I don’t even like granola.

So when Afke Zonderland suggested I come over to try eating a vegetarian, raw diet meal, I was polite, but wary.

I brought a sandwich to work that day... Just in case.

I also thought maybe this stuff would be OK, if you are a gourmet chef like Zonderland, who loves to cook and has the time to do so. But for me, a woman with three kids, a tight budget and a full-time job, I don’t have time or money to be fussing too much over meals.

And yet, I want my family to be nourished instead of filling their bodies with too much sugar, preservatives and fat. I have mother’s guilt when my child begs for vending machine treats after skating or hollers for Timbits.

I worried I was going to be lectured, chastised, and forced to choke down gobs of greenery.

“I actually don’t like using the words raw diet,” says the pint-sized chef. “It sounds too weird, too out there. I like to says that this is a fresh food experience. I want to show people that this is a way of healthy eating that can be exciting, delicious and inexpensive.”

Zonderland extols the virtues of a “fresh” diet, where organic foods are eaten with minimal processing. Cooking, she says, destroys many of the nutrients and enzymes beneficial for good health. She’s even harsher on microwaving, which she says makes food carcinogenic.

She speaks of maintaining bodies like you would a car.

“You want it to be clean, to change the oil and give it the best fuel possible. If you don’t, dirt builds up on your spark plugs, the car is sluggish and starts to break down. Your body is the same.”

As she chops pears and tosses some beet tops and pea sprouts into a food processor, Zonderland advocates use of organic, local products and growing your own produce. She plucks buckwheat sprouts from where they are growing on a tray on her kitchen counter.

The smoothie, she hands me is green. Very green. I take a breath and suck some back... and am surprised. The flavour is delicate and creamy... not at all like the fibrous kale leaves I watched her throw into the mix.

It’s a breakfast staple for Zonderland, and I can see why. It took a couple of minutes to make and is filled with fruit and veggie goodness. She suggests neophytes to the green smoothie take it slow to avoid feeling like they are drinking salad.

“We like to start out with about 80 per cent fruit,” she says. “That keeps the natural sweetness, and then start adding more greens.”

Zonderland is passionate about fresh food and healthy eating, but she is not a zealot. This summer she ate a completely raw diet for 30 days, but admits in the Canadian winter, she will cook.

“Going 100 per cent raw is not my gig. When I’ve been out skiing, I want to come in and eat warming foods.”

As our lunch continues, I sample a wonderful zucchini hummus with Krumbleez crackers, a wrap made from dehydrated tomatoes and filled with deliciously curled carrots, sprouts, avocado and greens, a kale salad with cranberries, and walnuts with a hint of maple sugar and cinnamon. My stomach was more than satisfied by the tastes and textures of the meal.

“The only way I can convert people to this type of eating is to show them how delicious it can be,” says Zonderland. “This food can not even be equally as delicious as what they are currently eating, it has to be more delicious.”

After a dessert of fresh strawberry-banana “ice cream,” I was, maybe not converted, but certainly willing to try adding more fresh into my repertoire.

And I didn’t even touch that sandwich I brought.