I love creating fresh fruit platters sprinkled with a few fresh flowers. My family delights in the colours and variety. I have fun being creative in the kitchen and applying the colourful fruits to my platter canvas! I like to buy organic or spray free, local and seasonal as much as possible. Here is some inspiration for you...
This probiotic rich food is easy to make, inexpensive and full of health benefits. We like to serve a spoon of sauerkraut with eggs at breakfast and the juice became an excellent "first foods" for my daughter when she began eating solids. Hope you enjoy this delicious traditional food, as well as the process of making it.
One of the reasons I love driving through Maleny on my way to work each week, is I get to indulge in luxurious organic linen. Not only do I make a purchase for the health of my family but also the environment. My husband is still catching on with this rationale with each organic sheet set or towel purchase. Although I will say, when we decided to update our mattress, it was he who said “wow, you REALLY must try the wool mattress at Blessed Earth!!” We haven't regrated this investment and absolutely love our organic wool mattress.
Blessed Earth make an extensive range of certified organic cotton and wool textile products, at reasonable prices. Here are some of the reasons I choose a Blessed Earth dwelling experience:
Purity, Quality and Resilience of wool – using only stud "White Suffolk" (Downs wool) fleeces. Not treated with harsh chemicals.
Hypoallergenic - The lanoline in wool is a natural deterrent to dust mites and with no crumbling resinous fibers, dust mites cannot thrive. Wool is perfect for sensitive skin.
Breathable - The carded wool is very porous, enabling air to circulate through the mattress, keeping you dry and healthy.
Excellent wicking qualities - Wool can absorb bodily moisture - up to 30% of its own weight and dissipate it naturally into the atmosphere. Wool bedding is mold and mildew resistant.
Excellent heat regulator - pure fleece wool allows air to flow naturally and is an excellent insulator. Cool in summer, warm in winter. Wool promotes thermo-regulation.
Purifier - wool filters volatile organic compounds (VOC's) such as Formaldehyde from the atmosphere.
Fire resistant - wool is a natural flame retardant. It is difficult to ignite and does not char or melt.
Sustainable resource – sheep are not sacrificed for the sake of your bedding comfort.
Bio-degradable – when you are ready to part with your blessed wool product you can use it on the compost heap!
“I hope you like these, They’re sweet and earthy and rich and creamy and milky and able to be eaten by my whole family right now, yippee!”
Living with lots of eating restrictions can be a hassle... living with them and catering for them when its not for yourself can be a chore! EXCEPT when it is for your child! And then you must learn quickly to adapt, and enjoy creating new things in the kitchen for that precious little person! In our family its our youngest that currently has some different food needs, and thankfully its only temporary, but its cut out lots of our staples! One of them is DATES!!! Try making nut balls without dates....
Actually I have done it for you, so don't worry! And I also snuck in some Turmeric for its amazing anti inflammatory properties, sweetened with Honey, a hint of cinnamon and coated in toasted coconut. Full of good fats, and protein, these are this weeks victory for me
Ingredients
150 grams Cashew nuts
200 grams Macadamia nuts
Pinch Himalayan salt
1 tsp Turmeric
1 tsp Cinnamon
100 grams raw Honey
50 grams Coconut paste (I use Loving Earth)
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
Toasted Coconut, for rolling
Method
Place cashew and macadamia nuts into Thermomix bowl. Add salt, turmeric and cinnamon. Process on speed 5 for 4-5 seconds, till very finely chopped.
Add honey, coconut paste and vanilla extract. Process again for 20 seconds on speed 5.
Roll balls of mixture in some toasted coconut.
Store in the fridge.
*Note: I am not a culinary genius, far from it. Substituting Coconut paste and Honey for dates kind of just made sense to me, but the idea of the Turmeric was seen somewhere on Instagram, in some other nut ball recipe, that I saw and went "LIGHT BULB!" but dismissed as soon as I saw dates... Fast forward a few weeks and I had worked out how to make yummy bliss balls without dates, and then remembered the Golden Turmeric ball idea! So whilst this recipe and its ingredients/amounts was made up in my kitchen, the true genius is somewhere out there on Instagram or Facebook, being super awesome. Thanks whomever you are!
“An impromptu invitation to my brother Matt’s place, was answered with an immediate yes! Dinner from Matty’s kitchen never fails to impress. The chargrilled eggplant he served us was no exception. We hope you enjoy this as much as we did...”
Chargrilled Eggplant with Chicken, Cashew and Lime
Ingredients
8 large eggplants, cut lengthways, half inch thick
1 tbs coconut oil + 2 tbs coconut oil
2 spring onions
4 cloves garlic
1 tsp organic chilli paste
2 pairs Kaffir Lime Leaves, tear leaves
1 tbs fish sauce
1 tps coconut sugar
1 tbs Tamari sauce
Juice of 1 lime
400 grams organic chicken mince
250 grams firm tofu, cut into 1 cm cubes
½ cup chopped roasted cashews + 2 tbs roasted cashews for garnish
2 green shallots, sliced for garnish
¼ cup chopped coriander leaves for garnish
Method
Brush eggplant with oil. Then chargrill the eggplant over moderate heat (avoid open flame), until well cooked, about 5 minutes each side. By chargrilling the eggplant first, the subtle smokey flavour enhances this dish. Set side and keep warm in oven.
To make filling, heat oil to moderate heat in a wok. Add spring onions, garlic, chilli, lime leaves, fish sauce, coconut sugar, Tamari and lime juice. Stir fry until softened. Turn the heat to high and stir-fry the chicken mince until cooked. Toss through tofu and cashew nuts. Continue to stir-fry for another 1 – 2 minutes.
Place cooked eggplant on plates and spoon over the chicken and tofu filling. Sprinkle with extra cashews, shallots and coriander leaves. Serve.
Breakfast on Sabbath was homemade bread, lovingly made and delivered by Baka (Yugoslav Grandmother). Ordinarily we prefer a toast made on wholemeal spelt and rye sourdough, or an almond and chia bread, but sometimes Baka's homemade loaf just hits the spot. Topped with a greens pesto, which was pretty much anything green that needed using; some basil, coriander, parsley, and broccoli, along with 3 HUGE russian garlic cloves and tons of olive oil, a little salt, and some walnuts and macadamia nuts. This was topped with eggs fried in coconut oil, topped with sliced avocado and served with tomatoes :) I found a Charcoal Pyramid Sea salt at a specialty store a while back and the children think its such a novelty, and will eat anything with their Charcoal Black Salt :)
“Savoury Basics” can be used as a base for soups, stock, stir-fry, casseroles, patties or any savoury recipe.“咸味底料”可以用来当作汤羹、食材、炒菜、砂锅菜、小馅饼或者其他菜肴的底味。
Ingredients 制作材料
1 large fresh Onion 1只大个的新鲜洋葱
4 cloves fresh Garlic 4瓣鲜蒜瓣
2 teaspoons fresh Ginger 2茶匙新鲜生姜
2 tablespoons Tamari sauce 2汤匙日本酱油
1 tablespoon Coconut Oil 1汤匙冷榨椰子油或者橄榄油
Method
Chop vegetables finely. 将蔬菜切碎。
Heat fry pan and lightly stir-fry vegetables in oil. 把煎锅加热，用油将蔬菜用旺火稍稍翻炒一下。
Add Tamari sauce.加入日本酱油。
Enjoy the anti-inflammatory effects of eating these ingredients on a regular basis!如果定期食用的话，会有消炎抗肿的疗效！
Cashew Cream is a dairy free option to drizzle over your pancakes or your breakfast bowl of fresh fruit. The original recipe comes from Jess' Kitchen with a touch of lemon zest added at the suggestion of my mother-in-law. The lemon brings a tangy uniqueness to the cream. You will love it!
Ingredients
250 g cashews
250 g coconut cream
100 g raw honey
1 tsp vanilla extract
Zest of 1 lemon
¼ tsp Himalayan salt
Instructions
Cover cashews with water. Allow to soak for 30 minutes. Then drain the water.
Blend cashew with all other ingredients on high speed for 1 – 2 minutes.
Store in air tight glass jar in refrigerator.
