Favorite Detox 4 Women Meals (April 12, 2010)

Q: Helen asks, “Ana, please give me some well-combined evening meal suggestions. I feel like I just eat the same thing over and over and I’m getting bored. And also, is it okay to eat the same meal several nights in a row if I am really loving it? I want to stay on track and keep enjoying my meals.”

A: Thank you for your question. I want to address the second part first. The answer is yes, it is perfectly fine to have the same meals several times in a row, provided they are well-combined and working well with your body. Remember, the focus in this lifestyle is no longer on getting what we need from outside sources. Instead, we focus on the removal of obstruction so our bodies can perfectly regulate themselves and draw what they need from the sun, and the raw juices and salads we are flooding them with.

If you are having a meal that is water-rich (with plenty of raw veggies), is combined to exit quickly, and results in a massive bowel movement the next morning, you are doing no wrong. For example; a large raw salad with goat cheese followed by steamed broccoli with marinara sauce, and some 70% dark chocolate. These are all classified as “human food” with the exception of the dark chocolate, which is certainly okay nightly in moderation. The meal is well combined (raw and cooked neutral veggies with goat cheese, which is an animal protein), and contains enough raw to really move and pull some hydrated and awakened waste out with it.

If, however, your meal contains grain, or fruit, or nuts and seeds, you must be more careful. These can be tricky, and your bowel movement will give you the answer.  If you have a big raw salad followed by some cooked quinoa, and it passes cleanly, go ahead a second night. If instead you feel bloated and gassy, and have little or no movement the next day, it’s time for a change. Very few women can get away with eating a fruit dinner every night of the week, it is simply too awakening and  it will be yeast-feeding for the new detoxer. Nuts and seeds are quite dense, and although they can work well in the company of a heap of raw veggies, I’ve found that they can slow progress, and that not many people can eat just a few.

Two of my favorite salads:

Starch night:
1 box organic spring mix greens
Juice from 2 limes
stevia to taste
1 head chopped cilantro
1 diced avocado
1 ear raw corn (cut off the cob)
2 tblspns high-quality salsa

This makes the most delicious south-western Tex-Mex salad. And it’s so dense and satisfying (and perfect for summer).

Protein night:
1 box organic baby romaine
Juice from 1 lemon
stevia to taste
2 tblspns Diijon mustard
2 chopped baked beets
3 oz grated Alta Dena goat cheese
½ box grape tomatoes

The contrast between the sweet beets, tangy cheese, and spicy mustard is heavenly. By the way, every Sunday I slow-bake about 6 beets for the week while I putter around the house. They go in washed and unpeeled on a baking tray at 325 for about 2 hours. They pop them in the fridge and they’ll last several days.

Some dinner favorites:

Starch night:

Bake one acorn squash by halving it, scooping out the seeds, and placing it face down on a baking tray at 350 for about 30 minutes.
Turn both halves face up, and mix the squash with a small amount of butter, cinnamon, and stevia, until it is creamy. Serve right in the shell.

This is a wonderful chilly night comfort food. And kids love it as well…

Protein night:

Steam a broccoli/cauliflower mix by cooking them with about a half an inch of water in a covered pan. The water will run out right about the time the veggies are perfectly steamed (if not, simply drain the excess).

Add ¼ cup marinara sauce and about 3 oz grated Alta Dena cheese. Turn off the heat, but recover the pan.

Enjoy your big raw salad, and by the time you are ready for your cooked portion of the meal, the cheese will be nicely melted.

This is an easy way to satisfy those Italiano cravings for pasta, pizza, or anything else dripping with sauce and cheese. How decadent!