WARM PORRIDGE WITH COCONUT MILK AND PUMPKIN

     When everything goes bad and I feel like I'm in a desperate need for a change, I turn into the nature. Just by taking a few moments to look around the beautiful world we are living in, we can see that our problems might be so small. There are so many bad things happening these days to people, animals, nature and every other aspect of this cycle called life. If we only stopped caring for ourselves and only, we would see what's going on around the world and try to care more for our neighbour in need.

     Now, you may think I'm talking nonsense and don't have an example myself to give. Well, I may not donate money or volunteer to build houses in poor areas, but I believe that it starts with the person sitting next to you. Start talking to them. Or better to your family and friends. Another powerful thing to do is to share food. I mean, that's the greater power of it, to connect people around a table. It was, has been and will be the best way to get to know someone. People don't lie when they are eating, they are true. 

     Which brings me to a wonderful recipe I made this Wednesday. If you are a frequent reader you may know my love for porridge. Other people find it plain and boring, I find it...well plain and boring if you're not using lots of toppings. Truth must be said! I was looking for recipes with pumpkin around the blogosphere to get some inspiration and came across Local Milk's own recipe of Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal. She is such an amazing photographer and blogger, only seeing her photos makes you hungry. Her recipe for sure inspired the one I created that morning, especially the cooking part of the oats.

    Even if you don't love oatmeal so much, you should try this one out. I used coconut milk, because I find it gives this creamy texture to your porridge and just to anything to be honest. It's my go-to for carry, pumpkin soup, smoothies and sometimes even cakes. Nothing wrong will happen when you use coconut milk. And then the pumpkin, really gives this porridge a 5 star grading. With every bite you feel the sweet flavour of pumpkin and the spices paired perfectly together.

Warm Porridge with Coconut Milk and Pumpkin

ingredients (for 2 to 3 persons)

1 cup oats

1 cups coconut milk (at least 60% coconut flesh)

3 cups water

1 cup pumpkin puree

1/4 cup honey or maple syrup

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon cloves

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

pinch of salt

toppings: dried fruit (cranberries, saltanas), crunchy granola, nuts, nut butters, coconut milk

How do I make it?

1.Fill a medium pan with the oats, coconut milk and water. Stir for a little bit and then cover the pan, while cooking the oats on low heat for 10 minutes. Every 5 minutes lift the lid of the pan and stir the oats, then cover again.

2. After the 10 minutes have passed, add the pumpkin puree and mix it very well in the oats. This will perhaps be difficult because the oats will have become sticky (not dry though). Cover the pan again and cook for another 8 minutes (again lift the lid and mix a little bit the oats).

3. Uncover the pan and add inside all the spices and honey. You want to do this at the last part to give the porridge a kick. Mix the porridge really well with a big spoon to make sure everything is mixed together.

4. Pour the porridge into desired bowls. I prefer deep and small bowls, because they keep the porridge warm for longer. You can add your favourite toppings on top. I added some dried cranberries and two tablespoons of crunchy granola. But I think you can also eat it plain. Just add some more honey on top and you are ready to go!

BLISS BALLS WITH PUFFED AMARANTH, WHOLE WHEAT TAHINI AND COCONUT

     When life gets hard, we should get tougher! I was very excited the past few days for an upcoming pet arriving in our house. We were to have a wonderful husky puppy in our apartment a few days ago. But it seemed like it wasn't meant to be for now, there were a lot of problems from the beginning, and although we struggled hard, in the end we couldn't have the dog. We tried to stay positive about it and not give up! Because giving up means accepting that you are powerless and can only see the glass half empty. We may have been unlucky this time, but next time it will be better. I am sure of it!

     In other news, student and work life is getting pretty good. I have adjusted to it, only because I try to keep a fixed schedule of everything and keep myself fed well. For the later part, I have been making healthy lunch meals which I prep on Sunday and keeping myself energised by making some homemade protein bars. But what about snacks? Since I am a snack person, especially the days I work out, I need to have something easy and relatively healthy to munch on. Hence, the creation of bliss balls...

     Aren't they just the cutest? With one ball you can have a good amount of healthy fats (tahini and coconut oil) and complete source of protein (amaranth). I had to do some googling for this one, as I haven't used it before and didn't know what was its nutritional profile. 

     After some search, I learned that amaranth has some important benefits we need to be aware of:

• it's a complete source of protein, having all 9 essential amino acids
• it's a gluten free grain
• it can help with inflammation and high cholesterol levels (LDL) or triglycerides. 
• it's a very good source of vitamins and minerals

     

     I had some puffed amaranth hanging around my pantry and I wanted to give it a go in a recipe for a long, long time. Yesterday morning inspiration stroke! I created a very easy and simple recipe for a bite-sized snack that you can take with you anywhere. In this recipe I've added whole-wheat tahini, which I find pairs extremely well with coconut, but if you don't have it you can use simple tahini or almond butter.

Bliss balls with puffed Amaranth, whole wheat tahini and coconut

ingredients (makes 14 to 16 small balls)

1 cup Medjool dates 

1/2 cup almonds

1 1/2 cup puffed Amaranth

2 tablespoons whole wheat tahini

1/2 cup coconut flakes

1 tablespoon coconut oil

how do I make it?

1. If the dates are a little dry or hard, let them soak in cold water for 1 hour beforehand. Then, in a food processor put all of your ingredients apart from Amaranth. Let everything mix very well together. 

2. Step by step start adding the puffed Amaranth into the food processor. Once you have pour it all in and a soft sticky mixture is created, it's time to start shaping those bliss balls.

3. Take a tablespoon of the mixture in your hands and start forming a ball shape. Be a little thorough with this step, as you want the balls to stay sticky and not fall apart once you let them out of your hands. 

4. Place the balls on a plate or small pan and put them in the fridge to chill.

5. Enjoy every bite!

HOMEMADE COCONUT GRANOLA WITH SUPERFOODS

     With the middle of August coming tomorrow, I can't believe that summer will soon be over. Tomorrow we are having some of our friends over for barbequeing the Greek way, which translates into a lot of juicy meet and fresh vegetables being grilled. I'm going to provide dessert and my help to my boyfriend, as well as cleaning the house, preparing everything for the food and perhaps getting some flowers. 

     I love having friends over for food. It feels like taking care of your family, so personal and intimate. Everyone is laughing, having a great time and although there is a lot of work behind it, it doesn't matter, because these are memories we are going to have for the rest of our lives...

     Yesterday we went for another one of our big walks into the forrest we have here in Rümlang. To our surprise, as we took another road that we've never taken before, we met some young deers. Babies to be correct. Of course, they were scared of us and run quickly the other way, we could see them in the depth of the trees taking a peak at us. Or so we liked to think! It was rejuvenating to be back in the nature and look at its creatures. So simple and yet so beautiful, without the human interference.

     In the morning I also managed to quickly prepare a homemade granola. I've been wanting to make some for a long, long time, but I have been postponing it. Only because I think if I make it then I will be tempted to it right away, and it's not the least caloric thing to eat. But to be frank I had A LOT of oat flakes in my pantry and I needed to do something with them, since porridge is not a usual dish during the summer.

     The recipe for this one is very simple. You have wet and dry ingredients and you mix them together. Also, the great thing about granola is that you can add whatever exists in your fridge or pantry without worrying about it going wrong. Now, these are the recipes I like. If you are busy and trying to do everything at once, then this will help you a lot in the kitchen spectrum. Plus granola is so versatile and it can be paired with so many other ingredients like yoghurt, milk, as a topping on your porridge, an add-on for smoothies and on its own.

     This granola is a little different that your usual kind, since it contains three amazing and good for you superfood powders: Maca, Mesquite and Reishi. Each on each own with numerous benefits for the health. I will start with Maca, my favourite one, a root used by the Incans, which helps with balancing your female hormones, acne, energy levels anaemia and libido. During the Incan Empire it is said that soldiers used it to regain their energy. Reishi is a medicinal mushroom used in Traditional Chinese Medicine and has some effects on protecting you from infections, cancerous cells and chronic fatigue. Mesquite is natural sweetener that doesn't spike your blood glucose levels, which has a lot of fibre and omega 3s. 

    So there you go! A healthy version of granola you must not resist!

Homemade coconut granola with superfoods

ingredients

4 cups oats

1 cup coconut slices

1 cup nuts (I used almonds, walnuts, flaxseed, popped Amarath and pumpkin seeds)

1 pinch salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 tablespoon of each: Maca powder, Mesquite meal and Reishi powder

1/4 cup coconut oil (liquid form)

1/4 cup honey or agave syrup

how do I make it?

1. Preheat your oven to 150C. Mix together all the ingredients in a large bowl very well. Everything needs to be combined well before toasting the granola.

2. In a large pan, place a baking paper and then pour on top the mixture in your bowl. With a spoon, make sure the mixture goes fills the surface of the pan.

3. Put the pan in the oven and toast for about 30 to 40 minutes. I toasted mine for 45 minutes. This depends on how crunchy you like it. Every 10 minutes after you begin to toast your granola, open the door of the oven and carefully mix again the mixture with a spoon to make sure everything in there gets a colour.

4. When your granola is ready, take it out of the oven and let it cool completely before serving.

HEALTHY BANANA AND OATMEAL BREAD (AND SOME TALK ABOUT EMOTIONAL EATING)

     It's been a while since I've written a recipe. I won't tell you clichés about how busy life is, because that's what it's like to most of people. The truth is I lacked the inspiration in my life I really needed. I am a sensitive and emotional human being and most of the times if I feel uninspired it shows up in every aspect of my life. So, my blogging life was affected as well. Since the last time I blogged, I've been to an amazing trip in Greece to Elafonisos island with my two best girlfriends. We had such a relaxing time, doing almost nothing but sunbathing, swimming and eating during the night. What else did we need? Just some quiet for a while...

     But it's not only my everyday life that gets affected by emotions,it's food as well. With food I share a love and hate relationship for a lot of years. I almost never like to talk about it and really, who cares? I enjoy food very much, but sometimes when stress sneaks into my life, I overuse food for the wrong reasons. Then I stress about food, which leads to more stress, which leads to more food and...you get the picture. 

     I've read a lot of articles talking about "listening to your body" and I always thought they were talking nonsense or made it seem so simple, when it's not. Willpower. Such a strong word and also so far to reach sometimes. And what about having an order in your life? 

   It often seems that when chaos exists in your life, it's the reflected chaos inside you that you look at. 

So, I had to do something about it.

     In my journey towards realising what my body is saying to me, I tried for the last two months to keep a journal. Not a calorie and food intake journal, but an emotional journal.  Every time I am hungry I make a note about how I am feeling at that time of the day. Then I can see which days or periods during the day I am really hungry and when I am just bored, angry, stressed or sad about something going on in my life. It's really a silly task to let myself realise sometimes that it's not hunger that's making me crazy and not being able to concentrate on something else. It's my own emotional chaos that is recking everything. If anything sounds familiar to you, then maybe you should give it a try and see if something clicks in your head. You can also read this article I found that talks suggests doing a Broccoli test before you eat anything. It also talks a lot about emotional eating. 

     Another major change in my life that helped me a lot with my relationship with food was exercise. But not once or twice a month exercise. Daily one, with a few breaks between the week. My plan? Plan ahead... Every Sunday I make a schedule about possible gym days, running or Pilates during the week and give it my best to try to do them all. So far it has really helped that in my new internship position we have a pretty good gym where I spend all my lunchtime days there. I am pretty sure my classmates and colleagues think I am a freak for doing so, but it really makes me feel amazing afterwards. I am doing a lot of HIIT sessions combined with running and Pilates, which I can never give up. 

     In this spirit of a healthier body and mind, I made a recipe this morning for a healthy banana bread with oatmeal, oat milk and walnuts. It's a real treat and since it's not very sweet, it's a good choice for breakfast. What I like doing with it is toasting it slightly and then slather on top some crunchy peanut butter. I am already hungry talking about it!

Healthy Banana and Oatmeal bread

ingredients (for one loaf)

2 large ripe bananas smashed and one not so ripe

1/4 cup oatmilk (or any other type of milk)

1/3 cup olive oil or vegetable oil

1 cup whole wheat flour

3/4 cup oats

1 teaspoon cinnamon

2 eggs

2 tablespoons honey or maple syrup

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup crushed walnuts

how do I make it?

1. Preheat oven to 180 C. In a large bowl whisk together the oil and honey. Then pour inside the eggs and whisk again very well until everything is combined. Add the milk and smashed bananas. 

2. Lastly add the flour, oats, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt and mix everything very well. Mix in the walnuts.

3. In a prepared loaf pan pour the bread dough. Take your other banana and slice in lengthwise. Top the unbaked bread with the two halves of banana. 

4. Bake the bread for 40 minutes or until slightly golden brown. 

5. Let it cool for about 10 minutes and then enjoy it while it's still warm.

COCONUT WATER, OAT MILK AND MAPLE SYRUP CHIA PUDDING WITH MELON AND CACAO NIBS

     Having a sleep schedule has always been a challenge. With social life and work going on, there never seems to be a constant pattern. The last two months I started doing my internship, I've been waking up quite early (at 6:30), which seems to have affected my other days of sleeping. I can't seem to sleep more than 6 to 7 hours. Despite being a big creature of habit, this is a habit I don't quite fancy.

     Natural remedies such as Magnesium supplements, calming no caffeine teas and good old warm cup of milk seem to help the situation a bit, but not the level of my satisfaction. However, I don't give up or give into quick fixes. Challenge is accepted!

     On other news, I am as of this Thursday on Greek grounds. I have come for a quick vacation back home, in a desperate need of some vitamin D. I am also planning to do a small roadtrip to the south of Greece and to a small island called, Elafonisos. The beach there is so magical as if you were in the most virgin, untouched place on Earth. Crystal blue waters, white sand and only the ocean ahead. If I manage to go, I will for sure take a lot of photos and show you one of the most magical places in Greece.

     Now that summer is here, I thought of a chia pudding could save me from having to think what to eat every day for breakfast when I am working for my internship and keep me full, but not too full. Coconut water is also full of electrolytes that can save you from all the sweat you've been shedding. Cantaloupe melon is the star in this one, as it contains a lot of Vitamin A in the form of carotenoids, which are crucial for summer glowy skin as well as the protection from harmful sun rays. Prep this pudding on Sunday and enjoy it all week long.

Coconut water, Oat milk and maple syrup chia pudding with cantaloupe melon and cacao nibs

ingredients (for 4 persons)

1 cup coconut water

1 cup oat milk

1/2 cup chia seeds

1/4 cup maple syrup (or honey)

2 cups cantaloupe melon

4 teaspoons cacao nibs

4 teaspoons chopped almonds

2 tablespoons mesquite meal

more melon to serve

how do I make it?

1. In a large mixing bowl add the coconut water, oat milk, chia seeds and maple syrup. Mix roughly all the ingredients together and let the mixture sit for 20 minutes. After time has passed, the mixture will have become quite thick. Transfer into individual pots or in one large jar or container you wish. Let them in the fridge for up to 2 hours or overnight.

2. When it's time to serve your chia pudding, put in a food processor 2 cups of cantaloupe melon and the mesquite meal. It has a somewhat cacao and sweet flavour. If you don't have any, you can skip it and just pulse the melon. Pulse on high speed until you have a pulp. 

3. Top the pots or bowls you serve the chia pudding with the melon pulp in the previous step. Continue with a teaspoon of cacao nibs in each one and chopped almonds. If you wish, add more melon chunks  and maple syrup on top. 

CHOCOLATE AND ALMOND BUTTER SHAKE WITH CACAO NIBS AND FROZEN RASPBERRIES

     Some years ago when I was still a bachelor student living in Athens, I always dreamt of going to Erasmus programs and studying somewhere else abroad. It was almost like a fantasy I had to meet other people from different cultures. But what I wanted the most was to get to know their different cuisines, what kind of spices or vegetables were used in their homes and be able to share those small recipes which were passed on from generations. In my mind, we would gather all once a week and cook traditional dishes from various areas in Europe, Asia, America, Australia or anywhere else in the world. 

     This small dream became quite real the other day, when a good friend of mine from Hungary told me to get together a few girls from University and cook something from her country. We made some hungarian crepes stuffed with cooked meat in stew and some sour cream with sweet paprika sauce on top. It was so delicious and the best part of it is we all got together, talked about almost anything and there was food in the middle, which I believe always connects people. You can learn so many things about someone's culture just by the food they eat. We gave a promise to do it again in the future with a different type of cuisine. Maybe Mexican next time? 

     As food going and connection with other people, all you lovebirds know that Valentine's Day is approaching. I am not a very girly, bubbly, lovey person when it comes to this fest and as I am all about creative and simple gifts, I would love for a sweet something made out of chocolate. I have a few other recipes in mind for you guys, but I decided to start with this simple, everyone-can-do-it recipe of chocolate with almond butter shake you can make for your significant other. It is creamy, sweet, orgasmic and a bit on the healthy side. 

     Perfect as a breakfast smoothie or a finishing shake of a delicious meal. Whenever you choose to do it depends on your schedule to be honest. This recipe was inspired by Candince Kumai's recipe of Chocolate Peanut Butter shake. Candice is so amazing and inspiring. I love it when she puts her thoughts into words and how she talks about how difficult it was for her to make it in the field of cooking and wellness. She is a professional chef and ex-model (just have a look at her body) who focuses on plant-based recipes and smoothies, while bringing out her Japanese inheritance. 

     My recipe includes almond butter as I had made two jars of it and was eating it like crazy. I know that peanut butter may go better with chocolate, but give almond butter a chance. I find this smoothie to be on the sweet side, but without it being too sweet. It contains good fat and protein to keep you full. Plus I topped it with some frozen raspberries and that really made this smoothie a treat.

Chocolate and almond butter shake with frozen raspberries and cacao nibs

ingredients (for two)

1 frozen banana

1 apple, core removed

1/2 avocado

1 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk (or regular)

2 tablespoons almond butter

2 tablespoons cocoa 

1 tablespoon maca powder (optional)

4 ice cubes

to serve

frozen raspberries, cacao nibs

How do I make it?

1. Mix all of the ingredients for the shake in a blender (putting last the milk) and pulse in medium to high speed for 1 to 2 minutes. Check with a spoon if everything is smooth or else pulse again for some seconds.

2. Pour into two glasses and top with some frozen raspberries and cacao nibs if you have them.

ALMOND, CHICKEN, SWEET POTATO AND CARROT SOUP WITH GINGER

     I always proud myself as beign immune to every possible germ, virus or bacteria. I give the credits to the big ammounts of vegetables and fruit I consume, my 2,5 years of working in a hospital surrounded by all kinds of germs and my good genes (?). But when it comes to it, nobody is too immune to anything. So, for two days I experienced a medium high fever (about 37.8 C) and a runny nose. Which consequently had me on my bed for two days, watching countless episodes of The Good Wife. 

    It was absolutely amazing (apart from the fever part and feeling like my head is about to explode)! I rested for a good ammount of time, binge-watched Netflix and ate soup to keep me warm. The only thing missing was my mum asking me if I was okay. But after these two days I completedly recovered, so to say it wasn't that big of a deal and maybe I wanted to relax a bit on my couch and have a reason to watch American TV series. Who knows?

                                                                

     As if I knew that I was going to be sick the other day, I decided to make a soup in the morning to enjoy after my class of exptremely hardcore Pilates. There is a trainer where I go on Wednesdays who is really pushing us to our limits. I don't complain, it's a very nice exercise. But afterwards you need something really good to restore muscle loss and feel full. Furthermore, the weather was extremely cold that day, so it felt completely right to go for a soothing, hot soup.

     I was looking at recipes online and on my cookbooks and came across this amazing soup with chicken and sweet potato, which was asking for an ingredient I would never add myself in a soup. Almond butter! Yeap, you read that right. Almond butter in a soup. I did some research online to see if it was a thing and I was surprised to find all those different kind of recipes including it as an ingredient. I was hooked again! 

     This recipe was inspired by Martha Steward's book "Clean Slate", which I love since I purchased it. It contains simple recipes, with fine and healthy ingredients. I use it whenever I want something nourishing for my body or when I feel my metabolism is a bit sluggish. I am against (almost) cleanses and I prefer to eat healthier if I want to cut back on processed foods and help my body to reset. No strict diets needed, I learned that a few years back. We only need to keep attention to what our body needs and how it reacts with certain foods. If you feel like you function better with protein, eat more protein. If you need those carbohydrates, eat them, but try switching to whole grains that contain fiber, which is better for your body.

     So, I will skip a lot of talking here, to actually tell you about the recipe. The original one asked for collards. As I didn't have any collards and had no idea where to get them here in Zurich, I skipped them and added some carrots instead. I changed a bit the measurements and added a few ingredients of my own. Nevertheless, the soup turned out to be A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! My boyfriend love it as well! The almond butter gave this soup something so earthy and pure. I cannot really describe it so well, you have to taste it to see for yourself.

Almond, chicken, sweet potato and carrot soup with ginger

ingredients (serves 4 persons)

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 large sweet potato peeled

1 white onion

2 garlic gloves

1 large carrot peeled

pepper

1 teaspoon grinded ginger or two teaspoons fresh ginger

1/2 cup almond butter

1/2 cup hot water

4 cups of chicken broth (or vegetable broth)

salt to season

2 spring onions

lime slices to serve

How do I make it?

1. First chop finely all of your vegetables (sweet potato, onion, carrot, garlic and sping onions). Leave the spring onions to the side.

2. Fill a medium pot with the 4 cups of chicken broth and set to boil. Add the sweet potato, carrot, onion and garlic to the pot and let them boil while you cut your chicken breasts into small pieces.

3. Reduce heat and add the chicken. Cover your pot and let it shimmer up to 20 minutes. 

4. In a bowl whisk together the almond butter and the hot water until your get a fine mixture.

5. Add the sping onions and ginger to the pot and season with some salt and pepper if you wish.

6. Finally, pour in the almond butter mixture and mix with a big spoon. Turn off heat.

7. Serve immediately into bowls with some lemon or lime slices.