ursulahienz

Dear all,

Yes, it is true. These brownies are proof that a dessert can be sweet, healthy and super delicious at the same time.

They are rich in fiber, antioxidants and nutrients. Even the oat flour has been activated to substantially reduce the amount of phytic acid that are abundant in oats (therefore you should NEVER EVER eat non activated oats! In case you are not up for the activation process, use another flour that has less phytic acid like wheat flour or use more buckwheat. Even refined white flour would probably be better than non activated whole grain flour. Read more on my post about activation http://plantbasedhappy.com/?p=6272). You will not even ind a trace of so called “healthy” sugars like raw sugar (still refined), coconut sugar (yep, refined) or way worse- agave syrup (highest fructose content of all sweeteners!).

The best natural sweeteners are: DATES!

Buy dry dates in bulk, add them to a high speed blender, cover them with hot water, then puree into date paste. Store the paste in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three weeks.

Easy and cheap. 

To make the brownies, simply whisk together the moist ingredients, stir in the dry ingredients, then fold in the frozen berries.

 

Then bake in the oven until done… (click here to view the recipe http://plantbasedhappy.com/?p=8592)

 

This recipe is perfectly suited for someone who is following a low fat reversing heart disease plant-based diet.

Have some fun with the recipe by using different frozen fruits, chickpeas instead of red beans, cinnamon instead of vanilla, prune puree instead of date paste and so on. 

Enjoy the brownies!

Cheers,

Ursula

 

 

Dear all,

This morning, we all got up a few minutes earlier than usual (which is hardly a challenge given the fact that our kids wake up with the Australian sunrise at about 5am!) to start our day outside with a series of yoga sun salutations followed by some relaxing breathing exercises (great stress management technique!). Afterwards, we enjoyed bowls of activated cereal (if you are not sure what I mean by activated read this post ) with homemade soy yogurt, fresh fruits, and almond milk.

And- of course- a slice of one of Burleigh Baker’s long fermented sourdough bread– toasted, with a bit of vegan butter and jam. What a wonderful morning!

I wish our children were taught yoga in school on a regular basis. It’s so important for their wellbeing. In fact, here are the subjects I think are absolutely essential for our lives nowadays and should be part of every school curriculum: 

1. yoga
2. meditation and stress management techniques
3. nutrition and sustainability (finally getting rid of old myths like the benefit of dairy and the importance of animal protein and swapping them with the healthiest diet, which has been proven to be a plant-based diet))
4. coding (computer programming)

Until these subjects are being introduced at schools (and I have still hope that eventually, they will find their way into our curriculums), it’s up to us to teach our children. That’s why we started with yoga and breathing this morning. We’ll do it about three times a week for about ten minutes, either in the morning or in the evening. Sometimes the kids like to spend a few minutes with a guided meditation for kids (a few minutes is enough usually but they can extend this time if they feel like it). There are plenty of wonderful resources online. On and off I stop them when we are out and about to remind them to listen to their breathing and the sounds from their surroundings, feel the wind/ the sun etc, and taste the salty air (depending on where you live). It’s really just about being mindful and feeling connected. These are very calming moments and only take a couple of minutes. Another very powerful tool is visualization– tell your kids (or try it on yourself) to imagine taking a lemon out of the fridge, smelling it, letting it fall onto the cutting board (hearing), scraping the skin with their fingernail (touching), cutting it in half and tasting it (tasting)- who wouldn’t be salivating like crazy at this point? This little experiment shows kids how powerful their imagination is. Now they can visualize themselves swimming, practicing an instrument, ballet etc in their minds. Professional athletes use this tool to prepare for their training and competitions. You can also visualize yourself being happy and smiling or simply lying in bed, breathing in a relaxed way. It’s amazing how well it works!

If you are interested in coding, I have found some sources online that have worked really well for our kids: lightbot (free app), swift (free app form apple) with free in-store workshops for kids, www.youthdigital.com (not cheap online tutorials, but incredibly good- look for coupons online!) and codeacademy.com (for older kids and adults).

In order to be happy, centered, lean and fit, you also have to eat the right foods. So yesterday’s dinner consisted of a fruity kale salad (one of our kids’ favorite salads) with oranges and pomegranate seeds (see recipe here http://plantbasedhappy.com/?p=8148)

mushroom risotto as an entree and fresh seasonal fruits for dessert. 

You might wonder why I used white arborio rice for the risotto instead of brown rice. When it comes to rice, you basically have two choices:

• you activate brown rice. That means that you have to soak it with a bit of apple cider vinegar or lemon juice for at least 12 hours. Even better to keep the water you soaked the rice in for the next batch of rice, which will increase the amount of phytase (the enzyme that breaks up phytates- complexes of phytic acid bound to zinc, phosphorus, magnesium and iron). Rinse the rise well before cooking it. You will get all the important minerals and fiber. 
• you use white rice. No need to activate it, because most of the phytates have been remove. White rice lacks nutrients including fiber. But at least it lets you absorb the nutrients form the food that you eat with the rice. The worst you can do is consume whole grains that have NOT BEEN ACTIVATED. Not only do they cause stress on your digestive system, they also interfere with the absorption of nutrients that you eat at the same time. 

Therefore, for yesterday’s risotto, we had white rice and lots of nutrients! Preparing foods properly might sound difficult at first, but as soon as you know a few basic facts is really easy. last but not least, here is the recipe for the risotto: http://plantbasedhappy.com/?p=8576

Cheers,

Ursula

Dear Students,

You are having a busy time ahead of yourselves with tons of exams, late night studying and high stress levels. Just a word of solace- we’ve all been there and you’ll be fine! Just keep breathing!

With little or no time or nerves to shop or even thinking about cooking, I expect a lot of you will feed on processed unhealhty foods over the next week. Does that help you do well? I doubt it. As we all know though, our minds work best in healthy bodies (“mens sana in corpore sano”). The intended meaning is that only a healthy body can support a healthy mind, so we should strive to keep our bodies in top condition.

So here is a list of very easy and quick to prepare snacks and a few words of advise (you would probably not listen to your moms, but hopefully to your tutor):

• Eat alkaline foods (plant-based foods) which do not cause or enhance inflammation in your bodies (animal products do). You don’t need your bodies being busy fighting inflammation when you’re already stressed!
• Limit your shopping trips by buying a lot of healthy plants and freeze them (kale leaves, banana, berries, etc)
• Make a large batch of snacks once and freeze them (raw balls or goji squares for example)
• Chop various vegetables once a week and store them in the fridge. That way, you can throw salads together in no time. 
• Stay away high fructose energy drinks, they are poison (like other poisons, fructose can only be metabolized by the liver which will slowly lead to a fatty liver; high fructose concentration releases 100 times the number of oxygen radicals and can cause pancreatic and arterial damage. Instead, have a moderate amount of coffee, exercise moderately (you can always squeeze in a short run which will give you an immediate energy boost and releases endorphins- “happy hormones”) and meditate for a few minutes (I use a great app called “calm”). Above all: Keep your calm!
• If possible, and I know you might think “WHAT???” activate your nuts, seeds and grains. Soak quinoa, brown rice etc overnight in water with a splash of lemon juice before you use them the next day (rinse well before using them). Soak large batches of nuts and seeds at the same time overnight, then dry them for a few hours on low temperatures in the oven. Store them in the fridge. They make a fabulous snack. The reason behind all this effort? Phytic acid in the foods bind to important minerals like phosphorus, calcium, zinc or magnesium and prevents your body form absorbing the nutrients. So try to stay from raw nuts and seeds thinking these are healthy foods. They are only healthy if prepared properly. And believe me when I say this takes very little time!!! One minute to throw nuts in a bowl with water, another minute to transfer them to the oven and turn it on… and don’t forget to turn if off 🙂

 

I hope you’ll enjoy some of these –or other– healthy foods!

 

Raw Cacao Balls

Totally addictive! 

Klick on the title below for the recipe  

Raw Chocolate Balls

 

Turmeric Ginger Latte

A soothing, relaxing anti inflammatory drink

Klick on the title below for the recipe

Almond Milk Turmeric Latte

 

Soba Noodles with Avocado

Seriously, they are prepared in 12 minutes

Klick on the title below for the recipe

Soba Noodles with Creamy Avocado Sauce

 

Raw Black Forest Cake Balls

OMG, soo delicious! 

Throw 1/4 cup each pecans and almonds, about the same amount dates and cherries and about tablespoons of raw cacao powder in a food processor. Add a bit of water and blend until you get a sticky mixture. Start off with just one teaspoon of water, then add a bit more if needed during processing until the mixture starts to stick together. If you like, you can coat the balls with raw cacao powder.

 

Goji Squares

Klick on the title below for the recipe  

Yummy Goji Squares

 

3 Ingredients Chia Pudding

Stir 1/4 cup chia seeds and 1/2 tbsp maple syrup into 1 cup almond milk. Refrigerate for a few couple of hours. Enjoy!

 

3 Ingredients Wrap

Green leaves, banana, almond butter (activated, if possible). No recipe needed 🙂

 

Very Berry Smoothie

Seriously, anything will do. Choose a plant milk (activated almond form Pure Harvest or coconut milk or coconut water), throw in banana chunks for sweetness, greens (kale gives you the most nutrients), a couple of dates (sweetness and energy), any type of fruits (berries, mango, watermelon) and any superfoods you might have at home (hemp seeds, maca powder, acai powder, bee pollen etc). Swap juices with smoothies. Juices don’t contain much needed fiber and will cause sugar spikes (followed by sugar lows). 

Simple Avocado Toast 

https://www.youtube.com/edit?o=U&video_id=Fl1d1zv63vc

 

Almond Butter Banana Toast

sprinkle with seeds and nuts (chia, pecan, almonds- activated if possible)

Klick on the title below for the recipe

Wholegrain Toast with Almond Maple Butter and Banana Slices

 

Good luck on your exams and TOI, TOI, TOI!!

Ursula