Goin' green

I'm going green, and no, I'm not talking about the environment -- I'm talking about the IN-vironment. Let me explain. For the past 6 years it has been a goal of mine to eat more greens, and eventually go to a 80% raw, vegan diet, but I have never much succeeded at this goal. Why? Because I have always hated vegetables. From as young as I can remember, the bitter taste of vegetables, especially green vegetables, would make me gag. I remember how I preferred sitting at the dinner table for hours, refusing to eat my vegetables, than to just eat them up and go on and play. I really could not tolerate vegetables.

I've come a little way since I read "The pH Miracle" by Dr. Robert Young. Instead of drinking green drink, I found empty vegan capsules at Whole Foods and would put the disgusting-tasting green powder in those and ingest it this way. I could tell by the reaction from my body that it did not work as well as drinking the greens, but it was my way of trying. I started incorporating more salads into my diet (though honestly, it was only when I went out to eat - I rarely made a salad at home). I started even once in awhile craving salads.

Then there's broccoli. Man, I always hated broccoli. However, I was invited to a co-worker's house for dinner, and they had gently steamed some broccoli. I was willing to tolerate it, and work hard not to let it induce my infamous "broccoli face", but then my co-worker's wife invited me to use some of their Spike seasoning on the vegetable. "We use this instead of salt," she informed me. I had no problem with salt, but I decided to try it anyway. Wow, I totally gobbled all that broccoli up in no time flat!

So yeah, I've made some progress. But I definitely still have a notorious "bread" tooth, as I like to call it. Not exactly sweet, but it's still the sugar (carbs) that I crave. So when my husband and I were shopping at the local Costco, and saw a demonstration of the Vita-Mix 5200, we decided to stick around and learn more, despite the hefty price-tag. I told my husband that I had heard about the Vita-Mix blenders during all my studying when reading up about living an alkaline lifestyle. "They're good", I whispered. "...Hence the price tag."

We listened and watched as the lady did her speel about how wonderful the mixer was. Speels rarely draw me in; so I only listened half-heartedly. She had just poured some sorbet into small cups for those watching to try. We were informed that there were carrots in the sorbet. We tasted it -- it was delicious. Intrigued, we continued watching.

Next she made some nasty looking green smoothie like concoction. We watched as she put whole fruits and vegetables, seeds, skins and all, into the mixer. I inwardly snorted -- there was no way that the texture of THAT concoction was going to be tolerable. While it was true that my husband and I were considering a juicer, because we wanted to live healthier and introduce more vegetables and fruits into our diet, this was just a blender -- NOT a juicer. Besides, all the texture left over from those leafy greens, the peel on the apple (not to mention its core), litte bits of carrot...ew -- just EW. But I watched regardless.

I listened, nodding my head impatiently as she told the crowd how most of the nutrients were in the parts that a normal juicer would just not be able to handle -- i.e. the skin, core, seeds, and pulp of a vegetable or fruit. "Yeah, yeah, yeah" -- this I knew. But no juicer...not even the most expensive kind...could truly make a whole food juice, anyway. And besides, I had a $60 beehive Osterizer blender at home..the thing barely chopped up ice, much less fruits and vegetables. It certainly wouldn't produce the smooth consistency that I absolutely REQUIRED of any drink or smoothie.

Well, color me surprised when I saw the mixture after 10 seconds of mixing it on high speed. It certainly LOOKED smooth. "Hmm," I thought. The presenter then started pouring it into cups for us to taste. I was immediately surprised when my husband, who also hated most vegetables, reached for one. "Well," I thought, "I might as well try it. It will probably taste horribly, but it will be good for me, nonetheless." I prepared myself for the inevitable gag reflex that would surely follow.

What followed was something surprisingly delicious...absolutely smooth, with a touch of sweetness (thanks to the Apple and a little touch fo Agave nectar). I could taste the greens, but they were surprisingly good. It was such a refreshing little drink, and I literally felt my body craving it. It seemed to open up with energy just after drinking that small dixie cup of green smoothie. I hadn't felt like that in a LONG time. Getting excited, I looked at my husband, wanting to see his reaction.

"That is really good!" He exclaimed. I must admit I was surprised. We then turned back to the presenter, who was now talking about soup. She was making a tortilla soup. "Ewww," I thought again, thinking back to several different tortilla soups that I have tried in the past. "I hate tortilla soup," I whispered to him.

"I don't," he said, turning eagerly to watch. I watched as the presenter put all sorts of fresh, whole vegetables, most of which I did not like, into the blender. I winced at the thought of how they would taste blended together. When she was done, Dustin (my husband) eagerly grabbed a cup and took a sip. "Delicious!" He announced.

"Let me try that," I said, reaching for his cup. I took a little sip, and then another. Wow. The freshness of the vegetables was evident both in the taste and smell of the soup. It. Was. Delicious. And how easy...I could make such a wonderful soup in under a minute? Seriously?

Dustin must have saw the look on my face. He turned to me and said, "This is an answer to our prayers about eating healthier. Forget the juicer...this does it better. Let's buy it!"

Still eying the price tag, I suggested we go home and think on it. However, it became obvious to us that this would be an investment; not only because of the 7 year warranty but also because it was one way we both would enjoy getting more healthy, raw, vegetables and fruits into our diets. We knew we had to buy it.

So this is how this blog begins. I have owned the Vita-Mix 5200 for 3 weeks now, and have honestly used it almost every day, if not more. Complicated, overcooked recipes of the past are now simple and easy to make, and can be done without boiling the heck out of the ingredients (which simply reduces the nutritional value of our food). I can easily incorporate all the suggested servings of fruits and vegetables into a day. I can enjoy a filling green smoothie for breakfast and/or lunch, and eat a delicious, filling soup or something similar for dinner. I can easily make healthy sorbets in a few minutes for dessert. I can eat WHOLE foods and drastically reduce our intake of processed or frozen foods.

This blog is about just that - our family's journey to eating healthier. I will share recipes that I find that can be made in the Vita-Mix 5200 and recipes that don't use it at all, and I will share our progress as we move forward.

If you are interested in purchasing your own Vita-Mix blender (the 5200 or any other blender) and/or accessories, please click here! Yes, I'm an affiliate, and I decided to become one because I really love this machine and how it is helping me with my health. I will encourage you, though, to not just take my word for it. Do as I did -- before purchasing, do research to make sure this is the investment that is best for you and your family. I can promise you that you won't be disappointed, but I'm not a salesperson. I'm just someone who wants to share a wonderful product that is helping me to better meet my own goals in ways I never knew possible. Go figure...a blender can make that much a difference -- yeah, I didn't expect it, either ;)

I hope you will consider taking this journey with us, and sharing your own recipes, experiences, hints and tips.

So why don't we get to it? Being green has never been so easy!