Ethiopian Review

The hardest part for myself and many others about a Raw Food Diet is the cravings. You have to deal with caffeine withdrawls and sugar cravings and they are not fun. Even those you may drink tea with most raw diet plans, the
caffeine contained in tea does not completely satisfy and eliminate the headaches.

The good news is that these withdrawls and cravings are temporary, and don’t normally last more than a month. The great news is there are ways to satisfy these cravings without cheating on your diet. Based on my own experience, here are some of the most common cravings people have while on this diet, and how I overcame them.

Meat. Meat is a hard craving to overcome while on this diet. In fact, the only way I was able to over come it was to wean myself from meat. I switched to vegan meat substitutes. These are still cooked and don’t follow the Raw Diet 100%, but I ate them whenever I got a craving for turkey, chicken, beef, or pork. After about 6 weeks, I no longer got these cravings, and was able to stop buying or eating vegan meat as well.

Caffeine. I went through the first week thinking “I am going to kill for coffee soon.” It was brutal. I finally decided to try and find a way to satisfy this need without cheating. What I fell in love with was this recipe:

Coconut mocha frappe.
1/2 cup sesame seeds
2 cups coconut milk
1 cup coconut meat
1 Tablespoon honey
1 Tablespoon carob

In a blender or smoothie maker, blend until smooth. You can heat this for a warm latte, or chill it for a refreshing frappe. It also solves chocolate cravings!

I have since found out that some raw food plans allow coffee in moderation (meaning about a cup a day). It must be sweetened with natural sweetener such as honey, and only organic milk or coconut milk can be used as cream, but it is still delicious.

Sugar. Most cravings for sugar are actually caused by imbalances in or hormones or adrenal function. Many people have this problem as a result of confusing our bodies signals with poor diet and high stress levels. First and foremost, don’t skip meals. In fact when adopting a raw food
diet, it is best to eat a little something every 2 hours. This will ensure your body never thinks it is running low on energy and needs a jump start. Also, drink lots of water to help hydrate and flush toxins from your body. Get rid of any remaining sugars your body might be using to fuel its addiction. Finally, if you still just need a fix, then eat sweet fruits like apples, or berries. This is a really good recipe to have in the fridge that you can snack on without guilt:

Blackberry Crisp.

Top:
2 cups pecans
1/2 cup shredded dried coconut
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup raisins, unsoaked
1/4 cup Rapadura whole cane sugar

In a blender, mix all ingredients until you get a crumbly topping.
Filling:
30 oz blackberries, thawed and drained
3/4cup pitted medjool dates, soaked
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Blend together for one minute or until smooth. Place in shallow bowl or pan and top with crumble topping.

Once you’ve made it past the first month, you’ll be amazed how much better you feel and how little you crave these foods, and your body will thank you.

- By Chrissy Dean

- Bin Du