Hello and welcome to my new #SemiRawVegan blog!
I was inspired to try a raw vegan diet in July 2014, after watching a video of 3 women in their 70s on the Steve Harvey Show. I decided that it was worth taking better care of myself, and since I've always loved vegetables, I figured it would be easy. And it is! I immediately did some research on what I should put in my shakes, found a great blender, and started experimenting with recipes. Once I got the knack, I started sharing my ideas with family and friends, even posting photos on my Pinterest and Instagram boards.I started this blog because I was receiving so many testimonials from family and friends telling me how much weight they lost after trying my shake and soup recipes. Given that I'm a full time musician, working on my album, and spending my days practicing 6-8 hours per day, I will make an attempt to catalog my recipes in a more organized way. My grandmother, Mary Pulliam, was an intuitive cook. I don't remember ever seeing her measure anything. I'm just like her. I use my intuition, my eye and my cooking experience to determine ingredients, quantities and seasonings. Luckily, I'm generally spot on. But of course, that method doesn't work for everyone!
I enjoy my meals, never feel deprived and feel fantastic...and that's only after a few months of making and consuming #SemiRawVegan meals.
My Semi Raw Vegan Mantra:
Raw Vegan for Breakfast and Dinner each day.
For lunch, I have whatever I crave.
Granted, after a lifetime of healthy food choices, my cravings are rarely "unhealthy", but still...I never experience deprivation at the end of the day. And I'm never left feeling hungry. When my 14 year old, 230 lb football player / wrestler nephew visited me, I fed him #SemiRawVegan meals. And even HE wasn't hungry after meals. Pretty impressive, non?
Backstory
I'm a professional musician, I have several degrees in classical piano, graduated from Oberlin and Stanford (with added study at UC Berkeley and Mills), I've toured the world with Stevie Wonder, was the keyboardist/singer on the new Arsenio Hall Show and am working on my first album. I'm also an exuberant (if not professional) dancer, yogi, polyglot, programmer, aspiring polymath and all around proud NERD!
As a kid, I was a weirdo. I loved brussels sprouts and spinach and broccoli. I hated most meat. I would literally cry if someone insisted that I eat beef roast. My entire family thought I was crazy. When I turned 13, my mother finally allowed me to make my own food choices. That year, I stopped eating candy, fast food, junk food, soda, red meat, fried food and milk. I never liked any of it (told you I was a weirdo). Of course, that's in general. Did I ever eat pizza again? Of course. Have I had fast food french fries? Of course, but I can't remember the last time. After all, those fries taste awful once you try fries that you toss in olive oil with fresh garlic, fresh ground black pepper, red pepper flakes, oregano/sage/thyme/rosemary and bake in a 375° oven until crisp...yummy!
By the time I became an adult, I had lost all cravings for junk food, and have never experienced the weight gain that goes along with the habit of consuming empty calories. I enjoy being healthy, strong and fit. Note I didn't say SKINNY. I work hard to not be "skinny" in the unhealthy sense of the word. Furthermore, weight loss has never been my goal. Optimal health is and always has been my primary goal. I'm a strong advocate for body acceptance and abhor body shaming, whether someone is big or small. Love yourself, regardless of your size, and do all you can to reach optimal health.
I tried being a vegan in college, but rice cakes and peanut butter weren't exactly a balanced meal. Now that I'm older, I did better research and came up with what seems to be a good knowledge base for making healthy meals that taste great.
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Recipes coming soon!!
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