Blendtec Blender Contest - Hilarious Winner Announced :)

OoOOoooo lala, we had SUCH an impressive response to last month's RawReform Giveaway Contest to win a Blendtec Blender. THANK YOU so much to all of you who sent in your video entries...
We asked you to send in a video of no longer than 3 minutes, telling us why you want to win a Blendtec aaaaaaaand getting us gigglin' at the same time ;) We had some hilarious video entries and in this video below you can check out some of the submissions PLUS, see the outrageous WINNING entry...I literally cry with laughter every time I see this winning video - I hope you all enjoy it too :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lAmhbVQVxpA

You can check out the original of that winning entry HERE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=utRo1c1OU9k - I recommend reading the words in the side bar on the right while you watch it, to help make more sense of it - I LOVE it ;)

...aaaaaaaaaaand...we had SO much fun with this contest that we decided to do it all over again :)
This time, please send in your most creative and amusing video entry of no more than 3 minutes in length, telling us why YOU would love to receive a shiny new Blend-Tec :) You can send your entries in to angela@rawreform.com (we recommend you upload your video to YouTube and send us the link) before December the 1st, to be in with a chance of winning...

THANKS again to all of you who sent in your videos and we look forward to seeing the next round of submissions :)

on November the 8th I enjoyed:

1 quart water
30 chlorella 'nuts'
2 cups greeeeen juice: celery, cucumber, spinach, parsley, lemon, ginger
mixed raw salad selection from the deli at Greenlife store in Asheville, followed by a handful of grawnola
1 quart water
20 chlorella nuts
2 persimmons, samples of kamut and goji berry powders
mug of chaga tea
3 cups water

If you're in the LA area this weekend and would love to learn some yummy Holiday Raw Recipes, Ms. 'Foxy' Laura Fox has some treats in store for you ;)
Join the lovely Foxy to learn how to make Brazil Nut "Turkless" Turkey, Olive-Pine Nut Gravy, Sweet Potato Casserole, Fresh Cranberry Relish, Smashed Notatos, Raw Stuffing Balls and Raw Apple Pie with Whipped Kream - WOH ;O - sounds to me like a fabulous gourmet raw foodie solution to raw holiday tension... ;)
The class is this Saturday, November 14th, from noon to 3:30pm in Marina del Rey. To book your space, you can email laura@visionaryculture.com or go to the EVENTS page at www.VisionaryCulture.com - enjoy :)

on November the 9th I loved:

1 quart water
mug of chaga tea
2 cups greeeeen juice: celery, cucumber, fennel, spinach, parsley, Jerusalem artichoke, ginger, lemon
bowl of energy soup with yummmmmy cumin crackers, followed by a little apple cobbler with cashew cream – yummmm :)
3 cups water
an apple, a persimmon and a pomegranate – YUMMM :)
2 cups water

...and if you're in the UK and looking for 'gourmet' raw treats on the hop, check out the gorgeous new line from the yumsters at GourmetRaw.com - they've just launched a beautiful range of raw brownies and 'flackers' (i.e. flax crackers, LOVE the name ;) which are set to get stocked up soon on health food shop shelves all over the UK...
I am excited to see this, as I've long felt there was a gap in the market in the UK for SAVOURY raw items to 'grab and go' at health stores - it seems like there's tonnes of raw chocolates there and not much savoury stuff, so...HURRAY for this new line ;)
You can check out the products at GourmetRaw.com and you can also suggest a health food store where you would love to get these new gems, HERE.

All blissings,
Angela Stokes-Monarch, MA. xxx

Ten Ways to Help Get Raw Food Into Reluctant People ;)

Here below is a fun little article I recently sent out in my newsletter that I thought y'all might enjoy here too...if you're not on my main RawReform newsletter list yet, you can sign up for that HERE...
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Ten Ways to Help Get Raw Food Into Reluctant People

Many of us experience challenges trying to help others to eat more healthily. Well, despair ye no longer, help is at hand... ;) Here are ten top tips for helping reluctant people eat more raw...

1. DESSERTS ;) Almost everyone loves desserts...You don't need to even tell anyone the dessert is raw - just put out a gorgeous raw cake or pie and watch everyone enjoy it. A fabulous tip is to add Irish Moss to the recipe as a thickening agent - that way you're also renegading minerals into them at the same time ;)

2. Gourmet Treats - people are often afraid that raw food will be 'boring'. Surprise your loved ones by learning a few special 'gourmet' raw dishes that will help make the food seem more familiar to them. Raw Pizza, Lasagna, Burgers and other dense, filling 'mock' dishes are great bridges into a raw lifestyle.

3. "Slowly, Slowly, Catch A Monkey" - trying to force other people around you to become raw very rarely seems to have positive, lasting results. A much more effective strategy seems to involve slowly, gently and consistently introducing new foods/recipes over time - slowly, slowly, respectfully allow each person's path to unfold at their own pace.


on October the 18th I enjoyed:

1 quart water
little cup of green smoothie and a little cup of goji juice blended with Marine Phytoplankton and Camu Powder
bowl of energy soup with some of my hand–pickled veggies and a few dehydrated onion crisps on the side, followed by a delicious little hand–blended yumpot
3 cups water
2 glasses of green juice
bowl of lemongrass/coconut soup followed by a little bowl of rawnola with almond milk :)
2 cups water


on October the 19th I loved:

1 quart water
3 cups greeeeeeeen juice: celery, dill, parsley, mixed sprouts
2 Tbsp bee pollen
2 cups energy soup with pickled veggies and spiced seeds on the side, followed by a delicious little hand–blended yumpot
3 cups water
3 cups goji juice blended with Marine Phytoplankton, Etherium Gold and Merlin's Elixir
bowl of Lydia's grawnola with homemade spicy–sweet almond milk ;)
3 cups water


4. Food Gathering - take your loved ones out to pick fruits or forage in the wild. Reconnecting to nature in this way can be thoroughly energising, inspiring and enjoyable, plus helps in understanding experientially where food comes from...

5. Sprout/Grow Food - ask your loved ones (especially children), if they'd love to help you with sprouting in the kitchen or growing food. When people are involved in growing their own food, there is a stronger connection to the produce and you might find they are more excited to eat the harvest ;)

6. Small Portions - if you're offering something raw that you sense will be perceived as 'odd' by your loved ones, try offering only small amounts at first. With my parents for example, I offer shotglasses of green juice and describe it as 'medicine' - they are willing to grimace and knock this back, whereas a big glass might be off-putting to them.


on October the 20th I adored:

1 quart water
2 cups goji juice with Marine Phytoplankton, Merlin's Elixir and Etherium Gold
bowl of chia pudding with homemade spicy–sweet almond milk, incan berries and chunks of freeze–dried durian
1 quart water
2 cups greeeeen juice: celery, cucumber, parsley, ginger, lemon
amazing gourmet raw food platter from the chefs at Café Life in Atlanta: raw quesadillas, sweet potato cannelloni, pumpkin pie – WOW ;)
2 Tbsp spirulina crunchies, 1 Tbsp bee pollen
3 cups water


on October the 21st I loved:

1 quart water
2 cups greeeeeeen juice
gourmet creation leftovers from Café Life in Atlanta: sweet potato cannelloni, raw 'samdwich', pear baklava – all outrageously yummy ;)
3 cups water
2 cups goji juice blended with Marine Phytoplankton, Merlin's Elixir and Etherium products
2 Tbsp bee pollen, ½ pack Noniland coconut crisps
1 quart water


7. Food Prep - asking your loved ones to assist in raw food prep can be a great way to get them more involved - especially children. Make it clear that by helping they are not then obliged to eat the food, though they are welcome to eat some if they'd like to ;)

8. Educational Resources - if you have inspiring raw food books, DVDs, magazines or other resources, it can be useful to leave them OUT where other people can see them and may casually dip into them, rather than packing them away out of sight.

9. Abundance - do your best to have an abundant range of raw goodies available on display for loved ones to feast on at their will. A flowing fruit basket, a stack of raw snack bars, a cookie jar packed with dehydrated fruity roll-ups, or an ice-lolly rack in the freezer of frozen raw treats can all go a long way to help making healthier treats easily accessible to the reluctant ;)

10. Shine On :) Be a shining, glowing, positive example of the raw food lifestyle, allowing others to simply observe the shifts in your life, without trying to push anything onto them. BE the change and let others follow along the path at their own pace if they'd like to, as your beaming health and radiance becomes an irresistible beacon to them ;)

I hope that helps some of you out there..

ENJOYYYYY :)


All love,
Angela. xxx

Raw Wedding Feasts ;)

I am working away on editing the upcoming Raw Union Wedding Feast Recipe Book right now – it's going GREAT, with around 20 yummy recipes from Solla and Chaya to enjoy, plus lots of pretty pictures :) My favourite collection of Raw Union pictures that I've seen online so far are from 'AndyPDX' on Flickr – WOW, this collection is definitely worth checking out – 91 beautiful shots – see HERE.

THANKS, Andy :)
We aim to have the wedding feast ebook ready for y'all in the next couple of days – stay tuned for updates ;) Also, if you have any Raw Union wedding/festie pics you'd LOVE to share with us, please feel free to send them/a link to them, to: angela@rawreform.com - we'd love to check out more pics :)


on June the 25th I had:

1 quart water
2.5 cups coconut water with Greener Grasses
½ cup greeeeen veggie juice
bowl of chia pudding with cardamom almond milk, slice of our wedding cake, 5 fresh figs – yummmm :)
1 quart water
plate of greeeeeen herby salad with tomatoes, dulse and tahini dressing, followed by a slice of wedding cake
1 quart water


Angel's Farm also put up a very sweet page today with pics and text from the Raw Union festie – see HERE.

…and have you been keeping up to date with Raw Union videos from Mr. M? He's up to video 5 of 8 today I think, from the wedding celebrations...here are the wedding vids from him so far:

*The Raw Union Wedding
*The Raw Union Ceremony
*The Raw Union Ceremony (part 2)
*Best Man's Speech
*Groom's Speech


on June the 26th I had:

1 quart water
2 cups greeeeen juice: celery, cucumber, spinach, parsley
2 cups greeeen juice: celery, cucumber, fennel, romaine, parsley, lime, ginger
2 cups water
2 Tbsp bee pollen
2 cups greeeen juice: celery, cucumber, fennel, romaine, parsley, lime, ginger
25 chlorella 'nuts'
2 cups 2 cups greeeen juice: celery, cucumber, fennel, romaine, parsley, lime, ginger
2 cups coconut water with Greener Grasses powder
1 quart watermelon juice
3 cups water


on June the 27th I had:

1 quart water
2 cups greeeen juice: celery, cucumber, romaine, mixed greens, parsley, lime, ginger
25 chlorella 'nuts'
2 cups coconut water with Greener Grasses
1 Tbsp bee pollen
2 cups veggie juice: celery, spinach, carrot, parsley
2 cups water
1.5 cups greeeen juice, glass of electrolyte powder in water
30 chlorella nuts
1.5 quarts watermelon juice
2 cups water

As for Mr. M and I, all the rich, gourmet wedding foods were more than enough for our 'sensitive' systems and we're both now enjoying very simple intakes in contrast ;) I am currently 2 days into a 3 day Juice Feast and Mr. M is absolutely THRILLED to be on a fig 'fast'...yes, figs are in season here in California, they are Mr. M's favourite fruit and he is looooooooving it ;)

All love and simplicity,
Ms. Sto–Mo. xxx