3 things no.3! || nanas, love & mandarins

Time for another edition of everyone’s favourite game – 3 things!

3 things I learnt/realised/randomly thought about this week || no.3

#1 Nana’s can be cruel

You know it’s time to book an emergency hair appointment when your 90 something glasses-wearing-nana says:

“Oh look at those roots Anna. Are you growing your hair out to go back to your natural colour?”

Touché Nana. Touché.

This is my Nana. See? I told you she wore glasses.

#2 That I quite possibly have had too many failed relationships

‘Nuff said really. Or if you now find yourself more intrigued read this for a laugh: The Tragically Failed Relationships Mix Tape.

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#3 Mandarins are a sometimes food

It’s mandarin season in Australia. I would like to warn everyone though that a mandarin is no substitute for chocolate during a craving. No matter what anyone tells you. (Stupid Nutritionists).

In fact, I think they should actually be eaten like this.

Friends for life (and in ma belly) … (Green & Blacks Organic & Fair trade Chocolate)

How about you? What things have you learnt/realised/randomly thought about this week?

x anna 

3 things no.1! || carob, pet dressing & Elizabeth Taylor

So we are going to play a weekly game called 3 things.

3 things will be 3 things (surprised?) that I have learnt recently. Actually, “Learnt” could be a misleading term. We could say they are more like a “random thought” that’s ended up as some sort of “realisation”.

Confused? Me too but read on. These posts are going to be great (insert hopeful smile here) because – well, to be frank – it’s so time-consuming writing a full post in between designing and all the goings on in bringing you our gorgeous pieces – so this is a great cheats post. Yes, I’m calling myself out – I’m a cheat. But also because these are my honest to goodness random thoughts and I am hopeful they will sound less weird if I share them with someone (i.e., you). And then if you can relate, I will feel less like I should be the headlining act in a circus and/or seeking medical help. So do leave a comment if you can relate!

So here goes.

3 things I learnt/realised/randomly thought about this week.

#1 That carob is not chocolate. And it should be illegal to suggest it an appropriate substitution. Especially at Easter.

F off Carob.

The Banjo Carob Egg. Guilty as charged.

The day I got into the shower and looked down – and realised I had a big problem.

It’s one of those things we usually do quite mindlessly. Without effort. Without ceremony.  Yet on this occasion, stepping into the shower pieced together a chain of events and associative symptoms that has led me to where I am now – sitting here sharing this, a little burnt at the edges.

One night last week, I took my regular evening shower. I stepped in and took the relief of the hot water streaming over me.  I was finding showers particularly comforting lately. Like a big warm hug they not only cleansed me of my day, they made me feel a little loved. A little worthwhile of the precious thing that is my council water.

But on this occasion, something felt weird. Something wasn’t right…

I came out of my drenched-with-water-love state and looked down.

Confused, I gasped!

Get your velvet on – beetroot style!

Did you see Alisha’s post on the sorella & me facebook page yesterday in all its sugary goodness?

Alisha’s perfect and delicious cup cake…. jealous much?

Right at 3pm – in all our dropped blood-sugar states – she thought she’d share a photo of a delicious cupcake.

What a bi-atch.

In my opinion, not only was it rude because it was at a time when a cup cake would have gone down quite nicely (I am cranky when I am hungry), but also rude because there are many of us who are trying really really hard to convert to a sugar-free lifestyle – and succeeding or not, we don’t need a reminder of what we are missing out on!

So I hit Sarah Wilson’s latest sugar free cookbook for some inspiration to compete with my now very real and very present sweet cravings. I have unapologetically pushed my love for Sarah on you numerous times – see here and here for examples – and it’s crises like these that support my reason why.

And whoalah! I found an option I knew would come close to providing some sort of cake relief – and I just happened to have a couple of beautiful organic beets in the fridge ready for the taking. Now…. be open minded to a vegetable based cake. No one likes a vege-ist.  And anyway, you like carrot cake right?

I present:

Beetroot Red Velvet Cupcakes – from Sarah Wilson’s I Quit Sugar – Chocolate Cookbook

(And double bonus – they can also be gluten and dairy free if you need…..)

Ingredients (all organic where possible peeps!)

• 2 large beetroot – grated
• 1 & 1/2 cups almond meal
• 4 tablespoons raw cacao powder*
• 3 tablespoons of coconut oil
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla powder**
• 1/4 cup rice malt syrup***
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking powder (Gluten free)
• Pinch of Salt

For the icing – if you aren’t sugar free, you could do a normal icing.  If you aren’t dairy free you could do a philly cream cheese icing (aka banana or carrot cake).  If you are sugar and dairy free you could do a coconut cream or cashew cream icing (these recipes are also in Sarah’s book).

My variations:*

* You can never have enough chocolatey goodness – Call me crazy but I added an extra couple of tablespoons of cacao.  This meant I also needed to up the wet ingredients so added a touch more oil

** I can’t justify having vanilla powder in my cupboard – but open to invest in the future as many of Sarah’s recipes include it. So in this instance, it was a teaspoon of vanilla extract for me.

*** Taste the batter before you commit to the oven! If it’s not sweet enough add some more rice malt syrup. Everyone’s tastebuds are different and especially with the earthiness of the beets, you might want to up the sweet stuff to more easily convince friends afraid of a sugarless lifestyle and wary of your vegetables moonlighting as cup cakes.

The super pretty redness of the beetroot make this cake mix look more like a science experiment… but a delicious one.

Method:

Preheat oven to 170degs and grease a 12 cupcake tin. Blend together in a blender (or go crazy with a stick-blender, thermomix, food-processer…. whatever floats your boat), until nice and smooth.  Divide between the 12 cake tin and pop into the oven.

Sarah suggests baking for 40 mins (my non-fan-forced oven meant 160degs for me for just 25 minutes. BAM! That’s chocolate goodness in less time than an episode of Bold and the Beautiful…. I can’t believe Liam didn’t choose Hope by the way. Idiot.)

My little baby in all its red-guilt-free-glory:Enjoy!

~ anna

A sweet Easter treat! 25% off storewide at sorella & me

We all know how much I love chocolate (hey, who doesn’t?). But really is there anything sweeter than a sale?!!!

Enjoy 25% off the entire sorella & me collection over Easter! Plus free shipping for all orders over $100.

Why? Just because we can!

Are you an Aussie sorella?  It’s time for you to experience our best-selling luxuriously soft loungewrap for the cooler nights ahead…

sorella & me organic lounge wrap in gardenia ($63.70 with your special Easter saving) – not only for pregnant sorellas – I wear mine ALL the time! Matched here with our lace trim singlet – wear with your favourite jeans or when relaxing in our organic sleepwear (see below).

sorella & me lounge wrap shown here in feather grey. A lovely layer for relaxing at home. Matched here with our organic lace trim singlet and cute drawstring short

And don’t forget some new PJ pants for winter! Don’t miss out! We are almost sold out in all sizes!

Our organic drawstring pants are available in evening sky (shown here on the model on the right) and pink blush. Mix and match with tops from the sorella & me range. Just $44.95 with your 25% off Easter saving

Are you an over-the-high-seas (aka an international) sorella looking forward to everything that the summer sun has to offer?

Enjoy our lightweight organic cotton sleepshirt, sleepshorts, tees and shorts – and relax in style. International shipping is FREE for all orders over $100 (and just $15 under $100).

The sorella & me organic sleepshirt is $59.95 with your 25% Easter saving. A lovely nightie for both sleeping and lounging. (Also available in feather grey)

sorella & me organic tee in coral ($41.20 with 25% off!). Also available in gardenia.

On sale for a limited time. Shop now at www.sorellaandme.com.au

Have an eggggg-cellent easter!!! (cringe?)

~ anna x

Guilt and sugar free sweet stuff

There seems to be heaps in the media lately about the benefits of quitting sugar, and while I think we all get why reducing your sugar intake is a good thing, there is a lot of new evidence that suggests we should be quitting all together.

This isn’t a new concept to me.  I’ve been trying to break up with sugar for the past 4 years – but we keep making up – it needs me and I need it. Like a true addict I can’t be without ‘my drug’.  It’s why I have a soft spot for smokers – I ‘get’ how it feels to try and give up something you love that you know is bad for you….(Note to smokers: don’t smoke, it’s really bad for you).

But back to my story – it was recommended I cut all sugar (along with a few other nasties) to help improve my immune system and allergies. I think I spent most of my 20’s severely lacking energy, constantly sick, and during my lowest points I’d head straight to my friend chocolate to get me through an afternoon of work to avoid falling asleep at my desk. It was ridiculous – and it turns out this momentary spark of alertness was doing more damage than good. Poison even. It’s so funny how doing something you think is helping you to survive the day is actually having a far greater negative effect on you in other ways.

So I have tried (and failed over and over again – damn you big supermarkets for stocking Easter eggs from January!) to end my long lustful relationship with sugar. But as my health plummeted again at the end of last year, I realised my only option was to get focused and stay as committed as possible.

Luckily, I was able to feel more confident in my last-ditch attempt given the increase in resources for quitting this past 12 months – there is LOTS more info out there both online and in print that provide great guidance and support with staying off the sweet stuff for good. Plus, there seems to be greater accessibility to many products that provide good sugar alternatives. It was dire trying to find a natural sweetener 4 years ago. Today, I can’t get enough of Rice Malt Syrup and there are plenty of other natural sugar alternatives on the market to allow me to continue to do things like bake – which was one of the things I struggled to give up and was pretty much always the cause of my sugar-free failings. I can’t help that I love making my late Grandmother’s recipes, as laden with sugar that they are! And let’s face it, if you have a sweet tooth, you are probably always going to always be more drawn to the sweeter types of food – so being able to enjoy these sweet treats passed down from generations can still be achieved with a few modifications of ingredients. Probably nothing new to our Gluten or Dairy free folk out there.

So I thought today I would share a ridiculously simple recipe that I have come across in Sarah Wilson’s cookbook I Quit Sugar (which you can purchase online here). Sarah is a big advocate for quitting sugar, and probably has a lot to do with its recent promotion through mainstream media.  I have mentioned how much I love her blog before, and her guidance for quitting sugar is just one additional reason to get on her blog bandwagon. Not only does she have her cookbook – which is full of really easy recipes – she has also put together an 8 week program to give those of us who need a kick up the behind when it comes to committing and quitting.

And a little tip – She talks about increasing fats in our diets as key for staying off sugar, but I will let you check this info out (which there is plenty) on her blog for more on this. All I will say is – hello bacon!

The recipe I am sharing today is a great go-to treat. Not too sweet to get me thinking about a 200g block of Green & Blacks Organic Milk Chocolate, but perfect for helping me at 3pm when I’m getting tired and restless. I reckon this will be a great afternoon tea treat for kidlets too and will be testing it out on Alisha’s 2 little ones when they visit me in Melbourne later this month (but maybe without the salt and nibs). Enjoy!

SARAH WILSON’S ALMOND BUTTER BARK

INGREDIENTS (certified organic where possible!)

A jar-full of love

With Valentine’s Day around the corner, it’s hard not to feel pressured to ‘do something’ for your loved one.  Whether you’re a big or small gift giver, I reckon the best way to make someone feel special is to create something for them! (This either makes me a massive tight arse, or just a warm and fuzzy personal-gift-giver?)