Raw Goodness

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Raw Goodness

 

Soups at The Scoop come with an extra burst of nutrition because of

how they aren't cooked, its owners say.

 

By ASHLEY BATES

The Gainesville Times

 

 

Power and Vital Force cubes are all part of a healthy diet at The

Scoop.

 

The local eatery and ice cream shop is trying to make the Gainesville

community a healthier place by serving up " raw " soups, smoothies,

salads and wraps in addition to the summer sweet treat.

 

" I have a purpose in life, and this is my greater purpose, " said

Janet Petto, co-owner of The Scoop in Gainesville. " And that is

basically to feed the multitude whole food for human survival. It's

not why I bought an ice cream shop.

 

" Why did I buy an ice cream shop? 'Cause you don't give up the things

you like in life, you just add something to your diet that will feed

your body. "

 

Petto bought The Scoop about two years ago, along with son Tony Rojas

Jr. and daughter Tawnya Rodriguez, to introduce whole food nutrition

to Gainesville.

 

The idea behind feeding the body whole and raw foods is to get all of

the nutrients, food enzymes and vitamins, among other things, to fuel

the body by not cooking the food over a certain temperature.

 

" Food cooked at 140 degrees for 10 minutes or longer is dead food, "

said Petto, a California native and Lula resident. " But there are

some things that release vitamins while they are heated up, like

sweet potatoes and baked potatoes. And always cook meat. "

 

To provide raw soup and smoothies to the public, The Scoop uses a

machine called the Vita-Mix.

 

" We use it for everything " Petto said. " Your regular blenders have

about a quarter to an eighth horsepower motor, this one has a 2.1

horsepower motor, your high-end household blenders have maybe a three-

quarter horsepower motor.

 

" You are going to get about 90 percent of the nutritional value of

the food and seeds here, and if you use your (home) blender about 12

percent (of the nutritional value), " she said. Your home

blender " doesn't have the speed and it doesn't break the food down.

You are going to have particles of seeds in everything. I can take

berries in here and turn everything into a liquid. "

 

The Vita-Mix is about $400 and is sold on VitaMix.com.

 

Petto says there are many health benefits to using the Vita-Mix

machine, including adding fiber to your diet.

 

" People that have diverticulitis (pouch-like pockets in the walls of

the intestines), they can have anything here. Diabetics can have

everything here. It is all fiber, " Petto said. " They can't go get a

juice at the store and drink it but they can drink my smoothies here

because it's got the fiber with it and the sugar doesn't rush into

their system. "

 

Twyla Jackson, a registered and licensed dietician at Northeast

Georgia Medical Center, says a diet high in fiber is important but

urges diabetics to also take a look at their total carbohydrate

intake.

 

" Fiber does hold food in the stomach longer, depending on total

carbohydrates, " Jackson said. " A high-fiber diet can help with blood

sugar levels with a diabetic meal plan. "

 

A high-fiber diet can help decrease constipation, slow the exit of

food from the stomach and (make the body) feel full longer. There

have been studies that show it helps lower the risk of some cancers,

according to Jackson.

 

All the raw soups begin with the same vegetable base. The customer

chooses which flavor of soup they would like.

 

" The base is always the same and we change it by maybe adding cheese

and enchilada sauce or broccoli and cheese, " Petto said. " The raw

vegetables and water liquefied will heat to about 118 to 120 degrees,

leaving the base of the soups full of live nutrition and fiber. "

 

Petto said the soup is " warmed " from the friction caused by the high-

powered blender.

 

" While it's (Vita-Mix) is on high, (the soup is) liquefying and we

add cashews, raw ginger; the more complete you leave the food the

better. "

 

After the soup has been blended in the Vita-Mix at a high speed, the

mixture will go down to a variable speed and then more vegetables,

chicken or cheese can be added Petto said.

 

Soup options, which are about $3, include cheese enchilada, broccoli

cheese, Southwestern, spinach and cheese and Thai ginger.

 

Customers also can add a Power or Vital Force Cube to their soups and

smoothies.

 

" The Power Cube you can put in the soup, " Petto said. " It is your raw

grains, seeds, beans and sprouts, among other things like wheat, oat,

barley, millet, sesame seed, soy bean, flax seed, sunflower seed and

sprouts and a mix of soup beans. We can't eat them raw but when we

put them in Vita-Mix you get all the proteins, all your fiber.

 

" When I started adding the power cube to my fruit juices at home,

what a difference that made, " Petto said, adding that she also felt

fewer cravings to eat meat. Although, she said, " I don't deny myself

anything " and she will eat meat.

 

Petto added that the customer would not be able to taste the Power

Cube, but would be able to distinguish the Vital Force cube because

it is created from herbal plants. These nutritional cubes also can be

added to the array of 26 fruit smoothies, which are about $4.

 

The restaurant also offers 32 flavors of ice cream, frozen yogurt,

coffees, chicken, egg, turkey and tuna salad, all of which are made

with low-fat mayonnaise.

 

In the future, Petto hopes to spread her nutrition plan to a wider

audience.

 

" I want to get our juice in the school system, " she said. " If you

feed children on a constant basis the whole food nutrition, which is

raw fruits and vegetables in one glass, there goes obesity and other

problems. That way you know your children are actually getting fed

something daily. "

 

Contact: abates, (770) 718-3414.

 

 

Originally published Wednesday, March 28, 2007

 

 

 

Blissed be, Annie

 

BodyByBliss.com