First Day at Work

:D

The only thing is is that I am kicking my self in the head for not bringing my camera!! I would have taken lots of pictures of the shop and of the food, some of which I got to eat.

I'm working in a few days so I will definitely bring my camera then.

So what happened today was that I showed up around 11, and just did really basic stuff, which was cool, then Patricia brought me a green juice, which actually looked really gross. I was sort of skeptical about it (even though I'd seen plenty of green juices in my time), but it tasted so good. It was like drinking velvet, and it was sweet, a little bit spicy, and nourishing - since every superfood in the store had been added!

I felt full after that, which lasted me a couple more hours, then I ate some lunch at around 2. I had a vegetable lasagna. Words cannot explain how good it tasted, it was just so nice, it had creamy cheese and crunchy vegetables and it was a true taste sensation. Oh, if only I had got pictures.

Then to finish my meal I had a slice of black forest gâteau. It was really really nice, it was also creamy, rich, and decadent. I am in love with my new job already.

And next time I will take lots of pictures :D

Got a job!! :D

Well, a new, and maybe a tiny bit better job!

Ok, I loved my last job, which was working in a Christmas shop, but this new job, oh this new job, is the best thing ever.

I have got a job working for the one and only RAW RESTAURANT in Christchurch!! Well, they also sell some vegan stuff, but it sells mostly raw things. Not only that, but apparently my job will entail 'eventually working in the kitchen' but the thing is, the main chef is actually one of the top 50 raw vegan chefs in the world! Yes, I am very happy.

Me and my mum had been going there for awhile, and we got an email the other day asking if I would like to work for them. And of course I said yes.

{Images courtesy of... someone. Sorry I don't know!}

Peace,

Felic Pear x

Feeling better! :D

So for those who read my last post, I will summarize it. I was lamenting 2 days after eating cooked food and feeling like a pile of .. you know what.

But the good news is that I am feeling so much better! All the negative effects have gone, and I'm feeling really good now.

We didn't go and visit my grandparents + extra family members in the North Island for Christmas, which was cool because it meant that being Raw over Christmas was superrrr easy!

I woke up and we had chocolate ice cream and a smoothie for breakfast, and then for lunch I had two tacos! Yes, that's right, I had TWO. Well, it was Christmas... Can't remember what I had for dinner, but it was a pretty awesome day. I liked it mostly because I really enjoyed my food instead of having that shoveling food into my mouth feeling.

Also in our house we have a tradition of making Christmas presents for each other. I used to hate it, but in recent years I've really got into it, I think it's that feeling of making something for someone with love, and knowing that you put effort into it.

I haven't gotten a picture of the finished present I made for my mum, but here it is when it was a work in progress.

You probably can't guess what it was, but it was a Latin Alphabet book. Yes, that's right, I learn Latin, could I be anymore of a geek :B

Something really horrible happened on Boxing Day though! We went into town, and when we were walking there there was a really strong aftershock. Calm people were suddenly screaming and running into the middle of the road, and nearby bridges were moving. It is a pretty remarkable sight when you see the earth move, let me tell you...

I'm sorry, I don't have anything else to say, except that I may have a surprise to post about soon, and that it is raining today.

I took a picture from my window, but then it started raining on me >:C

As you can see, our camera is so useless and lazy that it didn't even bother to open it's shutter things properly -___- (Hint to my mum: We need a new camera!!)

That's all.

Hope everyone had a good Xmas and a good New Year, and my birthday is soon, on the 2nd! :D

Love,

Felic Pear x

It's All Cooked To Me

As some of you who would have read My Story know, before I went Raw, I was quite unwell.

Since going Raw, I don't think I even realized how perfect the function of my body had become. My digestion had become superb, and once I started to take B vitamin supplements, everything started working in perfect order, and my stress levels were normal and I was feeling fantastic.

Unfortunately, I am frustratingly back to square one! D:

Why?

As many of you will have twigged it is Christmas, and here in New Zealand, Christmas time is a big thing, not so much because of presents or religion, but because it is the end of the school and University year and exams, and it is the summer holidays. Nearly everything closes down through January.

So me and my mum decided to go out for a pre-Christmas dinner at the only Greek restaurant in Christchurch. We wanted to go because we are both learning Greek, Greece is one of the most stunning countries in the world, and because I wanted to try some of the food, as I'd heard from my friend Chantal's blog that when she was in Greece she found eating vegan to be quite easy.

Sure enough there was a vegan option on the menu. I hadn't actually eaten a proper meal of cooked food in 6 months (only eating it once previously, though it was tiny, vegan, and the rest of the plate was salad), but I figured I would be all right, I thought "How bad could it be?"

Big big BIG mistake.

First of all, we told the waitress who was serving us that we were vegan, and she became really really confused as to what vegan meant. She kept asking us, "Do you eat carrots? Do you eat feta? What about olives?" So we had to tell her what we did and did not eat, but that was fine.

Secondly the meal was diabolically priced, at NZ$29 for a main, per person. In New Zealand, that is A LOT of money. In the 'old' days, when me and my mother went to restaurants, it was commonly understood that any restaurant with a 'main' over $25 was expected to be good quality. I seriously could have re-created this meal at home. I'm not trying to put the restaurant down or anything, (I'm not even going to say what they were called), but after robbing us blind, they could have really tried a bit harder... I think the cost was because they played live music for a couple of hours every night, but for reasons that I will explain soon, we left early and never got to hear it ):

The meal was comprised of rice (that we wondered afterwards if it was cooked with butter, yes, butter, even though it was supposed to be vegan, I don't think they understood that being a vegan is very important for some people), some cooked hummus (which looked a little slimy), a few shreds of iceberg lettuce, 1/4 of tomato, some cooked vegetables (that were the type that you get out of the freezer and put in the microwave, which looked very grey), and some boiled cauliflower in a spicy red sauce. Like I said, I am not putting the food down, I'm sure that as far as meat meals go they are very good. But considering the fact that I can buy a raw drink, a raw taco, and a raw dessert from my favorite raw restaurant for exactly the same price, if not less than the main, I find pretty appalling.

So we set about eating our huge plates of completely foreign (and I'm not just meaning the fact that it was Greek) and lifeless food. The weather was sweltering, and so was I. As I ate, I had to drink water to cool myself down, which didn't work, and my dress got tighter and tighter. After eating all that food, all I really wanted to do was lie on the floor and wait till the food had digested, but I could hardly do that in public.

Instead me and my mum opted for walking around the town for a bit, and then we went home. When we got home I looked at my stomach in the mirror I was shocked; I looked just like a friend of ours who had just had a baby (and I mean while she was pregnant). It was horrifying.

It has been 2 days since I ate that cooked meal. And I have to say, I am feeling absolutely terrible. My stomach has been swollen for 2 days, and I have sunk back into the depression that I experienced while being sick. My stomach is not digesting my food anymore, I know because I can usually hear it gurgling (sorry if that grosses you out) and I can feel my food moving, but now it is making no sounds and not moving. It has been difficult for me to deal with the fact that I now have to spend my time getting well, especially after I progressed so far.

What makes me feel worse is that I disrespected myself and my body. I should have known that it would be too much of a shock for my body to deal with that much cooked food, and have coped with it. After adjusting and thriving on such a pure and natural diet for so long, I may as well have poured petrol down my throat. Yes, cars can run on it, but I can't.

My plans for getting well include eating a lot of fibre, drinking lemon drinks, and eating 100% raw, of course. I want the level of health back! If anyone has any detoxification secrets, plz let me know!

And I can tell you one thing, I am not going to be eating cooked food again, for a long long time.

I'm Back!

Hai!

I know I've been gone for ages, and I'm sorry ):

I have many reasons:

- I had school

- I was working

- The dog ate it

- I ate it

But I have many good newses to share with you guiz!

1. It's summer, we have many many raspberries, strawberries, and the other day a friend dropped over a HUGE box of cherries, YUMMMM.

2. I met another raw teeeeen!! Her name is Ashley, and I had been following her blog, after finding her on some forum that I was trolling for raw teens. I know I may sound like a bit of a freak, but I like to think that I can get away with it because I am 15, not 50. Anyway, she posted that she was coming to New Zealand, and I commented and asked where, and she said she was coming to the city that I lived in! I was so excited and we planned to meet, which we did, and we visited a raw café together and had a bit of a feast.

Mexican Salad which I had

Sushi, and Chocolate drink (formerly known as the Mayan Magic Chocolate)

The falafel that Ashley had

Ashley eating. Verrry... Sloooowly, haha.

Ashley radiated health and positivity, and she had beautiful clear skin.

Read her post about the occasion here, and be sure to follow her blog about her NZ travels here! On a side note, her pictures of New Zealand are amazing and capture it's full glory, so everyone come and visit me!

3. I haven't actually been trying many new raw foods recently, BUT we did buy a spiralizer just yesterday! It is very cool, and we are waiting on our first zucchini to make some damn good pasta!

{source}

4. I told a few people at work that I was vegan, (and I told one of them that I was actually a raw vegan). Anyway, the shop was quiet for a bit, and I sat down and yawned. My co-worker, bless her, asked me if I was iron deficient. If I was iron deficient how would I be able to bike 5.5km/3.4 miles twice (yes, I did look it up) in the sweltering heat? Maybe it was because I mentioned how I was slightly exhausted when I walked in, but it doesn't mean I need a steak?! I'm sure if I went in tomorrow and said that I had decided to eat meat a few times a week she'd leave me alone in a second! I'm not the most sporty person around, I used to be, but I just don't do that stuff anymore. But we don't own a car, so I have to do exercise all the time to get to places. Anyway, I'm pretty sure I ended up proving that I was far from iron deficient: I carried Christmas trees to peoples cars, and as a result, I have stabby stab marks up my arms. -__-

We sell Nutcrackers like these - they are my favorite!

5. My school year has ended for the year, no, that has nothing to do with raw foods, but I'm pretty stoked about it.

6. I was wondering, if anyone has any suggestions about topics for me to post about, PLEASE ENLIGHTEN ME! I am looking for inspiration, and you may have noticed I have not posted for awhile. Sometimes I am not always financially able to post about recipes that I have tried, so if there are topics that you think I should talk about, let me know!

And that's about it I think.

Peace and raw food,

Felic Pear x

The Official Raw Vegan Ice Cream Cone

Creamy Chocolate Ice Cream with Chia Cone

I didn't invent this, sadly, my mother did! We had left over fruit pulp from juicing, so, using the power of water + chia seeds (anyone who has used chia seeds and water will know what happens...) + pulp = cone.

Even though I was the one who did the whole Ice Cream Week, but my mum's ice cream is truly the best I have ever tasted. Raw or otherwise! It is even good when put in the freezer, it is still creamy and melts in the mouth. I don't know how, I don't do chemistry, but somethin' happens and you just end up with a bowl of deliciousness.

Scones: Part 2

The scones are out of the oven, uh, I mean, dehydrator. Scones are such an English thing. But I have some English blood so it's all good.

I got this recipe from Ani Phyo's book Ani's Raw Food Essentials. Not only did it have some pretty good looking recipes in it, it also had plenty of information and resources.

Scones with Cream and Raspberry Jam

This one is like a sandwich! It may look a bit messy, but I thought it looked funny with jam oozing out the sides.

I am offering you a virtual scone!

Anyway, after my amazing breakfast I now have to go, I have work to go to.

Peace and Raw Food,

Felic

Scones: Part 1

More to come, which will be the finished product.

Green?

Yes, very green. A lot more green than you!

Green smoothies always look really gross, but taste great. This is my current favorite: Bananas, Strawberries, Cacao Powder and Goji Berries.

Breakfast

Cacao Crepes. My mum decided to meet up with an old school friend, and suggested we have breakfast at a vegetarian/vegan/raw cafe.

I had the cacao crepes. They were delicious.

Since I had the camera on me I decided to take a picture of one of the coolest streets in Christchurch, which thankfully wasn't destroyed in the earthquake.

Ok, on a more serious note, I was at the chemist's the other day (or as peepz in America would say, the 'drug store'), no that is not the serious note. We were looking for some natural and vegan medicines/remedies for depression, that I have recently been suffering from. I spoke with a counsellor who happens to think it's earthquake related, but anyway...

The person who was working at the counter was suggesting that I get a blood type test done, and suggested I read a book called Eat Right for Your Type .

Anyway, I was horrified to discover that I was type O, which is supposed to thrive on meat products.

Luckily for me, I had already read in The Food Revolution that the diet had absolutely no credibility, so I decided to ignore it totally.

I don't think I could handle eating another creature's heart (stupidly recommended by the book), and that thought snapped me out of any depression.

The Taco of the Future

Yum Yum YUM.

These are your standard corn and flaxseed tortilla/tacos. We didn't exactly have the typical ingredients, so we made do with several varieties of lettuce, sour cream, avocado, and sweet chilli sauce.

Raw never tasted better.

Cake. Chocolate Cake

Mmmm... Cake. Enough said.

Yum. Um, it was a bit messy to eat, refer to the picture below.

You can't see the crust, but it was sort of like a... nice surprise waiting at the bottom! :)

The Best of Raw Chocolate

It has always saddened me that chocolate is supposedly so bad for me. Amazingly enough, RAW chocolate is very healthful! Because the nutrition isn't bubbled and boiled away, the raw cacao (which is a superfood) can deliver the antioxidants, magnesium, and iron. Please note: this is RAW chocolate we are talking about, the other stuff will just go straight to your hips. :)

Because I live in a tiny island in the middle of nowhere, I was amazed to find a place that sold raw products, and then I stumbled upon raw chocolate bars!! We decided to try them all, and I have to admit, these Tama Toa bars (pictured right) are my definite favorite.

I really love the whole raw chocolate eating experience. Maybe it's because the chocolate is handmade, and beautifully packaged. This chocolate is different, it's not the sort you buy and quickly shove into your mouth. It's the sort where you carefully remove the wrapping, savor the sight, and equally savor the taste, texture, and moment.

I've noticed with other raw chocolate that they often aren't sweet. I have a sweet tooth, and so I was delighted to discover that the Tama Toa chocolates are sweet!

It trult melts in the mouth, too, and because Pixie (the creator) adds nuts, seeds, goji berries and a few other delights to the mix, they have a nice crunch to them.

(I'm starting to salivate looking at the pictures, excuse me.)


Great news, we are selling a few from our stash! But be quick, we will not sell many, and they are sure to go quick, due to deliciousness and the fact that I know where my mother has hidden them.

Contact me at felic [dot] pear [at] gmail [dot] com, if you would like to purchase one.

Or you can order them directly from Pixie's website rawhearts.com

Haha

Could me and my best friend be any more alike?

Exciting Updates!

Recently, I sort of lost my love of creating raw food at home. I still loved trying other people's raw food though. Just me, personally, had lost the excitement. There will always be good and bad people in the world, and I just have to try to not let them influence me. I shall explain further.

When I first started being raw I would eat cake and ice cream at every meal. I hadn't eaten that sort of thing in a long time, due to not eating sugar for 5 years. It may have been slightly unhealthy, but at the time I was new to raw, and the food tasted so good and was so good for me! I was feeling alive, happy, well, health issues went, and loving the fact that I could eat cake and not worry, because in fact I was losing weight!

Then I logged onto the internet (as you do). Big mistake. I felt like I was being shouted at by a million different raw food 'gurus', being told that what was feeling so good to me was completely wrong, and that I was going to die a slow and painful death (or words to that effect).

Of course, there were nice people online too, telling me that whatever I was eating was good because it was raw, and that everyone was different, and what may work for others was not specifically for me. But I couldn't shake other people's negativity.

But recently something great has happened! I'm back to my old self! I don't even know what it was, but suddenly I have that feeling in my stomach, a fluttering, that just makes me feel like that good things are going to happen! I've got that love of creating food back, and I have major plans!

So with this new positive mind, I logged onto Flikr, and created an account. Here is the link. I also spent my morning looking through the millions of raw recipes that I have, and decided on a few which I would like to create.

Today is also my best friend Josh's birthday, and I have decided on a great present, which I think he might possibly like. For those who don't know, Josh has been an amazing support during my raw journey, and is surprisingly open minded to raw foods. I'm lucky to have him as a friend, as a bonus he is hilarious. Happy birthday, Josh. :)

And even more exciting news, I tracked down the website for my favorite (ever) chocolate bar, ordered some bars, and I am going to review them when they arrive. If you want to order one or two feel free to email me at felic.pear@gmail.com. More information on that later though.

I would actually just like to do a review of one of my favorite blogs at the moment, Really Raw by Raederle. Her blog has so many features, a recipe section, articles, polls, q & a, etc! I really like it because I think a lot of her opinions she voices very fairly, but still comes to a healthy conclusion which supports raw living. You should definitely check it out!

I have found so many beautiful recipes that I would love to create within the next few weeks. So what if some of them are nut-based? You only live once, you may as well enjoy it.

What a pleasant surprise!

As you may have read here, I was at the 'Vegetarian Expo' on Sunday.

When I was there I bumped into one of my old friends who I hadn't talked to in about a year, Hayley.

Me and Hayley met in French class, and I have to say, she is pretty awesome!

So when I saw her I said Hi, and she said Hi, and we were both like :D

Then I wrote on her wall (this would be the Facebook wall. If you don't have a Facebook, you may not be down with the lingo), and said, "Hey, it was cool seeing you! We should meet up!"

This may seem incredibly boring to you, but keep reading, it gets better!

And she said, "Yes we should! Are you a vegetarian? I'm a vegan."

I was so amazed, I knew she also was quite sick last year and had to take time off school, but seriously! She's a Vegan?! I was amazed, so I wrote back straight away and told her I was Raw and that I was so happy that I knew someone around my age who was also 'enlightened'.

Today me, my mum, and my mum's non-raw-vegan friend went to lunch at a restaurant that serves raw food (as well as vegetarian and vegan), called the Lotus Heart.

I like this friend of my mum's, because she is really supportive of our raw veganism. It's about 50/50, some people like it, others do not, and argue about it. But this friend is cool, and she also paid for lunch...


This is what my mum and her friend had, I didn't have it because the rice paper it was wrapped in was cooked. It appeared to be similar to a Christmas present.



And my favorite, a Cookies and Cream drink! Because two photos are better than one :D


This is what I had, the Raw Nori Roll. I have had a few rolls in my time (that sounds slightly disturbing), and I have to say, this was a gooood roll. Very good indeed.

To go with it I had a Raw Couscous Salad. I think it was made up of cauliflower, brocolli, cilantro, and raisins.


And for dessert, (who doesn't have dessert with lunch?) I had a Chia Swirl, and a Mayan... Thing. I've forgotten what it was called! I think it may have been 'brick' or 'block' or something, but that just doesn't seem right. Memory fail!


Then, because I was so well behaved in public for a change (that was a joke), my mum's friend bought me a raw Chocolate Bar! I ate it before I could photograph it, but photographed the wrapper anyway, which was funky.

I have some very very very exciting news, this is possibly the best news I've heard in forever.
My beautiful friend Meredith from the raw seed is releasing a new eBook, Raw Italian Feast ! I am so excited! I have promised her I will write a review, and you will not be disappointed!

Meredith has already put out two eBooks, they are both amazing, they feature her beautiful food, and stunning photography. You can purchase them both here. But wait, there's more! The profits from these eBooks go towards Meredith and her husband Dustin's project, known as Bleu Bee, an old school bus which they are lovingly converting into a home which they plan to use to travel in all over and spread raw food as far as they can, which is totally worth supporting!

You can also make a donation by heading over to her page, and clicking on a link there.

I also got my university essay and test results back, 89% for the essay and 96% for the aural test. :)

Peace and Raw Food,
Felic x

Vegetarian/Vegan/Raw Expo 2010

So much fun! :D

The day started off with me meeting my BFFL Josh in town.

We had to walk a mile or two to get to the venue, but eventually... we made it! The day was like rly warm.

It was so crowded.

We walked through Hagley Park to get there. It was pretty cool, you gotta admit. There were blossoms on the trees, flowers scattered, sort of like a fairytale. It probably wouldn't be a fairytale if you had allergies though, then it would be a minefield.

But back to the soothing pictures.

The lol moment du jour was when me and Josh went up to a table to grab a free sample, and the lady was like, "Hey Gurlz!", and Josh was like, "Ahem. Excuse me?" and she was like, "Uh... and Guyz..." I laughed for the next ten minutes.

Food! Food was so tasty. Of course, I only ate the raw vegan stuff. I bought a bottle of Kombucha, too, 'cos I was so thirsty. But ew, it did not taste good. The stuff we brewed at home was so much better. (No offence to the guy who made it if you're reading this, though why would you be. Are you a stalker or something?!)

We had one each of these. On the left are Chia Swirls, and on the right are Chocolate Velvet Slices. They are even better than they sound!

I had a Lucuma Luxury drink. This is the drink stand.

I had a Quiche Lorraine. That sounds like a person's name, or is that just me?

Josh had a truffle, as usual. Because Josh always has a truffle. What am I getting Josh for his birthday in two weeks? A truffle.

Can you spot my mother, I mean, uh, Waldo? Chances are, you cannot.

Haha. Thar she is.

I had a slice of gateau as well, and me + mum halved a raw tortilla wrap.

The day was so great, perfect weather, great food, except for my mum constantly making inappropriate jokes in front of Josh. Just kidding, I do love you mum. :)

Peace and Raw Food,
Felic x

Mmmm Food

This is what was made this week.

Cheese and Lettuce Sandwhich

Bread!! I can't believe it. Well, it didn't exactly work to perfection, because we didn't have the right attachment on our juicer, but mmm, with cheese and lettuce, it tasted great, and it was sort of crispy too, like toast!

Hummus.

Made by my dear mother. It tasted good, too! But it had a strong after taste, which wasn't the coolest. Maybe it's just me. Because I don't really like garbanzo beans!

Cheeze

I couldn't believe it, either! Cheese! I didn't add any flavorings except for a lot of nutritional yeast, next time I will add other ingredients. It tasted so nice, and looked pretty cool, too.

Strawberry... Drink (un-inspired name, I know)

Since it is nearly Summer, this has been my favorite drink to sip in the sunny garden. Unfortunately, I have been banned from drinking it everyday, downgraded to drinking it once a week.

Apparently I was using too many strawberries... Hah.

The Raw Vegan Cheesecake Chronicles: Take Two

The Case of the Berry Swirl

I've been wanting to make another Cheesecake for awhile now... and the other day I tried a gorgeous one at the raw vegan cafe, I decided I would try to replicate it, but of course, do it my way.

It has a vanilla crust, boysenberry layer, strawberry layer, and chocolate drizzel... <3

I got the recipe from Meredith at the raw seed. I have started to think that the Cheesecake has real potential and endless possibilities... Hmm... I may have to open a Cheesecake business now.

My menu for this week (with pictures, hopefully):
- Tacos (I really want to make tacos again...)
- Ice Cream Bars
- Cheese (for my mum, who used to love cheese, but now thinks it smells of 'cow'.)
- Bread
- Hummus (my mother is hummus-obsessed at the moment, for no particular reason).

In one week there is a Vegetarian Expo where I live! I can't wait. There are going to be two people talking about Raw Veganism. I think it's great that they're getting the idea out there, and it would be so cool if people could start incorporating and trying raw cuisine in their diets.

The only problem is, (and this sounds really stupid), I don't have anyone to go with! I have a friend, who lives really far away, I know he would want to come, but he wouldn't be able to come into town. And I have another friend who is vegetarian, but is not interested at all in vegetarianism, and I could imagine her wanting to leave the second we arrive. This dilemma needs to be resolved!

Also last week I did a 2 day water fast. It was because of the earthquake, I was feeling really dragged down and I strongly felt I needed a thorough detoxification. I kept a journal and also took my measurements and weight during that time, but I will probably dedicate another post to it.

That's all for now.

Peace and Raw Food,
Felic x

P.S. If you have a Raw Food Rehab page, add me here!