Tag Archives: breakfast

Almond milk energy drink

Posted on May 20, 2013 | 20 Comments

I made this for breakfast yesterday and have been dreaming of it ever since. The almond makes it thick and the date sweet and the cardamom warming.

Almond milk contains more nutrients than other dairy milk alternatives like rice milk. The health benefits provided by this option even match dairy choices. Almond milk works as a great alternative for those with soy and lactose allergies. It is high in protein, Vitamin E, magnesium, potassium, selenium, manganese, and iron. While many dairy farmers have made strides to ensure that their cows are rBGH-free, the practice of injecting dairy cows with growth hormones and antibiotics has not been completely eradicated. If you make your own almond milk from organic almonds you are sure to be avoiding this!

Fresh dates, despite being very sweet, are actually healthy. Everything in measure, I say! Dates contain B-complex vitamins and vitamin C. Dates also contain a good amount of minerals, including potassium, copper, sulfur, iron and magnesium. Dates are a particularly good source of calcium, which helps promote strong teeth and bones. Another health benefit of dates is that they are low fat. In 100 g of dates, only a fraction of a gram is saturated fats. Saturated fats can raise serum cholesterol and lead to blood vessel and heart disease, so eating foods low in these types of fats is part of a healthy diet.

Fennel, known as jeera in India, is recommended to be used in cooking daily. Its actions are: carminative, antispasmodic, stomachic, stimulant, and diuretic. It has proven useful in conditions of: indigestion, abdominal pain, including cramps and gas, diminished agni (which refers to the build-up of toxins in Ayurveda.

You can click here to read about the benefits of cardamom.

Basically, this almond drink is one big vitamin burst and you’ll love it in the morning. Be sure to have a glass of warm water half enough before to get your digestion going.

Here is how you do it:

Soak 12 almonds overnight and peel them in the morning.
In a separate bowl, soak 2 fresh dates, a teaspoon of fennel seeds and around 6 cardamom pods. Pit the dates and get the seeds out of the cardamom pods and discard the pods and blend it all up until everything is completely smooth and even the cardamom seeds have been blended. If you like vanilla you can add some vanilla too.

This is so delicious you won’t look back!

Enjoy xoxoxox

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Posted in Health, Recipes

Tagged almond milk and cardamom, almond milk energy drink, breakfast, cardamom ayurveda, food, health, health benefits almond milk, health benefits fennel jeera, health benefits fresh dates, healthy breakfast energy drinks, home made almond milk, morning energy drink almond milk, Oh la la livia, organic almonds, serum cholesterol, vegetarian

The best chai of all time

Posted on May 18, 2013 | 8 Comments

I’ve had quite a few requests from you for my chai recipe, seeing I rave about it all the time. Here goes!

Medicinal Chai tea recipe

I love adding vanilla to my chai mix, it gives it a sweet aroma plus it’s my favourite spice/ smell of all time. Chai is great for soothing digestion, improving blood circulation, treating colds and flu, and improving energy levels. It really is like making your own custom blend medicinal beverage except it taste great. This particular recipe fixed my cold, so quickly! By the end of the day I was feeling good again…

Ingredients…
1 star anise
8 cardamon pods (but I always put in more)
1/2 vanilla bean
1 cinnamon quill (or 2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon)
8 peppercorns
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
3 bay leaves
1 of 2 slices of ginger (I add a lot more but I’m a total ginger fan! And I can deal with it suuuuper spicy)
8 cloves
1 tablespoon orange peel
pinch of grounded nutmeg
2 teaspoons rooibos tea
1/2 teaspoon of ground turmeric
2 and a half teaspoons black tea (omit if you want it caffeine free)
2 cups of water
2 cups of fresh milk

Method…
Add all the ingredients (except tea leaves) to 6 to 8 cups of water and boil in a saucepan. Turn on low heat to simmer for 10 to 15 minutes then turn off the heat and add tea leaves. Let sit for a few minutes then pour through a strainer. Sweeten with honey, maple syrup, coconut sugar or stevia and dust with cinnamon powder. Other milks you can use are almond, soy, oat, rice.

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Posted in Health, Recipes, Uncategorized

Tagged ayurvedic home brewed chai, breakfast, cardamon pods, chai for immunity, chai tea recipe, food, hea;thy chai, healthy ayurvedic chai, home brewed chai with milk ayurvedic, making chai on the stove, Oh la la livia, spicy chai home made

Cardamom Pear and Apple cake

Posted on May 16, 2013 | 5 Comments

Soft, spicy… it actually tasted a bit like a chai infused cake. Cardamom has to be one of my favourite spices… and it’s healthy! It’s good for bad breath, headaches, anxiety, settling your stomach and according to the principles of Ayurveda, cardamom helps balance the three ‘doshas’ or ‘defects’ in the body. In Ayurvedic science there are 3 body types characterised by three types of ‘dosha’ . Cardamom is a healthy spice that balances all the three ‘doshas’ and helps you stay healthy. So, its health benefits are all encompassing for all body types.

What you’ll need:

250g coconut oil, softened
1 cup unrefined brown sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla essence
3 eggs
6 cardamom pods that have been soaked overnight
2 1/2 cups self-raising flour
2/3 cup milk
1 pear, soft
1 apple

Preheat oven to 180°C/160°C fan-forced. Grease and line an 8cm-deep, 19cm (base) square cake pan with baking paper.

Squeeze the cardamom seeds out of their pods into the mixing bowl and discard the pods.

Using an electric mixer, cream coconut oil, cardamom seeds, sugar and vanilla in a medium bowl on medium-high speed until light and fluffy.

Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating to combine. Add half the flour. Stir to combine. Add half the milk. Stir to combine. Repeat with remaining flour and milk.

Slice the pear and apple and place them evenly on the bottom of the cake tin. Spread mixture into prepared pan. Bake for 1 hour or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Stand in pan for 10 minutes. Turn out onto a wire rack to cool. Dust with icing sugar or cinammon.

Serve and enjoy x

I served the cake with a side of organic natural yoghurt, some grated ginger and chia seeds.

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Posted in Health, Recipes, Uncategorized

Tagged ayurveda cardamom, Ayurveda doshas, breakfast, caradmom pear apple cake, cardamom butter cake, cardamom cake, cardamom health, cardamom pods, cardamom seeds, chia seeds, dessert, food, Oh la la livia

Poached Fruit for Breakfast

Posted on May 15, 2013 | 6 Comments

According to Ayurveda, the perfect breakfast is fruit. Ayurvedic eating recommends a cup of hot water with a tablespoon of lemon juice in the morning to help with elimination. It also gets digestive juices flowing and helps in the cleansing of the digestive tract. The perfect breakfast in Ayurveda is a fruit, to be followed with some warm cereal or whole wheat bread with some honey or almond butter. Ayurveda proposes it is always better to eat warm cooked foods for breakfast as it helps wake the digestive fire.

I cooked my apples, pears and rhubarb in coconut oil with ginger and cardamom. So warming and light. I served it with a side of yoghurt, honey and chia seeds and a delicious freshly brewed coffee!

Happy Wednesday everybody

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Posted in Health, Recipes, Uncategorized

Tagged Australian living in Paris, Ayurvedic breakfast, Ayurvedic principles, breakfast, chia seeds, digestive juices, food, health, healthy light Spring breakfast ayurveda, oh la la livia recipe ayurveda, olivia cummings, whole wheat bread

Weekend Bliss

Posted on May 5, 2013 | 2 Comments

Spring arrived this weekend- at long long last. I pulled out my lace tops and sunnies to celebrate and got some flowers to decorate the apartment.

While Spring is here, it’s still important to keep looking after our immune systems as our bodies are adjusting to the change. This is why I had lots of spicy chai tea and an immunity smoothie. For this smoothie you’ll need:

Frozen berries, organic
a cup of fresh green tea
super greens
matcha
a chunk of fresh ginger
turmeric
a spoon of raw honey
a few spoons of yoghurt

Turmeric needs either honey or some kind of “fat”, like yoghurt, for it’s properties to be activated. It’s a fantastic blood cleanser and is an anti-inflammatory. It’s good for everything really!

I’m Australian- vegemite on toast goes without saying.

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Posted in Fashion, Flowers, Health, Musings, Paris, Uncategorized

Tagged breakfast, chai for immunity, chai tea, food, fresh ginger smoothie, h&m cream lace, h&m lace top Spring 2013, h&m new icons 2013, healthy smoothies paris, how to activate turmeric, lace tops, Paris, raw honey, roses, vegetarian

Morning Juice

Posted on April 22, 2013 | 4 Comments

There is no better way to start your day than with a fresh juice. Full of vitamins, gets your metabolism going and makes you feel bright and alive!

This particular juice was lemon, blood orange and luke warm water. Don’t have cold water first thing in the morning, it’s too hard on your system after sleeping.

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Posted in Health, Recipes

Tagged blood orange, breakfast, food, fresh morning juice, health, nature, vegetarian, warm water in morning, water

Lazy Musings

Posted on March 19, 2013 | 3 Comments

My idea of a perfect day: a delicious super foods salad, latté, green smoothie, dream catcher and flowers.

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Posted in France, Health, Musings

Tagged breakfast, chia seed salad, coca cola vase, Dream catcher, flowers, food, grated ginger, greengate cups, latté, perfect day, raw beetroot salad

How green can you go?

Posted on March 17, 2013 | 6 Comments

My green smoothies look like this. How do you make yours? Tell me all.

It’s Sunday morning here in Paris so I’m about to go make myself my morning green smoothie. YES.

Green smoothie

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Posted in France, Health, Recipes

Tagged breakfast, chia seeds, food, green smoothie, health, healthy green smoothie, kale smoothie, orange, spinach smoothie, sunday morning, super greens

Sunny Saturday Carrot Cake and Latte

Posted on February 5, 2013 | 19 Comments

I think it’s important to do things that are good for our spirits, even if it’s simply to make ourselves feel good. My beau was away on the weekend and I was at home staying warm and doing homework, so I decided to make myself one of my all time favourite cakes: Carrot cake. It’s sweet smell filled up my apartment and I felt good baking and then indulging. However, I am careful not to over-sweeten my cakes and I use alternative flours a lot of the time so that it’s not as heavy and it stays relatively healthy.

For me, carrot cake should not be refined. I go with the idea that it’s more of a loaf, something I can eat for breakfast and not feel ill.

Here is how I do it:

1 cup almond meal
1 cup self-raising plain flour
1/2 cup quinoa
4 teaspoon mixed spice (I use cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamon, pepper, vanilla)
1 cup brown sugar (or any unrefined sugar- makes the cake so much richer and gives a taste of caramel)
2 1/2 cups of grated carrots
1 cup chopped walnuts (half of these to put on the icing)
2/3 cup of either coconut oil or ghee
3 eggs, lightly beaten
150g of natural yoghurt

For the icing:
250 g cream cheese
1 rind of lemon or lime
honey

What next?
Preheat oven to 180°C/160°C fan-forced. Grease a 6cm-deep, 19cm cake pan. Line base and sides with baking paper.

Sift flour, almond meal, quinoa and spice into a bowl. Add sugar, carrot, chopped walnuts, coconut oil/ghee, natural yoghurt and eggs. Stir to combine. Spread into prepared pan. Bake for 1 hour 15 minutes or until a skewer inserted into centre comes out clean (cover loosely with foil if over-browning). Stand in pan for 10 minutes. Turn out onto a wire rack to cool.

To make the icing mix the cream cheese, grated rind and honey to taste. Spread over cake. Decorate with walnuts. ENJOY

Carrot Cake

Carrot Cake and morning latté

Carrot Cake

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Posted in Musings, Paris, Recipes

Tagged almond meal, almond meal in cake, breakfast, carrot cake, chopped walnuts, cooking, cream cheese icing, cup quinoa, dessert, food, natural yoghurt, quinoa in cake, recipe, semi gluten free, walnut

A Spicy Sunday Afternoon Coffee

Posted on February 4, 2013 | 12 Comments

When I make coffee in my Italian stovetop, I like to add some spices to give it a small kick!
I added in a spice mix I got in Bremen, Germany. It contains cinnamon, cardamon, dried orange peel, star anise, nutmeg.
Here is what I indulged in yesterday as my afternoon coffee. What do you think?