Teanoa

Organic white tea rose melange rishi + quinoa = teanoa.

Castle

I took this picture while I was in London with my mom and sister a few years ago. We were standing on a bridge over the water and could see this elaborate castle in the distance. Amazed by the image, I snapped a picture, and we proceeded to walk towards this castle. We did a bit of walking only to find out that the castle simply did not exist. The only explanation for what we saw was that we must have seen what looked like one castle, but what was actually a combination of various parts of several castles. 

I prefer to think that this castle really exists. I decided a while ago that at some point in my life, I will live in a castle. I don't want the whole castle though - that would be excessive - I just want to call a single turret my home.

I could admire pictures of castles all day. While I did not take any of the above pictures, I am making it a personal goal to one day have my own collection of original castle photos. 

Cosas Hermosas

Tapas? I opened up my big box of tea today and thought, "hmm, this loose-leaf tea might be really good in food". I researched it, and it turns out that people cook with tea all of the time! I've seen zucchini used as a plate for all kinds of spreads and was really inspired. So I stacked on some beets, macadamia nut cheese, basil, and topped it with a dijon-agave-rooibos sauce. I will most definitely be cooking with tea more often! I think it'd be a great addition to nut cheeses.

Also, I want to learn French. While I don't have the time to formally study the language right now, I have been making it a point over the past few months to learn and master the pronunciation of some sentences (with some help from un cher ami). It may not be all that practical, but I like being able to say beautiful things.
1. Le monde est un place merveilleux.
2. L'essentiel est invisible pour les yeux.
3. This third sentence is my current project - I am working on pronouncing and memorizing it. 
Eventually this list will be long. 

Rainbow

Classes started and it's been an incredibly busy couple of days. I haven't stopped going, but I am glad to say that everything I have been doing has only further fueled me. I am busy with all the right things, and even while running around like crazy, I am able to notice the small things that make each moment unique. Monotony is an easy pattern to fall into, but it's not an inevitable reality. Sometimes it's about taking a different route, looking in a different direction... taking the time to think rather than simply observe. Like this morning, as I was walking to my first class, I saw a rainbow. Okay, well it wasn't a real rainbow, but as the sprinkler was watering the quad, the combination of sunlight and water cast what looked to me like a rainbow.

You can't see the rainbow in the picture which, at first, disappointed me. But thinking about it now, it doesn't matter if what I saw is captured by a lens. I stopped right then and there to look at it, and the rainbow served its purpose right then and there. The image doesn't have to be suspended in time to mean something. It made a difference at that moment - it made me stop and appreciate something that was visually restorative. The rainbow was present. It's no wonder I couldn't project it into the future. 

Kaleberry

For my last night in Chicago: a vibrant plate of steamed kale, blackberry-dijon-balsamic sauce, topped with walnuts. Kale and blackberries are two of my favorite foods, and I must say, they make a lovely couple.

Word

What is it called?
I don't know if there is a term for it.
Terms are empty.
I think I would say so much more.
To explain.
If nothing were understood.
No two words meant the same.
All things born once.

Tower

Tonight: an artfully stacked tower of mushrooms, sun-dried tomatoes, basil, and homemade, raw macadamia nut cheese - all topped with some balsamic vinegar. The nut cheese was so good with the balsamic!

Winter Welcome

I have been wanting it to snow before I go back to school in New Orleans, and I finally got my wish! It started yesterday, and I woke up to a winter wonderland. The year just doesn't feel complete without true evidence of winter. I'm satisfied now.

So, upon waking up to this, I thought I'd make a festive, classic, winter breakfast. Now, I have only recently discovered that I like oatmeal. I was not a fan as a kid, but I tried it a couple of weeks ago and it has slowly made it's way onto the routine breakfast menu. I briefly skimmed some oatmeal recipes online, and when I saw pumpkin, I knew that's where I wanted this morning to go. So, I got out some gluten-free oats, organic pumpkin, cinnamon, and agave.

I went ahead and cooked the oatmeal, using just water, and then added two spoonfuls of pumpkin, one spoonful of agave, and some cinnamon...a lot of cinnamon.

A lot of the recipes I looked to for inspiration used some kind of milk, but once I got in the kitchen, I totally forgot. Next time I think I'll use rice milk, but even using just water, this was delicious! Great start to a snowy day.

Chaos

When I am stressed, all I see are "to-do's" floating around like millions of little stars in my head. They spin out of control, and my mind becomes chaos. Then an image of space, stars, and a vast universe presents itself as a mental image. It's so beautiful. With millions of stars floating around, I see nothing but the light from the stars and hear only the silence and stillness of space. The image in my mind merges with what is out there in the world. The "to-do's" I see spinning in my head are no longer contained within my own mind - they become part of this celestial realm we inhabit. My chaos is a shared chaos.

Beety Zucchini

I have been making this beet salad with balsamic, agave, and dijon dressing that I absolutely love, but today I decided to mix it up a bit. I wanted to keep the beets and the dressing, but play around with the base of the dish. So, I shredded some zucchini, mixed in the agave, balsamic vinegar, and dijon mustard, and added a bit of salt and pepper.  I topped it with some beets and raw pecans, and it was ready to go! An almost completely raw dish, it was easy to throw together and tasted fresh and uplifting.

Moon

Last night I got home late in the evening, and when I stepped out of the car to go into the house, I noticed how light it was outside. My first thought was, "huh, I didn't know there were so many streetlights around the house...", but then I looked up only to find a sky filled with stars, and [what google later helped me to understand as a] 98% visible moon. I took a second to just stare at the unbelievably bright moon, taking it all in, paying attention to the aura-like ring of light surrounding it. The song "Flume" by Bon Iver came to my mind, and I was reminded once again of the mesmerizingly cryptic nature of the lyrics. I have analyzed the words time and time again, and I have read various interpretations, but there has never been a moment where I have thought, "yes! that's it!". But I think that is what makes the song so captivating - the elegance of the words just is, and the why is irrelevant. It's easy to get caught up in understanding why something is so compelling, but sometimes the wonder lies in the ambiguity. I don't why it is those words elicit such a unique reaction, and I don't know what it means. But I like it. And the moon reminded me of that.

Food Reel

Cooking is one of my favorite things to do. It is well known by my family and friends that Whole Foods is a second home to me, but I don't go just there for the (eco-) friendly people, the extensive food bar, the kombucha teas, or the comfort of organic produce. I am a vegan, and I also have food allergies. I first found solace in the allergy-friendly products at Whole Foods, but have since been inspired to experiment in the kitchen on my own. I didn't know there were so many gluten-free, soy-free, and even raw vegans out there, but I am happy to say that after a great deal of exploration, I have mastered the art of refining google searches and tailoring my recipe inquiries to my dietary needs. I have been working off of recipes I have found through these searches, but I am hoping to eventually take some off-book risks. I hope my blog works it's way to the screens of other individuals like me who are investigating and discovering innovative, natural realms of wellness. 

Since I have been contemplating creating this page, I started photographing some of the things I have been cooking (well, also because I am very proud of my latest achievements). Highlights include:

the timeless avocado sushi

almost-raw vegan pumpkin pie

raw cashew cheese

Tonight's feature was brown rice pasta with avocado pesto. At first, it seems counterintuitive to mix avocado with pasta, but I have learned to trust the foodie blogs and websites (who knew agave and balsamic vinegar make such a wonderful pairing in rice dishes?). It turned out wonderfully. Next time I think i'll use a spiralizer and try it with raw zucchini pasta.

That's all for tonight. I must say, I am eager to share these pictures with more than just the photo album on my phone.

Beginnings

First post. There is so much I want to share, but I don't know where to begin. Beginnings are always uncertain because we have nothing to compare them to - every beginning is unique in that it has never existed and cannot be replicated. My goal is share and explore everything and anything that elicits intuition and generates new thought...or a new view of an old thought. I may even share perceptions of the thoughtless. I want to share all things relevant to my passion for and interest in this world. I want to share the beauty I see.

Driving home today, I stopped the car because this looked beautiful to me.