my life, spirituality, travels and more
Health is your greatest wealth - my experience with Susa's Deli (home delivered healthy meal plan service)
*In collaboration with Susa’s Deli
New Year - New me? - A cliche worth committing to!
Well hello hello hello and happy new year everyone!
Each year, there is a desire in each one of us to do a little better than we did the previous year, and in particular when it comes to taking care of our bodies and our overall health. With infection rates on the rise and new variants appearing from right and left, there’s even a deeper emphasis on health this year. Boosting the immune system is not only good for you, but actually provides protection against disease by creating a barrier that stops those nasty invaders (antigens) from entering the body. Perhaps this profound significance of staying healthy will also aid us all to not only making, but actually sticking to our new years resolutions of a “new healthier me” this year?
Many people may think that new year’s resolutions are nothing but silly cliches that people create to make themselves feel better. Personally however, I find that new years are magical. Energetically they offer us a fresh start a clean slate and therefor an opportunity to start anew and create better healthier habits. I actually once turned a new year’s resolution of becoming vegetarian into a 12 year lifestyle commitment (until I noticed I was low on iron).
You can check out their different meal plans here.
What makes the first week of January even a little more special for me, is that both mine and my boyfriend’s birthdays happen to fall on that very first week of the year. This year we were lucky to kick it off and celebrate all these festivities with a collaboration with a small family run meal delivery business, Susa’s Deli.
Susa’s Deli is a prepared meal home delivery service that currently offers three different plans: 7 days, 30 days and for two weeks. You can choose between a vegetarian or mixed meal plan. You’ll get three meals per day, including breakfast, lunch and dinner. All meals are made with healthy and nutritious ingredients, using fresh local produce and you set up the drop off times according to your schedule.
If you’ve followed me for a while (or read some of my previous blog posts), you may also know that I am really into subtle energy, and that I also emphasise Albert Einstein’s quote of “everything is energy”. The food you eat, the thoughts you think and the actions you take. Since food is a huge source of energy and an actual component of what makes you into you (a.k.a. you are what you eat) it is extremely crucial for your overall health and wellbeing to eat healthy. When we eat nutritious rich food, not only do we feel better, but we vibrate on a higher frequency, and therefor have more energy, feel better and actually think clearer.
One of the beautiful things about Susa’s is, that all their meals are home made using local produce and Finnish ingredients. You can check out their list of the producers they use here. I enjoyed all the meals, but my personal favourites were the green smoothie (pictured), veggie soup, chicken curry, mozzarella wraps, sweet potato patty pasta, quinoa salad and fish soup. Another aspect that I enjoyed about this service, is the easiness and convenience of it. Instead of spending time (money and energy) on thinking about what to cook and what to buy from the store, you have these lovely ready made meals that you only need to heat up. It also made me think how this service would be very suitable and helpful for busy people or families alike.
Another thing that felt great about this collaboration was connecting and working with another small business. When I received the first delivery, I was touched by the hand written note explaining each meal, which made it feel very personal.
Interestingly, there was a strong synchronicity of me landing this collaboration. Just a couple weeks before being contacted by Susa’s, I had connected with a customer at my Pop Up Shop who spoke very highly about Susan (one of the founders of the company) and her other services as a channeller. As it also happens, I’ve actually once had a session with her many many years ago, even before my years moving to Mexico. This made it all feel very aligned and like a collaboration meant to happen. As I am a strong believer in synchronicities (instead of coincides), perhaps there’s also reason you’re also reading this blog post… perhaps you've decided that the coming year is dedicated to changing your habits and start living a healthier life? If so, I truly recommend this service. Not only is is all of the above, but it’s quite affordable in my opinion! You can check out their website here and the different meal plans here and give them a follow on their instagram here. We all know covid-19 has been tough on small businesses, so let’s choose wisely the ones we support and buy from!
Cheers to a happy healthy 2022!
Xx,
Eva
Easy vegan chocolate vanilla swirl mousse - with only 5 ingredients 🤎🤍
In collaboration with Fazer Aito
The world’s easiest vegan chocolate vanilla swirl mousse - with only 5 ingredients
I’m so excited to share this simple yet indulgent vegan chocolate mousse recipe to you guys that me and my good friend and fellow yogini, Jonna threw together! Rich, creamy and fluffy - this is your ultimate chocolate & vanilla fix 😋! This super easy recipe only consists of five main ingredients and is so quick to make, you’ll whip it together in no time even if your guests are already at your house, or why not treat yo’self and make a sweet quick snack for yourself to celebrate, well, life. Because why not. Without further ado, let’s dive in.
The following amounts are for two people, so just divide the amount if you’re making it yourself, double if for four, etc. You get the math 😊:
What you need (for two persons:
🍌1 small ripe banana
🥛🌾1 Aito Vaahtoutuva Kaura Vaniljakastike (oat vanilla sauce that is completely gluten and dairy free, made out of Finnish oats. You can use this vanilla sauce as it is, or whip it for a more fluffy texture).
🍯2 tbsp of agave syrup
🤎2-3 tbsp of cacao powder (start with two teaspoons and check the flavour once blended. Add more to suit taste.)
🥑1 ripe avocado (Make sure your avocado is truly ripe. If it is too hard it won’t blend properly.)
🧂pinch of salt
How to (shortest instructions ever):
➡️Simply combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor (with the exception of the Aito vanilla oat sauce) until completely smooth.
➡️Pour chocolate mousse and Aito Vaahtoutuva Kaura Vaniljakastike in layers into serving cups. You can whip the vanilla sauce if you prefer a more fluffy texture.
➡️For decoration you can add strawberries, blueberries, coconut flakes and chia seeds.
Enjoy!
For more recipes, check out www.fazeraito.fi
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Suomeksi 🇫🇮
Kaupallisessa yhteistyössä Fazer Aito
Maailman helpoin suklaavaniljamousse- vain 5 aineksella
Välillä täytyy vähän herkutella, ja mikä sen ihanempaa kuin vegaaninen suklaavaniljamousse, nam 😋! Tää on yks mun lempparijälkkäreistä, jonka teimme yhdessä hyvän ystäväni ja kollegani Jonna Monolan kanssa. Tää mousse on taivaallinen, sillä se on täyteläinen, kermainen ja suussasulava ja mikä parasta, se on täysin vegaaninen ja superhelppo ja nopea tehdä! Tarvitset ainoastaan viisi ainesta ja sen tekeminen on niin vaivatonta, että voit huoletta myös loihtia tämän reseptin sun vieraille, vaikka he olisivatkin jo kylässä - tai sitten pyöräytät sen ihan vaan itsellesi täydelliseen hemmotteluhetkeen.
Ainekset kahdelle hengelle:
🍌1 pieni kypsä banaani
🥛🌾1 Aito Vaahtoutuva Kaura Vaniljakastike Tämä ihana maidoton ja gluteeniton ja kotimaisesta kaurasta valmistettu vaniljakastike sopii tähän reseptiin käytettäväksi sellaisenaan tai kuohkeaksi vaahdotettuna!
🍯2 tl agavesiirappia
🤎2-3 tl kaakaojauhetta (aloita kahdella teelusikallisella, ja kokeile makua kun sekoitettu, voit lisätä oman maun mukaan.)
🥑1 kypsä avokado (On tärkeää, että avokado tosiaan on kypsä, kovaa avokadoa on vaikea blenderöidä muuten!)
🧂kevyt ripaus suolaa
Ohjeet (ja hyvin lyhyet sellaiset):
➡️ Yksinkertaisesti lisää kaikki ainekset blenderiin tai monitoimikoneeseen (paitsi Aito Vaahtoutuva Kaura Vaniljakastike) ja sekoita, kunnes massa on sileää
➡️ Lusikoi seuraavaksi kerroksittain suklaamoussea ja Kaura Vaniljakastiketta annoskuppeihin, voit toki myös vaahtouttaa vaniljakastikkeen, jotta lopputulos on vieläkin kuohkeampi!
➡️Koristele haluamallasi tavalla (anna moussen jähmettyä hetki jääkaapissa ennen koristelua). Me käytettiin mansikoita, mustikoita, kookoshiutaleita ja chia-siemeniä. Pikantin lisäyksen saat vielä esim. sitruunamelissan lehdestä!
Nauti!
Löydät lisää ihania respetejä myös täältä www.fazeraito.fi
Uudistunut Aito Kaura Vaniljakastike on nyt myös vaahtoutuva ja gluteeniton! Tää jälkkäri on vaan niin best! Suosittelen!
Easy VEGAN carrot cake 🥕
My favourite carrot cake recipe, that also happens to be vegan
The following recipe is probably one of my favourite desserts on planet earth: CARROT CAKE 😋The cool thing about this easy recipe is, that it’s 100% vegan and completely cruelty free, meaning it contains zero animal products in it. Extra bonus: It’s also gluten free and made without refined sugar. It’s crazy how delicious desserts you can make without any milk, butter or - wheat. This carrot cake is fluffy and quite moist and delish.
What you need (crust):
5 cups of shredded carrots
2 cups of oat milk
5 cups of buckwheat
2 1/2 cups coconut sugar
1 1/2 cups of coconut oil
1 tbsp cinnamon
1 tsp cardamom
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
Frosting:
100 grams of unflavoured cream cheese
1/2 cup vegan butter
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3 - 4 cups sifted organic powdered sugar (you can use less)
How to:
➡️Peel & shred carrots. Heat oven to 175 Celsius.
➡️To a large mixing bowl, add oat milk, coconut oil, sugar, cinnamon, salt, cardamom and cinnamon. In another bowl, mix buckwheat with baking soda and baking powder. Then, combine these two bowls and mix thoroughly, however avoid making the batter too runny. Add shredded carrots.
➡️Add batter into a pan that you’ve oiled with coconut oil and bake for 45 minutes
➡️Let the cake cool down for at least 30 minute before adding frosting.
➡️To make frosting, simply whisk everything in a bowl and spread on top of the cake. Decorate with walnuts or shredded carrots.
TIPS to consider 👩🏻🍳:
💡Tip: so if you prefer a less moist version, you can simply reduce the amount of carrots and leave it for a little bit longer in the oven.
💡Tip: If you don’t want to use any sugar, supplement it with honey or maple syrup!
💡Tip: Do not use packaged pre-shredded carrots because they are hard and dry.
💡If you melt the coconut oil, make sure all of the other cake batter ingredients (carrots included) are room temperature.
Let me know what you think 😋
ENJOY!
XX
Eva
Simply the best & (easiest) VEGAN blueberry pie
Easy vegan blueberry pie
It’s your Gordon Ramsey here again, hi 👩🏼🍳! Today I’m sharing with you the easiest, quickest and most delicious dessert ever 😋: vegan blueberry pie. What’s even better with this blueberry pie, is that it’s made with blueberries I’ve picked myself just by our summer house and it is completely cruelty free, meaning it is vegan and contains no animal products whatsoever. It’s also gluten free and made without refined sugar. So, with that many perks, you’d think the taste would be compromised - but it’s not, it’s divine. Yum. So without further ado:
What you need (crust):
2,5 dl buckwheat flour
1 cup of coconut oil
1 cup of coconut sugar
1 tsp baking powder
half a cup of oat milk or any other dairy free milk
Even if the weather was not the best, this pie gave us joy.
What to do:
➡️Mix flour & baking powder in one bowl. Mix sugar with coconut oil in another bowl. Add everything together in one bowl and carefully the oat milk while mixing the batter. Add batter into a pan.
➡️Prebake the crust for about 7 minutes in 200 Celsius.
➡️If you’re using frozen blueberries, add the blueberries on top of crust (you can add a little coconut sugar with the blueberries) and bake the whole thing for another 25 minutes. And voila, you’re done✨
Quick & Easy & Healthy
💡Tip: Pre bake crust if you’re using frozen blueberries!
💡Tip: If you don’t want to use any sugar, supplement it with honey or maple syrup!
💡Tip: You can add other berries in the mix as well, such as lingonberries, strawberries, raspberries… use your imagination!
You can serve it with oat milk ice cream or perhaps vegan vanilla sauce 😋
ENJOY!
XX
Eva
10 things you can do right now to feel better + learn the energetics of the situation
10 things you can do right now to feel better + learn the energetics of the situation
Did you know the word ‘Corona’ translates to Crown?
The seven chakras of our energetic body.
The crown of your head is the highest part of your physical body, but the same applies to energy. If you’re unfamiliar with the subtle body, it consists of 7 primary chakras, or energy fields (the word ‘chakra’ translates to wheel and refers to how the energy moves and spins in the energy center).
These chakras are all connected to different areas and aspects of ourselves, our physical bodies and our lives. All of these correspond to functions of different organs. The chakra system runs along the spine and is connected to our nervous system. The first primary chakra is located at the base of our spine and is connected to our sense of survival, our home, our finances and everything we need in our lives in order to feel stable, grounded and supported. The second energy center, located by the reproductive organs, is connected to creation, creativity, sensuality and sexuality. The third energy center is linked to our ego, our core, our sense of self and sits in our solar plexus. The fourth is the heart center, our center for love. The fifth energy center i connected to expression, communication and truth, located at the throat. The sixth sits between our eyebrows and is connected to vision, intuition and wisdom. And the seventh and last one is our sense of unity, belonging, connection. The seventh and last chakra is considered to be the highest chakra representing higher consciousness and unity. You can think of it more as WE energy instead of a ME mindset. It’s what brings us all together and connects us all into one. Interestingly enough, this virus also carries its name.
For a long time already, humanity has been dormant and in darkness. Blindsided to our own greed, actions and choices, we’ve reached a point where our planet is hurting. Here’s the thing, everything is energy and everything has its tipping point. The energy we all hold individually also gathers and forms together into what is called a collective consciousness. This collective consciousness holds our shared beliefs, thoughts and ideas. This collective consciousness has been napping, for well, quite some time now. But now, we’re being told to wake the *insert whatever strong word of your liking* up in a very real way, that surely affects us all in some way or form. The coronavirus is on everyone's lips and minds right now. We’re all talking about the myriad of ways of how it’s touching our lives and worry for our health, finances and the insecure future. As horrible as the situation might feel, this is also an opportunity for change and to become united.
When you think of the virus from an energetic point of view, one could say it pierces through our heart center, both through how it actually affects the people who get sick and also through causing anxiety (that is often felt in the chest through heart palpations or pressure) for many others. In a more Western view we know that the virus attacks the lungs. We know that the virus spreads through touch and physical closeness. These are also aspects of the heart chakra. The heart chakra is connected to the element of air, our lungs and breathing. The sense that is connected to the heart chakra is our sense of touch and the virus also spreads through both the air and through our biggest organ, our skin, again, both connected to the heart center. Emotions that are connected to the heart chakra are; grief, sadness, compassion, love, joy and balance.
And clearly we’ve been living out of balance for a long time already. When this energy enters our hearts it drops down to the root chakra, where many of us might feel compromised currently. We feel a rush of fear take over, as our root chakra is connected to our adrenal glands and to our sense of survival. It’s interesting when you think of people’s reactions and how their primal instinct is to hoard toilet paper and groceries, which are all very basic needs. A primitive reaction, but very understandable when you think at it from an energetic point of view.
In yogic philosophy we are taught how the Kundalini energy sits at the base of our spine and by rising it up to the crown chakra we can become united. In order to reach samadhi or higher consciousness (lift the energy to the crown chakra), our lower chakras need to be in balance and harmony, so that the higher chakras can also open. In order for us to balance this, we need to take care of ourselves, our mutual home, our planet, and each other, and now more than ever so. We need to start building the energy from the bottom up, so that we can feel united and lift the energy up to the crown chakra, our last and seventh chakra and become united. We need to start with the basics.
We’ve clearly been exploiting mama earth and too focused on the material plane (first chakra), which is why now we are being shaken to the core in this energy center. This overcompensation and exploitation of natural resources has no reached a point, where we have an opportunity for change, to become more united. Interestingly enough, from an energetic point of view, when you think about the origin of where the virus stems from, it’s from a food market with animal products. And this is part of the problem and key causes of global warming: animal agriculture. We’ve been consuming and using meat and animal products that are not necessary for all to live and particularly in the amounts that many are consuming. The heavy and toxic energy from dead animals transforms to energy too, which is something we’ve been carrying in our fields of energy.
Now, we are asked to to wake up, think about our choices when it comes to consumerism, our diet and health. But without being too hard on ourselves. Surely there’s a bigger picture here at play and a call for a collective wake up. That doesn’t mean you need to stop being human. We are all in this together and we need to come together and support each other, but we also need to take care of ourselves and our health. Fear lowers the immune system, which is why it’s even more important than ever to stay connected to ourselves through self-care, a healthy diet and exercise (did someone say yoga?). You know what else helps; HUMOR. I think just like with everything in life, balance is key. Don’t be hard on yourself for enjoying your Ben & Jerry’s or binge watching your favorite Netflix show, while everyone else is posting their workout videos. Because self-help can mean a lot of different things and this is also a time to rejuvenate, relax and destress. Take this time to do you. And if you’ve had a breakdown or two, that’s okay too (🙋🏼♀️). This is the human experience. I’ve been on an emotional rollercoaster during this time too and just because I am analysing the energetics of the situation, doesn’t mean I have it figured out. But I try to remind myself that, the only constant is change, and this too shall pass and luckily there are ways to work things out.
Here are 10 tips for the handling the situation:
Buy a voucher from a struggling local business.
Boost your immune system & get your vitamins! Tip: If you live in Helsinki, I highly recommend ordering a berry snack in form of a Quarantine package from Bär Bar
Stay connected to your body. Practice yoga & meditate! Tip: You can check out our online community on Facebook with a local studio here in Helsinki. I had a class yesterday for stabilising the Root Chakra
Make sure to maintain healthy diet and get your exercise going! Tip: Check out my fave PT Kanerva Ahonala and her e-course Paremmille Tavoille (Improve your Ways), which is an e-course for making healthier choices with your diet. Only in Finnish tho.
TURN OFF THE NEWS. You don’t need to read every single news there is - instead you can use this energy into something else. read book or listen to ebooks. Tip: If you’re into spirituality or want to learn more, join me and Jonna Monola for our online course Sacred Ceremony with two guided meditations, and ebook and two yoga practices.
Get your creative juices flowing or start a new project/course/hobby: paint, draw, sing, dance. Tip: Here’s a playlist I made to calm down your nervous system. Or sign up for an online class! I just signed up for Yale’s most popular class for free: How to be happier in your daily life
Nature. As long as we are still allowed outside, take a walk or go out for o run. Enjoy the sunshine. I promise you’ll feel better afterwards.
Gratitude. We are privileged. At the end of the day, we are told to stay home, not to go to war. That being said, you’re allowed to feel your feelings so don’t be hard on yourself if you do feel confused, sad, worried or fearful. It’s human, when you feel those lows try to direct your attention to the good stuff you already have.
Call your friends and loved ones. Tip: There’s a bunch of great apps such as Whereby and Houseparty, where you can talk to a group of friends simultaneously and host virtual wine parties/coffee chats or whatnots.
Laughter. There’s a reason they say laughter is the best medicine and I’ve seen some of the best memes ever during this time. A special shoutout to my meme sender and good friend, Eder, who always keeps me supplied with the funniest stuff. Please feel free to share your favorites with me too! Either by commenting or DM on instagram. Here’s a couple of my faves this far:
Incredible Iceland & why traveling is my vice
Incredible Iceland & why traveling is my vice
By now you’ve probably created your own eco conscious habits or if not, perhaps it’s time. Global warming is no joke and definitely not fake news, even if the misogonyst, racist, homophobic president of the US claims otherwise.
Taking action is something that must be done on a personal level and we all can do better. There’s many ways to live more ecologically and perhaps one of the most powerful ways is to start checking what you put on your plate, three times a day. If you’re a newbie to this concept, I recommend not just taking my word for it, but educating yourself and an easy way to start would be by picking up the following documentaries; Cowspiracy, Meat the Truth, Forks over knives and Before the flood.
I’ve been vegetarian for the past 9 years, on and off vegan (or wannabe vegan as I like to put it) and can semi proudly say that my carbon footprint is most likely smaller than yours, if you consume meat that is. That being said, I am no saint and I definitely have a footprint as well as my vice happens to be traveling. The thing with traveling is though, that seeing new places and experiencing the beauty of our planet is my thirst, a thirst so strong it’s hard to quench. And even if jumping on jumbo jet is not ideal for our beloved mama earth, it is lesser of a harmful activity, than consuming factory farmed meat.
So traveling it is. The last 9 months or so have been quite the whirlwind for me; I’ve been back and forth to Mexico twice, traveled to Morocco, Italy, Sweden a couple times, Estonia, the US (LA) and now finally last weekend to the beautiful, incredible Iceland. But my thirst does not end there and I find myself constantly longing to hop on the plane and visit new & old places yet again. And yes, I am very aware of how privileged I am and do not take it for granted. That being said, I do feel like it’s a choice to a certain extent. Before getting all agro on me, I mean if you live in a welfare society, or the fact that you have a device to be reading this blog, says that you have some cash to your disposal and it’s merely a consumer choice where you like to put it. Some love Gucci bags, some booze and some traveling. It all comes down to your likings and I am not claiming your preference is worse or better than mine. I am simply sharing mine.
Choices. That’s what it all comes down to. Dropping the steak is simply the most efficient solution you can do on a personal level to fight global warming and the cool thing about is it does not cost a dime, more on the contrary, it will actually save a buck here and there. And not only is it a kinder solution for the planet and the animals, it’s simply a way healthier way of living and being. If you practice yoga, you’ve most likely come across the term “ahimsa”, meaning do no harm to self or others, so it’s pretty damn aligned with the yogic philosophy as well (hear hear yogis aka practice what you preach). If you need more reasons to drop that sausage or entrecote there’s a ton of articles and material on the world wide web of the benefits of a plant based diet.
Okay dokay, so now that you understand my choice of vice and my personal reasoning behind my choice of vice, I will circle back to my passion, traveling. Being the millennial nomad that I am, I want to share some of the beautiful shots from last weekends mini getaway to Iceland. And holy smokes, lemme tell ya, I’ve traveled quite a lot, but never ever have I seen beauty like this before. This trip was a reminder of how versatile and beautiful our Tellus is and how there’s just so.much.to.see. It also made me reflect upon my own consumerism and choices, hence this blogpost.
So Iceland, If you’re planning a trip to Iceland, I recommend renting a car (a SUV that’s 4X4), getting the full insurance and driving down south to at least these few locations (thanks Wille for the tips):
Seljalandsfoss
Skogafoss
Svínafellsjökull
Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon
Diamond beach
Reynisfjara Beach (Black Sand Beach)
Reykjavik is also cool to see, but it’s pretty small, so you don’t need to spend to much time there. My recommendation is to just hop on the car and drive drive drive. You will be in awe of the beauty, at least I was. Below you will find a collection of some of my fave shots. I mean. Oh. My. Goodness. BEAUTIFUL!!!
I hope you enjoy. Feel free to tell me about what your vice is and how you perhaps counterbalance that vice with the choices you make.
Con amor,
Eva
