Cannellini Bean & Basil Dip, Roasted Cherry Tomatoes and life with our 13 month old toddler

Do you know that feeling of losing touch with time and space? Days and weeks keep flying by, mornings playing, afternoons at playgrounds, weekends with friends and suddenly you realise, oh my god – it’s end of October already! Since Zoe is born this happens even more to me and funnily, despite life passing by in super pursuit mode, it feels so full and filled with fun and adventures all the time, that a few weeks can seem very long at the same time, too!

Every day brings something new, faster crawling techniques, climbing up new objects (yay, mummy – look, I can sit on the living room table!), the start of new funny conversations while we walk up and down the hill everyday, new ways of making faces (her latest is leaning her head to the side and giving me the cheekiest grin from down there), moments of laughing our heads off together and moments of desperation cause someone just does not want to eat dinner for some reason. No, – there is never a dull moment with a toddler 😀

Life of a toddler is endless adventure ❤

There is something about that feeling of being wiped out and tired, but also satisfied in the evening , when your baby is finally in bed and you can lie down on the sofa for 15min before making dinner for yourself and hubby who usually comes home from work too late for Zoe’s bedtime. Yes, being a mum is hard work, but I love it. And I more and more admire all women in the world who juggle two or more children, who work or who don’t have families around, like us, to help. In contrary to the past, when I didn’t have a child but of course made up views on maternity leave, working and stay at home mums,  – now this has all changed.

In my opinion, whatever works is right. I understand mums who can’t wait to go back to work because they feel they get crazy at home, I feel for mums who have but don’t want to go back to work because of financial reasons, I totally understand mums who give their child to their grandparents a lot because they are close and I admire those who decide to put their career on hold to focus on their child, cause it’s all they ever wanted. I got rid of all my pre-assumptions and I wish everybody could be open and respect whatever way. Being a mother is often very stigmatised in today’s modern world. Whatever you do, there will always be someone who thinks the opposite way would be better and believe me, there’s nothing more annoying than having to defend yourself why you chose this or that route for yourself. No matter if it’s towards men (rarely), women (more often) and especially towards other mothers (most) – there is no right or wrong. There is no competition. Nobody is perfect and we all love our children and try to do the best we can, all in our different and beautiful ways ❤

But of course we all know these moments of self doubt. When we ask ourself if it would be better another way, if we try hard enough, if we work hard enough, when we think all mums we know do so much better, look so much cooler and are so much more successful than ourselves. I always try to remind myself, looks can be deceiving. Especially with social media these days, when everything looks oh so perfect and great, everyone so stylish and pretty. But I can only tell from myself and also my close mum friends around me: we all have dark moments, doubts, fall backs and disappointments. We need to cry, to rant and to talk things through before we get crazy. What would we do if we weren’t there for each other? And who could understand better than all the other fellow mums who walk in very similar shoes?? I for myself promised myself these days to be more gentle with myself and try to be aware of it when I feel under pressure. To embrace all insecurities and losses. To be open and honest about them and trust in fate and the universe, that all things happen for a reason and are important for us to grow..

As some of you know, I’m currently studying with the Institute of Integrative Nutrition (IIN) to become a Holistic Health Coach. Their core concept is so simple and it so resonates with me. You can have the perfectly healthy food on your plate (they call it Secondary Food), if your main areas of life like relationships, physical exercise, career, spirituality (called Primary Foods) are not in balance you still won’t feel happy and healthy in your body. As Joshua, the founder of IIN often says in his lectures (he’s a really nice, calm and funny guy): “You can eat all the kale in the world, but if you hate your job and/or spouse (for example), guess what? The kale won’t do anything for ya.” It’s really fun to go deeper and learn more about all different kinds of diets, but above all to learn so many interesting things about health coaching, how to improve your life and dig deeper into your own self and take care of your own happiness. I guess it’s a never ending journey and I really enjoy the course so far! At the moment we are practising the first part of a Health Coaching Programme, called Health Histories. So if anyone of you is interested in being my guinea pig, please drop me a note on nadisunshine@me.com or PM me on my Nadisunshine Facebook page – of course it would be totally free of charge 🙂

So, enough talking for today. Let’s get to the yummy and healthy recipe for this month.

Cannellini Bean & Basil dip & Roasted Cherry Tomatoes

Today I wanna share with you how to make a super easy Cannellini Bean & Basil dip & Roasted Cherry Tomatoes. Both are the perfect addition to a Sunday brunch, a hearty bfast or an ideal snack or light dinner. I paired them with my favourite kind of breakfast eggs and some home baked bread, the Life Changing Loaf of Bread from the wonderful blog My New Roots. (It’s a beautiful seed bread which is so incredible nice and easy, please do yourself a favour and check it out if you’ve never heard from it.) This bean dip is a wonderful healthy staple in our fridge and a great source of protein for toddlers and adults alike. And much better for you than the store bought cream cheese! Give it a try 🙂

What you need…
(for a nice bowl for 4)

• 2 cans of cannellini beans (rinsed)
• juice of 1 lemon
• 2 hands full of fresh basil (washed & dried, stems removed)
• Good quality salt (e.g. Himalayan, sea salt etc.)
• Cumin
• Olive Oil
• A couple of cloves of garlic (peeled & sliced)
• 1 box of  cherry tomatoes (washed)

(As always preferable go for organic & local ingredients whenever you can)

What to do…

Preheat your oven around 180 degrees Celsius for the cherry tomatoes (I roasted  at the same time as I baked the bread  – energy saving, aye :). Put  tomatoes and garlic in an oven proof dish, drizzle with olive oil,  salt and pepper. Roast them until the look nice and wrinkly (I had them in there for around 30min).

For the dip, put all ingredients in your food processor. I like to put lighter ingredients on the bottom (herbs) and heavier ones (beans) on top as they mix easier and blend until you reach a nice smooth consistency. Use a bit more olive oil or add a splash of water if it seems to thick. Season to your liking.

Serve with nice home-baked bread or some organic rye bread (there are a lot of nice flavours on the market. I like the brand Biona). Both, the dip and the roasted tomatoes keep for a few days in the fridge.

Of course you can always play with the ingredients and I encourage you to do so! The nicest combinations come out of experimenting – so don’t be shy to swap beans (black beans, butterbeans, chickpeas), use different herbs (cilantro, parsley, fennel green) or spices (harrissa, dukkha, ..) – there are endless varieties!

Until next time I wish you all a wonderful month ahead, that you’re gentle, open and forgiving to yourself and others and maybe also find a little moment for self reflection about your own Primary Foods in your life ❤

If you feel like a little nadisunshine spark every now and then, come and visit me or drop me a note on my FB page or Instagram. I always love hearing from you!

Big love, lots of sunshine & yummy food,

N xxx

 

Easy peasy frittata

Some of my favorite dishes are the really simple ones. Quality of ingredients like the eggs is key though and you’ll taste the difference once you started. Like most of my dishes this recipe can easily be played with. Exchange the veg with whatever veg you have to use up, add whichever herbs you like and add some flavor boosters like feta cheese or a bit of smoked salmon or Parma ham if you’re not on a vegetarian diet. Be brave!

For today’s version of frittata I served myself from veggie leftovers of the fridge and our new herb garden on the balcony. Oh my! The joys of fresh herbs are just indescribable for me! Really try to include more of them in your daily diet, they not only tickle your taste buds but are also have tons of health benefits. Nice side effect of this dish is also that it gives you a good chunk of your daily needed protein which is too often neglected on a mainly plant based diet.

What you need 

(Serves 2)
4 eggs, preferably organic
2 handful of veggies: I used 2 small zucchinis, some mushrooms and leftovers of green asparagus
A splash of milk (I used coconut)
1 clove of garlic
Lots of fresh coriander and basil
Some coconut oil
Himalayan salt
Pepper (get yourself a proper pepper mill and a nice mix of proper corns, so worth it!)

What to do
Heat up a medium sized pan (non stick) with a table spoon of coconut oil (remember better not to use olive oil when it’s heated). Slowly fry the chopped up veg for a bit until they get nicely caramelised (light brown, that boosts the flavors). In the meantime beat the eggs with milk of your choice, salt and pepper. Pour it over your veggie mix. Put on a lid. Now let it sit for about 10min (can depend on job and pan, try to move it carefully. When it seems solid in the bottom it’s time). Take of the lid and put a dish on top of the pan. Flip carefully. Now repeat the other side for 10 more min.

Enjoy with a nice salad. I made a yummy quick tomato avocado salad with fresh basil, olive oil, salt and lemon juice. Enjoy as a light lunch or dinner! And if you’re lucky and have leftovers it’s also great for a take away snack.

Let me know about your favorite variations!

Love,
N xx

Black bean salad with grilled halloumi

Hmmm… I’m still enjoying the last seconds of joy after my late lunch. This is definitely worth waiting until 3pm when I finish with work and then take some time for myself and dedicate it to making a fine meal. As usual, the drawers and cupboards are my inspiration!

Some time ago I bought a can of organic black beans. So this is it today! I washed and drained them and added fresh cucumber, tomatoes, and lots of parsley to make a nice, tabouleh kind of salad with it. You enjoy it either like this, use it as a side, or add some topping as I did with the halloumi, one of my favourite cheeses which is originates from Greece and is normally grilled. The chewy, salty halloumi balanced perfectly with the fresh salad, so never grill to much of it (a third or half by person is quite enough).

Mmmmmhhh, I must say – I really enjoyed this, and it’s not only pretty and quick but also delicious! Hope you like it too!

What you need…
(for 1 portion, or maybe a bit more…)

• 1 can of organic black beans (washed and drained)
• half of a cucumber
• 2 tomatoes
• 1 yellow pepper
• a bunch of fresh parsely
• 1 spring onion
• sea salt, fresh pepper, ground cumin
• juice of 1 lemon & olive oil
• half of a halloumi

What to do….

Chop all veg in small pieces (I like it when everything is about the size of the beans). Slice the halloumi and fry it in a griddle or normal pan until nice and golden (sometimes you have to get rid of a bit of water coming out of the cheese). Put all the veggies in a bowl and dress with olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper and ground cumin. Serve on a plate and put the grilled halloumi on top.

Bon appetit 🙂