Traveling Foodies

Posted on November 9, 2014November 9, 2014 by Amanda

Friday night my fiance and I arrived at Sun in Blossom in the neighborhood of Park Slope, Brooklyn. It was delightfully charming and quaint. It had a handful of tables, all wooden with yellow daisies and dim candlelight. I instantly fell in love with its grace. The menu was full of live raw vegan macrobiotic dishes, which was what really drew me to visit Sun in Bloom! It is a conscious company dedicated to providing healthy and nutritious food, just what I am always seeking happy uplifting food from the sun and earth.

We started with the Raw Alkalizing Green Soup. Alkalizing is essential to a healthy diet. It is the opposite of acidic, which means the foods have the some of the highest pH levels. It’s really essential to eat alkalizing food rather than acidic, for acidic foods leave a lot of residue behind when they are digested, and also have been linked to diseases and stress, research suggests. Alkalizing foods consist of fruits and vegetables, while acidic food is primarily meat, eggs, diary, and sugar. So, we opted for something healthy and satisfying! The Raw Alkalizing Green Soup was just that! Mind you, this soup is served cold rather than hot. This through us for a loop, yet it was still very good-tasting. Sweet and cucumbery!

Next, we ordered smoothies. I ordered the high protein selection, while my fiance requested the goji berry antioxidant option. They were both rich, creamy, thick, and absolutely delicious! The most divine smoothies my taste buds have grabbed a hold of EVER! It is safe to say the smoothies were in our top favorites. I recommend any of their smoothie options.

Moving forward, our entrees were served. I went with the Miso Ginger Tofu Scramble w/ black beans, tomatoes, quinoa, avocado, and a side of hot sauce! It was a plateful of color and heaven! Nutritious, tasty, and savory.

Chase ordered the Shiitake Bacon BLT in a sprouted wheat wrap. I needed a bite! The shiitake bacon was flavorful and zesty, and at the suggestion of our waitress Madison, he ordered a side of their well-known home-made ginger dressing. It really accented well with the shiitake bacon. (In my previous post, Festival of Living Vegan, I have a recipe for shiitake bacon, check it out!)

We couldn’t leave Sun in Bloom without trying their dessert menu! We ordered one of their home-made pumpkin cupcakes! The first bite I couldn’t believe it was vegan! It was thick and moist. It had roasted pumpkin seeds hidden under the frosting. Just absolute delish! Additionally, we tried their chocolate chip cookie sandwich; two cookies with vanilla frosting in the middle! I could eat one of those everyday; just the perfect amount of chocolate and light brown sugar!

All in all, we left the restaurant full of nutrition. The presentation was clean and marvelous. The staff was wonderful, especially our waitress Madison who toke the time to explain the menu and was delightful to converse with. If anyone is ever in the Brooklyn area seeking a flavorsome, energizing, little hole in the wall restaurant to eat at, Sun in Bloom has everything you desire!

Namaste!

Raw

Posted on October 23, 2014October 23, 2014 by Amanda

I’m not a saleswoman. I’m not here to manipulate you into buying some fancy lifestyle. I’m not here to try to convince you that your way of life is wrong. I am not here to save you, but to teach you how you can save yourself. Consuming animal products is a socially learned behavior- I acknowledge that. And honestly, I have less than handful of individuals who I have inspired to stray from the meat and dairy industry besides from my fiancé (who has grown to be just as passionate as myself on the topic).

Heck, my entire family sees my improvement both mentally, physically, and spiritually. They still fail to acknowledge it. Not even a meatless Monday. A fridge full of vegan eats. Butter, with no cholesterol. No thanks. Soy based meat with no fat, hormones, GMOs, or fear. No thanks. Milk from nuts. Ice cream from nuts. No thank you! You could say I may be wasting my breathe, my brother shouts across the kitchen table.

I still stand. I fear not. He will hear me soon enough. I know one day, you will hear me too. And if not, well, I will remind you of it. And I shall keep reminding you. If you do not hear their screams, I will lead you to them. If you don’t not feel their suffering, I will show you. If you do not understand them, I will translate. You may silence them, but you will never silence me.

Stay tuned…

Posted on October 2, 2014October 2, 2014 by Amanda

Syrian citizens protest against the drone droppings by the United States. “Don’t kill our children by your aircraft” WOW! This is tough to digest and hits home. We abuse rape mistreat our animal friends, we kill innocent people daily, our foundation is war and violence, globally that’s all Earth is, a battle ground. I have a dream. I have a dream of peace and justice and awareness and consciousness. I won’t stop. I will reach the masses. I will manifest change. I, Amanda Lollie, am not okay with what is taking place on Earth. And I, Amanda Lollie, will not be passive and tip toe around individuals blind feelings. I, Amanda Lollie, will fight for justice and harmony so my children and my god daughter can walk this Earth safely and peacefully.

STAY TUNED.

Be Mindful

Posted on February 5, 2014February 5, 2014 by Amanda

I had a few really great yoga sessions this weekend. I was able to squeeze in a home practice along with studio days. I went to the studio for my regular scheduled 75 minute hot power yoga class: The following day I toke the same class in 90 minutes. Proceeding, I toke my first ever yin class! Yin is a slow yoga practice that focuses on the holding of each pose. We maybe did a total of 7 poses, all which were held between 5-10 minutes. The focus of the yoga sequence was a kidney and bladder cleanse. We did a lot of crunching of the upper body to the lower body. The poses were diverse as they focused on opening other parts of the body.

For instance, child’s pose massages all the major organs over the stomach. It also works the thighs and hips depending on how far your knees are separated. The closer your knees are together the more it becomes a resting pose; as to having the knees separated making it an active pose. I am a lover of child’s pose- but holding this posture without adjustments for 5 minutes was very uncomfortable. Mentally I was time traveling. Which isn’t always a good thing as it is often recapturing old emotional attachments I have yet to release, my to do list. Sometimes, I will find tears.

How do I cope when these feelings arise? How do I find the strength to continue my yoga practice? Simple, I take one more breath, the only thing I can control, the only thing I can do, and I just begin again. I never give up; I just restart. And with that, I let it go. I am present and I am mindful.

Which brings me to the discussion of todays post. What does being mindful mean?

Being mindful is being attentive at any given moment, allowing you to be in the present moment. When I first heard the word mindful and began to make sense of the meaning, I thought it was very strange. I was surely already in the present moment, wasn’t I? I started to talk to myself, “am I in the present moment?” A few moments go by… “OK, am I in the present moment now?” I would always answer yes. But with each passing moment I had a feeling I hadn’t been in the present.

Many of us believe we are fully aware of each moment, but to be truly in the present is a very tough discipline. I mean, mindfulness is a terrifying practice. It means not thinking about the next moment. It means not dwelling on the one you just had. It means not thinking about what you could have done, or said.

In respect, I invite you to take baby steps to mindfulness. Begin with mindful eating. Next time you sit down for a meal, use these skills. Take a deep breathe in; a long exhale out. Continue breathing like this for only a short minute. Thank the universe silently in your mind. Mindful eaters sit down and appreciate their food. They eat slow and deliberately. They chew thoroughly. This can all be done silently to ourselves.

Make it a priority to implement this once daily. Comment below by simply clicking the “comment” button, and share your thoughts or experiences behind mindful eating.

Yoga fashion alert! Check out my galaxy leggings! You can find this trend on BlackMilk Clothing. My Black Surf Pro mat is from Manduka. It is the Black Surf Pro series in vibrant oceanic blue. I fell in love with the ocean blue it comes in. It is inspiring. It is also very supportive and easy on my spine, hips, elbows, and knees!