Move. Eat. Learn.
I recently came across a great review of a new and upcoming center here in Montreal that serves up great salads (yes, they have raw and vegan options too), offers Zumba and yoga classes and offers workshops on various topics related to health and well being. And they do regular movie nights as well! The original article is written by Amie Watson, a member of our Montreal Raw Vegan Potluck group. Enjoy your reading and make sure you pay Nüx Wellness Center a visit soon! You will be really happy you did.
- Ildiko
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Nüx Wellness Centre: Smoothies, Salads, Yoga, Movies, and Raw Desserts
Posted by Amie / June 13, 2012
I care more about three of those things than the other two, but every now and then twisting your body into a pretzel, rather than eating one, is a good idea, I hear.
The new place to do that (followed by my preferred activities) is Nux Wellness Centre, directly across from the Vendome metro. There's one sunny, ceiling-to-floor windowed room for tree and corpse poses, plus one salad bar and one organic pantry/grocery store with seating area and juice bar. I have no idea where they do their workshops, film nights and classes, but it's probably as beautifully decorated - and hopefully as soundproofed - as the yoga room.
The organic pantry
The workshops Nux offers include everything from green smoothies and detoxing to healthy eating shortcuts for kids. I don't have any of those, fortunately, but if I did and if I wanted to find ways to make them eat green things, I'd probably consult Ildiko Brunner of Raw in Montreal, aka the queen of green. Banana masks everything, even kale.
Then there's the Centre's blog, "Health Evolver." Rarely is alternative medicine, yoga, and general health so eloquently written about, without sounding dogmatic or condescending. It includes links, videos, and interesting images. Vague, right? Let me try to make that clearer: The first time I went to the website the top article was about the number of chemicals in common beauty products as shown by write-ups on different parts of a woman posing in half a swimsuit from a typical fashion magazine. 16 chemicals in blush (the scariest of which are parabens), 24 in foundation (polymethyl methacrylate, which apparently disrupts immune function, causes allergies and is linked to cancer), 15 in deodorant, and 26 in eye shadow. I'll keep at least my face naked, thanks.
Wasn't I writing about food once?
The Jade Salad with a spoonful of raw walnut paté
From the salad bar
The "Chihuahua" with pumpkin seeds, cherry tomatoes, avocado, red onions, blue corn chips, and a cilantro dressing; the "Jade" with baby spinach, Jerusalem artichokes, black sesame seeds, hemp seeds, green onions, and pears with a ginger-sesame dressing. They also make their own Rawmesan cheeses from lemon juice and soaked cashews. No dairy or nutritional yeast! Same goes for their patés. The walnuts I threw on my make-your-own salad were a treat (unsoaked and undehydrated, for the raw foodies out there wondering), and the dense protein feels good after a yoga class. Or make your own salad from a ton of options. The salads are all organic, of course, and though they're about $12 for a meal-sized one, they're very satisfying. Pecans and baby spinach with peppers, tomatoes, avocado, and hemp seeds with a ginger dressing, yes please.
If you prefer straws to forks, though, try the juices instead. When I went the menu wasn't very long, but as they did for my salad, they could also probably make something to order. They have a well-stocked natural foods pantry, too, so if you're more the Vega shake type, or have plans to make some almond flour cookies with coconut sugar later (lower glycemic index than cane sugar), you can just pick that up instead.
The prices of the smoothies and juices are about on par with Crudessence (about $6 each), which is fair for all-organic ingredients:
From the smoothie/juice bar
apple, banana, coconut, and bee pollen; a virgin pina colada all health-ed up; lots of strawberries with goji berries, homemade walnut milk and honey; simple apple, carrot, ginger; "Ephemeral Emerald", and "Rigorous Red Veggie"
And for those needing a caffeinated kick, there are other fairtrade hot beverages. But instead of honey, here you sweeten your tea or coffee with xylitol (or was it stevia? One of those two non-aspartame or sucralose sweeteners).
And if you need a movie with your smoothie like a moose needs a muffin with his milk, they have those too. Some may prefer non-GMO pop corn with non-GMO soy-free Earth Balance, but some would be wrong. Coming up tonight (June 14th), it's "May I Be Frank?", about "Frank, a 54 year old Sicilian from Brooklyn who finds himself living in San Francisco struggling with addiction and depression. He is severely overweight and must rely on pharmaceutical drugs to combat his Hepatitis C. One day Frank unknowingly stumbles into a local restaurant in San Francisco. Cafe Gratitude, a raw, organic and vegan cafe. Frank becomes friends with the staff and is invited back to come into the cafe everyday for the next month. What took place over the 42 days wasn't anything the boys or Frank could have expected."
Apparently the showing is sold out! But there's a waitlist. Contact the centre to get on it.
Right, desserts. A new Montreal company, Rawesome, does the desserts here: Raw cheesecakes with saoaked cashews, agave nectar, and raw cacao galore. Around $6 a slice, but packed with nuts and addictive, non-refined sugar goodness. You'll be buzzing for a few hours, though.
Raw cheesecake by Rawesome
I was also talking about yoga once: Hatha, Vinyasa, mom-and-baby, power flow, anti-stress yoga, and a six-week intro course for beginners ($70 for a six-week intro class. $14 drop-ins for students. $17 for others, but 6- and 12-class packs ($75/$135) come with smoothie and lunch specials.
I have a big problem with drop-in classes for yoga. I do them, but there's rarely any progression and the teacher doesn't know your body and yoga history so it's a bit dangerous. You can easily push too far, let someone else push you (usually only verbally), try a pose like a headstand that you don't really understand or don't feel comfortable doing. A once a week class with a regular teacher and a group of people who've pre-paid is very helpful, but my drop-in class here, I admit, was very fun. Yes, fun! The teacher was very experienced but not overly strict. He made jokes and smiled but also made me trust him. We even did some poses I don't usually do and I felt safe.
So the people behind Nux Wellness Centre are trying really hard to make people healthy. They're the genuine type of health conscious people who just want to play their part in making your day better, or the community better, or just a little less stressful or difficult. They want to make customers happy and healthy, one salad, juice, yoga class, movie night, or workshop at a time. So I'm wishing them all the best, and hope their day just got a little sunnier.
Nux Wellness Centre
5221, de Maisonneuve W., #401
514 510-1020
Raw Food Recipe: Super Eeasy Summer Slaw
Here is a super easy and delicious variation on an old staple of the pick nick season. This recipe is from Karen Ranzi, author of Creating Healthy Children, who will be making a stop in Montreal during her North American tour in early fall. I hope you will give this simple dish a try, I am sure even your non rawfoodist friends will enjoy it!
Delicious Pineapple Coleslaw
by Karen Ranzi
3 cups shredded green cabbage
1 cup shredded carrots
3 Tablespoons finely chopped cilantro
1 cup chopped pineapple
Tahini Sauce for Coleslaw:
2 Tablespoons raw Tahini
Juice of one lemon
1/2 teaspoon cumin
Desired amount of water to mix into a delicious dressing.
Shred cabbage and carrot with a food processor or hand grater. Toss all coleslaw ingredients together. Whisk or mix the sauce ingredients together. Pour sauce into coleslaw and mix again.
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Here is the list of events by Karen Ranzi. Stay tuned for more details on her event here in Montreal, we will announce the details in late summer.
*See all details at www.superhealthychildren.com/Events
Sunday, June 3, 2012
Whole Foods Millburn/Union
New Jersey
Karen Ranzi Presents: "Healthy Food Is Cool! Nourishing Your Child"
Monday and Tuesday, June 11 and 12, 2012
The Health Congress of "Live Foods for Our Children"
Pereslavl, Russia
Thursday, June 14, 2012
Mothers Group in St. Petersburg, Russia
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
New York Health & Beauty Expo - "A Wholistic Approach to Skin Health & Beauty"
New York Jacob K. Javits Center
Wednesday, June 20 through Sunday, June 24, 2012
Camp Kaleidoscope of Common Ground Center - Program for Families of Children on the Autism Spectru
Starksboro, Vermont
Karen Ranzi Presents the Research for the "Gluten-Free/Dairy-Free Diet for Children on the Autism Spectrum"
Friday, June 29 and Saturday, June 30, 2012
Karen Ranzi Presents "The Raw Food Challenge" - A Workshop for Adults
Ramsey, New Jersey
Author, lecturer and raw food consultant, Karen Ranzi, authored Creating Healthy Children: Through Attachment Parenting and Raw Foods. She has been interviewed on TV and radio on the topics of vegetarian and raw food parenting as well as attachment parenting, and recently on talk shows of the Gary Null Progressive Radio Network. Karen appeared as one of 40 raw food leaders on host Steven Prussack’s RAWpalooza Raw Food World Summit in January 2012.
Greens are IN!
Being a raw foodist in today’s world is challenging enough, but answering the famous: “Where are you getting your protein 
from?” question is as tricky as it gets, since everyone is coming from such different nutritional backgrounds, and have varying degrees of understanding of the truths or half truths advocated by authors and different organizations.
We humans have lost our instincts on what we should be feeding ourselves and the devastating results are quite hard to ignore: diabetes in children as early as pre-teen, heart disease, depression... Health-professionals are constantly reminding us of consuming more fruits and vegetables, cutting back on bad fats. Yet even in the raw food movement most raw foodists end up consuming an overabundance of nuts and quite often forget about such nutritional powerhouses as green leafy vegetables.
Popeye got it right, you need to eat your spinach (or anything else green) and you need to eat plenty of it, about 1-2 lbs per person per day (on average) to get enough protein for your body to function properly if you are a vegan or vegetarian.
Now, for most of you, sitting down in front of a huge bowl of green salad, chewing your way through it could be as time-consuming as preparing a 4-course Thanksgiving dinner. Here comes the power of blending up those green leaves you see in the store but never knew what to do with -- and mixing them together with the fruit of your choice! Voilà, the most nutritious, most easy to digest meal one can dream of, prepared in under 2 minutes and ready to eat.
Green smoothies (as we refer to these blended drinks) have been enjoyed around the world by raw foodists and non- raw foodists alike and the results these smoothie enthusiasts experience are quite amazing: reduced cravings, increased energy, better sleep, releasing of unwanted weight and improved digestion, just to mention a few.
We are all aware that greens contain lots of vitamins and minerals (A, C, K, folate, iron and calcium), but did you know that the substance that makes up the colour green, chlorophyll, is almost identical to human blood? For those of you worried about getting enough protein and calories on a vegan or vegetarian diet, green smoothies will give you the most value for your money! By consuming such green leafy vegetables as: kale, spinach, bok choy, swiss chard, parsley and coriander (just to mention a few) you will benefit from not only the most complete nutrition found (essential amino acids, Omega-3 unsaturated fat) in one single food group on the planet but you will also get plenty of fibre, that will keep you satisfied for hours on end.
Still not convinced? Just look at our close genetic relatives, the primates, whose diet consists predominantly of fruits wrapped in green leaves and who are quite strong and intelligent beings.
Here are a few of my tips for the novice blender: make your green smoothies with more fruits than greens in the beginning, and as your taste buds adjust you can increase the amount of greens you add to your smoothies. Vary your greens, be creative and make sure you chew each sip, as funny as it sounds! Digestion starts in the mouth, so make sure you take your time and enjoy the taste of your special concoction!
To learn more about green smoothies and to participate in one of our Introduction to Green Smoothies workshop, visit: www.rawinmontreal.com
Organic raw vegan krèmerie now open in Montreal!
In collaboration with Cru-Vitalité, Rawesome opens its doors to the public this Saturday, April 14th from 11am at 151 Gounod Street, near Jarry Parc. Cru-Vitalité’s boutique has now become an organic raw vegan krèmerie, the first of its kind in Montreal.
The krèmerie is a sweet bistro-café offering 18 flavors of ice cream, 10 flavors of Rawesome fondant cakes, teas and coffees (herbal too!), superfood smoothies and fresh juices; all delicious, raw, vegan and organic.
So come and sweeten yourself this weekend with a delicious slice of rich and delicate fondant cake, along with some refreshing ice-cream on the side, raw vegan style ! :)
Hope to see you there!
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Nouveauté : krèmerie végétalienne, crue et biologique à Montréal !
Avec la collaboration de Cru-Vitalité, Rawesome ouvre ses portes au public ce samedi, le 14 avril à partir de 11h au 151 Gounod, près du parc Jarry. La boutique Cru-Vitalité est maintenant exclusivement une krèmerie végétalienne, crue et biologique, la seule et unique à Montréal.
La krèmerie est un bistro-café sucré offrant 18 saveurs de crème glacée, 10 saveurs de gâteaux fondant Rawesome, thés et cafés (herbaux aussi !), smoothies de super-aliments ainsi que des jus frais; le tout parfaitement délicieux, cru, végétalien et biologique.
Alors venez vous sucrer le bec cette fin de semaine avec un riche et délicat morceau de gâteau Rawesome, accompagné d’une bonne crème à glace raffraîchissante, style écolo !
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