Most recipes do not require special equipment but I do use a high-speed blender, dehydrator, and food processor on a regular basis. These are important tools to have in your kitchen. Having the proper tools will make your life easier and get the job done better and faster.

I realize that they are an investment. If your budget is tight, be sure to visit your local thrift store, eBay, and Craigslist. I have purchased many used kitchen appliances with great success. Please click (here) where I have 49+ posts on all the equipment I recommend, how to use them, and what to look for when purchasing kitchen tools.

I have a posting that is dedicated to this very topic, called “Conventional Oven Food Drying“.  When using an oven it will require a close eye in monitoring the temperature and doneness of the recipe. I can’t promise the outcome unless the recipe indicates that I had also tested it in an oven. It is difficult to keep the temperature low and consistent enough to keep food raw in a traditional oven. Dehydrators work differently than ovens do. Dehydration works with consistent low heat and air circulation. Ovens don’t.

One of the greatest joys when creating raw food recipes is experimenting with different ingredients… a practice that I highly encourage. Daily I get questions regarding substitutions. Of course, we all might have different dietary needs and tastes which could necessitate altering a recipe. I love to share with you what I create for myself, my husband, friends, and family.  I spend a lot of time selecting the right ingredients with a particular goal in mind, looking to build a certain flavor and texture.

So as you experiment with substitutions, remember they are what they sound like, they are substitutes for the preferred item.  Generally, they are not going to behave, taste, or have the same texture as the suggested ingredient.   Some may work, and others may not and I can’t promise what the results will be unless I’ve tried them myself.   So have fun, don’t be afraid,  and remember, substituting is how I discovered many of my unique dishes.

If you need some help with recommendations, please feel free to ask your questions under each recipe posting. This saves me time from having to search for the recipe and it also will help fellow members as they read through the comments.

Stevia and xylitol are alternative sweeteners that are safe for consumption by people healing from health challenges such as candida, diabetes, AIDS, and cancer. Or for those trying to reduce the number of carbs in their diet.

Keep in mind, you can always substitute them with your choice of sweetener.

Nope. The recipes can still be made without soaking BUT I highly recommend making this a practice in your kitchen.  I have individual posts written up for each ingredient that I soak that explains how and why. You can view them by clicking (here) that I am very detailed about each ingredient that I administer this method to.

The whole purpose of soaking (activating, sprouting) such ingredients is to help reduce phytic acid and increase the absorption of nutrients. Phytic acid is also found in nuts, seeds, grains, and legumes and can impede digestion. When eating nuts that haven’t been soaked, the phytic acid binds to minerals in the gastrointestinal tract and can not be absorbed in the intestine, and too many bound minerals can lead to mineral deficiencies. By soaking, you are breaking down the phytic acid so it can be absorbed properly.

Nuts also have high amounts of enzyme inhibitors which also make them hard to digest. Soaking nuts neutralizes the enzymes allowing for proper digestion

I also soak nuts and seeds to help soften them for blending purposes or to create ultra-smooth textures.  Soaking and dehydrating some nuts also gives them a great light crunchy texture.

Yes, except for the fact that I use honey from time to time, but don’t let that detour you from a recipe. There are always substitutions that can be made to make the recipe vegan.

I went through a stint of time when I use to plug all my food consumption into online programs to watch my daily intake of certain nutrients. But it became an unhealthy and obsessive reaction when I went to put a piece of food in my mouth. When this was my primary focus I found that it clouded my ability to listen to my body’s internal signals and cues. And truthfully those daily logs and calculations of how many calories, fats, or proteins I was eating only gave me the tiniest bit of information about the healthfulness of foods I was eating.

I eventually found that my efforts were far better spent listening to my body (and reading ingredient lists) rather than obsessing over nutrition facts. Our bodies are adept at letting us know what is and is not working if we’re willing to listen, be it through signals, symptoms, or functionality. With all that being said, I do realize that there may be a special time and place for monitoring certain nutrients and if this is the case for you, you are welcome to plug the ingredients from my recipes into an online recipe calculator. But use it as a learning tool, then move on.

Lastly, another reason that I typically don’t care for tracking the calories, fats, etc. in the recipes I make is that it is difficult to find accurate programs. If you pull up five different online nutrition data programs, chances are you will get varying numbers. Many sites have public, everyday users adding the nutritional data in their programs. This leads to errors. Plus ingredients such as almond pulp, nut milks made from scratch as impossible to calculate unless they are sent off to a lab and even with that… each batch of almond pulp or nut milk will vary based on each time you make it. Did you squeeze the same amount of liquid out, etc? I think you get my point.

Yes, we have installed a wonderful print plugin that allows you to either save the recipe as a PDF or you can print the recipe. I wrote a quick post on how to best utilize this feature.  Please click (here).

Our policy here at Nouveauraw.com is simple.

FREE  or MEMBERSHIP RECIPES

If you are interested in linking to a recipe on NouveauRaw, you are more than welcome to use one photo (do not crop or alter the photo). As far as the recipe content goes, you are welcome to use some introductory text but should link directly to the recipe on NouveauRaw.com. You may not copy the whole, actual recipe on your site. Please make it clear where the image came from.

Anything beyond that requires permission from us. The use of photography for any other use other than promoting the recipe that goes with it requires permission from me. Contact me (here).

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In a nutshell… The thrust of the raw food diet is the consumption of unprocessed, whole plant-based, ideally, organic foods that have not been heated over 104–118°F (40–48°C). Foods are prepared in a special way. Instead of using an oven to cook foods, a dehydrator is used. Instead of purchasing boxed foods, they are made from whole foods, from scratch. To increase nutrients nuts, seeds, and grains are soaked and sprouted. To read more in-depth about this topic, please click (here).

No, heck no, and NO! :) I believe life should not be about 100% raw food, but about 100% health. My goal is to eat a diet that free-from foods that are produced with the use of synthetic pesticides, chemical fertilizers, industrial solvents, or chemical food additives. This means avoiding or at least greatly reducing packaged and processed foods.

The whole idea of learning how to prepare raw foods is to learn how to incorporate whole, fresh foods into our diets. We can all afford to eat a diet that contains more raw fruits, vegetables, sprouts, and nuts… wouldn’t you agree?

There are great controversies in how the body assimilates foods. Some say raw foods are harder to digest than cooked and some express the opposite belief. So what it is?  The answer is… find out what works best for your body.  We all assimilate nutrients differently.

You do not NEED to eat all organic to be raw. But I highly encourage you to eat as much organic food as possible. It’s a process, I get that… so be patient with yourself throughout this journey. Do your best with what you have and what you can afford.

If you are just starting out and find yourself on a tight budget, familiarize yourself with The Clean 15 and the Dirty Dozen. This is a great start. You will be avoiding high concentrations of pesticides and other toxic residues and you will be gaining not only better-tasting foods but also foods that contain more nutrition.

NO… I don’t recommend it!

Through personal experience and after spending over eight years in the raw food industry, I don’t recommend going 100% raw overnight. In fact, I don’t recommend making such a radical change with any form of eating…. other than cutting out processed foods! It will take time for your digestion to understand how to handle and what to do with all that extra roughage/fiber. This can lead to stomach discomfort, bloating, gas, constipation, and so forth.  But there is more to all of this than just digestion. I believe that with dietary changes you also need to be ready to experience mental,  emotional, spiritual, and social changes.

If you are already eating a clean, whole food diet, it will be easier on your body to make such a dramatic change, but it is my belief to always ease into dietary changes. Watch and listen to how your body responds to foods. If you find yourself bloated or feeling “off” back off and approach it by scaling back even further. Remember… be kind to yourself.

Just by adding in 10% more raw foods into each meal… you will benefit. Then continue to increase over time, making sure to check in with your body to see how things are going. There isn’t a magical percentage and it doesn’t matter what your loved ones or friends are doing… do what is right for YOU.

A fun game to play with yourself as you add in more whole foods (even if cooked), is to reduce the same amount of processed foods from your plate.  Over time, continue to crowd out the bad foods with fresh, whole foods.

No, I am not 100% raw. When I first dived into the raw food journey, I did go 100% raw overnight. I did the very thing that I advise against. Live and learn. Back then, I didn’t have any raw websites to turn to. I didn’t have support, other than my husband (bless you Bob!) and I didn’t have a clue what I was doing. You can read a little bit about my journey (here).

In fact, I don’t call myself a raw foodist… but to take that even further… I don’t label my eating habits. This again, stems from years of experience throughout my own personal journey.  I feel that that by labeling yourself, you set yourself up for trouble. Explain? You bet.

In my first year of being 100% raw, I couldn’t wait to announce to everyone that I was a 100% raw foodist. What this did was set myself up for failure. First off, by stating that I was 100% raw, I immediately viewed my new eating plan as a diet, not a lifestyle. Secondly, my friends and family (though not with malice) waited with baited breath to catch me eating something cooked, just so they prove that being 100% raw wasn’t feasible. And lastly, to avoid feeling like I failed at yet another “diet” I forced myself to maintain this eating style for a full year, which actually blocked me from focusing on what my body was really saying.  Bottom line, I refused to listen to what my body was trying to tell me because my ego was yelling too loud in my head to hear.

It was a few years later, as I let go of my ego and started to learn how to listen to my body that I decided that I no longer would label my eating habits.  Our bodies change throughout time. We age and go through hormonal changes, stress levels change, our environments change, our health changes… and I personally feel that we need to feed ourselves accordingly.

I will say however that I LOVE eating and creating raw foods. The vibrant colors, the freshness, the flavors, the vibration… that all has remained a fiery passion of mine. I do feel that there are great health benefits to eating a high raw diet. It has taught me to look at food differently, it has taught me to be a better cook (and yes, I mean cook!), it has been an intricate part of my healing journey.

Some people in your life might be put off by the fact that you no longer socialize the way they do or eat the way that they do. Although you are living a healthier (and hopefully happier) life than some of your friends with unhealthy eating habits, there’s no reason to make an outcast of yourself. They think what you are doing is hard work, unsatisfying, isolating, and, if like some of my family, they might admit that they think that you are part alien.

With that being said, continue to be kind to yourself, don’t preach your way of eating UNLESS they want to hear about it,  don’t announce, “Hey, I am RAW! Look at me.” Walk your walk and let your actions be a witness to those around you.

Regardless if you are 20% – 50% – or even 100% raw, there are ways around it.  For starters, bring a raw dish with you making sure there is enough for others and for yourself.  When you arrive at the gathering, don’t announce that you have a raw dish. Nobody else walks in saying, “Hey, I brought a cooked dish!”

Scan the rest of the food and pick out other raw foods or clean, cooked, whole food choices.

If you know the hostess really well, you can always share your eating preference with them and see if they can help accommodate it. While it may be a bit awkward to explain your needs, most people are considerate and will respect your eating habits, and try to accommodate them.

Yes! You can get fairly clever about getting the restaurants to give you a tasty raw meal from the foods they usually use. You can always call the restaurant ahead of time to see if they can accommodate any special raw meal requests.

With today’s technology, you can look the restaurant up ahead of time and read through their menu. Make a list of all the veggies, possible fruits, avocados, nuts, and seeds that they have in amongst their dishes. Once you get there, you will be armed with a list of foods so that you can request a special elaborate raw salad or something including any of the things you saw. And trust me, other people sitting around you will usually be impressed with how beautiful your plate is.

Ask for olive oil, vinegar, and some lemon to squeeze on as a dressing. Restaurant dressings are riddled with preservatives and excitotoxins. If you feel comfortable enough, bring a small container of your own dressing from home. I was never too shy to do this and never had an issue.

Another trick I had was to ask for guacamole which I would then use as a salad dressing.

Along with your salad, you can also ask for steamed veggies.

Most importantly, don’t lose sight of why we typically eat out… we are doing so to connect with people.  Let those around you be the main focus rather than the food in front of you.  Enjoy your time together, and make the most of the present moment. It’s the only one you’ve got.

When cravings strike, I feel the best approach is to examine why you are experiencing the craving(s).  Is the craving brought on by a habitual habit of eating or drinking that particular food at a certain time or place? Are you stressed? Are you faced with an emotional upset? If you are a woman, where are you in your cycle?

I won’t promise that all your cravings will dwindle and eventually disappear… but they will greatly reduce and lose their power over you. Plus, you will start to learn more about yourself and will become empowered!

As of April 2020, I added a vegan, gluten-free cooked section to my site. Please click (here) and (here) to read about this topic. This section will continue to grow throughout time. I hope you enjoy it. blessings, amie sue