HAPPY INTERNATIONAL WOMENS DAY!

Hope you all have had an amazing day! My day started off teaching yoga, with a women's theme of course. We practised some of my favourite yoga poses with a lot of female power (think Warrior ll, Lord of the Dance and Bow) and celebrated ourselves and our bodies all throughout the class. An hour of bliss.

One of the yoga poses that has always fascinated me the most is Sarvangasana, or shoulderstand. 

Actually, it might be one of the first poses that I ever tried out. If you don't count basic poses such as a cross legged or savasana, obviously. 

Sarvangasana always came so naturally to me, to just throw my feet up into air, resting them on the wall - or as a free stand, with my back resting in the palms of the hands. 

It is like my body is asking me to do this pose; it really helps me to clear my mind. 

Next time you feel restless, agitated or stuck in a rut - try it out. Only after a few minutes of pressing down through the upper arms and watching your toes reach up towards the sky, your mind and senses will heighten and most likely, you will feel back in tune with the now. Feeling grounded, focused and with a new frame of mind 

Preparing for and moving into Sarvangasana

1. Fold a few blankets, evenly and to a large enough piece to fit your arms and back. 
2. Place your blankets at the top of your yoga mat or about 50 cm away from the wall. Turn the folded edges towards the wall or the edge of the mat
3. Lie down on your back with the shoulders two centimeters away from the folded edge. 
4. Bend your knees and bring the arms in by your sides, palms facing up. 
5. Root your shoulders and arms into the blanket.
6. Inhale gently, and as you exhale swing your legs up in the air and/or against the wall. 
7. Bend the elbows and place the palms of your hands on your lower back with the fingers pointing up.
8. Keep your elbows in line with the shoulders and keep you neck still for good alignment
9.. Reach out through the toes and bear the body weight through the foundation - your elbows, shoulders, and head. Each point should bear weight, but your elbows should bear the most, followed by your shoulders and your head. 
10. If your neck is comfortable and your setup feels like a breeeze, stay for 5 to 10 breaths. Then, slowly release from the pose. Gradually increase the time spent in the pose, to eventually remain in the pose for five peaceful minutes.

The joy of going to a market on a Saturday morning. Nothing can really beat it. It is just the best way to begin the weekend.

The above picture is from a market near Parc des buttes Chaumont in Paris. It is such a lovely market that even has an organic section. What is so great with buying your fruit and vegetables, cheese, bread, eggs and others products at the market is that they are often locally grown and/or produced. 

Feel free to ask the people in the stand where the eggs they sell are coming from. It might be that they are from a nearby farm where the hens have access to green grass. According to this article, these eggs are just so much better for you than any organic eggs you will find in the supermarket. Not to mention their taste..

Another great thing is that you support the farmers and growers in your local area, so that they can keep doing what they are doing without, hopefully, having to compromise the quality of their food.

My favourite local markets here in Dublin are Temple Bar market, The Supernatural food market and Dublin food co-op.
They are all really great. Temple Bar market has the best local apples and last time I went to the Supernatural food market I got a pack of organic kale for only €1.25 since they were about to close for the day. The joy!
Obviously I ran home to make this salad. 

Now, let me introduce you to my favourite soup of all times. 
It is so creamy, satisfying, healthy and easy; it has been a lifesaver this winter. 

Fennel cauliflower soup with walnut oil
Serves 4-6 guests

2 tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves
2 cups (200 g) chopped leeks (2 or 3 leeks)
1/4 fennel
1 head of cauliflower
1 small piece of broccoli
a pinch of chilli flakes
sea salt
1/4 cup (40 g) raw cashews or almonds (soaked*)

walnut oil
sumac
pumpkin seeds

*At least 6-8 hours before, soak the raw nuts in plenty of water.
Wash and chop the cauliflower, leeks and fennel. Peel the garlic and slice it lengthwise. Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan and sauté the garlic, leeks, chilli and fennel for about 3 minutes until the vegetables are soft. Add the cauliflower and broccoli and sauté for another 2 minutes.

Meanwhile, bring 6 cups of water to the boil. Then add all the water with a tablespoon of salt to the vegetables and let simmer for 30 minutes.

When the vegetables are soft, remove the saucepan from the heat and allow the soup to cool slightly. Discard the water and rinse the nuts very well. Once the soup has cooled down a little, pour half of the soup and half of the nuts into your blender and mix on high until smooth. Keep the detachable part of the lid slightly open to allow steam to come out.

Pour the soup into a large serving bowl as you mix the other half of the soup and nuts. If the soup is cold, heat it a bit more in the pan. This final step is a little bit messy, but believe me, it's worth it because by now you have the most fragrant and creamy soup ever.
  
To serve, pour the the soup into bowls and garnish with sumac, pumpkin seeds and drizzle with walnut oil!

When it comes to smoothies, I have always tried to keep the ingredient list as short as possible. Not just because it makes it more simple to prepare, but the flavour also turns out fresh and flavourful.

My man still refers to my green smoothies as “drinking a forest” or “chewing on a lawn” but the truth is - he has never even tasted them.

Surely, flavours with a tone of bitterness have to be "acquired" by most people. For example, when you start drinking coffee and green tea it makes it so much easier if you mix it up with something sweet. That is, coffee and milk or green tea and honey. 

This smoothie, looks super green (!), but trust me it tastes of pineapple and cinnamon. It is the perfect weekend smoothie since it requires a bit more prepping time. Or if you fancy it during the week - you can always slice the pineapple and wash the kale the night before. That would probably half the preparation time. And also, I have always been super suspicious about celery; it has such a pungent taste! In this recipe however, I doubt you will even feel it. 

Cinnamon green smoothie
Serves 1-2 people

1/4 pineapple
2-3 leaves (75 g) green curly kale
1 red apple
1 stalk celery
1/4 avocado
1/2 lemon
1 orange
1 tsp ginger
1 tsp cinnamon

Wash the apple and celery and cut into small chunks, pop into the blender. Slice off a quarter of the pineapple, remove the tough skin, chop into chunks and add to the blender. Peel and add each orange segment to the blender.

Wash the kale and remove the tough stems. Squeeze the juice from half a lemon. Open an avocado and spoon out a fourth, then add to the blender together with the  kale and lemon juice.

Add the spices and fill up with cold water up to one third of the blender's height. Blend for at least 2 minutes. Taste, and feel free to add more cinnamon if desired. 

Serve directly!