Tag Archives: meals

Ensalada in Orba

Today we went for a walk in the Jalon valley and saw wild orange trees, nut trees, purple grape trees and cacao bean trees! We have lemon trees in the garden at the villa so can pick wild lemons. It’s fantastic to go outside and pick your own fruit!

Later we drove to Orba to have lunch in Les Arcades. For tapas they had finely sliced, fried mushrooms seasoned in olive oil, garlic and parsley which were very tasty.

phpngs6buAM (2)

For starter I had the sopa de cebolla/onion soup which was tasty.

phpAB4SshAM (2)

All the main meals contained meat, but we asked the waiter if they could prepare some vegetables. Later on he brought out a stunning dish of rainbow coloured vegetables with rice, mushrooms and patatas which was amazing!

phpGBiJf0AM (2)

php6ZLyEQAM (2)

For dessert I had cantaloupe melon. After that we were stuffed!

So it really is possible to eat vegan while in Spain!

My Transition from Junk Food to Healthy Food

Here is my transition from junk food to healthy food:

Step 1: Junk Food

When I was a student at university living away from home and first became ill with ME/CFS I used to eat a diet of junk food such as:

  • Microwave ready meal lasagne.
  • Microwave ready meal salmon and broccoli in creamy sauce.
  • Microwave chips and fish fingers.
  • Pop tarts
  • Sugary Cereal
  • Pizza
  • Prawn mayonnaise sandwiches
  • Baked potato with tuna mayonnaise
  • Chocolate bars
  • Pasta in creamy sauce
  • Beef burgers

I now know that when you microwave meals it denatures the structure of the food so it is not the same food that went into the microwave!

Step 2: Gluten-Free

After visiting a Naturopathic Nutritionist who used a bio-resonance machine to detect my wheat and sugar intolerances, I altered my diet and cooked things such as:

  • Trout with wild rice, steamed broccoli and carrots.
  • Sea bass with gluten-free pasta and steamed vegetables in a creamy sauce.
  • Sausages, wild rice and steamed vegetables.
  • Gluten-free pasta in tomato sauce.
  • Steamed egg ramekin.
  • Gluten-free sandwiches
  • Rice pudding
  • Oat porridge with blueberries
  • Spaghetti Bolognese with gluten-free pasta
  • Oat flapjacks
  • Gluten-free pasta bake
  • Fish pie
  • Homemade pork burgers
  • Lamb shanks

Step 3: Reduce Processed Food

However my body become intolerant to the gluten-free pasta made from maize which I was consuming at least once a day. I developed IBS with stomach cramps, diarrhoea and even vomited once. So I had to change my diet again and ate things like:

  • Tofu with rice noodles
  • Carrot & Coriander Soup
  • Spanish Sausage & Bean soup
  • Tomato soup
  • Cheese & tomato sandwiches
  • Liver and bacon with potatoes
  • Baked potato with tuna mayonnaise
  • Pork balls with stir-fried vegetables
  • Chicken Gohan curry
  • Chicken kebabs in peanut satay.
  • Homemade chips
  • Chicken drumsticks & wings

Step 4: Vegetarian

I became interested in Detoxing the Pineal Gland and read a book where the author explains that tap water contains toxin fluorine and chlorine and fish contains toxic mercury. He also explained that meat has a very heavy vibration of death, fear, pain and suffering. I did not want to put that energy into my body as I wanted to raise my vibration. Also I had a emotive dream about a chicken in packaging that was half cooked and half still alive looking up at me with innocent eyes. I couldn’t bear to eat chicken after that and decided to become vegetarian so as not to support animal cruelty. The meals I ate included:

  • Baked butternut squash with thyme, walnuts and feta
  • Spanish omelettes
  • Baked potato with cheese
  • Potato salad
  • Greek salad
  • Hummus on gluten-free toast
  • Gluten-free pizza
  • Ratatouille

Step 5: Raw Vegan

Then I met my health-conscious ex boyfriend who had cancer and became raw vegan like him to get the benefits of detoxing my body, more energy and clear skin. I ate things such as:

  • Kale Salad with Sprouted Seeds
  • Smoothies
  • Juices
  • Raw chocolate
  • Chocolate & almond milk smoothie
  • Veggie nut mix in lettuce boats with hummus
  • Nori Rolls
  • Guacamole on corn cakes
  • Hummus and sprouted sunflower seed on rice cakes.
  • Raw carrot cake
  • Kale chips

Step 6: Mixture of Cooked & Raw Vegan

I found it very difficult to get enough calories on that diet and although my skin was clear, I felt hungry and weak. So I am now a mixture of cooked and raw vegan and seem to have a lot of energy. My favourite meals at the moment are:

Featured in the September 2014 issue of WDDTY magazine in the article ‘Why ME?’ about my recovery from ME/CFS using diet.