All Good Things Issue 26

Back to School Recipes + Dirty Mango Lassi Cocktail + Everyday Feel Good Practices

Hello friends!

Can you believe January 2022 is gone? Poof! Just like that!

School starts next week and we are all fully expecting to get Covid at some point next week onwards. It is inevitable and we are being pragmatic about it. Nick and I have both had our double vaccines and booster. Both boys have had their double vaccines. I have RAT tests, masks, painkillers and food in the freezer. We are ready for the worst but hoping for the best.

Friday was eventful. A big 1.2-1.5 meter goanna got into our chook pen and there was utter chaos. All six chickens crowing loudly alerting us to the intruder in the middle of the day. It was HUGE! Almost like a small croc (at least, it seemed to me!). It had big, pointy claws and it managed to rip the metal netting on the side of our aviary-style chook pen, crawl up to the roof and then explode its way out of the top, breaking the roof. It then jumped onto the lawn and disappeared in the bushes. We later found out that it had eaten all the eggs in the nesting boxes including the solid rubber egg we leave in there to train the chickens (I hope it doesn't fall sick!)

Nick spent the afternoon repairing the chook pen, the chickens were massively spooked but unharmed. I hope it doesn't come back due to the fright it must've gotten from all the commotion and having to escape. Fingers crossed!

Anyways, today's newsletter is slightly different. I've got some of my favourite go-to recipes that you can still make today and tomorrow to get ready for school week. I am making them after I send out this newsletter. 
 

School starts this week and I have some really quick, easy, delicious and nutrition packed ideas for lunchboxes, before school on-the-go nourishment, after-school snack or just a little pick-me-up for you as you juggle school and work.
 

1. GREEN PINEAPPLE SMOOTHIE
Our favourite green smoothie, creaminess from the avocado, freshness from the lime, sweetness from pineapple and heaps of spinach for a fabulous nutrient boost.

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2. HAPPY SMOOTHIE
I call this a Happy Smoothie because that is exactly what it does! A mood-enhancing smoothie with the goodness of bananas, cacao, almond and cinnamon, this smoothie not only provides beneficial potassium and antioxidants but improves the mood and makes you feel energized and positively happy. A must on school days after the kids get home!

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3. SUN JUICE
A stunningly vibrant juice, orange like a beautiful sunrise and with the warmth of a bright sun. This Sun Juice has the immune-boosting goodness of carrot, orange, lemon, fresh root turmeric, fresh ginger and a touch of black pepper. We make this every week in our home and it is the most nourishing, delicious juice ever. I pack these in little 350ml insulated bottles in their lunch packs.

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4. VEGAN CHICKPEA GREEN GARDEN BURGERS
It is packed with all the garden veggies and good spices and makes the best kind of weekday lunch. Smooshed in a soft burger bun with more good things like tahini sauce, smashed avocado and beetroot relish, this chickpea and zucchini burger is like a party in your mouth and a hot favourite in lunchboxes! Sometimes, I even put this cooked burger between two slices of bread and make a golden toasted jaffle.

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5. BEETROOT HUMMUS
Beetroot hummus is a delicious way to mix up your hummus game. But you can’t just add beetroot to a regular hummus recipe. You need a few extra ingredients and my easy recipe is not only delicious but really draws out the earthy beetroot flavour and is ready in 25 minutes! Great lunchbox idea packed in individual single-serve containers along with an assortment of carrot and cucumber sticks.

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6. FOUR-INGREDIENT BASIC FLAPJACKS
Four-Ingredient Basic Flapjacks that take about 5 minutes to put together and only 20 minutes to bake. Buttery oats and crisp caramel flavours, warm from the oven is just what you need after school.

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7. MUSHROOM PESTO SANDWICH
A very satisfying lunch, quick pan sizzled mushrooms are tossed in a vegan basil-almond-miso pesto and served on toasted sourdough or smooshed between two slices of good grain bread! Just delicious and full of goodness. Pesto can be made ahead.

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My Cooking List From The Interwebs This Week

Spinach Wrap With Beet Hummus
Egg & Beetroot Rice Paper Rolls
Cauliflower Tikka Gyros
Everything Bagel Breakfast Casserole
Fermented Chilli Oil Tabasco
Ginger And Spice Tea Loaf

Food For Thought »

" I have been sharing a Manifesto on and off for 25 weeks. I am curious, how do you find them? Have you taken up anything permanently? Do you have favourites?

I thought I'll do a little roundup of my favourites from the past 25 issues. I still do these every single day ..
 

1. Practice standing on one leg for a few seconds (5-20 seconds) every day. Every time you practise the one-leg stance, it is an opportunity to recalibrate your brain, forming new connections and strengthening the coordination between your ears, eyes, joints and muscles. Sensors in all our joints and muscles keep sending feedback to the brain so it can learn how best to keep you upright. As we get older, our balance deteriorates. This one-leg practice helps keep our balancing abilities in check affecting our overall health and wellbeing.
 

2. Laughter can stimulate and increase the immune-boosting response of your body in addition to increasing and improving blood flow by 20%. A good hearty laugh causes the inner lining of your blood vessels to dilate by releasing nitric oxide, a chemical compound that helps reduce inflammation and prevent plaque from forming in your arteries. In fact, laughing may be just as effective at reducing inflammation as engaging in aerobic exercise or taking cholesterol-lowering drugs. Laughing often and regularly is great for your heart and essential for keeping your stress levels down by releasing endorphins and reducing blood pressure.
(my family ends the day by watching 20-40 minutes of comedy sitcoms/reruns every night. Religiously! There is nothing better than hanging out together, laughing and chatting just before going to bed.)

3. Now that the weather has warmed up generally, I end my showers with a blast of cold water. I only do 30 seconds max because that is all I can handle (I worked my way up from 5-10 seconds). But it is absolutely invigorating and electrifying. Did you know that cold water blasts wake you up, increase blood circulation, relieve aching and sore muscles, calm itchy skin and amazingly make your hair and skin glow with vitality?? You don't need to do a lot. Just 10-20 seconds after a hot shower maybe 3-4 times a week. It is pure magic in how energized and stress-free you feel!

4. Just 20 minutes of sunshine per day triggers your body to release over 200 antimicrobials that fight fungi, parasites and viruses. 
A weekly sun-stretch-and-massage // The lone lavender bush next to our sunny reading spot is covered in lavender blooms. This is also where I sneak away mid-morning during the week. I enjoy smooshing a lavender head or two between my fingers, breathing in deeply as I close my eyes and let the sun bathe my face for 5-8 minutes.  With my fingers utterly fragrant with lavender, I look up and let the natural curve of my neck stretch the muscles. Keeping my head straight and my gaze looking straight on, I stretch both my hands up to the sky. I then lower one hand to my side and bend the other reaching for the base of my neck between my shoulder blades at the back. I drag my fingertips with force over the base of my neck upwards towards my head and scalp, gently massaging this stretch base of neck to halfway up my head. I then repeat this with my other hand, letting the tingling relief wash over me. (If you are anything like me, hours of sitting at the computer or hunched over, cooking and photographing makes the back of my neck and shoulders really tight and knotted, this simple fingertip neck and scalp massage feels like heaven and gives me something to do while I stand and get my 10-15 minutes of obligatory sunshine!)

Recently, I have brought out my Shakti Mat (Instagram) and I have been lying on it for 5 minutes (that is all I can manage right now!). I have had it for about 5 years. The Shakti Mat is a brilliant concept, a mat embedded with hard spokes that provide acupressure when you lie on it. Initially you feel the prickle and it starts intensifying, the warmth of your blood spreading slowly over your back and then you feel release and relaxation unlike anything you might have experienced. The pleasant tingling in your back stays after you get up and everyday use leads to easing of soreness and stiffness in the back and neck. (I have the Original Intensity one).

If you are looking for something new and interesting to add to your meditation, look up these 12 basic Mudras. Mudra in Sanskrit means a gesture or sign created with the hand and fingers. The simple and complex mudras activate various functions in your body helping and assisting you in improving health of those functions and regions of the body if done regularly. I try and do them for other reasons. The complex formations using your hands and fingers activate your brain unlike anything when you are sitting quietly doing your meditation. I find that very helpful in a bid to perform activities that keep you sharp.

Loving this journal about seasonal eating. The newsletter is fab too, lots of recipe ideas!

Next up on my things-to-watch list is Succession, CODA, The Queen's Gambit, Encanto, Soul and Peaky Blinders. (so much to watch, very little time :))

That's all folks! See you next week with more good things xx

A fragrant, creamy cocktail I tried at Billu's in Sydney and HAD to recreate at home!

Dirty Mango Lassi
Serves 2

1 cup (50g) frozen mango flesh
1/2 cup (125ml) chilled water
6 tablespoons coconut or regular dairy yoghurt
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
3oz (90ml) rum
1/4 cup ice
edible gold leaf - to garnish

Place 2 X  300ml coupe glasses in the freezer for 10 minutes to chill.

Blend mango, water, yoghurt, maple syrup, cardamom, rum and ice in a small blender until smooth.

Pour equally in the chilled glasses.

Garnish with edible gold leaf.

Enjoy.

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