Eat. Breathe. Repeat. by OFF COLOR JOURNAL

because a mindful kitchen feeds the soul happy.

intro equipment

1-2 3-4

grocery list

mood food

6-7

cooking playlist

five finger breathing

morning gratitude

morning routine from an artist

sip sip — happy slurping:

sachlav

13-14

maca mocha

15-16

taro latte

17-18

lettuce water

19-20

pandan infused morning coffee george orwell‘s idea of tea

21-22

I‘m hungry:

cucumber za‘atar feta salad

26-27

millet tabbouleh

28-29

umami broth

30-31

23-24

how to build a badass salad

32-36

treat yourself:

a new take on the nana

39-40

durban mango

41-42

croissant chips

43-44

cinnamon rolls

45-47

korean street toast

48-49

this and that:

pistachio pesto

51-52

zacusca

53-54

reintroducing: fennel

55-56

guave pink pepper jam

57-58

gomasio

59-60

miso buttered corn

61-62

the importance of breakfast

63-64

mood tracker sheet

meal planning plan

breathing exercise

stretching in your kitchen

tangerine meditation

food bank NYC— a wave of food

71-72

OFF COLOR studio — 2021

intro

Welcome to „Eat. Breathe. Repeat.“ the second mental health focused e-book released by OFF COLOR studio. After focusing on mental health and art therapy—connecting with oneself and one‘s feelings through arts and colors, it‘s time to dig in a bit deeper and satisfy what everyone craves 24/7: food. While art is something that is still not everyone‘s favorite hobby, food is something we cannot ignore or get out of the way. We need food to live, to function, to perform, and simply to be. But what does mental health and food now have in common? Well, food plays a major part when it comes to our moods and feelings. It‘s obvious that we get a little hangry, when we have an empty stomach and many of us know a hangry version of ourselves—a very bad tempered self that is actually just hungry and not out of his or her mind. Food really „controls“ us. When we feel sad, we like to turn ourselves to treats which shall help making us feeling better—building happy hormones like serotonin. Truth should be told… it‘s time to stop with the myths and focus on the facts and what‘s right. It‘s okay and always acceptable to eat sugar and treat yourself here and then—it really makes happy for a short moment. But to work on a healthy relationship with your body and mind, we need to feed ourselves happy. The magic is inside our gut. The gut is the headquater for happy hormones—this means the more veggies and good things you eat, the better and happier you will feel automatically. We live in times, where we still have a lot of food relationship problems, may it be the lack of food education, food anxiety, food poverty, or food laziness by heading outside to get whatever is fastly produced for the moment. Our nutrition can always be a bit better and if not now, I don‘t know a better timing to reconnect with food and learning about the influence and the importance of it. There are so many negative things about the food industry which we have to learn and understand, but we should also focus on the positive things. Food is a community thing and it‘s a great way to connect and spread a message. We have to stop food poverty and we need society to wake up that healthy food is not a trend or a starving lifestyle. This is saving lives and it matters so much to develop a healthy mental health.

In the following pages, you will get to see the world of mental health, connected to food, a little artsy vibes, and of course some practical tips for you daily.

This is a book for everyone who simply loves food or a person who‘s into understanding why the relationship of food and mental health needs all of our attention. Create healthy habits, print out the meal planner that you will find in a later chapter and get plenty of inspiration for all kinds of occasions of your life. Celebrate your life and celebrate food. Eat whatever you like to eat, but maybe start switching to a healthier and mindful mindset. Instead of the full cake, go with one slice only. Instead of sugary vanilla creamer in your coffee, go with a secret Asian ingredient you will see in the sip sip chapter. Rethink your food choices and make the treating days the very special ones. Connect with yourself, ask your body for its needs and feed your whole system. Happiness is not a state of mind we need to reach, it‘s basically what we put inside ourselves. Don‘t let food stress your daily and give you hard times… food is still a moment of relaxation and wellness. So, don‘t forget to take deep breaths. Take a deep breath before you put that fork into your mouth, be grateful about what‘s in your fridge, and get to know your plate. Eat slow and connect with the ingredients. Breathing deeply, smelling the food. Breathing and eating consciously mindful… sounds good to you? Eat, breathe, repeat. As simple as that! Enjoy this and share it with as many people as you like.

Let‘s eat. I‘m hungry. 2

One of the main reasons people are scared or hesitant about spending more time in the kitchen is not having the right equipment to succeed.

for salads, cake batters, bread baking, and marinating parties.

Handy helpers: we do not need 46 knives— get yourself a good one for your meat, one good veggie knife, and a bread knife for the crunchy situations. Also a must: a spatula for baking, some wooden or bamboo spatulas, tongs, and for the luxurious upgrade: a brush for baking and an icing spatula, also chop sticks – which I love for whisking or even eating salad.

There shouldn‘t be any pressure in the kitchen, because food is supposed to be fun and connecting. It creates a mood, a vibe, and even further than that memories which can be memorized forever. Exploring food, your roots which are represented in certain dishes, and simply flavor to create a fun daily, is such an important thing to experience.

For Cravings: baking dishes. Ugh, so much to hoard. Get yourself a loaf tin and a brownieish tin. Inside the brownie-ish tin you can also put cupcakes, you can bake a sheet cake, and you can even use it for quiche and anything savory. Please don‘t get 10 different tins and shapes in the beginnig. We don‘t eat cake every day… & do not forget parchment paper.

For creating any dish, you don‘t really need a lot. The more you have, some tasks might be easier, but the result will be the same, even if you only have one pan in your kitchen. We shouldn‘t feel limited to cook certain dishes, just because we don‘t own an ice cream machine or pasta making tool—you get the point.

Food helpers: oil must be around to cook, What are the basics we can start with?

bake, and roast. Lemons, lemon juice or anything acidic should be around as well. A small selection of spices: salt, pepper, paprika, garlic—we don‘t need much stuff to create simple dishes. The upgrade comes with cumin, za‘atar, different salts, nutmeg, anise, turmeric, whatever you desire. If you love BBQ and you eat it a lot, you can surely start by making a big batch in a weck jar for your cooking adventures—choose the spices by the food you cook the most.

Oven ware: a good pan for frying, pancakes, and meaty situations. A big pot for soups, stews, pasta, or whatever big thing you are planning to cook. A lot of work can also be done by your oven… an air fryer and rice cooker are something I totally love, but this is already a very luxurious upgrade.

Preparing Stage: get yourself a nice wooden block to chop your veggies on—please invest in wood, not the cheap plastic ones which you will throw away after a year, bowls: get yourself a good set of bowls. We don‘t need a mise-en-place like in the cooking videos where we put every ingredient we use into a bowl, rather get yourself 3-4 bowls which are good

See you later: some air tight glass jars and boxes for take away food and meal prepping. Leftovers are not only money saving and zero waste, but also very satisfying—think about one day old spaghetti.

vegetables spinach kale broccoli cauliflower bell peppers brussels sprouts zucchini carrots cabbage cucumbers celery onions garlic potatoes and sweet potatoes beets butternut squash fruits avocados fresh blueberries, strawberries, blackberries, or raspberries (buy frozen to save $) apples oranges, lemons, and grapefruit grapes bananas pineapple cherries mango

meat, fish, and vegetarian proteins chicken breasts salmon fish fillets shrimp or crab ground turkey or grass-fed beef or pork vegetarian protein sources such as tofu or tempeh legumes and grain products canned beans chickpeas canned or dried lentils quinoa, amaranth, brown rice, farro, buckwheat, barley, and millet rolled or steel-cut oats corn tortillas bread and flour almond flour cake flour whole wheat flour fats and oils olive oil avocado oil coconut oil tahini

nuts and nut butters almonds dairy products, nondairy products, pumpkin seeds eggs peanut butter butter almond butter yogurt or coconut yogurt sunflower seeds dairy milk, almond milk, or coconut milk chia seeds cheeses such as goat cheese, cheddar, walnuts and feta pistachios sauerkraut, kimchi ground flaxseed eggs

condiments apple cider vinegar balsamic vinegar honey hot sauce maple syrup soy sauce or coconut aminos salsa mustard vanilla extract salt and pepper canned goods canned full fat coconut milk sardines crushed tomatoes pumpkin purée marinara sauce miscellaneous chicken broth baking powder baking soda cacao and cacao nibs beverages tea sparkling water coffee snack foods dark chocolate unsweetened dried fruits like raisins, figs, mango, or apple rings seaweed pickles olives crackers cereal, energy, or protein bar

Our mood and food have a really important relationship we shouldn‘t ignore. Both influence our daily and especially our happiness. It is not a secret anymore, but what we eat and what gathers in our gut is actually setting the tone for our day.

mood food

We might feel a little stressed here and then, but not everybody chooses a carrot to calm down. We fight stress with sugar which actually emphasizes our mood. Even more important to stress here: when suffering from depression, anxiety or any mental health issue, fighting the pain and „healing“ the mood swings with sugar and bad food only makes the situation worse.

Happy vibes through Salmon Chili

Food has healing powers and we need to learn and understand what to eat to enhance or maintain a feeling of happiness. A burger and pizza are still allowed, but don‘t be scared to try some food which you never fully integrated into your lifestyle and nutrition. There‘s a lot out there to explore, as long as you remember to always take care of your gut! Eat your pizza if you wish, but make sure to add a salad to balance it out. Create a cheat day a week, and the other days be creative exploring veggies and fruits which will make your mouth melt. No more stigmatizing of healthy food. This is not a trend, it‘s a way to stay healthy and connected to yourself.

Ginger Bananas Raspberries

Peanuts Pineapple

now to •

YOU NEED COMPLEY CARBOHYDRATES: BROWN RICE, QUINOA, MILLET, BEETS, SWEET POTATO

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LEAN PROTEIN: CHICKEN, FISH, EGGS, NUTS, SEEDS

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FATTY ACIDS: FISH, EGGS, NUTS, FLAX

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SNACK WITH LESS PROCESSED FOODS

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HEALTHY FATS: AVOCADO, COCO + OLIVE OIL

•

BREAKFAST MATTERS

•

SMALLER PORTIONS THROUGHOUT THE DAY

•

STAY HYDRATED

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PROTEIN MATTERS A LOT: = AMINO ACIDS MAKE UP THE CHEMICALS THE BRAIN NEEDS TO REGULATE THOUGHTS AND FEELINGS, SO: PEAS, BEANS, LENTILS, NUTS, SEEDS, LEAN MEAT, EGGS, FISH—THIS ALSO GIVES YOU MORE ENERGY

•

LESS SUGAR MAKES YOU AUTOMATICALLY HAPPY

•

EAT REGULARLY

To start this off right we need a couple of things which set the mood and emphasize the vibe of our kitchen. For some, music is an essential part to create the best dishes in the kitchen. Music spreads good vibes, calmness, and pure happiness. Let‘s dive in into this special cooking session playlist created to inspire you from this kitchen to yours. I hope you are dancing right now.

Allah –Las — Raspberry Jam Matt Martians — Where I Lived Tame Impala — Breather Deeper Aretha Franklin — Day Dreaming Childish Gambino — Feels Like Summer Drake — Passionfruit Juls — Soweto Blues

Solange — The Sound Of Rain Kelis — Roller Rink WizKid — Essence Daft Punk — Harder, Faster, Better, Stronger (Neptunes Remix) Justin Timberlake — Rock Your Body Steve Lacey — Uuuu Hiatus Kaiyote — Nakamarra (featuring Q-Tip) Max Herre — Terminal C Little Simz — Woman (featuring Cleo Sol)

Stevie Wonder — Venus‘ Flytrap And The Bug Tarika Blue — Dreamflower Galcher Lustwerk — Cig Angel Hubert Daviz — Braazaw KAYTRANADA — Freefall (featuring Durand Bernarr)

You can find this playlist on Spotify. —„Eat. Breathe. Repeat. Cooking Session.“

REACH OUT YOUR HAND. USE THE SECOND HAND TO OUTLINE THE REACHED OUT HAND. SLOWLY MOVE UP THE FINGER — , MOVE DOWN THE FINGER — . REPEAT THIS WITH ALL OF YOUR FINGERS AND FEEL FREE TO SWITCH THE HAND. TAKE IT SLOW.

MORNING GRATITUDE

I think you're wonderful and so does everyone else. You will take a long trip and you will be very happy, though alone. In the beginning there was YOU — there will always be YOU, I guess. You will write a great play and it will run for three performances. Relax a little; one of your most celebrated nervous tics will be your undoing. You may be a hit uptown, but downtown you're legendary! Your walk has a musical quality which will bring you fame and fortune. You will eat cake. You should wear white more often — it becomes you. The next person to speak to you will have a very intriquing proposal to make. A lot of people in this room wish they were you. You are a prisoner in a croissant factory and you love it. Beyond the horizon there is a vale of gloom. You too could be Premier of France, if only… if only…

WAKEY WAKEY 10

Joan Miró, a Spanish modern art painter, held on religiously to his routines, because he was worrying about his depression which he started dealing with when he was around 18 years old. To make it not return again, or at least stick to a healthier daily, he created a routine for his own healing. Around the 1930s, Miró lived in Barcelona, together with his wife and daughter — each of his days started at 6 in the morning. He bathed and ate a light breakfast which mostly consisted of bread and a coffee. When breakfast was done, he sat down in front of his easel and painted without stopping from 7 AM until noon. At this point, he was leaving his studio and creative atmosphere to head outside and exercise for an hour. Joan was serious about working out — it was a perfect strategy for him to escape from depression and keep it as far away as he could. His active routines always looked different: in Barcelona he liked to jump rope and did Swedish gymnastics and in Paris he enjoyed boxing. When he travelled to Catalonia for a little vacation, he swam a lot in the sea and jogged along the beach.

3 cups almond milk + 1 tablespoon sugar + 2 teaspoons vanilla extract + 2 tablespoons starch + 1/2 teaspoon rose water + toppings: pistachio, hazelnut, shredded coconut, seeds

Take out a pot and heat milk with sugar and vanilla over medium heat.

When the mixture is cooking for a little bit and the sugar is fully dissolved, add rose water and do the taste test. You can surely add a little more, if you love a rich rose flavor.

Now add the starch to thicken the sachlav and continue cooking until it gets a desired pudding-ish but still moving consitency.

Serve immediately and finish the cup with toppings.

Spoon it, drink it, and enjoy this warm hug.

When having leftovers, no problem, store it in an airtight container and reheat it the next day!

1/2 tablespoon maca root powder + 11/2 tablespoons cocoa powder + 1 tablespoon honey + 1 cup milk + 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract + 1 shot espresso of your choice + 1/2 teaspoon collagen (optional)

Mix this in a blender, a mixer, in a pot on your oven, or whatever machine you love to make your morning drinks with.

Start with the milk, sweeten it with the honey, add the cocoa powder and the maca powder. Make sure all the powders dissolve well.

This power food or also often referred to as an adaptogen is a beautiful natural mood and feelings adapter.

Add a little vanilla to enhance a sweet and rich flavor and if you wish you can also add collagen to cover a whole beauty routine in a cup.

The Peruvan native plant is claimed to improve energy and stamina, but is also helps with fertility and sex drive.

Last but not least, your mixture is ready for the espresso. Add one shot or brew a strong one into this. Mix it well and enjoy ~

2 tablespoons taro purée + 1 cup milk + a little sugar + purple food coloring if you wish it to be more purple like in the Asian cafés

1. For this recipe, 1 baby taro root is enough. Peel it and cut it into tiny chunks which you will cook in a small pot with boiling water. 2. Wait until the taro is fully cooked and super soft in the inside. 3. As soon as the taro is ready, remove it from the heat, transfer it into a blender, and blend until smooth. 4. Measure two tablespoons of taro purée and mix it with 1 cup of milk. Taro, a startchy root plant, is believed to be one of the earliest culivated plants. The purple vegetable is mainly used in African, Oceanic, and South Asian cultures (similar to yams).

5. After both ingredients are perfectly blended, add a little sugar to balance the startchy taste - you decide how sweet you want it! Go for coconut sugar which brings a little extra flavor. 6. If your taro wasn't as purple as you wished, you can surely add some purple food color to make it more bright and funky.

7. Heat up the taro milk mixture in a sauce pan, or use a special milk foaming helper. If you want to enjoy a cold taro latte, then add some ice cubes and enjoy it right away!

3-4 torn lettuce leaves + 1-2 cups hot water

Start by gathering your torn lettuce leaves inside your cup. If you haven‘t washed your salad yet and you are not sure if there might be some sandy leftovers on there, make sure to wash your leaves before continuing to work with them.

Boil some water and pour it over your salad to let it steep for about 5 minutes.

Remove the leaves and let the water cool a little bit before drinking it.

Drink this when you are experiencing an evening where you cannot seem to find peace and calm inside your bed. When you have troubles counting sheeps, brew yourself lettuce water and have sweet dreams ~

to be more specific a very nutty vanilla vibe

3/4 cup milk of choice + 5 pandan leaves (from your favorite Asian supermarket) + 1 pint of water + a shot of espresso + sweetener of your choice + 2 teaspoons pandan extract

We are starting with the pandan extract by using a food processor. Roughly cut your pandan leaves into small chunks and cover them with 1 pint of water. Mix the pandan for a couple of seconds until you are getting a very light green colored water. This is your pandan extract. Strain it and remove the leaves.

Now it‘s already time to create your morning latte or whatever you love to drink. Add two teaspoons of the pandan extract you just made to your milk and brew your coffee.

Before you sweeten your coffee, try it first to see how much flavor the pandan extract gives your coffee. Afterwards you can still play around with sweetener or even more pandan extract. Maybe we will get rid of a little sugar when we only use pandan!

A cup of tea has always been a great symbol for community, comfort, connection, and just having a wonderful moment to yourself. Many people are studying tea, its brewing process, and the wonders which are hidden behind these innocent leaves. It‘s even greater to read about thoughts and ideas from influential or famous pepole. Here is an interesting insight into George Orwell‘s ideas about his very perfect cup of tea. He must have been into it like no one else: „When I look through my own recipe for the perfect cup of tea, I find no fewer than eleven outstanding points. On perhaps two of them there would be pretty general agreement, but at least four others are acutely controversial. Here are my own eleven rules, every one of which I regard as golden: First of all, one should use Indian or Ceylonese tea. China tea has virtues which are not to be despised nowadays — it is economical, and one can drink it without milk — but there is not much stimulation in it. One does not feel wiser, braver or more optimistic after drinking it. Anyone who has used that comforting phrase ‘a nice cup of tea’ invariably means Indian tea. Secondly, tea should be made in small quantities — that is, in a teapot. Tea out of an urn is always tasteless, while army tea, made in a cauldron, tastes of grease and whitewash. The teapot should be made of china or earthenware. Silver or Britannia ware teapots produce inferior tea and enamel pots are worse; though curiously enough a pewter teapot (a rarity nowadays) is not so bad. Thirdly, the pot should be warmed beforehand. This is better done by placing it on the hob than by the usual method of swilling it out with hot water. Fourthly, the tea should be strong. For a pot holding a quart, if you are going to fill it nearly to the brim, six heaped teaspoons would be about right. In a time of rationing, this is not an idea that can be realized on every day of the week, but I maintain that one strong cup of tea is better than twenty weak ones. All true tea lovers not only like their tea strong, but like it a little stronger with each year that passes — a fact which is recognized in the extra ration issued to old-age pensioners.

Fifthly, the tea should be put straight into the pot. No strainers, muslin bags or other devices to imprison the tea. In some countries teapots are fitted with little dangling baskets under the spout to catch the stray leaves, which are supposed to be harmful. Actually one can swallow tea-leaves in considerable quantities without ill effect, and if the tea is not loose in the pot it never infuses properly. Sixthly, one should take the teapot to the kettle and not the other way about. The water should be actually boiling at the moment of impact, which means that one should keep it on the flame while one pours. Some people add that one should only use water that has been freshly brought to the boil, but I have never noticed that it makes any difference. Seventhly, after making the tea, one should stir it, or better, give the pot a good shake, afterwards allowing the leaves to settle. Eighthly, one should drink out of a good breakfast cup — that is, the cylindrical type of cup, not the flat, shallow type. The breakfast cup holds more, and with the other kind one’s tea is always half cold before one has well started on it. Ninthly, one should pour the cream off the milk before using it for tea. Milk that is too creamy always gives tea a sickly taste. Tenthly, one should pour tea into the cup first. This is one of the most controversial points of all; indeed in every family in Britain there are probably two schools of thought on the subject. The milk-first school can bring forward some fairly strong arguments, but I maintain that my own argument is unanswerable. This is that, by putting the tea in first and stirring as one pours, one can exactly regulate the amount of milk whereas one is liable to put in too much milk if one does it the other way round. Lastly, tea — unless one is drinking it in the Russian style — should be drunk without sugar. I know very well that I am in a minority here. But still, how can you call yourself a true tea-lover if you destroy the flavour of your tea by putting sugar in it? It would be equally reasonable to put in pepper or salt. Tea is meant to be bitter, just as beer is meant to be bitter. If you sweeten it, you are no longer tasting the tea, you are merely tasting the sugar; you could make a very similar drink by dissolving sugar in plain hot water. Some people would answer that they don’t like tea in itself, that they only drink it in order to be warmed and stimulated, and they need sugar to take the taste away. To those misguided people I would say: Try drinking tea without sugar for, say, a fortnight and it is very unlikely that you will ever want to ruin your tea by sweetening it again.“

5 persian cucumbers + salt + 1/4 teaspoon garlic + 4 tablespoons olive oil + 2 tablespoons za‘atar + a few mint leaves + 1/2 teaspoon chilli + 2 tablespoons lime juice + feta

Cut the cucumbers into big chunks — no need to be pretty and put them in a kitchen towel which we put upon a strainer. Sprinkle a good amount of salt on top of the cucumbers and squeeze them through the kitchen towel. Let them sit for an hour to get rid of all the water.

Meanwhile mix the dressing with the leftover ingredients.

Release the last bit of water by squeezing the cucumbers one more time and release them from their towel. Now add the dressing, blend everything, and put the salad on a plate. Finish the dish with sprinkling feta cheese on top and garnish with fresh mint.

Za‘atar is a Nothern African spice blend which is also a big part of Arabic cuisine. The major ingredient is the Arabic wild thyme which is blended with spices like roasted sesame, salt, and sumach.

2/3 cup dry millet + 3 tablespoons lemon juice + 1 clove of garlic, finely minced + 1 cup finely diced tomato + 1 cup diced and seedless cucumber + 2 bunches of parsley (stems removed) + 1/4 cup mint leaves + 3 green onions + 1 teaspoon salt + 100 ml yogurt + 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil + pepper + 1 teaspoon dill + fennel greens to garnish (optional)

1. Cook the millet in salted water in a ratio of 1:2 (millet—water). Bring to

a boil over high heat, then cover and reduce the heat to low and let it simmer for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, remove the lid and fluff with a fork. Let it cool for a little bit. 2. While the millet cooks and gets fluffy, chop and prepare the

vegetables and herbs. Start mixing the dressing by combining the yogurt with oil, lemon juice, salt, dill, pepper, and garlic. 3. Once the millet has cooled in its bowl, add the tomato, cucumber,

parsley, mint, green onions, and dressing to the bowl. Fold everything together until all ingredients are well combined. 4. To develop more flavor, let the tabbouleh sit in the fridge for a little bit

before serving. 5. When serving, put the tabbouleh on a beautiful plate and finish it with

some mint and fennel green decor.

ZERO WASTE, BABY.

3 big teaspoons white miso + 2 tablespoons oil + 8 mushrooms + 1 big yellow onion + 1 carrot + 1/2 fennel bulb + 1 garlic head + 1 teaspoon fresh pepper + 6 parsley stalks + 1 nori sheet + some dill for decoration + 1 green tea teabag + a little brown sugar for caramelizing the onion

We start by preheating the oven to 150°C or if we consider using a hot pan, we can surely go this way, too.

There‘s no need for peeling and cutting fine chunks of your veggies, since we need all the skins and extras for flavor.

Oven people: in a big bowl, toss the veggies in miso and oil and make sure everything is coated well. Spread the party on a baking sheet and roast them for about 60 minutes. Hot pan people: if you don‘t have the time, it‘s okay to also just roast your ingredients in a very hot pan. Throw all your veggies in, add the miso and oil, and stand close to your pan. We basically want to burn our veggies to create a special flavor. Don‘t forget the brown sugar which develops some extra flavor. We love color and caramelization.

Now throw all your roasted goods into a big pot filled with 1 liter of water and let the broth cook for a little bit. The water will change its color really quick and we want to reach a state where the broth is reducing itself a little bit. Let a teabag of green tea swim inside the broth for about 7 minutes and then do the taste test: add the fresh pepper and let the ingredients get comfortable for about 20 minutes. Finish by garnishing the broth with some dill. 31

do you want to lose weight?

ARE YOU ON A DIET?

salad shaming is real and especially the people who are eating it face it a lot. we need to stop making every food a topic of diet, society issues, or trends. we do things, because we care about ourselves. if you still hate on salad, you don‘t know how to make a good one!

eating 0 calories is not healthy. 33

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At least 1 water rich ingredient: melon, cucmber, celery, romaine, tomatoes

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Go, go, go chlorophyll: 3-4 cups leafy greens

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Eat the rainbow— think about at least 5 colors: Red and Orange: Red and orange vegetables are rich in carotenoids, such as beta-carotene and lycopene. Carotenoids may reduce the risk of heart disease, age-related eyesight degeneration, and some cancers. Carrots and sweet potatoes are excellent sources of beta-carotene and you can find lycopene in tomatoes and watermelon. Yellow and Green: Xanthophils give yellow fruits and vegetables such as pineapple and yellow peppers their color, while chlorophyll gives green fruits and vegetables like pistachios and celery their color. Cruciferous vegetables, such as broccoli and cabbage also contain indoles. These phytonutrients work together to maintain eye health and heart and liver function, and may prevent some cancers. Blue and Purple: Anthocyanins give blueberries and red cabbage their characteristic colors. Anthocyanins are thought to help maintain healthy blood pressure, help prevent unnecessary blood clotting, and also lower the risk of some cancers.

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A salty massage will make your kale, collards, and cabbage silky af

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Variety: shred, shave, chop — texture: grilling, cooking, crunch through nuts, seeds, apples, chips

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Add a lean protein like grilled shrimp, chicken, a healthy carb such as quinoa

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Add healthy fats: avocado, nuts, seeds

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Prepare your dressing ahead to save time and being prepared when not feeling like it

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Add superfoods like hemp or flax

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Play with vinegars + add water and lemon juice to not destroy the salads vibe

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Get the right equipment and eat from a special plate or bowl

1/2 cup yogurt 2 teaspoons harissa paste drizzle of olive oil juice of a half lime salt and pepper to taste for some extra sexiness feel free to add some garlic

3 tablespoons rice vinegar 1 tablespoon white miso 1/8 teaspoon ginger 2 tablespoons oil 2 teaspoons honey 2 teaspoons matcha 2 teaspoons gomasio or plain sesame 1/2 teaspoon garlic

„I always thought cereals like corn flakes and Rice Krispies were a natural thing — that they came from a cereal bush.“ 37

1 cup corn flour + 3/4 cup flour + 1/4 cup almond meal + 1/ cup brown sugar + 1 teaspoon cinnamon + 1/2 teaspoon cardamom + 1/2 teaspoon salt + 1 teaspoon baking powder + 1/2 teaspoon baking soda + 1/2 cup Greek yogurt + 2/3 cup oil + 3/4 cup oat milk + 2 bananas + 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract + 1/2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar + 1 tablespoon orange blossom water for the glaze: 1/2 cup powdered sugar + a pinch of salt + 1 tablespoon milk or tahini + 1/2 tablespoon orange blossom water + sesame

Take out a bowl and mix together the flours, the almond meal, and the spices.

In a second bowl, mix the wet ingredients together: Greek yogurt, oil, milk, apple cider vinegar, and orange blossom water. Peel the bananas and mash them to a fine purée, which you‘ll add to the wet ingredients. Give it a good stir.

Let‘s bring both parties together. Add the baking powder and baking soda, and sprinkle some salt which will balance the sweetness.

Taste test. Do you need anything more? You can add some vanilla if you wish, you can also add some more nuts or even a splash of tahini.

Preheat the oven to 176°C and fill the batter into a greased baking dish.

Bake the banana bread for about 35 minutes.

Once the cake is cooled down, spread a thin layer of icing on top by mixing the sugar, salt, milk, and orange blossom water together. Finish the look with some sesame seeds.

DURBAN SPICE BLEND 1 teaspoon coriander 1 teaspoon cumin 1/4 teaspoon cardamom 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon fenugreek

USUALLY ENJOYED AS A POPULAR STREET FOOD WITH PINEAPPLE — BUT MANGO IS A NICE UPGRADE TO TRY!

1/8 teaspoon cloves 1 tablespoon paprika 1/2 teaspoon chili

1/2 teaspoon ginger 1 tablespoon sugar

Take the juiciest mango, cut it into halves, slices, or even tiny cubes which you can put on a skewer and sprinkle a dust of the Durban spice blend on top.

If the spice is too exotic for you, you can start getting used to this by adding cinnamon and chili to your mango… slowly get used to the Durban spice… it is the perfect summer blend for your fruit! Sweet and spicy — this is addictive!

A great way to work with leftovers. No need for a big recipe, no need for extra ingredients. Use leftover croissant for this. There is simply no bad croissant. Period. We can always create something great out of it ~ Cut the croissant into slices which have the same thickness, so they bake evenly. For this, use an air fryer and bake the chips for 8 minutes at about 200°C. Double check in between if the croissants get a little darker and make sure to also move them after half of the time.

We want sexy chips, not doo dark, but heavenly smelling like butter. Et voilà—this is the best to have zero waste. And it‘s delicious. Good-bye bagel or pita chips… croissant chips for the win!

ZERO WASTE, BABY.

1 cup warm milk + 1 tablespoon warm water + 2 1/4 teaspoon dry active yeast + 4 1/2 cups flour + 1/2 cup sugar + 1 teaspoon salt + 1 egg + 1 egg yolk + 8 tablespoons butter

Christina Tosi and the milk bar empire she created is a must visit in NYC. From cereal milk to birthday truffles—the pink universe seduces you with the best treats in the Big Apple.

1 cup brown sugar 5 1/2 tablespoons butter 2 1/2 tablespoons cinnamon salt

3 tablespoons buttermilk 3/4 cup powdered sugar a splash of lemon and vanilla extract

We are starting with the yeast process: for this, mix milk, water and yeast and let it sit for 5 minutes to activate. Remember to use lukewarm liquids, because too high temperatures would kill your yeast!

While the yeast is being activated, take out a mixing bowl and put in the flour, sugar and salt. Blend well and add the egg plus the egg yolk. Continue mixing the dough and finally add the butter and yeast mixture which should be bubbly and foamy by now.

When all the dough ingredients are mixed inside the bowl, it is time to knead it and activate all the gluten! Use your hands and knead the dough for about 6 minutes.

Cover the dough in a greased bowl for about an hour to let if fully rise. Meanwhile prepare the goo (tip: don‘t do it last minute)

Take the dough out of the bowl and punch it down. Roll the dough out into a size of a rectangle, then spread the goo evenly on top.

Roll the rectangle up now and cut it into 3cm thick pieces—you should be having around 12 rolls at the end.

Lay the pieces into a baking pan with a width from roll to roll about 1.5cm, since they are still rising a bit more — they need space.

Let the rolls rest for one more hour.

Turn your oven to 176°C and bake the cinnamon rolls for about 20 minutes or until they are golden.

10. Prepare the glaze and cover your rolls with it. Before doing that, you can surely let them sit for a little bit. If you feel fancy, you can also double glaze them… (one layer is tasty and already enough for me).

Cinnamon rolls are not the healthiest, but for a feel good moment, I totally recommend them. Since 12 rolls are a lot and we should really check our sugar consume, I want you to know that this recipe is so perfect for freezing. Let the rolls fully cool down and also glaze them—pack them into an airtight freezing container and put them in the farest corner of your freezer. To enjoy them one more time, simply get them out of the freezer over night to let them defrost and if you wish you can put them into the oven for a couple of minutes at around 100°C to recreate the fresh out of the oven feeling. Even an airfryer is a good option to reheat them.

2 slices of toast + 2 eggs + your favorite cheese + veggies like slaw, bell pepper, onions, spinach — got leftovers? + brown sugar + ketchup + butter + Kewpie mayo

1. Chop the veggies, whichever you want to use, into bite-sized pieces. 2. Prep two pans on your oven and make the omlette. Crack your eggs in a bowl, season them with a little salt and pepper, and add the chopped veggies. Make sure everything is coated well before cooking the omlette — it‘s time to pour it into the pan on medium heat. 3. Wait for the omlette to set, then flip it to cook 2 more minutes. Because we like it sexy, put some cheese on top and let it melt while working on your bread. 4. Heat up the second pan and lay your buttered toast in there. The more butter you put on your toast, the more flavor— oil is also okay! 5. Once one side of your toast is done, flip it, and let‘s start assemblying everything. Put all of the omlette on your toast—yes, it‘s not too much. Sprinkle brown sugar above, add ketchup and a little Japanese mayo, and then put the second toast on top. 6. Keep the toast in your pan for a few more seconds to make sure the cheese and brown sugar will get warm and melted.

100g pistachios + 1/4 cup olive oil + 2 garlic cloves + 2 cups greens of your choice such as coriander or parsley

Mix it in a food processor until eveything is mixed into a creamy and still a bit chunky pesto.

Keep the pesto in an airtight container and put it in your fridge, but make sure to use it in the next days before running bad. Preparing and eating it fresh is the best way to enjoy it!

DID SOMEONE SAY PASTA SALAD?

4 medium eggplants + 8 long red bell peppers + 2 onions + 2 cups tomato sauce + 1 cup oil + 2 teaspoons salt + sugar + 2 bay leaves

With a fork, put holes into your bell peppers and eggplants and line them up on a baking sheet.

Turn on your oven to 220°C and bake the veggies. Roast them for about 20 minutes. Turn over the bell peppers and wait another 20 minutes (the eggplants usually take a little longer than the bell peppers, so keep an eye on them)

Let the veggies fully cool. Remove seeds from the bell pepper and cut it into tiny chuncks until it automaticall becomes a purée. Half the eggplant, remove the meat, and cut it like the bell pepper until it gets mushy, too.

In a pan, roast the onions in a bit of oil and then add the veggies, tomato sauce, the leftover oil, salt, pepper, bay leaves and sugar.

Let everything boil for an hour, stir here and then.

Once the zacusca is a little reduced and thick in consistency, remove the bay leaves, and pour it into prepared glasses or eat it right away.

If you don‘t have anything to dip right now, no worries — this is also a great way to make pasta taste sexier (just add a little water to the zacusca)

TURN ONE BULB OF FENNEL INTO THIS: 3/4 of the bulb are sliced thin as chips while the other 1/4 is cut into the tiniest chunks which will be served as fennel crumbs.

In two bowls, pour in a little oil with a big pinch of salt, a bigger pinch of garlic, and chili flakes if you wish. But salt and garlic is already a lot to create a nice contrast to the sweetness. Now you can either way bake these in the oven at 200°C until they are nice and crispy or you play around with your airfryer. 10 minutes for the chips and 5 for the crumbs. Depending on how finely or roughly you chopped — the time can always differ, so go after color. What to do with fennel crumbs? Roasted onions are history — sprinkle anything you eat with these fried fennel bits. Also a sexy combination for potatoes.

750 ml guava juice + 500g preserving sugar + 1/2 teaspoon crushed pink pepper

On medium heat, warm up the guava juice and add the preserving sugar.

Turn the heat up and wait until the sugar dissolves. Let the mixture get really hot.

When the juice is bubbling and the sugar is fully dissolved, we set a countdown and wait 4 more minutes. In this time, we stirr occasionally and give the guava juice enough time to create a symbiosis with the pectin that is inside the preserving sugar. We want our jam to get jammy and thick.

Meanwhile, clean the glasses in which you want to store the jam with some hot water! We want to kill all germs first!

Now do the test. Take a spoon and test your jam. Is it getting thicker? If not, keep it cooking a bit longer. Add the pink pepper and mix it well.

If your jam is looking jammy, then pour the jam into your hot glasses, fill them fully, and immediately close the lid. Et voilà.

Let the jam cool down before putting it into the fridge.

250g sesame seeds: black and white + 1 tablespoon sea salt

In a pan, heat up the sesame seeds until they start jumping around and get a very beautiful golden brown coating.

Let the sesame cool down and then put it into a food processor together with the sea salt to blend it a bit finer, but not too fine.

Add this seasoning for everything you love to eat. The best result so far has been adding this to salads… the extra note that the sesame is giving to a salad is something you will not believe if you never had it before. But also as an alternative to everything but the bagel seasoning which needs 100 ingredients, gomasio is a sexy seasoning we should consider for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

285g corn (canned corn is totally fine) + 1 big tablespoon white miso + 1 1/2 tablespoons butter + 1 teaspoon sesame or gomasio + some panko for decoration

Seperate the corn from its liquids from inside the can and throw it into a pan together with the butter.

Put the party on high temperature and add the miso — toss everything well. We want the corn to get roasted beautifully with all the flavors of the butter and the miso.

Let the corn roast for a couple of minutes, but make sure that the miso paste is not burning. Shake the pan and watch the corn turn into a beautiful golden color.

Once the corn is beautifully roasted and fragrant, put it onto a plate and sprinkle it with some panko.

This is not only a great side dish, but also a very unique adding to your salad.

For some people, this is the holy half hour of the day, for others, this is time which can be spent in bed or used to take care of other things. Breakfast, „the most important meal of the day“ is what the people say, but why do so many miss out on this? Maybe it is not really the why question, but it is more about who. Because fact is that not only school kids are missing out, but also their rolemodels, the parents and older siblings. Lifestyles are changing, but also people who wish to breakfast in the morning simply can‘t afford it. There‘s a huge gap in between our society and even though we know how we could solve this problem, kids still go hungry to school, others hide their hunger, because it‘s way too embarrassing to show that one is too poor to afford food. The argument of being too cool to eat breakfast in the morning is also an oldie, so let‘s discuss and understand that we need to embrace the morning hours a little more by also making sure that everyone around the globe is able to afford a healthy and fueling breakfast. Governments need to protect its young people by offering free breakfasts for those who cannot afford it. This is a discussion which should not be discussed about, since it is a human right to eat and not starve. The impact of a breakfast shouldn‘t be underestimated and even though this sounds like a major project to deal with, the effort will give the most beautiful result: no one will be hungry. Kids will be able to focus and show their full potential — no matter if rich or poor — a hungry kid cannot successfully attend classes when energy levels are low and the whole system strikes to perform well. Let‘s turn this beautiful necessartiy into a ritual which will make kids smile in the morning again. 63

When you wake up from your overnight sleep, you may not have eaten for up to 10 hours, so breakfast replenishes the stores of energy and nutrients in your body. The body’s energy source is glucose. Glucose is broken down and absorbed from the carbohydrates you eat. The body stores most of its energy as fat. But your body also stores some glucose as glycogen, most of it in your liver, with smaller amounts in your muscles. During times of not eating, such as overnight, the liver breaks down glycogen and releases it into your blood-stream as glucose to keep your blood sugar levels stable. This is especially important for your brain, which relies almost entirely on glucose for energy.

Breakfast foods are rich in key nutrients such as folate, calcium, iron, B vitamins and fibre. Breakfast provides a lot of your day’s total nutrient intake. In fact, people who eat breakfast are more likely to meet their recommended daily intakes of vitamins and minerals than people who don’t.

Essential vitamins, minerals and other nutrients can only be gained from food, so even though your body can usually find enough energy to make it to the next meal, you still need to top up your vitamin and mineral levels to maintain health and vitality. Breakfast boosts brainpower. If you don’t have breakfast, you might find you feel a bit sluggish and struggle to focus on things. This is because your brain hasn’t received the energy (glucose) it needs to get going. Breakfast helps you make better food choices

In the morning, after you have gone without food for as long as 12 hours, your glycogen stores are low. Once all of the energy from your glycogen stores is used up, your body starts to break down fatty acids to produce the energy it needs. But without carbohydrate, fatty acids are only partially oxidised, which can reduce your energy levels.

People who eat breakfast generally have more healthy diets overall, have better eating habits, and are less likely to be hungry for snacks during the day than people who skip breakfast.

Eating breakfast boosts your energy levels and restores your glycogen levels ready to keep your metabolism up for the day.

choose a comfortable seated position, relax your face, and close your eyes. place your first fingers on the tragus cartilage that partially covers your ear canal. inhale, and as you exhale gently press your fingers into the cartilage. keeping your mouth closed, make a loud humming sound. repeat this as much as you like.

To not feeling overly tight and tense during cooking, there are some great exercises to incorporate into your kitchen session.

tree pose Rotate your right hip open. Bend your right knee and grab your ankle, drawing the sole of your foot up onto your inner left thigh. Lightly press your foot into your thigh as you engage your standing quad. You can use this pose as a gentle hip opener or as a way to cultivate more balance.

cow face arms

extended big toe variation

Take a clean wooden spoon or long stirring instrument in your right hand. Reach your arm straight up and then bend your elbow, dropping the spoon lengthwise down your back. Let your left arm hang next to your side with your palm facing back. Bend your elbow and wiggle your hand up your spine until you can grab the head of the spoon. Hold here for eight breaths and then switch hands.

Face the kitchen counter and draw your right knee into your chest. Grab either the pinky edge of your foot or under your calf to place your right heel on the edge of the counter. Place it in an area where you're not preparing food. Spin your heel forward and toes back to encourage the external rotation of your leg. Keep your standing leg straight and low, with your belly lightly lifting and engaged. Hold here for about one minute each side.

„It is important to me to eat only everything that is in season.“

Thich Nhat Hanh‘s

Tangerine Meditation Thich Nhat Hanh is a famous Vietnamese Buddist monk who has brought mindfulness and a mediation to so many people around the globe through his books and publications.

„One day, I offered a number of children a basket filled with tangerines. The basket was passed around, and each child took one tangerine and put it in his or her palm. We each looked at our tangerine, and the children were invited to meditate on its origins. They saw not only their tangerine, but also its mother, the tangerine tree. With some guidance, they began to visualize the blossoms in the sunshine and in the rain. They saw petals falling down and the tiny fruit appear. The sunshine and the rain continued, and the tiny tangerine grew. Now someone has picked it, and the tangerine is here. After seeing this, each child was invited to peel the tangerine slowly, noticing the mist and the fragrance of the tangerine, and then bring it up to his or her mouth and have a mindful bite, in full awareness of the texture and taste of the fruit and the juice coming out. We ate slowly like that.

Each time you look at a tangerine, you can see deeply into it. You can see everything in the universe in one tangerine. When you peel it and smell it, it’s wonderful. You can take your time eating a tangerine and be very happy.

So with that kind of awareness, mindfulness and concentration, we can continue to enjoy our tangerine. I am peeling the tangerine mindfully, and I enjoy every second, every moment. And this is life; this is true life. I will take one section. I look at it, always mindfully, and notice that it it is something wonderful, real, before I put it in my mouth. And I notice the savour, the taste, the juice that is coming out, mindfully. So, I savour every second, every moment, of the time I take in order to enjoy the tangerine. And that is a spiritual experience also. So, when you have your breakfast in mindfulness and concentration, your breakfast not only nourishes you, your body, but it nourishes your mind, your spirit. And when you drink tea that is also a spiritual practice, because from the time you pick up the tea and hold it in your hand to the time when you‘ve finished the tea, it is a meditation, it is a spiritual practice, and you are alive all the way through, drinking your tea. And happiness, and peace, and joy, and the Kingdom of God is available during the whole time of your eating just a tangerine, or your drinking your tea.“

a n

Acess to food is great, having a big variety and always options to choose, especially to lift our mood. But what about the people who do not even have the choice? What about the ones who would love to eat healthier or be able to afford vegetables and fruits, but it‘s too expensive. No access, no chance, no hope. Food distribution is a struggle and a term like food anxiety is becoming more and more a used hearing. Food anxiety is real. What if you cannot put a nourishing dish on your family‘s table? Constantly worrying that your kids might go hungry to bed. This is not only a health concern, but a society problem we need to face and work on. Especially during a pandemic, the differences and gaps were made clear for everyone to see. Now it‘s time for us to act.

Food anxiety is not an option we should face on a daily. Food anxiety is connected to so much and we can only beat this together. That‘s why it‘s even better to know that there are already so many people out there fighting and spreading a message. This book is for everyone who wants to reconnect with food in a more healthier or let‘s say mindful way — redefining a relationship that has brought a lot of toxic energy along the last years. But even more important, I want to emphasize a special organization which needs to be mentioned in this book and it plays a major part, because we cannot work on our food habits when we don‘t even have the chance to grab a bag full of food. What would we do without our food banks and the amazing volunteers and people working there, helping one another to fight this terrible situation. A huge shoutout and a warm hug to Food Bank NYC. There a so many food banks around the globe, but in „Eat. Breathe. Repeat.“, my dedication goes out to NYC and the thousands of helping hands. Food Bank NYC, I admire and respect you so much.

Nearly 1.2 million New Yorkers are experiencing food insecurity, including one in 5 children. 71

This food bank has been organizing food, information, and support for community for over 36 years! That‘s great, but check out why we are in need of this so much: •

Almost half of all New York City households lack enough income to cover necessities, such as food, housing, health care, and child care.

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More than 2.5 million working-age New Yorkers are struggling to make ends meet

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Nearly 1.2 million New Yorkers are experiencing food insecurity, including one in 5 children.

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Over 1.5 million New Yorkers have issues feeding their families right now, which is a 38% increase over pre-pandemic figures.

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39% of Black families and 37% of Hispanic families are struggling with food insecurity vs. 25% of New York City's population at large.

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245,000 Asian New Yorkers are living in poverty, which constitutes nearly 25 percent of the city’s entire Asian population.

There are even more facts provided by the Food Bank and other organizations, but this should make you stop right away and think for a second. These are horrible numbers. Knowing that there is so much connected — not only hungry stomachs, but so many mental health issues which naturally appear when struggling with daily food insecurity. This is a life threat we need to end right now. We need more food, we need more helping hands, and we need to help the ones in need!

A Wave Of Food — For NYC. A fundraise that is dedicated to Food Bank NYC and everyone who wants to make food insecurity history. This fundraise will be open as long as possible, hopefully being able to provide a good amount of meals for the citizens in the Big Apple.

Thank you NYC for your inspiration — all the way through, but I am even more thankful for all of these great organizations which make such an important impact on the daily. Thank you to every helping hand at Food Bank NYC.

And when the sun goes down every evening, don‘t forget to show gratitude. Take a few moments to reflect your day, what you did, how you felt, and make sure to let the heavy weight behind. Today was today, tomorrow will be a new day, a new chance. Stay mindful. Be kind. To yourself and others. 74