Bites of Bliss...♡

My new obsession - healthy and sensually delicious.

Happy Sunday from beautiful LA! Truth be told it was hot as hell where I live today, but now it's cooled down to that perfect, fragrant dusk breeze. I've just finished one of the best food experiences I've ever had, and since I was the creator, I can eat them anytime I please. I was inspired by a vegan restaurant nearby, called Cafe Gratitude (http://cafegratitudela.com/).

Each dish is named with a mantra. I usually get I Am Vibrant, which is kale sauteed with garlic, lemon and tamari, served topped with avocado. Yum! Everything I've had there has been delicious (spiritual hedonist that I am, satisfying flavor is absolutely required of every bite). They use organic local ingredients and they welcome dogs on their patio, so Cinnamon and I go there often. It's located on the north end of Larchmont, just south of Melrose. I've been at least a dozen times and recently tried their desserts for the first time. Confession: I am a food purist. I like the real deal. I have stayed far away from mock anything - I once saw mock cheese on a menu the first time I went to Real Food Daily and refused ever to go there again. Until recently, I'd never even consider trying a chocolate dish that wasn't real, rich, creamy, sweet chocolate. And then I had the I Am Mystical balls at Cafe Gratitude. 

I Am Mystical - and I am in love. Raw vegan coconut macaroons, each big enough to share (but why would you?) and every single bite like the first night with the love of your life. I am not kidding, they're that good. So good that when I craved them this past Friday night, after CG hours, I made it my mission to recreate the sensation the following day. 

I stayed up til 2am searching the net for recipes. I tried every possible combination of words that I hoped would lead me to that exact concoction, I emailed CG's management (no response) and finally found a video of a woman making a similar enough recipe. I went to Erewhon (http://www.erewhonmarket.com), a natural market nearby just north of the Grove and got all the essentials - organic coconut oil, cacao, sun dried shredded coconut, and since browsing the natural baking aisle got me excited, a few other ingredients: almond butter, sea salt, raw slivered almonds, and brown rice syrup (which by the way is a great sugar/syrup/honey alternative).  

7 steps to Heaven

This was my first time experimenting with these. I wasn't nervous, I was ready. I wanted those Mystical balls so badly, I had to make them mine. Initially, as I measured out the cacao, I intended to follow the recipe I found online. I emptied the dry measuring cup of cacao in a big blue mixing bowl and added a couple cups of coconut. But as I mixed in the coconut oil (and I really had to work it in there to get it all combined), I decided to play. It is one of my purposes on Earth, after all. I mixed and added, tasted and proceeded thoughtfully to create the tastiest, most pleasingly textured, satisfying dessert I've ever had.

Here's how to recreate them for yourself:

In a large bowl, combine 1 cup of cacao, 2 cups of dried shredded coconut, and a cup of coconut oil. You can set the coconut oil out in a warm spot to soften it first, to make it easier to handle. Mix these ingredients well. Add a couple of generous pinches of sea salt, a half cup of almond butter, and a half cup of brown rice syrup (or maple syrup). Keep on mixing, baby. Add half a cup of almonds, and if you like, a tablespoon or two of honey. Taste as you go and play with it. You want the mixture to be thick and sticky. Spread wax paper on a metal baking sheet, and using a small ice cream scooper and a spoon, shape the mixture into balls and place on the sheet. I did two sizes, just to see how they'd turn out and what I'd like better. Experiment. Play. Enjoy! This is how I like to live... Refrigerate the finished masterpieces for at least a couple of hours. You could also freeze them. And then, the most important part - enjoy! 

Share if you dare, but these bites of bliss turn every eater into a lover, so be prepared. My guy proclaimed the experience, "the best thing he's ever eaten". Lucky for him I made enough for us to enjoy over and over again.

Love,

Tiff

Vegetarian Love! And cute little animals!

A couple of months ago I stopped eating meat and I've never felt better in my life. It was a personal choice. Ever since I adopted my sweet little rescue pup, Cinnamon Toast Crunch and later, my handsome tuxedo kitty, Catsanova, I've felt growing in my spirit a deeper connection to all animals and to this beautiful planet we call home. We had pets when I was a child, but we moved frequently, sometimes even a few times a year, and as a result we usually weren't able to keep animals with us for long. 

Catsanova! Stupid's descendant?

We had a beautiful blue eyed, white Persian cat named Priscilla for a couple of years and that was the longest animal attachment I recall. My Papa Buddy had a cat for 17 years named Stupid. He adored the cat, and Stupid (who was black and white and looked exactly like Catsanova) was a devoted companion of my beloved grandfather. Catsanova literally just walked in our door one hot summer afternoon last year! He was tiny, about 4 or 5 months old, the vet supposed. I was immediately struck by how closely he resembled my Papa's familiar. Anyway, in the 2 years that have passed since I adopted Cinnamon, and nearly a year since Catsanova strutted into my life, I have come to deeply love and appreciate all animals. 

Grandma & Papa in the 80s

Even as a kid, I've always loved fruits and veggies more than any other food. (Except, maybe, chocolate.) Tomatoes in particular, and anything tomato related, have been my favorite food since I was about 3. I'd walk outside with my mom, Wendy, and pick cherry tomatoes right off the vine beside my grandparents' house and munch happily away. Mr. Pacer, a kind man who lived down the street and kept a decent sized veggie farm in the land behind his house (which was turned into a parking lot a dozen or so years ago), used to bring a large box by for me every year to enjoy. My great aunt Sissy and her husband Tom also grew a large garden every year; she'd give us tomatoes and cucumbers by the box. I loved going to her house and eating fresh green beans, salad, potatoes and carrots I'd helped dig up and more. She'd can some at the end of the Virginia growing season and we'd continue to enjoy the earth's bounty all winter long. One Easter, rather than requesting Peeps (which I still to this day am disgusted by) or candy, I asked for a basket full of exotic fruits I'd read about and, of course, tomatoes. I was 9 that spring, to turn 10 that September. I've always eaten vegetation more than anything else, and have had long periods in my life that were vegetarian, but until recently I hadn't made the commitment to stay true to my natural inclinations.

 My family, in typical Southern style, ate a 

Healthy home cooking

lot of meat and potatoes, chicken & dumplings, fried fish, biscuits, ham, bacon, eggs and all that down home artery-clogging cultural crap. Sorry to be so crass. I certainly don't mean to offend but the ugly truth is that most people in the US haven't had it stressed to them what the cumulative effects of all that "food" on their bodies will be, then people wonder why they have heart attacks and diabetes, obesity and low energy. In our society, people are so sensitive to taking offense - don't say "fat", it's "big". Fat sounds mean. I'm not a mean person but I am concerned about the health of our nation, particularly people I love. It doesn't seem possible that Americans are genetically predisposed to being "big" and elsewhere all over the world, others aren't. It's got to be lifestyle related and certainly what we eat is huge - no pun intended. Literally, we become what we eat - our bodies create new cells using the food we eat. Some of that, most of that in many people, becomes fat or waste. Most people walk around with pounds of waste rotting in their intestines. Disgusting! 

California Caprese sala

As someone who grew up in a place and family where there was ignorance around food (and that's not to say that my family was unloving, they just were unaware), it wasn't until recently, at nearly 32 years old, that I began really learning about nutrition and digestion. Thanks to the internet, I've learned about food combining, acid-base balance, and to avoid as much as possible genetically modified (GMO) and non-organic foods. In fact our bodies are slightly alkaline (base). Most peoples diets are primarily acid producing. That means the bodies of the masses are in a constant struggle to maintain blood alkalinity, and that leads to disease. Ideally, we should eat 80% alkaline (base) and 20% acid producing foods. Drinking water with lemon, or alkalized water, greatly helps our bodies stay healthy.

Useful chart about acid - base (alkaline) balance. Consume 80% Alkaline for optimal health & wellness!

Cinnamon, the 1st day I rescued her

One of the biggest reasons I became a vegetarian (who still eats seafood on occasion, but doesn't feel like a "pescetarian") is that if times were different - if we lived as our ancestors did hundreds, even thousands of years ago - and I had to raise animals, look them in the face every day, and eventually kill, skin and cook them - I absolutely could not. I just couldn't, I wouldn't do it. To me it's violent and unjust. If I can survive, and in fact, thrive and feel better than ever, without meat, why eat it? Not to mention that times have changed since hundreds of years ago - meat is an industry that tortures animals, injects them with chemicals, and then sells it neatly packaged as "what's for dinner". How disgusting and barbaric. I just can't be a part of it in any way. And now, I can look animals in the eye, with love, feeling calm and happy in our peaceful coexistence.

Juicing for life

My fav - sauteed greens with tomatoes, avocado & more

I'm not consciously judging others who don't share my opinion, but I have never looked or felt better, physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. I wish everyone could feel this good! I prepare and drink a green juice every day with organic kale, spinach, apples, lemon, ginger, carrots, cucumbers, pears, whatever I'm able to get fresh locally. In California, we're fortunate to have amazing farmers markets constantly offering an endless variety of fruits, veggies, fresh baked bread, flowers, herbs and more. I try as much as possible to buy from local farmers and whenever possible, choose organic. I'm satisfied with so much less than before! I think that since what I'm putting in my body is exponentially better for me, I naturally need less to feel full. I've also gotten really creative experimenting with some great veg recipes that have turned out delicious! I still indulge occasionally. I love a good glass of wine and delectable desserts. If I have a plate of pasta or some pizza, I truly enjoy it. I've come to take so much pleasure in being good to my body! It's a wonderful way to live, surrounded by the unconditional love of my animal companions, eating fresh locally grown offerings that nourish my body, mind and spirit.




Here's to looking and feeling great!

Love,

Tiff

Mortal And Immortal Love by Gladys V. Jones

Three years ago, browsing at the most lovely outdoor used book shop (Bart's Books in Ojai, http://www.bartsbooksojai.com), I purchased a stack of books that would later sit in my cabinet until I eventually moved out of my beloved one bedroom westside second story apartment. I dispersed of all but my most treasured belongings when the apartment was sold, but one of my selections from Bart's made its way with me to my new place near Larchmont Village in LA. The cheerful yellow hardcover and title, Mortal And Immortal Love, caught my attention that day in Ojai and yet another year later, this past May, I finally gave it a good read. Good really doesn't describe this mystical masterpiece; Ms. Jones wove a hauntingly profound tapestry of soul love and psychic love, karma and reincarnation. 

Mortal And Immortal Love begins with Ms. Jones explaining her process - I found out online that she was an LA based psychic and New Age writer in the 60s and 70s. I wasn't able to find out much else about her, though I am a tireless huntress of information when intrigued. She channeled this work through psychic readings and connecting with her higher self/soul/infinite consciousness. In this book, she tells the tale of a mortal woman, Psyche, and Eros, son of Aphrodite (Venus), the Goddess of Love. A winding path to be sure, one that is poetically explained and analyzed by the author in the context of both timeless and modern lust, love, marriage, loss, fate, and destiny.

Much of the book is in prose, like a song from a wise old soul. I've looked for Gladys online, wanting to thank her for her incredible work. I've not found a way to contact her and my feeling is that she has returned to the astral plane that she wrote of with such clarity. I did however find that she wrote three other books, which I promptly ordered: The Flowering Tree; The Greek Love Mysteries; and Reincarnation, Sex And Love. I've just started The Flowering Tree and it is fascinating, awakening and eerily familiar. 

I highly recommend that if you are able to find a copy of Mortal And Immortal Love, or any work by Gladys V. Jones, that you plug in and enjoy some higher self reconnection. Sometimes I have a question in mind and turn to a random page and find insight and comfort nestled within, as though Ms. Jones is still practicing her craft from the beyond. 

Thanks Gladys V. Jones, wherever you are. 

Love,
Tiff