Buy Organic

Our potential exposure to chemicals can come from many different sources. The air we breathe, the things we put on our skin and in our hair, the water we drink, the food we eat, the clothes we wear, the building materials in our house, our furniture and list goes on and on. It's everywhere.

There's one thing we can do to limit our exposure. We can buy foods that are organic. I would add that organic is best combined with gmo-free. The Environmental Working Group has a great resource called the Shopper's Guide to Pesticides in Produce. This full list is worth looking at for more information.

The list includes the cleanest foods to buy that have the least residues and the worst foods that have the most residues. The idea is that you can make more informed choices about the produce you buy to choose more "clean" produce and less chemicals. This list is especially helpful if you can't find everything organic. There is a quick guide you can download here from their website.

I hope that you can use this list to help you make the best choices for your family. Children are more sensitive to these chemicals because they are smaller than adults and still actively growing. May we all benefit from healthy choices all through life! =)

Sarah's Raw Salsa

The last of the reader's contest entries that I haven't posted before. Enjoy.

Sarah's Raw Salsa

4 tomatoes, chopped
1 jalapeno pepper
1/2 onion
a few cloves of garlic
1/2 cup (or so) fresh cilantro.

Chop in a food processor or blender. Add salt and lime juice to taste. Sometimes I process the tomatoes separately from the rest of the veggies and puree them a little more. Sometimes I put them in all together and leave it a little more chunky. I typically leave the seeds in the pepper and use whole tomatoes. If you seed the pepper you might want more than one to achieve the desired spice level.

Donna's Great Raw Guacamole

Another great contest entry from a reader. Enjoy.

Donna's Great Raw Guacamole

3 ripe avocados, mashed
1 small onion, chopped very fine
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 T chopped fresh cilantro
½ t cumin
¼ t cayenne
¼ t sea salt
fresh juice of one lemon
1 diced Roma tomato (optional garnish)

Mix together, chill for 20 to 30 minutes and serve. Great served with raw veggie sticks!

Lisa's Raw "Ranch" Dressing

Another really yummy raw idea from a reader's contest entry. Enjoy.

Lisa's "Ranch" Dressing

1 cucumber-diced
1/2 lemon-juiced
1/2 cup oil
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp parsley
1/2 tsp dill
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp garlic powder

Blend in blender until combined and refrigerate for 1/2 hour before using. Tastes just like ranch dressing without dairy or mayo.

Kristi's Raw Green Energy Drink

Another reader's contest entry. Enjoy.

Kristi's Raw Green Energy Drink

1 cup cucumber juice
1/2 cup kale juice
1/2 cup celery juice
dash of lime juice

(Blog author note: this requires the use of a juicer that can handle leafy greens.)

Tiffani's Raw Herb Stuffed Mushrooms

Another (really yummy and creative idea) reader's contest entry. Enjoy.

Tiffani's Raw Herb Stuffed Mushrooms

1/2 cup raw cashews
1/2 cup soaked sunflower seeds
1/2 cup pecans
1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1/4 cup chopped mushroom stems
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/3 red pepper
2 green onions
1 tsp Herbs de Provence
1/2 tsp minced garlic
1 tbs lemon juice
3 sundried tomatoes, rehydrated
1/2 tsp sea salt
2 packages button mushrooms
olive oil for brushing mushrooms

Preparation: De-stem and clean mushrooms. Brush with olive oil. Set aside. Process nuts and coconut together until light and almost fluffy. Do not over process. Add remaining ingredients and pulse chop until well blended. Stuff mushroom caps. Eat or dehydrate for 2-4 hours at 115F.

Zelda's Raw Carrot Cashew Dip

Today I am visiting my reader's comments and sharing with you some entries from my contest I had last December. Enjoy.

Zelda's Raw Carrot Cashew Dip

PLEASE NOTE all measurements are approximate.

1 1/2 cups chopped raw carrots
1 cup raw cashews
large handful fresh parsley
1/2 cup chopped raw organic broccoli (organic tastes different than non-organic)
1 clove garlic
1-2 in piece of fresh ginger root
juice from 1/2 organic lime (organic tastes different)
sea salt to taste
black peppercorns to taste
slight amount of spring water if needed for desired consistency
green onions chopped for garnish

Place all ingredients except green onions in blender and blend. Enjoy with whatever you typically "dip". For me, it's veggies since I'm gluten free.

(Blog author note: it helps to have a powerful blender for this dip.)