Monday 29 September 2014

jaffa buckwheat pudding

Last week I wrote here about why I finally wrote down my bucket list. I'm still adding to the list and I'm ticking them off. Hence the purple ukelele below!! How are you going with your bucket list? Any wins?!

Today I am giving you a healthy version of a Jaffa - you remember the orange coated chocolates?! - in pudding form. Holy yum - this is definitely a win-win. Delicious and nutritious breakfast or dessert that is a raw vegan buckwheat pudding with an orange chocolate twist. Not only is it super tasty but there is also a low-sugar version and this pudding is naturally gluten-free as buckwheat is a faux grain - it's actually a fruit seed that is related to rhubarb and sorrel.

I mean, what else would you expect from the seed bearing fruit blog, but seeeeeds???!


#13: Learn how to play the ukelele


Delicious brunch in Belgrave after an intense workout at 1000 Steps!

jaffa buckwheat pudding

raw vegan gluten-free dairy-free soy-free

1 cup raw buckwheat, soaked for 30 minutes
100 mls coconut milk or nut milk
1 frozen banana (low-sugar substitute: 1/2 medium avocado & liquid stevia, to taste)
1 orange, juiced
1 Tbs raw cacao powder
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
coconut yoghurt, to serve
cacao nibs, dried orange slices, dried shredded coconut, to garnish

Soak the buckwheat for at least 30 minutes in filtered water. Rinse the soaked buckwheat before adding to a high-powered blender with the coconut milk, banana, orange juice, cacao powder and cinnamon. Blend until smooth and creamy or almost smooth for more texture. Serve with coconut yoghurt and garnishes in a glass jar. Refrigerate until consumed. Serves 2. 


Quote for the Road… 


Monday 22 September 2014

why i finally wrote a bucket list

About a month ago someone asked me what was on my bucket list. You know, the list-of-things-I-must-do-before-I-kick-the-bucket. I couldn't answer them. Partly because I was tired and my brain had switched off for the day but mostly because I didn't have an actual list. Of course, there were dreams in my heart and plans in my head, but nothing was written down. After sitting with this for awhile I knew I needed to write out a bucket list. Writing it down makes it real. I'm acknowledging these dreams in my heart and plans in my head after (let's face it) many years of laying these dreams and plans down.

I've decided it's time to start dreaming and planning again.

I've decided to find my blue lagoon

I've decided to make more choices today and not just wait for the chances tomorrow. 

I've decided to write a bucket list. 

And I've decided to start ticking them all off one at a time.

#3: Learn how to ride a horse



#8: Work as a singer-songwriter


What's on your bucket list friends?

detox tonic



Quote for the Road… 


Monday 15 September 2014

how to be naturally beautiful

Bare face. Untamed hair. Open heart. Naturally beautiful.

For me natural beauty is denoted by not being afraid to walk down the street with an abundance of confidence just like that. 


My beautiful cousin and I

I've shared my thoughts with you about natural beauty in weighty mattersgrowing your nails, vocal health and beauty, dental hygiene, and many other areas relating to beauty such as nutrition, love and self-care.

But I think I need to spell it out more clearly, especially as a young woman living in a world where your worth is often based on how you look. Am I young enough? pretty enough? thin enough? tanned enough? waxed enough???

Our worth is not defined by our looks.

Our beauty is not defined by the makeup on our faces, the way we wear our hair or the designer clothes on our figures (which do come in all shapes and sizes). 

My concern is and always will be the state of my health. Did you know our skin is the largest organ in our bodies? And it is the last organ to receive nutrients from the food we eat and assimilate, inside to out. If we are healthy on the inside, our skin will be vibrant and glowing. Beauty that lasts comes from the inside out. We need to start to examine what we are feeding ourselves - what thoughts we allow into our minds, what beliefs we allow into our hearts and what foods we allow into our mouths. 


On my long journey to better health I've started to use more natural "beauty" products, without the chemicals and the preservatives. I've also cut down on how many products I use - less is always more! What else, you say! I don't always wear makeup or brush my hair. I don't dye my hair. I rarely wear nail polish. My wardrobe is not full of designer clothes. But I mostly have clear skin (after dealing with recurrent adult acne for years), my hair is naturally lightened by the sun, my nails are strong and shiny, and my clothes are being swapped for breathable fabrics and eco-friendly production. Yes, I'm less "done up" but I'm more healthy and more naturally beautiful than ever before. 

Here are my tips and tricks for a more naturally beautiful you:
  • Eat more plant-based foods (hello fruit and vegetables!).
  • Drink more water, preferably spring water or filtered water. 
  • Use natural beauty products (check out this list of brands).
  • Replace your synthetic makeup with mineral makeup.
  • Experiment with using oils on your skin (my all-time favourite is coconut oil!)
  • Try pelotherapy - use superfine green clay to clear up acne and to draw toxins out of your skin.
  • Rest your hair from the heat of hairdryers, straighteners and curling irons. 
  • Swap your toxic deodorants for natural deodorants
  • Swap your loofah for dry skin brushing
  • Go bra-free (sorry guys, it's a girl thing!!!).
  • Never apologise for your appearance. 
  • Love yourself - there's only one of you.


I'd love to hear if you have any natural beauty tips and tricks that work for you. You can connect with me on Facebook or leave a comment below. And to finish, let me encourage you, reach for health, for natural beauty always comes from the inside out. 

Quote for the Road… 


Monday 8 September 2014

vegan zucchini fritters (gluten-free)

Hello my friends! I hope that wherever you are in the world you are enjoying good health or at least on your way to enjoying better health every day! Although my health has been inconsistent lately I can say I am enjoying the sunshine here in Melbourne, quality time with my friends and family, and having fun playing around with new recipes in my kitchen. Today, I'm posting my very first cooked recipe for you all. My vegan zucchini fritters are plant-based, gluten-free, full of goodness and super delicious!!

On a side note, here in Oz we are officially in Spring, the perfect time for a "spring cleanse" for your body after the heavy foods of Winter. If you need ideas for an easy peasy spring cleanse here is a guide I posted about a month ago. If you'd like to hear more about cleanses let me know and I'll work on a more thorough program for you all. 

Now, without further ado, I give you my scrumptious vegan zucchini fritters! 


Sour grass is a wild edible (tastes like lemon!) growing in Victoria, Australia

vegan zucchini fritters (gluten-free)


500g zucchini, shredded
1 tsp sea salt or himalayan salt
1/2 cup brown rice flour
2 flax "eggs" (combine 1 Tbs flax meal with 3 Tbs warm water for 1 flax "egg")
1 Tbs tamari
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp paprika
handful of pepitas (i.e. pumpkin seeds)
coconut oil, for cooking
hummus, for serving


Shred the zucchini into a medium bowl and stir the sea salt through before leaving for 20-30 minutes. Combine the flax meal and warm water in a small bowl to make the flax "eggs". 

Place the zucchini in a nut milk bag and squeeze the liquid out. In the medium bowl mix the zucchini with the brown rice flour, flax "eggs", tamari, garam masala, paprika and pepitas. Use your hands to combine the mixture well. Form the fritters by rolling and flattening balls of the mixture with the palm of your hands. 

Place the fritters into a pre-heated skillet and cook in coconut oil on medium-low heat for about 5-7 minutes on each side, or until cooked through. Alternatively, you can bake the fritters in the oven at 200 degrees Celsius for 30 minutes. Makes 6 to 8 fritters. Serves 2.

Quote for the Road… 


Monday 1 September 2014

3 things to do when you feel stuck

Happy Spring! I've seen Spring in with none other than the freshest and cleanest water a gal (or guy!) could drink - pure spring water! Last year I wrote here about my trip up Mt Donna Buang in Victoria, Australia with my mum to collect spring water. Well, we did it again! I only wish it was a little closer… then I'd be collecting spring water every week… just like the locals seem to do!




One of the things I've struggled with over the years has been a feeling of being stuck in my life. I believe this feeling is quite normal for most people to experience at some point in their lifetime but it is almost certainly magnified for anyone suffering from an illness, be it chronic or otherwise. There is an unpredictability about your day-to-day health condition that may mean you can't see your plans through and need to retreat from the world a little. This can make it ridiculously hard to keep moving forward… even though that is the very thing you want to do more than anything else… just one step at a time.

In my years of living with and recovering from a chronic illness, and working to keep my life moving forward these three things have helped me to unstick and take the next step:

1. Own all your choices

Naturally, there can often be a feeling of helplessness that arises as circumstances beyond our control unfold. Life has a way of twisting and turning, and sometimes we are taken for a ride. But know that you are not helpless and what you can control is how you respond, how you take responsibility and how you seek to repair. As you start to do this you'll feel the heaviness of helplessness lift. Owning all your choices is pivotal in helping you to let go and to move forward.

2. Find the wiggle room

You may be stuck between a rock and a hard place but that doesn't mean there isn't any wiggle room! Try and find it no matter what. And remember that baby steps count! One thing that I have chosen to do is to live with my parents. But as I am an adult I need my own life and my own space. At one point I felt so stuck that I started to look for wiggle room. I found that I can live independently and with my parents (and be thankful for it too!) just by setting up my own areas of the house, paying my own bills and preparing my own meals, and going on adventures that take me away from home. There is always wiggle room.

3. Pray and pray hard!

"Be cheerful no matter what; pray all the time; thank God no matter what happens. This is the way God wants you who belong to Christ Jesus to live." (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, MSG). Keep the lines of communication open with the One who loves you the most. God can unstick your life in a moment. He's on your side and He wants the best for you… but He also wants your heart. Could our feeling stuck be an invitation to turn to Him? I think so. Also, ask your friends and family to pray with you too "for where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them" (Matthew 18:20, NIV). Prayers are powerful and God hears them all.


Quote for the Road…