This grain free, sugar free bowl of porridge goodness really hits the spot on a chilly morning. Nutrient dense and filling but not heavy. It is also delicious cold and travels well if you are eating on the run.

Quinoa Porridge
Serves 4

=R1=

Combine ingredients in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Lower heat and simmer for 7 minutes.
Serve in bowls topped with coconut cream and extra seeds if desired.

Enjoy x

Journey to Wellness

“There are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony known as afternoon tea.”  Henry James, The Portrait of a Lady.

Zen Buddhists say that tea and Zen are one flavor. I assume this to mean that the peace and presence one feels in sipping a cup of tea is the same peace and presence one feels when practicing Zen.

I love tea. It is such a reassuring drink. I love the ritual of tea and book end my day with tea rituals. In the morning my darling brings me a cup of tea in bed.  My digestive system would prefer lemon in warm water but it is such a cosy and loving ritual, my morning cup of Rosie Lee.

Daily rituals are powerful expressions of who we are and the way we choose to live our lives

In the afternoon when the sun is fat and ready to drop, I grate fresh ginger, pound black peppercorns and cardamom pods in the mortar and pestle, measure out 3 teaspoons of roobois loose leaf tea and place it all in my favourite  tea pot with a cinnamon quill and a piece of star anise. I pour over boiling water and let the brew steep. I often smile to myself when I do this because I remember that less than one year ago I did not want to give up wine because I loved the ritual of it.

There is actually not much ritual involved in opening a bottle of wine. One could not say wine and Zen are one flavor. You walk to the fridge, pull out a bottle, twist off the stelvin cap and pour the liquid in to glass. I am amused now to think how much I wanted to hold on to that ritual, which of course, was an addiction and not a ritual.

The addiction voice is a lying bastard and will basically say anything so that you keep tipping in the poison. My addiction voice knew it was on to a winning thing with ritual and ceremony. For many years it was able to convince me that a glass of wine or 4 was a way to celebrate the day and that the ritual of it was integral to a life well lived.

Shifting my daily ritual from wine to tea has been one of the single most profound shifts in my life. My sense of joy and happiness now comes from a place deep within rather than a glass. It seems lazy that I drank wine to relax when meditation and tea will deliver a similar result and will not tax on the delivery. Daily rituals are powerful expressions of who we are and the way we choose to live our lives.

I think tea is a wonderful way to begin the practice of conscious daily ritual. In our mad modern lives we so often make a beverage and let it get cold on the bench as we dash around doing things between gulps. Tea deserves better. Finding a moment to sit with a cup of tea at any moment in our day is finding a moment to sit with Zen.

So lets brew and steep, raise our cups and sip our way to wellness on this beautiful journey.