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Nut-Free Raw foodists?

7K views 17 replies 12 participants last post by  AndrewJamesKL 
#1 ·
I love raw food, I love the way it makes me feel, and love the way it tastes!
I'm the black sheep of my family- everyone else eats meat and not very healthy at all.
However, my mom and my sister have now taken interest in the way I eat, and although neither is even willing to give up meat, they do want me to make meals for them and teach them how to use the juicer


But my sister is allergic to nuts. She uses this as an excuse for not going veg- but I know of vegans who don't eat nuts. But I'm curious if there are any raw foodists who don't eat nuts either. I made kale chips today using sunflower seeds instead of cashews, and will see how they turn out in a few hours.
How hard is it to thrive on this diet that is so nut-oriented?
 
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#3 ·
Yeah, definitely more fruits and vegetables are needed, but so many recipes call for nuts, like kale chips, desserts, balls, etc.

Tomorrow's my birthday, and I want to make a raw dessert, but it's hard to find any recipes that are nut free, so I'll just see how well sunflower seeds work, or I'll just use peanuts...
 
#4 ·
Raw food is only nut-oriented if you're making lots of "processed" raw foods - pates, desserts, etc. If you're sticking to basically fruits and veggies (not hard to do, especially if your sister can have seeds as well), you can be nut-free just fine. You'll just need to stick to straight up produce. Things like salads, smoothies, or just a whole bunch of fruit. You can also go for seed pates and stuff if you want something more substantial.
 
#5 ·
Happy birthday!!!

I hope you found something to make. I'd find a simple banana whip perfect! Also, you could do a mashed dates crust, pureed bananas on top, and pureed strawberries on top of that as a sauce. Or a good smoothie.

The raw food recipe books & recipes are nice on occasion, but they are mostly "junk food raw," as in high in fat, salt, syrups, and processed foods that aren't really fresh and vibrant like produce.
 
#6 ·
Any recipe that calls for a nut try replacing it with seeds and see how it comes out. Eat lots of salads because greens are what you should be getting the most of.
 
#8 ·
Thanks for all the birthday comments n.n
I made a brownie recipe using almonds, since they aren't technically nuts, and my sister did just fine with them. All it was was dates blened with soaked almonds, cocoa powder, some salt, and I made a banana whip with it. They weren't bad, but I agree, I'd prefer just fresh fruit for dessert!
 
#9 ·
When transitioning nuts really do help because it gives you another option so you don't fall off the wagon. Currently I'm starting to shift away from nuts. What I've noticed is the longer you are raw, the less you crave them and the more you crave simpler whole foods. I am finding my palette has changed and I find them too rich at times. I tend to "cook" 'gourmet raw' only about once or twice a week when I make my cooked vegan partner have a raw meal. Also, nuts and seeds are expensive (at least in my area) so they should be considered more of a 'treat.'
 
#10 ·
I totally agree with Alicia. In my experience with rawfoodism, and in witessing the paths of some like-minded friends, nuts (and seeds) are more of a "bridge" or transtion food while one is switching from cooked to raw foods, as they can provide the "heaviness" that many of us were/are used to that cooked foods provided. That, and they can be used in recipies that mimic some of the old cooked foods we used to make (to take the place of grains and meats). This transition period can take a varying course of time, depending on the person. Or, for some people, they may find that sticking with a heavy nut/seed diet works for them in the long term. Personally, I found that nuts/seeds quickly became to heavy for me, and I switched to getting my fats from avocadoes and olives, and sometimes some olive oil on my salad. After a while, nuts/seeds gave me a stomache ache, but I have not had this problem with fats from the aforementioned fruits. As of current, I have not eaten nuts or seeds in over 4 years, and am 98% + raw, and am in fine health, so I'd say its possible to do the raw food diet without a lot of nuts. That said, I should emphasixe the fact that I started transitioning to raw in 1999, so I didn't jump right into a nut/seed-free diet. It wasn't until 2007 that I stopped eating them.

Transitioning into the raw diet (oftentimes slowly, to avoid agressive detox reactions), seems to be important to long term success, in my experience. (Though there are, of course, exceptions to this.) Therefore, if you like nuts/seeds and they taste/feel good to your body, I would say go with that for now. And pay attention if signs appear from your body that it wants less (or more) or them. As for your sister, I agree with the above posters that if your sister likes and can eat seeds, this could be a fine substitute for nuts in just about any recipe that calls for nuts. My personal favorite were sunflower seeds, with pumpkin seeds being a close second. Sprouting them can make them more digestible as well.
 
#12 ·
I'm raw most of the time (probably one cooked meal a week if the opportunity comes up) and I never eat nuts. I don't bother with recipes. Just fruits and veg. I think it's much easier on the digestive system - nuts really make me sick most of the time.

I did make a raw cheesecake once that was delicious and said you could use any kind of nut, so if your sister does okay with almonds, that could be an option.

And Happy Birthday!
 
#13 ·
I understand how nuts and seeds are transition foods... I do love sunflower seeds or pepitas on my salads, and flax and chia are so good...
But anyway, a big thing with me about going raw is that I love baking. It's something I'm pretty good at, too, and I've been told more than once that I should open up my own vegan cafe and sell the things I make.... I was hoping I could maybe find more interest in raw "baking" though.

But a high carb diet of lots of fruits and veggies definitely gives me the most energy ^.^
 
#14 ·
I've been primarily nut-free and a raw vegan for over a year, and before that I was very strict about eating healthy for many years.

This isn't a dessert exactly, but I've given this dish to my in-laws, family and friends and brought it to vegan, vegetarian and raw food potlucks and I've never seen anyone *not* like it! Turmeric Muesli: http://reallyrawraederle.blogspot.co...i-without.html

That recipe is nut-free and it is one I usually have every day. Today I had it, with powdered turmeric and fresh ginger, lemon juice, dates, apples, soaked oat groats, cinnamon powder, a pinch of nutmeg and a pinch of sea salt. I make it a little different almost every time, but it always delicious.

I also never use sweeteners.

So many of my desserts are nut-free and sweetened exclusively with dried fruits.

For example, instead of a crust made from two-thirds almonds and one-third dates, try this crust:

1 cup chia seeds (soaked in 1/2 cup water for five minutes, no draining, no rinsing)
1 cup dates
1 cup soaked oat groats (whole oats, not cut or rolled -- soaked overnight and drained and rinsed)

Blend those together thoroughly and freeze overnight or dehydrate overnight at 110 degrees to make really firm, or use fresh for a decent result that isn't quite as good in texture.

Another delicious crust option is thus:

1 cup dried coconut shreds
1 cup dried fruit (figs, dates, raisins, whatever)

I actually think only non-optimal raw diets are "nut oriented" and that the only reason you see so many nut recipes is because nuts give a gourmet creamy-fatty flavor. However, nuts are nutritionally void in comparison to fresh vegetables. I've spends hundreds of hours (literally) comparing nutrition in nuts, seeds, vegetables and fruits, and on a scale of 1 to 100 (where 100 is most healthy and 1 is nutritionally useless), vegetables range 50 to 100, fruits range 20 to 70, seeds range 4 to 25 and nuts range 1 to 5. No kidding.

Raw vegan athletes generally don't consume many nuts, and all the very healthiest raw foodists I've met (I've been to well over 100 raw vegan potlucks across the country) didn't include very many nuts or didn't eat nuts at all.

For most raw vegans I recommend no more than 1 measuring cup of nuts per week maximum, and if we were going to set a minimum I'd say to eat 2 Brazil nuts a week because their selenium content is unusual.

My general seeds and nuts intake is 1 tablespoon of chia seeds per day and 2 Brazil nuts a week, and only occasionally do I have more than that (like once in two weeks when preparing a gourmet meal for others or when eating out at a raw restaurant).

I hope all this helps!

~ Raederle Phoenix
 
#15 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Peaceful One View Post

I totally agree with Alicia. In my experience with rawfoodism, and in witessing the paths of some like-minded friends, nuts (and seeds) are more of a "bridge" or transtion food while one is switching from cooked to raw foods, as they can provide the "heaviness" that many of us were/are used to that cooked foods provided. That, and they can be used in recipies that mimic some of the old cooked foods we used to make (to take the place of grains and meats). This transition period can take a varying course of time, depending on the person. Or, for some people, they may find that sticking with a heavy nut/seed diet works for them in the long term. Personally, I found that nuts/seeds quickly became to heavy for me, and I switched to getting my fats from avocadoes and olives, and sometimes some olive oil on my salad. After a while, nuts/seeds gave me a stomache ache, but I have not had this problem with fats from the aforementioned fruits. As of current, I have not eaten nuts or seeds in over 4 years, and am 98% + raw, and am in fine health, so I'd say its possible to do the raw food diet without a lot of nuts. That said, I should emphasixe the fact that I started transitioning to raw in 1999, so I didn't jump right into a nut/seed-free diet. It wasn't until 2007 that I stopped eating them.

Transitioning into the raw diet (oftentimes slowly, to avoid agressive detox reactions), seems to be important to long term success, in my experience. (Though there are, of course, exceptions to this.) Therefore, if you like nuts/seeds and they taste/feel good to your body, I would say go with that for now. And pay attention if signs appear from your body that it wants less (or more) or them. As for your sister, I agree with the above posters that if your sister likes and can eat seeds, this could be a fine substitute for nuts in just about any recipe that calls for nuts. My personal favorite were sunflower seeds, with pumpkin seeds being a close second. Sprouting them can make them more digestible as well.
Great response. I ate a lot more nuts when I first went raw. I gradually reduced the amount until I became more accustomed to eating raw foods and figured out what I liked best.
 
#16 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by penny79 View Post

I don't eat nuts too often, but I do like to have a Brazil nut every few days. I think a healthy diet is based around fruits & vegetables.
It's good that you mention the Brazil nut every few days. I make nutritionally complete meal plans for people and if they want no nuts at all then I have to find another source of selenium. Usually I recommend very, very, very few nuts, but that Brazil nut every few days fulfills the selenium need which is otherwise a little difficult. You can get quite a bit of selenium from goji berries if you eat them a lot and regularly, but that is a much more expensive way to go about getting one's selenium.
 
#18 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Raederle View Post

It's good that you mention the Brazil nut every few days. I make nutritionally complete meal plans for people and if they want no nuts at all then I have to find another source of selenium. Usually I recommend very, very, very few nuts, but that Brazil nut every few days fulfills the selenium need which is otherwise a little difficult. You can get quite a bit of selenium from goji berries if you eat them a lot and regularly, but that is a much more expensive way to go about getting one's selenium.
I love goji berries (wolf berries as they are sometimes called in different countries)... A great snack for me personally is to pop a hand full (4 tablespoons) of goji berries into a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice and refrigerate. In a few hours (or overnight is best) you would have plump and soft goji berries ready to be used as toppings on a dessert or just spoon it directly into your mouth... DIVINE! :)
 
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