Every Autumn, as the fruiting plants come into bloom, animals and humans alike tend to eat a little more than they need (and add a little more padding).
This year, take the plunge into a raw diet, or maintain your healthy summer eating habits by nurturing your bowels and finally breaking up with your winter cheese and wine splurge.
For more winter warmer advice and recipes, download raw food Guru Yoko Inoue’s free guide to Eat More Raw in Winter.
Warming food and spices
According to the Monk’s of the late 18th century in Europe, raw food diets and fasting were an important way to improve health and vitality and achieve a higher spiritual connection.
Fast forward a century or two and today many raw foodies follow the principals and guidelines of a healing and natural food diet to improve moods, increase energy and become more connected with their bodies.
Eating with the seasons is an important aspect of raw food diets, taking advantage of the produce that is in abundance in the cooler months.
Incorporate seasonal vegetables such as turnip, cabbage, onion, parnsip and ginger along with grains and legumes including oats, quinoa, black beans, peanuts and spelt.
Add an extra boost to your meals with almonds, chestnuts, sesame, sunflower seeds, walnuts and pine nuts.
When ingredients like cabbage, beans and mushrooms are in season it is the ideal time to experiment with the ancient tradition of fermentation to enhance their nutritional profile to improve your gut health.
There are a number of health benefits attributed to consuming the smorgasbord of probiotics, enzymes, vitamins and minerals that are found in fermented foods, including boosting your immune system and easing digestive problems.
Warm your soul and enhance your guts’ microbiome by consuming tasty fermented foods like sauerkraut, kimchi, sprouted mung beans and kombucha.
Sprinkle on the herbs
Since ancient times, Chinese medicine has used warming foods to balance the body’s yin and yang to prevent and treat disease.
Warming foods have the effects of raising the yang which improves circulation and warms the core.
Try adding warming herbs like cumin, fennel seeds, dill, caraway, cinnamon, cloves, rosemary or turmeric to your winter salad bowls and marinated vegetables.
Blend and dehydrate
Like fermenting, raw diets can be enhanced by dehydrating foods when they’re in season.
Roots and fruits can be gently exposed to heat, twenty minutes in the dehydrator or in a very low oven (nothing over 46 degrees Celsius) retains the optimum nutrient structure, and gives your meals added diversity and flavour during the cooler months.
Bring colour and energy to your winter diet with dehydrated mango, nectarine, dates and cherries.
Warm elixirs
In the cooler months we are less inclined to drink as much water as our bodies need, so herbal teas, elixirs and soups become the perfect way to stay hydrated and bring warmth to the winter menu.
Warming teas and soups to try this winter:
• Lemon, ginger and honey
• Curry spiced carrot soup
• Spicy cacao elixir
Exercise regularly to increase your metabolism and improve circulation
During winter, raw diets recommend slowing down, nourishing our bodies with plenty of sleep and ensuring we go to bed early and try to rise with the sun.
According the Chinese medicine, winter is the time to strengthen and restore the kidneys, and it is also the perfect time to secure a routine that incorporates meditation to nourish the mind and body.
Building regular exercise into the routine helps to increase the metabolism and improve circulation – and it also warms the core.