Paul is especially focused on Mycelium, which he says are the "Internet of the earth." His visionary insights help us to understand how these mushrooms balance and regulate the earth’s ecosystems.

Please enjoy this fine presentation.

Six Ways Mushrooms can Save the World
By Paul Stamets

Aloe Vera is widely known as a healing substance, or the medicine plant. My family has grown it for many years, on a window sill in our pre-California days, and now outside.

Aloe Vera is part of the lily family rather than a cactus, although nursery salespeople usually just refer to it as a succulent. Aloe is a very large species of plants, and not all Aloe are Aloe Vera.

It is raw healing at its best, internally and topically.

The Aloe Plant and Leaves

About a year ago, I became curious about the large Aloe Vera leaves from SunFood.com. I initially ordered them because I didn’t like the butchered look of my Aloe plants in my yard. For the occasional cut or burn, a severed Aloe leaf was acceptable; multiple cut leaves required for greater consumption create a truly unaesthetic look.

I had quite a visceral reaction when I opened the first package of these large leaves. "Wow, they are alive!" I don’t know how else to describe my reaction. I almost expected them to wiggle off the paper. (They didn’t.)

The plants these leaves come from are much larger than the typical household or backyard plant. The grower breaks or cuts off the whole leaf from the base of the plant rather than cutting into the leaf.

Eating the Fresh, Raw Aloe

Regularly, we use a slice of a leaf — gel only — in our smoothies, raw soups, salad dressings, and assorted savory and sweet dishes.  Aloe is a nice semi-liquid with a slightly tart taste. Sometimes it seems bitter; other times it seems sour.

Aloe is great in a pesto. I fillet a chunk, put it in a small glass container with some Celtic sea salt while I prepare all the other ingredients. The Celtic sea salt helps to "liquefy" or "activate" the aloe.    

Once I tried putting Aloe through the juicer for a green drink. That was not very satisfactory because of its gelatinous texture. However, the "salt trick" works well, so that I add the liquefied Aloe to the prepared green drink. The blender loves Aloe Vera.

Fresh, raw Aloe Vera supports the immune system, digestion, and liver. It is rich in vitamins, antioxidants, and minerals. It seems to enhance the nutrients when combined with other superfoods, as well.

Using Now and Freezing Aloe Vera for Later Use

When we purchase the large leaves, we refrigerate all but one leaf. We use one at a time by slicing a chunk and filleting it as we need it. We either eat it fresh or freeze it within two days, three at the most. Often we use 2-4 chunks fresh and freeze one chunk, as that is usually the proper ratio to use the whole leaf in two days.

When freezing it, we cut it in serving-size pieces and freeze each piece in a small plastic bag or wrap. Once frozen, we place all the pieces in a larger freezer bag for easy grabbing.

Freezing Aloe Vera breaks down the fibers somewhat so that it blends even better in combinations. I think it’s also a little sweeter. Likely, the freezing reduces nutritional value somewhat.

When we’ve consumed the fresh supply, we start using the frozen bits.

If we have lots of company or extraordinary needs for the Aloe Vera, we skip the freezing for that leaf. Somehow, it all works more easily than it sounds.

Topical Applications for Fresh, Raw Aloe

To complete and go beyond the culinary experience, we end with the best skin treatment ever. We rub the inside of the green outer part on our skin and hair.

Several years ago, I acquired a wicked bruise and found that the Aloe Vera greatly reduced the discoloration and accelerated the healing. For that, I used — and learned for the first time — the Celtic sea salt trick. Using Celtic salt on Aloe Vera and applying both to a bruise were suggestions from my Latina housekeeper whose father used to grow Aloe Vera to mend and repair his active children.

Other Thoughts and Tips

Most of the bottled Aloe Vera products are likely to be processed in some way to stabilize and standardize the Aloe Vera gel. Read labels carefully so that you are confident of the contents. I’ve never seen fresh Aloe Vera in airports or hotels, so I have to find alternatives from time to time.

If you work with the larger leaves and make a cut without finishing the whole leaf, place a little piece of paper towel on the cut. This serves the same purpose as when a man cuts himself shaving and puts a piece of tissue on the cut.

After my experiences with the large Aloe Vera leaves, we now separate the outer leafs of our own plants and use the whole, smaller leaf right away. The plant loves this approach because it’s sustainable gardening. And no more butchered Aloe Vera plants!

There are no poisonous aspects to warn you about for the grand Aloe Vera medicine. This sturdy plant comes in many varieties and shapes and sizes. Remember, if you are purchasing, be certain it is Aloe Vera and not just any Aloe plant. Water it, but let it go dry thoroughly before watering again.

If you’ve had experiences with this plant treasure, please share it by adding a comment below.

Question from Heather
Can I lose weight by being on a raw food diet?

Additional Comments from Heather
I’ve been up and down on the scales most of my life. I don’t even like to get on the scales any more, but there is no denying how my clothes fit and how I feel. (Answer: not well and not well.) I’ve heard that eating raw and living foods is very helpful for losing weight. Is that true?

Joy’s Response to Heather

The direct, simple answer to Heather’s question is: yes, absolutely, you can lost weight on a raw food eating plan if you’re currently overweight and eat cooked foods. But there’s more to the answer, so please read on.

First of all, I have to be clear that I don’t claim to be an expert on weight loss. Come to think of it, many people who claim this expertise have very limited views, mainly because they have a one-size-fits-all mentality and/or a product to sell. I don’t fault any of them, but I want to acknowledge that you’re an individual who needs to find your own successful approach.

Based on what Heather has said and what I know about raw foods and body weight, I’d like to offer an approach that puts you in charge of your eating. While I’ve never had a problem of being overweight, I have sensitivity to the problem, as many around me do. I’ve also experienced food addictions which would have led to excess weight if left unchecked.

The Starting Place: An Empowering Purpose

When you consider changing to a raw food cuisine for the purpose of weight loss, that can either empower you temporarily or serve to sabotage you. So sometimes, it’s just better to have the purpose of "going raw" or "adding raw" for general health benefits. Likely, you’ll experience a variety of benefits, including slimming.

What I’m suggesting is that you make health, rather than the bathroom scales or clothes size, the primary motivator. Let how you feel guide you.

You may also be successful creating a series short term goals with the broader purpose of health based on eating foods that are filled with nutrition. There’s so much conflicting data, so I’m suggesting you simplify your eating plan and use your feelings to guide you.

Choose One Rule for Yourself

I’ve seen many people change their eating or other habits drastically. While a drastic change may ultimately be necessary, so often people can’t incorporate the changes if the changes are too many or dramatically different from their familiar patterns. Take one step at a time, one meal at a time, one day at a time.

Everyone’s different, of course, but I’ve found that if you have one simple "rule" or "guideline" for yourself, you’re so much more likely to follow through. A single idea will help you to organize yourself for success.

If you’re put off by the word "rule," choose another word. I’ve already suggested that "guideline" is an alternative. The key is that you want only ONE idea or action to remember to make the decisions at each meal easier.

In fact, this principle is the reason that so many people can lose weight if they follow one program diligently. However, you need to find a program or approach that can work for a lifetime, not one that you abandon after a period of time because you’ve reached your weight goal, experienced boredom, or passed the date (wedding, graduation, etc.) that served as an incentive.

One Rule I Chose Years Ago

I’ll give you a personal eating example, although it’s not related to raw food eating. It was many years ago when my children were very little and I was participating in various groups and meetings with other parents. And, oh, the food! People brought goodies that were enticing, pretty, laden with fat, and filled with sugar.

My One Rule was: Participate in these meetings without eating. It was like pre-making the decision so I wasn’t faced with re-making the decision each time. Of course, if the gathering was a meal, the rule didn’t apply, but I still passed on the dessert tray.

When I had made the "rule" — which felt good to me to make — I didn’t feel deprived. When I applied the rule again and again, I didn’t feel deprived. I simply was not tempted because I had a long-term purpose.

Perhaps you’d feel deprived under these circumstances. If so, it’s really important you create a different rule. You can choose a very difficult rule and still not be deprived. Or start with an easy rule that empowers you into success right away. Make it joyful.

One Rule to Stop or One Rule to Start

People feel inspired by different opportunities. My own example above was a rule I chose for myself to stop — to not take — an action. That worked for me, without making me feel deprived.

In choosing a raw, living food cuisine or just more raw foods, it’s so much easier to find a rule of something to start. That way, the stop actions are so much easier.

After mastering your first One Rule, you can add others or you can expand your One Rule. Be really gentle with yourself. Make joyful choices, one at a time.

Examples of One Rule Approaches in Living Foods

Here are some beginning places. All are stated positively, with nothing to stop, only items to include in your eating. With these few examples, you can easily construct your own One Rule. Remember, you want to start with something compelling, something that makes you feel empowered and not deprived.

1. Consume something raw every time you eat. This is a very helpful guideline if you feel ready for it. The "something raw" could be as little as a sprig of parsley. Or, of course, it could include a whole meal of raw food items. "Every time you eat" means every time and not necessarily every thing.

2. Eat two (or one or four or any number) Superfood items/servings each day. There are many superfoods. You can check the "Categories" in the left navigation bar for the articles I’ve written so far, with more to come.

3. When at home, eat all vegetables raw. At most restaurants, it’s also possible to ask for uncooked vegetables, but at least at home, you can have total control in your own food preparation.

Does any of these examples feel good to you? If so, adopt it adapt it and get started. If not, start with a different positive action you want to sustain about raw foods or start with One Rule that relates to a stop-action.

Examples of One Rule Approaches in Stopping Cooked Foods

Here are some beginning places to stop consuming non-living foods. You might find it very helpful to select one or two individual items to eliminate. However, this works most effectively if you make the One Rule broad enough to included many individual items, and specific enough to give you guidance at each meal or shopping trip, when you must make a single-item choice.

1. Stop eating cooked wheat. Wheat is not the staff of life anymore. It’s addictive and devastating to a large percentage of the population. I’ll write more about this as a follow up to this article.

2. Stop eating refined sugar. Refined sugar goes by many names, and the artificial substitutes are also extremely unhealthy. Both are addictive and play a large part in obesity and other gradations of overweight. More in a future article, including some sweet substitutes that are healthy.

3. Stop overeating. You’ve had enough food when you’ve eaten some and still feel comfortable. It’s surprising how little quantity the body needs when you’re properly nourished. One of the reasons that so many people crave large amounts of cooked foods is lack of nutrients in the cooked foods. With raw foods, and especially raw superfoods, the nutrients are dense so you naturally want less.

Does any of these examples feel good to you? If so, adopt or adapt it and get started. If not, start with a different stop-action you want to sustain or return to One Rule that relates to including raw foods.

I have Inspired Myself to Write More

Heather, thanks so much for your question. It has stimulated more ideas that I’d like to share in future articles. Quite honestly, when I received your question, I wasn’t sure I wanted to tackle it. It is a BIG question, and I’ve only touched the surface in this one article.

I plan to write a series of articles, returning to this one to expand on some of the ideas here.

You cannot expect to make a change in your body contour
without making some changes in your thinking and your behavior.

When raw, nuts are dormant; after soaking, they’re living! These two different states of nuts is one of the best ways to understand the distinction between raw foods and living foods.

As long as you start with raw organic nuts (from a source you trust) out of their shells, you’ll have a living food after soaking.

Almonds require the longest soak time (16-24 hours) because they’re the hardest of the nuts. The soak water is toxic, so don’t use it, even for watering plants. Rinse nuts well after soaking.

Vast Variety of Nuts

Different nuts require different soak time, and the soak water has different degrees of toxicity. Over time, I’ll add more information at this blog about nuts.

In my raw food cuisine, I’ve used nuts of all kinds. I’ve prepared pistaschio hummus, almond milk, cashew ice cream, walnuts warmed in a dehydrator, pecan cookies, pinenut salad dressings, brazil nut pate, and nut butters. I often add almond meal to my Raw Food Energy Soup.

I especially like almonds because they’re so nutritious, and the most alkaline of all the nuts. Almonds are definitely worthy of being called a superfood, although I don’t consider that all nuts are superfoods.

I especially like the really raw cashews because once soaked they’re very soft and blend into a creamy pudding, adding a texture that is often associated with dairy. Unfortunately, many cashews are sold as "raw" but have had high heat applied to remove the shells. It’s good to be sure that the package says "really raw" or has another qualifier that tells you that high heat has not been applied.

Cacao is also a nut. I eat cacao daily for the rich mineral content, pleasant flavor, and my general well being. In fact, I eat cacao multiple times each day.

Most nuts go well with sweet, sour, bitter, or salty flavorings to build tasty dishes.

Digestion

When eating nuts or any high-fat foods, it’s important for digestion to consume greens with them. Not many greens are natural accompaniments — can you imagine broccoli as a garnish for chocolate mousse?

Mint, spirulina, and sometimes parsley and basil work. And you can also plan to have lots of fresh greens which are loaded with minerals and enzymes for your meal before (or after) a nut/fat dish.

Protein in Nuts

Many people consider that raw foodists must get all their protein from nuts. However, most nuts don’t have all 8 of the essential amino acids that qualify the food as a "complete protein." Almonds do have all the essential amino acids and some of the other amino acids, as well.

Nuts include protein, fat, and carbohydrate, and are more properly classified as a source of fat than a source of protein.

Moderation

As with all food, moderation is the key. Because of the fat content, nuts tend to be very satisfying. When I have a nut dish, it’s frequently my whole meal with perhaps some greens in a salad or as a garnish.

I eat raw cacao every day, in many different ways.

It’s a Chocolate World

Chocolate is everywhere in our society. However, most of it is highly processed, cooked, laden with dairy and flavored with refined sugar. It’s the processing of the chocolate that makes it a health hazard. It’s a strange world that has turned one of the most powerful, natural, nutrient-dense foods into an unhealthy, ubiquitous food item.

Raw cacao, which is highly nutritious, will be one of the foods that health and wellness advocates will want to know about — and use.

These days, cacao is more readily available than just a few years ago, in various natural forms throughout the United States. The most common forms are beans with skins still on (whole beans), nibs (broken beans), and powder (ground beans). However, I prefer raw, certified organic (or the equivalent), skinless, whole cacao beans. Perhaps your preference will be different from mine.

I suggest you start at Sunfood.com because that site will have the widest variety of the best available. When you get to the site, simply search for "cacao" to bring up the current selection of products. If you prefer to purchase in a local store, just read the label carefully. Pictured at the right is the way I purchase most of my cacao.

At the moment of writing this article, this item is out of stock at Sunfood.com. When I talked with one of the support persons, he said that the manufacturer has not been able to keep up with the demand. I purchased some nibs locally. Right away, I noticed the difference in taste. NaturalZing.com also has wonderful raw cacao.

The Real Stuff

Chocolate is made from Cacao (or Cocoa) Beans. Cacao is chocolate; chocolate is cacao. However, when you start with the one ingredient cacao and add healthy ingredients without cooking, you retain the antioxidants, minerals, and neurotransmitter rejuvenating properties.

The raw cacao bean is one of nature’s most outstanding superfoods due to its mineral content and wide array of unique and varied properties. Since many of the special properties of cacao are destroyed or diminished by cooking, refining, and processing, it’s important to consume it raw.

Cacao is hard. To eat it, you need to break it down. Typical ways are with mortar and pestle, high speed blender, regular blender, or your teeth.

Cacao is bitter. Bitter is one of the important tastes, but rarely do we eat bitter items alone. I can eat cacao straight — and often do! — but I think that’s an acquired taste. I also rarely eat a whole handful of cacao on its own. More likely, I eat 3-4 beans alone. Cacao beans are easy to transport in a suitcase, purse, or pocket for superfood nutrition on the go.

Sweeteners for Cacao

Stevia is the sweetener of choice by many people wishing to avoid refined sugar and the mainstream alternatives. In the US, stevia is marketed (by law) as a nutritional supplement and cannot be marketed as a sweetener.

Honey is extremely sweet to my taste, so I only use a very small amount occasionally.

Dates are a living food. Other dried foods serve as interesting sweetening and texture to cacao dishes.

Other natural sweeteners also go well with cacao, such as, dried fruit, mesquite pod meal, carob, yacon syrup.

Please note: I no longer recommend Agave nectar There are a few extremely expensive agave nectar products that are more healthy than most on the market. Since I’m not familiar with the brand names, I am simply avoiding agave and recommending it.

Uses

I add raw cacao to nearly every type of meal. It’s an essential ingredient of my Raw Fruit Smoothies and Vegetable Soups, and, in particular, Raw Food Energy Soup. Cacao adds valuable minerals that are often lacking in restaurant foods, so I’m certain to carry some with me at all times.

Cacao was used as money by the ancient Aztecs — so to them, money did grow on trees. But, make no mistake, they ate cacao also. So they associated both their wealth and their health with cacao.

Recently, I wrote about a different approach David Wolfe is using
that associates food and money.
You can read that article or
go directly to David’s Food that Attracts Money Video.

Lucuma Powder from Fruit

Quoting from David Wolf’s SunFood.com web site, "Lucuma is an excellent source of carbohydrates, fiber, vitamins, and minerals -- including remarkable concentrations of beta-carotene, Vitamin B3 (niacin), and iron. Lucuma has a full-bodied subtly sweet flavor and has long been a culinary favorite of Peruvians and superfood enthusiasts worldwide."

Quoting from the NaturalZing.com web site, "Its unique and fragrant flavor resembles maple syrup. Lucuma is low in acid, low in sugar and contains an excellent source of carbohydrates, fiber, vitamins and minerals. It is especially abundant in beta-carotene, niacin and iron with significant amounts of calcium and phosphorus."

Lucuma Ice Cream from Powder

Quoting my daughter, Sarah, "I make some variation on lucuma ice cream every week. It’s easy, delicious, and always ready for unexpected guests."

We make Lucuma Ice Cream so often that we don’t use a recipe. And, yes, it’s a little different each time because we vary the ingredients and experiment. Always, though, we use raw ingredients; and with very few exceptions, we use certified organic ingredients.

However, it’s not fair to you for me to say, add a little of this and a little of that. So, I’ve written the recipe below, using the SunFood.com web site, which is itself a variation on the classic recipe, as a general guide for quantities. Below the written information, I’ve included a video with a different recipe.

Lucuma Ice Cream: 6-8 Servings
Ingredients 1 ½ cups really raw cashews, soaked ½ cup coconut cream, coconut meat, or raw coconut butter ½ cup organic lucuma powder ¼ to ½ cup sweetener* 1 whole vanilla bean 1 ½ Tbs psyllium hulls Approximately ½ cup best water available ¼ cup maca powder Celtic Sea salt to taste (or use any highly mineralized salt)
Directions Put all the ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend to a nice batter. Put in a container that likes to be in the freezer, and freeze until it’s the perfect consistency. An ice cream maker is not required, but you can certainly use one. Be sure to read additional notes below.

Cashews. Start with "really raw" or "raw, cool processed" cashews. They will be hard and dormant. Soak for 4-8 hours in the best available water. This softens them and makes them alive rather than dormant, which means you have the proper enzymes available in the nuts to digest them properly. Drain water and rinse the cashews.

Coconut. We’ve tried the coconut in all forms. If you’re purchasing it in a glass jar, look for raw, organic cream or butter if you want some of the coconut meat in it. If you’re purchasing fresh coconut, I recommend the Thai young coconuts if available; brown coconuts also make a great addition to this ice cream. You can use the liquid inside the whole coconut in place of the water in the recipe.

Lucuma Powder. Lucuma Powder is now more readily available in health food stores. Online, you can get it at SunFood.com and NaturalZing.com. This is, of course, the primary ingredient for which the ice cream is named. There’s really no suggested substitute.

* Sweeteners. Sweeteners are a large controversy in the raw food community and other health-conscious individuals. Sweeteners are yucon syrup, dates, honey, and stevia. I’ve tried all these, noticing that the different choices add flavors or textures to the ice cream. I no longer recommend agave nectar.

Vanilla. For the vanilla, the whole bean is the most wonderful tasting. We finely chop it before adding it to the mixture. Raw vanilla powder works fine, as does organic vanilla extract.

Psyllium husks make the ice cream slightly gelatinous and scoopable.

Water. Everyone has an opinion of the "best available" water. It has to be as you define it. Instead of water, use almond or cashew milk or coconut water.

Maca. A daily substance in our house, maca is also from Peru. Maca is a healthy complex carbohydrate, loaded with minerals, amino acids, essential fatty acids, vitamins, and fiber. I’ll write an article about this extraordinary superfood in the near future. There are many varieties of maca.

Variations. After you’ve experienced this ice cream following the general guidelines of the recipe, experiment with other ingredients that you like. Be creative. If you stay with the raw, organic ingredients, even the mistakes will be yummy.

Video from Ani Phyo’s Raw Food Kitchen
Lucuma Ice Kream

I thought it might be fun for you to see a video of someone preparing this Ice Cream, so I found the following video. Ani includes the recipe she’s using. You’ll notice by the very loud noise when she adds the cashews to the blender that she has not soaked the cashews. I do strongly recommend that you allow the time for the soaking process.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bNRLR7pWo0

Happy Eating. Please let me know any of your experiences and/or variations.

Once I tried the hemp powder or hemp protein powder. Only once. To me, it tastes like all those powdered "green" foods. However, if you’ve acquired a liking for that taste, you will surely have a superfood.

A superfood is a nutrient-dense food. I mentioned superfoods in earlier articles when I discussed another favorite superfood, Goji Berries and when I discussed Protein from Plant Foods.

The Nutrients in Hemp Seeds

I’m going to quote from two different online sources, both of which I trust and purchase from, as they have done the research. It may be just a little more than you really want to know. If so, skip to the next section on Taste and Use.

From Natural Zing … Shelled hemp seed is a great source of the essential fatty acids Omega-3 Linolenic Acid and Omega-6 Linoleic Acid, as well as the hard-to-get Gamma-Linoleic Acid. While most foods have little if any, hemp seed is over 36% Essential Fatty Acids, and in nature’s perfect balance of 1-to-3 omega-3:omega-6 (according to Dr. Udo Erasmus). It contains 31% complete and highly-digestible protein, 1/3 as edestin protein and 2/3 as albumin protein.

This protein profile is second only to raw uncooked soybeans (35% vs. 31%), and the amino acid profile is superior to soybean, human milk, and cow’s milk, and similar to egg whites. Excellent protein efficiency makes hemp seed ideal for medical foods and other special diets. We have yet to hear of an allergic reaction to shelled hemp seed, and it contains no gluten.

From SunFood.com … Hemp seeds are considered by leading researchers and medical doctors to be one of the most nutritious food sources on the planet. Shelled hemp seed is packed with 33 percent pure digestible protein and is rich in iron and vitamin E as well as omega-3 and GLA. A recent report funded by the Canadian government states that hemp protein is comprised of 66 percent high-quality edistin protein, and that hemp seed contains the highest percentage of this of any plant source. Hemp also contains three times the vitamin E contained in flax.

Because the human body produces no Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs), it is important that EFAs be consumed on a regular basis. It is estimated that more than 90 percent of Americans take in too little of one of the most important EFAs–omega-3–which is found in flax, walnuts, chia, and hemp seeds. EFAs are the "good fats" that doctors recommend as part of a healthy, balanced diet. Shelled hemp seed is comprised of 45% "good fats" in an ideal balance of Omega-3 Alpha-Linolenic Acid, Omega-6 Linoleic Acid, "Super" Omega-3 Stearidonic Acid, and "Super" Omega-6 Gamma Linolenic Acid. It is also rich in vitamin E and iron, and contains 33% protein. The quality of omega-3 is vital, and can be diminished by oxygen, heat, and light. Thus consume the freshest seeds possible and store them tightly sealed in a dark, cold environment such as a refrigerator.

In the definitive book on good fats, Fats That Heal, Fats That Kill, author Udo Erasmus states, "The best-balanced source of EFAs is hemp seed oil."

Taste and Use

So, from the above, you have plenty of justification for eating the delicious little seeds because they’re loaded with nutrition. And, oh, wow, the taste! Right out of the bag, you can sprinkle on salads, raw soups, cereals, smoothies. I eat them nearly every day.

Once the bag is open, they require refrigeration, so when traveling I only carry a small amount and put them in the refrigerator in the hotel room. Since I travel a lot, I’m often looking for foods that survive a flight in my suitcases and can be easily consumed in hotel rooms.

One of the easiest, tastiest protein drinks is made with hemp seed and water, which you can sweeten to taste (if desired) with stevia, dates, dried fruit, or honey. Cinnamon (which I find sweet) is another added taste sensation. Just throw what you want into any blender, swirl, enjoy.

While I would never apply any heat to these seeds, here’s a resource for food preparation.

Flax: A Powerhouse of Nutrients in a Little Seed

High in antioxidants, flax seeds are idea for folks with many adverse health conditions associated with free-radicals, including high blood pressure, inflammation, blood sugar disruptions, etc. For general health for generally healthy people, these seeds are also important. This humble seed is appropriately called a superfood.

Flax seeds are a complete protein with the added value of healthy fat. Flax seeds contain alpha-linolenic acid (omega-3 oil), soluble and insoluble fiber, including the special fiber, lignans. Proportion of omega-3 and omega-6 is key to health.

Regular flax seed consumption aids in soothing or reversing many compromised health conditions and adds to a greater sense of well-being. Flax is a regular part of my own daily food consumption.

However, taking a spoonful of whole flax seeds can give you a tummy ache and very little nutrient value. To be of maximum use to the body, you need to be attentive to using them in a form that the body can assimilate.

The Forms of Flax

We generally think of flax as available in three forms: whole, ground/meal, oil.

Whole flax seeds do not require refrigeration, but ground flax seeds need to be frozen or can be refrigerated for short periods. Flax seed oil is quite unstable and requires refrigeration. I store whole flax in a glass container in a cupboard away from heat.

Whole flax loves water and drinks it rather quickly. This happens inside or outside your body. If you feel bloated from eating whole flax seed, you can do one of several things:

• Soak the whole seeds in water first (this produces a gelatinous mess which you might not like), or
• Chew them very well to reduce this internal swelling somewhat, or
• Grind the flax into meal and soak before using.

Flax meal (or ground flax) is very unstable. If you purchase flax meal, be certain to check the label. I expect that manufacturers of ground flax add stabilizers. And if they do not, the meal will likely be rancid.

Here’s what I do: I grind my own flax. I have done this in all my grinding or blending equipment and find that it works, each with a slightly different texture. Occasionally I am tempted to purchase a flax seed grinder, but then I reason with myself that I have enough equipment! I grind enough for a week or two and freeze it. It is ok refrigerated for up to two days.

When I grind flax seed, I don’t over-grind, as I find it pleasant if the texture is a little uneven, some coarse and some fine. I use my high speed blender because I can get exactly the texture I want quickly. However, if I didn’t have a high speed blender, I’d simply use a regular blender or food chopper. (See my earlier article on Raw Food Equipment.)

Flax seed oil is also highly unstable. At one time, I purchased flax seed oil. When I did, I always made sure to purchase from the refrigerated section and checked the dates on the label. I get plenty of flax seed oil in my daily consumption of flax. When I want this type of oil in a bottle, I use something else, like hemp seed oil.

Selecting Flax

I usually purchase my flax at one of my local health food stores in a package, certified organic. I pass up the bulk bins as these are rarely certified organic and I have no way of knowing how long they’ve been in the bin or if the clean out the bins.

I also buy online if I’m placing an order for other items either at RawFood.com or NaturalZing.com. Both these outstanding web sites have whole flax and various raw food flax products. Visit either site and search for "flax."

Golden Vs Brown flax. My understanding from reading someone who was involved in the original project of producing golden flax, that there is no difference in nutritional value between these two varieties. There is a slight difference in taste (golden flax is milder). For my taste, I much prefer the darker variety and now purchase only that.

Flax Can be Added to Many Recipes

Flax adds a slight nutty flavor to foods. I add it to raw soups, salads, salad dressings, and smoothies. In most cases, I soak it at least ten minutes in liquid before adding it to other ingredients.

Whole flax seeds, soaked first in water for several hours to activate the gelatinous quality that acts as "glue," make an awesome cracker for the raw foodist who does not consume bread. Recipes are included in most raw food cuisine books.

My morning smoothie starts with ground flax seed, soaked overnight in a little water. To that I add whatever else I want. I’ll include some recipes in future articles.

I eat 1/8 to 1/4 cup of ground flax seed a day. It is important to start small and increase to that amount if you want to take that much.

In this blog, by "superfood," I mean a food that’s jam-packed with nutrients that the body can use. To me, a superfood is organic (preferably certified organic, but definitely free from pesticides), whole, raw, living, and with a wide variety of nutrients. They build the immune system and strengthen the body.

Goji Berries

I’ve sifted through a lot of the literature on Goji Berries over the last 10 years. I was first introduced to them by Ron Teeguarden, a Caucasian herbalist specializing in Chinese herbs and philosophy, when I took a course from him. He identified them as Lycium berries, from the Latin botanical name.

The berries that Ron imports (or at least did when he taught this class) are from Tibet. They contain more vitamin C than any other food known and other vitamins that make them a powerful antioxidant. The 18 amino acids and other nutrients put this little orange goody into a class by itself.

They grow wild in Tibet, in an area where pesticides are not used, nor is the designation "certified organic." They are naturally "dried" by the sun and harvested by shaking the bushes (so they are untouched). Many Asians attribute their beauty, strength, and longevity to Goji berries.

In Ron Teeguarden’s book, "The Ancient Wisdom of the Chinese Tonic Herbs," (and also re-told by Dr. Earl Mindell in "Goji: The Himalayan Health Secret"), is the story of Li Qain Yuen who is documented to have lived 252 years. His main food was the Goji berry. Goji berries are also used by the long-lived Hunza people throughout the Himalayas. And they are revered by Chinese women in China.

Some products called Goji berries may or may not be, and their place of origin does determine the nutrient density. Look in credible supply places and for words like "wild crafted," "organic," or "certified organic." Except for "certified organic," these are loose terms, but at least give you an indication. I was first introduced to the Tibetian Goji berries, so I’ve learned more about them. However, places in China also produce goji berries with equivalent nutrients.

For Purchase and Further Reading

Dragon Herbs Goji berries (Ron Teeguarden’s Place)

SunFood (David Wolfe’s Place)
(My recommendation and where I purchase most)

Eat Raw (I’ve purchased here as well)

Kitchen Doctor
I’ve not purchased them here, but it has a nice synopsis and some recipe ideas.

Goji berries tend to appear pricey on the retail market. They are surely worth it, though, as a few are jam-packed with bioavailable nutrition. Be wise in your purchase. Trust your source. As with many items, especially purchased on the Internet, you can get a look-alike. Wolfberries are generally inferior (although not always), are often sold in Chinatown shops in the US, and can even be chemically treated and colored. You do not want these!

A Secret of the Goji

So here’s a secret, shhhhh. Most of the long-lived persons drink the soak water of the goji berries. They also eat the berries, but the soak water is treasured even more. The soak water is more alkaline; the berries are more acidic.

It takes several hours for the nutrients to be drawn into the soak water. Goji berries soaked in water overnight give your morning a healthy start. You can also put them in a water bottle that you carry with you (and keep adding water to the same bottle). Great for joggers.

For consuming warm, put them in a tea pot on a warming tray that maintains a heat under 113º and sip the warm tea. (Caution: Do not boil the water or cook the berries.) If you want to alter the flavor of this "tea," add some vanilla.

If you choose to eat the plump berries in your goji liquid, you’ll find them a pleasant surprise in the middle of a sip of water or tea.

Fasting and Cleansing

In future articles, I’ll write about fasting and cleansing. When doing either a fast or a cleanse, consider incorporating Goji berry soak water. Fasting or cleansing is a great way to move from a highly acidic diet to one which is more alkaline. During a fast or cleanse, strain the tea and only drink the soak water. I usually drink until there are only berries and sometimes I discard them.

Eating Goji Berries Dry

You can certainly eat them right out of the bag. However, if you have any sensitivity with that practice, just soak them for a while to soften them and activate the alkalinity. Likely they are just too acid for you if you get a tummy ache.

Once, a friend called me to say, "Yuck, I hate these. I don’t like the taste and they upset my stomach. I bought four bags, do you want them?" First, I assured her I’d take them off her hands. Then I made some of the suggestions you find here. She called the next day to say that she was no longer eager to get rid of them. She had fallen in love with the goji tea with a little snip of vanilla bean.

Bottled Goji Juice

There are products called "goji juice" in bottles, which I’m unlikely to purchase, as these would be processed, probably with heat or additional ingredients or preservatives. What is marketed as "goji juice" is different from this soak water. Buyer beware. Check the ingredients. Ask questions. Make the choices that are best for you.

Enjoy Goji Berries for a Very Long Time!

Goji berries are one of the most wonderful foods in nature. When you start incorporating them and other such superfood items in daily eating, craving for unnatural foods disappears. It’s so much more fun to eat wonderful foods you like than to be concerned with restricting yourself. Living a long life is only fun if you’re healthy.

To do this properly requires planning, as you need to soak the raw almonds for 24 hours. You’ll find multiple sources for raw, organic almonds on the left navigation bar.

Raw Almond Milk: 2 Servings
Ingredients 1/2 cup whole, raw, organic almonds ( no shells) 1 1/2 cups purified water (best water available) Sweetener, see choices below (optional) 1/4 tsp vanilla or dash of cinnamon (optional)
Equipment blender nut milk bag Directions 1. Soak the almonds in 2 cups water for 24 hours; rinse well, discard soak water. 2. Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. 3. Strain through a nut milk bag. You can use a nylon bag designed for this purpose, a hemp bag designed for sprouting, or a double layer of cheese cloth. 4. The liquid is the milk. The pulp has plenty of nutrition and uses.

Soaking the Almonds. Raw organic almonds are incredible food. The reason they have long shelf life is that they have a natural growth inhibitor on the outside. That is toxic — not deadly, but not pleasant, especially for sensitive individuals. The 24 hour soaking removes this. I usually change the soak water several times, just to remove the toxins. The almonds are now ready, or they can be left, drained but still wet, for several hours unrefrigerated or several days refrigerated.

Blending the Almonds. You can do this recipe in any blender, but you’ll have finer pulp in a high-speed blender.

Straining the Pulp. If you just want to experiment with making the Almond Milk, I suggest you use cheese cloth, as that is so easily accessible, even if potentially messier. I find the help sprouting bag is acceptable, but I don’t suggest you purchase one of this purpose. If you’re going to purchase anything, I recommend the nylon bag. Please note: a little more than "straining" is required. You must actually squeeze the bag or cheese cloth to get the most out of the blended almonds and water.

Flavoring the Milk. Almond Milk is wonderful straight without any sweetening or flavoring. To my taste, almonds are already sweet. Stevia and dates are often used as sweeteners for raw foodists. Cinnamon added to almond milk is awesome, with or without additional sweetener. Add hemp nut seed to it and you will be in ecstasy.

Using the Milk. That’s easy, drink it! I’ve created some yummy desserts using the almond milk as a base.

Chocolate Almond Milk. To the above, add raw cacao; you may need to adjust the sweetener. I also often add carob, which is a regular ingredient in my recipes.

Using the Pulp. If you love Almond Milk, you’ll want to be creative about using the pulp that’s left over. I’ve discovered or invented quite a number of uses for the pulp. Use the pulp in raw (or non raw) cookies or bread, Raw Food Energy Soup or any other soup, smoothies, or dehydrate it for later use. Dehydrated almond pulp adds an interesting texture to any of the recipes you might add fresh almond pulp.

Enjoy!
After a few times, you won’t need a recipe.