Articles in the Michele’s Life Category

Just stopping by? Have you entered my latest contest (over a $200 value)? Or maybe you’d like to try your hand at my chocolate-covered raisin hemp balls or raw tuna fish-less salad. 

You might remember the Excalibur dehydrator I was sent to review. I’ve been experimenting with it – just hadn’t posted about my adventures. Why? I’ve had quite a few “Raw Flops" goin’ on around here. Yep.

Upon a reader’s request (thanks, Beth!) I’ll be sharing my (un)cooking disasters in the new category: Raw Flops. But don’t worry, I have some rawsome stuff comin’ up, too!

And… here’s a story written in third person. Why? I guess I just kinda felt like writing about myself that way as I reflected on this dehydrating disaster.

Raw Juice Girl’s Flax Flop

Once upon a time, in a raw fantasy world, lived a gal who dreamt of creating the bestest raw flax seed crackers ever. She put her flax seeds to soakin’ while thinking about all those health benefits: omegas, manganese, fiber, folate, copper, magnesium, phosphorus, and Vitamin B6.

Those beautiful little seeds gettin’ their soak on just screamed healthy heart, blood pressure, bones, hair, skin, nails, colon, and so much more—like fighting cancer, diabetes, dry eyes, and hot flashes.

Oh my!

<insert dreamy (healthy) eyes here>

The Raw Food Revolution Diet , by Cherie Soria (sent to her by The Book Publishing Company for review – aka as in free sample/Raw Juice Girl didn’t buy it) had a raw flax seed cracker recipe that sounded fantabulous!

It felt like DAYS waiting the 8 hours for those seeds to soak. *looks around* Where’d Raw Juice Girl’s patience go? Someone stole it!

Cherie’s recipe called for 4 cups of chopped bell pepper (or tomato). Raw Juice Girl had neither so she used raw broccoli slaw instead. Oh, joy!

Next up, raw zucchini. Nope, none of that either! Enter: diced, raw apple.

Blend it all up, Cherie says.

Um, it looks like puke. That’s what she said.

Gotta have some seasoning! Yay for HimalaSalt samples (again, free  – yummy – samples Raw Juice Girl was sent for review)…

Organic garlic salt

Pink Himalayan Sea Salt

Stir it all up!

Smear it on the dehydrator tray (with a liner).

Close-up

Score the mixture to make separated cracker lines.

The house smelled sooooooooooooooooo good while these crackers were (un)cooking!

105* for 12 hours, Cherie says

Raw Juice Girl leaped out of bed the next morning, with bright eyes and pep to her step. She ran into the kitchen like a child on Christmas morning expecting shiny, new flax seed crackers ready for flippin’.

Imagine her surprise when she opened the Dehydrator door and found this:

Flax Crackers Stuck to Wax Paper!!!

Raw Juice Girl wanted to just cry…

And the saddest part? Raw Juice Girl managed to break off a teeny piece of cracker (without waxed paper attached!) and it tasted REALLY good.

*sigh*

The moral of this story, folks, is that Raw Juice Girl shoulda used parchment paper or waited ‘till she got some Excalibur non-stick, reusable sheets.

She was so blasted mad at that wax paper, she thought about eatin’ it but didn’t have an appetite after finding her ruined crackers! Humph!

See, Raw Juice Girl is real. She makes mistakes. She doesn’t have all the raw food stuff figured out. She’ll be your guinea pig, though. You can learn from her mistakes and get a few laughs along the way…

Stay tuned for more Raw Flops. This is a new category featuring Raw Juice Girl’s bloopers. You won’t want to miss a single post!

Resources:
WH Foods: Flax Seeds

First time visiting? Check out my latest contest (over a $200 value!) and my chocolate-covered raisin hemp balls. You may also enjoy Zeenat’s guest post about the healing benefits of onions.

Sounds crazy, huh? Well, before you think I’m crazy just hear me out, please.

Raw Reflections

I had the amazing opportunity to review the Raw for Thirty and Raw for Life DVDs a while back. I still remember how raw and real the DVDs were.

Here’s a snippet of my thoughts from that review:

Simply Raw gives you a peek into the journey of six Americans who are battling diabetes. Some of them are also battling obesity. While staying at The Tree of Life in Arizona, under the supervision of Dr. Gabriel Cousens, the six individuals (with various diabetes levels and insulin problems) were carefully monitored and cared for.Looking into the lives of these people and watching their struggles, their honest attempts, and then more struggles as they tried to make it through the 30-day program just broke my heart. I’ve been obese morbidly obese. I know the pain. I know how discouraging it can be to wake up every morning with a heavy person weighing your life down and feeling like life is hopeless and like you can never, ever achieve the healthier, slimmer body you so desire.

I also used to be on diabetic medication because my blood sugar was atrocious. I related so much to the stories these people shared in this DVD. It was almost as if I were living my own morbid obesity and blood sugar problems all over again!

So, I absolutely believe in the power of raw foods and know from personal experience and my own journey that blood sugar can stabilize. I’ve lost over 100 pounds and am now eating 100% raw food–no more diabetic medication for me!

Raw Reality

Living with diabetes is no fun. And that’s why I wanted to let you know that for a short time, you can get a 50% discount on this DVD set about reversing diabetes! That’s right! That’s a HUGE savings!! And with money being so tight these days, that 50% savings is such a blessing for you – especially if you’re sick and tired of living with diabetes as the ruler of your life!

Raw Hope

Do check this DVD set out – even if you aren’t diabetic. I don’t believe you’ll be the same once you watch the stories and hear the experts chime in with facts.

Everyone’s bodies are different, so you may not be diabetic-free within 30 days BUT if you follow the raw food lifestyle, it’s a given that your blood sugar and other health issues should improve by the end of the 30 days. It depends on your weight and/or how bad your blood sugar levels are.

There IS hope for a better, more beautiful tomorrow, people. It lies within you to resurrect it and make it happen. Take this RAWsome opportunity to change your life. Who needs to wait until the new year to make resolutions and lifestyle changes?! Start today, so you’ll have your own raw reflections and health transformations to share with others!!

If you’re just tuning in, be sure to check out my review of E3Live and also my thoughts on BrainOn. And a huge thank you to the folks at www.E3Live.com for sponsoring the first contest where one LUCKY reader will be receiving a prize valued at over $200!

Chocolate-Covered Katie’s Mission

This post is in honor of Chocolate-Covered Katie’s Charity Page View Drive: Operation Chocolate-Covered Kindness

Katie is doing a fantabulous job of spreading kindness. Let’s help her out!!

In honor of the chocolate theme (and y’all know how much I love chocolate!) I thought I’d share a few recipes. Only one is mine, but I think you’ll like the others I mention, too!

Chocolate-Covered Recipes

Katie has a long list of chocolate-covered recipes on her blog. You’ll want to browse through ‘em all! Not only will you come across delicious treats you can whip up for yourself and your family and/or friends, but you’ll be helping Katie raise money for charity while you’re looking!

For starters, you might enjoy perusing her Fudge Babies. Oh, yeah! If that isn’t enough to drive you chocolate bonkers, feast your eyes on All Things Oatmeal, Pancake Pandemonium, The Pudding Files, or the Most Popular. Of course, there are tons more. Enjoy!

Oh, and you might want to grab a napkin before you dig through her recipe archives – you just might drool!

Averie’s Chocolate Fudge Balls

The amazing Averie is always, always whipping up the most RAWsome Vegan desserts over at Love Veggies & Yoga. She creates the most decadent, sinful looking (yet healthy!!!) treats over there. She’s an incredible inspiration, from her years of yoga practice, to her ability to juggle day-to-day chaos with a toddler, she manages to be wife, momma, blogger, reviewer, keeps a spotless home, and even hosts contests for her readers! But back to those delicious desserts…  Her latest: 3-Ingredient Dark Chocolate Fudge Balls

I haven’t tried Averie’s chocolate ball recipes yet, but I will soon.

Jocelyn’s Brownie Batter Balls

Jocelyn blogs at Jocelyn Eats Fresh. I’m sooooooooooooo proud of her because although her blog posts are often upbeat and inspiring, she’s worked very, very hard at overcoming an eating disorder. She is finding a beautiful balance of healthy foods and also allows herself to splurge sometimes on the not-so-healthy stuff so she won’t find herself feeling the need to go back to those old, harmful habits. She has an “everything in moderation” mentality and it’s working wonders for her body, mind, and soul. She’s a beautiful person, inside and out, and is losing weight the slow, right way. You’re doing a great job, Jocelyn. Keep up the great work!!!

Anyway, I knew I had to try out Jocelyn’s cool creation when I happened upon her Raw Chocolate Brownie Batter Balls. I didn’t have the exact ingredients she used, so I switched it up a little. Or, well, a lot!

And Raw Juice Girl’s version…

Chocolate-Covered Raisin Hemp Balls

This recipe made 14 chocolate balls. It probably would have made 16 or 17. Um… Oops!! *giggles*

• 1 cup almond flour
• 1 1/2 cups raisins
• 6 tablespoons Dark Chocolate Hemp Powder (www.manitobaharvest.com)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon agave (or so)

I had to add a dash more almond flour and a little water to try to get the right consistency. I should have used the food processor, I think. I used the blender instead. Hmmmm…. Or, I needed to start with more liquid.

No worries… they turned out YUMMY!!!

Manitoba Harvest Chocolate Hemp

Oh my goodness y’all… The dark chocolate hemp powder from www.manitobaharvest.com is DIVINE!!! So far, I’ve enjoyed it in a smoothie and these chocolate-covered raisin hemp balls. It’s fantabulous to get your hemp protein in via chocolate. YUM-O!!!!!

You can expect a full review on the product itself in an upcoming post.

Roll the dough into balls

Then wash your hands!

And enjoy! Yum!!!

Good, and Good For You!

And that’s it! If you love chocolate-covered raisins, you’ll LOVE these chocolate-covered raisin hemp balls. You’re getting a chocolate (and a snack) fix!

AND hemp is full of whole food nutrition:

“ALL Essential Amino Acids (Protein), Omega-3 and Omega-6 Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs), and both soluble and insoluble dietary fibre.”– www.manitobaharvest.com

You’ll also be gobbling up antioxidants, boron, calcium, vitamin C, iron… (from the raisins). And the almonds are giving you manganese, vitamin E, magnesium, tryptophan, copper, vitamin B2 (riboflavin), phosphorus…

My goodness, that little chocolate-covered raisin hemp ball packs a powerful punch. I could take a beating (or two!) from these yummy treats. Yep, I could!!!

Don’t forget about Chocolate-Covered Katie’s Charity Page View Drive: Operation Chocolate-Covered Kindness

Contest Alert!!!!

Katie (as in, Chocolate-Covered Katie I mentioned above) is having a Your-Choice Giveaway

Leslie (from Leslie Loves Veggies) is also having a contest: KALLARI Chocolate {Giveaway} 3 Winners

Win a mixed case of Chobani Greek yogurt over at The Actor’s Diet Blog.

And… don’t forget about the awesome giveaway I’m hosting. Prizes are valued at OVER $200!!!!

Latest Package for Review!

I have lots of awesome posts planned for these yummy products!!!

Visit www.NuNaturals.com to learn more about their line of sweeteners, extracts, and other health supplements.

Thank you, NuNaturals!!!

Resources:

WHFoods: Raisins

WHFoods: Almonds

If you’re just tuning in, be sure to check out my review of E3Live. And a huge thank you to the folks at www.E3Live.com for sponsoring this review (and upcoming contest)!!!

Note: E3Live sent me samples, but I have not been paid to write this review. The thoughts I share in this post are my honest opinions.

I decided to use E3Live on its own, without mixing things up with BrainOn. I wanted to listen to my body and be absolutely sure how I felt taking each product. So now that you’ve read my thoughts on E3Live, it’s time to learn about BrainOn….

From Klamath Lake

The blue-green algae found in BrainOn comes from a lake in Oregon.

“Upper Klamath Lake is free of adverse bacteria, heavy metals, pesticides, herbicides, insecticides and fungicides. The lake receives an average 300 days of sunlight per year which provides a perfect growing environment for the world’s richest strain of wild AFA blue-green algae, scientifically known as Aphanizomenon flos-aquae. The alkaline lake water provides more than 60 times the nutrients needed for the algae to grow to its full potential each year. Under the right conditions, AFA algae can reproduce every 20 minutes, which provides a plentiful abundance of this organic, high life-force, miracle super food.”– www.E3Live.com

Brain Power

It’s kind of crazy to think you can actually absorb brain power from a serving of blue-green algae each day, isn’t it? But when you think about it, you’ll realize that for decades people have been stuffing their faces with overcooked, sodium and chemical-filled foods that are lacking nutrition. When our body lacks the nutrients it’s crying out for, our brains lack as well.

We have to remember that our brains need to be nourished in order to work like we want them to. Want to remember where you put your keys? Your anniversary? Answers to a test you studied days or weeks for? Do you desire to have the mental clarity and focus you used to have? Tired of feeling foggy and forgetful? Feed your brain!

Learn why you can nourish your brain cells with BrainOn…

From the site:

“E3Live BrainOn® contains the active ingredient in wild-harvested AFA that both promotes mood balance and enhances focus. In fact, no other product competes with BrainON® in terms of promoting joyfulness and brain clarity benefits with no side effects. BrainON® improves health. It’s good for you!

PEA was found to be significantly lower in subjects with Attention Deficit Disorder. People taking BrainON® with Phenalmin report better attention at school and at work. BrainON is for anyone who wishes to balance mood and to increase concentration. One of our most beloved products, E3Live BrainOn® helps you to enjoyably function at a higher level.”

Wow.

Pretty cool, huh?!

Depression

My shipment of E3Live samples actually arrived while I was out of town at my 28-year-old cousin’s funeral. She was like a little sister to me. She lost her life on impact in a car accident. Not only that, she was one of 3 cousins I lost in just a matter of a couple of months. One of the other cousins I wasn’t close to, but one of them I was. I went to school with him and always felt closer to him than other relatives.

Words can’t express what a difficult, trying, stressful, devastating time it was to know that 3 young people (ages 28, 32, and 36) were no longer here on this beautiful earth – or in my family. No more cards, letters, hugs, or smiles.

Those of you who follow this blog regularly know that I’m all about inspiring, motivating, uplifting, and happy thoughts. So my intentions of sharing this with you is not to make you feel depressed, but to prove a point: Both BrainOn and E3Live’s Original Formula helped me tremendously through these hard times I’m telling you about. I know that I was able to find energy, strength, and mental clarity that would have been much harder to drudge up without chugging a shot of E3Live or BrainOn each day.

“I’ve had people who’ve been depressed for years and years, and literally, within a few days after receiving AFA their depression lifts.”

“A wonderful and unique blend for peak performance of body, mind, and spirit that should be included in any detoxification and rejuvenation program. I take it myself daily.” — Dr. Gabriel Cousens,Director of Tree of Life of Life Rejuvenation Center

I did suffer depression after such family tragedy. Yes, Raw Juice Girl was depressed. I couldn’t sleep, fell off the 100% raw food wagon, ate the wrong foods… I was a mess! But I was able to bounce back a lot quicker because of BrainOn.

I also took a short break from freelance assignments but was able to come back full force and write even more than before. I’m convinced it’s  mostly because of this company’s blue-green algae. Convinced.

What’s In BrainOn?

I know you’re wondering what exactly is in BrainOn to make it so fantabulous, right?

Nutritional information (from the site):

Supplement Facts: Protein <1g; Trans Fat 0g; Vitamin A 1890 IU 38% daily value; Vitamin K 34 mcg 43% daily value; Riboflavin 49 mcg 3% daily value; Vitamin B1 27 mcg 117% daily value.

Ingredients: Organic, fresh-frozen AFA (Aphanizomenon flos aquae) with BrainON®, a concentrated organic AFA extract of Phenylethylamine (PEA).

That’s some awesome nutrition for our brains!

Pros

I’d definitely agree with the brain enhancing, mood lifting powers of BrainOn. As I mentioned above, it helped me through some very troublesome times, and as you know, I’ve managed to continue writing with enthusiasm and mental clarity.

From the site:

• All the benefits of E3Live, plus:
• Increase focus and clarity
• Lift and brighten mood with the PEA, the “love molecule”
• Lower stress and enhance well-being
• Function at a higher level
• Shown to increase concentration

I do agree with this list provided on E3Live’s website because I felt the same benefits personally when I took the supplement.

Cons

As I mentioned in my E3Live review, the biggest two cons I can think of from purchasing BrainOn is cost and taste (for some of you). Those of you who follow me know that I can pretty much chug down anything without it phasing me because I’m used to drinking potent herbal tonics, strong herbal teas, and other natural remedies (like organic apple cider vinegar with Mother). But I realize not everyone is accustomed to the taste of green. I find E3Live and BrainOn actually taste mild, so you may not have a problem taking it straight up. If you do, simply add it to smoothies, juices, or other recipes to disguise the taste.

And about the cost… One of my readers mentioned finding a couple of friends to split the supplement and shipping cost with so you can enjoy this wonderful blue-green algae. I think that’s a great idea!

Other than those two issues, I honestly can’t imagine anything bad about enhancing your heath.

Tip: Preparing your daily dose for the upcoming week is quick and simple. I gave step-by-step instructions (with a photo) in my E3Live review.

Verdict/Grade

I know this is a costly supplement for a lot of people, but I can honestly tell you it is a worthwhile investment.  If there’s a way you can readjust your budget and put your health before other expenses, I’d definitely recommend spending your money on this product.

For the results I’ve personally experienced from using BrainOn, I absolutely give it an A+ because I definitely came through (and out of) depressing, trying times much better than I would have on my own, without E3Live and BrainOn.

Have you ever tried BrainOn? Do you wish you could? Well, you can! E3Live has generously offered to sponsor a contest, allowing one reader to win 3 bottles of E3Live and 2 bottles of BrainOn, + a shaker cup—over a $200.oo value!!!

Contest is launching tonight, Sunday, November 8th. Get ready!!

Visit www.E3Live.com to learn more about this super fantabulous blue-green algae.

And thank you again to the kind folks at E3Live for sponsoring this review and the upcoming contest!!

The fun part is a video we recorded while at a recent festival. It’s so fun. Thought it’d make y’all smile today!

And the news? Raw Juice Girl now has a YouTube channel. Subscribe while you’re there, so you won’t miss out on my first ever video. Yep, you’ll get to giggle at my funny Southern accent!

And… um… yeah, that’s ME cackling in the background. *blushes*

Want to keep up with Raw Juice Girl’s adventures + more?  Subscribe to Healing with Juices’ Feed for free updates. You can get free updates to your email as well (sign up here). You’ll also receive inspiration, juice and smoothie recipes, and juice fasting tips and encouragement to help keep you motivated toward your ultimate health–and more personal posts about stuff that’s going on in my life. I’ve also been working on a recipe page where you’ll be able to easily locate recipes for raw juices, smoothies, and now dehydrator creations!

If you’re just tuning in, be sure to enter Healing With (Raw) Juices’ latest contest for TWO containers  of Amazing Grass – one is CHOCOLATE! (Thursday, October 22 is the last day to enter.)  You can also use the code hwj (small J as in JUICE) for a 15% discount on your order, if you can’t wait. And a BIG thank you to Amazing Grass for sponsoring!

I spent this afternoon (from 1-5 p.m.) at a special breast cancer awareness event. I knew I’d be taking a lot of photos, so I immediately told the folks in charge that I’m a blogger and would be taking photos for my blog. I still got some funny looks but for the most part, everyone ignored my snaps.

Blessings

I’m very blessed that breast cancer hasn’t effected the women in my immediate family for generations. My mom is 50 and is healthy. I’ve had my share of health trials, but never this. So I realize I’m very, very blessed, and I do appreciate it. I’m grateful, thankful, and just so very blessed. And my heart aches for the women who battle this awful cancer, and for their families and friends who hurt and suffer with them.

And, while I do allow myself to splurge on non-raw foods more often now, causes like this one for breast cancer, make me realize why I try to eat (and drink) a ton of fresh raw foods–health is precious, life is short.

Ladies Day Out!

I’ve decided to describe the afternoon mostly by the titled photos, following.

When I first walked in, I noticed a long, buffet area with lots of goodies…

Chocolate Covered Strawberries!

Pink Ribbon Cupcakes, Cookies!

Pumpkin Roll, Pink Ribbon Cake!

Pink Ribbon Cake

More Cake!

Signing In, Getting Name Tags

Pink Carnations

Decorated Tables

My Saucer

The Strawberry is Raw??!!!

T-shirt Fundraiser

On the left is my sweet postmaster (she gave her permission for me to take photos and put them here, on my blog). She’s a fantabulous lady and she worked VERY hard to make this special day happen. Kudos to you, Mary–you’re the bestest!!

Tickets for the Auction

Bingo – I didn’t win once!

Items Donated for Fundraising

Doll Valued @ Over $1,000!!!

Basket We Donated

Our basket was filled with this… a $50.00 value

What We Won!

It doesn’t look like we won all that much – but that one basket behind the monkey was valued at $90.00 and is filled with AVON products!!!!!!!!!!

Our Pretty Neighbor, Carol!

See the pink quilt??!!

A Pink Christmas Tree!!!

Mom + a Monkey Doll

(Mom, aka The Herb Lady)

Overall, it was a great day. There was lots of fun, laughs, and smiles, and even those pretty pink flowers, but everyone attending knew this was a serious cause, that we were there for a purpose – to help support breast cancer research, and honor those who have survived breast cancer, or are going through it now.

In Memory

And I have to share: As the day was coming to a close, our postmaster asked for everyone’s attention. “This will be sad…” she began.

What she shared was a story about a very special lady, a lady who had been diagnosed with breast cancer, and was going to be crowned with a tiara and presented with a beautiful bouquet of roses today – she passed away just a few days ago. Her family received them in her place. I can’t remember that lady’s name (I haven’t lived in this area very long), but I’m sure she was someone special. As our postmaster continued talking, recalling that lady’s life, a hush fell over the entire building. “She touched the lives of everyone who crossed her path,” Mary said. It’s evident this was true.

This post is dedicated to that special lady: A lady who splashed sunshine onto a dark world, even when she was enduring great pain and suffering. May she rest in peace, and may her family find warmth, comfort, and even smile through their tears, as they hold on to the memories and wisdom she enriched their lives–and everyone else’s–with.

Want to keep up with Raw Juice Girl’s adventures + more? Subscribe to Healing With Juices’ Feed for free updates. You can get free updates to your email as well (sign up here ). You’ll also receive inspiration, juice and smoothie recipes, and juice fasting tips and encouragement to help keep you motivated toward your ultimate health–and more personal posts about stuff that’s going on in my life. I’ve also been working on a recipe page where you’ll be able to easily locate recipes for raw juices, smoothies, and now dehydrator creations!

If you’re just tuning in, be sure to enter Healing With (Raw) Juices’ latest contest for TWO containers  of Amazing Grass – one is CHOCOLATE! (Thursday, October 22 is the last day to enter.)   And a BIG thank you to Amazing Grass for sponsoring!  You can also use the code hwj for a 15% discount on your order, if you can’t wait.And don’t forget to check out my chocolate ice cubes — they’re super easy to make, and so fun!

Hi, y’all! Sorry I’ve been MIA again lately–Raw Juice Girl has been burning up the writerly highway! My goodness, I’ve written some STUFF! I also have lots of stuff to review and share my thoughts on, but today I have LOTS of questions for you, so get ready!

Curiosity is my middle name!

Do you have a blog? Do you intend for it to provide income? Do you handcraft items? Do you want to write, blog, design for money? Okay, last question: Do you have business cards? No? Why not?

New Business Cards for HWJ

Address Labels to Match!

VistaPrint

I decided to go with VistaPrint. I ended up with 1,000 cards and 140 matching address labels (for only seventy-nine cents!!!) and ended up with a grand total of $26.10. Can’t beat that!  Can you?

And check out the awesome sale they’re having: Get 250 Free Business Cards + FREE Stamp with your order!

Opinions?

What are your thoughts? Do you like the design I ended up with? Have you ever used VistaPrint? Would you, knowing you can get quality service for quality products–at a price you can afford? I want to hear all about it!

Contest Alert!

Get yourself over to Jocelyn Eats Fresh and enter her (eco-friendly!!!)  Book, Bar, and Natural Shampoo/Conditioner Giveaway!!

Want to keep up with Raw Juice Girl’s adventures + more?  Subscribe to Healing with Juices’ Feed for free updates. You can get free updates to your email as well (sign up here). You’ll also receive inspiration, juice and smoothie recipes, and juice fasting tips and encouragement to help keep you motivated toward your ultimate health–and more personal posts about stuff that’s going on in my life. I’ve also been working on a recipe page where you’ll be able to easily locate recipes for raw juices, smoothies, and now dehydrator creations!

If you’re just tuning in, be sure to enter Healing With (Raw) Juices’ latest contest for TWO containers  of Amazing Grass – one is CHOCOLATE! (Thursday, October 22 is the last day to enter.)   And a BIG thank you to Amazing Grass for sponsoring! And don’t forget to check out my chocolate ice cubes — they’re super easy to make, and so fun!

A HUGE thank you to LARABAR for sending me samples!!!

You might remember I recently reviewed the Cashew Cookie LARABAR. As I mentioned in that review, LARABAR also sent me a few other flavors – Apple Pie was one of them.

It’s American. It’s a staple from most of our childhoods. The taste and aroma brings back memories of mom’s or grandma’s apple pie pulled fresh from the warm oven and cooling, as crisp leaves danced around the yard in the cool Autumn breeze – yay for memories of apple pie!

And here’s that Apple Pie bar…

Apple Pie Larabar

Looks Good!

Tastes Fantabulous!

Look at those Nuts!

Sooooooooooo Moist!

Six Ingredients??!!

Dates

Walnuts

Unsweetened Apples

Almonds

Raisins

Cinnamon

It’s Healthy!

Nutritional Info (from the site):

It’s RAW!

From the site:

LÄRABAR is a delicious blend of unsweetened fruits, nuts and spices – energy in its purest form. Made from 100% whole food, each flavor contains no more than eight ingredients. Pure and simple, just as nature intended.

GLUTEN FREE * DAIRY FREE * SOY FREE * NON-GMO * VEGAN * KOSHER

LÄRABAR REAL.
Sweet with no added sweeteners. Sustaining with no added fillers, supplements or flavorings. LÄRABAR is what your body needs – real, whole food loaded with nature’s own minerals and vitamins.

LÄRABAR RIGHT.
All of the vitamins, minerals, fiber, protein, good carbohydrates and healthy fats are derived exclusively from the whole, raw food used to make LÄRABAR.

LÄRABAR RAW.
Uncooked and Unprocessed. The essential enzymes, which are necessary for the digestion and utilization of nutrients, remain completely intact in their most natural, powerful state. A diet abundant in raw, unprocessed foods is important for health and longevity.

For LÄRABAR, we source the best possible ingredients. Every time. Every bar. Enjoy

Want apple pie for breakfast? Go ahead and have it – LARABAR style!

Verdict/Grade?

I totally wanted to run around like a school child when my taste buds met this bar. Seriously. It’s moist, delicious, sweet, and there are bursts of cinnamon and yummy pieces of apple and do you see those NUTS in the photos? The ingredients are healthy, there’s only a few of ‘em, and this bar is just totally AMAZING! It is like apple pie – fantabulous!

I have to give this bar two thumbs up and an A+ because it’s healthy, and it tastes out-of-this-world delicious!

Again, thank you to LARABAR for sending delicious samples! Be sure to visit www.larabar.com to learn more about this yummy company!

Bring Eli Home for the Holidays!

In my previous post, I shared information about a boy, Eli, who is on his third heart. He wants to be able to spend the holidays at home – instead of in the hospital. Let’s help him do that!

More Contests

Check out my friend, Averie’s, latest contest for RAW, Vegan Blondie Macaroons!!

Mysti, at Dining Family,  is on a mission to help Eli be at home, with his family, for the holidays – and be healthier, too! She’s hosting an awesome contest, and there are SIX ways to enter! Get over there, quick!

Lots more reviews and contests are coming right up, so you’ll definitely want to stick around for upcoming, juicy details!

Want to keep up with Raw Juice Girl’s adventures + more?  Subscribe to Healing with Juices’ Feed for free updates. You can get free updates to your email as well (sign up here). You’ll also receive inspiration, juice and smoothie recipes, and juice fasting tips and encouragement to help keep you motivated toward your ultimate health–and more personal posts about stuff that’s going on in my life. I’ve also been working on a recipe page where you’ll be able to easily locate recipes for raw juices, smoothies, and now dehydrator creations!

If you’re just tuning in, be sure to enter Healing With (Raw) Juices’ latest contest for an 8 ounce bag of Raw Chia Seeds. (Wednesday, October 7 is the last day to enter.)  Thanks to NavitasNaturals.com for sponsoring! And don’t forget to check out my chocolate ice cubes — they’re super easy to make, and so fun!

Wellsphere Wisdom

A while back, I shared with you that Wellsphere.com is one of my all-time favorite health-related websites. I love its purpose, the community, and the endless categories and articles. Wellsphere is a site that’s truly and passionately dedicated to helping us learn, grow, and live the best, healthiest, most positive lives we possibly can. In fact, I’m a member of the Wellsphere community – visit my profile and add me as a friend!

Top Health Blogger

As you can see in the left sidebar, I’m a Top Health Blogger in Wellsphere’s Raw Food Community. When I was given the Top Health Blogger award, I felt so honored and blessed! Health is something I’m so very passionate about. I can’t believe I’ve come this far: I’m a survivor of domestic violence. I’ve lost over 100 pounds. And I have found so much healing – emotionally, physically, spiritually – through raw foods, juices, smoothies, juice fasting, and now yoga.

It’s  an amazing feeling to have the opportunity to inspire you, my loyal readers, to be healthier, better, happier people. Thank you so much for allowing me to share my journey – and my passion – with you!

Health 2.0 San Francisco

I’ve recently received a series of exciting e-mails from the awesome team at Wellsphere sharing information about the Health 2.0 HealthBlogger Conference in San Francisco. Of course, I couldn’t attend but it sure is fun to follow along! Go to www.health2con.com or tune in for real-time information at www.justin.tv./health2con. You can also stay current with all things “Health 2.0 conference” via the Twitter stream: #health2con.

Have you ever attended a health conference? Did you enjoy it? Would you go back? Have you ever visited Wellsphere.com? And most importantly, how do you feel about our country’s current health issues?

If you’re just tuning in, be sure to check out Healing With (Raw) Juices’ latest contest for an 8 ounce bag of Raw Chia Seeds–thanks to NavitasNaturals.com for sponsoring!

Want to keep up with Raw Juice Girl’s adventures + more?  Subscribe to Healing with Juices’ Feed for free updates. You can get free updates to your email as well (sign up here). You’ll also receive inspiration, juice and smoothie recipes, and juice fasting tips and encouragement to help keep you motivated toward your ultimate health–and more personal posts about stuff that’s going on in my life. I’ve also been working on a recipe page where you’ll be able to easily locate recipes for raw juices, smoothies, and now dehydrator creations!

If you’re just tuning in, be sure to enter Healing With (Raw) Juices’ latest contest for an 8 ounce bag of Raw Chia Seeds–thanks to NavitasNaturals.com for sponsoring–and don’t forget to check out my chocolate ice cubes!

Blended Blessings

I’ve mentioned a few times that my blender keeled over on me. It was sad. I was sad. But a new blender wasn’t in the budget so I’ve been a pouting, smoothie-less Raw Juice Girl for a while now. Pathetic, I know. LOL

I was on a real roll having awesome smoothies for breakfast, but I made due with substitutes:

• Green (Hemp) Overnight Breakfast Cookie
• Green Steel-Cut Oats
• Chocolate Hemp Shake
• Cashew Cookie LARABAR

Delicious, yes. A green smoothie? No!

So, imagine my out-of-this-world delight when my aunt donated her blender she never uses! Oh, believe me, I tried (and tried) to promote the health benefits of smoothies and convince her that she needed to keep her blender–she insisted on giving it to me anyway, reassuring me she never uses it and didn’t plan on it anytime soon….

Enter: the Osterizer 10-speed Blender

I took pictures of my blending adventures this morning, so you could enjoy the experience with me!

And, my goodness, this thing is a LOT more powerful than I thought it would be. It gobbled up the ice cubes like there was no tomorrow! Seriously! Eeeek! Bring on the smoothies, people!

Osterizer Blender

10 Speeds!

Sassafras Root Tea

Manitoba Harvest Hemp Pro 70

Chocolate Ice Cubes!

Green Hemp Smoothie

Wanna Taste?

YUM-O!!!!

Happy Hemp Smoothie

• 4 tablespoons of Hemp Pro 70 (from www.manitobaharvest.com)
• 1 cup Sassafras root tea (you could totally use Hemp Bliss milk instead)
• 1 banana
• 2 chocolate ice cubes
• 2 water ice cubes
• Freshly ground flax seeds (a little less than a tablespoon)
• A drizzle of agave syrup

And that’s what I had for breakfast this morning. Ah, a green smoothie. I can’t tell you how happy my mouth–and my tummy–were as I chugged that gorgeous, bubbly, hemp-ish, thick smoothie down. YUM!!!

I did forget one thing, though: spinach! Yikes!!! Sheesh, guess I’ll have to make another one.

If you’re just tuning in, be sure to check out Healing With (Raw) Juices’ latest contest for an 8 ounce bag of Raw Chia Seeds–thanks to NavitasNaturals.com for sponsoring!

Want to keep up with Raw Juice Girl’s adventures + more?  Subscribe to Healing with Juices’ Feed for free updates. You can get free updates to your email as well (sign up here). You’ll also receive inspiration, juice and smoothie recipes, and juice fasting tips and encouragement to help keep you motivated toward your ultimate health–and more personal posts about stuff that’s going on in my life. I’ll also be making a recipe page where you’ll be able to easily locate recipes for raw juices, smoothies, and now dehydrator creations!

If you’re just tuning in, be sure to check out Healing With (Raw) Juices’ latest contest for an 8 ounce bag of Raw Chia Seeds–thanks to NavitasNaturals.com for sponsoring!

Awesome Awards

It’s always nice to know readers value the time and effort you put into your blog. And that’s why I’m honored to share the following awards that have been given to me: 

1. The Proximade Award, from George, at Tumblemoose
2. The Kreativ Blogger Award, from Lori, at Green Gigs
3. The One Lovely Blog Award, from Jocelyn, of Jocelyn Eats Fresh
   

Award #1

Let’s start with The Proximade Award from George. I’m honored that George considered me for this award. Here’s a little of what he had to say regarding those of us he chose: “I am grateful for an opportunity to award this to a few bloggers who are very special people.”

Thanks, George–you’re pretty special yourself!

If you’ve never visited him, do check out the Tumblemoose blog. Let me tell you, folks, I have yet to be bored (even a smidgen!) when visiting this pal of mine. His posts are fresh, inspiring, motivating, SO funny, and written with warmth, heart, soul, and passion. If you want to improve your writing/blogging–or even just be entertained while learning some awesome stuff–check George out!!! (In fact, I would have passed on the following 2 awards on to George, but I didn’t think he’d be crazy about the pinkness or frilliness of them.)

Award #2

The Kreativ Blogger Award was given to me by Lori, from Green Gigs. I was truly touched by her heartfelt–and very sweet–words about me:

“Michele Tune of Healing with (Raw) Juices is one of the most sincere, interesting, inspiring bloggers I have come across. Raw Juices inspires me to eat healthier and live better – thanks Michele!’

Award #3

“Michele has always been so supportive of me and my blog. I LOVE reading her blog because it is always so informative on the raw food/juicing lifestyle. Even though I’m no where near high raw… I know I can count on this blog to give me the advice I need! Love all the different juicing concoctions! Michele has also lost A LOT of weight…she really is dedicated!”

Note: These are actually the rules that came with The Kreativ Blogger Award, but I’m going to just apply the one set of rules to all 3 of these awards and whoever wants to participate, can. You can also break the rules if you want. I’m not the Awards police.

1. A Sparkle A Day – Cindy is a wife, mother, and beautiful, inspiring person. She fills her blog up with love, healthy meals and snacks, reality, compassion, fun–and let’s not forget those sparkles!
2. Mama’s Weeds – Alison is also a wife and mother, and this one is FULL of kooky humor–I love that about her! She’s also great with the creative recipes and shares lotsa cool parts of her interesting life!
3. Love Veggies, Yoga, Running + Chocolate – Averie is a one-of-a-kind gal. I love her rawkin’ posts. She’s another creative recipe-maker and a wife and momma as well. Lots of healthy vibes flowin’ here!
4. Jocelyn Eats Fresh – Jocelyn is on a journey toward her ultimate health and is just a bright splash of sunshine in the blog world: fun foods, fun times, difficult topics, positive attitude!
5. Have Faith – Jess is a freshman in high school and forever amazes me with her passion for healthy eats, exercise, and being the best she can be. So inspiring from a teen!
6. An Apple a Day – June is passionate about yoga and eating healthy–and she writes lots of awesome reviews and hosts fantabulous contests!
7. Life’s Approbations – Mysti shared a guest post recently (Dehydrator Recipes: Healthy Kids’ Snacks). Her blog is an open book of her life as a wife, mother, writer–and so much more. She shares frugal, healthier versions of recipes and her posts are reminiscent of Chicken Soup for the Soul stories!

Note: Don’t feel obligated to participate in passing the award on–or even sharing that you received it on your blog. I know this kind of thing isn’t everyone’s “cup of tea” so all is well in the blogosphere.

Don’t forget about Healing With (Raw) Juices’ latest contest for an 8 ounce bag of Raw Chia Seeds–thanks to NavitasNaturals.com for sponsoring!

And Amanda, at the Run to The Finish blog is hosting a giveaway for vegan and gluten-free Nutrition/Energy Bars Giveaway! There’s some awesome flavors happening over there, so get going and enter!!

Want to keep up with Raw Juice Girl’s adventures + more?  Subscribe to Healing with Juices’ Feed for free updates. You can get free updates to your email as well (sign up here). You’ll also receive inspiration, juice and smoothie recipes, and juice fasting tips and encouragement to help keep you motivated toward your ultimate health–and more personal posts about stuff that’s going on in my life. I’ll also be making a recipe page where you’ll be able to easily locate recipes for raw juices, smoothies, and now dehydrator creations!

Soda. This is something I gave up years ago not long after I began my weight loss journey. I had over 100 pounds to lose and I finally realized that artificial drinks (like soda) that were loaded with chemical sweeteners or tons of sugar were not helping me with my efforts at all. And I’ve avoided it ever since. That’s why I was SO excited when my RAWsome friend, Averie, posted her ZEVIA contest over on her blog, Love Veggies, Yoga, Running + Chocolate. And I was even more excited when I was one of the SIX winner! Eeeek!

NOTE: Averie’s ZEVIA contest is CLOSED. Sorry!

I’ve only tried one flavor so far: Natural Cola.

Zevia 100% Natural Soda

With Ice

Verdict/Grade?

I was pleasantly surprised when I took a sip of ZEVIA® Natural Cola and found that it truly tastes like Diet Cola! Amazing. Just so very neat. Seriously. You don’t always find healthier versions that taste like the “real” thing and so it’s super cool that ZEVIA has nailed this one! Thank you, ZEVIA, for creating these fantabulous sodas!

I feel confident giving ZEVIA® Natural Cola an A+!

Oh, but you want to know what’s in this natural soda, right? Check it out for yourself…

From the Site:

ZEVIA™ Natural Cola

ZEVIA™ Natural Cola stevia soda is the crowd-pleaser among the ZEVIA™ Natural Diet Soda varieties. Its classic cola flavor is rarely found in so-called “natural” soda brands because a traditional cola taste is difficult to perfect without artificial ingredients. ZEVIA™ Natural Cola with stevia is even more appetizing when you know that all the ingredients are absolutely pure and natural. The Zevia team spent extensive time (and drank a lot of colas and “test” product) to make sure this ZEVIA™ product would satisfy a cola drinker. Learn about the pure, all natural ingredients in ZEVIA™ Natural Cola.

Ingredients Include:

• - Stevia
• - Erythritol
• - Natural Caramel
• - Citric Acid
• - Kola Nut Extract
• - Natural Tartaric Acid
• - Natural Caffeine
• - Natural Furmaric Acid

I’ll also be reviewing the other flavors (ZEVIA® Natural Root Beer, ZEVIA® Natural Twist (lemon-lime), ZEVIA® Natural Orange, ZEVIA® Natural Black Cherry, and ZEVIA® Natural Ginger Ale) so be sure to subscribe so you won’t miss my thoughts on those!

Check out this contest for a coupon for Kombucha Synergy Tea at The Confessions of a SAHM blog. You have to have a blog to enter but all you have to do is mention the contest and link back to the contest post. This is my entry!

Want to keep up with Raw Juice Girl’s adventures + more?  Subscribe to Healing with Juices’ Feed for free updates. You can get free updates to your email as well (sign up here). You’ll also receive inspiration, juice and smoothie recipes, and juice fasting tips and encouragement to help keep you motivated toward your ultimate health–and more personal posts about stuff that’s going on in my life. I’ll also be making a recipe page where you’ll be able to easily locate recipes for raw juices, smoothies, and now dehydrator creations!

Hey, y’all!

Sorry I’ve been MIA so much lately….

Those of you who follow me regularly know I had a 3-day festival this past weekend so I was super-duper busy! And for those of you who are just tuning in, I usually spend my weekends helping my mom run her booth selling herbs for her herb business.

So, anyway, I got TWO deliveries this weekend I want to tell you about!

First up: A 6-pack of Zevia soda and a cool T-shirt I won in Averie’s Zevia contest over at Love Veggies, Yoga, Running, + Chocolate. I’m SO excited to try ‘em all (I got one of each flavor they carry) and I’m totally excited to wear my green Zevia T-shirt! (Pictures are coming, promise!)

Second package: LARABAR samples! Eeeek! They sent me a few different varieties–cashew cookie, peanut butter & jelly, apple pie, and fruit and nut. Today I’m sharing the review of the cashew cookie ’cause I gobbled it up yesterday morning for breakfast. Yes, breakfast!

LARABAR

Cashew Cookie

TWO Ingredients!

YUM!

Verdict/Grade?

Let me tell you, folks, this Cashew Cookie LARABAR is DIVINE! Oh my goodness, is it EVER totally delicious and yummy and tasty and soooooooooo good for you, too! I cannot–simply CANNOT–believe that there are only TWO ingredients in this chewy, crunchy, fantabulous snack bar. I seriously could eat one every. single. day! This one definitely gets an A+ from Raw Juice Girl!

Check out the nutritional info–it’s amazing!

From the site:

“Two ingredients, one incredible flavor! The unprocessed, creamy cashews are rich in iron, zinc and B Vitamins. The chewy dates have more potassium than bananas. Together they form a bar rich in fiber with 2 grams of heart-healthy Omega-6 fatty acids and 15 essential vitamins and minerals. So much sustaining nourishment in such a simple recipe.”

How is that for a healthy snack? Thank you, LARABAR for creating this tasty treat for us!

Y’all be sure to check out www.larabar.com to see all the different flavors and combos they offer.

So, how was your weekend? Have you ever tried LARABAR? What’s your favorite flavor? Do you wish they’d create a new one? If so, spill the beans and leave some juicy comments!

Now that the festivals are slowing down and I’ll have a little extra time, I have a LOT of reviews and contests coming up. I’ll also be posting my experiments with my new Excalibur Dehydrator. So, if you haven’t already, be sure to subscribe!

Want to keep up with Raw Juice Girl’s adventures + more?  Subscribe to Healing with Juices’ Feed for free updates. You can get free updates to your email as well (sign up here). You’ll also receive inspiration, juice and smoothie recipes, and juice fasting tips and encouragement to help keep you motivated toward your ultimate health–and more personal posts about stuff that’s going on in my life. I’ll also be making a recipe page where you’ll be able to easily locate recipes for raw juices, smoothies, and now dehydrator creations!

You may have noticed things have been pretty quiet here the past couple of weeks. I am behind on reviews and contests but I assure you, I have good reason: I’ve been very, very busy helping my mom with back-to-back festivals. Besides the actual setting up and selling (which makes for very long days), I’ve printed and fold hundreds of brochures, and also business cards, labels, and other stuff. Phew!

I set this post to publish so that by the time you read it, I’ll have already put in several hours at our latest 3-day festival.

And I thought I’d give you a peek into the last Bakersville festival we set up at.

Mom took this while I wasn’t paying attention!

Our Soap Lady, Judy Riggs!

With the (framed) article I wrote about her!

Oops! Caught stealing tea samples! LOL

Sandwich with a Story

Those of you who have been following me for a while know that I try to avoid bread like its the plague. You also know that I lost over 100 pounds basically adhering to a low carb lifestyle. So, it’s only when I’m in desperate situations (or when I feel I deserve a splurge) that I’ll dig into the carbs without hesitating.

I ended up starving before the day was over at this past Bakersville festival (first week of September). I had taken raw veggies, herbal tea, and water but I needed more. My only (healthiest) option: a veggie burger on a bun. So, I eventually decided to just go for it. By the time I got to order mine (actually, my mom went to get me one while I watched our booth), they were sold out of the veggie burgers. So, she brought me back a bun with 2 varieties of heirloom tomatoes, some onions, lettuce, and pickles on a bun. I’m serious. NO. VEGGIE. BURGER. And I was STARVING! LOL – So, I dug in and was chowing down and thought “hey, I should take a photo of this sandwich and tell this story on my blog” so I did just that.

Later on, we were taking our tent down and packing our stuff into the trailer when one of the ladies who had a booth nearby came over and says to me: “Did I see you take a picture of your sandwich earlier?”

I told her yes.

And she asked (with the funniest expression on her face) “Why?”

I lost it. I’m serious. I was hee-hawing I was laughing so hard! The look on her face cracked me up. She couldn’t understand why on earth I’d take a picture of a sandwich. LOL – I tried to explain to her that I have a health blog and thought it’d be funny to share with my readers that I got a veggie burger-less “veggie burger” on a bun when I rarely ever even eat bread and live a high raw lifestyle. It was just so funny. I wish I had a photo of the look on her face. Of course, not all people have even heard of a blog. I take it she hadn’t. The more I talked, the crazier she thought I was! LOL

Ah well, at least it provided you all some fun entertainment. I splurge on a veggie burger and don’t get my veggie patty. *sigh* Raw Juice Girl can’t win for losin’!

I have LOTS of reviews and contests coming up, so you’ll definitely want to subscribe if you haven’t already!

Want to keep up with Raw Juice Girl’s adventures + more?  Subscribe to Healing with Juices’ Feed for free updates. You can get free updates to your email as well (sign up here). You’ll also receive inspiration, juice and smoothie recipes, and juice fasting tips and encouragement to help keep you motivated toward your ultimate health–and more personal posts about stuff that’s going on in my life. I’ll also be making a recipe page where you’ll be able to easily locate recipes for raw juices, smoothies, and now dehydrator creations!

Pancake, that is!

Yep, a real, genuine, prepared-in-a-skillet-with-sizzling-olive oil-plus-real-butter pancake!

I woke up this morning with a crazy craving for pancakes. I haven’t eaten pancakes in forever. I try to stay away from things like that not only because of the carbs but because it’s like bread and my body doesn’t do well eating much bread–even if it’s a healthier version. But today I thought “why not splurge and live a little?” So, today I made myself a pancake!

There was a box of fiber pancake mix in the pantry. It called for 1 cup of the dry mix to 2/3 cup water. That’s it. Here’s how I made it even healthier: I filled up the measuring cup a little more than the 3/4 mark and then poured in ground flax until it reached the 1 cup mark. Then I mixed that together really well so the flax would be throughout the pancake mix. Then I added the water.

I added a little olive oil and a dab of real butter to the heated skillet and once it was sizzling, I poured in my pancake batter. This made 4 good-sized pancakes (not really huge). I only ate one, though! The rest went to family.

The Toppings

I gently placed that beautiful, fluffy pancake into a plate and decided on the toppings: a dab of real butter, a blob of almond butter, and drizzles of agave syrup. Oh my, so DELISH!

See for yourself…

YUM!

The Healthy Part

Flax seeds are small but are bursting at the seams with goodies our bodies are crying out for. They’re anti-inflammatory, help us have strong bones, and are good little soldiers for fighting cancer, diabetes, and other diseases. They also promote a healthy bowel and help reduce hot flashes in menopausal women by a whopping 60%!!! Does blood pressure problems run in your family or do you already have trouble with yours? Add flax seeds to your diet to help prevent and/or control your blood pressure levels. The omega-3 fatty acid in flax seeds helps dry eyes, too!

Besides the omega-3 fatty acids, flax seeds contain:

• manganese
• fiber
• magnesium
• folate
• copper
• phosphorus
• vitamin B6

Awesome!

So, yeah, my pancake may not have been raw but I’m not 100% raw right now. I’m trying to live just a little without being too harsh on myself. I think this breakfast was A-OK!

UPDATED TO ADD:

Some of you were interested in carb count and other nutritional information. I double checked and what I used was the Fiber One brand. The more I read the box, the more I realized it’s more processed than what I like; however, if I had read it beforehand, I wouldn’t have enjoyed my Sunday pancake so I guess I’ll forgive and move on.

Here’s the nutritional information you all asked for. (I about passed out when I noticed the sodium. Ack!)

And for those of you who try to keep it low carb, you probably won’t be happy with the 36 grams of carbs this has. There are 5 grams of fiber so that cancels out some of the carbs and leaves you with 31–still quite a large number for a low-carber. But there are other flours and probably mixes, too. Since I stay away from foods like this, I’m really not up-to-date with all the latest and/or healthiest versions of processed mixes out there. Anyone want to chime in?

If you’re just tuning in, be sure to catch up and check out the first guest post to ever appear on Healing With (Raw) Juices—Dehydrator Recipes: Healthy Kids’ Snacks, written by Mysti Guymon-Reutlinger. Thank you for sharing your creations with us, Mysti!

I have LOTS of reviews and contests coming up, so you’ll definitely want to subscribe if you haven’t already!

Want to keep up with Raw Juice Girl’s adventures + more?  Subscribe to Healing with Juices’ Feed for free updates. You can get free updates to your email as well (sign up here). You’ll also receive inspiration, juice and smoothie recipes, and juice fasting tips and encouragement to help keep you motivated toward your ultimate health–and more personal posts about stuff that’s going on in my life. I’ll also be making a recipe page where you’ll be able to easily locate recipes for raw juices, smoothies, and now dehydrator creations!

Resource:

WH Foods – Flax Seeds

I’ve received some e-mails from some of you asking if I’m okay. So, I thought I should let you know that I am. I’ve just been super busy with festivals and haven’t had the time–or energy–to post as frequently as I was. I do have a ton of reviews and contests coming up and I am working on several different posts right now. I also have some fun stuff coming up (just snippets from my life).

I hope you’ll forgive my absence. I think you’ll feel it’s worth the wait with all the fun posts and exciting contests I have coming up!

Want to keep up with Raw Juice Girl’s adventures + more?  Subscribe to Healing with Juices’ Feed for free updates. You can get free updates to your email as well (sign up here). You’ll also receive inspiration, juice and smoothie recipes, and juice fasting tips and encouragement to help keep you motivated toward your ultimate health–and more personal posts about stuff that’s going on in my life. I’ll also be making a recipe page where you’ll be able to easily locate recipes for raw juices, smoothies, and now dehydrator creations!

Wow, do I EVER love the FedEx man–well, him and the fantabulous folks over at www.excaliburdehydrator.com!!

SO Blessed

I can’t even begin to express my excitement. I’m SO very honored–and blessed–to have the amazing opportunity to review this, the KING of dehydrators: the 9-Tray Large Excalibur #3900!!!

SO Many Ideas

Raw (and dehydrated) food has fascinated me for years. Even before that, my Mom was always interested in dehydrating. Although I’ve been high-raw (and even 100% raw at various times) for the past few  years, I’ve often wondered where my raw path would lead if I had a ginormous, fancy dehydrator like I’d read about.

Raw crackers, cookies, cakes, pizzas… All this (and more!) is floating around the Web. From blogs to websites to books and magazines, raw, dehydrated snacks and meals, the possibilities are to infinity.

I can’t wait to share my experience with this sweet, dehydrating baby with you all! I’m excited to dry herbs, veggies, fruit, and I know I want to make raw crackers soon. I have so many ideas racing through my mind right now I can’t even focus!

Tomorrow I’ll be gone all day to set up at a pioneer festival with my mom (same festival as this one), so I’m afraid my dehydrating adventures will have to wait until next week sometime.

I’ll shut up now and let you check out these photos….

What a Ginormous Box!

Needle-Nose Pliers for Opening!

Ooooooooooooooooooohhhhhhhh!!!!

A Guide for Dehydrating!

Check it Out!

Drying Guide + Temperature Control

Look at that Tray!

NINE TRAYS!!! Eeeeeek!!

With the Sparkly New Door On

Wow. I’m just SO excited!!! You’ll be seeing a LOT of the Excalibur around here!

Do you have a dehydrator? What do you love making most? Have you been shopping around for a dehydrator? Have you considered the Excalibur? Chime in and share your thoughts!

Want to keep up with Raw Juice Girl’s adventures + more?  Subscribe to Healing with Juices’ Feed for free updates. You can get free updates to your email as well (sign up here). You’ll also receive inspiration, juice and smoothie recipes, and juice fasting tips and encouragement to help keep you motivated toward your ultimate health–and more personal posts about stuff that’s going on in my life.

The day before yesterday, I actually got out of the house and was gone pretty much all day–out and about getting things ready for upcoming festivals I’ll be helping my Mom set up at (for her herb business).

We left not long after I woke up and got dressed, so I just grabbed a spoon of cashew butter right from the jar and ate it off the spoon while I grabbed a banana, threw it in my purse, and filled up my water bottle.

I ate the banana once we got on the road (no pics, sorry) <– I was hungry and gobbled it up!

After registration was taken care of (and maybe a little shopping for a new bonnet for me ) we stopped at a health food store. I LOVE health food stores–they are cruel to my wallet, though!

I found all kinds of STUFF I would have loved to have bought: ProBars (which I’ve never tried), Garden of Life bars (never tried those either), and all sorts of other goodies. There was raw foods, drinks, and other health foods, herbs, teas, books… Health Heaven, huh?

Finally, I decided on a Synergy (organic, raw) Kombucha Tea. I was craving a cold drink and thought it’d be nice to try out this “Kombucha” that seems to be all over the Web, on blogs and in articles. There were a few different flavors and while I decided on the Passionberry Bliss, I’m now thinking I should have tried the one with Sassafras root in it. Hmmmm….. Guess I need to go back!

Organic, Raw Passionberry Bliss Kombucha

I was anxious to taste this stuff after all the hype about it, so I took a big gulp–Oops! I never expected it to be SO strong. Let me tell you, I couldn’t believe it. I’m not saying it’s bad. I just wasn’t prepared for how it would taste. In a way, it reminds me of soda. I was thinking “tea”, ya know? I’m used to drinking herbal tea every day so I guess I just assumed it would taste like tea–I was wrong. I closed the lid and wasn’t sure if I’d drink it or not. I actually ended up getting an unsweetened tea from another place and drank that. So when I got home, I put my Kombucha in the fridge and left it there ’till yesterday. I thought I’d give it another try–I drank it all up! It’s still weird to me, but I think it’s growing on me. I’ve decided it tastes sort of like a berry flavored soda. Strange. But good. And I love the benefits!

Synergy Passionberry Bliss is 95% G.T.’s Kombucha–the rest is blackberry juice +  passionfruit juice. And at the end of the ingredient list, they say: “and 100% pure love!” How awesome is that??!!

This jazzy drink also has probiotics, antioxidants, and Glucuronic, Lactic, and Acetic acids.

From the bottle:

Kombucha supports: digestion, metabolism, immune system, appetite control, weight control, liver function, body alkalinity, anti-aging, cell integrity, healthy skin and hair.

Now, while I’m not that familiar with Kombucha and its benefits yet, I will say I totally believe it’s possible. Why? Fermented foods are good for us (in my opinion) and it seems to me that Kombucha is a lot like apple cider vinegar with Mother in the sense that it contains living enzymes and nutrients, and it’s fermented. I’ve seen firstand the benefits of the vinegar with Mother, so I’m excited to experiment more with Kombucha and see what comes of it. Next time I try something new, though, I won’t take such a ginormous gulp! LOL What was I thinking???

GASP!

How much are these drinks where you are, if you’ve been buying them??

Snack Time

As I was getting ready to pay for my Synergy tea up there, I spotted these goodies on the way out. From what I could see on the ingredients list, they’re RAW! They’re like snack bars, cut in squares. The chocolate one is actually carob, with nuts, pumpkin seeds, SPIRULINA, and I think a little fruit. The other one is almond with fruit and I think both of these had sunflower seeds in ‘em, too.

Carob Creation

Almond Awesomeness

Verdict?

Of course, I loved the carob one best. It was crunchy, chewy, and good. I’m still amazed that I don’t taste the spirulina! How’d they do that??? I’m not sure if I’d buy the almond one again–it seemed like it was lacking something, but I can’t figure out what. It just seemed like it needed jazzing up. Then again, my tastebuds may have been “off” after being freaked out by a big gulp of Kombucha I wasn’t used to!

I’m gearing up for more festivals so I’m going to take these along as a snack.

Want to learn more about these “Chunks of Energy” snacks? Visit the “Chunks of Energy website (www.chunksofenergy.com) or their blog.

Have you tried anything new lately? Have any plans for the weekend? Jump right in to the comment section and share!

Coming Up

You’ll be happy to know I have reviews and contests lined up, starting next week!

Want to keep up with Raw Juice Girl’s adventures + more?  Subscribe to Healing with Juices’ Feed for free updates. You can get free updates to your email as well (sign up here). You’ll also receive inspiration, juice and smoothie recipes, and juice fasting tips and encouragement to help keep you motivated toward your ultimate health–and more personal posts about stuff that’s going on in my life.

This is Part 2 of my 3-Part Series on the 9th Annual Spring Planting Festival events + the amazing opportunity I had to meet TWO Editors…

Wow. What can I say? As I look at this photo of me standing next to an Editor-In-Chief, I think to myself: Did this really happen? Is that really me? My life? My experience? My autographed copy of The Herb Companion–signed by none other than K.C. Compton? Yes, it’s real. Yes, it’s my life. Yes, I had the once-in-a-lifetime experience of meeting an Editor-In-Chief. (K.C. is the Editor-In-Chief of a “department for Ogden Publications, which includes The Herb Companion, GRIT and Capper’s”).  Like I said: Wow.

K.C. Compton + Me!

So, how did this come about? Well, I’ve gone to the Bakersville Festivals for the past several years. I’ve missed some here and there but for the most part, I’ve attended a LOT of them for a long time. But you’d better believe when I found out K.C. Compton was not only going to be singing at this particular festival, but speaking as well, I was determined that regardless of the weather or what was going on in my life, that I’d be there–and I was!

That morning was pretty chaotic, though, so by the time I got there, K.C.’s speech was just ending. I took a deep breath, mustered up all the courage I could, and stopped her on her way out (she was headed toward another building to prepare to sing with her group). She was so kind and patient to allow me time to have a photo made with her. Thank you, K.C.! (And a big thanks to my Mom, the photographer!).

More Than an Editor

K.C. Compton is not only an Editor-In-Chief, she’s K.C. of: K.C. & The Checkered Past Band! My favorite song was Bigfoot, about the huge footprint most everyone is leaving in our world. It’s such a fun, eco-friendly song, with such a strong, important message. Great job performing, K.C.!

Look at Her Sing!

Autograph! Autograph!

You can imagine all the exciting thoughts that were racing through my mind. For a writer, meeting an Editor-In-Chief has to be just about the most fantabulous thing ever–other than an author landing a book deal. I know it’s a small world and all things are possible, but in reality, how many times do you think I’ll run into K.C. again, huh? So, I knew I had to catch her one more time and nab her handwriting on the current issue of The Herb Companion I was lugging around all over the place. Those of you who have followed me for a while know how determined I am. Enter….

K.C. Compton’s Autograph

K.C., you can rest assured that I’ll keep writing and keep in touch online–and that I’ll see you at the next Spring seed festival!

And thank you (from the bottom of my heart!) for making a country gal’s writing dreams come true.

Check it out!

K.C. blogs: Samurai Sage

Coming Next

Get ready, ’cause in the next post, I’m sharing the adventures of meeting Hank Will, Editor of GRIT Magazine. He’s quite the fascinating man–with a (seed) history that’s awesome!

You’ll definitely want to stay tuned!

So… be sure to subscribe to Healing with Juices’ Feed for free updates. You can get free updates to your email as well (sign up here). You’ll also receive inspiration, juice and smoothie recipes, and juice fasting tips and encouragement to help keep you motivated toward your ultimate health–and more personal posts about stuff that’s going on in my life.

I’ll definitely never, ever forget the few days it took mom and me to pull this dress together. I had a terrible time finding just the right material. I had originally wanted a soft pink with a darker pink (small) floral print but I couldn’t find what I had in mind (of course, that’s what I get for waiting ’till the last minute, huh?!)

I really wanted to go to the 9th Annual Spring Planting Festival, though.

Once I decided on a dress pattern and settled on the green vintage material with small rose print, plus the other stuff we needed, we gathered it all up and got busy….

Sewing Materials

Cutting Out the Pattern

Green Buttons & Thread

Time to Sew!

Almost Done!

Let me tell ya, it took two very, very late nights (Or should I say early?) of staying up ’till around 3 a.m., plus 3 full days to get this dress done. My mom hadn’t sewn an outfit since I was a kid, and me? Well, let’s just say I’d better stick to juices and writing! LOL

Seriously, it seemed like it took a gazillion yards of fabric to make this dress!

And, of course, when it came time to actually go to the festival, we were…

Two Tired-Lookin’ Pioneer Ladies!

(Right before we left for the festival.)

At the Festival

(I’m SUCH a Proud Dork!)

Mom & Me

Singin’ In the Rain!

(Mom wasn’t singing, but it really was raining on us!)

Gotta Love a Stylin’ Goat!

Coming Next

Get ready, ’cause in the next post, I’m sharing the adventures of meeting K.C. Compton, Editor-In-Chief of Ogden Publications. And did y’all know she can sing like an angel? Oh, yes, she can! Totally amazing lady.

You’ll definitely want to stay tuned!

So… be sure to subscribe to Healing with Juices’ Feed for free updates. You can get free updates to your email as well (sign up here). You’ll also receive inspiration, juice and smoothie recipes, and juice fasting tips and encouragement to help keep you motivated toward your ultimate health–and more personal posts about stuff that’s going on in my life.