banana pancakes
as i kid i never understood the appeal of pancakes. and i actually can’t count how many times i barfed or had a horrible stomach ache after eating them. and maple syrup? i thought that was gross too. but only now i can tell you why….. because the pancakes i ate were never homemade & the syrup was never real. we never ate pancakes at home when i was a kid. so i don’t know what would possess me to order them intermittently at a road trip, Denny’s or IHOP pitstop. so naturally i came to hate them. i do remember the first time i ever liked a pancake. at my friend yael’s sleep over birthday party her dad made us pancakes. i didn’t hate them. it was a revelation. and love of maple syrup came way later than that. when i discovered the real stuff- thanks to my dear friend melissa (who’s from Vermont).
you know how sometimes you just want a great breakfast at home?
end result deliciousness
here’s a recipe that doesn’t use any flour other than buckwheat (which means it’s gluten free). i was really interested in developing a pancake recipe that wasn’t centered around processed white flour and had a healthy heaviness to it rather than the pass-out after pancakes feel.
i must confess- i am just learning how to write recipes down. i am notorious for not using recipes. something i learned from my great-grandmother and father just adding a little of this, that until the consistency is right. so here is my first real attempt at posting a recipe.
hot out of the oven
1 cup buckwheat flour
½ tsp baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon cardamom or cinnamon
½ stick butter or ¼ cup organic virgin coconut oil (either very very soft or liquid)
1 egg
1 cup almond milk, or whatever your favorite is (give or take depending on preference, i’ll explain more)
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1-2 teaspoon chia seeds
½ handful unsweetened shredded coconut
put all dry ingredients in a bowl and mix well
make a indentation in the middle of the dry ingredients and add in the butter or coconut oil, egg, vanilla and mix. sprinkle in coconut & chia seeds. slowly add the almond milk until the batter is liquidy but thick (for denser fluffier pancakes) or thin but not watery (for more crepe-like thinner pancakes.
heat pan at medium heat (may vary depending on your stove and pan). now is a good time to turn on the oven at the low temp with an oven safe pan or plate in it. this way when the pancakes are done you can keep them warm in the oven. once the pan is hot, add enugh butter to coat the pan well. you can also use coconut oil to grease the pan but from some research i have done reading other recipes and my own experiments they somehow cook up better with the butter. put dollops of batter in the hot pan. once you see a lot air bubbles popping up in the pancakes they are ready to flip!
when they’re done- add ‘em to the oven to keep warm.
pancakes & raspberries without the yogurt…. i kinda see them forming a snail 😀
my favorite way to eat them is with fresh fruit, plain yogurt and the purest maple syrup you can get, and if you ask my friend melissa she’ll say Vermont’s is best.
dont think i’ve forgotten to post art pieces, projects and classroom concepts! they’re coming soon! I am working on a few pieces right now as well as working on helping a teacher build her class’s art resources and i will also be a guest artist in her classroom! more about that soon!
i thought i was going to miss this round of cold and flu creeping around. but i didn’t. so here i am geeking out on murder mysteries (my fave), reading about folk medicine tradition and drinking one of my favorite hot beverage for sickies. whether it’s eating chicken soup or sushi, everyone has their own list of cold remedies.
the first time i ever drank cayenne tea for a cold was at New Leaf in Capitola, CA at the New Beet Café. They call it ray’s fire-water or something. I made up my own version of the drink that is prettier, has more nutritional value and makes you feel more normal on a cold rainy day like today.
this citrus trio has vitamin C clout and treats the taste buds. heat from the warm water with cayenne and ginger clears out the stuffy head and nose feeling. flushing out the ick. last but not least, the tablespoon or two of honey reminds me of childhood flu remedies, helps soothe a scratchy throat or cough and adds an element of immune defense (and deliciousness!)
grapefruit, blood orange, lemon, cayenne & peeled ginger
Ingredients:
½-1 grapefruit
1 small orange or tangerine
½ lemon
1-2 tablespoons chopped ginger* depending on preference
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
1-2 tablespoons honey depending on taste
2 + cups almost boiling water
Steps:
Squeeze juices from fruit & put into a large cup or jar
chop ginger & add to the glass
add cayenne & honey
pour the hot water into the container and let it meld until cool enough to drink (careful! if you use a jar it might be hot). as you drink this down you can keep adding water to what settles at the bottom of the glass to keep hydrating and making more tea.
*a hint for peeling ginger- use the back edge of a spoon like a vegetable peeler. works like magic.
please remember to use your own body as a guide when making this recipe. everything isn’t always good for everyone. if something doesn’t sound right for you replace it with something else or leave it out. in addition, honey should not be used for very small children.
as i sit here getting lost in thought as i work on my nutrition homework and bake cookies for my loves i can’t help but think of all the songs that remind me of love. now let me be clear. i don’t actually like valentines day. i feel the opposite of like for this hallmark driven holiday. but today i find my self using this as an excuse to make something really chocolatey & be happy. there are so many opportunities for us to share and give love to people. i am constantly amazed at the way small tokens of kindness can fill me heart with love. but here is my list of youtube videos of songs i listen to when i am feelin’ the love. (in no particular order)
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGkTv4BPvLU&w=420&h=315]
i saw dan in real life right after a pretty epic break-up (most break-ups are aren’t they?) i love the quirky remake of this timeless song.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxk0vsONJO0&w=420&h=315]
oh yoko…… says john lennon. this song to me is about the purity of love. how stupid simple things makes you love the people around you.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6voJjexENok&w=420&h=315]
joni…. need i say more?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_RT4ycqk28&feature=related
i just found this ridiculous reggae version of whitney houston’s “my love is your love”. i also love the whitney & wyclef “my dub is your dub” but the videos out there aren’t great.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L64c5vT3NBw&w=560&h=315]
dad & daughter version of edward sharpe & the magnetic zeros song “home”. you can just see their connection. uh. makes me love the world.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=InvWbvMumnk&w=560&h=315]
bob marley’s “i don’t wanna wait in vain” such a sexy song of longing and wistfulness. something i have definitely felt before. what did i learn? don’t wait!
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKCM71QM4rk&w=420&h=315]
aguas de marco… now i know this means the waters of march. i don’t actually know what this song if about but there is this coy, flirty aspect of this song to me. and it just makes me feel plain ol’ g <3 <3 d.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dsW-cVy62pw&w=420&h=315]
damien rice, dogs. not sure why i love this song so much. maybe it’s the almost akward harmonies. either way. hope you like it.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvtJPs8IDgU&w=560&h=315]
this is so cheezy. but can’t help but love it.
i know there are million more but i can’t think of them right now. what are the feel good songs that make your heart swell?
also….. these are the cookies i made. but instead of regular sugar i used coconut plam sugar.
“have you pulled today?” we would sometimes say to each other. looking for someone to conspire with, in hope, for a moment. we would pull the smooth wood bowl into the center of our breakfast nook table. looking at each other, deciding who would go first. today i start. mixing the little silver cards in the bowl, finger tips lingering on the turquoise stones and crystals in the bottom of the bowl. breathing deeply. pondering my troubles. contemplating life’s questions. i choose a card and place it face down on the table. then pull two more and put them face down alongside the first. i breathe deeply again. wondering, what words they hold. i take them in and see how they apply to my life, my day, my thoughts. i turn them over. flip. flip. flip. reading the three words slowly. ……
inspiration cards are a set of small cards filled with single word declarations to inspire plans, contest our views of ourselves and push us to become more. they have become ubiquitous in many of my circles because of their ability to create fun and meaningful rituals for an individual or for a whole slew of people. each group has their own rules and way to choose their cards. one of my favorite traditions centered around “pulling” is the utterance of the word “WOAH” (in a breath filled heavy sigh) as the cards are turned over and the words are divulged. often revealing, with ridiculous accuracy some insight into the puller’s current life situations.
whether or not you believe there is some kind of kismet at work when you pull a card out of a dish is irrelevant……. what is most powerful are the rituals created. the way a sacred space is formed for your to tune into yourself and maybe share the experience with someone else. how ever you choose to perform this ritual, you are left with a tangible reminder. the words on the cards serve as beacons of what we are seeking to fulfill, are missing, already have or keep us on the path of living out our truths.
i know there are different inspirational decks of the cards out there for purchase.
but what if you could make your own? using your own list of words, quotes and images that you find most meaningful. so here we go…. my step by step version of How To Make Your Own Inspirations Cards or MYOIC
step 1 ~ open up a brown paper bag & paint it with gesso
step 2~ make a template for your card
Step 3~ trace the shape all over the white surface
Step 4~ choose your colors and start painting!
step 5~ fill the shape completely. you may need to retrace some at the end. its ok!
step 6~ wait for them to dry before cutting them out. i love how they look like mini paintings.
step 7~ cut them all out
step 8~ write individual words & quotes on each shape . i also added gold paint & glitter to both sides.
step 9~ choose a container. (i used this jar from anthropologie & bought some chalk to write the word on the front that i pull!)
step 10~ roll them up and put them into the container!
please don’t forget this is just a template! make adjustments to individualize this project! find a special container at a thrift store (or in your house), create different shapes card, draw your own images, choose a number of cards to make that’s significant to you. let your heart and your imagination be your guide. the sky’s the limit. happy pulling!
imagine you’re standing in a room with more people than you can count. some you know, some you don’t know. the walls are stark white but hardly noticeable behind many groups of bulletin boards as far as the eye can see. the boards are grouped. and the different groups of boards belong to different people. each board, titled differently and each picture captioned with an individualized explanation of the image. each image displayed connects you to more information about the image. various images are duplicated and carried from one group of boards to another group of boards. linking people together in an indiscriminate fashion. it’s as if each person has their own miniature gallery of art they share and can be shared with everyone else in the room.
so why am i am writing about this?! because, i’ve been overwhelmed. not by starting the new semester, not by the job search, not by the teaching i’ve been doing…..
this imaginary journey i had you go on. is what it’s like to get sucked into the world of pintrest.
my pintrest page (follow me!—–>) & let me know if you want and invite!
posts from people i am following
everyone’s posted images
it is the utter joy i experience in browsing beautiful images WHENEVER I WANT! and what do i see when i look at my collection of images ? a reflection of myself. the best way to describe this website, to those who haven’t found it yet, is a never ending sea of virtual bulletin boards of images people connect with. like collections of picture albums filled with photos you haven’t taken but still love like your own.
to drive this point even further…. have you ever been able to pass up the opportunity to look into a coffee table book stuffed with giant colorful photos? i think not….
the beautiful things we witness in the world make our hearts sing, calm us and remind us who we are. on pintrest we show images of places we want to see, things we want to cook, projects we want to make, develop our style, find beauty and connect with people we’ve never met about our passions.
it’s not just found images that we that we identify with. given the chance we can create pictures that depict our life experiences and remind us of our constitution.
this week i led an art project for a delightfully small class of two middle school boys. everyone else was absent and this led to a deepening artful exercise that they truly loved and connected with. i asked them to stop and think about some aspects of their personality they struggle with. i asked them to contemplate ….. am i quick to lose my temper, pick fights with my siblings, be negative about my writing or math abilities, be stressed, lose patience with my parents or not be the best friend i can be? then i asked them to think about how they overcome these things and what that means to them. from these thoughts they created abstract paintings depicting overcoming the aspects of their lives that are truly difficult for them.
overcoming weaknesses
overcoming weaknesses 2
i can see this project being used in certain circumstances with children, teens or adults who struggle with even bigger issues of violence, self esteem, quitting smoking or being separated from their families. using images to remind us of what we struggle with, focus on what makes us strong and imagine how things can be when we triumph. finding beauty, in ourselves.
(disclaimer: i am not an art therapist! while these activities can be used for self reflection in a class i don’t recommend trying to use this exercise for someone coping with trauma without a professional therapist or art therapist)
we can all agree that nature provides us with some of the most incredible beauty we can ever hope to see. but driving on the highway looking at partitioned fields or the view of the city while driving over a bridge…. the world turns into something else altogether. alluring, magnificent and awe inspiring. it’s in the melding of natural beauty and human design that has been influencing my art work lately. creating abstract neon colored paintings on paper of fields and their water sources. i’ve also been experimenting with textiles. sketching on fabric and painting on silk to create the fluid feeling of water colliding with itself and everything it touches- man-made or not. i cant help but find a sweet sadness in these all of these unnatural landscapes. wondering what it used to be like before me, before my ancestors; then wondering about the future of this planet.
here are some images I found of landscapes, my art work, as well as a photo I took from Twin Peaks in San Francisco, CA looking out over Market St.. You can see the small bright pink/red flare of the Castro Theater and the Bay Bridge stretching out over the bay into the lights of the Oakland Port.[slideshow]
being outdoors in the midst of nature, whether or not you’re in reach of civilization is undeniably an experience that just feels good. the air, a sense of freedom, and knowing you are doing something good for yourself. there is more and more research showing how our bodies benefit from contact with the earth and the natural world. the idea that our bodies need to be in touch with the earth is founded in human history. people spent most of their time outside in contact with the land. now most of us spend our time in doors, our feet on building material on top of concrete foundations and looking at our reflections in artificial light.
companies sell “earthing products”, that mimic the benefits of being connected to the earth. i can identify with wanting the heath benefits of nature with ease and by just ordering a product available on the internet. but, i’d rather experience the joy of being outside, like when i lived in Santa Cruz. my afternoons were about walking at the beach touching the sand and collecting the smell of the ocean in my nose and breathing it deep into my lungs. or spending no time at all getting to the redwoods and hiking just to sit in the old burned out stump of a tree. as i sit here wistfully thinking about those experiences i want to replicate them here in the Bay Area where i live, admittedly close to the woods that seem so far away, to glean the health benefits of being outside. so, i want to propose to you readers to think about how much time are you spending outside? how does it feel for you to be in the fresh air knowing you are doing something good for yourself? how do you touch the earth?
this week has been full of kitchen projects, teaching art classes, and prepping for the classes i am teaching this weekend. as i am planning my lessons and ordering materials i am finding a smattering of little illustrations and photos to share with you.
[slideshow]
i am also planning my own projects to complete this weekend and looking forward to coming back with some pieces completed pieces to post about. i’ll also photograph art by the teens i will be working with. the projects i am planning are silk screening, book binding, lino cutting and printing. here are some of the sites i found while doing research …..
creative kismet is one of the most amazing blogs i have ever seen.
i adapted the recycled paper bags journal tutorial for one of our projects this weekend.
this week in the kitchen i prepped for getting back to school next week and for healthy breakfasts while i am away this weekend.
some of the things i made…. granola, apple sauce, cilantro pesto….
here is the recipe for the cilantro pesto. we used it to top butternut squash enchiladas but would also be great with tacos, black bean salad and so much more!
cilantro pesto
1 large bunch of cilantro, without the big stems
½ cup pepitas
1 medium sized shallot
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
¼ cup fresh olive oil
(you can also add some Serrano chili or hot pepper flakes to make it spicier)
in a food processor pulse all ingredients, except olive oil until well blended. with food processor running slowly add olive oil. more oil can be added if needed.
makes about a cup
here’s a cool tip i found….. whatever you don’t use, you can freeze. line a ice cube tray with plastic wrap and fill in the individual cube spaces with the pesto. freeze and remove from the ice tray, put in a sealed freezer bag for future use.
cilantro pesto recipie adapted from this site.
you’ll all be on my mind this weekend as I collect thoughts, art and photos for you!
my love of potted deserts has captured the better part of this decade. i have been endlessly made fun of for finding cuttings of succulents in every place possible and incorporating them into my gardens and watching them flourish. making these miniature landscapes is an opportunity to experiment with elements of composition, color, texture and shape with dirty hands and a green heart.
i spent the holidays in Lake Tahoe rejuvenating my tired mind, body and spirit. i relished the beautiful scenery, read a mystery novel, played games, did yoga, went hiking, spent time outside in the cool air, and cooked and then cooked some more. i wanted to send a thank you gift to my hosts. What could be better than a mini succulent garden?[slideshow]
succulents are here, there and everywhere these days. their heartiness, drought resistant beauty makes them easy plants to grow and add into your life whether or not you have a yard (or a green thumb). for me, growing these special little plants teaches me
* patience * as I watch them change and grow over time
* perseverance * as they can withstand difficult times of drought and ultimately triumph
* respect * for all things big and small (can you see how i put the baby succulents in with the big ones?)
here are some tips on starting your own succulent garden(s)
- use soil that has a lot of sand or small pebbles in it. this helps the water drain easily
- once your plants are set in the dirt- don’t water them quite yet! the roots are very delicate right now and can rot easily. let the plants rest and the roots acclimate and then water when the soil gets really dry
- let the soil dry between waterings
- 1 leaf can turn into a whole plant! so, if a leaf falls off and it looks healthy? keep it in dirt!
some resources i like by DK publishing are
Cacti & Succulents (101 essential tips)
Complete Book of Cacti & Succulents by Terry Hewitt
sorry there aren’t links to these resources i didn’t want to just link you to some internet retailer, buy local!
here’s a link to help you find your local independent bookstore.
Title: Inner Gaze
every day i see the world as an opportunity for all things new…. new people watching, new stories, new learning. newness is endless. i can’t wait to share all of these projects, articles, and foods with you! i also wholly value life’s tried and true aspects. this blog will be an interweaving of thoughts, images, and information all brought together to inspire and spread light.
as much experience as i have had learning about food, bodies, the environment, art, culture, stillness, clutter, people, relationships, communication- i am still not done learning. i know there are many aspects of my life i am constantly working on. this is a place where self love and self exploration collide into an outward expression of creating ultimate wellness combining all of the aspects of of life that make me glow.
as i make my way through grad school studying integrative wellnes and travel through life as a seeker i am excited to have a place to share my ponderings and discoveries with you. what i know to be true- is that creativity inspires each of our lives. even those who claim they aren’t artists. we are all artists in our own way. our creativity is what inspires us to live our lives more fully. the bigger answer i am looking for, or working on, is how creativity helps us lead a healthier life in combination with all the other pieces of our life that come together to make us our happy healthy selves.