Raw 'Cook'books

Madame Fromage has requested a list of my favorite raw 'cook'books. Here they are in no particular order;

1) Raw Food Made Easy for 1 or 2 People by Jennifer Cornbleet - Jennifer has easy to follow recipes that are perfect for a couple, they don't make a lot of food but if you love something and want to share then you can easily double the recipe. Jennifer also has modifications for many recipes so you can enjoy variations on a dish and discover your own favorite.

2) Victoria Beutenko is a raw food activist who healed her entire family of sickness (including her son's diabetes) through a raw food diet. Her first book "12 steps to Going Raw" is not really a cookbook but it has great insight into the reasons to adopt a raw food lifestyle, or at least incorporate more raw foods into your diet. Her book "Green For Life" explores the health benefits of drinking a quart of green smoothies everyday and lists many recipes.

3) Living on Live Food by Alissa Cohen - Alissa has more complex recipes for the more adventurous, such as raw ravioli and raw lasagna, but all are yummy and very satisfying. We went to her restaurant Grezzo in Boston over the weekend. I'll write about that visit soon.

4) The Art of Raw Living by Jenny Ross - Jenny is the Owner/Chef of 118 degrees in Costa Mesa, CA. It is by far our favorite raw food restaurant that we have yet visited. Her recipes run the gamut from appetizers through desserts so you could do a three or four course meal completely raw. And her ice cream recipes do not need an ice cream maker. But I highly recommend that if you love ice cream your own maker would be well worth the investment.

5) Vice Creams by by Jeff Rogers is a raw and vegan ice cream book. No dairy in any of these recipes and of course most are raw and yummy. And you will need an ice cream maker for these. One thing about raw ice cream. It will not freeze the same as regular ice cream, no preservatives or chemicals to maintain its consistency. If you don't eat all of it when it's made and want to save it that's fine, just take it from the freezer about 15 minutes before you want to serve, this will allow it to thaw so as to be more easily scooped.

6) The Raw 50 by Carol Alt - Yes, I know, another celebrity fad diet book. NO! Carol has been a raw foodist for many years and believes in the benefits of a raw food lifestyle. The book helps you outfit your kitchen and your pantry to embark on a raw food adventure. The recipes are easy and fun to follow, perfect for raw beginners.

7) Raw Foods for Busy People by Jordan Maerin - Exactly what it sounds like. A Raw food cookbook for most of us. Busy lives mean coffee and bagels, drive thru's and microwaves. But this book gets you started on raw foods that will fit into your on the go schedule.

For further reading; The China Study by T. Colin Campbell PhD and Thomas M. Campbell - The most comprehensive study of the Standard American Diet and it's health ramifications for all of us. We are all slowly committing suicide with the food we eat. This book explains why. I also recommend books by Matt Monarch one of the most active lecturers on the raw food circuit and his wife Angela Stokes-Monarch. Angela lost over 160 pounds by going raw and was featured on CNN in a story about the raw food movement.
I hope these help.

Enjoy and Be Healthy