Does it feel too hot to cook your morning oatmeal these days? It's been SO hot in Seattle, over 100 degrees, which is something we are not used to in this town. The crock pot is an excellent way to prepare food without adding additional heat into the house during the summer months.
This oatmeal is.like a deconstructed trail mix bar. Oats, nuts, seeds, and sweetness - it is an excellent way to boost your morning with healthy carbs and proteins. 
If you like bird food, or feeling like your still eating your favorite protein bar on a backcountry trail, this oatmeal is for you!
For a carbohydrate, steel cut oats are packed with fiber and protein. They are also a great source of Vitamin B complex and iron, and aides in immune function. 
Dairy-Free Slow Cooker Trail Mix Steel Cut Oatmeal
Setting: 10 Hour Setting Serves 6-8 Ingredients: 1.5 cups steel cut oats 5 1/2 cups of nondairy milk 1/4 cup maple syrup 1 tbsp coconut oil 1/3 cup almonds, chopped 1/3 cup pumpkin seeds 1/3 cup sunflower seeds 1/3 cup coconut shreds 1/2 cup raisins 1/4 cup flax seed or flax meal 1 apple, diced 1 tsp cinnamon 1/2 tsp nutmeg 1 tsp vanilla pinch of salt Directions: Dice the apple. Pour and mix all of the ingredients well into the crock pot. Once combined, place the lid on top. Place on the 10 hour setting and cook for around 6-8 hours, or until done to your liking (even up to 10 hours). If your crock pot has a low setting, cook on low. If the oatmeal gets too thick, add more milk to make it smoother. Let's Connect! Enjoy my other oatmeal recipes below!
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I am a sucker for old linens. In fact, my nickname should be the linen lady. I don't know why but I just love old table linens. These mid-century gingham tablecloths remind me of the good old summer picnic days where grandma would pull out her linens to inspire whatever season or holiday was near.
This late mid century round checkered tablecloth inspired me to do something with seasonal fruit that boasts the lovely picnic vibes. After a leftover smoothie event, I had about 29 bananas and a cup full of cherries that needed to be used, so wha-lah inspiration for a brand new recipe that is more naturally sweet. 
Since I don't like to waste food, I decided to check my cabinets and noticed only 1/4 cup of chocolate chips were left. Why not combine cherries and chocolate into banana bread?
I love tablecloths. I love chocolate. I love fruit. It's as if love is the true inspiration for this recipe. 
"Cherries are the luckiest of all fruit. They are never far from the one they love."
This MCM tablecloth and many other vintage items available for purchase on my Etsy shop, The Elizabethan Closet. For more vintage items, let's connect above on the Instagram account!
Dairy-Free Cherry Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
Prep Time: 5 minutes Bake Time: 32-40 minutes Ingredients: 2 cups pastry flour 1 tsp baking soda 1tsp baking powder 3 large ripe bananas, mashed 1/3 cup maple syrup 1 cup non dairy milk 1 tsp vanilla 1/3 - 1/2 heap cup cherries, halved 1/4 cup chocolate chips Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a bowl, mash the bananas and mix together the bananas, milk, syrup and vanilla until well combined. Next, add in the flour, baking soda and powder powder and fold until you form a well-combined dough. Fold in the chocolate chips (add up to 1/2 cup for a sweeter bread). Next, spray a bread pan or an 8 or 9 inch round pie pan. Add the dough and spread evenly into the pan. Halve or pit the cherries. Add the cherries into the top of the dough. Press them slightly into the dough to be visible, but to have the cherries in the center or bottom, press cherries firmly into the dough and use the spatula to cover the holes. Bake for 32-40 minutes. Use the poke test by inserting a knife into the center of the pan. If the knife comes out clean that indicates the bread is cooked through. Let's Connect! Discover more banana and cherry recipes below!
Summer is here, and time to stay cool and refreshed. I found this lovely vintage 70's lemon tray by Keswick, and this fun and flowy peach dress that inspired me to combine the two fruits to create an easy homemade peach lemonade.
Many recipes call for 1-2 cups of sugar, and for that I cannot stand or create something overly sweet. This recipe uses enough sugar to reduce the tartness of the lemon juice all while maintaining connection to it's peachy-fruit flavor. Simple and sweet, this is the perfect recipe for summer picnics or to enjoy your traditional lemonade with a twist! If you want to reduce the sweetness or dilute it anymore, just add a bit more water closer to four cups in total. Enjoy! 
This Keswick tray + 1980's peach dress and many other vintage items available for purchase on my Etsy shop, The Elizabethan Closet. For more vintage items, let's connect above on the Instagram account!
Homemade Peach Lemonade
Total Time: 10-20 minutes Serves 2 large glasses Ingredients: 1 large peach, sliced 3/4 cup lemon juice ( 2 large lemons) 1/4 cup sugar 3.5-4 cups water Directions: In a pot, bring the peach, 1.5 cups water and sugar to a simmer. Simmer for 5 to 7 minutes. Remove from heat and remove the peach flesh. Use a fine mesh strainer if needed. Let the water cool and then add in, and mix, the lemon juice and 2 to 2.5 cups more water. Serve over ice! This tastes best when cooled entirely as this brings out the fruit flavor. Let's Connect! Check out my other lemonade recipes below.
I found this lovely mid-century tea tray that comes from the USSR. Dating back to the 1970's, and painted with vibrant-colored flowers, this toile tray inspired me to make a traditional Russian tea / beverage. Since it is summer, I decided to try something cooling, rather than a warm Russian tea.
Russian Kompot is a fruit-based juice that has many variations and can be served hot or cold depending on the season. The traditional method uses cherries, but many variations use fresh or dried fruits like apples, berries or apricots.
For the summer, you can use any seasonal berry or fruit, and serve it up cold, or over ice. Many recipes use a large amount of sugar, but I drastically reduced the sugar to make this a healthier and sweeter treat. During the holiday season, kompot makes an excellent warm, seasoned hot beverage. It's a fun recipe to experiment during every season of the year! 
This vintage USSR tea tray + many other vintage items available for purchase on my Etsy shop, The Elizabethan Closet. For more vintage items, let's connect above on the Instagram account!
Russian Cherry Kompot Juice
Make Time: 30 minutes Makes approximately 4 cups Ingredients: 4 cups water 1 lb or 1 heaping cup cherries, pitted 2 tbsp sugar Directions: Begin by putting the cherries. Without a cherry pitter, I remove the stems and hold the cherry in my left hand, bottom on a cutting board. I take a hard plastic straw and push the straw from the top to the bottom of the cherry. Slightly, slide the cherry up the straw to get the pit out of the fruit. In a pot, combine the water and sugar and bring to a simmer. Once the sugar dissolves after one minute, add the cherries. Simmer on low heat for 10-15 minutes. Once the cherries lose color, remove from heat and let the juice cool completely. I find it is best enjoyed 12-24 hours after cooling. Immediately drinking the juice will have a more sugary flavor. The cherry flavor really kicks in once the juice cools entirely. The traditional version leaves the cherries in the liquid, but you can also remove it if you'd like. Enjoy cold! Let's Connect! Enjoy my other cherry recipes below!
Modern society is well, not healthy. Physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually - we have been long ill and dis-eased for sometime.
Society is the most advanced it's ever been, but still fail to be well on multiple levels of life. Humans are born innocent, and as we age we get indoctrinated by various limited self-beliefs and propaganda that keeps us stuck in negative cycles.
If we are what we eat, than we really are what we think. If we think of ourselves and the world in such a negative, or scarce, way, we will not only view life from the "glass half empty," approach, but we limit reaching our greatest potential.
Modern society has given us an opportunity to heal and self-grow; however, we can't become overly self-absorbed where we become narcissistic in nature. Our bodies, mind and spirit is like a battery. What we think and project, often times we attract. This does not mean that chronically negative people will never have good life experiences...in fact, I've known many negative people to have positive experiences as a life lesson to advance, or graduate them, out of this limiting belief. It is the rational mind that works in overdrive to keep us in this cycle. Here are five limited self-beliefs to say goodbye to in this modern age. "I am not worthy."
Many people today have been indoctrinated with many bad beliefs, and this belief is one of the main misbeliefs pounded into our modern brain.
Much of our negative behaviors and childhood traumas often make us realize we are not worthy of many things. Are you worthy of a loving partner? Are you worthy of a job that doesn't abuse its employees? Are you worthy of feeling good? Are you worthy enough to lose weight? Do you believe you are worthy of achieving great things? Much of this belief roots to having hope and faith that something better is out there for you. You have to believe this deep down in your core. I've known many women who believe that there are no good men out there, and that all men are bad, and that good love doesn't happen to them. Well guess what. They continuously get into relationships that do not best serve them with abusive or negative partners. There is something out there for everyone. And there is someone out there for everyone. "I am a victim...."
There are very few people or souls who live on this planet and go through life without trauma or a major life changing event.
In some ways, we are all victims of some terrible event. Some trauma is harder to overcome like rape, murder or physical abuse. However, most trauma is resolvable with the proper healing techniques. The victimhood mindset keeps people in a loop, and often in modern society with social media people often seek praise constantly for their trauma. For some it reduces the capacity to have empathy for others who experience pain and suffering because the victimhood mentality is constantly focused on themselves. Scientific American goes more in-depth with this mindset, but when understanding the victim-mindset it can become very ego-centric and self-concerning to the point where people cannot ascend because of rumination of the past as well as the need to constantly seek praise or attention of their hurt. One way to break this is to gain perspective that throughout human history, we've all been victims of something or someone's poor behavior. "Nothing Good Happens to Me."
If your mind is a battery, do you want to positively or negatively charge it?
if you think nothing good happens to you, expect to have nothing but annoyances and troubling situations from getting a flat tire, to countless failed relationships. Life is not easy, but you have to believe that you are worthy and that good things can happen to and for you, while maintaining a realistic mindset. 
Scarcity mindset about the World
When I was stuck in a scarcity mindset, I often believed many things. One of those beliefs included that the world was over populated and there was a lack of resources.
After listening to a Christian pastor's video, we mentioned how God wants us to have the best life and that resources always finds a way. After changing my mindset, I realized and began to attract things that I formally thought was not possible. Are there too many sellers on Etsy? No. There is a market for everything. The scarce mindset would say it's not possible, it can't happen to me. Does America have a lack of food? Not really when looking at the obesity rates. America doesn't have a mass food scarcity problem, it has a lack-of-nutrient problem. Extreme Blinded Illusions About People
America is an extreme country. I don't know why it is, but we either go in one direction or the other. Many other countries have a more balanced mindset, which Americans can learn from.
Many wounded people often live in a mindset that people are out to get them, people are evil and manipulators where are the other end of the spectrum includes the rosy-eyed spiritualist who only sees the good in everyone and that every person should be trusted. Balance is needed to have a healthy dose of skepticism, while not being overly paranoid or overly trusting thinking that no one has a dark side. Projections are dangerous, especially online, but it takes time to get to know people. All or nothing mindsets rarely help people grow and ascend. Balance the head and the heart when making decisions about people. What limiting belief do you want to say goodbye to? Let's Connects! |
AuthorElizabeth Rae Kovar M.A. is Author of her memoir, Finding Om and is a Fitness Trainer, Yogi, Reiki Master, Presenter and Lover of Life. To view her portfolio please visit www.elizabethkovar.com 
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