I have come to realise that, ever since I came off my attempted juice feast, I have been blogging about food. Well, I might not have been telling you very often, but I have been also drinking at least a pint (about half a litre) or more of super charged vibrant green juice pretty much every day. Most of the time I will have it for breakfast, but sometimes it will become my afternoon snack, or, if I am feeling very very motivated and disciplined, I will make it my dinner.

That, by the way, would be my ultimate ideal, as far as my eating habits go. I know very well how unhealthy it is to eat in the evening, but at the moment I am not quite able to keep my diet that way. Evenings are for me, as they will be for most other people, the hardest time when it comes to craving and overeating. It will become especially difficult if I have too many things on my mind, if I had a tough day or if I feel unhappy or uneasy about something... It is the ultimate way to shut up my mind - stuff it with food. It is better if the food is raw, of course, but better still if it was just a huge glass of energy and healing power giving green juice. We all strive for perfection, I guess, and so I do my best not to beat myself up, and just make sure that I have my great green potion first thing in the morning the next day.

I have found, by the way, that it is the best way to put yourself back on your eating well path. It alcalises the system, makes you feel better and more energetic almost instantly, and the huge dose of minerals and vitamins you are getting will ease any further cravings.

I wanted to share with you an amazing green concoction I had for breakfast today. Every Tuesday, after Denise and myself have done our yoga session, we make ourselves a breakfast. This used to be a green smoothie but has become a green juice ever since my fabulous Oscar machine arrived a little while ago. We both get organic vegetable box delivery, and this, accidentally, happens on Tuesday as well. That means that when we meet on Tuesday morning we put together whatever leftovers we found kicking around our fridges... Yes, I know, that does not sound too good... But you have to remember that everything that goes into the juice has to be green, pottentially with some fruit, and so we always end up with an interesting combination. So far we have always enjoyed our juices, never were we forced to pour them away.

But this week - oh this week, it was something else! Somehow we both had lots of herbs, and so the juice was all about green herbs. We used pineapple for sweetness and ginger for a kick, and then we were transported into a magical land of great beauty, energy and harmony and taste buddy pleasure while we were sipping this amazing recipe:

1 bunch of parsley, mostly stalks, as I used the leaves already

1 bunch of mint

2 bunches of corriander, with their fine white roots attached

1/2 pineapple

1 very small fennell

1 brocolli stalk

2 cm of ginger

1/2 head of celery

juice of lime added at the end, juiced by hand, so not too bitter

If you have a juicer that will wotk on green leaves, you simply have to try this. I cannot describe it well enough. It was a little bit sweet, a little bit tingly, a little bit sour, and very very green! This, my dearest readers, was the Queen of all the green juices I have ever drunk! May I be fortunate to recreate it again soon.

Salad day

OK, it's become incredibly busy in this household. How grateful I am that I can only work part time! My day definitelly needs to have more hours... but I know that if I eat carefully and simply then I sleep less... so it is a no brainer!

Breakfast:
simply just fruit, cut into pieces and enjoyed as it is
1 pear
1 asian pear
piece of fresh pineapple

Snack at work:
green smoothie made from
1/2 pineapple
handful of rocket and watercress
water
GREEN SMOOTHIE TRIVIA: rocket and watercress add a lot of umphf to your smoothie and are not for the novices, I would say. Start with softer tasting leaves such as spinach and various lettuces, lambs quarters, yummy herbs such as corriander and mint etc, but remember to ROTATE your greens. Do not stick to only one or two. Also if at all possible go for ORGANIC.

I was definitelly going through some coffee cravings today and the image of a muffin was swimming aluringly in front of my mind's eye. As I was going to my favourite health food store to pick up some raw goodies for the forthcoming hiking trip to Wales I was having a little discussion with myself about giving in and having what my mind wanted, reasoning that at least it was organic. Somehow, when I got there, I went straight to the salad bar and got a large selection from all the yummy lovely fresh goodies. I did not think of that coffee/muffin scenario until I was on the tube on my home, looong afterwards. A very interesting experience. And I am glad I did not give in. Every day that I resist the pull of the old brings me closer to the health and vibrant energy I desire. Lots of coffee does maybe bring longer days in the beginning, but there is a price to pay later on. Eating living energy giving healing food will make my life longer, so who cares of I sleep a bit more every day.... wink wink

Late lunch:
salad in a health food store
mixed salad leaves
grated carrot
lots of sprouts (not brussel sprouts, but sprouted growing seeds of watercress)
few cubes of roasted sweet potato
few roasted herbed mushrooms
few pieces of roasted red and yellow pepper

Even as I was picking this up, I was dreaming about getting a dehydrator or kitting my owen at home so that I can make dehydrated veggies, and so I can get the same taste and texture as if they were roasted without exposing their heat sensitive goodness (enzymes, vitamins) to the high temperatures. This is a change in thinking, and a very welcome one. I even designed in my head a change to the owen so that I can make it work. Now I just need a clever handyman, and we are in business.

Dinner:
2 large handfulls of kale
stripped from tough stalks
massaged with
a glug of yummy cold presses olive oil
and a few pinches of pink himalayan salt
which makes it wilt and soften
add
handful of baby tomatoes
few semi sundried tomatoes marinated in herbs and olive oil
chopped half a cucumber
finely chopped chilli pepper
scatter sunflower seeds on the top

Not the simplest salad but LOOOVELYYY! I learned about massaged kale salad about a year ago and I seriously mourned when its season here in UK finished. It was one of the things I looked forward to in winter! Does that make me sad?

Oh, by the way... are you there? Is any one reading this? LET ME KNOW!