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Our lives,
so seemingly small, ripple out to the whole universe as tiny whispers like the sounds of butterfly wings, and the clear voice of the living truth. -J.L.D. |
On a cold and rainy morning, I awoke remembering the homes we've lived in that were heated by wood, and the fire's calming light, the warmth, the sounds and smells. Even though we now heat our house with a beautiful and efficient propane fireplace, the memories of crackling fires remained.
This particular morning, we wanted something warm and comforting for breakfast. With intuition guiding us along, the idea soon came—a warmed carob drink, with a plate of sliced bananas and avocados, whose flavors mingle in an unexpected and uniquely delicious way. We first learned about this combination when reading that avocados and bananas together make the perfect baby food!
 Warmed Carob Drink
Makes 2 cups
2 tablespoons raw carob powder2 medjool dates 1 cup almond milk (directions follow) 1 cup heated filtered or spring water To make almond nut milk
2 tablespoons almonds (the flavor is much better if almonds are soaked for 6-10 hours)1 tablespoon raw cashews 1 cup water Put almonds and cashews in blender and pulse. Add 1/4 cup water, and blend on high speed for 60 seconds. Add remaining water and blend briefly. Strain to remove pulp (which should be mostly almond skins). Rinse blender. Put strained almond milk back in blender. Add dates and blend until no pieces remain. (Note: detailed instructions with photos on how to make almond milk are in Janet's book, Almond Essence, www.almondessence.com) Heat water to desired temperature. (Raw foodists will want to keep the water temperature low to preserve enzymes.) Put 1 tablespoon carob powder in each cup. Pour heated water over carob. Pour 1/2 cup almond milk into each cup. Stir. Bananas and Avocado
Slice 1-2 bananas into 1/2 inch rounds.Peel and slice 1-2 avocados (depending on the size), and arrange onto a plate. Optional: squeeze a little lime juice and sprinkle a little salt over avocado slices. Serve and enjoy. A Little Story... Our Saturday Morning Breakfast
 We set to making the drink. First came some almond milk from the fridge that went into the blender with two large Medjool dates. The machine whirred—we let it run longer than usual and soon had a frothy mix. The water was heating, the carob was waiting in the cups. I poured the heated water into the mugs, added the milk, and voila, we had carob lattes!!
Cutting up the fruit, arranging the pieces on a plate, we carried our food and drink to sit on the sofa in front of our fireplace. Music was soothing the morning space, enchanting melodies from the Beautiful World CD. Sitting side by side, we gently sang the lyrics (translation in italic) to one of our favorite songs:
"Ewe maisha murua" – hello beautiful life,
"Naoto iliyo nzuri" – hello beautiful dreams, "Enyi watu miojaa" – hello people with smiles, "Pendo ndiyo kila kitu" – love is everything. The unexpected beauty of the moment took me by surprise, and I got teary from the melodies we were singing, the love, the simple bounty, the quiet around us, and the deep abiding peace. We looked at each other and knew in that moment, that a smile from the heart is a blessing to receive.
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