As someone born in Bogotá, Colombia, the idea of eating arepas for breakfast regularly is a desire that constantly comes and goes. On one hand, it is quite an easy side dish to make if we use the modern process: using pre-cooked corn flour. On the other hand, I am a person who values variety enormously, but I do not have all the utensils and ingredients I need to make the at least 55 types of arepas you can find in Colombia. What is an arepa? An arepa is a flat, unleavened bread traditionally made by soaking and pounding dried corn in a large mortar and pestle. The moist pounded…
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The Significance of Movement and Exercise for the Body
Everywhere we look around us, we see advertising campaigns about the health benefits of moving and doing exercise. Colorful, visibly displayed, beautifully designed advertising banners about yoga, Pilates, or tai chi classes, the next fitness center around the corner, and even a walking retreat in the Swiss Alps attract everyone’s attention for a moment. It’s a fact: we are not a sedentary species by nature, on the contrary, we are a very active one. Moving our bodies daily and regularly is vital for our mental and physical health. Movement is one result of the constant energy flow that courses through our bodies as a biological norm of our existence. Movement…
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Tips For a Wholesome Travel
One of our hobbies is travelling and we go on trips a few times a year. We love to explore new places with their local history, get to experience different cultures, traditions and ways of thinking, and most of all, we value the family time we get from travelling. Since we eat plant-based at home and like to keep a wholesome lifestyle even on trips, we always plan ahead many details of the trip. Pack your own airplane food We do not own a car, so whenever we travel we mostly go by plane. Sometimes we rent a campervan or take the train. However, regardless of the…
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Vegetables – Preferably Steamed and Raw
The term vegetable is not an officially defined technical term. It is commonly based on usage in the culinary environment and on cultural traditions, rather than on morphology. The botanical classification, on the other hand, is based on the variability among plants with regard to flower type, morphology, and sexual compatibility. For us to make the distinction among them, they are subdivided into algae and fungi; mosses and liverworts; ferns; and seed plants. Through usage, we add fungi and seed plants under the same term “vegetables” and it is on these latter two groups that our daily consumption within a plant-based diet is based. A plant has two main components:…
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Main spices and herbs I always keep in my pantry
Every time I am cooking, I think about the herbs and spices I want to add to the dish. I imagine the taste I want to get in the end and I begin to combine and season to taste. I must confess that I am not a professional cook. My starting point is not to take into account how the unique flavor and essence of each herb or spice can make or break a dish, nor how I can better highlight the natural flavors of the food I am preparing with their addition or omission. My attention is focused primarily on taking advantage of the beneficial properties they can provide,…
