there is definitely a significant improvement in tone. I also noticed that my skin became softer and took on a rosy glow. I was pretty excited about it. I imagine that the result would be more significant if I sustained Banana Island for a longer period of time.
Finally, I found my energy levels were through the roof on most days. I was increasing my workout intensity and found that I was still able to complete the workouts without crawling to the shower after. I did notice that I was sweating more; as in perspiration dripping down my face and only the mat in puddles. I account this to the reduced sodium levels in my body.
Based on the wonderful results for my digestion and skin alone I am very impressed.

Emotional results

Banana Island is a cleanse and due to the nature of the body healing occurs on a physical and psychological level. My experience was rather dull as I have undergone numerous bouts of cognitive behavioural therapy and dialectic behavioural therapy. From experience it is best to deal with emotions heads on rather than let things overwhelm me over time. Whilst I had no Freudian Epiphanies of childhood trauma, I was surprised to have to deal with my emotional eating and snacking issues. I found myself opening the pantry door thousands of times a day during days two and three. Finally i came to the conclusion of asking myself, "what am I trying to do if I am not hungry?" Usually the answer was procrastination or boredom. I was able to stop the circle of stress, procrastination and eating and get down to the core. Banana Island also cuts down on cooking time so with the extra time on my hands I was able to enjoy my hobbies more, like spending time with my fiance, saving Skyrim and reading which made me appreciate these things even more and as a result I hope to develop better time management.

During the final days I found that my creativity truly lies within my food. Despite all efforts creating art with bananas is limiting. On day seven I became so frustrated that cooked my fiance dinner just so I could enjoy creating something new. It was refreshing to dig about in the cupboard and experience with herbs and spices and difference textures. I cooked a Moroccan chickpea dish. Whilst I don't eat cooked food I love the act of cooking and nourishing someone with food. If I make you food. It means I care about you. The pleasure of seeing Ross enjoy his meal filled me with  satisfaction and renewed my passion for creativity in the kitchen. I feel that this renewed passion has transferred into my food since ending the cleanse and my presentation of meals has improved drastically.

Ending the cleanse.

Whenever cleanses are completed the individual must gently reintroduce food back into the body. I have decided that my goals are to avoid sodium and overt fats for three days after. So far my digestion has still been perfect. I did experience difficult eating a large salad with some indigestion pains. I was eating too quickly and slowed down. The discomfort alleviated itself and I was able to enjoy my dinner. I do not think this experience with turn me into an obsessed 80/10/10 who is dogmatic about nutrient ratios. I love cooking gourmet raw as it inspires those around me to contemplate healthy vegan options rather than toasties and cheese and crackers. I aim to reduce the amount of salt and fats in my foods and instead focus in eating fresh fruit as my number one source of calories. I will still consume kale chips by the bucket. just not every day...

Final thoughts

Banana Island has offered me so much in the short week I have visited. I have healed my digestion, skin and creativity for a very cheap trade off. I would highly recommend this experience to anyone who is looking to detoxify and heal their bodies on a budget. I can see banana island becoming my "go to" cleanse as opposed to juicing or smoothies which can be expensive. If you are considering undergoing a cleanse or are wanting to transition to a raw food diet this would be the best possible option. I hope that my journey has informed and inspired you to consider veganism as a healthy lifestyle.

If there are any issues that I hadve not addressed here please do not hesitate to leave a comment and I will get back to you.

Peace, love and bananas,

Kaitlin

Banana Island Progress Report

Preamble

I've collated all the information I could think that may pertain to your interest regarding my Banana Island escapade. I have decided again putting in daily measurements such as weight and waist circumference etc. because my aim with this venture was not to loose weight, nor do I wish to inspire people to undertake this who a struggling or recovering from an eating disorder to purely lose weight. This is an exercise in health so I want to focus on that rather than a scale. I will however reflect at the end of the trip and state if my weight did change. I have also tried to get my cronometer results up, however my computer keeps crashing the site. Annoying!

DAY ONE 

Breakfast: three large bananas 

Snack: two dried bananas

Lunch: Four bananas, one cup spinach, one small head of baby romaine, one cucumber

Pre-work out snack: one banana, one cucumber

Dinner: five bananas, 2 teaspoons carob

Mood: positive

Energy levels: great

Exercise: 6.35 km run, 48 minutes, 295 cal

Sleep: eight hours

Notes:

 I probably should have consumed more this day. I was still getting the hang of quantities and will endeavour to eat more tomorrow.

 It is really hot I was quite unmotivated to move at all really.

 I would also like to eat dinner at an early hour. I had dinner spanning between 7:30-8:30, i was distracted so there is another improvement to make. 

I have also had my eczema flair up because the hand soap has SLS in it. not pleased.

Banana Tally: 15 bananas

Day Two

Breakfast: four large bananas
Lunch: Four bananas, two cup spinach, one cup fresh mint
Dinner: Five bananas, one cup fresh mint
Snacks: One cucumber, one banana

 Mood: Great
Energy Levels: EPIC
Exercise: 90 minute "1000" calorie work out - 35 minute HIIT, 30 minutes weights, Abdominal exercises.
Sleep: Eightish hours

Notes: 
 Today was insanely hot and humid so I was fairly sedentary for most of the day, ergo the huge workout. I woke up feeling light and my stomach was pretty flat. I ate dinner at a slightly later hour and got to watch the Simpsons with my ice cream. I felt like a kid again. I also felt unreasonably happy. I kept laughing and it was wonderful. I went to bed and slept well too. So far so good.

Banana Tally: 29

Day Three

Breakfast: four large bananas

Lunch: Four bananas, one head of romaine and with cucumber coins

Dinner: Five bananas, three teaspoons carob and hazelnut stevia

Snacks: one banana

 Mood: Great

Energy Levels: quite good

Exercise: Light walking for 1.5 hours at the shops

Sleep: seven hours

Notes: 

Yesterday was quite different. I woke up feeling bloated and what felt like excessively dehydrated. I drank three litres in two hours and finally managed to sort myself out. It was pretty distressing through.  I suppose it might have been detox, who knows. I curse the person who said banana porridge was good. it isn't. AVOID AT ALL COSTS! I found myself in a banana crisis and went to replenish the stores at the shop; obtained said bananas and came home. I honestly couldn't be stuffed to work out because of the heat. I stayed up late watching my film critique and analysis subscriptions and my cat knocked over my bedside lamp and broke it. Bitch. 

Banana Tally:  43

Day Four

Breakfast: four large bananas plus two tablespoons carob in a smoothie

Lunch: Seven organic dried bananas

Dinner: Five bananas, two cups mint and two tablespoons carob

Snacks: Two bananas diced, eight large romaine leaves and cucumber strips to make "tacos"

 Mood: Happy

Energy Levels: very good

Exercise: 60 minute tabata HIIT with strength

Sleep: seven hours

Notes: Today I woke up and my skin felt a lot smoother and my energy levels were high. I was really impressed that on top of maintaining a hectic day I was able to go complete a really hard workout. I was totally pumped. I have noticed that for some reason I am sweating more. Usually i am drenched after a workout however, I don't usually have sweat dripping of my face onto the mat like a tap! 

Banana Tally: 61

Day Five

Breakfast: Four bananas, coconut and orange stevia

Lunch: Four bananas, two cups kale, three cups spinach

Dinner: Four and a half bananas with two tablespoons carob

Snacks: one banana and a cucumber

Mood: Fantastic. Again.

Energy Levels: good but I was feeling lazy about exercise

Exercise: 15 minute HIIT and 30 minute Brazilian butt hell 

Sleep: seven hours

Notes: The only thing worth pointing out today is that I woke up and my digestion was normal and my bloating was gone. It had be progressively improving over the past four days. This is what I set out to achieve on Banana Island so I am thrilled with the results.

Banana Tally: 74

Day Six

Breakfast: four large frozen bananas, one dehydrated banana

Lunch: Four bananas, two cups spinach and decorated with cucumber coins

Dinner: Three bananas, three teaspoons carob and hazelnut stevia followed by two bananas and two cucumbers

Snacks: three dehydrated bananas

 Mood: irritable but positive. 

Energy Levels: good

Exercise: I vacuumed the house. Does that count?

Sleep: FOUR hours

Notes: Today was good, my mood was off, however, I account that to the fact I have a metric tonne of paperwork and applications piling up that I have been dreading tackling. I also had the misfortune of a painting falling off the wall and smashing me in the head leaving me dizzy for the remained of the day. Upon hearing my fiance's advice I decided not to exercise. I am getting sick of bananas, not so much the taste but the act of simply blending stuff seems to be impeding on my creativity. I consider food my art and I take great pleasure in preparing it. I couldn't sleep well that night because for some reason the end of summer in Queensland dictates that it must be 27 degrees and no breeze. cue me lying in my bedroom turn sauna for the night dying.

Banana Tally: 88

Day Seven

Breakfast: fresh organic coconut and six dried bananas

Lunch: Four bananas, three cup spinach, one cup mint, two tablespoons carob

Dinner: Five bananas and vanilla stevia

Snacks: one banana one cucumber

 Mood: periods of rage

Energy Levels: pretty good considering I only slept four hours

Exercise: Little to no movement

Sleep: nine hours

Notes: The last day! We got up very early to go to the markets for the week. I was incredibly exhausted and grumpy due to a crappy nights sleep. To top it off I had to look a beautiful fresh produce. My fiance also bought a vegan paella and I sat there drooling as I watched him eat it. I find that I get cravings for cooked food when I am stressed. tired and hungry; especially cooked carbs like rice and roast vegetables (sweet potato I love you). It wasn't a great start to the day. Despite being exhausted, I decided against having a nap and instead was lulled into playing Skyrim (gamers will understand) for a few hours. Most of the day was spent pottering around the house and dreaming of the watermelon I bought for tomorrow. I am very pleased with the results of the cleanse and will be uploading a blog of the final results shortly.

Banana Tally 104!

A visit to Banana Island

Hi everyone,

I apologies for not writing sooner, I still have three recipe posts on the back burner in draft form! This past week has been a blur of dealing with paperwork and catching up with friends and family. I promise they will get there this week!

I want to announce that I will be spending a week on Banana Island. That is Sunday 16-23 Feb. Yes, starting today. I, like all fruit lovers have been so excited about summer and the beautiful bounty it brings. My house becomes a cornucopia of colour filled with bananas, mangoes, peaches, melons, figs, berries and jackfruit. There is also the horrific swarm of fruit flies that follows however, I've  seemed to have solved that problem with my little friend apple cider vinegar. I have been planning this trip quite a while ago, but since it is summer I couldn't give up the opportunity to each my weight in mangoes.

Quality mangoes are now starting to wane and the price of stone fruit is slowing creeping back up so I feel that now is the right time to venture into the land of mono-meal cleansing.

Banana Island is an exercise promoted by the author of the "80 10 10 diet" Douglas Graham. The rules are simple:
An individual must sustain themselves on bananas and leafy greens for a period of time, by which allowing the body to gently cleanse itself rather than devoting time to digesting a multitude of different foods.

Here is a video interview explaining it.

To summarise:

What

• Eat bananas every meal with additional leafy greens, cucumber and celery

Why

• Cleanse digestion and detoxify
• Transition into the high carb raw vegan lifestyle
• Overcome emotional eating and psychological difficulties through mindfulness
• Revisit the bedrock of natural eating

I have chosen to take on the Banana Island for the primary reason of healing my digestion. I transitioned to a high carb cooked vegan lifestyle in mid 2012. I sustained periods of 100% raw mostly with interludes of cooked vegan food; mostly cooked starchy vegetables and my weakness for sushi and the occasional cocktail. I felt the best I had in my life, I had energy, my chronic acne was clearing and I felt emotionally grounded despite battling crippling anxiety. Slowly the benefits started to plateau, my skin fluctuated, my digestion suffered and my stress levels began to rise as my post graduate studies came to a close. I got a contract job straight out of university and was thrown into 16 hour work days. The stress became a tsunami despite having strong coping mechanisms. I knew my body needed to make the complete change. 

 It was not until July/August 2013 that I decided to go completely 100%

raw vegan. I did not transition cleanse, I simply stopped eating cooked foods. This went fantastically for quite a while. I lost the bloating, my skin issues subsided and I got my mojo back at work. Once again I coasted for a while on the good vibes of raw food. My contract ended and I was thrown back into the world of job hunting which was a difficult adjustment. Stress once again reared its ugly head and my health was compromised.

I practiced mindfulness frequently and I consider myself quite resilient in that regard. Despite this, the physiological symptoms of stress, specifically digestion are almost impossible for me to control. I decided at the start of 2014 to undergo a seven day juice cleanse to 'reset' my body. I found the entire escapade highly successful.  There was a three day period of horrific detoxing, but I emerged happy and relaxed. I now regret not extending the cleanse to 14 days because upon ending day seven I still had a coated tongue and a few digestive complaints. I was physically wrecked and starving so I discontinued juicing after a week.

I have had a few more close encounters with stress and emotional demons due to some unexpected issues this year. It has effected my sleep and eating patterns so rather than jump on board the juicing wagon again, which can be very expensive, I have bought my ticket to Banana Island.

My aims for this trip are to heal my digestion once more and to face my inner demons by addressing the manner in which I deal with stress once and for all. I plan on keeping a progress chart depicting my physical and emotional well being charting my nutrient intakes, physical and emotional changes as well as advice through my own trail and error of this initiative.

I have established these guidelines for myself so that I will complete the seven days and get the maximum payout for the trip. I am only allowed bananas, leafy greens, celery, cucumber, cinnamon and carob. I  realise that carob is not conventionally apart of the Banana Island manifesto. I don't wish to turn this into another dogmatic orthorexic ventures into obsession over perfecting the diet. That defeats the purpose of the trip. I added carob to ensure that I will complete the week because I quickly grow to hate the taste bananas. I have also set myself not to eat after 7pm. Previously, my partner and I would go to the gym after work, which would always ensure that dinner was on the table at 9:30 and we would have to be in bed by 11:30.  Both my partner and I have found that our sleep quality deteriorated and our digestion worsened. Finally, I am setting myself the task sleeping at least eight hours a night. No more binging on Gossip Girl and Harry Potter fanfiction until the early hours of the morning. This is probably going to be harder for me that monomealing. With these perimeters in place I think I will stay in the right mind frame to deal with any challenges thrown my way.

Those who follow me on instagram may want to kill me for the 50 banana pictures to come but I will attempt to keep it both light hearted and interesting.

If you wish to join me for a few days I would adore the companionship. For those who have visited Banana Island before I would love to hear advice.

Thank you to everyone for all your support in the coming week

Peace, Love, Happiness (and Bananas)

Kaitling

Banana Ice Cream, Four ways

Hey Everyone

Everyone is obsessed with Banana ice cream. It doesn't matter if you're vegan, paleo, allergic to dairy or on a budget; everyone cannot get enough of it.  There is even a machine called Yonanas that turns it into soft serve.

If you love plain banana (n)ice cream that is great. I do not. I have a strange relationship with bananas, either I will eat 10 a day, or the smell nauseates me. I still however, love ice cream.   I didn't think I would ever write a recipe for ice cream because its pretty simple. Bananas.  I have been asked by several people how to create my "gourmet" editions and I have decided to throw them on to the Internet.

I came up with these recipes in order to create something a little more special and unique to share with friends.  The ingredients are simple and the recipe is idiot proof and it all comes together in about 10 minutes maximum. These would be a great treat to share with your sweet heart for valentines day too if you are short on cash and time.

Lavender (N)ice Cream

You will need:

• 5 frozen bananas
• 1/3 cup of frozen blueberries
• vanilla stevia drops
• 2 teaspoons of organic dried lavender (this is available at most bulk health food stores)

Blend and serve

Chai Blueberry (N)ice Cream

You will need:

• 5 frozen bananas
• 2/3 frozen blueberries
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon ground cardamon
• 1 teaspoon ground cloves
• vanilla stevia drops

Blend and serve

Raspberry Rose (N)ice Cream

You will need

• 5 frozen bananas
• 1 cup frozen raspberries
• 1-2 teaspoons of natural rosewater

Blend and serve

Happy New Year Jack fruit (N)ice Cream

You will need:

• 4 frozen bananas
• 2 cups frozen jack fruit
• 1/3 cup coconut meat
• 1/2 cup frozen mango

Blend and serve

Have a marvellous time trying these out. I can attest to the deliciousness of each one. 

Peace,

Kaitlin

Raw Valentines Day Chocolate Jaffa Cream Cookies

In lieu of valentines looming over I decided to put my creative talents to the test and create a sweet treat that you can wrap up and present to your special someone or you could eat them yourself whilst perusing the desperate dating adverts on Craiglist.  These cookies are much more personal and healthy that the foil wrapped store bought stuff. They are healthy(ish); raw vegan and have no crappy filler ingredients like flour, dairy or eggs. They are however very high in fat. That won't stop you though.


There are three components:

• Biscuit base
• Orange cream
• Chocolate coating

Biscuit Base

• 1 cup hazelnuts (brazil nuts also work well)

• 10-13 pitted soaked dates (depending on size)

• 2 tablespoons cacao

• 1 pink of pink salt

• 3 drops vanilla stevia/vanilla 

Method

Soak the nuts in filtered water for eight hours prior. This will greatly assist in digestion. Throw the nuts into the food processor and blitz until finely ground. Think breadcrumbs. Add the remaining ingredients and blitz until they form a crumbly doughy mixture. It should be sticky and hold shape when pressed together.

Now to give them shape. I bought some cookie cutters from Target. I like them because they are quite deep allowing for thick cookies. When pushing the dough into the cookie moulds ensure that you scoop it towards the edges so that it creates a border/crust around the outside. This will allow the filling to pool on top of the cookie and not leak over the edges and make a mess.

You can either pop the bases into the dehydrator on low for a few hours or into the freezer to let them harden up.

Orange Cream

• 3 cups of cashews
• 2 oranges
• 1 carrot
• Orange stevia drops (not imperative but adds oomph)
• 2 tablespoons of coconut nectar
• 3 tablespoons coconut oil

Method

1. Soak Cashews for 30-40 minutes
2. Zest the oranges
3. Juice the oranges and the carrot. collect the carrot pulp as set aside, This gives the cream the glossy orange colour. 
4. Throw cashews, zest, coconut nectar, oil, orange stevia, carrot pulp and one third of orange carrot juice into the blender. Puree in a high speed blender slowly adding more juice until the consistency of thickened cream is reached.
5. Spread onto the cookie bases and allow to set in the freezer for 20 minutes.

Chocolate Coating

• 1/2 cup of cacao
• 4 tablespoons coconut nectar
• 2/3 cup cacao butter
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil
• 5 drops vanilla stevia
• pinch of pink salt

Method

1. Using the double boiler method, melt the cacao butter
2. Combine the cacao and salt. Mix and sift any of the lumps.
3. Once the cacao butter has melted combine liquid and dry ingredients together until smooth. The chocolate should be a runny, glossy consistency.  Add additional melted cacao butter to reach the desired consistency.
4. Remove cookies from freezer and gently spread the chocolate frosting on top. Return to the freezer to set.
5. These can be stored in the fridge or freezer.

These are easily adaptable to using almond butter, raw nutella, mint, vanilla or cherry flavours instead of the orange cream.


Best of luck

Kaitlin

Cool Ranch Kale Chips

Cool Ranch Kale Chips

Hola!

Remember the cool ranch Doritos? When I was a teenager I was extremely unhealthy. I wasn't obese because I was such a physically active person. I just never ate healthy so I was always chubby. From the ages of 10 through 16 I subsisted on Mcdonald's quarter pounders, peanut butter, starburst juicy fruit, snickers bars and Doritos. It is probably why I only grew to 5"2.

I used to get through a large packet roughly every two-three days. I even stained my white braces brackets the colour of the nacho seasoning. Looking back ten years later it is pretty funny because I used to have a stash under my bed, I was dependant on corn chips; ridiculous right? 

Since transitioning to vegan, then raw vegan I don't often get the urge for savoury snack food. When I do kale chips are the cheapest and most accessible resolution.  There are a million and one cheesy kale chip recipes festering on the Internet and experienced kale connoisseurs have their own special recipe up their sleeves.

I get really specific cravings. They can best be described as insane pregnant lady cravings. I became obsessed with the concept of cool ranch Doritos. I even clearly remember the blue packet, despite not having consciously strolled down the chip isle in eons. Clearly I was going to have to take matters into my own hands…

You will need:

• A large bunch of curly green kale, (other varieties will work well too)
• Cool Ranch Sauce
• A large bowl
• A blender/food processor
• A dehydrator (if Raw version), or an oven

Step one:

Cooking is a sensual experience. It needs to be savoured and enjoyed so you can put all your luvin into your food. So start blasting your favourite playlist strip your kale leave into a bowl. 

TIP: Take off your jewellery. No one wants cashews mashed into the crevices of their engagement ring

Cool Ranch Recipe

This legitimately tastes like the seasoning. It is epic and you should restrain yourself from drinking the sauce. There are quite a few ingredients, however these things should be quite common in a raw kitchen.

You will need:

• one cup cashews
• 2-3 tablespoons of hulled tahini
• 2 tablespoons of nama shoyu
• juice from 1/2 a lemon
• pinch of salt (I use herbamare)
• 1 Tablespoon parsley flakes
• 2 tablespoons dil seeds
• 2 tablespoons of dulse flakes
• 1 clove of garlic
• thumb of the root end of a green onion
• 1 teaspoon of ACV
• 1 teaspoon of white miso
• 1 teaspoon of coconut nectar or sweetener of your choice.
• 3/4 cup of water
• pepper to taste

Dump the ingredients in your blitzing device. Add the water 1/4 cup at a time and blend until it has reached the consistency of creamy salad dressing. It should not be watery.  Throw it on top of the kale and prepare to get messy.

 Now massage the sauce into the kale until the kale starts to feel soft and limp

Line your dehydrator trays with non stick baking paper.  Pop in your dehydrator on low- medium for roughly 4-5 hours. If you are baking, put on the lowest temperature and check every ten minutes. Baking kale chips can be tricky as they go from uncooked to smouldering ash in roughly two minutes so be careful.

TIP: If you are an Australian DO NOT BUY HOME BRAND BAKING PAPER! It will screw you over! Just go with the expensive brand and thank me later.

Once they are done. Attempt to put them into some sort of serving receptacle rather than scoffing them straight out of the dehydrator. 

voila! 

I hope you make them and fall in love with them like I did. 

Let me know how your efforts fared by commenting here or on my instagram kaitlingvegan

Peace out,

Kaitlin

The Weekly Produce Shop

Kaitlin Here!

Let's skip the introductions. The story is epic and I want to dedicate it to a separate page.

I would like to elaborate on a few details behind the pragmatics of the raw food lifestyle that many have encountered when transitioning. There is a large database on how to grocery shop however, people are still dubious and enamoured by the large youtube personalities. I thought it would be beneficial if I discussed my experiences to demonstrate how attainable raw veganism can be, especially in Australia. I wish to make it clear that this is only the produce side. We do have a pantry with food type stuffs in it as well. We aren't complete freaks and I will discuss its contents in coming entry. Here we go!

  The Weekly Produce Shop

Pictured

• 1 bag spinach
• 3 bunches kale
• 1 mint
• 1 corriander
• 1 basil
• 1 fancy lettuce
• 1 romaine lettuce
• 1 celery
• 6 carrots
• half a red cabbage
• 1 cauliflower
• 7 cucumbers
• 8 oranges
• 1 pack snow pea sprout
• 1 pack sprout mix
• 5 large zuchinis
• 4 brown onions
• 3 red onion
• 5 red peppers
• 1 bag cherry tomatos
• 8 large field tomatos
• 2 red papaya
• 12 peaches, golden and yellow
• 7 limes
• 2 lemons
• 3 avocados
• 1 watermelon
• half a rockmelon
• 1 huge jackfruit
• 7 honey dew melons
• 12 kg bananas
• 24 calypso mangoes 

1. How do you eat this much in a week?

I don't. This feeds two people. My fiancé is a vegetarian who eats a high raw diet.  Many of these foods can roll over into the next week as well. Items such as ginger, onions and root veggies can last us about ten days if not longer. Items like as mangos and bananas will be purchased in bulk if cheap and are frozen for smoothies and can roll over into the next week. I also make dehydrated foods such a crackers and kale chips which can last up to three weeks unless I am entertaining guests.

2. Quantity

This is a very subjective question. Everyone's body operates differently. Some people are fuel efficient, and others are gas guzzling hummers. I personally do not agree with  the entire caloric fanaticism that is postulated as the key to success on a raw food diet. My major concern is about obtaining sufficient vitamins and minerals. Nutrients are what allows the body to thrive. I recommend eating enough to fulfil your nutrient requirements in quantities that give you enough energy to sustain your way of life. Calorie counters are fantastic if they can break down your nutritional needs. Chronometer is great, however doesn't have certain foods in it especially if you are transitioning. My fitness pal is very convenient with a huge database of foods, yet only measures specific nutrients like vitamin A and C, calcium and iron.
It may take a few weeks to figure out how much food you need to keep going. If you are transitioning from a cooked non vegan diet you will need to buy larger quantities of food. That salad now has to take up the whole dinner plate. Be patient and listen to your body. Raw vegan lifestyles are a massive paradigm shift from mainstream omnivorous diets. We were all confused at the beginning too.

3. How much?

Produce price fluctuates for a myriad of reasons; harvest and seasonality, demand, weather conditions AKA natural disasters in Australia's case, and currency exchange. This cost us roughly $150. This was more expensive because we bought a 12 kg jack fruit for $30. They are like unicorns, so grab them when you see them.

4. Shop smart.

We try our best to get the best price for everything. Sign up for weekly catalogues from local supermarkets and fruit shops. Coles and Woolworth's catalogues can be found online and Aldi will hand out the coming weeks catalogue in store.
Fruit barns are also great to swing by. Most will have a discount rack up the back full of ripe produce. Go in the mid morning to get the first picks. I also recommend finding out when deliveries are made. That is when shelves are refreshed and over ripe produce becomes available for fast sale.
Go to Farmers markets to cut out the middle man. We do most of our shopping at the markets. Prices are pretty competitive and you will most likely to be able to buy in bulk. We like to do a lap of the stalls to figure out who has what for cheapest and the best quality. Then, we go in for the kill.

5. Plan

Always draft up a rough plan of what you want to eat in the coming week. Write up the ingredients for each recipe and see what ingredients appear in more than one recipe. This is an easy way to determine which foods you will need to buy in bulk.  Always allocate about twenty dollars to make a spontaneous splurge purchase so shopping doesn't start feel like you're being constricted. You will get frustrated and potentially fall off the bandwagon.
I can tell you that I am extremely lazy when it comes to meal planning. I only ever plan for dinners. My fiancé and I work out what we want to eat for the next seven days. This usually consists of four salad meals, two dinners that require a bit of preparation, and either a tapas night or a kitchen sink dinner to eat down the fridge the night before markets. For other meals I enjoy fruit, smoothies, juices and finger foods.

If there is anything I have not mentioned or that you would like further elaboration on anything please let me know.  Thank you for reading my initial post on my construction heavy blog. Things will hopefully come together in the coming week.

Peace,

Kaitlin xx

Birthday delights

Hello again!

We live in a culture where our social lives revolve around eating. For vegans, and more specifically raw vegans, this can be a source of great anxiety. Eating healthily should not be as difficult as it has become in modern society. It is our job to change this perception and begin the revolution for healthy food! This post focuses on how to easily entertain guests with finger food for an afternoon.

Yesterday I turned 25. I think once you hit twelve, birthdays stop being one of those events of instant transmogrification. I remember throwing myself out of bed when I was a kid and running to examine myself in the mirror, looking for signs of change that marked my midnight transition from nine to ten years old. Even when I was 16 I hoped I would just transform from an awkward teenager into a graceful young woman. These days I am now grateful to spend time with people I love and then exploit them by enslaving them for menial tasks such as, "change the channel", "make me tea" and, "I get to choose," because it is my birthday after all.

My family is not vegan and definitely not raw. I am lucky however that they respect my life choices and are happy to dabble in the realm of raw food. I didn't want to do much preparation, yet I needed to whip out something a little more exciting than cut watermelon.

This is what the beautiful spread looked like.

This only took me around 45 minutes to an hour to prepare.  The apple chips, kale chips and raw crackers had to be prepared the night before just so that they had time to dehydrate.

Not pictured: Hummus, the mighty fail-safe vegan dip. 

Fast finger food for lazy last minute throw together

Rice crackers and corn thins

Sun dried tomatoes

Mashed avocado

Trail mix

Fruit platters

Chopped vegetables

Watermelon (if its really desperate)

Lettuce leaves to make little wraps

Whilst they are insanely simple they are often overlooked in moments of panic, which might result in wasting money and buying prepacked dips, chips and cheeses full of extra salt, oil and additives. Fresh fruit will make you feel much better in the long run.

Cheers,

Kaitlin

Next post: Cool Ranch Kale Chips ( pictured above)