Grains, Gluten, Quinoa & Mold - My Story So Far....

The very first time I ate QUINOA…..I didn’t feel right. Only I couldn’t fully explain that feeling, it was just a weird sense of something not sitting well in my stomach. Then, I went to bed later that night and had strange disturbing dreams as if I’d eaten something that didn’t suit me.

I’m an Intuitive by profession and I place a lot of stock in my dreams. I rely on them to inform me of general goings on in my body and throughout my life.

So…..I got up the next morning and ‘knew’ it was the quinoa that wasn’t right. I remember saying to someone that week…..I don’t like the quinoa it gives me nightmares and the energy of it is all wrong.

Just something wrong about it – but at the time, I had a young child, I was a student and I was working part time in my clinical practice so I didn’t spend much time looking into it. I just didn’t want to use it in my cooking!

However, time moved on and so did I, this was probably sometime in 2004 -05. I didn’t go out of my way to eat quinoa nor did I go out of my way to avoid it either. If it was there in front of me (at a friends house for instance) I usually ate it, however, I never forgot that very first strange encounter and those ‘feelings’ did not go away.

A couple of years later, because we had been gluten free for so long, I decided I wanted to make some bread. Of course, the only few options open to me where making bread from several types of flours at the same time, to get the dough to hold together.

One of those flours I ended up experimenting with was Quinoa flour. At first I was just happy to be able to make some sort of a bread for the family. But then….I noticed a peculiar thing about the quinoa that I wasn’t seeing on the other flours.

I mean, perhaps (it is!) it was there on all the different types of grain in varying degrees, however, on the quinoa I was seeing it, and tasting it…..

In fact, the very first time I noticed something – I had opened the top of a bag of Quinoa flour, used a couple of cups of it from the top half of the package. When we ate the bread, I remember saying; this tastes funny.

I was re-assured everything was fine, put some jam on it and it will be grand. When I went to make the next batch of bread a few days later and dug more deeply into the package – I could see a greenish looking flour and it now smelled more strongly of mold.

That was what I was tasting! I quickly threw out the package and chocked it all up to just one of those random things….that is, until it happened again this time with a bag or box of quinoa grain. I noticed they tasted ‘off’ and examined the grains deeper down into the box and found this same dark green mold.

This one I took back to the health food shop, where I was re-assured it must have been a rare occurrence but that quinoa was perfectly safe to eat. Then it happened a third time – again with the flour I was desperately trying to use to make bread.

By this time in my life, I had eaten my fair share of so many different types of grains -  (wholegrain, flakes, flour etc.), yet never encountered this anywhere else and was having nothing more to do with the quinoa.

The reason this became an issue was because, during that time I was exhibiting symptoms of mold toxicity from all of these non typical grains I was using while I was vegan (sugar free, dairy free, wheat free, gluten free, meat free, Night Shade free and so forth) and I knew my system was not used to the types of molds found on these grains I was not accustomed to eating.

At the time we were using Amaranth grain and flour, coconut flour, quinoa flour and flakes, grains, gram flour, rice flour and flakes and so forth – each of which was new to our systems. Any grain, as well as nut and seeds contain a high amount of molds. Perhaps it was the entire combination of all of these items in our diets that caused some of these problems?

However, we did not eat bread that often or use the flour on a daily or even weekly basis as it was just too much work to make the breads stick together. Besides we were quite happy with our diet and had adapted quite well to a general whole food vegan diet.

Some of the symptoms I had at the time were;

Pins and needles in my hands & arms

Tiredness

Weight gain (without diet change)

Headaches

Rashes

Joint pain & muscle aches

Fever & chills

I just started to not ‘feel’ well. These symptoms were not there all of the time – they would come and go. It was just often enough, that I knew something was not right and I needed to get to the bottom of it. Once I realized I was eating moldy quinoa – I was able to trace back the worst symptoms to the days following eating this stuff!

In some ways, I think I am still not 100% over the effects of these molds and I would not ever go near quinoa again. I am also a little more cautious with all grains – we eat them and now enjoy our sourdough breads, rice and oats; but I am watchful of any ‘new’ untried grains on our digestive systems!

April

My lovely Sourdough breads that makes me feel great! 

Apple Cider Vinegar - The Doctor Within

I get asked all the time at my fermentation workshops, in my clinic and on the market stall – if I could only do one thing to change my life/diet/habits etc., what would it be? For years I would always say it would be to cut out all NightShades from your diet (white potato, aubergine, peppers, chillies, tomato, gogi berries) because of their toxicity for spiritually awakening bodies. 

Of course, this still holds true and this is the one food family that is not included in my diet. 

When it comes to fermentation and overall gut health, it is vitally important to add in living foods; this is the missing food group we’ve all been hungering for. I would have to say the easiest, best and most effective addition a person can make to their diet is to take Apple Cider Vinegars every single day.

Of course, I am quite biased on several fronts here….I make my own ACVinegars and I happen to think they are the best tasting, most alive and perhaps far more ‘healing’ than anything else out there. One of the reasons I say this is because they are hand made with water from the most natural sources as well as quite a few other factors I have found to be important.

I only ferment in glass, ceramic and natural materials. No plastic here! As well, I am very fussy about the storage and fermentation process – my ferments are interacted with. Well, they are living beings after all and I wouldn’t leave them out of my daily activities – so they are scattered around the place, talked to, moved about and generally included in our lives. 

We also insist on using Co Cork grown apples and local West Cork apples when we can get them. There is nothing like the healing energy here in West Cork! 

Because of my interest in the spiritual connection we have with our food, I have learned to consider every aspect of food creation and fermentation is one of the most alchemical processes I have ever found. Magic happens when we take water, fruit and allow nature to power, direct and enhance the results.   

What we have in the end is a living food with a consciousness. I wouldn’t leave that task to just anyone, so I make them myself. Besides, I wanted my own ancient healing Irish Mother – not someone else’s! 

For Apple cider vinegar to be effective and really work for you it should be taken every single day. Something like the old folk saying – ‘an apple a day, keeps the doctor away’. Perhaps, it’s the apple a day in your apple cider vinegar that is the doctor within. Over the years I have heard lots of stories of how symptoms just went away after taking it for 3 days, 10 days or 60 days. Everyone is quite different and our bodies respond differently to the living ferment. 

And, we all take it for many different reasons. Some people swear by it for arthritis, tummy troubles, indigestion, IBS, hair, skin and nail health while others just ‘feel’ better when they take it. 

I like to take it first thing every morning with my left over herbal tea, a remedy and some clay. However, on days when I am feeling stressed, tired, with a cold or flu or just ‘off’ – I take it several times with my remedies or in fermented drinks and water. It’s one of natures’ magical elixirs….

Apple Cider Vinegars ready for market

Cinnamon Seaweed Chicken Soup - Immune Booster!

Today I have a cold. Actually, I've had a cold for the past few days and I am thoroughly sick of breathing through my mouth, sleeping (or not) with three pillows and all the aches & pains that go along with it.

Ok. Enough complaining....because, I am also aware of so much more that my body is doing right now with this glorious cold (did I just say that?!). I can actually feel my immune system revving up, like a great engine waking up after it's winter slumber. 

My lymph nodes are 'active' and my thymus gland is busy rushing T-cells around my body to root out nasties that have lingered during our hibernation. Well, not that we've been staying inside, we have really had some lovely warm weather this entire winter and I have been out in the tunnels and garden since January...but you know what I mean! 

Winterish weather though is pretty well over - the flowers are all blooming (at least they were until the goats got out into the drive way and ate all mine) the bees are flying and the leaves are coming out. It's spring and quite often that means a great head full of snot! 

In honour of all of these bugs & viruses that are making their unrelenting rounds - I've made a Cinnamon Seaweed Chicken Soup and am busy enjoying every morsel in the clinic today. It has been a very busy week but I have finally found a day where I can nourish myself and hopefully give my body what it needs to boost my immune system and be ready for this new season.

When I make chicken soup.......

I like to bake the chicken (whole) first until it nearly falls apart.....then with my pot of lovely root vegetables (today I used sweet potato, celeriac, carrot, turnip, onion, garlic) bubbling away I add  a generous amount of seaweed (dillisk), the chicken and spices. I love cumin, cinnamon, black pepper and fresh parsley from the garden at this time of year, it tastes lovely with this mixture of vegetables. 

Tiffin with Cinnamon Seaweed Chicken Soup

Breakfast Muffins

Not something quite new....but very tasty! With the early spring glut of eggs from all our feathered friends we are having fun creating new twists on good food....here is another favourite.

Rebel Breakfast Muffins

Ingredients:

Spring onion, mushrooms & red nnion chopped fine (or anything you have)

Cheese 1 cup grated (smoked or strong goat cheese is lovely)

Fresh coriander, parsley, basil etc. diced

Finely chopped sea weed flakes

Bonita Tuna or other fish – 1 cup flaked (optional) 

Eggs 6 to 12 beaten with 2 tbsp milk, black pepper & sea salt to taste

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 200C

Grease your muffin tin – best to not use papers, they stick!

Sauté the veg lightly in olive oil for 5 to 7 minutes, then add the vegetables along with cheese, tuna etc. into a large mixing bowl, pour beaten egg mixture over top – then lightly stir by hand to blend. Place muffin pan on the center rack of preheated oven - bake for 22-27 minutes or until muffins are golden to light brown (they will puff up). 

Let muffins cool for a few minutes before removing from the muffin pan – then turn out onto a board or plate to cool down a bit before eating. Can be stored in the fridge for a couple days – seem to freeze ok, but nicest when fresh with a piece sourdough toast......

Rebel Breakfast Muffins 

Want to Cook Like A Rebel? Cookery Class 23 March 2014 in Leap, West Cork

Food Rebels!!! 

Want to learn some new recipes, cooking from scratch and a few simple meals that will uplift you? If you have been feeling low, heavy, have some health issues or are just sick and tired of feeling sick and tired...then it's time to come out and learn how to cook - like a rebel! 

Perhaps some high vibration foods are all your body needs to restore its' usual vitality and even if this is the first step on a new road - eating well is all about understanding how and what to cook. 

For you seasoned foodies out there, are junk and ready made meals creeping into your menu? Maybe a little tune-up and gentle reminder about what to feed your body is what you need...

However most importantly, eating well and renewed health starts with reducing the amount of processed food in your diet. Making more of our meals from basic ingredients is easier then you might think - all it takes is a little push in the right direction.

As a food rebel you can learn how to feed yourself and your family - make some items you may have thought too difficult and get to know your food on an entirely new, energetic level. There is no time like right now, and no better place to practice being a rebel!

This next class we will focus on high quality protein sources for vegetarian meals, even if you are not a vegetarian, including more vegetable protein sources in your diet has many advantages for improved digestive health and building lean muscles. All food should taste great, be versatile and easy to prepare, no matter what the ingredients! 

Come out and join an Intuitive Rebel Nutritionist in Leap, West Cork

23rd March 2014 (Veggie Meals – best quality protein sources & Bread) 11am to 3pm 

Only €35 for class, organic food, recipes & notes!

Contact April on mobile 087 236 1616 or email: info@aprildanann.com to book your place…

See you there!

Tasty….jasmine rice, lentils & roasted vegetables

Anatomy of Pain….Food, Animals & Us

Anatomy of Pain….. You know, it’s all in the body

So yesterday I finally relented and listened to my body – I had a feeling I needed some of my Rebel Remedy for a couple of days to help me shift this whateveritwas that was coming up for me….so I took some and then went about my day….

Of course it worked, I felt better and life goes on. What came up was really interesting though, and gave me a few more insights into why I feel so strongly about the way we go about living our lives and growing our own food as much as possible.

I have been on about food, nutrition, eating, diet, cooking and all things to do with the stuff we put into our bodies for such a long time. I have spent years as a vegetarian, a vegan (healing from cancer) and now – well I don’t have an exact name for the way we eat, except we….

Eat Like Pagans! LOL

So what came up for me from my body was ‘pain’, hurt and discomfort. Yet somehow I knew it wasn’t all mine, it was something that was rising up from my bones….for days (weeks?) I hurt physically, not a huge amount, just enough to be uncomfortable.

But I had been putting it down to the workouts I have been doing. You know the kind of aches that come along with moving muscles, joints and bones and pushing yourself a little harder then usual? It sort of feels good for awhile, but it also should settle down as your body adjusts to the new movements.

Well, by Sunday morning I was just aching. My ankles, knees, shoulders, and back all sort of hurt and I had to get to the bottom of it once and for all. So I poured up some of my Rebel Remedy tincture (I make this for trauma, inner pain, shock and acute stress) and sipped this in water…

Of course then I went on with my day and kind of forgot about things because I was feeling more like myself! But this morning once I got up and went to start my workout I remembered what I was feeling yesterday, because I was feeling so much better.

I realized some of this ‘pain’ I had taken on was from meat…animal flesh I had eaten over a lifetime until a few years ago when I decided to do something quite different. At the time my only option was to stop eating meat altogether in order to clean out my body and to detox.

To be honest I never fully realized until this past week that some of the stuff I have been releasing and detoxing are emotional trauma suffered by the animals (food, meat, milk, cheese) during their lives and certainly on their way to their deaths. 

I just assumed it was more of my own stuff from when I was bullied….it was so familiar to me. Which then led me to wonder if the animals themselves perceive being pushed, poked, dragged and proded to their deaths as being bullied? Or maybe it’s also how they might ‘feel’ being kept in an enclosed confined space with hundreds (thousands?) of other animals in a battery farm operation…..

How can I be so very certain about some of these facts on how food animals are raised and treated? I worked for many years as a Food Hygiene Inspector – I was the one who carried out ante and post mortem inspection of food animals. In cold barns, abattoirs, meat lockers and kill floors – I saw it all.

I was also the one who threatened to pull licenses and shut down the plant for any notion of cruelty or bullying. And I was the one who could calmly walk an injured, old or frightened animal down the chute to the kill floor without the need for an electric prod or any harm done. 

After all these animals were giving up their lives to be our food….Just from an understanding of what was to come, a little gentleness - this animal was not going to be ill handled on my watch.

Needless to say over the years I have spent quite a large portion of my life meat free. But, once I was in a position to raise, grow and manage my own food animals, this is what we do for our own needs.

And our own consciousness.  

The only meat I eat now is what I can raise myself, it’s only a limited amount, so when the meat runs out we are vegetarians for the rest of the year! However, I know each animal is treated (loved!) well, fed organically, interacted with, has space to roam and enjoy their time with us just being animals.

All animals which are destined for food on our tables, should be treated with respect through every stage of their existence and not bullied or mishandled in any way. This improves the quality of the meat and the quality of our lives equally. 

Do unto others…..

So….all of this has been coming up for me because I took my remedy for trauma and shock. Perhaps now I will expand its’ uses and benefits to cover bullying as well. 

April

West Cork grown Comfrey Cream at Rebel Foods Market Stall

Comfrey Cream

Comfrey cream has got to be my all time favourite cream, lotion, balm, potion or anything else that I make around here. I can’t seem to find an end to all of the ways and means that it gets used.

We use it for everything!

In case you are not that familiar with this herb, it has been noted and used for many centuries for it’s ability to increase cell production, reduce inflammation and soothe irritated tissues. Thus, it can settle things down on the skin and at the same time lessen scarring. 

A few weeks ago I noticed an old scar on my arm from a barbed wire fence that I got years ago trying to help my cat through, away from the neighbours’ dogs. It was just a long thin scratch at the time and healed up right away. 

But it left a long thin, very noticeable scar straight across my arm. Funny how most of the other scars I have tend to fade over time, but not this one. It was still prominent on my arm, at least to me….

So, I started putting some ordinary comfrey cream on it, night after night and low and behold…it has faded to nearly nothing. I love this about comfrey – it is soothing, healing and a skin regenerator all at the same time.

I make my comfrey cream with only the finest comfrey around, ahem…my own West Cork grown comfrey, so I know it is quality, right from the outset. I also use only organic beeswax (my own until it runs out) and organic grade therapeutic oils such as coconut, sweet almond, jojoba and cold pressed olive oil.

For so many years I put nothing on my skin. Only water. And then once I started with my own creams, lotions, ointments, balms and salves – I can’t get enough! My skin is drinking them in.

And not only my skin. 

At least once a week (or maybe more) someone comments on my hair – even when it’s a mess, it’s still shiny or actually, sometimes glossy. Perhaps its’ also because I rub comfrey cream all over my hands and then through my hair once it’s dry or maybe it’s the nettle & rosemary rinse, but then it might also be the fact I am Nightshade free….

Or it’s a combination of all three of the above. But, we do have healthy hair around here – so whatever we are doing, I think I will keep doing it! LOL

Coming back to healing and protecting skin, for far too many years I suffered each winter with dry, chapped hands that would split at the knuckles and around my nails. If you have ever had this happen, you can probably appreciate how painful this is. And how much I would dread getting my hands wet.

But, half of my day is spent with wet hands – cooking, cleaning or making something or other. So steering clear of water is not an option – it is often a key ingredient in the many things I do around here.

Over the years I have used comfrey creams from many different sources (they have far more ingredients then mine do), then finally gave up because they simply didn’t work. That is until I made my own and combined it with body butters or on occasion cocoa butter. 

The bottom line here is that my own creams are so pure and natural they do no harm to delicate and healing skin. I add essential oils to back up the therapeutic effects while boosting their detox and repair properties.

One other area I have been plagued with is cold sores on my lips. For years I have fasted as a discipline and for detox purposes, however, because fasting pushes out whatever toxins, viruses etc. that are hanging around in the body, cold sores would always break out for me.

Until my trusty comfrey cream that is! I kind of don’t want to speak too soon, but this is the longest I have gone without a cold sore in years – all due to using my Fire & Ice Comfrey Cream blend. I think it killed the virus dead the last time it even thought of surfacing. 

Then, my son used comfrey cream to heal up an in-grown toenail, we all put it on minor scrapes, cuts and burns and there is a jar in the barn for the animals which we use when ever someone gets a scratch or sore spot. 

Comfrey is just an all round healing, comforting herb and a must have cream for the medicine cabinet, or next to your bed, or in your purse, on the kitchen window…..

April 

Rebel Foods Market Stall Comfrey Creams

A Manufactured Mess…..

It is high time that we stop and think about everything that we choose to put in our mouth, on our skin and into our minds while considering the fact, that we are over fed and under nourished eating ‘food’ that is all part of a BIG LIE. 


Why is it that we are overweight, sick and tired, diseased, stressed out and under functioning in a world with an abundance of every kind of ‘food’? How is it possible that we are being ‘fed’ a lie about what we should be eating, how much, when and why but for the most part, we can’t see it?

If you can understand that there are hidden agendas, Big Gov, Big Seed, Big Pharma and ‘world order’ propaganda machines are out there actively encouraging you to believe what they are telling you about health, illness, vaccines, and have general media control, then it is not too much of a stretch to apply this same truth to the food industry. 

The agriculture and food sectors, and more precisely what they sell us, manipulate consumers through a means of dependence on the cheap, lifeless and nutritionally depleted products they push. Like all else we have been blind sided by false food claims, a belief that this food is all we can afford in a recession (and in general), that it forms part of a balanced diet and besides it follows a food pyramid guide developed by ‘government nutritional experts’.

There you have the outline of a ticking time bomb, and it lives in us.

I am hoping that with the waking up of large segments of the population - post  Swine Flu ‘panic-demic’, banking disaster and mass migration, there are more and more who are asking the questions and doing their own research. This action and public reaction can continue and will now carry over onto the biggest source of the problems- the food we are eating.

When we follow the typical western diet that is considered so ‘normal, fairly healthy and affordable’, we are playing a dangerous game of Russian Roulette with our health. The spin from these big corporations would have us believe that everyone should get up in the morning to eat cereal from a box, drink a litre of caffeinated beverages, eat high fat ‘healthy’ muffins for snacks and prepare quick meals in minutes at the end of the day with vegetables and plant based items ‘on the side’ of chemically laced meat. 

In fact if it comes from a box or a package, it is clean, sanitized and therefore, 'all right', we can just read the label and ‘know’ what we are eating.

Then, because we are overweight following their regimen and eating their ‘food’, we start a diet after Christmas in the New Year, join a gym and in general, stay in this endless game. The only problem is that we do this consistently, year in, year out, make half hearted attempts at ‘eating healthy’ with limited success and then it is back to the old ingrained habits. 

We are hooked on the high fat, high sugar, high salt, drugged up and low nutrient value over processed products that have our health, bodies, self esteem, moods and all else, in a manufactured mess.

There is no one to blame but us for the ‘shape’ we are in, our will power is weak, we have ‘food issues’, emotional eating, and poor lifestyle habits- well maybe we do, BUT this behaviour is endorsed and contributed to by the manufacturers of this food. 

Next time you go to your supermarket do a visual check of the aisles- how many are devoted to processed packaged foods, prepared ready meals, sweets, cakes and spilling out into high traffic areas, junk food of every conception?

We are programmed to think that meals take minutes to prepare, the less time spent in the kitchen the better, that most of the meal comes from a box, or a package or better yet, a takeaway. We eat the same foods from week to week with different sauces. Thus now we have taste buds that are too shut down to discern all the subtle flavours of the additives, colourants, preservatives, and other chemical ‘enhancers’ that have been consigned to our food.

The food is a joke, you can’t process something to death and then breathe life back into it with a sprinkle of vitamins and minerals, once it is dead- that is it. And believe me, your highly intelligent body that has recognition capabilities for hundreds of thousands of compounds, knows the difference. This false economy (where the jokers are gone wild) is not only the reality outside of you it is the reality within, set up and orchestrated by Big Food. Big Seed and Big Agriculture (have I left anything out?).

The fallacy is the food, it is not nutrition and should not even be called food, white bread toast offers nothing, hyper-caffeinated coffee maxes out your adrenal function, half the fruit and vegetables are poisoned from mass production in depleted soils and a continuous rota of spraying chemicals, and deep fried crisps are NOT a food group. 

We are being ‘drugged’ and sickened by the food we ingest.

You are what you eat, and feel and think and do- the key here is that what you EAT has a profound influence over what you feel and think and do.

These scientists who are studying food, making the announcements and the recommendations on the world dietary requirements are bought and paid for by those that stand to gain from you buying their products. Big Gov doesn’t want you to live too long and be a drain on the old age pension scheme, Big Pharma plans to have you for a few years in the drug cartel, and Big Food, well they just want you to eat your way to your allotted three score and ten and then its bye-bye.

We are being lied to by the very same makers of the Swine Flu Hoax, they who control the media, push the drugs, own the economy and the banks, also control your food. And what is worse, they have manipulated what you think you know about the food you eat, you are being duped into believing that certain foods are healthy and nutritious when they certainly do not make you feel good or nourished in a warm and fuzzy way.

It doesn’t have to be this way.

Now is the time, to take stock of your entire life starting with your diet. There is absolutely no need to fear anything (or take any medication etc.) when you are healthy and taking care of your essential resource – your health.

Prime your immune function and be ready for life, eat in the right way (ask me how!) exercise, fast and detox regularly to stay healthy. You deserve better.

April

Oil Pulling for Detox & Health

Oil Pulling

I recently got back into Oil Pulling or swishing as my children like to call it….and it is making such a difference to my well being (again!), even after only a few days. I did a few days fasting last week and included oil pulling each day – to such a difference.

In case you are not entirely certain what oil pulling is; this is a technique using about a teaspoon or two of coconut or sesame oil (usually, but other oils can work) and swishing it around in your mouth for 20 minutes or so.

After the time is up, you just spit it all out and rinse your mouth. Voila – refreshed and ready to go. 

It sounds and is, so utterly simple. But with some incredible and wonderful side effects - I often find significant results from oil pulling in as little as 1 day! Of course I add some healing benefits into my coconut oil as well…essential oils of cinnamon, tea tree, lemon, lemon grass, peppermint, clove, oregano and so forth, a different combination every couple of days.

The oils all work together and ‘pulls’ the toxins out from the general mouth area while the essential oils go and do all the things herbs and spices are meant to do. I have experienced many different results from oil pulling – which I would not have seen otherwise along my healing journey.

Some of these are a clarity in thinking, fresher breath, whiter teeth, healthy gums and tongue while others are more the results of deeper cleansing. I always feel as if my sinuses and the glands in my face and neck are benefiting from this too with less severe symptoms of glandular fever a few years ago.

I often also feel a clearing in my ears….as if whatever has been sitting around there for ever so long, starts to move or be pulled out. This can only be a good thing as far as I am concerned – I am all for taking out the rubbish in the most gentle way possible. 

However, I often have other indicators of detox taking place such as a little achy in my joints or rash in the beginning, but then my knees and skin becoming very clear. Mostly though, it’s when any brain fog clears and I feel more of a mind/body connection that I know this technique really does some good for my health.

Because this is all about controlling and perhaps eliminating some of the nasty bacteria living and growing in our teeth and mouth, I often follow up an oil pulling session with a mouthful of my lovely West Cork made Apple Cider Vinegar or some of my Rebel Juice probiotic drinks…..which adds the good guys back into your system. 

So, if you think your mouth, head, brain and body might benefit from some oil pulling – it’s so easy to get started on it and all you need is 20 minutes!

April

Raw Unrefined Coconut Oil mixed with essential oils - on my stand at the market

Food for the Soul

What to eat today….

I remember a time when it was such a chore to prepare, cook --- no it was a chore to even think about what to prepare or cook for a meal. It was as if my mind was stuck and I couldn’t even think clearly about what I would like to eat.

Perhaps part of the problem back then was that I was so busy (distracted?) by all the other stuff in my life. At the end of the day I really didn’t have any energy left to do much about nourishing myself, let alone anyone else. 

But another thing that was happening which was probably far worse was that I really wasn’t thinking all that much about the food/meals/nutrition I ended up putting into my body. 

A meal was prepared just to get something on the table most days. Things were rushed, I was tired, food was a hassle, eating was a mindless activity. Life was an ordeal.

Then, when I absolutely had no choice in the matter and had to start carefully considering exactly what went into my body for each and every meal to make it count (because the way I was living had made me sick)…then my eyes and my world opened up.

I allowed my intuition, (not advertising, imbalance, tiredness, peer pressure or worse – indifference) to dictate the needs of my body, mind and spirit. Nourishing myself has since become a multi-dimensional approach to far more then just staying alive –

It’s a process of paying attention, listening and thoroughly engaging with my food and the environment it comes from. I am feeding my body, mind and soul through the food choices I make each and every day.

So, that’s why I feast some days, fast other days and eat normally any days in between. My relationship with eating and food has become a spiritual experience – one that only asks of me to be present and involved with the food on my plate. 

Spiritual for me means being alive….

April

Yarrow 

Father Christmas Cookies….

Vanilla & Butter Cookies (Father Christmas Cookies)

Christmas to me has become all about the so many things I can do with my children (and should be doing more of)…because I am often rushing around and not taking as much time as I could do at other times. 

I have a singular point of view when it comes to my kids as well – I want them to grow up knowing things….how to do things, make things, create the life, food, home and work they would most like to do.

How to follow their dreams and listen to their hearts as they walk through a better world we have worked so hard to create on their behalf. Because, well, I have long felt as if I was misinformed (or uninformed) and certainly ill prepared with life as I have come to know it.

With this in mind (nothing small around here!!! LOL), I wanted to bake some treats together with them this week for our Solstice and Christmas celebrations (I know, it’s a big cookie to bite off!).

We decided on some sort of butter cookie….well, it had butter in it (lol) and flour, almonds and then the greatest flavour of the season – homemade vanilla extract. I make mine in a large bottle of bourbon – using 8 or 10 vanilla bean pods as well as some scraped out vanilla beans.

These sit for several weeks and then months until you can’t walk by the bottle without smelling wafts of vanilla perfuming the air (available in the market stall on occasion)….lovely!

So, these are butter and vanilla cookies, right? 

Back to the story or recipe….which is really a tale of how to create something magical from ingredients that seem rather ordinary on their own.

To make these cookies we used:

500 g flour (whole wheat/strong white ½ and ½)

250 g raw cane sugar

380 g butter (soft)

125 g ground almonds

 2 – 3 tablespoons  Bourbon vanilla

¼ teaspoon sea salt

dark chocolate (melted in double boiler)

imagination!

Blend the butter and then slowly add the sugar, almonds, flour, salt and finally vanilla – keep mixing until soft and crumbly. Add extra vanilla if this seems too dry. You should be able to squeeze the mixture together into a soft dough.

Onto a floured board or baking paper, knead some of the dough  and then roll it flat…let the children take over with cookie cutters, shapes and fingers to make the cookies into whatever shape they need to create.

At this time of the year we all like stars, ginger bread men, hearts and trees. Once you have enough shapes to cover a large baking sheet – place them onto parchment paper and into an oven set at 180C or so for 10 to 12 minutes.

Watch them closely because they will brown quickly. 

Once done and out of the oven, cool slightly then remove with a palette knife onto a cooking rack. When completely cool, dip in the melted chocolate and decorate with some coloured bits from the organic shop….

They taste as good as they look! We like to make different sized star shapes and stick them together using dark chocolate in the centre….we refer to these as Father Christmas cookies here, because these are the ones we leave out for him on Christmas Eve.

Happy Holidays!

April

Father Christmas Cookies

West Cork - the centre of the Food Universe

A few of my favourite things….

I remember not so very long ago when I spent nearly a decade sugar, wheat, dairy, wheat, meat and fish free. My how times have changed since I started the fasting, raising my own food and healing my gut properly.

Now, everything we can raise, make, cook, create, grow and catch ourselves is on the menu and since I love this time of the year so much there are so many goodies to choose from….LOL

This year I wanted to share a few of my favourite things with you, of course, it just goes to show, they all happen to be food! But, good foods are often simple things that become decadent once a little bit of this and a little dash of that, is added.

It’s kind of like magic – kitchen alchemy. Especially this time of year, there are so many wonderful tastes, food memories and seasonal offerings to be had. Perhaps we are quite spoilt living here in West Cork too, because this is kind of like the centre of the food Universe!

So now, where was I? Oh yes, my 3 treats of the season so far this year would have to be – Fig & Port Chutney, Brandy & Vanilla Butter and my Gourmet Seaweed Sea Salt blend (each of these are available at my Rebel Foods market stall in very limited quantities). 

Funny how two of those include a little bit of alcohol, but never mind it’s a seasonal thing!

For the Fig & Port Chutney, I slow cooked (food should be handled very gently) figs, apples, red onions, spices and demerara sugar, then added port at the last hour of cooking. This ensures that richness of flavour – can’t wait to try it on our Christmas goose (and turkey, duck, sandwiches, Gubbeen cheese….LOL).

Next my favourite seasonal delight has to be Brandy and Vanilla Butter. This is really a little bit (ok, a lot) my own take on an ancient Victorian recipe. Of course, I am using my own organic vanilla infused Jim Beam that has been aging, just waiting for this season….

Brandy butter is something special, often reserved for Christmas day pudding, it can be heated and poured over the warm pud like a sauce or better yet, a steaming hot pudding and cold brandy butter melting over top can’t be compared to anything else. 

We also love it with a cheese selection and with smoked salmon or other smoked fish. Come to think of it, smoked cheese sandwiches with brandy butter has a nice sound too….hmmm.

Lastly, I have changed my Seaweed & Sea Salt recipe for the holiday season – adding sesame seeds to this unique medley of gorgeous sea salts from around the world. I love salt, it’s healing properties and ability to turn ordinary food into an art form.

My Gourmet Seaweed Sea Salt blend has West Cork sea salt along with French, Himalayan and other Atlantic sea salts. When combined with the seaweeds and infused with thyme – the flavour is exquisite. 

So much to look forward to this holiday season – it’s all in the food! 

April

Magic of Christmas….comes in a jar! 

Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls - Winter Treat

Cinnamon Rolls with a twist….Sourdough 

A couple of weeks ago I was off my fast and really wanted something nice – sweet and winterish - to have with my morning dandelion coffee. The only thing I could come up with on the day was some sort of a Cinnamon bun or roll. 

It had to be sweet, gooey, spicy, soft and sticky…..are you with me so far? You know the type of rolls that are melted inside yet the bread dough is nice and soft. Oh, and the fragrance, it had to smell sweet, like cinnamon and a little bit like baked bread.

Fasting does that to you! Your tastebuds are clean and alive - only a very specific taste would do (or in this case a food memory). 

Off, I went to find my recipes, however when I looked through each of my books I could only find mention of cinnamon buns made with fast acting yeast or a packet of this or that kind of yeast. 

And this is absolutely out of the question for me. 

It has to be wild fermented sourdough in this house. I work with so many wild fermentation projects – my Rebel Juices fermented drinks, my Apple Cider Vinegar, my sourdough starter, my yogurt and my various fermented vegetables and I won’t risk contamination or compromise on the taste.

So, taking what I thought might be a rough idea of a basic recipe – it can’t be that difficult, right? I put some flour into a bowl (yes, for those who know me, I just throw things together and hope for the best!) some sourdough starter, a little soft butter, an egg, some yogurt and milk, then sugar and water.

I left this to rise for a few hours, like you would a sponge for any other sourdough bread. Once it was risen enough – it did look a little different from a regular sponge starter – I took it out and kneaded it with more flour, into a soft dough. 

Next, I rolled it out flat onto a floured surface and then buttered it (the entire large piece of dough) with my Cinnamon Honey Butter. So far, so good. It smelled like cinnamon and was starting to take shape.

Then, leaving the edges free of the cinnamon butter, I rolled the dough up as tightly as I could all the while pinching any loose ends together. Once I had a cinnamon log, I gently cut sections off for the rolls.

These were placed into an oiled pan and arranged tightly in a circle – just for effect! I happen to like swirls…..LOL

And that was it – the pan of cinnamon dough was let rise again for another hour or so, then popped into a hot oven….it was lovely! Sweet, warm and spicy – just what winter should be all about.

April

Cinnamon Rolls - made with sourdough

Memories of Sticky Date & Fig Pudding….

Yule or Christmas Pudding

There are so many recipes out there for Christmas puddings – I won’t even try reinventing the wheel however, I will say….I have made sugar free versions of absolutely everything and these are just as good as something with sugar.

Especially when it comes to puddings such as this. There are a lot of sweet ingredients that go into such a dessert but that is just the point isn’t it? A Christmas feast is not the time or place to be counting the calories!

My favourite Christmas pudding last year was one I made with pecans….or was it the one I made with sticky dates and toffee! Can’t remember, they were all so good and when served later, long after the heaviness of the meal has been digested, a pudding is quite a nice way to end any festive day.

But, the single most important thing to say about any Yule or Christmas pudding – is this – you have to be making it now! LOL

Now is the perfect time to set aside an afternoon and assemble your pudding. Get each of your ingredients ready (soaking the dried fruit is often a good idea too) and then follow your favourite recipe to your hearts delight.

Making the pudding is easy. I always find steaming it for 6 to 8 hours the more difficult part because I am always watching little ones around the stove and making sure the pot doesn’t run out of water. 

But, eventually the pudding is steamed enough to cool down and store or freeze until Christmas. I do believe that some of those made with rum or whiskey as well as all that sugar and fruit, will continue to age and develop in texture and flavour no matter where they are! LOL

This week – start getting ready for your special day. Choose a pudding recipe, make a ritual of gathering the ingredients, spend an afternoon making it and then store it in a special place to age. 

One of the most wonderful traditions of this time of year is the opening of all these little packages when the time comes. An aromatic Christmas pudding in one of them is a lovely gift indeed.

April

Sticky date & fig pudding ready to freeze

Nothing to Waste….

I was reading something a couple of weeks ago about some major supermarket and the enormous amount of waste created each week when they dumped all that out of date processed, over packaged, sterile food.  

It’s a shame it was created in the first place – that is perhaps the biggest waste – of raw materials. But, alas it exists and then it goes to landfill one way or the other. Because lets face it, lots of times this food might be bought and taken home only to end up in the rubbish bin there.

Which leads me to another issue – what is it with needing a rubbish bin? We haven’t had one in years and don’t need one. Because we go out of our way to not create waste. Everything is used, nothing is thrown out and certainly everything is eaten.

So, this week we are fasting. Actually, today is day 8 of our before Christmas detox and of course I have been steadily clearing out the supplies of food in case anything might be ready to go off, but I also enjoy cooking ahead at this time of year.

Yesterday I made a huge pot of Nightshade free pasta sauce with pumpkins, courgettes, sweet potatoes, onions, garlic, carrots, seaweed, beetroot, spices and so forth. Then from that sauce I made large trays of lasagna, long grain brown rice cooked in the vegetable juice, and extra sauce for other meals. 

Next, some over ripe bananas and left over coconut balls went into a lovely winter spice banana bread. All of this went into the freezer for when we are done our fasting. These meals also used up any cheese left over in the fridge so it too wasn’t wasted. 

I do remember those days when anything that wasn’t eaten quickly enough or was forgotten in the fridge went out into the bin. It was never a warm and fuzzy feeling.

Now, with the animals to be fed along with ourselves – there is a use for everything. Our goats love the pumpkin seeds and vegetable peelings, the turkeys enjoy left over nettles and herbs from tea, the ducks and chickens fight over any bread and the dogs eat everything else.

Seeing how this all works gives me hope that perhaps inside our guts it’s all working just as well – It’s kind of like a little ecosystem!

April

Honey Cinnamon Oat Crunch & Toasted Muesli now available at Rebel Foods Stall

Sourdough Bread, Bean Burgers & Fermentation…..Cookery Class 10th November with April Danann

Want to learn some new recipes, cooking from scratch and a few simple meals that will uplift you? If you have been feeling low, heavy, have some health issues or are just sick and tired of feeling sick and tired...then it's time to come out and learn how to cook - like a rebel! 

Perhaps some high vibration foods are all your body needs to restore its' usual vitality and even if this is the first step on a new road - eating well is all about understanding how and what to cook. This upcoming class will be about bread (mainly), fermentation, bean burgers and sustainable eating….. 

For you seasoned foodies out there, are junk and ready made meals creeping into your menu? Maybe a little tune-up and gentle reminder about what to feed your body is what you need...

However most importantly, eating well and renewed health starts with reducing the amount of processed food in your diet. Making more of our meals from basic ingredients is easier then you might think - all it takes is a little push in the right direction.

 As a food rebel you can learn how to feed yourself and your family - make some items you may have thought too difficult and get to know your food on an entirely new, energetic level. There is no time like right now, and no better place to practice being a rebel!

Come out and join an Intuitive Rebel Cook in Leap, West Cork

10th November (Breaking Bread) 11am to 3pm 

Only €35 for class, organic food, recipes & notes!

Contact April on mobile 087 236 1616 or email: info@aprildanann.com to book your place...See you there!