5th Day of the Fast

yesterday was definitely the worst in terms of feeling cruddy. later that night my body temperature dropped a lot - i was so cold! i fantasized about eating warm soup. i also fantasized about eating some pecans - anything with some healthy fats in it. i got the hiccups, which was making me slightly nauseous as it was causing all the fluids in my stomach to jump around. I know it's normal to to get sick during the fast, but when you're already run-down it's easy to feel frightened that something is going wrong. for the first time since starting the fast, my stomach felt SO EMPTY. it felt so scary.

this morning i felt better, no sore throat and more energy. i had hiccups throughout the day, which is strange. i wonder why and if anyone else has had this reaction. i know i could continue on this fast longer, as i think the 4th day was probably the worst. but i decided to do my "Ease-Out" phase of fasting this afternoon. i started drinking the fresh-squeezed orange juice. tomorrow i will drink more orange juice and then cook a soup in the evening! i will eat mostly the broth, but it will be nice :) i guess that i have wimpy willpower. i know that sometime in the future i will try the fast again, maybe make it a yearly thing. if i can increase my duration each time, i will be happy.

i went to the grocery story today to get the oranges and some vegetables for soup and salad. i was very tempted by all the food i saw! i feel like i've lost some of the mental strength i had before because i'm totally obsessed about all the meals i want to make and the deliciousness of food. Though i eat pretty healthy, i'm definitely thinking of how good everything will taste! Evan's grandma is going to take us out to lunch next monday, so i am really looking forward to eating at Kuba Kuba, an awesome cuban restaurant in Richmond. last time i got huevos rancheros and tostones (fried plantains).

i was reading a Master Cleanse forum and  i found an absolutely delicious-sounding recipe for a raw "soup." i have not tried many raw food recipes before, but it makes me curious about getting a raw cookbook. i will post a pic when i make this soup.

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This recipe is from The Complete Book of Raw Food~ Lori Baird, editor

Abeba and Anna's It's Really Soup:
serves 8 to 10 people

10 to 11 fresh Roma tomatoes, chopped
1/2 red or yellow onion, peeled and chopped
4 cloves garlic, peeled
fresh basil to taste
fresh dill to taste
2 tablespoons fresh-squeezed lemon juice
Celtic sea salt to taste
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/8 to 1/4 cup raisins
1 to 2 red bell peppers
1/4 jalapeno pepper (optional) (i used habenero because i love spicy!)
1 cup sun-dried tomatoes, finely chopped then divided
1 avacado cubed
1 ear of corn cut from the cob
1/2 sweet yellow pepper
finely chopped parsley for garnish

In a blender combine 6 of the tomatoes with the onion, garlic, basil, dill, lemon juice, sea salt, olive oil, raisins, red bell pepper, jalapeno, and 1/2 cup water.
Blend well.

Add 1/2 cup of the sun dried tomatoes, a little at a time. Blend well.

In a large bowl, combine the avocado, remaining fresh and dried tomatoes, corn and the sweet yellow pepper. Pour the blended mixture over the chopped veggies and stir well. Garnish with parsley.
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and here's a pic of some yummy food i made last summer, as a celebration of food! it's a tofu scramble with cornbread and soy sausage. quite delicious.