North Atlantic Books Blog

Sergei Boutenko, co-author of recently released Fresh: The Ultimate Live-Food Cookbook, is the founder of Harmony Hikes, an organization that coordinates hiking trips to forge for wild edibles. In his new video series entitled Stalking Wild Greens, Sergei helps to identify the most common wild edibles, explains their health benefits, and shows where they grow. He concludes each video by preparing a raw food recipe with the ingredients he has collected. The videos are short, lighthearted, and very informative.

I was fortunate enough to grow up with alternative parents who exposed me to nature at an early age. When I was nine, my family adopted a raw vegan diet to heal us from physical illness. This helped me to understand the value of good health and nature’s ability to providing it.

At the age of 13 I hiked from Mexico to Canada on the Pacific Crest Trail with my family. We initially underestimated how much food five hungry hikers could eat in a week and started running into food shortages. Because it was not very pleasant to hike on any empty stomach we had to find a way to improvise if we were to finish our cross-country adventure.

Our salvation was the realization that nature is full of food if you know where to look. Foraging for wild edibles became out daily ritual. At times we supplemented as much as 60 percent of our diet with plants we found on the trail. We successfully completed our walk in September of 1998, in full health and happiness!

Since then, I’ve hiked in nearly every state, and in 20 countries. I’ve guided and helped guide many expeditions of children, teens, and adults.

After graduating from Southern Oregon University in the summer of 2006 I decided to invest my energy into Harmony Hikes so that I could share my passion for foraging and the outdoors with others.

“Episode 1: Miner’s Lettuce”

“Episode 2: Dandelion”

“Episode 3: Fool’s Onion”

“Episode 4: Wild Strawberry”

“Episode 5: Wild Violet”

Sergei Boutenko began his live-food practice fifteen years ago, when he became seriously ill. Since then, he has seen dramatic improvements in his health and now travels worldwide sharing his gourmet raw cuisine and his inspiring story of change, faith, and determination. Sergei is the co-author of Fresh: The Ultimate Live-Food Cookbook, Raw Family and Eating Without Heating, and has lectured and presented around the world on the benefits and pleasures of the raw foods diet. Together with his father Igor, mother Victoria, and sister Valya, Sergei is a leader in the raw food movement and his works are recognized for their profound impact on the development of raw foods communities throughout the world.

CLICK HERE for more information about Harmony Hikes.
CLICK HERE to order a copy of Fresh: The Ultimate Live-Food Cookbook.
CLICK HERE for more information about the Boutenko Family aka the Raw Family.

Chapter 12
There Is Nothing Wrong

Most of us have grown up in a culture where there is definitely something wrong when things do not turn out the way we expect them to. If it wasn’t that way for us at home, it most likely was that way at school. Consciously or unconsciously, we have been acculturated to believe that there is a way that life should be, and if it isn’t that way, there is something wrong with us, with those around us, and with life itself. Letting go of this concept can be challenging, for we have also come to believe that change occurs when something is so wrong we can no longer stand it. We want you to consider that there is power in realizing that change can be initiated at any time, and nothing needs to be “wrong” in order to actualize change.

Consider this: you could change a job or a relationship that is in great shape. It isn’t a prerequisite that something needs to be in bad shape in order for you to move on. Making something or someone wrong diminishes you and your life; it places you in judgment of someone or something and separates you from the unity of life. Only when we are one with the whole of life can we know ourselves as fulfilled and complete, missing nothing. Many people spend their lives looking to complete themselves through accomplishment. What if the only true completion is when we come to know ourselves as one with all of life, with no separation or judgment?

Some people imagine that the flip-side of “nothing is wrong” is resignation to a set of circumstances. That is not what we are saying. We are advocating standing for what you believe, creating business as an opportunity to initiate powerful change in the world, including the awakening of its people, and a good starting place is the vision that there is nothing wrong.

I recall an occasion in which an employee contacted us feeling angry and unappreciated. In the face of this expression, I reflexively began to wonder why we were working so hard to keep this person on board. I started thinking, ‘This is a waste of time.’ I caught myself and shifted my attention to all the ways in which the employee had contributed to our company. I also thought about the beneficial difference we have made in the employee’s life. My judgment separated me from the win-win we had been for each other, the awakening process we were sharing. We could learn and grow from being in relationship; this person was actually contributing to us, in part by flushing out my impatience. When I let go of my inclination toward making the employee wrong, I immediately felt connected and appreciative.

Practice

Identify a situation at work where you are creating the belief that “there is something wrong; it shouldn’t be this way.” Now consider what the impact of that view is on the quality of your life. Ponder an outcome in which you let go of the idea that there’s something wrong and instead just see that this is the way that situation is–what would your experience be? What might you be feeling? What actions might you take?

From Sacred Commerce by Matthew and Terces Engelhart, published by North Atlantic Books, copyright © 2008 by Matthew and Terces Engelhart. Reprinted by permission of publisher.

To learn more about the Engelharts and Café Gratitude, visit http://cafegratitude.com. The site includes menus, workshop information, newsletters, media clippings, and videos.

CLICK HERE to order a copy of Sacred Commerce.

What:
Simply Raw: Reversing Diabetes in 30 Days
This thought provoking and inspiring, new feature documentary about the healing powers of live foods features Gabriel Cousens, MD, Woody Harrelson, Morgan Spurlock from SuperSize Me, Rev. Michael Beckwith, David Wolfe, and six people with the courage and love to heal and transform.

Where & When:
The Newport International Film Festival, Rhode Island
June 5 at 6pm and June 7 at 12pm

Tickets are available at newportfilmfestival.com.

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Simply Raw: Reversing Diabetes in 30 Days is an independent documentary film that chronicles six McDonald’s-munching Americans with diabetes who switch to a diet consisting entirely of vegan, organic, live, raw foods in order to reverse diabetes naturally. The six participants are challenged to give up meat, dairy, sugar, alcohol, nicotine, caffeine, soda, junk food, fast food, processed food, packaged food, and even cooked food – as well as go without their loved ones and many of their creature comforts – for 30 days…

…Simply Raw shows each participant’s remarkable journey and captures the medical, physical, emotional and spiritual transformations brought on by this radical diet and lifestyle change. Participants were supervised by Gabriel Cousens, M.D. and Helen Ross, M.D. at the Tree of Life Rejuvenation Center in Patagonia, Arizona.

The feature film Simply Raw: Reversing Diabetes in 30 Days is in post production and will premiere at the Newport International Film Festival.

CLICK HERE to view the film trailer for Simply Raw: Reversing Diabetes in 30 Days.

CLICK HERE for more information about There is a Cure for Diabetes by Gabriel Cousens.

CLICK HERE for more information about The Tree of Life Rejuvenation Center.

This year at the Harmony Festival there will be special presentations by numerous North Atlantic Books authors including David Wilcock, Alex Grey, Victoria Boutenko, and Matthew & Terces Engelhart. The Harmony Festival is scheduled for June 6-8, 2008 at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds in Santa Rosa, California.

CLICK HERE for more information about the Harmony Festival.

David Wilcock is the co-author of The Reincarnation of Edgar Cayce?: Interdimensional Communication and Global Transformation. He is a professional intuitive consultant who, since 1993, has intensely researched UFOlogy, ancient civilizations, consciousness science, and new paradigms of matter and energy. Wilcock has been a guest on numerous radio programs and has lectured throughout the United States and Japan. He is also an accomplished musician and composer of jazz-fusion, New Age/meditative, and world music pieces.

Alex Grey is the author of the soon to be released Art Psalms. His artwork has appeared in Newsweek and Time magazine, on the Discovery Channel, and on album art for the Beastie Boys, Nirvana, and others. Grey was professor of anatomy and figure sculpture at NYU for ten years, and a graduate painting professor at both the Rhode Island School of Design and the Philadelphia College of Art. In 2004, Grey and his wife Allyson founded the Chapel of Sacred Mirrors, a cultural center and refuge for contemplation in New York City. He lives in New York City.

Victoria Boutenko is the author of 12 Steps to Raw Foods: How to End Your Dependency on Cooked Food. She teaches classes on raw food all over the world, and is an adjunct professor at Southern Oregon University. Boutenko travels worldwide sharing her gourmet raw cuisine and her inspiring story of change, faith, and determination. She has published a monthly newsletter since 2003 on her Web site www.rawfamily.com. Boutenko is a leader in the raw food movement and her works are recognized as having a profound impact on the development of raw food communities across the globe. She lives in Ashland, Oregon.

Matthew and Terces Engelhart are the authors of Sacred Commerce: Business as a Path of Awakening and The Abounding River Personal Logbook: An Unfamiliar View of Being Abundance. Terces is also the author of I Am Grateful. The Engelharts are the owners of Café Gratitude, a popular organic vegan restaurant chain in the San Francisco Bay Area and Los Angeles. They lead workshops on Abundance as a quality of the Divine, Kindred Spirit — Spiritual relationship, Sacred Commerce — merging the sacred with the commercial, and One Week Without Sugar — an introduction to a spiritual diet. The Engelharts live in San Francisco.

David Wolfe, North Atlantic Books author of Amazing Grace, Eating for Beauty, Naked Chocolate, and The Sunfood Diet Success System can be seen on TVGuestpert.com discussing environmentalism, eco-business, nutrition, health, and longevity.

Through his down-to-earth and simple approach, David shows us that no problem is created without a solution and that we DO have the opportunity, right at our fingertips, to make new choices about our lifestyle and take our health back into the power of our own hands…

…David Wolfe empowers and inspires people to take charge of their health even up against all the modern-day demands of bills, technology, environmental pollution, commuting, and inflation. By making simple, informed decisions, David shows us that we can all enjoy quality time for ourselves and with our family, because, after all, Health is Wealth!

David Wolfe conducts 100 health lectures and seminars each year in the United States, Canada, Europe and the South Pacific, and leads six health, healing, and beauty retreats each year at various retreat centers around the world. The son of two medical doctors, Wolfe has an extensive educational background, which gives him a unique perspective in the health field. He holds degrees in law, mechanical and environmental engineering, and in political science. He has studied at many institutions including Oxford University in England, and concluded his formal education by receiving a Juris Doctor in Law from the University of San Diego. Wolfe is the President of non-profit Fruit Tree Planting Foundation, with the mission to plant 18 billion fruit trees worldwide. He is also the founder of Sunfood Nutrition, the world’s leading source of raw foods, inspired by the principles of sustainable agriculture, living in harmony with nature, and ethical global cooperation.

CLICK HERE to watch David Wolfe’s VIDEO INTERVIEW or to read his BIOGRAPHY on TVGuestpert.com.

Whether you are a raw foods connoisseur or simply a curious foodie, the following recipe from Fresh: The Ultimate Live-Food Cookbook is sure to prove a crowd pleaser. Certified raw food chefs Sergei and Valya Boutenko encourage readers to alter and add to their recipes, creating your own masterpiece.

TOMATO-BASIL CITRUS SALAD

1 medium grapefruit, peeled, seeded, and chopped
3–4 medium-ripe tomatoes (preferably from a farmers’ market), sliced thin
½ bunch fresh basil, chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
¼ teaspoon sea salt

Be sure to peel the inner skin off the grapefruit. Mix all ingredients thoroughly in a bowl. Chop additional amount of basil and spread over top of clean plate. With an ice-cream scoop, scoop out one serving of salad and place atop basil on plate. Garnish with seasonal fruits and veggies. Repeat process for each additional plate. Yields 4–5 scoops of salad.

From Fresh: The Ultimate Live-Food Cookbook by Sergei and Valya Boutenko, published by North Atlantic Books, copyright © 2008 by Sergei and Valya Boutenko. Reprinted by permission of publisher.

CLICK HERE to learn more about Sergei and Valya Boutenko.

Join Cathy Silvers - author of Happy Days Healthy Living and founder of The Healthy Living Show - at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books on Saturday, April 26 for an informative presentation about how the health of our bodies directly affects the planet. The presentation is from 4pm to 5pm at the UCLA Main Campus.

CLICK HERE to learn more about Cathy Silvers.

Come meet David Wolfe - acclaimed author and raw foods guru – on Friday, May 30 2008 at Book Expo America, in the Los Angeles Convention Center, Booth 1330, from 2pm until 4pm. Chat with David, sample raw foods, and get inspired!

“David is at the heart of a movement…that is already sweeping the planet like wildfire.” –Woody Harrelson

David Wolfe is the author of Amazing Grace, Eating for Beauty, Naked Chocolate, and The Sunfood Diet Success System. Out next spring from North Atlantic Books: Superfoods.

CLICK HERE for more information about David Wolfe.

North Atlantic Books’ author Gabriel Cousens MD will be in California to promote his newest book, There is a Cure for Diabetes: The Tree of Life 21-Day+Program from April 25 until May 15, 2008. For all of you who live in the San Francisco Bay Area, be sure to attend Dr. Cousens’ Transformative Presentation and Book Signing on Thursday, May 15 at 7pm at Book Passage Bookstore, located at 51 Tamal Vista Boulevard, Corte Madera.

CLICK HERE for more information about Gabriel Cousens’ 2008 Tour.