Let's Talk Raw

On Monday, April 6th at 7 pm CST, I'm being interviewed on the popular internet site, Let's Talk Raw. I would be so honored if many of you would be part of this call/web simulcast. The current Charter Membership membership fee is $24.97. That's for a one-time, life-time membership. I know....ANOTHER thing to buy. Revvell, life coach, author, international speaker and radio show host of the very popular Rawkin Radio, does NOT make money on this site. She uses the subscription fees to pay for the considerable time to keep the site operable, contact and confirm with guests, send out notices, market and more. Revvell does this project because it is her passion to help educate the world. I think $25 is a small price to pay for a lifetime of life saving health education. If you're interested I suggest you purchase now, as the price DOES go up periodically.

What you'll receive:

* Unlimited access to live interviews with the world's top Raw/Living Food Advocates where participants' questions are answered
* Introduction to up-and-coming and not-so-well known health/living food advocates
* Ability to download the interviews for approximately 2 weeks after and interview is complete (see policies)
* Life-time Charter Membership for the one, low price of $24.97.
* Listen/download up to 5 calls per month
* Unique information depending on questions asked
* Any bonuses the presenters may offer
* Choice of teleconference by phone (long distance charges may apply) or web simulcast (listen via computer, no extra charges)

Go to Let's Talk Raw to sign up and receive your lifetime membership at this low, low cost. They have amazing guest interviews currently ready to download and more phenomenal guests lined up weekly. I hope you'll be with me on April 6th and start thinking of questions that you'd like answered.

How are things going in your neck o' the woods this week?

Green Spring Break

On today's video I had the pleasure of interviewing a couple of Spring Breakers (if only all kids on Spring Break were this precious). Taylor & her good friend, Kirsten, have been enjoying a week away from the classroom and they actually came to me while I was working, asking if I'd make them a green smoothie. I'm so delighted that the kids are requesting a healthy snack instead of potato chips, cookies, soda or other such junk food. Houston, I think we've made contact! Now they're all fueled up, jumping on the trampoline and listening to Jason Mraz. If only I could bonsai them right now...because the teen years are beckoning them way too fast. Lord, give me strength.

I know many of you are green smoothie kings and queens out there. Would you be willing to share you favorite recipe in the comments below?

Happy Friday and Happy First Day of Spring!!

Raw In Reno

My beautiful friends, Georgette and Margo, are in the midst of facilitating Raw In Reno, a 30 day challenge which combines raw foods and yoga to help people who are wanting to transition to a healthier lifestyle. Because this week is spring break in Tulsa, and I'm unable to physically be in Reno, Margo asked if I would deliver a message to all who are participating in this challenge (see above). Thank you to the Raw In Reno crew and best wishes for your awesome event!

It is such a gorgeous day in Tulsa! Are you surviving or thriving in the weather where you are?

Airstream Dream & Recipe Sunday

When I get to heaven, I really don't want a mansion. I really just want an Airstream trailer, a really cool one like in the picture above. Don't ask me why, but I've had a fascination with Airstreams for as long as I've known they exist. You know, maybe I won't even have to wait to get to heaven....look at this Airstream that someone has turned into a mobile juice bar!

Sunday's are always good days to dream!

Although I've officially modified my March cleanse to include green smoothies, light salads and blended soups, I'm still juicing plenty. I'm always looking for new ideas of how to mix things up so I don't get too bored or fall into a rut. Lately I've been having one head of celery mixed with about 3-4 grapefruits every morning. Not sure what it is, but it's so yummy and my body seems to be craving it.

Today was the third week of congregating at the Tulsa Whole Foods juice bar for a Sunday afternoon juicy support group. Today we had 8 people in attendance and it was so encouraging to hear what others are doing and the progress they're making. Some are juicing exclusively, while others are incorporating green smoothies into their days. Kris, one of our juice feasting champions, has lost 10 pounds in 15 days! I noticed that everyone's skin and eyes looked so bright and alive. It's really miraculous what an abundance of fresh, organic fruit & vegetable juices (that include lots of leafy greens and celery) can do for a person!

Feeling Sweet & Saucy
3 apples
1 red pepper
1 small pineapple
6 carrots
1 tsp flax oil

Tomatillo Salsa Verde - Juiced
1 lb. tomatillos, husked
water of one thai coconut
1 jalapeño (serrano chiles work well too)
a few stalks of celery
1 small sweet onion
2 cloves garlic
1/2 bunch fresh cilantro
juice of 1-2 limes
1 tbsp. cold pressed olive, hemp, flax or macadamia nut oil
(Add a couple of tbsp of raw honey if you'd like it sweeter)

Push all ingredients through your juicer, except the coconut water, oil and honey. Combine all ingredients into your VitaMix and blend 30 seconds, or until creamy.

Nectar of the Mexican Goddesses
3-4 ears of corn, kernels cut from the ear
4 stalks of celery
1 red bell pepper
1 small yellow onion
1/4 bunch fresh cilantro
juice of 1-2 limes
1 jalapeño
dash of ground cayenne pepper
a sprinkling of mace or nutmeg
Celtic sea salt to taste

Juice all ingredients and add seasonings. Mix well and enjoy!

Raw Margarita
5 Green Apples
2 Limes, peeled
1 inch piece of Ginger
a dash of Cinnamon

Juice and then add a pinch of cinnamon.

You all have been pretty quiet this week...I'd love to hear how are you doing!

from the Food Editor of Raw Fu Magazine

I wanted to share with all my readers about a really awesome opportunity if you are looking for ways to advertise your business: Advertise in Raw Fu Magazine!

In April, Raw Fu magazine will make it's grand debut. Bunny Berry & I are so excited about the magazine's long term potential and I'm also delighted to be working as the magazine's Food Editor. I hope you are already subscribed, I wouldn't want you to miss a copy.

Some details.....first The Numbers: RawFu.com is a thriving Raw and Living Foods community with over 2000 active members since July 8, 2009. When advertising in RawFu Magazine, you are not only tapping into the offline subscriber, you are also being seen online daily. With over 2,000 members, 200,000 pageviews/month, and a fast growing list of Magazine subscribers you are hitting your target audience when they are at work or at home. The average users spends 12 minutes on the site each time they visit, and views 10 pages during each session. The average around the web is around 2 minutes per session! WOW!

The Demographics: The community is primarily female, interested in raw foods, health, exercise, counseling, natural weight loss, gardening, natural beauty products, kitchen equipment, meditation, yoga, pilates, raw food products, books about health and wellness, whole person healing, and personal coaching programs to help them stay raw, young, and healthy!

If this is your TARGET audience, you need to be advertising in RawFu Magazine!

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Affordable rates and a variety of ad sizes allow advertisers to select the level of exposure you desire for your national and international companies. Raw Fu Magazine also provides reasonable rates for small business owners, Etsy entrepreneurs, and personal bloggers to and reach new subscribers and clients worldwide.

All advertisers will receive equal space in both our print magazine (shipped to US residents only) and our online magazine, with direct links to your website!

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All packages are sold with a 3 month minimum commitment. Some discounts apply for larger packages.

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No discounts for 1/4, 1/8, or Blog Classifieds.

For more information you may contact me directly at penniashelton@yahoo.com or go straight to the source.

Shifting Gears...Ever So Slightly

Today is the 6th anniversary of when I met my husband, Gordon. He is such a precious love, friend, father, step-father, brother, brother-in-law, son-in-law, grandfather and mate. The angels certainly must have been rejoicing the evening we finally met. He was freshly un-engaged (the day before!) and I had just said these words to the mother of a friend at the bar, "Men are dead to me." We were both in the most unlikely place emotionally to meet and fall in love, but nonetheless it happened, and we both know it was a divine intervention that we'll never take lightly. Introduced by an especially colorful gay bartender, in a favored restaurant, the night proved to be unexpected magic. We've both come from pasts filled with life lessons, many of which we're still working through today. Gordon & I always say that God has a humorous and creative way of taking our garbage and recycling it into something beautiful. God has truly been our Master Recycler. Our blended family is complex, yet full of depth, synergy, love and new miracles all the time.

After 11 days on juice, I just ate an apple. I know that's not such a big deal, but for a few days my body has been nagging at me for something more than just juice. It's interesting to me that after doing last year's "big juicing event," I find myself once again struggling to get past 11 days on juice. I started a juice feast right after Christmas and I was able to juice for 10 days very successfully and then boom....I just had to eat something. Today when I pulled out my midday produce....I just couldn't bring myself to juice it, so I turned and happily grabbed an apple (at least I didn't offer it to anyone else, and no, my name's not Eve, *wink*).

As I said at the beginning of the month, I really wanted to do 30 days on just juice because I remember how totally amazing I felt and recalled all of the benefits I experienced within my body last year. The truth is, whether you juice for one day or 92, it's to the ultimate benefit of your overall body constitution. So after my colon hydrotherapy session yesterday, and the release there, I feel amazing and accomplished enough to move on to the next phase of eating/drinking. If you've been fasting/feasting, it's important to enter into solid foods sensibly and slowly to maintain the work that has been done. My personal plan is to continue juicing and drinking smoothies throughout the day and then have salads and blended soups for my dinner meal for the remainder of the month as I still have a weight goal that I'd like to attain.

Today actually does feel like a perfect day to break my juice cleanse and to celebrate life and all of it's marvelous surprises! I'll still be staying plenty juicy, sharing recipes and inspirations for you as this month progresses and of course, I'll still be facilitating Tulsa's weekly juice/smoothie meetings on Sunday afternoons at Whole Foods.

I REALLY would love to hear from you......tell me how you're doing?

Penni Get's Personal - Day 11

Today Bunny Berry asked if I'd guest vlog on RawFu. Her husband's mother, Mama Berry, is in the hospital. Let's all pray that Basil's momma will be OK since her EKG and blood pressure weren't looking normal. Seriously, Lord, all our families are in need of some divine intervention. Can I get an Amen?

Bunny probably shouldn't have given me carte blanche to post another video, because today I end up talking about Girl Scout Cookies, juicing and poop. What a great trio, right?! Tomorrow I'll probably get the pink slip, but it's true, we all need to consider that whatever goes in, ultimately needs to come out!

Today's Daily Juice:
1.5 quarts: grapefruit/celery/orange/spirulina/chia seeds
tons of water, rooibos tea and a colonic
1.5 quarts: celery/spinach/escarole/beet/carrot/apple/lemon
(I really wanted to eat those girl scout cookies.....humph)

So tell me, seriously, how's your day been?

Healthly Practices - Day 10

In today's video I discuss a few life practices that promote cleansing and healing while discouraging premature aging. I wonder what day I'll be on when I finally lose that double chin....Scheesh. Anyway, everything is going well and it's been a busy, exciting week. I've been doing a lot of writing as I'm working on 2 articles for the premiere issue of Raw Fu Magazine. If you haven't logged on to subscribe, I want to encourage you to do so. Bunny Berry is a master graphic designer and her husband is a professional photographer (he used to be the art director for Spin Magazine) and they are putting together the nation's most fabulous new mag for those interested in living a healthier life. Bunny is also incorporating the expertise of the Rawtographer for some on location photo layouts. There will be many raw food friendly articles & recipes, and it will also cover many aspects of real health - mental, spiritual, physical, social, environmental, etc. You can reserve your first three copies here!

As I was putting together my notes and menu for Saturday's Whole Foods lecture this week, I received communication from Matthew Kenney asking if I would consider being one of the guest speakers at 105 degree's grand opening this September in Oklahoma City. I couldn't be more excited to be part of the grand opening celebration. I will be sure to keep you all up to date on details as this dynamic, cutting edge restaurant, culinary academy and lifestyle store progresses. It truly is the most ambitious and impressive project within the raw food world right now.

Tonight we have another 6th grade basketball game (the boys made it into the playoffs and Taylor has to cheer). That's why I'm vlogging early today because I may be too tired once we get home tonight.

Today's Daily Juice (so far):
1.5 quart pineapple/cilantro
1 quart celery/green leaf lettuce/cucumber/pear/lime
To be continued

I'd love to hear how things went for you today......

Play Dough Machine

Like a child, I'm always so fascinated with the pulp that is produced when I'm mega juicing. With a heart of part scientist and part artist, I deeply enjoy creating in the kitchen. There's no doubt that juice cleansing is not always easy nor do I enjoy day after day of scrubbing my juicer over and over, however I always appreciate the benefits I feel when I'm living on just juice. So far I've lost 6 pounds and I feel beautifully clear headed. Although this should be my most hormonal week of the month, I'm steady and less agitated, even though my daughter is pacing the floor in front of me now, waiting for her turn on the computer. Until tomorrow.......

Today's Daily Juice:

1 qt. grapefruit/orange/spirulina
1.5 qt. celery/spinach/basil/green onion/garlic/tomato/lime/apple cider vinegar/flax oil/Himalayan sea salt
1/2 qt. cucumber/kale/dandelion greens/lime/granny smith apple

How is your day going?

Recipe Sunday - Day 8

Real Food Tulsa Juicy Meetup at Whole Foods

I've been really boring with my juicing for the past few days and have been drinking almost the same thing for the last 3 days. Today I woke up feeling as though I was starting to lose my juicing enthusiasm. It's likely that my palate needs things switched up a little. So, every Sunday for the month of March, I've decided to share a few recipes from the book that I'm working on, Real Juice Daily, in an effort to help those of you who are juicing keep your momentum going!

Also, do you know the importance of getting a little good fat into your juice or green smoothies? I know that sounds unappetizing, but I promise it's not. Our bodies need a bit of high quality fat when were juicing or doing green smoothies exclusively for a period of time. The recommended daily amount of fat is about one tablespoon per day of either flax, hemp, coconut, or extra virgin olive oil. The lack of fat is another reason I was feeling a little punky this morning. Once I had my Thai Transfusion, I'm as good as new. The addition young Thai coconuts is also extremely beneficial while juicing. (You can scrape out the meat and freeze it for recipes when you're done with your cleanse.) Then finally, adding sprouts to your juices or smoothies is amazing. Because sprouts are fully alive and contain so much quality nutrition, it's a great and inexpensive way to create a more nutrient dense concoction.

Thai Green Transfusion:
6 stalks of celery
handful sugar snap peas
1/2 cup alfalfa sprouts
3 green onions
1/2 red bell pepper
1 serrano pepper
1/2 pint grape tomatoes
1 handful of cilantro
2 limes, peeled
water from one young coconut
2 tsp. flax oil (or whatever you have)
Celtic sea salt to taste
Juice all ingredients up to the coconut. Put all the liquids into a blender, adding in the coconut water, oil and salt. Blend until smooth.

Chilled Cucumber Salad:
3 cucumbers
handful of fresh dill (if available)
1/2 cup sugar snap peas
2 cloves garlic
1/2 pint onion sprouts
5 green onions
1 organic lemon, peeled
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
1 Tbsp. raw honey
Freshly raked pepper, to taste
(Omit the raw honey & vinegar if you are hardcore juice feasting)
Feed all ingredients through your juicer through the lemon. Then pour the juice into your blender, adding oil, vinegar, honey and pepper. Blend and drink over crushed ice.

Anemia Buster:
3 ripe apricots
3 carrots
one big handful of spinach
1/2 lemon, peeled
2 tsp kelp powder
Juice the first four ingredients and then put into a blender with the kelp powder.

Purple Passion
1/2 head purple cabbage
3 granny smith apples
Exquisite color with delicious flavor.

Remember, every Sunday afternoon at 3 pm a group of us meet at the Whole Foods Juice Bar in Tulsa for support, encouragement and information sharing. We'd love to have you come join us if you're in our neck of the woods.

Global Juice Feast 2009 Starts Today!

With Juice Feasting Founder & Mentor David Rainoshek

Last year's Global Juice Feast ran from March 1st through June 5th and because last year's event was such a success internationally, David & Katrina Rainoshek are launching 2009's Global Juice Feast, with today as the kick off! As you all already know, I began my juice cleanse on March 1st and plan to go through the end of the month, so it feels great to have the added momentum and community excitement in the air. GlobalJuiceFeast is a free forum where you can join other feasters, and JuiceFeasting is where to go for much more detailed information and education on juice feasting. I highly recommend the Rainoshek's site and found the information there invaluable along my personal journey with juice. If you're juicing right now please join me on GJF. On the educational site, I have a full year membership because I want access to all of the high quality information and training even when I'm not juicing exclusively. There are different options, but you can choose from a 30, 60, 100, or 365 Day Membership. For more information please click on the Juice Feasting link on the right side of my blog.

and with the beautiful co-founder, Katrina Rainoshek

Go Green Smoothie!

Earlier this week our local paper, the Tulsa World, published an article about the 12 Week Health Initiative at Gabby's school, Metro Christian Academy. I wanted to share about it here on the blog since Fridays have suddenly become such a highlight. Each week well over a thousand students, faculty and parents are exposed to a delicious way to increase the amount of fruits and veggies in their diet with our Go Green Smoothie Challenge.

I've been keeping the Vita Mix busy as the kids and adults line up to guzzle down the green goodness. It took a little coaxing at first, but once they had a taste, nearly all the kids gave the thumbs up to the green smoothies, which I make with a heaping serving of spinach, strawberries, banana and orange juice.

Metro's 12-week Health Initiative is a program that was created over 3 years ago to encourage healthy diets and lifestyles for students and their families. Since this is Gabby's first year at Metro, I was delighted to be asked to be part of such a great program dedicated to health education and inspiration.

I have loved watching as the kids come streaming into the lunch room, grimacing as they first see green drink being poured into sample cups, but once they try it, they are all smiles and generally come back for more. Today when I arrived at the school with my blender and ingredients in tow, some of the kids in the hall cheered and said, "She's back!! It's the green juice lady!!" Some of the older kids are throwing money at us and asking for full size cups. It's so encouraging to know these kids are realizing that good nutrition can be fun AND delicious!

In addition to the the Go Green Smoothie Challenge, Metro kids have other healthy-living challenges, such as learning about the importance of drinking more water, getting them moving with walking the school's new nature path and we have a committee that has planning underway for a school sponsored garden which will be maintained by students and parents.

This fact has surprised more than a few people, but the Go Green Challenge is sponsored by Arby's. We couldn't do it without their generous contribution. To get the exact recipe or read the Tulsa World article in it's entirety go here.

PS....to all you juicy juicers: I'm still on the juice train, although I did have to taste a few samples of the smoothies today. I feel great and already lost several pounds. I'll bring you up to date tomorrow on what I've been drinking and share a few more recipes!

How are you doing today?

Jardin de Shelton

The title is much more elegant than the reality. Today I get excited about the coming of Spring. Organic Gardening runs through my bloodstream and I'm more than eager to get my hands into the dirt and see if this year I can use last year's lessons learned to grow a more productive crop.

It's been a busy day of office work with an ultimate feeling of accomplishment. I veered off track from my juice cleanse for a moment this morning (see below), but I am immediately back on track and feeling great. The only symptoms of detox are that I'm aware of is the need to sleep 10 hours or the last two night and a couple of pimples erupting on my chin. So far So GOOD!

Also, BIG thanks to my juicing mentors, David and Katrina Rainoshek for featuring me and Courtney Pool, on their blog. If you want to learn more about juicing and all of it's marvelous nuances, I highly recommend the Rainoshek's site.

Today's Daily Juice:

1 Quart Smoothie: Pineapple, Orange, Banana
1.5 Quart Green Juice: Swiss Chard, Celery, Cucumber, Granny Smith, Lime
And later this eve - Bruschetta (after Taylor's FINAL basketball game):
1 pint (or more) grape or cherry tomatoes
1 sweet Vidalia onion (or other available variety)
1 small bunch basil
2-3 cloves garlic
1/2 head celery
1 red bell pepper
1/2 large cucumber
juice of one lemon
freshly ground pepper, to taste
Celtic Sea Salt, to taste

Tell me, how are things going for you today?

Juicing & Supplements

For those of you who subscribe, you'll need to click on the link above to view today's video.

Today I talk about supplements and juicing. One thing I didn't mention is that it's a good idea to get at least a tablespoon of oil into your juices or smoothies daily, if you're doing a cleanse. I prefer flax, hemp or cold pressed extra virgin olive oil. Our bodies need a bit of fat and one tbsp. daily while cleansing will help keep things in balance and lubricated.

March always seems like a great time to cleanse and then, on the 3rd, I realize it's my best friend's birthday. It happened last year....a big dinner party, decadent chocolate cake and there I sat, pursed lipped, demurely sipping tea. It was a rough night, but I made it through. And I'll make it through again tonight as I work my way down that narrow staircase to the Cellar Dweller Bar to celebrate with my dear friend, Western. It's also my brother-in-law's birthday - Favored Uncle Larry lives in Salt Lake City and I miss him, Debbie, Ryan and Little Ned to pieces. Happy Birthday, boys.....surely you know I love you!

Today's Daily Juice:

1.5 quarts of grapefruit/spirulina
1.5 quarts spinach/celery/cucumber/beet/carrot and garlic
not sure what I'll drink next (or if I will), but for now I'm just sloshing about, making food for the family. (Pray to baby Jesus that I won't give in to the evil temptation of vodka tonight.)

How was your day today?

Weigh In - Day 2

I went to the health club this morning and walked for an hour. After spending the majority of the last two months away from the gym, I was off to a slow start. It's true what they say, "Use it or lose it." I felt accomplished when it was over and I've had great stamina the rest of the day.

Today's Daily Juice:

2 Quarts (1 qt. each @ 10 am and 3 pm): 1 bunch of Kale, 1 head celery, 1 large cucumber, 2 golden beets w/ tops, 3 apples, 1 inch pc. ginger, 2 lemons (peeled)
getting ready to juice: 1/2 lb. mixed greens, some stalks of celery, handful of fresh parsley, 2 pears & lime.

How did you do today?

March Juice Madness

Real Food Tulsa Juice Crew

Today was the first of day of March's juicy adventure! I've been so amazed at all of the support and comradeship that I've found since I announced that I was going to embark on a month of juice. There have been friends from around the globe who have chimed in to share that they are also going to get their juice on during this month of early spring cleaning. Some people are committed to juicing, while others are doing a green smoothie challenge and then there are others who are committing to a renewed dedication to a raw food diet as means of cleansing and rejuvenating.

This afternoon I had the pleasure of meeting with a group of Tulsans who are getting in on the juicing momentum. We had a great time of sharing and mutual support. I feel so fortunate and blessed to have found this kind of community, accountability partners and friends. I've heard from a few others that they'll be joining us next week, so if you're in the Tulsa area, please join us in the juice bar at Whole Foods at 3 pm on Sundays, throughout the month of March.

Yesterday I shopped for lots of produce with which to fill my counter top and refrigerator. I tried to focus on leafy greens, celery, cucumbers, lemons, limes, apples, grapefruits and oranges. I also picked up some golden and red beets and a 5 pound bag of carrots. Since I'm hoping to lose some unwanted winter pounds during this month, my plan is to go much lighter on the fruits and much heavier on the greens.

I'll start back at the gym tomorrow and will report on what I am able to accomplish there. I'll also weigh in on the scales there, since they are more accurate than those at home.

Today's DAILY JUICE:

1 Quart - Orange/Grapefruit/Spirulina
1.5 Quart - Rainbow Chard/Celery/Cilantro/Cucumber/Tomato/Onion/Jalapeno/Lime/Sea Salt
1.5 Quart - Mixed Greens/Celery/Cuke/Granny Smith Apple/Lemon/Ginger

Tell me, how was your first day of March?