This dessert featured on my 'How to Eat for Beautiful Skin' workshop last month and since so many of you wrote me about this class, I decided to share one of the recipes as well as some key info, here for everyone :)

In class we learned about where to begin in order to improve your skin's elasticity, heal acne, smooth out bumps and blemishes, avoid flareups, bring out your natural glow and even how to visibly minimise some of those wrinkles...

The first step always begins in your gut.

Healing your gut is a massive subject and may involve quite a different journey for most individuals, but the root of the cause is nearly always the same. And it's to do with your digestion.

If you're not able to break down certain foods, if your system is quite blocked up, if you don't cleanse often, don't fast for long enough (think late dinner and big breakfast), don't get enough fibre or water, if you mix starches and proteins (think mac'n cheese, chicken and rice, baked potatoes with cream), if you have food sensitivities (80% of people don't realise they do!), if you get sleepy or sluggish after meals, etc etc etc... it's very likely that your body is trying hard to communicate that your digestion is not in order either through pain, like bloating and belly aches or visually by displaying signs all over your skin. 

In my classes, we always focus on good digestion and this pie recipe very much falls into the easily digestive category. 

KEY TAKEAWAY: If it's easily digestible, it's good for your skin!

How is this recipe different to other raw recipes?

1. The base is not made out of dry nuts, it's all seeds. Nuts require soaking to remove the enzyme inhibitors and make them gentler on our tummies, but the cake would fall apart if we were to use soaked nuts. Seeds are easily digestible without the soaking step.

2. The cream has nuts (cashews) which have been soaked and rinsed.

3. Dried fruit and nuts combo falls under the Food Combination To Avoid when you're improving your digestion. With one exception- prunes. Usually a base contains some sort of nut or seed or coconut concoction and then on top of that there are also cashews in the cream. Nuts galore. Then for the base to stick together- dates and raisins are used a lot. They are of course an incredible snack to eat on their own as they provide fibre and slow releasing sugars for long lasting energy, but sadly when mixed with nuts- they confuse the system and can make you feel bloated. Prunes contain sorbitol which is a natural laxative, so they actually support the natural stages of digestion, help break down what ever food they are taken with (also helping you to assimilate its nutrients) and promote swift movement through your gut, which is all about the satisfying elimination.

4. The cake contains lots of blueberries, cacao powder and additional maqui berry powder, which are all super high in antioxidants. Eating foods rich in these free-radical-fighting-substances will strengthen your immune system and protect your cells. Key to healthy skin.

5. The coconut oil, sunflower seeds and hemp seeds contain healing essential fats, that work for your digestion like water works for a long and winding water slide. Without the water, it would take a long time to get down the slide, you'd stick to the sides, work way harder than you should and you won't enjoy the ride. Most fat is not even stored as fat, so it's time we start counting nutrients instead of calories.

At last, the recipe...

BERRY & CHOCOLATE PIE FOR GLOWING SKIN

For the crust

200g prunes

75g sunflower seeds

75g hemp seeds

55g cacao powder

½ teaspoon Himalayan salt

For the filling

300g blueberries

150g cashews, soaked overnight

105g extra virgin coconut oil, melted

50g maple syrup

1 tablespoon maqui berry powder (I buy this one)

1 teaspoon vanilla powder

1/3 teaspoon Himalayan salt

-Place all the crust ingredients into a food processor with an S blade. Process till sticky.

-Transfer the mixture into a pie dish (make sure the base is removable) and press with your fingers and fists till it lines the entire dish and its sides.

-Place all the filling ingredients into a blender, making sure the blueberries are at room temperature, otherwise the coconut oil will harden.

-Blend using a tamper rod, till creamy.

-Pour inside the crust and distribute evenly along the surface.

-Transfer to the fridge to set for at least 4 hours.

For upcoming workshop updates, sign up to our emails here>> and keep an eye on this page>>

During one of my recent workshops, I taught you guys all about cravings, how they come up, what they might mean about the nutrients you're missing and what healthy stuff to eat in order to see those cravings vanish. Something that came up a lot was the craving for cheese. On the one hand it is the flavour and the creamy texture that people dream of but really it is a sign of calcium and essential fats deficiency. This recipe will sort you out! So so so delish, I really hope you get to make it.

3/4 Cup Pinenuts
3/4 Cup Macadamia
6 Sundried tomato halves, soaked if they are too dry
Juice of 1 Lemon
¼ Cup Udo’s Choice Oil Blend (or another healthy oil blend like flax, hemp, olive oil, etc)
3 Tablespoons Liquid Aminos (or 2 Tbsp Tamari)
2 Garlic cloves
1/3 Chilli with seeds, or more to taste
Water as needed
 
-Put all the dip ingredients into a high speed blender, starting with about 1/4 cup of water and adding more if required. Use a tamper to assist the blending process.
-Scoop out into a dipping bowl to serve with your veggie platter or on sourdough bread.

If you've been reading my posts for some time now, you might recall a one all about how awful my skin used to be.

The truth is, it wasn't just awful, it was repulsive.

After the stress that my body underwent during a car crash, the inflammation that nearly cost me my pancreas and the amount of morphone that was pumped into my veins, my entire back broke out in hideous unsightly acne.

Over the next few years, I discovered healing via raw foods, Chinese herbs, homeopathic remedies, meditation, juicing, liver flushes, breathing techniques, fasting and more.

The effect of each was clearly visible in my eyes, my hair, nails, the skin on my face and neck, my energy levels and my overall attitude.

But the acne on my back wasn't budging.

I learned to live with it to the point that I'd often pull out of a beach outings, take a sick day over school swimming events, wear long sleeved tops during scorching summer days and choose the sports that I played according to how well my back will be covered up.

I hid my back for TWELVE whole years.

It wasn't till I started sprouting in a very unique way (keep reading), that I began to see changes. Dramatic changes.

Not just sprouting seeds till you see a little tail, not sprouting wheatgrass (my body could never take wheatgrass EVER), but growing proper green shoots in trays over a bed of soil. 

Aaaaaaand something else (the 'unique' bit)....

I soaked these seeds in the same water that I would soak my feet!

Sounds a bit gross, so let me explain. 

I got this wild idea after reading the book 'Anastasia' (read her take on gardening for healing via below link).

The fact that our toxins contain all the information about us really resonated with me. It made perfect sense when I read that if you were to pass on this information to a seed, that it would grow for you as if it was your very own doctor, offering the exact nutrients you needed to heal whatever pain or illness via its fruits.

I also knew that we perspire a lot via our feet, so it made sense for me to soak my feet (free from nail varnish or creams) in a bucket of hot water. Now this water was equipped with all the information about me, my organs and my cells, through the sweat/toxins that were released.

I then let the water cool and only after doing so, I added dry peas and unhulled sunflower seeds to this water.

I then sprinkled the seeds over a bed of soil and continued to water them with this same water until green shoots began to appear. After this (Day 3 approx), I would simply water with purified water or water infused with a little spirulina or chlorella powder. 

When the shoots were ready to harvest, I would juice or blend them up into a smoothie. They were super yummy to eat on their own too, but I was juicing lots at the time and needed all the greens I could gather.

I have to be honest, I began doing this not to heal the acne on my back (I gave up on that long ago) but because I was getting really into sprouting and was genuinely enjoying watching my indoor garden flourishing.

At the same time, I felt called to do a little experiment.

There was no doubt, that there was still a fair amount of healing that my body and the whole crash-disrupted digestive system needed to experience. I also knew that Elliot was super healthy, energetic, fit and enjoyed a strong immune, digestive and metabolic system.

So, I had both of us soak our feet in separate buckets, doing our own sprouting with pea shoots, in our own trays, watering at the same time with our own water, in the same room, under the same conditions.

Over the course of 3 weeks, my sprouts were evidently taller than his. Literally by at least 3 whole centimetres taller on Day 12!!

It was as if we were seeing a real green medicine cabinet sprouting before our eyes and mine required just that much more prescribed goodness in order to heal.

I didn't even really notice the changes to my back, the whiteheads drying out, the bulged bumps disappearing or the acne scars on my back flattening, until I saw that during the second month of this experiment- Elliot's and my sprouts started to grow at the same rate.

On Day 12, they were now the same height.

It was then that I ran my hands across my back and felt nearly smooth skin for the first time in many many years.

Nothing short of a miracle!

Nature is a miracle.

If you'd like to have a go at sprouting pea or sunflower shoots, take a look at my step-by-step guide, here>> 

Remember that it's is only a step to healing your skin though. During this key process, it is also extremely important to know which food combinations are like a pimple feeder so you can avoid those, how stress can contribute to ageing and what simple breathing techniques you can do to infuse the life back into your skin even on your busiest days and of course which key ingredients are vital for keeping your skin smooth and radiant.

I will be dishing out all of those important tips and teaching you beautiful recipes in a workshop called 'How to Eat for Beautiful Skin'.

The workshop is happening THIS Sunday 20th May 11:30am- 2pmat Tanya's in My Chelsea.

To book your space, head here: https://tanyasliving.com/collections/workshops-and-events/products/how-to-eat-for-beautiful-skin-sunday-13th-may

It's only £45pp, which doesn't even get you a facial cream these days, let alone the miracle cure. Scrumptious tasters are included and everyone that attends will get 25% off the entire shop on the day.

I really hope you can make it!

Feeding our children is a minefield. One day they love your healthy concoction and demand for more, another day they wouldn't even try it if Superman and Peppa Pig themselves made it.

Get the flavour just right and you may even get them to eat raw plants for a day without even knowing it. That's what I'm hoping to teach you in this class.

I will demonstrate some truly scrumptious kid friendly recipes, which Lake and I are happy to share any day of the week. We will make Green Smoothie Balls, Cheezy Courgetti, Sunflower Seed Hummus and No-Dehydrator Falafels with a Calcium-rich Sauce.

You will taste everything in class along with other awesome parents.

Class is suitable towards parents of 2 to 11 year olds.

Book here: https://tanyasliving.com/collections/workshops-and-events/products/easy-raw-lunches-that-kids-will-love-sunday-15th-april

If your digestion isn’t in order, the chances are you also experience at least two of these symptoms:

-Bloating

-Tiredness

-Heart burn or indigestion

-Food allergies

-Nausea

-Skin breakouts

-Skin conditions like eczema, rosacea, acne or psoriasis 

-Weight gains

-Constipation or loose stools

-Flatulence or belching

-Parasites or Candida

-Weak nails and hair

Poor digestion is awful and sadly unless something is done about it, it may only get worse with time.

Have you ever said...

“I used to be able to eat anything” or 

“I never had to exercise to stay in shape” or

“My baby weight never went away” or

“My digestion is not what it used to be”?

[Personally, I’m guilty of all the above, especially when I have the below reference taken circa 2013.]

If you want something done about this digestion of yours (btw it’s not the same as metabolism- you can eliminate quickly and stay slim but it still doesn’t mean that you’re making the most out of your food and assimilating the goodness), the first thing you must do is begin eating consciously.

Easier said than done? 

Nope, it’s very very easy to do. Continue reading for my top tip that works every single time and is actually fun...

But first I’d like to paint you a picture of what happens when you DON’T eat consciously.

I bet there’s been a time that you’ve taken your sandwich to your desk and swallowed it so fast, you weren’t sure if you even tasted it, let alone felt any satisfaction. 

You certainly were a bit annoyed at yourself for spending money on yet another lunch you don’t remember eating. 

I mean- how did it disappear from your plate? Wait, maybe someone played a trick on you and you haven’t even taken a bite! Mmmm maybe not.

Suddenly you feel bloated. Dissatisfied, irritated and bloated. Awesome combo.

What actually happened when you swallowed that sandwich is that it got dumped into your stomach without any warning, without the host having a chance to get the space ready for it, in fact it squashed the host unconscious, confused the whole digestive system so it stopped operating altogether. Your body’s alarm went off to send signals of there being something wrong and the only way it knew to communicate that was by making you bloat.

You didn’t respond to those cries so it gave you a headache.

You blocked out the headache with a painkiller so it gave you visible red patches on your neck and breakouts on your chin.

You covered them up with concealer so it gave you extra love handles you couldn’t cover up.

You told yourself that next time you’ll just skip lunch to which you immediately felt an inflammation response.

Now your joints hurt.

WTF? Surely that’s got nothing to do with a sandwich!

And why do you feel so tired when food is supposed to give you energy?

Now let’s rewind for a moment and try that again...

You unwrap your sandwich, feeling good within yourself that you got up to go out and buy it, feeling proud that you got at least a little movement into your day.

You start to breathe deeper with that thought of gratitude.

In turn you begin to relax and even get a whiff of the deliciousness you’re about to enjoy.

You begin to salivate.

You take a small bite and you chew chew chew.

Your brain then sends the message to your stomach (the host) that food is coming so it starts to tidy up and pump out the welcoming mat (hydrochloride acid).

The food slides down with joy, lands not in a dry sad desert but a fun pool of digestive juices.

It breaks down effortlessly, without the need for your body to spend any more precious energy, so you feel like you have lots of energy to actually do some work.

Minerals, nutrients and vitamins then spark into fireworks that go straight to the cells which need them most, while the remains take a different route towards easy elimination.

No arguments, no confusion, no need for setting off any alarms, everyone knows their role and they get on with doing their thing so you can get on with doing your thing.

So next time you’d like scene #2 instead, next time you’d prefer to feel alive, energised, relaxed, bloat free and happy within yourself for eating consciously, try this tip:

Imagine that while you’re eating that sandwich, a hidden camera is projecting your every move onto a National News channel! Your face is on everyone’s screen for millions to watch you eat. 

The Royal family watch the news too, you know :)

P.S. I touch on the topic of digestion and often discuss it in depth at every single one of my workshops. You can bet that I'll be covering this topic in the next classes 'Easy raw lunches that kids will love' and 'How to eat for beautiful skin'. All classes can be booked via this link: https://tanyasliving.com/collections/workshops-and-events