Ready for a Cleanse? The Simplest Detox...with Activated Charcoal

"New Year, New You" - right?  Or so they say! :)

How many times have you seen a New Year Resolutions list with "detox", "cleanse", "healthier eating", "diet", "healthier lifestyle", etc. on it?  Pretty much every year, right?  And they probably appear on our own lists every year as well.  WHY?  Because we all know that we could do better no matter what kind of diet we are following and what kind of lifestyle we are living.

I'm there with you!

1 - I haven't been sleeping much...due to way too much work.
2 - I haven't been doing yoga...due to way too much work.

I need to make some serious (while keeping it fun ;) ) changes in those departments! *sigh*

Most of us are bombarded with stress, pollution from every direction...contaminants in food, water and the air we breathe, and most likely lacking sleep or at least quality sleep, as well as enough movement (exercise)...which adds to the problem by not letting us rejuvenate as best as we could.

So what do we do? The best we can...which involves daily / periodic / seasonal cleansing in my world.

Of course, cleansing and detoxification can mean completely different things to two different people....and they SHOULD!  But the simplest things are available to everyone and are doable for everyone....regardless of what types of kitchen equipment you have available or how much time you have on your hands to commit to this.

One of the simplest things that takes seconds from your day is adding Activated Charcoal Powder to your juice and you're done!

What does activated charcoal do for you? Well, it can do many things...in fact, the list is so long that there is no way I could cover it here.

But to give you an idea and share a few:

Activated Charcoal is neither absorbed nor metabolized by the body. It simply helps to Eliminate the Body of:
-Toxins
-Heavy Metals
-Pesticides
-Parasites
-Plaque and stains on teeth (it whitens teeth)
-Nicotine / Alcohol
-Chlorine etc. in water (hence, used as a water filter)
-(Lowers) Cholesterol
-(prevent or eliminate)Hangover --- a great thing right now, after the holidays, if you have some on hand!
-Flu Symptoms
-Bloating/Flatulence/Colic
-Stomach / Bowel Problems
-Bali Belly (traveler's upset stomach)
-Liver / Kidney Problems
-Heart Burn
-Nausea / Vomiting
-Insect Bites & Stings
-Candida / Thrush / UTI
-Mouth Ulcers/Cold Sores
-Cuts / Infections
-Eye Infections
-Skin Irritations
-Acne
-Cysts / Ulcers / Abscess
-Arthritis
-Neutralizes Odors (put some charcoal powder in a sachet and place wherever odors need to be eliminated - shoes, fridge, etc.)
-Impurities in Water (it's a water purification substance)
-Bad Breath
....and the list goes on.

So let's start with how to take advantage of it?!  Today I'll share my favorite charcoal drinks and I'll share other uses and tips in follow-up posts....fair enough?

The quickest way to take some charcoal is by mixing a teaspoon of the powder with a glass of water and drink it up.  That's it. But not everyone likes such a "drink".
I only use Food Grade Activated Charcoal by Schizandu Organics (which you can find at least two places online...on the Schizandu website and on Amazon)

This charcoal is 100% pure, additive-free, food grade, and tasteless and odorless and it's a very fine dust-like powder....specially-milled to blend well.  On top of that, you get a HUGE jar - enough to last you numerous 2-week detoxes, and you get an eBook with it too with all kinds of cool info about how you can use this jar of almost diamond dust :)

Here's what I do with it to make it a delicious black lemonade experience:

Black Detox Lemonade

(serves 1)

1 large glass of pure water

1 lemon (use the juice of it only)

1 tsp food grade activated charcoal powder

1 tsp maple syrup / honey / coconut sugar / your choice of sweetener

Drink this whenever you feel like cleansing is a good idea.  Some take it every day.  That is fine too. But be sure to take it about 1-2 hours away from medications and birth-control pills, etc.  Some say charcoal could even carry those out of the system, given it's such an excellent detoxify and used in hospitals to save lives when someone has overdosed or poisoned themselves.

Of course, you can add a teaspoon of the charcoal powder to any juice as well.  Even better, make your own. I love this combination:

Activated Charcoal Detox Juice

(serves 1-2)

Juice of 5-8 celery stalks

Juice of 1-2 apples

Juice of 1-2 lemons

Juice of a thumb-walnut size ginger root (depends on how spicy you like it)

1-2 tsp food grade activated charcoal powder

And here's a detox shot....it comes to your rescue if you ever have a stomach bug / upset stomach / hangover:

Activated Charcoal Cleanse Gut Shot

(serves 1)

Juice of ½ apple

Juice of piece of ginger root

Juice of piece of turmeric root

1 tsp food grade activated charcoal powder

These are my favorites but you can certainly come up with other favorite recipes and I'm sure you will! :)

Pretty easy, right?

You can thank me later!  Happy cleansing and Happy New Year.....new chances for a new YOU! :)


♥

Dita
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Lineup of Juices

Alright, as I've promised, here are some juice combinations I like. These are all very cleansing and each one is a power shot in itself, an immune system booster, a multivitamin, and so forth. Real vitamins don't come in pill form, flu-shots are what they are (I won't get into that here) and these are cupfuls of nutrition that will easily replace and surpass whatever any of the well-advertised "other" products promise to give your body. SO get the juicer out of your cabinet and get peeling, chopping, and squeeze some juice out of whatever produce you have, or try some of these:

Here's one of my absolute favorite ones. I love pineapple in every form, mainly freshly cut up and consumed immediately but it's quite the winner juiced too. One thing to keep in mind: the enzymes in the pineapple will start breaking down the protein in the greens so you might want to drink this juice right after you made it. Hmm, this is so yummy. Enjoy!

The Sweet Bright & Green 

1 cucumber

2 inch thick slice of a pineapple

piece of ginger

few leaves of greens

Next, a savory one that I love so much, especially after drinking a lot of sweet juice:
It can get pretty boring and sometimes I feel I "need" salt and something savory....that's when I make this, serve it in a bowl, and eat it like soup instead of drinking it.

Savory Savior Amidst The Sweets

1 fat carrot

1 large tomato/several cherry tomatoes

5-6 stalks celery

1 cucumber

2-3 cloves garlic

1/2 cayenne pepper (or add some ground cayenne powder)

optional: 2-3 leaves romaine lettuce, salt

This one is a wonderful liver cleanser. The burdock root is very earthy and, in a way, almost spicy. It has a very distinct taste that doesn't really resemble anything. I like it, sometimes even crave it, ok, not crave it but you know, I really feel like it, or wait, is that the same thing? I don't know :) Anyway, if it's new to you start with a smaller piece and see if you like it:

Earthy Liver Cleanser 

1 lemon (with no peel)

1-2 oranges (with no peel)

1-2 leaves collard greens

3-4 stalks celery

1/2 cucumber

1 small burdock root

piece of ginger

Similarly, just by replacing the burdock root with a small carrot you'll get a somewhat less bright green but sweeter juice, which you might prefer:

Citrus With Greens and Roots

1-2 oranges (with no peel)

1 lemon (with no peel)

1-2 leaves collard greens

3-4 stalks celery

1/2 cucumber

1 small carrot

piece of ginger

Enjoy! Ah, the beauty of creating delicious combinations... Happy Juicing! : )
Love.

Just Beet It!

What have I been up to lately? Lots of things. Some of them are a surprise for now but I'll be sharing with you all in the upcoming posts, promise. First off, I started juicing more so I'll be taking notes of my favorite combinations for you. Here's the first one:

I wasn't targeting a liver cleanse or doing a detox at all, it just so happens that the ingredients combined here could be used for the housekeeping of this precious organ.

The Earthy Liver Cleanser

(Serves 1)

5 stalks celery

1 cucumber (or use a half and add 1 green apple)

1 peeled lemon

1 small beet

1 in (~2.5 cm) piece ginger root

2 leaves of kale (or other dark green leaves like dandelion, which is especially good for liver cleansing)

Feed them through your juicer and drink it up.

Fruits and vegetables to juice for a liver cleanse: dandelion leaves, lemon, burdock root, carrot, beets, apples, garlic, turmeric root, etc.

Happy Juicing! : )

Refresh

I dare you to not love this! It might sound like an odd combination but I've been making this for a week now and I can't get tired of it. There's something good in everything bad for sure because I didn't even touch my juicer for months until now, after going through oral surgery (ouch). I will not get into the details of what a nightmare it was to feel the effects of anesthesia. I wanted to make sure I rid my body of the drugs as quickly as possible but I don't think I did enough of anything special except for eating mainly raw and sticking with this juice. High concentrations of vitamins A and C are great for helping your wound heal and of course you will need all the vitamins and minerals you can get even more so after going through any kind of medical procedure. By the way, there are tons of things you can do to help eliminate the parabens (in drugs) and whatever else your body was exposed to. This is not a recipe for detox after anesthesia/surgery though. I'm just sharing because it's so yummy. So drink up....Enjoy!

"Refresh"Ingredients

1 grapefruit (peeled)

1 apple

1 cucumber

5-6 stalks of celery

piece of ginger

I wish I had wheatgrass to add to this but I do not have a wheatgrass cranker yet. 

Put all the fruits and veggies through a juicer and drink immediately or, if you must take it with you to work/school, etc. like I did, then try to fill up a bottle all the way. You can even make it the night before this way and as long as you do not leave much space for air in there your juice will not oxidize much. A great way to start your day with an anti-inflammatory breakfast, or pre-breakfast : )

Pre-Flight Checklist and Last Minute Snacks

How does a raw foodie travel? Good question! I have a lot of experience traveling as a vegan macrobiotic but this will be the first time I’m leaving the country as a raw vegan! For over a decade my suitcase has been half full of my specialty foods…I always thought, better to be safe than sorry! But the truth is, the last couple of times I didn’t even have to reach for my food stash. Have you noticed how health conscious the world’s becoming? Wherever I go there are more and more vegetarian and vegan restaurants and it doesn’t stop there. I’ve already researched the availability of raw restaurants in some of the places I’m about to visit and there’s not a single town that doesn’t have an organic market and/or an organic raw restaurant! Does this mean I’m skipping the food pack this time? Absolutely not! Here’s what I’ve put together for “Just in case” and we’ll see what happens. : )

I’m taking along:
Raw granola
Brazil nut protein
Hemp seeds
Chia seeds
Spirulina
Maca
Cinnamon
Himalayan salt
Kelp
Coconut oil
Coconut butter
Cacao butter
Pecan butter
Tahini

I would really love to hear what you’re taking along when you travel so please let me know!

I still had lots of fruit sand veggies to use up before leaving and the easiest way was to come up with blended combinations. Raw foodies are pretty famous for blending so much of their food but I hardly ever do more than a blended breakfast. The other day I meant to make a smoothie but ended up with a pudding. It was so delicious that I made it again and named it tropical superfood…

Tropical Superfood Pudding
(Serves 1 for a meal or 4 for a snack. Makes 4 cups)
Blend the following ingredients till smooth and creamy:
1 large mango
1 kiwi
2 large bananas
2-3 brazil nuts
1 tbsp ground flax seeds
1 tbsp hemp protein
1 tbsp hemp seeds
½ tsp maca
¼ tsp spirulina
½-1 tsp cinnamon
pinch of salt
¾ -1 cup water*

* if you put too much you’ll end up with a drink, which is fine too, it makes a delicious smoothie

Next up I have one of my old favorites.

Carrot-Apple-Ginger Juice
I just love this combo! As a matter of fact, it used to be my favorite juice but today I found it too sweet probably because I’ve been living on fruit and juices…kind of tired of it, to be honest. Anyway, if you have a sweet tooth and enjoy spicy stuff you’ll love this!
Juice some carrots, apple and a piece of ginger. The exact amounts I used for just this small glass were:
6 medium carrots
1 medium apple
smaller than an inch piece of ginger

Aahhh so sweet and satisfying!

Health Note on Carrots
My mom had a friend who was born nearly blind. I met this person when he was in his 40’s and he hated carrot juice and carrots in general. The reason? He was fed so much of the orange roots while growing up (in hopes of improving his eyesight) that he couldn’t even look at them anymore. Guess what though! While he was never allowed to get a driver’s license, he was a fully functioning man who didn’t rely on anyone and he had the thickest glasses I’ve ever seen in my life but he could SEE!!!
So eat/drink your carrots!

I’m leaving you with some pix I took the other day at the Santa Monica beach….I love seagulls : )

Ready for takeoff…

My next post will be from Barcelona! I’m so excited to see my sister!

Cucumber Cooler

I’ve been preparing to go to Europe and running last minute errands also means going even simpler in the kitchen. There are quite a few things in my fridge I need to use up tomorrow still and today I reached for cucumbers and gravenstein apples, hmmmm, I love those! I’m not even a big juicer but juicing definitely has its place. They’re great for quick nourishment, for staying hydrated, or for using up leftover produce like I just did, hehe : )

 

It only took three ingredients and one minute to throw together and I ended up with a very refreshing drink. The cucumber will keep you hydrated, the apple is a very good cleanser and adds sweetness, the ginger is there for a kick….what can I say, I love spice added to everything! Ginger has anti-inflammatory properties, which means it’s effective in reducing discomfort due to arthritis. It’s also known as a digestive aid and it stimulates circulation. Being a warming herb, ginger root is commonly brewed for tea and used to beat colds. As if I needed all these reasons to use some…. I just love ginger!

Cucumber Cooler
Juice the following ingredients:
1 medium cucumber
1 medium apple
1 inch piece of ginger (might be too much so start with less!)

Drink up!

Simple, hydrating, spicy, cool as a cucumber...

Mojito Monday

Is the heat getting to you? Here’s one healthy way to cool off. Two ingredients + five minutes of your time = a refreshing drink that’s loaded with vitamins.

All melons are excellent choices to keep you hydrated in the summer. For this recipe, let’s look at the health benefits of honeydews. Their green flesh is loaded with vitamin C, and is a good source of folate, vitamin B6, and potassium….in other words, it has antioxidants that will boost your immune system, protect you from free radicals and certain types of cancer, it can help prevent heart disease, it’s an especially good snack during pregnancy, and it can help regulate blood pressure. Of course, the nutrition facts are not the reason you’ll make this...

Mojito Recipe
Ingredients:
(Makes 2 pints, ~1 liter)
1 honeydew melon
a handful of fresh mint
agave syrup/honey (not vegan)/your favorite sweetener (optional)

Directions:
Cut the melon in half, remove the seeds, then peel it. Put it through a juicer along with the mint. Add some sweetener (if desired), pour into glasses, garnish with fresh herbs. That’s it!

You may serve it on the rocks and/or add a squirt of lime juice for a kick as well.