Raw Cinco de Mayo

So I had a dilemma. My monthly raw food detox day (first Monday of each month) fell on Cinco de Mayo. My first impulse was to move this month's cleansing day to Tuesday so I could celebrate Mexico's independence day with too much chips and salsa, overstuffed burritos, and tangy margaritas. But then I found a recipe for raw tacos, and though I knew I'd regret the day-long ban on margaritas (more on this later), I decided to stick with my original plans.

The day started off with a pretty un-Mexican liquid breakfast — Banana Hemp Milk Smoothie (like the "Turkey of the Year" glass from a local pub? Notice it's animal abuser/scum-of-the-Earth Michael Vick).


This was really simple and pretty satisfying (at least for a couple hours). Here's the recipe:

Banana Hemp Milk Smoothie
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1 cup water
1 banana
1/4 cup hemp seeds
2 pitted dates
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. raw agave nectar
4-5 ice cubes

Combine everything in a blender and voila.

I also had a glass of grapefruit pineapple juice made in my trusty Jack Lalanne juicer:



Lunch couldn't come soon enough though. I was hungry again by 11 a.m., so I made a salad using the arugala and green onions I bought at the Farmer's Market on Saturday.


I also added thinly sliced radishes, shredded carrots, and Fatima's Flax Dressing from the "Vegan World Fusion Cuisine" cookbook. The dressing, loaded with flax oil, raw garlic, and apple cider vinegar, complemented the spicy taste of the arugala and radishes. I wasn't even sure I liked radishes when I bought them, but they were so pretty and red! Fortunately, I loved every crunchy bite!

Before heading to the gym at 5 p.m., I snacked on a Cocoa Mole Larabar (in keeping with the Mexican food theme). But dinner really stole the show. The Fiesta Tacos from "Alive in 5: Raw Food in 5 Minutes" by Angela Elliott are probably one of the best raw dishes I've ever cooked, uh I mean, uncooked.


There's a sunflower seed and sundried tomato pate (flavored with traditional Mexican spices like chili powder, cumin, and paprika) stuffed into romaine hearts along with raw corn, cubed jicama, and avocado. Though the book suggested topping the dish with homemade salsa, I forgot to buy tomatoes and such. Fortunately, my friend Greg made fresh salsa today and I was able to steal some for tomorrow's Fiesta Taco leftovers. The pate is too die for (tastes almost like veggie burger in a taco)! Luckily, I'll have some extra pate leftover to spread on crackers and bread later this week.

Finally, after a whole day of doing good with the raw foods detox, I went to a Cinco de Mayo party. As soon as I walked in the door, I was offered a margarita. Seeing as how it's a Mexican holiday, how could I refuse? I figure I did great all day with the raw food thing, so I deserved a refreshing break. And hey, did I mention this was a vegan Cinco de Mayo potluck? Somehow I managed to stay out of the food since none of the dishes were raw ... that was an amazing feat unto itself.