My husband and I have been staying in Ojai California for the past few weeks and have absolutely loved going to Farmer and The Cook. They have a casual cafe/restaurant vibe with a small market that packs a big punch! You can buy produce (onions, garlic, sweet potatoes, greens, berries, bananas, mushrooms…), grains, eggs, cheese, oil, vinegar, seasonings, teas and more. The cafe part hosts a menu for organic juices, coffees, smoothies, smoothie bowls and various breakfasts and lunches. Absolutely everything we’ve ordered has been delicious and fresh! This is the kind of place I wish we had near our house in Chicago!
Avocado Toast with Salsa from The Farmer and The Cook. This was so yum!
I’ve made a ton of versions of this over our trip to California because it is so easy and quick and requires very little ingredients and equipment. Greens dressed with sea salt, lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil. Rice and some local chicken sausage. Yum!
Lemon cake! This was so yum and I will be formulating a recipe to post soon! Made with flour, coconut palm sugar, baking soda, baking powder, sea salt, lemon zest, eggs, milk, lemon juice, coconut oil maple syrup and vanilla. The cake is topped with a lemon glaze made from coconut oil, maple syrup, lemon juice and zest, vanilla and sea salt.
I will be starting a new weekly post: self care practices. I will be sharing various self care practices that help me stay grounded, healthy and happy! Self care is important to me because it consists of mental and physical ways of loving, respecting and caring for myself.
Facial reflexology: I love facial reflexology. It is so easy to do and feels great! Reflexology is a therapeutic method that stimulates points correlating to different parts of the body. Reflexology brings blood flow to the treated area. You practice facial reflexology using a stainless steel wand/detector. Using the tool, you rub circles on your face (using just the weight of the tool). There are many different protocols you can practice (depending on your goals; ex dry skin, allergies, greying hair) or you can just go along your face and stop any wear you feel bumpy or sensitive and make sure to complete 15 circles on that spot. Make sure to breathe in-and-out through your nose and treat it as a meditative experience. I usually use my detector first thing in the morning and\or at night before bed. Sometimes after work, my husband and I will do a gua sha (more on that later) and detector routine together.
Resources: Jackie Van Ruler, Danna from Noy Skincare and Veronica from Eunoia Esssentials. I love to watch the protocols from these wonderful women. You can find all of them online, look for Eunoia Essentials on Instagram. You can buy detectors (and gua sha’s) from all three of them.
For me, I started off with Jackie Van Rulers’ detector and gua sha videos. She has a wonderful kind energy and I love learning from her. She is very responsive on instagram and has answered all of my questions. I ended up falling in love with the practice and purchased her Quantum Face Lift (a series of videos to help you facial massage, break up facial adhesions and move lymph using a gua sha and videos for using the detector). When I first started using the detector, I had enlarged pores on my cheeks, black heads on my nose and exzema around my mouth and chin. Using the detector (and gua sha) truly changed my skin! It took a couple months of consistent use for my skin to change. My pores slowly got smaller, the blackheads on my nose became lighter and fewer, and the exzema definitely calmed down. I will do the post about gua sha next week because I really think both of these practices together make a huge difference. It took me a while to get through all the quantum facelift videos, but I definately wish I had done it sooner. After 8 months of practicing facial reflexology and 2 months of regular gua sha use (8 months of irregular use) my skin is looking so hydrated and plump! My pores are small and my blackheads scarce.
Danna from Noy Skincare has the most beautiful gua sha stone and a two sided detector. She has tons of videos on her instagram and website demonstrating different protocols. I have been practicing her detector videos for many months now and I absolutely love her energy. I love her calm and moisturize video on Instagram. She is also super responsive on instagram and will answer any questions!
Eunoia Essentials has so many lovely gua sha and detector videos on her instagram. They are super easy to follow and Veronica is so kind and helpful. I bought her terahertz detector and love it. I love to use it straight out of the freezer or hold it up to an ice cube before using. Like Jackie and Danna, she responds and answers questions on her instagram.
I love facial refelxology because it feels good, it’s good for me and it makes my skin look great!
These were so yum! Pancakes freeze well, reheat them in a 350 degree oven until hot. Or you can easily half this recipe for a smaller batch.
2 cups milk
Juice of half a lemon
2 eggs
4 TB Coconut oil, melted
1 tsp vanilla
1 tb maple syrup
2 cups all purpose
1/2 cup coconut palm sugar
1 tsp back soda
1/2 tsp back pow
1/2 tsp sea salt
Lemon zest from half a lemon
1/4 cup ground flax seeds (flax flour)
3 ish TB coconut oil to cook the pancakes
For the salted maple almond drizzle:
2 TB creamy almond butter (or peanut butter), at room temperature
2 TB maple syrup
Pinch of sea salt
1/4 tsp vanilla
2-3 tsp water (depends how thick your almond butter is, you want a drizzly consistency)
For the pancakes: in a bowl, add the lemon juice to the milk and allow to sit for a few minutes. Add the eggs, coconut oil, vanilla and maple to the milk mixture and whisk to combine. Whisk the dry ingredients together in a larger bowl. Fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients in three additions. Fold until just combined. Allow to sit for five minutes.
Heat oil in a skillet over medium low heat until hot. Add a spoonful/small measuring cup/portion scoop of pancake batter to the pan and cook until there are lots of little holes in pancake. Flip and cook until golden brown on the other side.
For the drizzle: combine almond butter, maple syrup, sea salt and vanilla in a small bowl/cup. Add water 1 tsp at a time, stirring after each addition. Pour/drizzle over pancakes!
Serve pancakes with berries, granola and Salted Maple Almond Drizzle!
Pancakes made with all purpose flour, coconut palm sugar, baking soda, baking powder, sea salt, egg, milk, maple syrup, vanilla, coconut oil and flax seeds. I topped the pancakes with blueberries, maple syrup and an almond syrup (almond butter, maple syrup, water, vanilla and sea salt).
Hubby and I are spending a month in California and one of the coolest things is being able to buy Granola Butter in a physical store. I am obsessed with granola butter, it is so delicious. It’s a nut and seed free spreadable granola! We picked some up at Whole Foods along with a vanilla crunch Hu Chocolate bar.
This is the easiest and most delicious chocolate treat!
Jar of granola butter, well stirred
Hu Kitchen vanilla crunch bar, chopped
Pinch of Maldon sea salt
Line a pan with parchment paper. Pour the granola butter into the pan. Spread the chopped chocolate bar on top and press the chocolate in using the back of a spoon. Sprinkle with sea salt and freeze for at least 4 hours. Chop and enjoy!!
Hello from California! My husband and I rented a house here for the month and I will resume posting this week.
This is a local coffee purchased from The Cook and the Farmer. I really like that restaurant. More on that later.
It’s super yum. I made it and added some vanilla, maple and a tiny pinch of Maldon sea salt. I frothed some milk and poured it over. Please excuse the water marks on the glass. The house we are staying at leaves water marks on everything!
