Raw Food Land Is All Abuzz

Holy guacamole, there's lots of excitement sprouting up in the land of raw foods. Here's a sneak peek at a few juicy happenings...


The New Hot Spot

Perhaps the biggest buzz this month has been about the opening of Oklahoma City's new restaurant and culinary institute, 105degrees. The visionary behind this innovative (and beautiful!) cafe/school is Dara Prentice. Dara partnered with my boyfriend chef & restaurateur Matthew Kenney, who serves as the Director of Culinary Arts. Matthew will develop each season's menu and the school's curriculum.

Head over to Real Food Tulsa, where the lovely Penni Shelton will lead you on a virtual tour of the trendy new digs.

105degrees will celebrate its grand opening in style on Saturday, Oct. 3 with an afternoon of presentations by some of the rawk stars of the raw food world. Here's a small sampling of some of the folks on the day's line-up:

• cookbook author Ani Phyo
• raw food coach Karen Knowler
• raw vegan athlete TimVanOrden
• raw model Anthony Anderson

Seriously, if you're anywhere in the vicinity of Oklahoma City, get in on the action as these international experts share their knowledge of raw food cuisine. For reservations and event inquiries: contact@105degrees.com or 405.842.1050.


Monkeying Around in the Kitchen

It's no secret that we live in a nation of very unhealthy overweight children and adults. Hello? I used to be one of them! So, when I heard the buzz about the first raw food recipe book for kids, I got really jazzed.

Monkey Mike's Raw Food Kitchen was specifically written for 7 to 12-year-olds. How cool is that! It's been proven that the best way to get children to eat healthy food is to get them excited and inspired about it — kids are way more likely to eat foods they helped prepare.

Check out some of these recipes:

• Cat's Meow Chocolate Pudding
• Chunky Monkey Ice Cream
• Froggy Delight Green Smoothie
• Walnut Creek Dip

All 36 recipes in the book are free of dairy and gluten, and they're 100% raw vegan! Head over to Raw Mom to pick up a copy for the little monkey in your life.


Complete Nourishment...Inside and Out

You can eat the healthiest diet in the world, but what's the point if you're still slathering toxic chemicals onto your body? After all, the skin is the largest organ and it needs to be nourished with clean, natural products too.

Luckily, natural health advocate and co-host of the Renegade Health Show, Annmarie Gianni spent her summer playing spa. She's now ready to launch the first two products of her new chemical-free, organic skin care line.

Mmm, food for the skin. Check out the ingredients in these blends — so pure, they're good enough to eat! In fact, the honey mask would taste great on a cucumber and the exfoliate could double as a seasoning to soups or salad dressings. Fun!


So, anything buzzing in your corner of Raw Food Land?