Natural High

MOVE AB L E FE A ST
Natural High
By Jeannine Kadow
Aspen Daily News Culinary Critic
On the heels of the extravagant feasting at
the Food and Wine Classic, Aspen was
collectively overindulged. Bar business
slacked off, mineral water sales spiked, and
Janice Heie logged in a record number of
diners for a truly portable feast she simply
calls The Cleanse - a week of organic meals
made from raw foods designed to detox,
purify, and power-nutrify both body and
mind. The line outside her door last
Monday was a veritable Who's Who of
Aspen as real estate magnates, social divas
and yoga masters dropped by to pick up
bags packed for the day with food. The
sign on her country gate reads NATURAL
HEIE (pronounced High) and if there was
ever a walking breathing smiling ad for the
benefits of eating raw, Janice is IT. Nine
months pregnant with a baby boy on the
way, she radiates health, serenity, and
youth wearing her forty years as if they are
twenty. Look to chemistry for the alchemy
of raw. Cooking foods depletes their
enzymes - and plant enzymes are the
cornerstone of anti-aging, delivering
active antioxidants that fight disease and
age accelerating free radicals.
I tiptoed into Janice's tranquil studio
out of sheer curiosity - but once I saw her,
skin envy set in and I eagerly signed up.
Eating raw is a far more palatable option
than a face lift. The term cleanse conjures
up images of long purely liquid fast - a
scary thought for an ultra-active athlete or
anyone with an action packed day. Janice
has tailored The Cleanse for her Aspen
clientele with savory and wholly satisfying
vegan foods. There are goodly portions of
high-protein dishes such as a gourmet Nut
Paté so elegant one stylish patron
plaintively asked if she could have it for
dinner with a glass of wine. The noble
grape is most certainly not part of The
Cleanse, but a daily gallon of vibrantly
green drink called Supergreens is. Served
up in a no-nonsense plastic jug for easy
transporting home, it's water mixed with a
concentrated powder packed with 49
organically grown vegetables, grasses and
grains.
Fresh juice blends and Janice's own fig
walnut granola with nut milk start the day,
chilled soups such as a brisk gazpacho or
crisply refreshing cucumber liven up
lunch. Artful salads tossed together with
an array of fresh bright vegetables delight
at dinner, and ample fresh fruits, sesame
flaxseed crackers, and nut patties satiate
the need for in-between meal snacking.
Dump all preconceived notions of veggies
and health food as bedraggled Bohemian
cousins to haute cuisine. Presentation
counts. That gorgeous Nut Paté on a
silver tray is as inviting as a
rich ripe Brie and
Supergreens in a chilled
Martini glass takes on the
allure of an iced Mojito. The
most challenging part was to
actually drink a whole gallon
of green water every day - but
the payoff was big. End of the
week, those pesky post Classic
pounds had vanished, energy revved up to
an all time high - and my luminous skin
dazzled a local dermatologist when I ran
into him on the street. Devotees of The
Cleanse do it twice a year. (I know one
who has done it three times in two
months!) The raw truth is that it tastes
good and it works.
NATURAL HEIE
Janice Heie, CCT
208 E. Main Street (Access on alley
behind Salon Tullio) 970-925-1539
$495 for the 5 day cleanse includes
prepared food, 1 gallon daily of
Supergreens, 3 colonics, 1 week of
unlimited Yoga at Bikram's, Unlimited
infrared sauna and chi machine.
SIDE DISH
HOW TO KEEP THE HIGH AT HOME
EAT IT RAW: Ditch the donut, pitch the
processed power bras and learn to love
the Lärabar - a vitamin and energy packed
organic goodie made from all raw
ingredients that tastes as good as a home
baked cookie. (Well, almost.) No added
sugar, no processed ingredients, no soy,
no wheat, no preservatives, no gluten, no
dairy. Four great flavors: Apple Pie,
Banana Cookies, Cherry Pie, Chocolate
Coconut Chew. Available individually at
the counter at Juiced. If you're wild about
them, order online by the box at:
www.highvelocitywellness.com
GO GREEN: Add Supergreens powder to
your Volvic and take hydration to a new
nutritive level. Mom told you to eat your
greens. Did she ever imagine you would
drink them too?
Available on request from Natural Heie.
ORDER UP A NATURAL HIGH: Next
dinner date go to PACIFICA for the
ravishing raw seafood bar and the cold
tomato soup - a thick tangy chilly
creation made with no dairy or animal
stock. Served on a big bed of shaved ice
crowned with avocado basil puree and
jumbo lump crabmeat.
Pacifica- 307 S. Mill Street, Aspen CO 81611
Tel: 970-920-9775
GET JUICED: Trade
those tequila shots
for a daily shot of
wheat grass at Juiced
the zesty juice bar
where Master Mixer John Gillies rules
whipping up custom fruit and vegetable
blends for every complaint. Coming
down with a cold? Ask him for pineapple
with fresh ginger root. Feeling loggy? Ask
for an orange colored marvel made with
carrots, beets, apple, and ginger.
601 E. Hopkins Ave. Aspen CO 81611 - Telephone:
970-544-6656
Aspen Daily News – June 23rd, 2005