Sharing inspirations for holidays and every day

Christmas and New Year mark our lifetime in a more profound way than any other holidays. This is the time when most of us pause all frantic activities, re-evaluate and plan.

Therefore, it is a good time for inspiration and learning.

Below I have compiled some of my recent inspirations. I hope that you find them useful in preparing for your own holidays.

A week ago, I discovered a new YouTube channel, Picking up limes, dedicated to “foodies, minimalists, travellers and all beautiful souls”.

The creator of the channel, Sadia, promises “a calm and relaxing space with … videos that help to nourish the cells and the soul.” I watched many of the videos and believe that Sadia delivers on her promises. 

You could also visit her website. I am looking forward to some free time to read the blog and dive into Sadia’s recipes.  

Update: I made these Sadia's pancakes last night and they turned out pretty good. I did not have buckwheat flour, instead, used whole wheat flour. I also used water instead of plant-based milk and sprayed my pan with olive oil instead of using coconut oil.

 
How to keep relaxed and calm, and yet have amazing holidays? 

Maybe we should all introduce some hygge into our holidays. Here is the advice of Jenny Mustard on how to celebrate Christmas in hygge style:

 

I am aesthetically and visually driven person.  Looking at creative arrangements and decorations for the holidays inspire me and allow me to bring more energetic spirit into my house, break the monotony of our everyday routine.

Here are three blogs that are a feast for the senses and might inspire you to put together an unexpected background for the seasonal celebrations:

Liiv blog

Hof 9

@mycasa

Loreta blog 

Dishfunctional Designs
 
What are the holidays without the warmth and enticing aromas of baked dishes, cookies and breads?

I am not a fan of sugar or any cakes, but this gorgeous gingerbread village cake presentation inspired me to concoct my own version of a minimal-sugar cake. 

I am planning on using two layers of my banana brownie recipe and a raspberry-coconut filling to "build" my own Christmas cake.

 

If the result is good, I will share the exact recipe.  Meanwhile, why not invent your own cake recipe, or maybe re-invent an old favorite recipe, in which you substitute the unhealthy ingredients with healthy ones?


I will also try these oat cookies on one of my days off, and maybe surprise my family with some almond pancakes.

 
Not having any plans for Christmas yet? Here is how Jenny celebrates her Christmas.  Why not try something new this year?

How about you, how do you bring the holidays home?

What’s cooking this weekend

I decided to experiment in the kitchen with something new this weekend. I had the idea of making some rolled cookies with a simple dough and preserves inside, but then I found a jar of frozen mushrooms that I had cooked a few weeks ago, so plans changed.  

This is how I came to the split decision on a sweet and a salty galette. I baked a mushroom one and an apple one.  The recipes are below.

Ingredients
Galette dough for two galettes
3 cups of flour (I use 1:1 white to whole wheat flour)
1 cup yogurt
1 cup olive oil
½ tsp baking soda
 
Mushroom galette topping
1lb mushrooms, chopped in large pieces
1 large sweet onion
2 Tbsp olive oil
Salt, red pepper flakes (to taste)
 
Apple galette topping
3-4 Tbsp prune butter or any preserves you prefer
3 small apples (any type you like), cut into thin slices
 

Directions
Prepare the dough first. Mix the flour with the baking soda. In the middle of the flour mixture add the combined yogurt and oil. Combine with your hands and cover with oiled plastic wrap, if not using immediately. I refrigerated my dough for 2 hours. 

To assemble the galettes, divide the dough into two balls. Place each ball on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and some flour on top. Roll the dough into an oval shape, as thin as the size of the cookie sheet allows (sprinkling some flour on top of the dough will help the rolling). Spread the toppings. For the apple galette, first spread the preserves and then arrange the apple slices on top. Fold the edges of the oval by lifting the parchment paper at the edges of the dough. Bake at 400°F for 35-40 minutes. (I decreased the temperature to 375°F for the last 10 minutes). 

Serve the mushroom galette with some grated cheese such as Parmesan. Sprinkle some powder sugar/cinnamon on top of the apple galette.

 
I will be experimenting soon  with other toppings. The choices are many: feta cheese, roasted peppers, soy sausages, olives, cheddar, ham... Or something sweet: orange marmalade with fresh orange slices, peaches, or mixed berries!

More On Cervical Cancer

Deregulated Wnt signaling is lined to various forms of cancer, mot prominently colorectal cancer. In this paper, we see a potential link to cervical cancer.  Chibby, an inhibitor of Wnt signaling, is downregulated in advanced cervical cancer, thus associating Wnt signaling to the disease and opening up potential new therapeutics for this form of cancer.  Abstract:

Chibby has been identified as a putative tumor suppressor and antagonist to β-catenin, thereby controlling the Wnt signaling pathway. Chibby is typically downregulated in numerous types of cancer and may be associated with tumorigenesis. The present study aimed at clarifying the following: i) Whether Chibby antagonizes β-catenin in cervical cancer; ii) whether Chibby and β-catenin mRNA expression is associated with cancer progression; and iii) whether Chibby and β-catenin expression may be used as a biomarker. A total of 87 paraffin-embedded cervical sections with distinct cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) stages (chronic cervicitis, CIN 1, CIN 2, CIN 3 and invasive squamous cell carcinoma) were collected between June 2004 and October 2012 The mRNA expression level of Chibby and β-catenin was determined using the polymerase chain reaction. Protein expression and cellular localization of Chibby and β-catenin were determined using immunohistochemistry. Chibby and β-catenin were analyzed for possible association with the progression of cervical cancer. Chibby mRNA expression and the Chibby/β-catenin ratio were identified to be downregulated in invasive tumors. Positive cytoplasmic and nuclear staining for Chibby was associated with CIN staging and decreased as the CIN stage increased. In addition, the cytoplasmic and membrane intensity of β-catenin was associated with invasive tumors, in which a significantly increased level of protein expression was detected. Chibby may be a tumor suppressor in cervical cancer, since the dysregulation of Chibby expression is associated with tumorigenesis in cervical cancer. Chibby and β-catenin expression together may potentially to a biomarker for disease progression in cervical cancer.

The urgency of time

Every morning, we wake up, prep and go into metal contraptions on wheels to get to places that we usually dislike. These “places”, however, pay for our food and roof. So that we can eat, sleep, recover overnight and cycle back to the “places”.

At one point or another, even if we like our jobs, all of us start to ask, “Is this it? Is this my life?”

Even the Mustards, who work for themselves, ask these questions; watch How To Focus On The Good Things In Life! (episode 91):

 
Maybe a few are lucky to find their perfect place of bliss. Mr. Free at 33 moved to Thailand and seems to have found his happy place, where he does not seek answers to nagging questions on the meaning of life.  Or maybe not?


The AstreamLife couple also seems to be content with whatever happens next:

Recently, I decided that it is a waste of time to ask such questions. Don’t we have to live in the moment and pay attention to every second of our life? 

Also, it is best to use the time to create something, rather the consume anything. So, here are a few ground rules for me before New Year.  



What not to do 

1. Do not watch any movies

My goal in the next months is to structure my “free” time in a better way. During “down” time, my first reaction is to become a mindless consumer...

Do not worry, not a material consumer!  I consume free entertainment. Usually, I go on YouTube and watch the most predictable Hallmark movies. It is comfortable to know what will happen, but it is a waste of time. In fact, it might be a waste to watch any movie. I recently took a few DVDs from the library and discovered that my habit of watching YouTube videos at minimum of 1.25x speed has made me intolerant to protracted movie plots. Within the first 10-15 minutes of watching any movie, I find myself reading the movie plot on Wikipedia and stopping the DVD. Decision: stop watching movies.



2. Do not explore how to save more

I have been wasting lots of time listening to podcasts and reading blogs on how to save money, live a frugal life and be a minimalist. I found this to be a waste of time, since I am a natural minimalist and frugal person. Current circumstances do not allow me to downscale further my lifestyle. Therefore, my second decision is to not waste time on anyone’s podcast or blog finding out how to become more frugal.



What to do

1. Assume that your life is better than any of the movie plots and play according to your own script. 

As part of my script, I am very interested in “translating” traditional unhealthy recipes into healthy recipes that would make my family happy at the table. My inspiration comes from Pinterest, newsletters, and even mystery novels! Recently, I read Raspberry Danish Murder by Joanne Fluke:

 The book is full of recipes laden with butter and sugar. I loved the recipe for Raspberry Danish and will try a healthy version with substitutes for some ingredients. I will update the readers whether the result is edible.





 
2. I need to find out how to earn more money beyond my salary. My current salary would not grow, unless there is a miracle. Therefore, I need to look for side hustles. Recently I found this video on side hustles and found it informative: 

I have not tried any of these side hustles mainly because I have no time right now. (A sorrowful excuse, I know.)

Well, this is not my complete list of resolutions. I am still compiling it. It is in progress, as we all need to evolve.  

Evolution is great, but we need to remember that out time on Earth is limited.