By Sarah BerrySept. 11, 2012, 7:55 a.m.

Sarah Berry leaves her scepticism, and cooked food, on the shelf and embarks on a vegan challenge.

I might be a vegetarian and a hippie at heart, but I've always had a completely unreasonable and largely unfounded prejudice towards veganism and vegan restaurants. I put it down to the mock-meat movement which, really, was just a bit creepy. And I, like many, associate veganism with being a bit bland and far too austere for my epicurean tastes.

So, while I might seem like a good candidate for a raw-food veganism challenge, I start a serious sceptic.

But I have been chatting with Maz Pugoy, who runs Sadhana Kitchen, a raw, vegan cafe in Newtown. She says raw food can be as rich and rewarding as ''normal'' food.

That's a big call and I wonder whether all the fermented cabbage has gone to her head.

Pugoy went raw more than two years ago and says it brought many positive changes, ''from increased energy levels to general feelings of happiness''.

My curiosity has been sparked so she sends me a 10-day plan complete with recipes, explanations and reminders of why I am doing this. She assures me raw can be sexy and sustainable. I am not so sure, but I am glad to see none of the recipes involves bogus beef.

So, along with cheese and many of my other favourite foods, I shelve my scepticism and embark on a two-week challenge to find out what raw foodism is all about, how on earth you eat out and whether it does make a difference.

Day one

Continue reading here:
What it's like to go vegan