Paradise Found

Can we make Monday an official Sunday Pt II? I spend a lot of time thinking about how we create our reality & if this life can look like anything we want it to - I think that more Sunday action is at least worth considering. They’re just so good. Who’s in?

While Austin City Limits was at full tilt yesterday & the city was booming with people, I opted out. My introverted ass spent the day eating tacos in the park, walking my friend Jen’s dog while she had to work a double & putting together a puzzle. Just a few of my favorite things. I have always loved a puzzle but when I first got sober it was different. I was like “Bad ass! Something to keep me distracted & busy!” After a while though I started to find more zen & even some wisdom in it. Little reminders that it helps to shift my perspective when things feel impossible. The reality that hard things can also be quite fun. The over all understanding that I have everything I need right in front of me. All I ever have to do is focus. apply patience, allow it to come together & enjoy the process. Real talk though - the addict in me wanted to buy every damn puzzle I came across. Because if one is good all of them is the best, right? Rather than leaning into that desire and ultimately become the “weird puzzle lady” I have compromised by only allowing myself to buy food themed puzzles. Which thrills me to no end - obvs. The people at Piecework get me. They’ve got all the food puzzles AND they come with a soundtrack to do them to. There are no words for how happy this makes me. Trust me. I looked.

What little insights do you gain from your leisurely pursuits? I wanna know!

10.4.2021: Chia pudding with oat milk, lions mane, maple syrup, bloobs, pecans and cocao nibs.

Good for the guts, Good for the mind. Easy to prep ahead of time… and I guess we’re rhyming now. Yikes. Time to wrap it up.
xo - B

My favorite thing…

If you followed my year of breakfasts & eating for recovery you know that I started out not liking oatmeal - at all. It was boring and mushy with zero thrill. I knew it was good for me though so I kept eating it and then one day, I woke up and realized I was in love with it. Finally, I had fallen in love with something that was good for me! Beyond being convenient, cost effective and versatile it is fiber rich and nutrient dense making it ideal for anyone in recovery. I personally prefer oat groats to the traditional rolled oat stuff they gave me as a kid. Technically they are the same thing but the groats (or steel cut oats) are less processed, have more texture and a nuttier flavor. Starting the day with them accounts for about 11% of my daily fiber which fuels my brain, is good for my guts and lowers any extra risk of cardiovascular disease I caused by years of drinking, smoking and eating like crap. It is also great for my bones (most alcoholics run the risk of developing osteoporosis) with its high phosphorus content and they have a fair amount of iron. About 20% of women are iron deficient. I know I was and the effects were shitty and noticeable. I got light headed, felt tired and weak, my hands were always freezing, my heart rate was high for no clear reason and my nails chipped all the time. Groats to the rescue! The copper and zinc doesn’t hurt either. These minerals support the immune and nervous systems. So vital.

Okay okay, enough raving about the nutritional benefits. I say all of this to throw a new recipe your way. It’s easy, delicious and I can not stop eating it! In fact I even had this dish for dinner a few nights ago.

Vegan Oat Groat “Risotto” aka Grisotto
1 serving (for all my fellow single ladies out there)
can easily be doubled, tripled or quadrupled

1/4 cup oat groats
1 1/4 cup veggie stock
1 heaping table spoon nutritional yeast

Soak 1/4 cup of oats in about 1 1/2 cups of cold filtered water and a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar over night. Just throw it in a bowl and leave it. This softens them and saves you time in the morning.

Drain and rinse before cooking.

In a small pot add the rinsed groats and the stock ( + salt if your stock is unsalted - don’t go nuts) and cook at medium heat while stirring every so often to make sure nothing sticks to the bottom of the pot. It will come together pretty quickly. Once the groats have absorbed the liquid take the pot off of the heat so it does not dry out and turn into cement. Throw in your nutritional yeast and stir. Viola!

The nutritional yeast has a cheesy flavor with none of the negative effects of dairy PLUS it is a great source of B vitamins which we desperately need - especially in early recovery.

This is as versatile as regular risotto. You could add mushrooms or top it off with tomatoes and artichoke hearts. Your imagination is the only limitation really. I had mine for dinner the other night with sautéed greens and a roasted portobello mushroom cap. A++

Deck the halls…

Day 350: Reality Check Hot Cocoa

With Poly-phe-nols! Fa-la-la-la-la la la la la.

Merry Christmas y’all! I woke up this morning after some lovely sleeping in and decided that it felt like a brunch kind of day. Instead of breakfast I made myself a hot cocoa. It’s something festive that I love but you can’t find it in the wild without a lifetime of added sugar. That is a bummer for me, my nervous system, my skin and anyone who might have to suffer my sugar high. I make a pretty stellar cup of cocoa so I thought I’d share the recipe and give you some reasons to up your cocoa intake this holiday season. Whether you are spending the day without family and feeling a touch disconnected or you are with them right now and they are making you cuckoo f*cking bananas - I want you to know a couple of things.. 1. I totally feel you and I think you’re doing a good job. 2. Chocolate helps. Before you feel tempted to reach for some egg nog or mulled wine - I’d like to remind you that alcohol is a known depressant and will likely cause you to say something shitty at dinner. Chocolate on the other hand has been found to boost serotonin levels due to its tryptophan content. Serotonin is the happiness hormone. It enables your brain and nervous system to communicate with each other. It also helps with sleeping, eating, and digestion - which comes in handy when there is gravy and toasted marshmallows on damn near everything. While we are talking about boosting things.. chocolate stimulates your immune system and we all need a little bit of that right now. That immune boost also improves your complexion and your oral hygiene (so long as your chocolate isn’t paired with a truck load of sugar). Chocolate is also a fantastic source of polyphenols - an antioxidant packed macronutrient found in plants that has been shown to help treat neurodegenerative diseases, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and even weight issues. If polyphenols sound familiar to you it’s probably because someone was trying to make a case for wine by saying something like ‘red wine is good for your heart. It’s got poly-blah-blah-nols’…. And that’s true. Wine does have a lot of polyphenols but it is also flammable, inflammatory and can cause you to forget words such as polyphenols. So, I’d say it cancels itself out. Do you want a cup of cocoa yet? Make extra for the fam if there around. It lowers your risk of stroke and can decrease your risk of cancer. It will have your chaotic family feeling calm and content plus everyone will think you’re a gem for bringing them a cup.

Here’s how I take mine.. I call it a Reality Check because the flavor profile is pure and direct since it is not railroaded by a bunch of processed sugar. The mint makes me feel clear, fresh and focused. And the chocolate.. it helps me feel calm and aware of how good life honestly is.

Reality Check Hot Cocoa
this recipe is for one since I am spending the holiday alone. Adjust as needed.

2 cups milk (sippers choice)
2 Sprigs of mint - pull the leaves off the stems
2 pitted medjool dates
1 1/2 Tbl of high quality cocoa powder
2 tsp maple syrup
1 Tbl coconut cream

Heat your milk on the stove (watch it so it doesn’t boil over) let the mint and dates steep in the milk for 5 minutes. Add the cocoa powder and maple syrup then blend all of it - dates and mint leaves too - with an immersion blender (or whatever gadget you use to blend things). Top it off with a dollop of coconut cream. Huzzah!