Welcoming Spring, Honoring Winter, and a New Spark! + Choosing Raw Group Cleanse
Hey all!
So it appears I’m not the only coffee lover among us. Glad that post struck a chord!
Since we’re getting real about our “gentle imperfections,” it’s the perfect time for me to announce the second Choosing Raw + Spark Wellness 10 Day Cleanse. You may recall our last cleanse initiative, which was in January. I’m happy to report that it was a tremendous success. Our cleansers (and we counselors, who were participating too!) felt unanimously more energetic, more confident about our food choices, more balanced, and more savvy in the kitch. Here are just a few of the testimonials we gathered after the cleanse:
“The best thing about the cleanse is that I saw amazing results. My joint pain became almost non-existent, my energy level was through the roof and I felt clear headed and happy! I don’t know if I would have had the stamina to go 10 days on a cleanse without the support of Gena and the forum. This cleanse was definitely worth every penny. I can’t thank Gena and Spark Wellness enough.” –Cleanse participant, January 2010
“I had a wonderful experience doing the level three cleanse. Gena was warm, supportive, well-informed, and professional. the on-line forum was fun, informative, interesting. the group phone calls were fun and informative. The food was delicious!! I would not have had the courage and confidence to eat a raw vegan diet on my own, this cleanse gave me the structure and guidance I needed to try it. I can’t recommend this program highly enough and that’s the truth.” –Cleanse participant, January 2010
“I realized, the best testimonial I can give is telling you how I feel. In a word – amazing. I cannot believe how much more energy I have. I feel lighter, and my exercising habits have improved. The meal plan helped so much, and Gena’s recipes were delicious. I’m incredibly grateful.” –Cleanse participant, January 2010
Andrea, Hadley and I took such joy in helping to guide people towards a gentle, healing break for their bodies. And we’re delighted to be doing it again — this time, as a celebration of spring! Spring is the season of new life and new growth, of renewal and new beginnings. So what better time could there be to offer your body a tiny fresh start?
What’s different about our cleanse is that the focus is on real, whole foods, along with a manageable shift to a healthier lifestyle. This is not a “fad” cleanse where you drink juice or lemonade every day. You’ll be eating — and good food, at that! No starvation here. We also understand that everyone is different, which is why we’ve designed three unique programs for our participants. I lead Level 3, which is all vegan; descriptions of the three levels can be found here, at the Spark! website. As with our last cleanse, support will be offered in an online forum and a support call.
If you’re interested in joining us, mark your calendars: we are hosting a free teleclass on the benefits of a cleanse, as well as details of the program, on April 28th at 9pm EST. E-mail us to register and get your dial-in info.
We’re also offering a special discount for people who sign up before April 24th. Register today and pay only $69: this price includes detailed detox packet, menus, grocery lists, delicious recipes, a group telephone support call, and an online group form for additional support throughout your cleanse experience. Bloggers who participate and promote on their blog receive additional $10 off and Health practitioners receive an additional $10 off. (Again, you can e-mail us to take advantage of these special rates.)
If you have questions about the cleanse, please check out the detailed page on the Spark! Wellness website, which includes FAQs, sample menus for each level, and testimonials. We hope to have many of you along for the ride!
Before we move into the freshness of spring, though, it can be lovely to savor the last of winter’s vegetable bounty (if that doesn’t sound too oxymoronic). I love summer produce, naturally; I never met an heirloom tomato, red pepper, avocado, or zucchini I didn’t like. But in many ways, I’m first and foremost a lover of the fall and winter veggies: winter squashes, potatoes, kale, cabbage, and broccoli and cauliflower. I also love the hearty soups and grain dishes that winter calls to mind. As gleeful as I am to see asparagus appear at the farmer’s market, or to blanch some fresh green peas, I also love to use March and April as a last hurrah for winter produce, making all sorts of dishes with beets and turnips, and (now that I’m fast becoming a fermenting fiend) putting sauerkraut into jars.
This tasty, savory sweet grain dish is just one of many dishes I’m using as my farewell to winter. It’s appropriate that I cooked it up this week, as temperatures shifted from cold (with a side order of torrential rain) to springlike and sunny. All hail transitional food!
Quinoa, Cranberry, and Roasted Cauliflower Salad (yields 4-5 servings)
1 small head cauliflower, cut into florets and pieces
1-2 tbsp coconut oil
1 1/4 cups quinoa, rinsed
1/3 cup dried cranberries
Lemon juice
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Roast the cauliflower by tossing it in 1-2 tbsp coconut oil and dusting it with salt and pepper. I also like to squeeze some lemon on it! Place in the oven, uncovered, and roast until the top of the cauliflower is slightly brown and crispy.
While it cooks, combine the quinoa with 2 1/2 cups water in a saucepan, and bring to a simmer. Cover and simmer gently until the water is absorbed and the quinoa is fluffy.
Transfer quinoa to a bowl, and add the roasted cauliflower and a little squeeze of lemon. Toss in the cranberries, and season to taste. Serve warm!
The best thing about this dish — well, the second best thing, after it’s delicious taste — is how simple it is to prepare, and how satisfying it is to eat. Minimal time and maximum enjoyment: it doesn’t beat that.
While I’m not a truly seasonal or local eater — for reasons I’ve explained here, it isn’t entirely possible within my lifestyle — I do take joy in following the general rhythm of the seasons. This means not only celebrating new life and new crops, but also celebrating the end of previous seasons, and bidding some winter faves a fond adieu.
I’m sure I’m not the only one: tell me, what dishes are you preparing more than often, in anticipation of a summertime hiatus?
xo
29 Responses to “Welcoming Spring, Honoring Winter, and a New Spark! + Choosing Raw Group Cleanse”
Comments
Read below or add a comment...
Leave A Comment...
Testimonials
–Lyn D., MarylandBefore I started working with Gena, I wasn’t sure whether it would be worth it, since I knew what I “should” be doing. Her counseling, however, turned out to be a key factor in my success.
Not only does she have great advice when I am struggling, but her realistic approach helped me make major changes despite having no time and limited funds. Her recipes and ideas are for real people with lives beyond their diets, and they are great. Gena is down to earth and non-judgmental. She strikes a great balance between encouraging me to go a little father but to keep things in perspective and have fun with the process.
Read more >>
FAQ
So where do you get your protein?Ah, the million dollar question. I know that my fellow raw foodists are uttering a collective sigh of frustration with me. But it’s inevitable, so here goes:
I get my protein from a wide array of vegetables, sea vegetables, nuts, seeds, grains, and legumes. The notion that we need to supplement our diet with large amounts of protein, especially in the form of animal products, is mistaken: our bodies are capable of assembling amino acids from all of the foods we eat and building the “complete proteins” that we’ve all been told we need to get in a single sitting.
Read More >>
Recommendations
Juicer (average $50.00 - $500.00)If you’re like me, and juicing is a crucial part of your lifestyle, then the cost of a juicer will absolutely be worth it! It will buy itself back again and again and again. The juicer I recommend is the Breville Two-Speed Juice Fountain Plus. It’s the only juicer I’ve ever owned, and it has never let me down. I recommend you invest in a juicer that has at least this level of performance in order to juice leafy greens.
Some of you have asked me whether it’s wiser to buy a juicer or a Vitamix.
Read More
gentle imperfections, oh i like that!!! its good to not feel guilty:)
oh and im still stuck in fall…with my spaghetti squash obsession….(sorry i forgot to answer that last part)
The quinoa looks yummy! I need to cook a dish I can eat at a family easter sunday meal so maybe that’ll be it… it needs to be something I can make in advance and bring.
I heard about the cleanse and am so tempted to do it again. I learnt alot through doing it first time and know how I would perhaps approach it differently this time around. Will it differ in anyway to the last?
Roasted cauli looks great and I rarely roast it, but have seen it lately alot and should give it a whirl.
I have no idea how i missed that coffee post. Oh wait, I do. I clicked Mark All as Read in my reader the other day and in the process, missed amazing posts like that one.
You know I love coffee. I love the whole experience of it, not just the caffeine. As a high raw, GF, soy light, vegan…who has given up all other extra curricular vices as well now that I am an old woman
so I figure if the worst I do is glug a few cups of coffee, I am actually doing pretty amazing. Thank you for the honest post! Love it!
I love watching the progress others experience while figuring out what works well for them. Life (and food) is so interesting!
i still have ONE butternut in my possession–and i’ve been scrutinizing over the way i’m going the prepare my very last… ah, dilemmas…
my husband LIVES on quinoa. it’s one of his main cooked food items. i’ll send this his way. cranberries and lemon sound good.
you never met an avocado you didn’t like? and you live on the east coast? don’t know if i believe you. i’ve met some raunchy ones in my day.
i will recommend this cleanse to some folks who are up for this kind of thing but need guidance.
I’ve only really discovered Quinoa this year (I remember the first time I ordered a salad containing Quinoa from my fave organic cafe I had to ask how to pronounce it…). I’d love to introduce it into my diet a lot more so thanks so much for sharing your recipe!
I love roasted cauliflower!! That salad looks delish.
As much as I welcome some heirloom tomatoes and fresh greens in my salad, I will miss my sweet potatoes.
I loved reading about the cleanse last time (although not participating
). So glad you’re doing another one…this time, I might look into joining the group!
I am sure your cleansing regimen is awesome, and good luck to everyone who is joining you! I, myself, love the springtime for its asparagus and FRESH peas, which are ridiculously hard to find unless you hit the season just right. I find that my eating habits do a 180 between the winter and spring. Starting yesterday I had absolutely no desire for anything except salads for lunch and dinner, piling my plates from the dining hall with a huge mass of greens, whereas sometimes during the winter, eating a salad wasn’t as enjoyable. I already feel so much lighter in terms of mood and energy levels, even though I have been unable to run due to a strained knee. It’s so beautiful outside!
Oh, how I love quinoa.
This cleanse sounds great! My friend Rose participated in January & she really loved it.
My fall and winter food that I miss terribly in spring and summer is a bowl of warm, comforting soup. I am just not a fan of cold soups, sadly, and I really don’t like to eat hot soup in hot weather. I just made a big batch this past weekend on what I’m gussing might be the last of the cold weather we’ll have! Hope it tides me over.
First, that asparagus picture looks good…now I want some. And I’m a coffee lover too. But that salad looks great and I’ve had quinoa sitting around for a while…so I need to use it. I only have a little mixed dried fruit….wonder if I could just throw that in instead of just the cranberries.
that dish looks tasty…i love quinoa with dried fruit (raisins or dried cranz), and by accident (slash i had no idea what to do with all the fee coconut water i was gifted by the people at vita coco) i cooked quinoa in the coco water – its really good, you should try it! it adds a very subtle flavor but is definitely noticeable – and id imagine it would be great in this recipe. anyways. im welcoming spring with open arms.
ps about the coffee post. love. javaaaaaaaaaaaa….mmm. its interesting given that i do have IBS, but my stomach must be so dang trained to cope with coffee because its never seemed to upset it. maybe i just have enough alkaline things in my stomach to balance it out? ah well, im not questioning it!
This dish does look great, haven’t had quinoa in awhile. Thanks!
Oh my gosh, Gena – I was just thinking this morning how I should contact you about a cleanse recommendation! I’ve been feeling the need to do one although I’ve never done one before and don’t know where to start – or find one I trust (there’s a lot of diet wackos out there!). But, I completely trust your judgement and will be signing up. Even the timing is perfect!
i clicked on ‘register’ and it doesn’t seem to be working. i’m really interested!
That’s odd, Grace — it’s working OK for me. Try again, perhaps?
thanks, just did
if i link to this page, is the discount automatically applied?
my email came back as undeliverable…can you verify the email address.
Ok, I know I’m kind of out of season with this, but I know pretty soon the butternut squashes are going to get more expensive and not to tasty, so I’m planning on having tons of butternut squash fries, purees and soups over the next few weeks (I’ve been hoarding squashes…)
What a great combination of flavors! I am always looking for new ways to use quinoa–such a protein-packed and tasty grain that I need to eat more often.
Hi Gena, your quinoa dish looks so yummy and beautiful.
The idea of a cleanse sounds really good to me right now, I will have to consider that.
I’m stocking up on winter squashes right now too…they are so wonderful in some of the macrobiotic dishes I make sometimes.
Hope you have a wonderful weekend!
I love cranberries and I think they can really add so much flavor and texture to a meal. I use it in lots of meals — from breakfast to dinner!
I signed up for the cleanse…..but the email address had a typo (needed an “r”) so it didn’t send at first—-
All set to start! I’ll be doing level 3….I also posted it on my blog http://www.thrive-style.com/2010/04/spring-cleaning-2/ and I’ll promote it to my clients!
Thanks–looking forward to something fun