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  • Firming Coffee Scrub with Coconut, Cinnamon and Cacao (DIY)

    Firming Coffee Scrub with Coconut, Cinnamon and Cacao (DIY)

    Sometimes, my kitchen efforts extend into the bathroom. Like with this heavenly chocolate, which turns out to be a great facial mask if you leave out the salt!

    And have you ever wondered what to do with used coffee grounds? Here’s a great one: use them for an authentic homemade facial and body scrub.

    The internet says the coffee has remarkable skin firming, anti-cellulite properties, and if the internet says it, it’s true. I did a tiny bit of research and now choose to believe it, too. As I wisely spend zero time checking my wrinkles and bumps in the mirror anymore, I honestly couldn’t tell you if it really works & I suggest you find out for yourself ;).

    One thing I know is this scrub does scrub and it smells great, too, especially if you like spicy coffee scents with a hint of chocolate. The base of this scrub is coconut and almond oil. Simply add freshly used coffee grounds, fine sugar, cinnamon and raw cacao powder and hop in the shower.

    The scrub will leave your skin richly nourished in coconut and almond oil. Ideal for scruffy winter times, just like the scent. Another great option is to use your favorite shower gel in stead of the oils and mix that with the coffee, sugar & spice, which would make it more of a cleansing scrub and less of a nourishing one.

    It can serve as a nice little present as well. One friend already wrote to let me know she loved it :).

    DIY recipe for Firming Coffee Scrub with Coconut, Cinnamon and Cacao

    Makes a little over 1 cup. Ready in 3 minutes.

    1/6 cup of coconut oil
    1/6 cup of almond oil
    1/3 cup of coffee grounds
    1/3 cup of fine sugar
    1 tablespoon of raw cacao
    1 tablespoon of cinnamon

    If you are in a cold climate like me right now, start by melting the coconut oil and then add in the almond oil to warm slightly. Don’t overheat, just melt.

    Meantime, mix up the coffee, sugar, cacao and cinnamon. Then, simply stir in the oils and combine thoroughly. Smell it, even taste it, and maybe play with the ingredients to adjust to your desired scent and consistency.

    That’s it, you’re good to go!

  • Spicy Salad with Wasabi, Onion and Black Pepper

    Spicy Salad with Wasabi, Onion and Black Pepper

    Isn’t it amazing how the body seems to instinctively know what it needs?

    This salad has lots of avocado, and also raw onion and wasabi peanuts. That’s not something I usually eat, but as it turns out wasabi and onion help open up the sinuses! And that’s something I could really use yesterday.

    Wasabi’s strong effect on the nose, together with the raw onion and black pepper, will help you smell and breathe again and the spicy kick will definitely boost your energy levels :). Also, I’ve read that wasabi helps fight infections in the mouth, throat and nasal cavities.

    Recipe for Spicy Salad with Wasabi, Onion and Black Pepper

    It’s so simple: just toss together two handfuls of chards (or any other green leafy vegetable), 1 or 2 avocados (in chunks), 1 small raw onion and a good handful of wasabi peanuts (get them in the Asian store). I also added tomato chunks and cranberries because that’s what I had in store. It would also be great to add cucumber, sesame and soy beans or green peas.

    Create a salad dressing out of olive oil, a few drops of sesame oil, salty soy sauce, a spoonful of sake and a teaspoon of honey. Or just sprinkle with olive oil and freshly ground black pepper if you like to keep it very simple – yet tasteful.

  • Banana Cake with Cranberries and Sunflower Seeds

    Banana Cake with Cranberries and Sunflower Seeds

    First time I blended together bananas and eggs was in Thailand, last year. It turned out to be an excellent, nutricious, cheap and easy combo, however I never posted a thing about it and kind of forgot about banana & eggs until today.

    Because today, Aleydis shared with me her slice of banana cake and its recipe (which in turn contributed to this one). I got inspired and decided to make one. It became a cake made of gifts. 

    A few days ago, Maartje donated an interesting German bag of grains with matcha (powdered green tea leaves).

    And a week or two ago, Danielle forgot to take her kilobag of dried cranberries back home and so I took the liberty of considering those a gift as well ;D.

    The cranberries and sunflower seeds happened to be what I found in the kitchen drawer. This banana cake would also be really nice with dates and walnuts, or figs and pecans, or peach and cashews, or chocolate and hazelnuts, just to name a few ideas.

    Also, I used the peculiar Frühstücksbrei mit Amaranth (German) donated by Maartje, which contains oat, spelt, amaranth, almond and matcha. Just plain oat or even wheat flour would work just as well.

    This banana cake can be made using an oven. I used a frying pan with a lid (hapjespan, in Dutch). Worked perfectly! Here’s the very easy banana cake recipe:

    Banana Cake with Cranberries and Sunflower Seeds

    Blend up 2 large bananas with 3 eggs and 2 heaping tablespoons of oat/oatmeal (or whatever you are using). Blend until smooth.

    Then stir in a 3rd tablespoon of oatmeal, 1 handful of dried cranberries and 1 handful of sunflower seeds. Save soms fruits & nuts for later. At this point, you could also add some cinnamon or vanilla, for example. I didn’t because I didn’t have any and it still worked out great!

    Grease a frying pan with lid, put it on the lowest heat possible. In the oven, 160 degrees Celsius would probably be good. Pour in the mixture (which is about as thick as medium to full fat yoghurt) and grind a bit of salt over it. Use a fork to lightly blend the salt in, but not too much! I like experiencing saltier and less salty bites, combined with the sweetness of the fruits.

    In about 30-40 minutes it should be ready to be turned, but keep checking in the meantime. You’ll know when it’s time because the top of the cake will be all dry. Then turn the cake, put back on the heat or in the oven and within another 5-10 minutes it’s ready. Let cool for a few minutes, dress up with the spare filling and possibly some honey (if you have a sweeter tooth).

    I was surprised by how nicely this combination of banana, cranberry and sunflower seeds turned out! And I’ll definitely be making this cake more often. The base of bananas, eggs and oat is rather cheap as well so this would be a perfect cake recipe for parties and potlucks, as well as a nice solution for using up bananas or eggs while they’re fresh.

  • Super Green Salad with Avocado, Sprouts and Nuts

    Super Green Salad with Avocado, Sprouts and Nuts

    I’m really happy to have a naturally healthy taste for food. Sometimes I’ll hear people say: “Wow, I could just die to have a hamburger right now!” That’s not me. Nothing about the juices of dead animals exploding in my mouth from in between two rubbery buns really excites me in a pleasant way. Sorry if that just grossed you out ;).

    Craving snacks

    However, I do quite often crave sugary or fatty foods, such as candy or crisps. But I’ve also noticed that when I indulge in eating those for a somewhat extended period of time, my energy levels go down, I move less, eat more of the quick-fix stuff and my immune systems grows weak.  That’s why I made a list of wholefood snacks which are healthier alternatives that I like to eat. Here’s a few examples:

    Sweet wholefood snacks:

    Dates, figs, cranberries, dried mangos, tomatoes with honey (try it!), smoothies, coconut with bananapulp, yoghurt with muesli and fruits, tahin with a squeeze of lemon and honey, chiaseeds with coconut milk and mint, bliss balls, homemade heavenly raw chocolate.

    Savory wholefood snacks:

    Olives, cherry tomatoes, soybeans (edamame) with seasalt, freshly roasted nuts with pepper & salt, gado-gado (steamed veggies with peanut sauce), raw veggies with hummus or egg salad.

    Bell’s Palsy: healed!

    I had to remind myself of this list when I came down with Bell’s Palsy (a partial facial paralysis) about 6 or 7 weeks ago. I’m very happy to report that the symptoms have (almost) completely gone! The whole experience has given me some very valuable lessons and insights, though, and I may write some more about that in the future. For now, I’ll just quickly share a few basics that I have since implemented back into my life:

    Eat healthy foods, go out for a walk every day and just relax.

    That’s it. Go easy on yourself. Don’t stress. Keep moving, lightly. And treat yourself to nice salads :).

    Salads like this one and the ones I’ve been posting lately will help build your immune system and energy levels by providing lots of essential nutrients. So go on, treat yourself to a healthy plate full of crunchy goodness.

    Here’s an article by Health & Fitness Shops listing 13 health benefits of avocado specifically.

    Recipe for Super Green Salad with Avocado, Sprouts and Nuts

    1 big handful of rocket
    1 big handful of baby spinach (or any other green leafy veg)
    1 handful of sprouts (homemade or bought in the store)
    1 avocado (in chunks)
    1 handful of nuts (my favorites are pistachios, almonds and pecans)
    Olive oil, to taste
    Salt & pepper, to taste

    Just toss everything together and enjoy. To increase the volume, you could add thinly sliced cabbage. Also great to use as a veg tortilla wrap stuffing. Super nice with sour creme/crème fraiche!

  • Pear, Cranberry & Pecan Salad with Blue Cheese

    Pear, Cranberry & Pecan Salad with Blue Cheese

    The Dutch word for yummie is lekker. Remember that one, you’ll hear and use it very, very often should you ever spend some time in The Netherlands!

    With us, yumminess may apply not only to food, but also to a pleasant experience, touch, music, activity, the weather, space, atmosphere and practically anything else. Basically, we can call anything that is pleasant, good, or nice lekker.

    This  very lekkere salad is made with organic vegetarian Dutch blue cheese, which I found at the local supermarket. I just recently found out that at least in this local AH store, they sell quite a few vegetarian cheeses. Hurray for them: lekker bezig!

    Vegetarian cheeses are made using non-animal-derived rennet. Conventional rennet is derived from the lining of the inside of the stomach of mammals, and most commonly from the fourth stomach of young calves (source). Lekker dan.. [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][insert sarcasm sign here]

    If you don’t like blue cheese, just leave it out or substitute for another kind of cheese.

    Recipe for Pear, Cranberry & Pecan Salad with Blue Cheese

    It’s very easy as well: mix together a handful of white cabbage (sliced) and a handful of dried cranberries. Toss in a bowl together with soms baby chard leafs, a handful of roasted (possibly salted) pecan nuts, and a handful of pear slices (1 pear). Add a few pieces of blue cheese and drizzle with olive oil.

    And now… lekker eten![/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]

  • Coconut Lemongrass Ginger Curry

    Coconut Lemongrass Ginger Curry

    While healing from Bell’s Palsy (a partial face paralysis) and chronic sinusitis, I notice my body feels like eating lots if roots, bulbs and brassicaeae.

    So I threw together this dish which has many different veggies and a light yet tangy curry flavor to enjoy all the goodness of anti-inflammatory ginger, prebiotic onions and fennel, and anti-cancer broccoli, among others. I don’t mean to make any health claims here, it just feels extra good to eat this stuff these days and thought I’d share it with you.

    Best to make this dish one day before serving, the flavours balance out real nicely overnight.

    For 1 person:

    Quart 1 onion, slice a few slices of fennel, roughly chop 1 stalk of lemongrass and 1 mild red pepper, thinly slice 1 garlic clove, 1 carrot and 1 small handful of ginger.

    Lightly fry/simmer all of these (possibly together with a teaspoon of fennel seeds or aywain if at hand) in a tablespoon of coconut oil.

    Cut one large tomato in small cubes and add to the fragrant mixture in the pan.

    Also add 6-8 dried kafir lime leaves, salt, pepper, about three tablespoons of santen, a cup of water, one tablespoon of honey, a star anise and a pinch of cinnamon.

    Stir until the santen has melted into the water to form coconut milk.

    When nicely fragrant and heated through, add a handful of broccoli and cauliflower florets each. Then turn off the heat and leave the dish to rest in the closed pan. Stir sometimes. Enjoy the next day with rice. You can heat up the dish and make the sauce as thick or thin as you like.

    Enjoy!

     

     

  • Beauty and the invitation to let go

    A few days ago I ran into a friend whom I hadn’t seen in over a year. I was delighted to see him, we hugged and exchanged some updates about our lives. I felt vibrant and enthusiastic, but somehow that didn’t translate into our communication. Something in my facial expression felt weirdly off. The feedback I got from my face’s muscles didn’t seem to reflect the emotion I was feeling.

    What’s happening with my face?

    The left side of my tongue had been numb for a little over a day as well, and as I became aware of the strange sensations in my face, suddenly an unsettling understanding kicked in. I rushed to the toilet and tried to smile at myself in the mirror. Bang, there it was. My face was split in half: the right half was my familiar face, with fine lines, a few wrinkles and full of expression. The left half looked years younger and strangely still… moving the muscles required hard work and sorted minimum effects. What was going on?!

    Decay

    Lately, I have been reflecting on the changes of my body. Skin is wrinkling and getting saggy in places, cellulitis is showing and my breasts and arms are not as firm as they used to be. My joints need longer to readjust after sitting in one posture for some time. It’s not as easy to jump a fence as it was only a few years ago. These things are moving from subtle changes into unmistakable first signs of decay. As everything in nature and life is a constant movement of birth and death, so is this body…

    ‘You are so beautiful’

    For most of my life (and still now) I have felt incredibly blessed with having a healthy, pretty body and face. Wherever I go, people respond positively to the way I look. I have often been told I look beautiful. I have always appreciated my luck and also always known that this beauty was futile and fleeting when just concerning the outside, the packaging. That could all fall away in a split second. And then what’s left? My efforts in self development have therefore mostly been on the inside, and much less the outside. These last days, I have thanked myself over and over for that.

    Bell’s Palsy

    So now here it is: a facial paralysis. The doctor gave it a name: Bell’s palsy (my Mac has a sense of humor and keeps trying to autocorrect it into Bell’s party). There is about an 80% chance the nerve will fully recover within a month or three, and I trust that it will be so. (Especially when watching the video, I seem to have a rather mild case.) And whatever is here to stay, is welcome as well. I am inviting in whatever experience is here to unwind any false attachments.

    Change

    It is with wonder that I look at my new face these days. In a way, it’s a look back into the past, because in the ‘silent’ part of my face, there are no more wrinkles nor frowns. The paralyzed part of my face is youthful and serene, like the effects botox would have (free trial, yay 😉 ).

    Also, eating and drinking are a whole new experience. Whatever is not working now, shows the intricate teamwork of so many facial muscles that usually provide for a pleasant, clean and efficient meal.

    Sad about the loss of expression

    What saddens me, is the changed look of spontaneous laughter and surprise, or love, or friendliness on my face. When I express these emotions while seeing myself, for example when making a Skype call, I can see it looks off. I’m becoming aware of how much the expression of an emotion also feeds back into the experience of a situation. When I laugh out loud and see or feel my face ‘stuck’ in a different configuration of muscle tensions, the emotion doesn’t last as long and changes into something new faster.

    Why hide?

    Plus, of course, people’s reactions are different. With strangers I sometimes want to hide my face. With family and friends it feels ok to be naked like this. I will have the next couple of weeks to explore this further.

    What’s this telling me?

    And then there is the question of how I invited this medical situation into my life. It’s a huge signpost that something wants to be changed. I am making small changes to my diet, have started eating meat and fish every now and then because it feels good for my body in this moment and I have let go of sugary candies again. It’s also inviting a deeper look into self expression in my life. Writing, dancing, playing music, conversations with people, work, relationship, physical activity. I realized that I need to move way more than I have in the past couple of months.

    What remains of me?

    And most of all, it is inviting me to let go of any false image that remains of ‘me’. It is great to enjoy a body that works without fail and looks pretty, making it easy to connect with others and express myself. But what remains of me when that falls away? Is it anything less? As with the aging process, thoughts arise about parts of this body being unpleasant to look at, accompanied with feelings of unworthiness. The clear seeing of this knows without question that this is utter bullshit, but the thoughts arising deserve attention rather than just being cast aside as nonsense.

    I can see how this party Mr Bell is throwing for me could be here to show me exactly that.

    ***

    PS: although the video shows the case a bit milder than it actually is, I have already seen some improvements since this morning and I am in good hopes that all function will return. Many cases of Bell’s may be more severe than this one.

  • Easy Fragrant Homemade Crunchy Crust Pizza

    Easy Fragrant Homemade Crunchy Crust Pizza

    Recently I was preparing dinner for a family party of eight. As I wanted to spend lots of time with my loved ones and not so much time in the kitchen, I was looking for an easy way to make something nicely filling and beautiful. And cheap.

    Enter the Turkish market nearby my temporary home. They sell a kind of ready-made flatbread called sıkma. You’ll find it everywhere in Middle Eastern markets and shops. I decided to use the flatbread as a quick & easy pizza base, adding cheese, tomato slices, olives and herbs, and it turned out really nicely.

    The next day I made pizza again and this time I used the leftovers of another dish I had made for the party: zucchini spaghetti.

    Recipe Easy Fragrant Homemade Crunchy Crust Pizza

    It’s real simple:

    Top the flatbread with cheese (I used a combo of cow’s Gouda and goat’s Gouda with coriander seeds) and sliced vegetables such as tomato, olives, thinly sliced mushrooms or zucchini. Basically any pizza topping you like.

    Add a herb mixture – I used thyme, oregano, white & black pepper and cayenne.

    Put it in the oven (around 180-200 degrees) for 10 miutes or so.

    Your pizza is done when the cheese has melted and it’s fragrant and crunchy.

  • Our deepest fear

    Our deepest fear

    Here’s a poem I love by Marianne Williamson.

    ✾

    Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate,
    Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
    It is our light and not our darkness that most frightens us.

    We ask ourselves:
    Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous?
    Actually, who are you not to be?
    You are a child of God.
    There’s nothing enlightened about shrinking,
    so that other people won’t feel insecure around you.

    We are meant to shine as children do.
    We were born to manifest the glory of God that is within us.
    It is not just in one of us.
    It is in everyone.

    As we let our own light shine,
    we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.
    As we are liberated from our fear,
    our presence automatically liberates others.

    ✾

  • [Gratis] Design perfecte flyers met Canva

    Een tijdje geleden heb ik iets heel moois ontdekt, en ik weet dat het jou ook gaat helpen.

    Het heet Canva: een gratis online tool om posters, flyers, kaartjes en socialmediaposts mee te designen.

    Het werkt makkelijk. Er zijn tientallen prachtige voorbeelden.
    Door je eigen foto’s, teksten en kleuren toe te voegen, maak je er helemaal iets eigens van.

    Canva heeft zelfs een gratis beginnerscursus voor je: 10 mini-lessen die je de basics van goed design bijbrengen.

    Vandaag maakte ik in een uurtje een flyer voor een workshop.
    En eerder gebruikte ik Canva zelfs om een e-book mee te maken.

    We weten allemaal dat plaatjes aantrekkelijker zijn dan teksten.
    Ze worden hoger gewaardeerd, sneller geliket, vaker gedeeld.

    Dus als je iets moois in de aanbieding hebt, kun je er maar het beste een tof plaatje bij maken!
    Daarvoor gebruik je voortaan dus Canva.

    Voor mij heeft het echt iets veranderd: het is extra leuk geworden om mooie foto’s te bewaren.
    Inspirerende quotes die passen bij mijn werk, schrijf ik ook altijd meteen op.
    Want met Canva combineer je ze eenvoudig tot een design waarmee je mensen kunt WOW’en en inspireren.

    En wat is nou leuker dan dat…? Niks toch!

    Hoop dat je er net zo veel aan hebt als ik. Veel plezier ermee!