Cook with me: Banana Strawberry Chocolate Cake (raw, vegan, dairy-free)

Hello everyone,

I'm finally back with a new post. For this special occasion, I'd like to share with you a recipe that I came across within the past days. Get excited for the Banana Strawberry Chocolate Cake! It is raw, vegan, dairy-free and it tastes deliciously! 

This was my first time making a raw cake and it definitely won't be the last one. I never imagined a raw cake being so tasty. The ingredients couldn't be more healthy - it is a perfect dessert for everyone who eats clean (including myself).

Recipe (adapted from Malinca.si):

Base (1st layer):

100 g mixed nuts (walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts)

100 g oats

50 g coconut flour

50 g coconut palm sugar

200 g medjool dates, pitted

2 tablespoons coconut oil (not melted)

Filling (2nd layer):

250 g strawberries, chopped

3 bananas, chopped

Chocolate cream (3rd layer):

150 g medjool dates, pitted

1/2 cup water

50 g raw cocoa powder

2 tablespoons coconut oil (not melted)

Preparation:

1. For the base, mix all ingredients in a food processor into a dough and press it firmly into a cake tin.

2. Add the chopped bananas and strawberries on top of the dough. 

3. For the chocolate cream, mix the dates in a food processor until you don't get a lump. Next, add water to get a thick, creamy consistency. The last step is to add cocoa powder and coconut oil to the mixture. Then, put the cream over the fruit layer.

4. Let the cake cool down in the fridge for about 2-3 hours before serving.

I bet everyone can master this recipe (cooking-dummies included!). It takes less than an hour to make. Will you give it a try?

I have a lot more healthy recipes on my menu to share with you since I've been into clean eating for almost a year now. Healthy food has become an important part of my lifestyle besides regular exercise. So, for the future posts expect even more healthy and easy food recipes! For more food inspiration, you are invited to follow my Instagram account (@crayonsandbeads). Now I'm off to studying Internal medicine and Surgery, finals are coming too quickly!

Until then,

Vanja

End of year 2013

Hello everyone,

first of all, I want to apologize for not posting since October (more than two months?!) but studies truly took all of my spare time.
The second thing, MERRY CHRISTMAS! I know it's a bit late but better now than never. I hope you had a great Christmas day with all your beloved ones. I got really sick the day or two before December 25 - fever, terrible headache, cough etc. But on the festive day my state of health was a lot better (thank you, Santa).
Thirdly, I have so many writing ideas for the coming-up posts, all written down in a special little notebook. Soon, there'll be something new to read. This is my New year's resolution. One post per month. Minimum during the study year.

I think it's enough of my rambling so onto the last thing... It's the last day of 2013 today, it was a successful year for ones but maybe not that great for others. However, you should forget all the bad things that happened and remember the good memories 2013 has left. Life has ups and downs, so does every year. Make 2014 the best year as much as you can. And leave the past behind, don't look too far into the future, rather enjoy every day.

(Source: Picmonkey)

I wish you only the best in 2014!

Till next year,

Vanja

P.S.: This post is written on Tuesday, did you notice?! If you follow this blog for a while, you know that new posts are up on Sundays. But today is a very special day (New year's eve) and since you haven't heard from me so long... An exception only for you.

P.P.S.: In the mean time (while waiting for the first post in 2014) you could visit my Facebook page (like here) and Instagram profile (follow here). Thank you!

Review: Lee Stafford dry shampoo

Hello everyone,

for today's late Sunday post I prepared a short review of a dry shampoo. This post will be written in English and in Slovene too. However, I hope you will still enjoy reading it! (And I apologize for the lack of posts, the new study year took all my free time.)

About a month ago, our Slovenian online drugstore Click2Chic.si sent me this Lee Stafford dry shampoo* to test it. I was hoping to get my hand on it since forever, but I have never bought it because of the price, it was just too expensive for me. Another reason why I insisted not to buy it is that I tried a lot of different dry shampoos and I was always disappointed by them.

Pred mesecem dni sem od naše spletne drogerije Click2Chic.si prejela Lee Stafford suhi šampon za pranje las, da bi ga testirala. Že od nekdaj sem si ga želela preizkusiti, vendar ga zaradi njegove cene nisem nikdar kupila. Poleg tega sem preizkusila kar nekaj suhih šamponov in zmeraj sem bila razočarana.

So you can imagine how happy I was when I received this product. The packaging is adorable, the product comes in a 150 ml hot pink bottle. The use is very simple, you spray the product into the roots of the hair. Next, you rub away the powder with your fingers. That's it! The powder absorbs the excess oils perfectly, it works great for me. And the hair smells amazing. I don't know what scent this is, but it smells so fresh to me. Another great thing about it is that I'm not left with any white powder in my hair like every other dry shampoo does. This is one of the most important things about a dry shampoo for me, because if I see any white powder in my roots, I won't use is again. Only in emergency cases.
I use it 2 to 3 times per week when I don't have time to wash my hair and blow dry it. I only need a small amount of the product so bet it will be useful for many months.

Lahko si predstavljate, kako vesela sem bila, ko sem prejela pošiljko s tem izdelkom. Embalaža je prelepe pink barve in vsebuje 150 ml suhega šampona. Uporaba je zelo preprosta, izdelek se razprši po laseh in se nato vmasira v lasišče, kjer se zgodi "čarovnija", saj izgine videz mastnega lasišča. Izdelek je pravzaprav prašek/puder/prah, ki absorbira vso odvečno maščobo. Na mojih laseh deluje res dobro. Po uporabi lasje čudovito dišijo. Vonja ne znam točno opredeliti, vendar diši zelo osvežujoče. Še ena odlična stvar glede tega izdelka je, da na mojih laseh ne ostane nič tistega nadležnega belega prahu, ki ga za samo pusti večina ostalih suhih šamponov. To je zame dokaj pomembna zadeva, saj odloča o tem, ali bom izdelek uporabljala še naprej ali ne.
Izdelek uporabljam 2- do 3-krat na teden, ko nimam dovolj časa za umivanje in sušenje las. Do sedaj sem porabila zelo malo izdelka in verjamem, da mi ga bo zmanjkalo šele čez nekaj mesecev.

Will I purchase it? Of course I will! This is one of the best dry shampoo I have ever tried. It is definitely my favorite until (and if) I find a better one.
And all my dark haired ladies, don't worry about the white powder! This dry shampoo also comes in two other versions, for medium and dark brown hair. I'm using the original version which is great for my light hair. If you want to have a very good dry shampoo, I highly recommend this one from Lee Stafford!
Slovenian readers can buy this product here.

Ali bom ta izdelek ponovno kupila? Seveda! To je eden izmed najboljših suhih šamponov, ki sem jih preizkusila. Vsekakor je le-ta moj najljubši, dokler (in če) ne najdem še boljšega.
In še dobra novica za vse gospodične in gospe s temno barvo las: ta suhi šampon obstaja še v dveh različicah, za srednje rjave in temno rjave barve las. Jaz uporabljam originalno verzijo, ki super učinkuje na svetlih laseh. Če si želite imeti res dober suhi šampon, vam toplo priporočam tega!
Kupite ga lahko tukaj.

Ingredients: Butane, Isobutane, Propane, Corn Starch Modified, Alcohol Denat., Betaine, Parfum, Butylphenyl Methylpropional, Linalool, Limonene, Benzyl Alcohol

Until next time,

Vanja