love a puppy? read this first

Meet Jedda.

In January this year a lady named Kel drove into our driveway in a pick-up truck with two red heeler x dingo pups on board.

Kel was like a movie character.

Long red hair down her back, cowgirl boots and belt to match, dressed in jeans and check shirt she was fit for a rodeo. Kel is an animal whisperer no doubt about it.

I'm still not sure exactly how Pete found Kel but he had heard that Kel found puppies for people. So for a good few months Kel was on the lookout for us for a red heeler pup.

Late December Kel phoned to say that she had found a breeder in Queensland with a litter of pups but that we needed to wait a few more weeks before the pups could leave their mum.

I was out of the house when Kel arrived. When I came home River came running out the front door, "Mum this is the best day of my life!!!!"

I knew Sol was going to be excited that we FINALLY had a puppy but River's excitement surprised me I didn't think he would be as taken with the little bundle of fur that arrived.

Once the first rush of puppy love wore off and the toilet training challenges set in we all began to realise we had absolutely no idea what we had signed up for.

It was Pete's idea to choose a working dog breed. The idea and the reality are quite different things.

We knew that puppies and working dogs especially had a lot of energy and would be quite nippy around the heels as their sharp little baby teeth were tested out but wow it was all so constant!!

So much so that within two weeks of Jedda joining our family Pete declared to me one evening, "I've made a mistake. I've chosen the wrong breed, I think we should send Jedda to live on a farm, now while she's young before she gets too attached to us".

"Whaaaaaat??!" was my civilised response. "I think we need to give it some more time", I suggested. "She'll settle down."

But no, in my darling husband's get-things-done-now approach he decided it would be a good idea to tell River and Sol of his plans the next morning before school.

"Can't you at least wait until after school? They're going to be devastated," I said bracing myself for the inevitable tears.

And tears there were.

I took the boys to school that morning with tear stained faces and tried to re-assure them that Dad would change his mind. I hoped quietly to myself.

That night after school River in his mature beyond his years way announced to Pete that he had an offer for him, "Dad if I spend time training Jedda, we take her to puppy school and we keep her for another month, if she hasn't settled down by the end of the month we can find a farm to take her, but if she does settle down we can keep her." How could anyone argue with that?

I'm very pleased to say that six months later Jedda is firmly part of our family.

It's been an interesting ride falling in love with a puppy and carrying out all the responsibilities that come with having a pet. Sol and River do really love Jedda and I might add that Pete is besotted with her. Pete is the one that walks her on the beach each morning and has made a whole new group of friends as a result.

Jedda's made friends too, we don't only have children over to play now we have dogs! Jedda's friend Del has even had a sleepover!

Within a day of Jedda arriving I tried to talk a friend into taking Jedda's sister. I'm so glad that my friend decided not to. With the benefit of hindsight it wasn't the right time in my friend and her family's life to take on a puppy.

If you're dreaming of owning a puppy or have children trying to talk you into getting a puppy my advice would be if you've never owned a pet before do your research before getting a puppy.

Here are my tips:

- research the breed, do they lose hair? how active are they? what are their temperaments? do you have enough space in your backyard for the breed you are considering?
- find out all the costs involved - registration, vet fees, pet food, flea treatments, grooming
- if you travel a lot - who would look after the dog? could the dog travel with you?
- spend time at the local dog walking park or beach and get to know some dog owners and different breeds. Keep talking to dog owners and ask lots of questions

Having a pet IS a wonderful thing. It is a big responsibility too, one that will demand of your time, energy and money but will of course offer emotional rewards and physical too with all the walking you'll be doing!

Even though in my heart of hearts I'm not really a pet person (sorry for all of those who are! but I have to be honest!) I can't imagine our little family without Jedda now, she is such a sweet old soul and she has brought new friends into our life too.

Are you thinking of getting a pet? If you have a pet what are your tips for becoming a pet owner?

thursday recipe: emily rose brott's chocolate pecan brownies

We're moving house this week.

I'm surrounded by brown cardboard boxes, a few filled, many empty waiting for the contents of our cupboards and shelves to be placed inside sealed with tape and transported to...our new home!

Our new home that we've waited almost ten years for.

When River was six weeks old we moved to our current little beach shack which is in a fantastic location between the ocean and the bay.

We've had what I think is possibly the cheapest rent in Australia while we've been here - believe me the antiquated kitchen and bathroom haven't deserved a dollar more - but the location is the drawcard.

It has been the perfect little nest to raise our babies into boys, and the easy to handle rent has given us freedom, freedom to travel each winter to remote communities for Peter's work and freedom to save.

For the past three months Pete has treated getting our new house ready like a job leaving home early each morning to go 'on site' and work through a long list of plastering, painting, laying new floors, designing and creating new bathrooms and kitchen and and and the list goes on. We've been blessed to have the help of my uncle with this work and a great young carpenter who has enjoyed honing his craft on Pete's creative design ideas.

I'm looking forward to showing you some photos soon!

But for now there's brownies. I thought you'd be ok with that. Personally I don't see what the fuss is about brownies I'd rather eat chocolate but I know a lot of people love them. My sons and husband included!

Thanks to mum of four and cookbook author Emily Rose Brott for sharing her brownie recipe here today. This recipe comes from Emily's most recent book My Secret Ingredient. If you don't eat wheat flour you can use spelt or your favorite gluten free option. I also don't use rice bran oil so I'd use almond oil or butter.

You can read more about Emily and get her recipe for apple, oat, cranberry and chocolate muffins here.

Ok I'm off to make school lunches and then pack some more boxes.

Enjoy the recipe x

Emily Rose Brott's Chocolate and Pecan Brownies

Ingredients

3 eggs

2/3 cup (165ml) rice bran oil

120g 70% dark chocolate

2/3 cup (190g) honey

¾ cup (120g) wholemeal (whole-wheat) plain (all-purpose) flour

¼ cup (25g) almond meal (ground almonds)

¼ cup (60ml) milk

½ cup (55g) chopped toasted pecans (refer to cooking tips)

To make
Preheat oven to 160°C (325°F) fan-forced.

Beat eggs and oil together. Melt chocolate, and mix honey into the chocolate until dissolved. Add chocolate mixture to egg mixture, and beat.

Mix in flour, almond meal and milk until combined.

Stir in toasted chopped pecans.

Grease a brownie tin (28cm × 18cm) with oil, and line base with baking paper. 

Pour mixture into tin, spreading it evenly, and bake for 25 minutes.

Leave to cool in tin for 20 minutes before removing and leaving to cool further on a cake rack. 

Slice and serve.

Makes 15

Cooking tip: As an alternative to pecans you can use toasted walnuts or macadamia nuts.

weekend reading

 

This is our last Friday in Alice. Well, last Friday for this trip. I do hope we come back.

This is our last Friday in Alice. Well, last Friday for this trip. I do hope we come back.

It's been a week of packing and sorting, of saying goodbye and of doing last minute visits to places and people we have loved meeting.

I like the line in the sand that traveling draws in life, the lead up to a departure is like having a deadline a clear time in which to get things finished and the things that don't get finished are low on the priority list and probably didn't really matter that much anyway.

Here are a few things that have caught my eye around the net this week:

I enjoyed discovering artist Alena Hennessy via Soulemama.

Closer to home I've been introduced to the art work of Minnie Pwerle

Have you seen Heidi's latest cookbook?

And Pete's?

One for the baby lovers. Brace yourself for Joan Scarlett. Huge congratulations Heidi & Ben x

We're stopping here on the way home. Can't wait.

Come say hi on Instagram. You can find me @wholefoodmama

I'm reading Kim Mahood's memoir Craft for a dry lake. A wonderful read for anyone traveling to Alice or interested in a first hand account of life in the outback with all its enchantment and complexities.

I took the boys to see Oddball this week. LOVED it. Highly recommend. Especially for anyone living in the desert needing a fix of ocean viewing! Beautiful footage of the wild Victorian coastline plus wonderful story to boot.

Happy weekend everyone! How did it get to October so soon?! x

thursday recipe: apple, pear and banana crumble

We were invited to a friend's place for dinner, I offered to bring dessert. It started out as apple crumble but then I saw pears and thought I'll add those too. My husband Pete who is not a recipe follower (or rule follower fullstop for that matter) asked if I could put banana in it.
Banana?!! Eeew I thought.

I decided to put in one banana just for him and to put it down one end so if like me everyone else eating the crumble wanted to avoid the banana they could. In the spirit of breaking with tradition I threw a handful of chocolate chips on top of the crumble. Like the banana, the choc chips were met with a mixed response.

Is there anything better than eating fruit crumble sitting by the fire?

The options for crumble topping are endless. My favorite includes nuts, this topping however is very basic because I made it when we were staying in a holiday unit with very limited pantry essentials.

We ate this with store bought vanilla ice cream which the kids loved! I don't travel with an ice cream maker :) The crumble is pictured here with natural yoghurt. Vanilla custard would be delicious too.
I'll stop now.

What's your favorite crumble combo? Tell us in the comments and feel free to leave a link to recipes.

Apple, pear and banana crumble

Ingredients

5 apples (Granny Smith are good), peeled, cored and chopped (peeling optional)
3 pears, peeled, cored and chopped (peeling optional)
1/2 cup water
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 banana peeled and chopped into 4 or 5 pieces
1/2 cup oats
1 cup brown rice flour
100 grams butter
10 dried dates
1/2 cup sultanas
a smattering of chocolate chips

To make

Preheat oven to 180 degrees celsius.
Place apples, pears, water and cinnamon in a saucepan and cook over a medium heat until fruit is just starting to soften, about 10 minutes.
While the fruit is cooking, rub the butter into the flour and then stir in the oats and chocolate chips.
Grease an oven proof dish with butter.
When the fruit is just cooked pour the fruit and some of the liquid into the oven proof dish, don't flood the dish with liquid but leave some in so it is nice and moist.
Stir the dates and sultanas into the fruit mixture.
Cover the fruit with the crumble topping and place in the oven until golden brown, about 15 - 20 minutes.

where's my toothbrush?

We're home. Our road trip is complete. But of course the unpacking isn't!

Packing is always exciting, the anticipation of what lays ahead. Unpacking on the other hand is well, tedious. I've been pushing through it though and in the process sorting clothes and toys and sending bags of belongings to the op shop.

Pete and I have both returned home with a renewed sense of what matters and what doesn't, how we want to spend our time and what is important when it comes to raising our boys. We were both fairly clear on these things before we left, our time away has crystallised certain elements.

If anyone reading this has been considering taking a road trip I say go. So much of life can easily become predictable and mundane if we allow it to be, travel changes that. Travel is revealing, not only in what you see but in who you see in yourself and in those you travel with. Not all of it is beautiful, but it is rich and adds to the depths of who you are and who you want to be.

Having said that, for me traveling when our youngest was four and a half and our oldest seven and a half was perfect. I marvelled at families I saw travelling with toddlers and babes in arms. Maybe one baby but both a baby and a toddler! Not for me. The thought of breastfeeding, sleepless nights and then keeping an eye on toddlers so they don't get bitten by a snake or worse a crocodile is not my idea of fun. I'd love to hear differently though if you've done it and want to leave a comment.

In the 24 hours that we've been home when friends have asked, "How was your trip?" I haven't really known how to answer. You see, travel is different to a holiday. We weren't on a holiday.

Pete was working, making connections, joining dots, doing all that he could to ensure that his work with Indigenous Elders and at risk Indigenous youth brings positivity and longevity to young people in communities and values the wisdom and expertise of Elders.

River and Sol dropped easily into community life, playing handball with their new friends, catching fish and trying out a few swear words too!

I like to think that I too dropped easily into community life, making cups of tea, listening to stories, getting to know Elders and young people and of course cooking and sharing my love of wholefood as best I could with the limited good food available. In many ways I felt quite at home and in other ways I was confronted and overwhelmed.

It was the matter of factness that struck me when I was told stories of domestic violence, child safety concerns, drug and alcohol issues, chronic health problems, told in a way of acceptance that somehow normalised these situations. When of course there is nothing acceptable about any of them.

Pete has been working with Indigenous Elders for 20 years. This trip was my first time visiting a community. Not only did I gain tremendous insight and understanding into the reality of daily life in Hope Vale, the community we stayed in, I gained a greater insight into my husband. Despite the magnitude of the work he undertakes, working to convince policy makers that Elders led healing is the way forward, he rarely shows even a glimpse of it being too hard.

Now we are home and the work continues. It is big work, work that can sometimes overshadow much of our lives and I have to remind him to lighten up.

Blogging on the road has not been easy. So thank you for your patience and for returning here. In many ways Pete is anti-technology and while he supports the change I want to see in the way people eat, he doesn't even begin to understand why anyone would want to spend hours in front of a computer - promoting wholefood or otherwise! I felt for the most part of the trip it was best to surrender to real life and step away momentarily from my online life.

Finding time to blog on the road was one hurdle as was access to electricity and wifi in some areas.

But now I am home with only four sleeps until school goes back so there will be some clear time in my day (though I will miss River and Sol after 5 months spending everyday together), easy access to power and internet, and a heart full of stories to tell.

I look forward to sharing them with you as well as getting back to some usual posts such as recipes, weekend reading and wholefood step-by-step.

Oh, and the other thing I am really happy about is that my family can stop asking me "Where's my toothbrush?!"

If you have any questions about travelling with children please feel free to ask, or share your experiences in the comments.

more from the road plus thursday recipe: sweet potato + haloumi salad

The heat from our days at Elim Beach is already merely a memory as I sit here in a coat today writing in Byron Bay where the weather is wintery.

I'm sorry these photos hardly do justice to the magnificence of the Cape York coastline. The best way to truly feel the magic of this place is to go there!

We set up camp at Traditional Owner Eddie Deemal's camp for one week. Eddie's camp is remote and therefore blissfully quiet. There were never more than four camp sites occupied at a time while we were there. To camp here a permit is required for details go here.

The days were hot, so we were thankful for the cold showers available because the crocodiles meant no swimming in the beautiful sea.

There is no hot running water at Eddie's camp, cold water is pumped up through some 97 underground springs where the water is filtered by the sand. A natural wonder!

The fish were plentiful. And when out in the boat catching the fish, the sandflies were plentiful too. After one fishing trip up the mangroves River returned with at least 100 bites on his bare calves and shins. Lesson learned: long sleeves and pants are a must as well as a good repellent.

For those who have never encountered a sandfly, the itch from the bite is intense and relentless. Sandflies are not like mosquitos in that you don't see them as they are so small and the itch lasts for days. Multiply that by 100 and you have a recipe for madness!

The night that River's itching was insufferable I put him under a cold shower and knew that taking his mind away from itch was just as important as relieving the itch with the cooling water. So, I told him to sing. His song choice was from Oliver, a movie we picked up in an op shop for $2 that he had watched over and over on long drives in the back of the car. Soon he was singing and soothed by the cool water and the Itch Eze cream I had picked up in Cooktown. tip: the remedy that really settled the bites down was to heat a pot with a few litres of water in it and add two capfuls of dettol and one capful of tea tree oil and soak the affected area.

Uncle Dave, our friend from Byron Bay, flew up to join us at Eddie's camp which was a treat for all of us to enjoy this place together and to introduce Dave to our friends in Hope Vale. 

Fresh fish was our staple over the week, while for Dave who eats a vegetarian diet I made sure the salads we ate had some protein punch in them in the form of nuts, seeds and haloumi. We also enjoyed dahl and a roasted vegetable pasta by the campfire.

I'd love to hear some of your travel tales. Are you on the road? Or dreaming of hitting the road? Tell us in the comments.

Sweet potato and Haloumi Salad

Ingredients

1 medium size sweet potato, peeled and sliced into 1/2cm slices
200g haloumi, sliced and fried til golden, cut into bite size pieces
3 tablespoons of tamari pepitas and sunflower seeds
mixed lettuce leaves
1 lebanese cucumber roughly chopped
1 tomato sliced and then each slice cut into quarters

To make

Roast or pan fry sweet potato until cooked, allow to cool.
Place all ingredients in a salad bowl, drizzle macadamia oil over the salad and splash on apple cider vinegar then toss salad and serve.

(To make tamari pepitas and sunflower seeds, dry roast seeds in a fry pan and at the end splash some tamari over and cook for a minute longer).

hope vale: hot chips, fresh fish and healing

Two weeks ago I logged off here and we headed to Hope Vale, a remote Aboriginal community 46kms north-west of Cairns.

The plan was to stay about six days, but as I explain regularly to River and Sol on this trip, plans change. Especially on the road.

Six days in Hope Vale turned into twelve. And in one week we will be going back for more. There was a timelessness as days rolled into nights and we settled into the home of our friends Uncle Des and Aunty Estelle Bowen getting to know their family and community.

The kettle never stopped boiling. I drank more cups of tea in twelve days than I have my 39 years. I loved every cup because with tea comes a yarn, seemingly endless yarns, at the kitchen table or around a campfire. (For readers wondering why you would have yarn with tea, in this instance yarn is another word for story not wool!)

A deep friendship was born between our families or as Aunty Estelle said to my mother-in-law on the phone one morning “they family now”.

Uncle Des and Aunty Estelle are such beautiful people. Their strength, humility, pride and commitment to their family and community inspire me greatly.

It is hard for me to find precisely the right words to paint a picture of life in Hope Vale to you. 

There is so much to say. This post is a beginning.

 

Adventures to local beaches to catch fish and mudcrabs happened every couple of days. Despite the heat there was no swimming of course because the waterways here are home to crocodiles.

(Aunty Estelle fishing with a handline, her great great grandaughter playing by her side)

While the fresh seafood was wonderful, the dominant diet in the community is white bread, hot chips, ice cream, weet bix, sweet biscuits, soft drink, cordial and convenience food bought from the small supermarket/convenience store.

Kids not eating enough nutritious food is not unique to Hope Vale of course, what is unique is the remoteness which limits access to top quality fresh produce and also that before the introduction of sugar, salt and grain based diet Indigenous people lived with health and strength on a natural diet.

If you are interested in the work my husband Pete is doing with Elders you can read more about it at Culture is Life and Be Part of the Healing.

We are back in Mossman for a week where I have internet access so I will post more soon. 

Thanks for reading! x

thursday recipe: Ruth's spelt crepes with avo, fetta, lemon and sprouts

Before we get to the recipe, let's take in the view for a moment.

Who wouldn't want to wash the dishes with this magical garden to gaze upon?

Today's recipe comes from my dear friend Ruth who we were lucky enough to spend a beautiful Sunday morning with, and her delightful family, in their sun soaked back garden pictured above during our stay in the Byron Bay area.

The table was set with fresh paw paw and lime, pumpkin and rice bread toasted, home made marmalade, hot chai and Ruth's wonderful paper thin spelt crepes. The children all clambered for strawberries and to spread their crepes with honey or maple syrup, while the grown ups tried Ruth's savoury filling of avocado, marinated fetta, Ruth's sprouts and a squeeze of lemon. Roll like a wrap and enjoy, no cutlery required.

I say Ruth's sprouts because Ruth and her partner Michael run a business selling beautiful fresh sprouts at Byron Bay and Mullumbimby farmer's markets. If you are local or visiting the markets buy some of their sprouts, they are the best really they are! You'll be hooked.

The sprout mix can contain sprouted blue peas, mung beans, fenugreek, alfalfa, lentils, soaked almonds...and perhaps there are some others I can't remember right now...(if you are reading Ruth please feel free to add in the comments :)

We were lucky to have lemons plucked from their backyard tree by Ruth with the help of one of her twin babes.

I know its all sounding pretty idyllic, and well it was.  Not every winter morning is this sunny or full of joy but it was one of those mornings where the children all played happily, the adults enjoyed endless cups of chai and we all savoured the moment.

Ruth has such a beautiful feel for creating tasty, nourishing food. She rarely follows a recipe except when baking, so when I asked her for this recipe it went along the lines of, "hmmmm lots of eggs, I use lots of eggs. I filled that big bowl with flour and used maybe 6 or 7 eggs. I made a well in the centre of the flour maybe 4 or 5 cups, cracked the eggs in and gently whisked them in so as not create lumps, then I added milk until it was really thin. Oh and a pinch of salt. This batch had a pinch of salt. Oh and it must be made the night before. I don't know if that's an old wives tale but it is something I always do, make the mixture the night before."

For those of you who feel lost at the mere thought of throwing ingredients together and hoping for the best I had a go at making Ruth's recipe for you with measurements. Ruth changes the flour around depending on what she has in the cupboard, sometimes buckwheat, sometimes wholemeal spelt mixed with white spelt, other times some rice flour gets thrown in too.

So this weekend get a few friends together, pray for a good dose of winter sun and make a batch of Ruth's spelt crepes.

Ruth's spelt crepes with avo, fetta, lemon and sprouts

Ingredients

2 cups wholemeal spelt flour
3 eggs
1 cup of milk of choice
1 and 1/3 cups of water
pinch of salt (optional)
1 large ripe avocado, roughly 'smashed' in a bowl with a fork
1 container Barambah organic marinated fetta (this just happened to be the one Ruth had)
Sprouts of your choice
1 lemon cut into wedges to squeeze
Butter or coconut oil for frying

(makes 12-14 depending on the size of your pan)

To make

Make the mixture the night before.
Place flour in large mixing bowl.
Make a well in the centre and crack eggs into well.
Using a hand whisk, gently whisk the eggs into the flour and begin to gradually add the milk and then the water.
Continue whisking until smooth.
Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Next morning take the mixture out of the fridge and allow to come to room temperature.
Depending on how thick or thin you like your crepes you may need to add some more milk or water, if you like them paper thin like Ruth's you want the mixture to be very thin, the consistency of water.
If you are feeding a crowd and want to cook a stack and keep them warm, turn your oven on low and as you cook the crepes add them to a plate, cover with foil and keep in the oven.
Heat a large round frypan or crepe pan if you have one, and add a teaspoon of butter or coconut oil, enough to coat the bottom of the pan.
When the fat is sizzling pour in enough mixture to coat the bottom of the pan.
Turn the heat down a touch if too high, cook until bubbles appear and then flip over and cook other side until golden.
As Ruth says, the first couple are never the best of the batch, not that anyone complains!

To assemble

Place some smashed avocado, crumbled fetta and a sprinkling of sprouts in the centre, squeeze lemon over the top and roll up. So delicious and they would also make a nourishing afternoon tea alternative to cake!

stills collection

1. Goodmorning Grandfather Sun. As much as I prefer not being woken up before dawn by Sol, I do love how excited children are each day to see the sun and begin the day.

2. You know I'm a fan of kids in the kitchen. Here is River chopping a vegetable he doesn't like to eat but I figure getting him to touch it is the first step towards him enjoying to eat it one day!

3. Those mushrooms ended up in this yummy stir-fry Uncle Dave cooked for us with soba noodles.

4. This little beauty arrived with another beauty, our friend Ruth :)

5. Our friend Cath came up from Melbourne to work on some photos with Pete for her new business which I am excited to share with you soon!

6. And then this arrived in the mail...an early 40th birthday present...a massage and aromatherapy facial. Such a beautiful gift. It was a heavenly 2 hours. Lucky me! A big mwah and thankyou to my dear thoughtful and generous friend.

weekend reading

It was an honour to be featured on Olga's blog this week in her Inspiring Peace series

And to have one of my recipes in Sonia's 10 nourishing soups post. Thanks for having me ladies!

When sugar isn't sweet - very interesting read about one mother's experience with her sugar sensitive child

Sourdough lovers how about a sourdough black forest cake? 

Pete Evans' recipe for cauliflower fried rice with chicken looks pretty good!

I've enjoyed discovering Holistic Bliss magazine this week

Georgia shares How to exercise and meditate everyday no matter how busy you are

We're off to downtown Lismore today. I've never been there before I'm looking forward to doing some exploring with River and Sol while Pete delivers some of his books to the uni.

Speaking of books, my ebook is coming along. Yes taking much longer than I anticipated but I'm getting there! And this week I was very happy to get a yes from the editor I had in mind to work on the book so I am extra inspired to get it finished!!

I hope you've got a great weekend ahead that of course involves some cooking and sharing of food with people you love. Happy weekending. X

thursday recipe: zucchini fritters + fruity salad

There's been a bit of a fritter frenzy around here. It all started with zucchini fritters, a few days later broccoli fritters and then last night after dinner Uncle Dave introduced River and Sol to a dessert indulgence of pineapple and banana fritters.

We are staying with our good friend Uncle Dave just near Byron Bay, David is vegetarian much to carnivore Sol's amazement, and I've been coming up with inventive ways to get Sol excited about vegetarian meals.

So far I've failed dismally (I don't think a cheese and avocado toasty on pumpkin and pepita bread counts as a vegetarian meal). River however is sold on vegetable fritters.

If you've never made fritters before they are very simple and lend themselves to an array of vegetables. I think the biggest selling point for kids who are not fans of vegetables is that they typically include cheese of some description. I am yet to meet a child who doesn't love cheese. That said, we try to go easy on dairy here because it doesn't seem to take much dairy and everyone is congested.

In this recipe I use labne cheese, which is made by straining yoghurt. I'm told it is easy to make but haven't gotten around to giving it a go yet, so I used locally made baraka labne.

As you can see in the photos Sol was helping me with the grating, his first time loose in the kitchen with a grater. I'd never thought of grating zucchini lengthways. Thankfully his knuckles remained intact. Even though it takes more time having kids help in the kitchen it is so important to get them involved in day to day cooking, not just licking the bowl when baking!

I served the patties with a fruity salad, I know adding apple and passionfruit to salad sounds weird but it worked!

I hope these fritters win some fans in your house.

Zucchini fritters

Ingredients

1/2 cup wholemeal spelt flour
1/2 cup labne
2 tbsp chopped fresh mint
2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
1 egg, whisked
4-5 small zucchini
Ghee or oil of choice for frying

To make

Grate zucchini and place in colander.
Squeeze excess liquid from grated zucchini and place in mixing bowl.
Add in remaining ingredients and mix until combined.
Heat oil in pan to medium high heat. Drop a pinch of mixture into pan to see if oil is hot enough.
Using a measure of approximately 2 tablespoons to form one fritter, place fritters into oil, flatten out a little with spatula and cook until golden on each side.

For the fruity salad I used mixed lettuce, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, green capsicum, beetroot, apple, passionfruit and chopped fresh parsley. I dressed it with lemon juice and olive oil.

If you want more zucchini fritter recipes go here. And for broccoli version go here. Enjoy!

wholefood mama & family are hitting the road...

I've been meaning to post about this for a while but somehow life got full busy as it does and now Thursday, our departure date is almost here.

This trip has been brewing for a while. I think I've resisted writing about it here because it makes it real! I am excited about travelling up the east coast of Australia with my family but I'm also a bit dare I say, anxious. I'm a Virgo, we do anxious and calm well.

It will be a work trip. I will continue to write both here and the plan is to foray into some travel writing. And Pete who some of you know is a photographer and author will be working in remote Indigenous communities www.bepartofthehealing.org and also doing some photography workshops and book presentations along the way.

I will be homeschooling River and Sol. I'll just write that again so it sinks in, I will be homeschooling River and Sol. Yes ok, I'm a bit nervous about that. Feels like a big thing for them to be missing almost two terms of school and kinder. I trust I am completely capable of making sure that they read, write, count and be creative every day, but then my irrational brain chimes in and reminds me how happy they are at school and kinder, how they (& I) really like the rhythm of our days and that life on the road is going to be, a bit well, unpredictable.

Despite working as a freelancer for the last 13 years I actually really like routine or rhythm whatever you prefer to call it. I know I will find our new rhythm on the road, but I also know it will take some adjusting to.

Before I start sounding like a completely neurotic woman and you click over to another blog because you wish you were going on a road trip and you can't bear to read another word of my fretting, this post is also to let you know that the frequency of posting may change a bit too. I am hoping to regale you with wholefood travel tales but if I disappear for a few days its because there's no WiFi!

What I am looking forward to is time with friends in Bermagui, time with beautiful Jay and her family in Bellingen, time exploring Sydney with the boys while Pete works, and time in Byron our home away from home. After that, no dates and places are set yet. Oh catching up with the girls from Confetti Mag when we reach Townsville. My mind hasn't made it past Byron yet. Past my comfort zone. Perhaps I will get to meet a few more of you at farmer's markets and health food stores along the coast...

While we are away River will turn 8 and I will turn 40. And we will have our eyes peeled for our potential new home in the warmer northern climate...watch this space xxx

Have you ever been on an extended road trip with children? Tell me the highlights and lowlights. Or do you dream of doing it but haven't worked out how to make it happen. I'd love to hear.

wholefood step-by-step: # 17 phase out processed snacks

Walking on to River's schoolground one afternoon I picked up the wrappers pictured above that were blowing around the oval. I picked them up not to put them in the bin but because I wanted to read the list of ingredients.

To the majority of  parents at River's school me doing this would seem weird and a bit over the top, after all, it isn't really a big deal that kids eat snack food is it? Well, of course I do think it is a big a deal. A really big deal that so many people, children and adults are eating mainly foods from packets and that they think that there will be no impact on their health and well-being and that they don't give a moments thought to the environmental impacts of the earth's resources that go into creating the products and the packaging that they come in.

The way I see it, the problem isn't eating these foods once, or if there was one snack food in the lunchbox and the rest of the time it is fruit, vegetables and protein, no there are two problems as I see it:

1. The Myth of Moderation - this is really a post in itself but I will touch on it here. The old 'everything in moderation' is full of problems because one person's moderation is another person's overload and vice versa. The most accurate way to work out if your family is consuming something moderately or occasionally is to keep a food journal, I think you would be surprised to see how many snacks and 'treats' are sneaking in that are full of processed ingredients such as wheat, refined sugar and damaged fats that are not nourishing in any way.

2. The second problem that goes with this is the cumulative effect of eating non-foods or factory made foods. Sure everyone might be able to get away with eating a packet of chips or some other processed snack from time to time but the problem is that ingredients such as wheat, sugar and damaged fats are in just about every processed food on the supermarket shelf, even in ones you don't expect them to be - who expects chocolate to have wheat in it? or muesli to have sugar and vegetable oil in it? So, without even trying people who include processed foods daily in their diets are overloading their bodies with ingredients that impact their digestion and immunity and ultimately their overall health.

Using these two snack foods as examples let's take a look at the ingredients:

Dominion Naturals - Ropes. Strawberry, raspberry and blueberry flavoured. No artificial colours or flavours. No preservatives, gluten free and 99% fat free. That is the list of selling points on the packaging. Many people would read this and think its good, it is 'natural' and free of artificial nasties, it contains fruit and it is fat free (inference is that you won't get fat by eating it). A the very bottom of the nutrition table in fine print are the words: Fruit juice based confectionery. So, really these are lollies dressed up by marketers as something healthy. (Makes me cross!!) The ingredients: glucose syrup, sugar, fruit juice concentrate (18%), Gelatine, Gelling Agent (406), Thickener (1401), Acidity Regulators (330,296), Natural colours (140, 163, 120), Natural Flavours, Glazing Agent (903).

Sun rice mini bites creepy cheese. Delicious mini brown rice cakes, seasoned with tasty natural flavours that are the perfect bite-size to munch and crunch. Made with wholegrain brown rice. No artificial colours or flavours. Gluten free. Wholegrain brown rice, consumers think that's good isn't it? Ingredients: wholegrain brown rice (84%), seasoning (milk solids, salt, natural flavour, hydrolysed corn protein, yeast extracts, cheese powder, sunflower oil, acidity regulators (270, 327), sunflower oil. This product also has a logo on it that reads 'National Healthy School Canteen - Amber Compliant' which would give some parents an added reassurance that they are buying healthy food.

Processed snacks may be quick to throw in the lunchbox but with some planning ahead so are homemade snacks. By making some time each week to bake some muffins, make muesli bars, bliss balls, or even to bake cake and then freezing them you are providing your family with wholesome wholefood snacks that are vastly better for their bodies and minds and for the planet.

I can hear some of you sighing and thinking oh no another thing to do but I think it is so worth the time and effort. Good health is such a precious gift that deserves to be protected every chance we have. The problem with having a processed diet is that the effects take time to show up. With the dominance of commercially produced food that is presented to us daily in various settings, there has never been a more important time to be proactive and stay ahead with good health. Many people wait until they get sick to make changes to their diet and lifestyle. Don't wait to get sick for that to be your reason to make changes, prevention is much better than cure.

Take a moment to ask yourself why do you buy processed snacks, for convenience? because kids like them or ask for them? as treats?

If you buy them because your children like them or have asked you to buy them explain to them that you have learnt more about the ingredients in them and that they are not nourishing for their bodies and they do not help them to think and concentrate at school and that instead you will be making your own snacks to put in lunchboxes. If you like, you can then get your children involved in choosing some recipes and preparing the lunchbox snacks. If you would prefer to phase out the snacks rather than going cold turkey perhaps you could include a processed snack twice a week, Tuesday and Friday and then reduce it to one day and eventually none.

Here are some links to recipes to get you started with alternatives to processed snacks, once you get into the mindset that this is totally doable and that it is so worth it you won't even notice that you are doing it and you won't miss the so called convenience of processed snacks.

Six Healthy Biscuits for Lunchboxes
Ten Healthy Muffin Recipes
Carrot Cake Slice
Spiced apricot, orange and quinoa muesli bars
Muesli bars with dried cranberries and seeds
Raw chocolate bliss balls

Oh and by the way never feel guilty or embarrassed about where you are at on your food journey. The most important thing is that we are all doing the best we can with the time, money and knowledge we have. Make small adjustments as you go along. Modern living can be stressful enough as it is, don't add guilt to your plate, do what you can making small adjustments as your knowledge grows.

I wish you well with making this change. I think you will find it so satisfying to stop buying processed snacks I know I have. Xx

wholefood step-by-step: #14 keep food guilt in check

With the school holidays and Easter upon us I thought it was timely to write about this topic. Today I am delving into the emotional heart of wholefood living because there's a whole lot more to this than what's on your shopping list. Warning, I delve deep!

In an ideal world, guilt, blame and shame would in no way be part of anyone's relationship with food but the reality is that these emotions around food are common for lots of people. Especially I would say, people who are either wanting to or are in the process of transitioning to a wholefood way of eating. Because you see, it can very much be a two steps forward one step back experience as you learn new recipes, new places to buy food, better ways to be organised and so on. There will be some days where you will revert back to old 'comfort' foods or as is the case with school holidays and Easter there will be so many 'opportunities' to eat less nourishing foods that it can potentially feel overwhelming and like you have somehow failed if fish and chips, ice creams and chocolate eggs are eaten. Hello guilt, blame, shame.

Send those emotions packing I say. Progress not perfection is our mantra here.

On the school holidays I maintain our wholefood way at home and do my best when we go out, by taking food with me, sharing a wholefood picnic with friends that sort of thing. However, when the times arise that my boys eat 'junk' food most likely in the form of hot chips, a treat from their grandparents, Easter eggs, an ice cream with friends I don't get hung up about it and if I feel like eating some of that sort of food too I join them!

I am very mindful of the range of emotional aspects of eating because I spent twenty years of my life with an exceptionally poor body image - including much of my childhood - self-loathing at times for my poor food choices was chronic and unrelenting. I am beyond grateful to have moved through that (by doing lots of emotional healing work) and I wish that no one else ever had to feel that way - especially children.

If you are still carrying around negative emotions and thoughts about food and your relationship with it from your childhood and you are now a parent, it really is time to work on letting them go because consciously or unconsciously you can be sharing them with your children. I warned you I was delving deep!

This holidays keep things in perspective, certainly make your offerings to your children nutritious and delicious and fun but if things veer off track here and there be kind to yourself and know that you will get back on track soon and over the years you will naturally veer off less and less.

Alexx Stuart posted this sweet reminder on this topic on her facebook page.

Please share your thoughts on this topic in the comments I'd love to hear them and your story may just be the inspiration someone else needs.

wholefood step-by-step: # 6 milk it

Milk is a great example of how processed food has become. Once upon a time people drank milk fresh from a cow (or goat or sheep). 'Milk the cow' would have been an item on your to do list. Not so these days.

Let's take a look at the different milks available and see if I can make it a little easier for you to sort your almond milk, from your soy, cow, goat, rice, oat, A2, skinny milk, raw, pastuerised and homogenised. Oh add coconut milk to that list.

Cow's milk
First, a couple of terms explained. You've probably noticed the words 'pasteurised' and 'homogenised' on the side of cow's milk cartons, essentially this means that the milk has been processed - read changed - from its natural state.

What is pasteurisation?

Pasteurisation is when milk is heated to approximately 72 degrees celcius for 15-20 seconds. The reason milk is treated in this way is to kill all disease-causing microbes.

What is homogenisation?

Basically homogenisation keeps the components of milk together. That is the cream, the fat, does not rise to the top as it did in an old-fashioned bottle of milk. 

Cow's milk (or goat or sheep milk) that hasn't been processed is known as raw milk and is illegal to sell in Australia. The reason it is illegal is because the pasteurisation process destroys any potentially harmful bacteria, the problem is the pasteurisation also destroys the enzymes in the milk and alters the composition making it difficult for many people to digest and leaving it devoid of its natural nourishing properties. I have many friends who seek raw milk out usually through their local health food stores where it is sold as 'bath milk' this gets around the legalities. For more about raw milk read this post I wrote last year, or this post from Sally Fallon author of Nourishing Traditions.

A2
The name of this milk, A2, refers to the type of protein in the milk of Jersey and Guernsey cows. Whereas the milk from Holstein cows, the main breed of dairy cow in Australia, is A1. The key difference between A1 and A2 beta casein proteins is their digestibility, A2 is reported to be much easier to digest this is why it has become increasingly popular. Blogger and nutritionist Katie 180 has written this convincing post in support of switching to A2 milk. And this post from The Food Intolerance Network is worth a look.

Goat's Milk 
Goat's milk has a very distinctive flavour and smell that for most people is quite overpowering in comparison to cow's milk. Some people who find the proteins in cow's milk difficult to digest, find the protein in goat's milk easier on their digestion. Again, the raw form of this milk is the most nutritionally dense. For more detailed information on goat's milk go here.

Rice Milk and Oat Milk
Milk from rice or oats? Yes when I stop and think about that it definitely does not seem right! If eating a low or no processed diet is your aim, then it is best to steer clear of milk substitutes such as these.
I started having rice milk on my porridge or muesli, or in a smoothie, a few years ago when I began weaning myself off soy milk (still a work in progress, I drink soy in my daily coffee). It is very important to read the ingredients on these milks, you might be surprised to learn that most contain oil of some kind such as sunflower and some also contain sweeteners and salt.

Soy Milk
The subject of soy milk probably warrants a whole post of its own but keeping in context of this post if you are going to include soy milk in your diet look for organic, GMO, additive free and be mindful of the quantity you are consuming. There have been many links made between drinking soy milk and hormonal imbalance, namely relating to thyroid regulation. For more info read
The Myths and Facts about soy milk  and my previous post on soy milk.

Coconut Milk
To say coconut anything is flavour of the month would be an understatement! I'm not sure about coconut milk in a morning cup of tea but definitely coconut milk is a great addition to your cooking be it in curries or in baking, or in your favorite smoothie. Here is an excellent article on coconut milk that includes directions to make your own.

Almond Milk
As with rice and oat milk, milk from nuts? I'm not convinced. Once in a while I think almond milk is fine in your smoothie or if you like a warm milk drink. If you want to have a go at making almond milk at home here is a terrific post from The Kitchn on how to do it.

In my house we have rice milk for muesli or porridge and soy milk for chai. The bottle of A2 in the picture above I bought to use in a cake recipe, I am tempted to give A2 a go in place of the rice milk and soy milk but I don't like that it is not organic.

A friend who is a naturopath and agrees that deciding what to eat is difficult especially when there is so much conflicting information available, when it comes to milk she switches the variety around regularly, one week buying rice milk, raw milk the next, oat milk another time and so on.

Things to consider when it comes to choosing the right milk for you and your family
- Is it organic?
- Free of genetically modified ingredients?
- Monitor the quantity consumed
- Look for symptoms - such as congestion, tummy upsets, skin rashes - that could be related to the type and quantity of milk you are drinking.
- Switch milks around to see which one is the most compatible with your digestion and nutritional needs.

** remember, I am not a doctor or health practitioner if you require health or dietary advice please see a qualified professional who comes well recommended.

Further reading

Choice magazine review of alternative milks
Coconut and almond milk in cartons not a healthy buy

Tell me, I am fascinated to know how many different kinds of milk you have in your fridge right now! Share your milk stories in the comments, it may well help someone else.