Originally, I did all of my raw food prep in a $3 garage-sale blender and a food processor. With experience, I learned of what my preferences are and how to streamline what I’m doing to make it more efficient and easy. One thing I’ve learned about myself is that if the process is too complex or inconvenient, then it will quickly fall to the wayside. This is true for me about anything, and especially with food prep. So, over the years, I’ve refined my approach to raw food prep to suit me and my family. Now my kitchen is outfitted with the following:
5 tray Excalibur dehydrator: dried fruit, raw crackers, raw cookies, kale chips, nut burgers
3 high speed blenders (1 vitamix, 1 blendtec, and 1 waring): green smoothies, fruit smoothies, nut butters
food processor: pates, sauces, dressings
spiralizer: thin and wide noodles made out of zucchini, daikon radish, carrot, beet, turnip
citrus juicer: for fresh and quick lemon, lime, or orange juice
Juiceman juicer: I’ve had this for 15 years and it still is great. Best for hard produce like apples, carrots, ginger, beet. Does not work for soft produce or greens because it has a centrifugal mechanism.
Champion juicer: This is what I use for soft produce and greens and sometimes nut butter. But I use it mostly for frozen banana ice cream.
You don’t have to have all of these things in your kitchen to enjoy raw foods. I have collected them over the years. A lot of raw foodists are minimalists and just have one or two appliances. I like the convenience and the variety of gourmet dishes I can make. All of these appliances are sometimes not used for weeks, though. Usually, we eat pretty simply. I think for dinner tonight we’re going to have a big watermelon and some fresh mustard greens from the garden. Yum yum.
I am married to John, and we have Jonathan, who is 3 1/2 years old. We are blessed to live in southern Oregon on property where we can grow our own fruits and vegetables organically. I work in healthcare as an occupational therapist. I’ve been doing that for 12 years, and I really love it. John and I are also creating a business around our passion for raw foods, namely green smoothies. We hope to one day open a raw food cafe somewhere. I’m a lover of nature, backpacking, rafting, hiking, camping, art, scrapbooking, eating, singing, writing music, playing guitar, dancing, lounging, movies, laughing, community, bonfires, learning…