Raw Avocado Chocolate Pudding

Healthy eating is SO important to overall well-being of not only the body, but also the mind. A recent food trend is 'Raw Foods' and I have to admit, I've kind of jumped on board with this one because I discover it works for me! Eating one raw vegetable meal a day really energize me and I feel better in body and mind. I never thought I could give up bread and bread products but lately I find I'm eating them less and less and eating more raw foods instead!

While eating raw foods can sound boring, it doesn't have to be! Several people have asked me for my recipe for raw avocado chocolate pudding, as I've posted few times about making it on social networking sites. This is a healthy and tasty treat and avocados are especially nutritious food for women to eat, so I wanted to share how I make it here with you today!

This is not really 'my' recipe because I discovered it online, but I don't remember where so I can't credit my original source. Still, I'll share the steps I follow to make it as they may be little different from other recipes for this dessert/meal (many are available online, just google raw avocado chocolate pudding!)

First, you need ripe avocado.

 This is tricky because sometimes I have to make it when I notice an avocado has ripened, even if I don't want to eat it at that moment. However, I've made this with avocado not quite ripe enough, and also with one almost over-ripe and it still turned out okay. If you use avocados in meal preparations then likely you know they operate on their own timelines!

Next, a blender! (A smoothie maker would probably also work for this, though I've only used blender.)

Cut your avocado and removed seed...

...then dice. The smaller you can cut it, the easier the blending process will be!!

 

Toss diced pieces of avocado into blender and add two teaspoons of cocoa. I have used both dark chocolate cocoa and regular. You can also kind of adjust this to taste, sometimes I throw a little more in if I'm really in need of a chocolate fix! You could likely also use carob powder, though I've never tried that.

 

Next, add honey. I have a honey pot so I kind of just drizzle some in, and I only use local honey which can vary as to taste and sweetness. I don't remember what the original recipe called for, but the more honey, the sweeter it will be. I usually drizzle about a teaspoon and a half in!

 

Next, add a pinch - literally - of sea salt and enough water to get it moving. This is tricky and can depend on size of avocado. I usually use at least a half cup at first and add a tablespoon more at a time if more is needed. Add too much, and you have a drink! 

I also use ice water so that the pudding will be cold! However if you are making it for later, you can use regular temperature water. Pudding should be thick and consistency of regular puddings. 

 When your pudding is done, you can top with a wee bit of cinnamon (this can also be added to blend!) or coconut, which I especially like!

This is enough for a meal if you use a large avocado, sometimes I have it for supper! It's also a great snack on hot summer day!

Enjoy this raw avocado chocolate pudding recipe!!

Little Lessons in Letting Go of What We Think is Going to Happen...

I had planned to get to work early and take care of a couple of things to get a jump start on the week. However, when I arrived, the door was locked, and I realized that the director of the course I was teaching had not given me a key card.

It was a few minutes past 8am, and other people would not start arriving at the building until about 8:40am. And it was already hot, somewhere in the low 80s.

I stood there, processing all of this, feeling the budding sensations of irritation settling in...

...then I looked around me. Alongside the building where I am teaching for this week is a garden courtyard, offset at the entrance with a pond lined with topiaries for this weekend's upcoming Festival of Flowers, a major event for our town.

I knew I had a choice...to stand there and allow grumpiness to settle in about a situation I really could do nothing about, or take advantage of the unexpected change in plans - not getting into my classroom early, but rather being stranded outside until 8:40 - by enjoying a morning stroll through the courtyard garden. Of course, I chose the latter.

 

 

The bursts of colors were breathtaking. I've walked past this courtyard garden many times while being uptown, but never stopped to truly take it in. To focus on an individual flower...

 

...or the care and attention to detail shown by those who tend this garden. 

 

I watched a bee feed...

 

 

...and a robin take flight.

 I was able to forget about the change in plans and be in the moment there in that small little oasis of nature right in the heart of downtown.

 

 

No matter whether we make big plans that require much foresight and preparation, or just small plan like getting to work a half hour early to be better prepared, they can fall apart with moment's notice. What else can we do but accept that things aren't going to happen the way we'd thought and simply keep moving forward? If I'd chosen to be angry, stand at the door and think miserable thoughts, that 30+ minutes of time still would have passed by, but I'd not have enjoyed it very much. Instead I chose to find a way to enjoy the time, be in the moment, notice what was around me and take joy in it rather than focus on what wasn't going to happen.

I had to let go of what I wanted, which in this case was something small, and relatively easy to release. Sometimes it's harder to do, but letting go is a skill that takes practice and the only choice we have (other than frustration and unhappiness) in many situations. Instead of being in a classroom for extra 30 minutes, I got to spend beautiful time in nature in a garden so lovely it took my breath away. A garden I may  not have gotten to explore otherwise! And learn a little more what being in the moment really means.

Read more about this subject in upcoming post on unexpected change of summer plans. :-)

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Fathers Day, not only to all the amazing dads out there, but also to all the amazing men willing take on the (often difficult) task of not only raising, but also loving, another person's child/children just as if they were your own.   

We are so grateful for you!

The American South and Finland Share a Food Tradition: Rhubarb Pie!

Many of my readers know I have close ties to Finland via my friend Essi, who I met back in high school (I won't say how many years ago!)

 

In 2010, I was finally able to visit there and it was wonderful to see Essi again, meet her family and be in the country I'd spent 20 years reading, learning, and studying about!

Next summer, we plan to be there again, and I can't wait. Finland is a beautiful place and from there one can relax in the vast quiet of wild nature; spend time at the many wonderful lakes and marinas around Essi's hometown of Lappeenranta; stroll down the streets of Helsinki, one of Europe's oldest cities; visit Sweden, Russia, or Estonia for a day; have licorice ice cream; tour lovely Fiskars Village; take a boat ride around a castle in Savonlinna...just writing about it makes me so excited for our trip next year!

In the meantime, I enjoy sharing cultural traditions not only with Essi, but other friends I've made there - her sister Johanna; Sannamari, a friend I met through a Ravelry swap; and Mari, author of my favorite blog! I look forward to meeting both Sannamari and Mari next year when we are there and enjoy the connections we have now.

For the past few weeks, however, my social media newsfeeds were full of images of rhubarb and talk of rhubarb pies from my friends across the sea. Though I have never made one, I was bit surprised to discover a cultural food tradition that the American South shares with Finland! I decided to make one for a family cookout this past Sunday, but I asked Essi for a Finnish recipe. I found it was somewhat different from traditional Southern recipes but it turned out really well. Of course, finding fresh rhubarb was not so easy, but after visiting a few stores, we located it at BiLo and got to work!

 

Getting the dry ingredients blended. I always give this job to my son!

 

I also gave my son the job of cutting the rhubarb into small pieces. The recipe calls for 7 desiliters of rhubarb. My measuring cup has a reading for desiliter, but if yours doesn't you can find translation here. 

While he prepared the rhubarb, I got the crust ready. The crust recipe reminds me of Southern cobblers, and I can easily see using this with cherries or blueberries! Every Finnish pie recipe I have tried requires making crust from scratch. When I was there in 2010 and wanted to make a pecan pie for friends, I remember trying to express that I wanted a frozen pie crust. You won't easily find that there! I simply wanted to save time but rarely ever use those in my own cooking at all, and found it funny it was basically non-existent there!

 

Then it was time to sugar and soften the rhubarb...

 

...then put it all together...

...and into the oven!

I had to experiment a bit with temperature. The recipe says 200 which is low for American ovens. I'm not sure if this is a 'lost in translation' thing or if it really was supposed to cook on such a low temp. About 25 minutes in I upped it to 350 and kept a close watch for about 15 more minutes, and that seems to do the trick!

 

It was hard to keep the youngest household member from sampling it as it cooled! Even the finickiest child will be keen to try any food they've helped prepare, I've learned! It doesn't hurt that the smell was wonderful!

I was delighted to have borrowed this recipe from across the sea and put a new twist on an old Southern classic. It did taste a bit different in some ways than tradition Southern rhubarb pie, but it was delicious topped with whipped cream, and I'll definitely make it again!

And guess who got the last slice? 

For traditional Southern Rhubarb pie recipe, click here. To read about our making traditional Finnish Karelian pies, which was a fun culinary adventure, click here!

Finnish Rhubarb Pie

Ingredients:
2 desiliters Lactose-free buttermilk (soured milk)
2 desiliters sugar 1 desiliter running margarine (or melted)
3 1/4 desiliters flour
1/2 tablespoon baking powder
7 dl pieces of rhubarb
1 desiliter sugar

Soften pieces of rhubarb with sugar in a flat container in the microwave for 5 to 8 minutes. If the liquid comes off a lot, drain it off, and use in other recipe such as the soup or juice.
Mix the base ingredients. Pour batter into pie pan (Ø ~ 28 cm). Add the rhubarb on the surface. Bake at 200 degrees for 20 - 30 minutes or until done. Serve with custard, vanilla sauce or ice cream.

TIP * Use on the berries of the season (about 3 dl), or apples. (Apple cubes or pre-cooked slices in the microwave oven in the same way as rhubarb.) Use sugar as needed.

A Window Opening - My Yoga Journey Begins!

I've practiced yoga for many years, but being my son's only parent it was often difficult or not even possible to attend classes, and sometimes I would let my home practice slip as other things demanded my time and attention. A few years ago, however, I rededicated myself to the practice and strove to embody the philosophy behind yoga. This varies depending on style, of course. For me, I want the calming peace that yoga practice brings. Slower, more deliberate poses, challenges, focus on breath and breathing, a state of mind I could take outside of the yoga studio and into the world. I wanted to, as the wonderful book by Judith Hansen Lasater describes, live my yoga.

Though this was going well, I wanted to attend regular classes at a yoga studio. I needed to watch and learn from others. I also wanted - and needed - the camaraderie of fellow students. There are several styles of yoga and I've experimented with many of them. At the end of the day, however, I come back to Hatha yoga  as the style that most calls to me. The gentle shift between poses, focus on the meditative aspects and breathing, and the smooth flow of a typical Hatha yoga style class appeal to me. So when our summer plans changed (post on this coming soon!) I decided to look for the open window instead of at the closed door, and began taking classes at The Matworks Studio, right here in my own hometown!

 

Borrowing from the website, "Debbie Harvley, founder and director of Mat Works Yoga, is a certified yoga instructor with Yoga Alliance. She has been a student and teacher of Hatha Yoga since 2001...She teaches an eclectic mix of yoga with influences of Vinyasa Flow, Iyengar, Yin and Restorative.

Debbie helps her students discover, as she did, the amazing effects of yoga on the physical body as well as uplifting the mental and emotional states of being. She utilizes a more holistic approach to healing with yoga as her guide and a personal determination to make a difference in her own health and well being."

Thursday night, I was able to attend my first class. It was wonderful and being back at The Matworks, where I had practiced on occasion years before, was great. The new location is lovely and the teacher for this class, Bess, immediately put me at ease with her kind disposition and a sense of 'realness' that she maintained throughout the class. As the other students began to arrive, there were hellos, introductions, and refreshing, lively banter. I knew I was with a good group!

 

We gathered supplies and settled in to begin the class. I had a great position in the large, open room which gave me a nice view for asanas!

The salt lamps reminded me of our recent getaway to Asheville and the decor was relaxing and peaceful. Bess began class and led us through beginning poses. I really enjoyed her teaching style and how she encouraged us to take our poses a step further, if desired, and showed us the way to do it (for those who wanted to try). I was delighted when she demonstrated the Crow pose, which I've wanted to master for a long time, by showing the basic flow of steps that lead up to this pose. I'd never seen it presented that way and it really flowed together well. Though I did not attain it Thursday night, I know now how to prepare to!

From Warrior Two pose, she reminded us to hold our positions by saying, "Don't lean back into the past, don't lean forward into the future. Stay here, in the present." How often I need that reminder, in poses as well as in life! 

The last few minutes of any yoga class are some of my favorite moments. The relaxation poses, meditation, the wind down. This is where I embody what I've learned and prepare to take my yoga out into the world. Bess made sure to give us plenty of meditative 'winding down' time. Very peaceful moments after a fairly strenuous class!

 Something The Matworks offers to the community as well as yoga classes is a yoga store! I enjoyed perusing the goods after class. I especially liked the delicate patio chimes. I believe I'll be adding these to my own patio soon!

 

So if you are in my area and interested in Hatha yoga classes, please join me at The Matworks Yoga Studio located at 463A Calhoun Avenue here in Greenwood. I'm looking forward to continuing my practice here as I begin my own study towards yoga teacher training, something I'm very excited about and have long felt called to do!  The Matworks current class schedule is available here and also at the studio! 

Sustainability in Small Steps

My son is a mega-fan of the works of J.R.R. Tolkien. The Hobbit, Lord of The Rings, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King. We have all the books and the movies and, often have 'movie marathons' on rainy days. I believe reading the book series will keep us busy for many evening hours over the summer. Often we taken The Hobbit on long walks and I read aloud from it while we're enjoying a snack or picnic outside.

I love to make things by hand, especially things for my home. And I love making things for my son. I think it's important to teach children the value of handmade or homemade things, and also the value of the work to make them. The love, time and energy vested into creating something verses simply buying a ready-made item.

For me, it's a lifestyle choice. It's a way of honoring the beauty of little things, like making a pair of socks or a kitchen towel by hand for myself or someone else as a gift. It's also a form of sustainability. I don't believe you have to move to a rural area and 'go off the grid' to be self-sufficient. Nothing so drastic as that, though for many people, that's a lifelong goal. For me, I am at a place in life for simple sustainability, small steps. Knitting is one of my favorite activities and I feel I'm taking part in generations and generations of sustainability and creativity.

So when it was brought to my attention that some Hobbit gear was needed, of course I was ready with my needles. If you are a knitter or crocheter and not familiar with Ravelry, please visit the site today! It's a great place, like social networking for fiber artists! I entered 'hobbit hood' in the pattern search and came up with a hooded cloak of sorts that met my son's approval. So I cast on using recycled yarn (yarn I unwound from another project. This is a simple process and can be a fun way to recycle sweaters you or your child/children no longer wear!) I had previously made him a 'methril' vest, which if you are a Tolkien fan you will know is a special type of elven-chain mail that offers great protection in battle!

It was slow going as the yarn I used was prone to snagging on the needle, not to mention it was many stitches to each round. When it came to the hood, I was not sure how deep to make it. It's not always easy to follow a pattern exactly. If you are using different needle or yarn than pattern calls for, as I was,  you have to make adaptations often and check to make sure your item will fit, etc.

 

Then finally, I was done and could present the finished work to my son, who was delighted. He now has a hobbit hood and methril vest. He's still young enough to enjoy dress-up play, which is so beneficial to the imaginations of children. I love to eavesdrop on his play, to hear his imagination in action! And he loved his new 'gear'.

His next mission is to make a walking staff from a found branch, and we've spent many days looking for the perfect one in our woods. He finally found it, and is keen to begin carving the top into some design from his mind. He watched a master wood-carver at a festival recently and is eager to try the craft himself. Of course I will supervise but I'm happy he wants to make his own walking staff rather than simply purchase one.

It's a valuable lesson to teach children the beauty and joy of making things by hand! I love knowing that we have a handmade/homemade home and lifestyle and now my son wants to continue that tradition by making his own items.

Sustainability in small steps.

Sharing Something Good...Free eBook, Zen Habits, Letting Go, and More

About a year ago, I came upon something very good...it's called Zen Habits. A few times a week, there's a post in my inbox from Leo Baubata, creator of Zen Habits. What I love most about his writing is the 'realness' of it. He has no ego at all associated with his work, even to the point that all of his writing is copy-right free in order to encourage sharing.

 

His honesty is touching and his way of detailing the experiences that led him to make certain choices is refreshing. His post on children and minimalism especially moved me, since I have taken this approach with my own son and receive more than a bit of criticism from people who can't understand the lifestyle. Minimalism with one child may be a lifestyle choice to promote well-being and the quality of life we desire, but with six children I believe it would be a necessity! I loved the post and it inspired me to continue on the path of minimalism that is working so well for my son and I right now.

 Leo Baubata's commitment to helping others through his words and experiences, however, has never been more evident to me than with his recent release of the free - FREE - ebook, The One Skill. This eBook is available in bite-sized pieces you can have sent to your inbox at regular intervals, or downloaded all at one time. Not only is it free, it is also copy-right free so that you can use and share with others!

 

I can not say enough about this work. I have not always known how to let go. A few years ago, I created the The Boldness Initiative blog in order to help myself, and maybe as result, help others, learn to let go and live boldly, even when life does a 360 on us. However, many of those blogs were fueled by hurt and anger as I struggled to come to terms with a new normal. I wish I'd had The One Skill back then!! It takes having to let go to learn to let go, however, and it's far from an overnight process.

What I love about The One Skill, which I downloaded, read all in one stretch, then came back to for pondering and reflection, is that he identifies the many types of loss and how the depth of experience is relevant to the person having the experience. In other words, no loss is greater or smaller than another, and even letting go of little things is very important skill to have.

 

Much of the suffering we inflict upon ourselves in life is rooted in our own expectations of how we think a situation, or a relationship, or a career or even the personalities of our children should be. It's so hard not to form expectations, however! I try hard not to yet I still do it, even at times with small things. Last year, we had significantly greater rainfall than typical and most of the plants in my garden rotted at the roots. There was precious little harvest from all that spring toiling, and it was a great disappointment. Though I like to believe I live in the moment without expectation, I planted those seeds and plants fully expecting to enjoy their bounty, and was greatly disappointed to lose not only the plants, but the ideal or expectation I'd built up about having them. I do not need, at this point in my life, to feed myself from my own garden, but I sure was in love with the idea of doing that! I had to let go of that ideal, that dream, and sometimes for me that is the hardest part!

However, my own experiences letting go in big and small ways are what make me appreciate Leo Baubata, his writing, and The One Skill so much. We can not usually predict or prevent small or big losses from happening to us, but we are in complete control of how we choose to react to them. It is so easy to wallow in self-pity, become bitter, depressed, even selfish and cling to a 'walking wounded' identity when bad things happen, and this to me is the worst possible outcome of not being able to let go. I'm not proud to say I've done it before, however. I think we all have at some point. That is why learning to let go is not a catch phrase of this era, but a valuable life skill.

If you are struggling with this, please download The One Skill here and let Leo Baubata's writing help you on your journey of learning to let go. Part of my struggle in past was that I didn't want to let go and accept changes, and that is so futile and harmful! I love the way it is addressed in this free (again, free!) ebook The One Skill. Kindly and gently but still directly enough so we know there simply is no other way. When life does a 360 on us, we have to let go and keep moving on, otherwise we do ourselves and possibly others great harm while life is moving on around us!

Please visit www.zenhabits.net for much, more more wise words on everything from marriage and relationship to eating healthier! I love this blog so much, and I think you will love it, too!

** I decided to illustrate this blog primarily with photos taken in my garden last night, since last year's gardening experience is referenced in my writing! As a way maybe of showing there is always more chance and life and new dreams do go on after loss!