Tuesday
Jan112011
detox day 1 – overview + recipes
January 11, 2011
Grab a blanket + a glass of warm lemon water + prepare yourself, this could get lengthy.
Other Detox Motivators
After reading books like, The Omnivores Dilemma, In Defense of Food, and Slow Food Nation, you can’t help but take a closer look at the foods you buy + consume. They were life changers for me, along with the documentary, Food Inc. After completing The Omnivores Dilemma, my diet and how I looked at food started to change. For me, it was exciting, and I felt the urge to learn more + more everyday. I read books, online articles, cut out a lot of processed junk food, read ingredient lists, stopped buying fat free products, and started buying higher quality meat. I made it a point to look carefully for processed soy + corn ingredients, and stay away from them, because of what I learned. I tried to stay away from soy in general, as much as possible. We were able to pull away from processed foods more and more and could definitely feel the positive effects.
*Just as a quick note, in case you’re new or have been wondering. I stopped eating meat last year at Easter and hadn’t eaten it for about 2 months before that. I also do not eat fish anymore, except for trying 1 scallop at the Foodbuzz festival, because there is a first time for everything.*
I started shopping at farmer’s markets, and even started my own granola bar business where I sold at a local farmer’s market [in Charlotte, NC]. Chris + I lowered our meat consumption by over half. We moved to Colorado, and were astounded at what a healthy place this was. The veg-friendly restaurant options and outdoorsy lifestyle were fabulous.
However, somewhere along the way, my “rules” loosened a bit. I started letting processed soy slip back into our diet [mostly soy lecithin, because it is so hard to avoid]. My cereal/cracker/chip purchases increased. Even though they were organic and sometimes quite healthy, they were still very processed. We started eating tofu, which I really enjoy, but used to make a point to stay away from. When out at restaurants, I would order eggs + cheese, having no idea what the source was. These were all things that happened because it was just easier. I wasn’t constantly reading books + articles, informing me of the negative affects these things have on my body + the environment, which made it easy look the other way.
However, I don’t stand for easy. In the past month or so, I’ve been trying to read more and stay up to date on current food issues and revisit the books above that changed my life so much. Chris and I recently watched the documentary, The Future of Food [you can watch it on hulu], which was a film about GMO foods that line our shelves today. It of course discussed the agriculture company, Monsanto, throughout the entire documentary. I had already heard + read everything that was in that film before, but being refreshed with the information, was nauseating. It was time to throw “the easy way” out the window, and get a little more hardcore about what I believe in.
I figured, the best way to do this, was through a clean food detox.
Can I just say how hard it was to consolidate that information into the above paragraphs? I could have gone on for days and will maybe elaborate on a few topics soon, especially about soy.
Okay, back to the the food.
Monday Lunch
Filled with all kinds of delicious texture, this meal was free of salt, sugar, wheat, dairy + soy.
Detox Day 1 – Millet Wrapped Lunch
For the sweet taters, follow these directions. Top with melted coconut butter.
On to the new flour I tried out. I’ve been wanting to try this garbanzo flour for some time now, but finally decided to take the plunge. I think this was because my mom bought me a chickpea cookbook called, Hummus. Every recipe is based on using garbanzo beans!
It has an extremely soft texture. I’m sure this can be made at home if you have a grain grinder. Has anyone ever made their own garbanzo flour?
A recipe that spurred my interest in the book was for a Chickpea Bake. It basically looked like a savory chickpea cake, from the looks of the photo. It also had me interested because the ingredient list was short and didn’t call for sugar.
This recipe did however call for 1 whole teaspoon of salt, which I left out. A lovely reader + friend, Kristin [Cook, Bake, Nibble – I designed her header!], recently completed a similar detox. I read all about it on her blog and learned so much. She just [thankfully!] brought to my attention, that it’s actually not good to eliminate salt completely. Our bodies need it to function properly and I would feel much worse without at least a little bit of salt each day. Good to know!! I’m definitely going to look into this more as well.
Next time I make this, I’ll probably include 1/2t salt, instead of the full 1t, that is recommended.
Since I left the salt out this time, I got creative with other things to add in.
The original recipe called for:
Here is how I ended up changing it:
Chickpea Bake [adapted from the cookbook, Hummus, by Avner Laskin] vegan + gluten free
I loved this savory cake/bread, especially since I’m not eating any wheat products right now. It had a great flavor from the spices and the texture was soft + dough-like. It definitely would have been tastier with 1/2t of salt, but topped with a little Earth Balance or raw almond butter would be great too.
These were drizzled with a little [soy free] Earth Balance for Chris. It still has a bit of salt in it, so I’m going to try and stay away from it for the most part. Since learning I still need some salt in my diet during this detox, I’ll be liiiightly sprinkling it on here and there, but trying to stay under 1/4t per day [575mg or less].
I also have an idea to make another version of this using coconut oil, coconut milk, cinnamon + cocoa or carob powder. Yum!!
Are you still with me??? Time to talk about how I’m feeling after Day 1.
Overview – Day 1
I think that’s about all for now. I’ve been absolutely loving the response from this and am trying to answer your questions/comments the best I can. If you can’t tell, I’m definitely having fun with this!! So far today, I’ve had another good day of eats and can’t wait to share them with you soon!
Ashley
Other Detox Motivators
After reading books like, The Omnivores Dilemma, In Defense of Food, and Slow Food Nation, you can’t help but take a closer look at the foods you buy + consume. They were life changers for me, along with the documentary, Food Inc. After completing The Omnivores Dilemma, my diet and how I looked at food started to change. For me, it was exciting, and I felt the urge to learn more + more everyday. I read books, online articles, cut out a lot of processed junk food, read ingredient lists, stopped buying fat free products, and started buying higher quality meat. I made it a point to look carefully for processed soy + corn ingredients, and stay away from them, because of what I learned. I tried to stay away from soy in general, as much as possible. We were able to pull away from processed foods more and more and could definitely feel the positive effects.
*Just as a quick note, in case you’re new or have been wondering. I stopped eating meat last year at Easter and hadn’t eaten it for about 2 months before that. I also do not eat fish anymore, except for trying 1 scallop at the Foodbuzz festival, because there is a first time for everything.*
I started shopping at farmer’s markets, and even started my own granola bar business where I sold at a local farmer’s market [in Charlotte, NC]. Chris + I lowered our meat consumption by over half. We moved to Colorado, and were astounded at what a healthy place this was. The veg-friendly restaurant options and outdoorsy lifestyle were fabulous.
However, somewhere along the way, my “rules” loosened a bit. I started letting processed soy slip back into our diet [mostly soy lecithin, because it is so hard to avoid]. My cereal/cracker/chip purchases increased. Even though they were organic and sometimes quite healthy, they were still very processed. We started eating tofu, which I really enjoy, but used to make a point to stay away from. When out at restaurants, I would order eggs + cheese, having no idea what the source was. These were all things that happened because it was just easier. I wasn’t constantly reading books + articles, informing me of the negative affects these things have on my body + the environment, which made it easy look the other way.
However, I don’t stand for easy. In the past month or so, I’ve been trying to read more and stay up to date on current food issues and revisit the books above that changed my life so much. Chris and I recently watched the documentary, The Future of Food [you can watch it on hulu], which was a film about GMO foods that line our shelves today. It of course discussed the agriculture company, Monsanto, throughout the entire documentary. I had already heard + read everything that was in that film before, but being refreshed with the information, was nauseating. It was time to throw “the easy way” out the window, and get a little more hardcore about what I believe in.
I figured, the best way to do this, was through a clean food detox.
Can I just say how hard it was to consolidate that information into the above paragraphs? I could have gone on for days and will maybe elaborate on a few topics soon, especially about soy.
Okay, back to the the food.
Monday Lunch
Filled with all kinds of delicious texture, this meal was free of salt, sugar, wheat, dairy + soy.
Detox Day 1 – Millet Wrapped Lunch
- 1 huge chard leaf, stem cut off
- 1/4c uncooked millet
- 1T safflower/olive/coconut oil
- 1/2c water
- ~1/2c sweet mini peppers or bell peppers, diced
- 2T pepitas
- 1 egg
- 1 portabella mushroom, chopped
- 1/2t garlic powder
- 1t smoked paprika
- black pepper
- sea salt [optional – I lef this out]
- 1 small sweet tater
- 1/2T coconut butter
- In a small pot, heat 1/2T oil over med. heat.
- Rinse millet and add to pot.
- Stir to brown for 1-3min. This brings out an awesome nutty flavor.
- Add in water, bring to a boil, reduce heat to simmer + cover.
- After the water has absorbed, 15-20min, fluff with a fork.
- In a saute pan, heat 1/2T oil over med. heat.
- Add in portabella, peppers, garlic, paprika, and pepper.
- Stir and cook for about 5min until the bella has softened up a bit.
- Add in pepitas. Cook another 2min, stirring frequently.
- Scrape ingredients to one side of the pan, drizzle a very small amount of oil on the other side + pour 1 whisked egg into the pan.
- Cook egg, moving around with spatula, for about 2min, until done.
- Add in millet. Stir to combine for 1 more minute.
- Wrap in chard leaf + cut small segments. It’s very messy!
For the sweet taters, follow these directions. Top with melted coconut butter.
On to the new flour I tried out. I’ve been wanting to try this garbanzo flour for some time now, but finally decided to take the plunge. I think this was because my mom bought me a chickpea cookbook called, Hummus. Every recipe is based on using garbanzo beans!
It has an extremely soft texture. I’m sure this can be made at home if you have a grain grinder. Has anyone ever made their own garbanzo flour?
A recipe that spurred my interest in the book was for a Chickpea Bake. It basically looked like a savory chickpea cake, from the looks of the photo. It also had me interested because the ingredient list was short and didn’t call for sugar.
This recipe did however call for 1 whole teaspoon of salt, which I left out. A lovely reader + friend, Kristin [Cook, Bake, Nibble – I designed her header!], recently completed a similar detox. I read all about it on her blog and learned so much. She just [thankfully!] brought to my attention, that it’s actually not good to eliminate salt completely. Our bodies need it to function properly and I would feel much worse without at least a little bit of salt each day. Good to know!! I’m definitely going to look into this more as well.
Next time I make this, I’ll probably include 1/2t salt, instead of the full 1t, that is recommended.
Since I left the salt out this time, I got creative with other things to add in.
The original recipe called for:
- chickpea flour
- cold water
- salt
- olive oil
Here is how I ended up changing it:
Chickpea Bake [adapted from the cookbook, Hummus, by Avner Laskin] vegan + gluten free
- 1 1/4c chickpea flour
- 1c unsweetened almond milk
- 1T unsweetened applesauce
- 1T safflower oil
- 1t cinnamon
- 1t curry
- 1/2t garlic
- 1/4t ginger
- few shakes of garam masala
- Preheat oven to 375*
- Grease a 8-9” round cake pan, or pie dish.
- Mix all ingredients together, until just combined.
- Pour the batter into the pan and bake for about 40min. It will be very cracked with browned edges.
I loved this savory cake/bread, especially since I’m not eating any wheat products right now. It had a great flavor from the spices and the texture was soft + dough-like. It definitely would have been tastier with 1/2t of salt, but topped with a little Earth Balance or raw almond butter would be great too.
These were drizzled with a little [soy free] Earth Balance for Chris. It still has a bit of salt in it, so I’m going to try and stay away from it for the most part. Since learning I still need some salt in my diet during this detox, I’ll be liiiightly sprinkling it on here and there, but trying to stay under 1/4t per day [575mg or less].
I also have an idea to make another version of this using coconut oil, coconut milk, cinnamon + cocoa or carob powder. Yum!!
Are you still with me??? Time to talk about how I’m feeling after Day 1.
Overview – Day 1
- Through late afternoon my stomach was feeling better than normal.
- Awhile after dinner, I felt bloated. I don’t think this was due to what I ate for dinner, although I can’t be certain, but obviously foods are still working their way out of my system.
- I craved sweet + salty all day long. You could tell from my almost all-fruit snack choices, I wanted sweet!
- I realized how many times throughout the day I will take a bite of something sweet or bready throughout the day. Little break of this, little handful of that. Even though I feel like I already eat extremely healthy, it was an eye opener to realize that I have quite the nibble habit.
- I never felt tempted to cheat, but it wasn’t easy to curb the cravings. I ate whenever hungry.
- Dinner held me over the whole night! This is highly unusual. I typically need some sort of nighttime snack, but did not feel hungry at all last night. I’m sure it had to do with the loads of healthy fats and huge helping of brown rice.
- I was really thirsty + drank a lot of water!
- I pee’d a lot.
- I’m loving dry brushing and already feel some of the effects, which I will talk more about soon, or you can read more on it here. I’ve been doing this for almond 1 full week now.
- I really wanted a bite of the tempeh I made for Chris last night!!
- Although gross, the detox tea made me feel good.
- Getting out for a brisk walk with the dogs, in the sun boosted my mood + energy.
- Yoga felt great!
I think that’s about all for now. I’ve been absolutely loving the response from this and am trying to answer your questions/comments the best I can. If you can’t tell, I’m definitely having fun with this!! So far today, I’ve had another good day of eats and can’t wait to share them with you soon!
Ashley
Reader Comments (85)
Interesting to follow along. Loved your ota bars story. I knew you did it but didn't know the details. Have you considered that extra water could make you feel bloated? When I used to exercise in early evening, I would feel so full of water by the end of the day. Hard to believe that such raw and plain foods could still leave you feeling like that.
Awesome! Since I started following a predominantly vegan diet, my whole body feels better. I'm sure if I cut back on sugar [even though I already avoid process sweeteners], I'd feel even better. I'm excited to follow this!
P.S. That lunch looks amazing!
Hi Ashley!
I’ve been lurking on your blog for a week. So I figured I ought to stop being a creepy lurker and say hi! I think your blog super-fantastical (so much so that I needed to create a new word to describe it :)).
Love (and chocolate!!),
Katie
P.S. Thank you SO much for your lightbox tutorial post! My house has terrible lighting (not to mention yellow walls), and so I'm really excited to try making one :).
I'm really excited to see how things go for you :D Plus, I'm always looking for new recipes, especially healthy recipes :) I once tried to make chickpea flour and it came out kind of chunky I might try it again though because it is really cool to work with.
Do you have stats on the chickpea bake?
This detox thing is AWESOME! I usually feel bloated/gassy every day from about 3-6 (weird?!) and never know what it is I'm eating that makes me feel that way. I always leave school with a stomachache but then am fine by dinner. I can't put my finger on it!
Thanks for sharing all of this! I grew up in a house where we didn't cook with salt b/c my dad had high blood pressure. My mom didn't put salt in anything she cooked, and we had the option of adding it at the table. I've loosened up a bit and add a little, but still keep my salt intake really low. My mom also pretty much halved the salt in everything she baked, and I do, too. I don't really notice a difference in flavor!
Food, Inc and a few of those books inspired me to cut out processed foods as well, but I still fail at going out to eat. That said, my diet is about a million times better than it once was! I'm looking forward to reading about your detox further.
THat chickpea cake looks good! I think it's called socca. I've been meaning to make it for a while now, but haven't gotten around to it...
We switched to Himalayan Pink Crystal Salt. That way we use way less because its expensive!
Next month my diet will look very similar to yours so I'm very excited to see these recipes. Right now its all raw living food but I miss warm roasted veggies.
you're doing so well with your detox! i'm impressed. i'm glad you're doing it now, so i'll have a lot of ideas for my february detox! thanks for the great information.
Good job on your first day! I've been trying to cut back on the junk but it's so hard. I want to make that chickpea cake... it looks amazing!
I'm really enjoying reading your detox posts.
Ashley ,
Good luck on the detox .. I use chickpea flour all the time . In indian cooking this is called BESAN , google it and you will find tons of recipes , I love steaming the chickpea flour and topping it with savory stuff ,it's fantastic , another one that I normally make is chickpea dumplings in a tomato curry sauce , let me know if you need the recipes and I can email it to you.
Hi! I love reading your blog and have been for awhile now so I figure it's about time to post a comment! Thank you so much for writing all about your detox! It's very informative. Can't wait to read more!
Thank you for sharing this! The Millet lunch looks DEEELICIOUS!! I have been wanting to do a detox to kind of clean my body out! It always makes me feel so much better after a few days!
i like the look of that chickpea cake thing, i've got some of the flour in my fridge that i never use so i might have to make something like that this week....
and i hear you on the cravings. i've been craving chocolate and carbs like mad. but it feels good at the same time, knowing we're doing something good for our bodies :) good luck with the rest of your detox!
Wow this is chock full! Thanks for taking the time to type everything all out on the Monsanto stuff. Yeah, i could go on and on too.
The chickpea flour. I have coconut flour, peanut flour, and some other GF baking blends but never just straight chickpea flour. Your cake looks amazing! As does the coconut oil drizzle :)
Salt. Yes, our bodies do need some but most people get the trace amounts our bodies need from our diets. i.e. 1 Tbsp of commercially prepared salad dressing has more sodium than we need in a day, for the avg person. However since you are in the detox phase and eating nothing processed, you're right about the salt. It's so interesting finding our own path on all this jazz, isn't it!
I love your posts on this all! :)
I love reading your detox posts. They are very interesting and different. The chickpea bake also looks great! Tell me how you like the Hummus book. I love garbanzo beans so I might just have to buy a copy :)
I have about 50 pages left of The Omnivore's Dilemma so I'm also feeling re-motivated to make the better, although not always easier, choices. Thank you for being such an inspiration! I really learn so much from your blog (especially about soy, Monsanto, refined sugar substitutes, and new-to-me veggies) and you've impacted a lot of my eating goals. Thank you!!
xoxo
Really informative post! While I don't think I'm at the point of wanting to make major changes to my diet, I am always interested in learning more and hearing others' experiences. I've always wanted to try chickpea flour - the cake looks awesome topped with nut butter.
You could be feeling bloated from too much fiber! That happens to me when i eat clean!
Hey girl! I gave you the Stylish Blogger award on my blog! Check it out: http://chefkatelyn.wordpress.com/2011/01/11/the-stylish-last-supper/
This is so interesting to read about! Just the other day, I came across an extensive article about the negative things about processed soy. I really had no idea, so now I'm trying to stick to tofu, tempeh, and whole edamame beans if I eat it.
this is a great overview! Maybe you can try black himalayan salt? I swear by that stuff.. full of great minerals. Pink himalayan is great too, but yeah we need a bit of salt- but the good salt, not processed or table. I'm actually eliminating gluten from my diet for now, and just started to take away dairy (aka greek yogurt) to see how I feel, so I will definitely be trying your recipe! Thanks for sharing!
Never woulda thunk it...chickpea flour. I'm going to need to get my hands on some of that!
Looks like you are holding strong with this detox. Keep it up!
Ps. Love the pee comment. LOL!
Have I ever mentioned how much I hate the fact that I didn't discover your blog while you were still living in Charlotte selling OTA bars?? I definitely would have been a repeat customer!! :-) I've always wondered what to do with chickpea flour. Looks reallyyy good.
I'm loving the detox updates! Keep them coming!! Dr. Josh Axe is a chiropractor in Nashville, and his site is amazing. Here is a video where he talks about soy- very interesting!! http://www.draxe.com/video/soy-to-eat-soy-to-avoid-transformation-tv-episode-023/
Also, I have a really good zucchini chickpea pancake recipe on my blog. It uses chickpea flour as well. I believe it would be detox friendly. Check it out!
Can't wait for more updates!!
that gorgeous chard makes me so lonesome for my kitchen garden...which is currently sleeping under 2 feet of snow!wahhh....
On another note...I've been trying to drink about 2 cups of that detox tea, along with a general "clean food" diet...no sugar, wheat, or soy and NOTHING processed...but man........is that tea quite the stuff..blechh..
cathy b.
I am loving your progress. You are inspiring me to want to do something similar!!!
What detox tea are you drinking? Some are too bad tasting...
oops! didn't see the previous post. more to read...
I applaud you for not using salt. I have a serious salt addiction that I've been ignoring for years. I'm pretty sure I've said "I'm going to do a salt-free week" a million times but I never actually do it.
Oh and I just have to point out that you said "I've almond been doing this for a week." Almonds on the brain? He he :P
I have often wondered if I ground dried chickpeas in my Vita if it would make chickpea flour. What about other dried beans? Lentils? The possibilities are endless! You should check out Lori and Michelle's socca recipes on Pure 2 Raw. I haven't tried them myself yet!
I've been peeing a lot too :) Like waking up in the middle of the night! It's almost as if I have a bun in my very clean oven.
I wish I had a link but I don't. You really don't have to add salt. Your fruits and veggies, plus starches all have the amount of salt that you need to function. Hope you at least think about it.
I was going to suggest them too!
I tried one of them yesterday, it was lovely, and a huge hit with my boyfriend too. (Rather suprisingly...)
They are so easy to make and really versatile.
I usually do a month long detox once or twice a year. Vegan, no alcohol, no wheat. I never miss anything when I do it and always feel great for it.
I think someone else commented on your chickpea bake that it is called socca or farinata in Italian cookery. Once you finish your detox I HIGHLY recommend a tradtional version of this tasty treat. I honeymooned in Liguria, Italy and a fresh, hot slice of farinata with pesto was comsumed as everyday.
Looks like you are doing great! Glad you took my advice, I think that 1/4 tsp goal sounds perfect for what you're doing. And the bloating is totally normal- you're drinking/eating a LOT of fluids (fruits and veg!!) and carbohydrates suck up water (cellularly) so it's pretty common to feel bloaty the first couple of days...it will pass!
Your meals look delicious!! I'm going to need to try them next time I'm detoxing! :D
xo
LOVE reading about your detox!!
and i started following it roughly too! :)
feels awesome! thank you for leading the way! :)
ps: i chuckled about your misspelling -> almond instead of almost! ;)
how cure are you?! <3
It looks like you are really having fun with this! I love reading detox posts and am contemplating doing one myself soon. Can't wait to hear about how you feel as the program goes on.
I need to do a detox! I have not been feeling the best, I have been having a lot more sugar than I should be. Sorry that you do not really enjoy lemon water, we love it! We start most our mornings with a glass :) Pretty much all the reasons you mentioned here are why we stay away from soy if we can. Crazy to think about how food has changed and will continue to change.
And we love garbanzo bean flour. We have been using it for a while, normally to make socca! We have also made our garbanzo bean flour, as well as starting to try other flours. We have a bunch of recipes.
Good luck with your detox! I know it can be hard, but the end will be worth it. Now I just got to get myself to do one, haha
I know exactly what you mean about rules loosening up - that has happened to me over the holidays. It's still quite limited, but I know I need to tighten up again, stop letting little bits of dairy sneak into my diet. Your posts are quite motivational to me in that regard, especially with some new ideas about food options.
Also, I would love to read more about your perspective on soy if that helps influence whether you talk about it in a future post. :)
I do have a little more of my thoughts on soy in my FAQ section if you want to check that out. I will hopefully be posting more on it soon!
I definitely need to check your blog for recipe ideas!! I haven't had much time to scope out recipes too much for this. The lemon water isn't terrible..I'm sure I'll get more used to it soon. Thanks for your support!!
Welcome!! Hope you have a good outcome from it as well. That is a hilarious typo :)
Yes..thank you!! That makes a lot of sense..you're such a good resource. :)
Awesome! I will definitely check out recipes for that. I've never seen it before this book I got.
Lentil flour...that sounds interesting. haha How's that coconut butter coming? :) I haaaaaaate peeing in the middle of the night...brrr!
Salt is definitely a tough one to reduce! So funny about the almond/almost thing too...oh man, food on the brain!