My Working Holiday today in Palawan, in the Phillippines - Hula Hula

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Filming at Rawlicious - Day 2

What a day! We were scheduled to film at Rawlicious again today and got a call that the power was out. So much happened today and so many changed plans, it is mercury retrograde right now! ..but we just flowed through it. At one point we were ready to just give in to it, take off, go watch a matinee and hang out downtown ..but power got restored and we packed up and off we went to film once again.

Although the afternoon off sounded great, I was glad we ended up going in, and especially that there was power and Angus and Tracy and the kids weren't cold or without power.. but also, I had spent yesterday prepping, making pizza crust ahead of time, getting the fermented almond cheeze started, and we had bought so much food!

So, I will take a raincheck, or in our case a snowcheck on the movie and outing.. although for my next few days off (or month of days off) I am scheduled to do more filming, it looks like we are working on a series.. all the really good, basic, and easy recipes that are great to know if you want to go raw. I feel this is a really important project which will be very helpful to so many people.

My director, James, took some pictures ; ) which I am posting here.
Today we covered recipes for lots of sauces: Tomato Marinara, Basil Pesto and Alfredo Sauce and a couple nut cheezes, a fermented Almond Cheese made with miso, garlic, ginger and spices and a Cashew Cheese. We made Zucchetti, Lasagna and Pizza. Oh & we made pizza crusts with almonds, seeds, carrots and zucchinis which is really wonderful!
..Then even though I was tempted to cut it short because of our late start, we continued to prepare and show how to make Kale Chips, and a couple different recipes for dehydrated nuts and seeds: Crisy Living Seeds and Crispy Living Nuts.. I made the nuts with Indian spices: Curry, Cumin, Garam Masala, Coriander - these are all great, excellent things to have made up ahead of time for when you get hungry and need a quick snack.

This is a slice of the pizza we made..

& this was our lunch: freshly made Lasagna! Mmm.. & we had company

Fred from Food Not Candy, who makes the best truffles came by and we got to have a couple truffle breaks!! Nice! : ) (note to Fred - OMG! I just went to your site and it is sooo beautiful! wow. I LOVE it!)

Silly - Fun .( I must be getting delerious to put this pic up!) ..& we didnt get out until about 9 and then I came home & was back at it! ..filled my dehydrator with the pizza crust we had made. & now I am pretty much done.. off to read and then bed and I'll be back at Rawlicous tomorrow.. Good Vibez, Sweet Dreams! 'Night!!

Cinnamon Rolls

We experimented making 'I am Thrilled' Cinnamon Rolls at Rawlicious - very fun & very delicious!!

Mmm.. they have a caramely cinnamon pecan filling.

Roling them up.. the fun part : ) I like to use the teflex sheets to help roll them out smoothly and evenly.

measuring evenly, scoring..


Slicing and placing them on the mesh screens to be dehydrated.

There is a sweet macadamia frosting that gets swirled on top after. Mmmm!!

Fresh, Natural, Vegan, Raw. Wow!! all this deliciousness and still ultra-healthy!

Brief Glinpse

ok, Just a brief little glimpse into my mind tonight - It's been a busy day and still lots to do. Oh, I got to make chocolate chip cookies today, so exciting!! actually they were chocolate-chocolate chip.. from Matthew Kenneys Everyday Raw book, which I have hardly had a chance to look through - but when I saw a chocolate chip cookie recipe! Well. wow! ..but I would like to make them with regular white vanilla cookie dough, Hmmm..

& now I am off to get ready for filming on Monday, recipes together, grocery list made, soaking nuts.. (interesting, the things I do on my days off! )

& I have so many things I want to blog about - the book I am reading is getting really fascinating now, Lynn McTaggert's The Intention Experiment - I am in the chapter 'Praying for Yesterday' and it tells about all these studies that are convincingly revealing about how our thoughts are influencing not only the future but also the past!!!! I have to tell you about certain parts of that! coming soon.
Oh, and other raw creations from Rawlicious, and the Food for Thought Documentary evening last night, another full house despite the freezing weather -25 degrees, Its crazy what we are living through.. and the power went off for up to 24 hours in some parts of the city (actually a little longer in a few places) which is really scary in this type of climate. It realy gets you thinking about how reliant we are on the city for our water, power.. and about being self-reliant with a well and root cellar (wow) ..actually its even colder up north where we would have that kind of lifestyle.. brrr and I have discovered that I have a disease, Reynaud's disease.. my fingers turn white when they get really cold. It first happened when I was a teenager, I noticed it one time when I went swimming in the ocean early in the spring (wayy too early) it was freezing .my friends almost took me to the hospital when the color wouldnt come back. It only happens when I get very cold.. and it happened yesterday morning, the subway was shut down in the city & steets were packed, public transit was crazy, shuttlebusses going non-stop.. So, I have decided that one day I am just going to have to have a tropical house to live in for the winters.
Canada. Its hard to beieve when it gets this cold that people live here.. and that people are raw here is just so, well, hardcore!! lol True dedication!
Yup, & so, on that note..back to my recipes. Love ya, Stay warm!!! : ) xo

Chocolate Chips and Other Delicious Things

Check this out! We made chocolate chips today at Rawlicious ..they are going to be soo good. They are in the dehydrator now and will be ready to use in te morning. We are going to make raw chocolate chip cookies!!!! I was known for neighbourhoods around for my chocolate chip cookies - kids came from afar.. lol true, but now I am raw & am soo excited to be back into making cookies. Ultra-healthy superfood cookies that taste amazing and are actually good for you. So wonderful & exciting. (I took lots of pics today..)

I put all of the magical ingredients into the blender to make the chips.

It was very thick, you really need a high speed blender for this. I had to stop or go on the lowest speed and use a spatula to keep the batterturning in and blending together.

I dont think I can even describe in words how good these chips taste. ; ) Mmmm!

The hardest part though was squeezing them out onto the teflex sheets.. it took some muscle power. But like most things, it just kept getting easier. I was getting pretty pro & fast by the end.

Desserts being served: Strawberry Cheezecake and a Brownie with Vanilla Frosting

& we made our Rawkalicious cookies today - the most delicious way to get a huge superfood burst!

The star mug below is my favorite mug. & a clementine snack for me!

Another tray of chips finished and now forming the cookies.

Mm.. we have the most delicious treats. And we needed them today - it was warm & wonderful in Rawlicious - but freezing outside. It was -20 or 25 or something crazy.. I can't believe people live & survive in this climate - & especially that I am one of them!! So crazy!!! Thankfully I work in a warm, fun and cozy place!! xo

Living Life Deeply, Fully, Richly

It's not about what you can get out of something, it's about what you can put into it.

Immerse yourself deeply into it!

The Seven Days of Thai Buddhism ..and Subduing Mara

Traditionally it is believed that Buddha spent seven days following his enlightenment thinking of the suffering of all living creatures and how unimportant his life was prior to reaching enlightenment.

In Thailand, the majority of people practice a form of Theravada Buddhism.

Many Thais believe that their day of birth reflects their life and there are Buddha images to reflect each day of the week

The days are also each assigned a different color and many Thai people pay special attention to this. Many wear of yellow shirts on Mondays to honor HM King Bhumibol Adulyadej. Likewise, you will see many blue shirts each Friday as that was the day of the week that HM Queen Sirikit was born. Even the different royal flags are colored to reflect the individual birthdays of the royal family. (from www.fivethousandyears.org - International Buddhism Center)

Sunday is the Day of Restraint. Red is the color of those born on this day of the week.

The image shows Buddha standing with the right hand covering the left and represents the period when he had reached enlightenment spent days of sufferings. He sat under the Bho tree when he accomplished his enlightenment.

A person born on a Sunday is respectable, wise, loved by friends and family. He is likely to be in a professional occupation. His lucky day is Wednesday and lucky color is green.

Monday is the Day of Making Peace. The day’s color is cream or yellow.

This image represents the Buddha standing with his right arm raised in a pacifying gesture. The Buddha stops the relatives from fighting or pacifying his relatives. When the Buddha came back from Heaven, he found that his relatives were quarreling about the right to use water from a river for their rice fields. The Buddha encouraged them to compromise and said that human life is much more valuable than water and it was not worth killing men for water. Then, his relatives stopped fighting.

A person born on a Monday is serious with a good memory and a love of travel. This person is likely to be in a skilled occupation whose lucky day is Saturday and lucky color is black.

Tuesday, with the daily color of pink, is the Sleeping Day.

This image of the Buddha lying on his right side signifies his passage into Nirvana and the death of his physical body. The gesture represents complete peace and detachment from the world. It was believed that the Buddha entered Nirvana on this day of the week.

This person is serious, brave and active most probably in the services. His lucky day is Thursday and lucky color is yellow.

Wednesday is divided into day and night according to Thai astrology. The color for those born on Wednesdays is green.The Morning is for Receiving.

This image shows Buddha holding an alms bowl. The Buddha visited his family after four years in the monastery. His father was not content when he saw the Buddha “begged” for food holding an alms bowl. Buddha explained to his father that performing pindabat, or holding an alms bow are the lineage of Buddha. Thus, the disciples can devote their food. The virtue of giving amongst Buddhists is strong until today.

The person born on Wednesday morning is polite, artistic and emotional. He is most likely working creatively. Wednesday night is their lucky time and the lucky color is green.

Thursday uses the colors of orange or brown. It is the Day of Meditation.

This image depicts the classic meditation position with both the soles of the feet and palms of the hand visible. This is the perfect mental discipline. The gesture is the ultimate balance of tranquility and thoughts. It is believed that the body in the position is receptive to power or energy to enter the body from the top of the head and the opening palms.

This person is peaceful, calm and honest –likely to be a teacher or in the legal profession. His lucky day is Sunday and the lucky color is orange.

Friday is the Day of Contemplation. The day’s color is blue.

The Friday Buddha image shows the Buddha thinking about how he can teach the doctrine to others. The hands rest across his chest with the right hand covering the left. This implies meditation and a spiritual transformation based on personal experience.

This person is fun loving, friendly and ambitious, probably an entertainer or public figure. Their lucky day is Tuesday and the lucky color is pink.

Saturday is the Day of Protection and uses the colors of black or purple.

The image shows the Buddha in meditation and protected from tempest by the King of the Naga, Mucalinda, a coiled snake. The Naga appears since ancient Egypt as a force of good and is even used today as a symbol of medicine amongst other things. The image is related to the moment when a Naga spread its hood to protect the Buddha from a rainstorm while he was in profound meditation.

This person is calm, logical and a bit of a recluse. He is very likely engaged in manual work of a skilled nature. The lucky day is Friday and the lucky color is blue.

The last two images of Buddah are for Wednesday Evening and the last one is "Touching Earth".

Wednesday Evening is for the Blessed One.
This image shows Buddha seated to receive gifts from a monkey and an elephant. As Buddhism teaches respect for everything living this posture shows the respect of all living things for the Buddha.
This person is hard working and honest. He is likely to be employed in a profession with the lucky day of Monday and the color white.

The final Buddha posture is "Touching Earth"is also known as subduing Mara.

Buddha sits with folded legs (right over left). The left hand is held in his lap with palm facing upward. The right hand extends over the right thigh, near the knee, with fingers pointing towards the ground, palm inward.

During meditation, Siddhartha is subjected to many temptations but none as terrible as those posed by the evil Mara, who bombards him with his demon armies, monsters, beasts, violent storms and his three lascivious daughters. The Buddha remains steadfast. Then to testify to Mara of his meritorious past, he points to the earth with his hand and calls forth Thorani, the beautiful earth Goddess. She rises from the ground and wrings the water from her long black hair, which raises a torrential flood that drowns Mara and his army of demons. This episode is often depicted; it reminds devotees that good can triumph over evil.

Filming Recipes at Rawlicious

So.. guess what I did today on my day off? Well, we decided to go into Rawlicious (Thanks to Angus and Tracy for letting us use the kitchen on our 1 day off) to film. We filmed lots of great recipes - the plan is to start off getting down and onto tape the easy basic recipes.. so we can show you how to make raw almond milk, smoothies, salad dressings and salads, pasta and sauces, and we are ging to work our way up to showing you how to create more complicated recipes (which are not really all that complicated) but ones that take a bit more to learn, dehydrated recipes: crackers and pizza crusts, and deserts, and entrees: chili, pad thai.. etc etc..

We also showed and filmed how to open a young Thai coconut and make coconut milk and the easy way to make your own liquid vanilla.. and how to use vanilla beans - vanilla is sooo awesome, one of my favorite flavours & it's such a treat when you get to use fresh vanilla pods!

Mmm.. we got to drink lots of smoothies!

Pics from the set - Very Fun!