Denise Mari - Organic Avenue: Recipes for Life, Made with LOVE*

To the sweet guiding light of my sister Kimberly, and the energy of sacrifice and unconditional love of my mom, Dorothy. Their early passings sparked in me purpose and passion, and the ability to realize the precious gifts I have been given: life and love.

I was raised eating meat just like most other Americans. I believed that finishing my dinner and gulping down my milk would make me grow up to be big and strong. I was given a familiar message that kids (and parents!) are still being spoon-fed today. Never once did I consider exactly what I was eating or what had happened to the animal before it reached my plate. I did have my vegan friends around me, such as my assistant, Simone Reyes, and my good friend Glen E. Friedman, always pounding me with reasons to join their team, but it wasnt until about fifteen years ago when I began taking yoga classes at the Jivamukti Yoga center in New York City that I became vegetarian. I credit the teachings at that school with many life-altering changes: a newfound respect for my body, quieting my mind through meditation, and transforming my eating habits. Up until that time, a hamburger was something stuck between two buns, not a cow; a wing was something you dipped in BBQ sauce, not a chicken; and milk was something you drank as a human, never realizing it was only meant for a calf.

Yoga continues to teach me many things; perhaps most important is the concept of nonviolence in every aspect of my life as a global citizen of the world. The more I opened myself up to the idea of the full scope of exactly what nonviolence translates to, the less interested I became in consuming the energy associated with the flesh of an animal that only knew suffering in its life and pain and terror in its death. The more I learned about factory farming and the cruelty animals raised for food must endure before they are led (or dragged) to slaughter, the more I realized that I could not, in good conscience, be a contributor to such violence.

Denise Mari and Organic Avenue represent this type of compassionate living. Organic Avenue has made the vegan lifestyle more accessible, and it is one of the few food and juice companies I trust. I love the convenience of waking up and having my fridge filled with juice and raw food. Now, with this book, Denise shares her vision with the whole country, not just the few who happen to live in New York.

Russell Simmons

The concept of LOVE* has its roots in my lifes journey, beginning with an early attraction to ahimsa, or nonviolent consciousness. Ahimsa inspired me to do no harm to the animals, the planet, or myself by following the path of veganism, and to share what I had learned along the way with as many people as possible. The seed for Organic Avenue was planted early, a dream that has turned into a multimillion-dollar business dedicated to supporting others, whether theyre dabbling with a cleanse, upgrading current eating habits, or going deeper into a vegetarian and/or vegan living foods lifestyle.

I felt the best way to share and inspire others was to create Organic Avenue retail environments that encouraged a sense of community around the lifestyle. Ive always referred to the Organic Avenue retail stores as boutiques. The feeling I wanted to share was clean and simple yet also exciting. The in-store experience was to be the opposite of how natural food stores are often perceived: Rather than with messy bulk bins, dusty shelves, and old wooden floorboards, Id showcase a chic vegan lifestyle with modern dcor, minimal walls, bamboo floors, and a rainbow of bold colors radiating from the iconic milkman-style juice-filled jars.

Yet even more important than the aesthetic of the boutiques, I made it a point to find passionate, knowledgeable staff who complemented our growing community of health-, earth-, and animal-conscious individuals. I wanted people to learn, feel comfortable asking questions, and leave confident theyd found the best product for themin fact, the best product available! I wanted the boutiques to be part of a full circle of professionals dedicated to making the world a better place, one person at a time.

As the orange and white Organic Avenue logo began to appear with greater regularity on New York City sidewalks, a celebrity following developed. Our bright orange tote bags are now seen throughout the city, a reflection of a growing attraction to LOVE*: the Live. Organic. Vegan. Experience.

Our innovative LOVE*Cleanse programs featuring organic juices, tonics, mylks, and live foods are the foundation of all offerings at Organic Avenue. Yet Organic Avenue is more than just cleansing; its about the whole experience, and now, with this book, we bring that experience home.

This book will first take you through the letters of LOVE*, spelling out just what goes into the Live. Organic. Vegan. Experience., the backbone of Organic Avenue and a reflection of my health and wellness mission. Then I will introduce you to the world of the LOVE*Cleanse with four different customizable cleanse options: LOVE*Easy, LOVE*Fast, LOVE*Deep, and Go Green. I will go into detail about each and help you decide which is best for you. I will hold your hand and share with you everything Ive learned about cleansing over the years: the reasons we should cleanse, how to start out, what to expect along the way, and how to transition back to eatingcreating a new normal based on nutritious, mouthwatering food that is 100 percent cruelty-free. Then I will jump-start your entry into Organic Avenue living with a treasure trove of recipes, including a large selection of juices, smoothies, salads, soups, wraps and other main dishes, and desserts to tempt your taste buds.

Cleansing is more than just a hot new trend; it is a healthy lifestyle tool for the ages, and cleansing the Organic Avenue way is practical, sustainable, and infinitely doable. Pounds lost, health regained, and off-the-charts energy are strong motivators, and it is my sincere hope that with this book you will be inspired to stay the course. Do it for the LOVE* of it!

People often ask me how I came to create Organic Avenue. I pause, take a deep breath, then sincerely reach to a place deep in my heart and remember when the original spark was ignited. I appreciate the whole of my past experience, the bright and dark days of my early childhood, the highs and lows, the excitement and loss, the willpower and faith, all of which created the parameters of the life I have lived. Its my greatest wish that reading my story will inspire positive change, as my journey has showed me how to turn losing into living.

As I mentioned earlier, the Organic Avenue journey all began with an ahimsa consciousness, a concept known here in the West by our exposure to the great teachings of Mahatma Gandhi. In Sanskrit,