The Skinny ChefA heat wave has hit the East Coast and I cook every day, sometime four to five hours straight. Unfortunately, as the temperature rises, my small air-conditioning units can't compete with the oven heat. My solution -- I'll bake during the morning, let the oven cool down and go raw for dinner. While eating all meals raw can be a challenge -- I tried it last summer for a week -- eating raw one meal a day can be easy.

The raw diet consists of natural, unprocessed foods that are not heated above 114 degrees Fahrenheit. Most raw foodists eat mainly plant-based foods, such as vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, beans, grains and legumes. They believe that the raw foods provide energy-charged nutrients that are killed during cooking, mainly enzymes that not only fuel the body but can provide other astounding health benefits.


However medical professionals, including nutritionists, believe that cooked vegetables and proteins can provide the same benefits as long as vegetables are not overcooked which could mean vitamin loss. I like to shake it up and eat my vegetables both ways, especially in the summer months when tender fresh produce is plentiful and at its best.


Get the Skinny Chef's California Salad recipe.