With the return of beautiful summer weather, many of us begin to put away the last remaining items that we use regularly during the winter.
The big bulky sweaters return to the back of the closet; the winter tires come off the family car; the mittens and scarves are stored away and replaced with light hats to keep the sun off our heads. One other area of de-winterization, even for non raw food enthusiasts, tends to be in their diet.
During those cold winter months, we crave those hot foods to fill our bellies and warm our insides. Big, thick and steaming soups, hot meat pies straight from the oven, and mugs of hot chocolate are all the rage as the weather rages below freezing outside. But in the summer months, we tend to put away those hot foods in favor of cool salads, iced teas and other cold items intended to chill us out as the mercury climbs. We do this without any thought towards using more raw food recipes.
One of the most obvious summer foods is one that you can use for any number of easy raw food recipes – the watermelon. This enormous fruit may be mostly water, but the juicy flavors are synonymous with sunshine and picnics.
And while the temptation may be there to simply split the fruit open and feast on it by the slice, there is much more than can be done with watermelon in the summer. One great dish for raw food enthusiasts and those simply seeking an apres-sun dish is the delicious watermelon soup.
Served chilled, this dish is great for the evenings, just before the sun goes down. All you have to do is combine the flesh of a good sized melon in a food processor with a small amount of ginger to taste, the juice of a medium lime, and a few leaves of mint. Blend until smooth, adding cold water as needed, depending on the consistency you desire. Strain if you like, or serve as is, garnished with an extra mint leaf.
Another great summer raw treat comes from the huge selection of green smoothie recipes that can be found online. Green smoothies give you all of the energy you need, in a cool refreshing drink. For optimum results, process a handful of spinach or kale with a medium orange, a touch of lemon zest, a bit of raw honey, a glass of cold water, a half cup of ice and half of a cucumber. This delicious drink will serve you well as a breakfast, or a patio sipper on a scorching hot day.
Another summer favorite is the simple popsicle, but many of the store-bought options are loaded with processed sugars and artificial colors. For a healthier raw version, try mixing together your favorite smoothie – maybe a delicious banana-strawberry smoothie – and freezing your own treats on a stick.
This way, you will know exactly what wonderful foods you are eating, know that you are not resorting to sugars to provide flavors, and you can customize your frozen desserts and have a different flavor every single day!
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