The Rawking Bay Area ~ Two Events In A Week!

...Yep, there's no shortage of them and lately, I'm trying to make it to as many as I possibly can.
I started with a party titled "Chocolate Love Affair" that took place in Berkeley. This was an all raw event that's put on annually around Valentine's Day and it consists of recipe demos by chocolatiers, samples of all kinds of products made of cacao, treats and samples by local vendors, etc. and is attended by many chocolate lovers, local raw chefs and other well known, public figures in the raw food community.

Upon entering, you were greeted by chocolate samples at the door, then you found yourself in a room full of different kinds of chocolates by a variety of companies. You could taste all you wanted and they were also available at a special price to take home with you. There was even a chocolate fountain set up with strawberries underneath. How often do you see something like that, let alone get to dip into it?

The middle room had an elexir bar with superfood chocolate samples and incredibly nourishing smoothies made to order. Needless to say, the space was filled with people asking questions, tasting, buying products. I wonder how many (if any) of them were following a fully raw diet / lifestyle? These kinds of events are invaluable when it comes to introducing the health conscious crowds to something they might not be familiar with. And all the information, even most of the food, is available at no cost, so anyone can learn and taste. You even get to meet people you might have only seen on your computer screen before or maybe read their books, but it's rare that you see them in person.
David Wolfe, Blessings, and others were there and some of them I only met for the first time too. What a night! I feel so lucky to have been part of it. : ) Can't wait till next year's party!

It's an event you'll walk away from with loads of information, unparalleled experiences and conversations with very interesting people, and a chocolate high (no kidding!). Were you there? If not, you better make it next time!

Few days later the San Francisco Vegetarian Society put on a Valentine's Day party. Again, it was my first time meeting people in that group but this time I even got to prepare some of the food because most of the food served was raw vegan...yay!
We made numerous dishes such as "pasta" marinara, patė, pesto, guacamole, fruit salads, strawberry cake, and many more... Look at all the gorgeous food:

Some of the items on the menu are shown above, from the top left corner to the bottom right:

Greek Salad

Sunflower Seed Patė 

Lettuce & tomatos for Tacos

Hummus-Filled Bell Pepper Boats

Pomegranate Seeds

Guacamole

Walnut "Parmesan Cheese"

Apple-Pecan Cobbler

Strawberry "Love" Cake

Zucchini Pasta

Papaya Salad

my plate with some of the many yummy dishes

"just" Oranges 

Again, if you have a chance to go to one of these parties you'll meet a lot of health-conscious people and many of them are interested, or at least heard about, raw foods too. I'm so glad I've made it and I'm thrilled that I had the opportunity to prepare some of the food to feed the exciting crowd!
The society has been around for decades and it looks like it will be around for many more. They put on parties and different kinds of events so come join us if you can..I sure will, as often as I can make it :)

Love.