I discovered a new blog...

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/06/cinammon_rolls_/

She is fantastic!

Baking Fairy at work...

This is an amazing crumble recipe....I could not find cornmeal in
Istanbul so I used farina (irmik) and it turned out really amazing. We
used strawberries and next time I will try with a combination, sour
cherry, raspberry and strawberry.

http://www.davidlebovitz.com/archives/2007/05/the_department.html

Hazelnuts are so popular in Turkey and we have tons of it here. I
can't find them as much in Costa Rica. I have this cake in the oven
right now. Thanks Cenk for the hint.

http://smittenkitchen.com/2008/03/hazelnut-brown-butter-cake/

Cenk's Korovo cookies are next:)
http://cafefernando.com/korova-cookies

a love note to you

I just bumped on this love note and wanted to share it with you. Life
in Istanbul is beautiful, sweet and loving. I must admit, I am a
little spoiled...

http://www.superherodesigns.com/journal/archives/001289.html

You are exactly where you need to be.

You are not missing out, falling behind, doing it wrong,
not trying hard enough.

You are doing more than enough.

Whatever opinions you have about it,
however imperfect
This is yours.

Where you are right now.
Sitting here surfing the internet even.
Is perfect.

Amazing opportunity...

Help Needed for Tassajara's Summer Guest Season! The zen center in
Tassajara is a beautiful and peaceful. Check out their
website...http://www.sfzc.org/tassajara/display.asp?catid=4,19&pageid=

and here also some more information on the work schedule.
http://www.sfzc.org/tassajara/display.asp?catid=4,29&pageid=181

The kitchen experience is also amazing, I have their cookbook and I
wish I was still in Bay Area to go up there...

my mom's birthday....

http://www.flickr.com/photos/guliz83/sets/72157604709542388/

it was so much fun!

Breakfast!

Just finished breakfast with family...One of our biggest tradition is
to have family breakfast on Sundays...Today we had probably everything
one can possibly eat in a week over one meal...We even had pastirma
from Kayseri, a meat dish that is very popular...

http://wowturkey.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=28006

9 different cheeses, breads, pancakes, peanutbutter with five
different jams, spreads, olives, sausages, Sooo grateful to have all
the family at the table, my mom, dad, sister, cousinbrother,
grandmother, my sister's boyfriend! With lots of laughter, great
conversation and my lovely sister's fresh strawberry smoothie:)))

I made eggs from Organico's menu, number 4:))) Scrambled with feta
cheese, tomato and avocado and poppy seed pancakes from 101 Cookbooks.
http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/poppy-seed-pancakes-recipe.html
with slight changes. I added 1 tsp vanilla, 1 tablespoon orange zest,
1 tsp lemon zest, toasted walnuts instead of sunflower seeds and
yogurt instead of buttermilk...Great recipe.

I am also amazed to learn that the father of my grandmother's
grandmother (we figured he lived somewhere around the 18 hundreds...)
was a medical doctor....Probably one of the first Lokman hekim's of
Turkey:))) Lokman Hekim is an herbalist.

Pura Vida in Istanbul!

In Madrid

Shocked to see how expensive things are on the other side of the
world...I just paid $7 for a bottle of water and coffee...I miss
Montezuma already! Plus people are not nice here, very serious,
business attire, i already get strange looks with my flip flops...:)
one thing is amazing, yo hablar muy bien espanol!!!! I am impressed
with myself, almost a year and half ago, I had no clue about Spanish.
Soy muy feliz!!!

Also highly recommend coming to Costa Rica via Madrid. The flight was
only 9:30 hours and now I have to chill for about 6 hours and then
home sweet home. No hassle of the stupid US immigration lines and
Iberia is pretty comfortable with not so good veggie meals, but I am
used to that already. I keep wondering why anyone is not interested in
providing healthy food...at least once, so many people would try how
real food tastes....wholewheat, grains, fresh fruit and some miso
soup, ahhh...Hot oatmeal for breakfast with goji berries....California
dreaming....I am hungry!

Amistad

In the last two days, Maria and I made the world's best eggplant
parmesan, vietnamese spring rolls, bubble tea and tarte tatin. We
discovered an amazing black sesame seed cereal drink from a Taiwanese
underground store and visited the Turkish bakery. As always, we
exchanged many new recipes and she is probably the only person I can
leave my Organico recipe book without a beat skipping in my heart. For
the rest of the world, I do have secret recipes.

It is so special to have her in my life, I want to scream my gratitude
to the universe, write it on sand with huge letters, have waves
inscribe it on the ocean. Letting go, opens new doors, flowing with
the universe has never been more joyful.

I promised Maria's husband Jorge to visit a Sufi center back in
Turkey. Can't wait..
One of my favorite Rumi quotes...

What draws friends together
does not conform to Laws of Nature.
Form doesn't know about spiritual closeness.
If a grain of barley approaches a grain of wheat,
an ant must be carrying it. A black ant on black felt.
You can't see it, but if grains go toward each other,
it's there.

An other Turk in Costa Rica

My dear friend/angel Maria, found this amazing little Turkish bakery
in San Jose and today we went for a field trip. Of course I had to
taste the baklava (yum!) and the traditional turkish bread, pide. We
drove half an hour to get to town and his little shop was nothing
fancy. Zeki, is the owner of the bakery, Istanbul and he has been here
for 5 years. He hasn't been back since and his wife and 2 kids are
back in Turkey. They communicate through email and phone but you can
see from his eyes that he is sad. Lonely. Still searching...I felt
really good talking to him, he was such a nice guy and offered me lots
of help and advice and he understood me so well...The urge to leave
Turkey, the same urge not to go back, not getting adjusted, learning
spanish, he also came here without speaking a word of spanish,...He
misses his family and hopefully they will be united within a year. He
thinks he will have everything he needs once his wife gets here.

http://www.tinjo.com/tj/index.php?id=313

I am leaving for Turkey tomorrow. He asked me to bring Turkish tea for
him. I will do that for sure...Once again, I find myself grateful to
the universe for offering me this wonderful life, sweet and
comfortable, full of fun, with amazing people I meet everyday,
sometimes I wonder what I have done before to deserve this. It must
have baked some sinful chocolate cakes in heaven!

Matters of the heart

Be patient toward all that is unresolved in your heart.

And try to love the questions themselves.

- Rainer Maria Rilke -

Ginga Day!

I got up at 5 in the morning, waited for the sunrise, watched my heart
beat and look over the banana leaves to the ocean. Then went to
meditation group and did yoga...A fantastic class from a great teacher
from New York. It was the first time I heard about Ginga. Ginga
(pronounced jin-ga) is an African word that came to Brazil through
capoeira (the Brazilian dance-fight martial art), and according to
Brazilian author and historian Ruy Castro, it is used to describe "a
way of never taking life too seriously, of fighting hardships with the
proper use of toes, heels and hips, if you have ever met a Brazilian,
you know what this means:))

It was a hard but at the same time super fun class!

She ended the class with a quote from Jeremy Taylor: "Love is
friendship set on fire" So simple and true.

Frustrated...

Everything takes time here, toooooo long. I am not a patient person
and I know I need to be a little more tranquila, but it is damn
difficult to become a tortuga..Excuse my spanglish! I have a new space
that I want to turn into a lounge, juice bar and its been a month that
we are trying to get it going. It is so hard to work alone and
everyone on the other side...I still don't know when to scream, so
instead I continue to shout at the ocean and scream underwater and box
with the air...It is not helping...AHhghghghhg! My sister today told
me that I am fighting against the universe and pushing things too
hard, instead of accepting the reality that I don't belong here...She
is right...I really want to go home. Yes!

another day

My dad is still in the hospital, no word on when he can go home. He
got the operation, so now we are waiting for him to recover. Sending
my love and peace to him everyday and I am sad that I am here and cant
be there for a few days. I need to be close to home. Note to
self...Next Organico, within the same national borders of my family!
Por FAVOR! :)

I got up, went for a run/walk/strech/tan, all at the same time. It is
soo hot right now, the minute I wake up, there is no way to go back to
sleep...I dont remember last year being this hot...Maybe I am more
aware of things now then last year...

After the run, I came home and made coffee and breakfast! I am
grateful these days that I have my mornings to myself..I take time to
hangout in my new home, I have some new pics on flickr) and write,
draw, think, swing in the hammock and be lazy...Then slowly I head to
the cafe and talk to people, make a smoothie for myself and check my
emails...Not too bad...

Nights are a little lonely, even with my little prince and I have to
admit and I have been on the border of feeling depressed, super happy,
one day up, one day down, sleepless nights but at the end of the day
everything is impermament. Taking things as they are, not having
expectations and being happy for being...I am learning...it is
hard..it is hard to accept but that is all we have to do to find
bliss...This place is magical to show you the truth...Trust,
friendship, love...Harm, ego, jealousy...I try to be on my own...or
until I met someone like my little prince. He makes the world go
upside down, only with a smile. Sooooo cute!

Dreaming away...

http://www.thesanctuary-kpg.com/

I found my wedding cake!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/extra-icing/1441939235/

Tagged

I've been tagged. Here's my entry.


Here are the rules of this tag:

A. Post these rules at the beginning of the blog entry
B. Answer the questions about yourself
C. Tag 5 people, let them know in a comment on their blogs that they have been tagged.

Whew. Here we go....

What were you doing 10 yrs ago?
1998, I was still in school, working part-time for Procter and Gamble and thinking about getting married within a year or so...Wow...

Snacks I enjoy

* Plantain Chips
* Chocolate
* Pistachios

Five things on my to-do list today

* Bake cookies
* Buy pillows
* Pick-up cheese for Organico from Cobano
* Call my mom to check on dad
* Check emails and photos on Facebook

Things I would do if I became a billionaire

* Open Organico all around the world next to McDonalds
* Clean Montezuma Beaches
* Open a Creativity Center and let people go crazy
* Install lights all around Montezuma
* Bring my family here


3 bad habits

* Thinking too much
* Chocolate
* Not respecting others opinions and decisions

5 places I have lived

* Istanbul
* San Francisco, CA
* Menlo Park, CA
* Montezuma, Costa Rica



Jobs I have had

* Receptionist
* Research Assitant
* Baker
* and some other corporate jobs that lead me to my dream life now...


Things people don’t know about me

* I listen to the same song on repeat forever....1000 times? maybe more...

Thank you Christine, for tagging me... http://yellowgizmo.blogspot.com/

Updates

My mom went back home on a last minute call from home, my dad is in the hospital. He has an infection in his liver and needs to have an operation next week. I am feeling sad and lonely here in Montezuma and I will do a trip home to see my dad soon.

Business is ok, I lost my motivation to do anything, I don't know why I am here, what I am doing and I feel helpless to my family.

I took today off and went to the Natural Reserve with a friend.

http://www.caboblancopark.com/

It was amazing to be in the jumgle and hike 5 kilometers each way. This park is the first national reserve in Costa Rica and it was farmed before. Two foreigners worked on to bring it to its original state and now you can not believe the huge trees birds. The nature is facinating. We went to the ocean and ate lunch (mostly cookies and mango) and made a sand castle...He even convinced me to ride on his ATV and after the accident it was my first time but I did it!!!

I came back to the cafe around 4 pm and baked my favorite cake, chocolate-coconut vegan cake! I love baking. I am really happy when I bake!

Long Due

Its been a really long time and I managed to login to my blogger account. All is going well, my birthday and after celebration all went amazing, the cafe is busy and I am so happy to get calls from people overseas asking for reservations! (it only happened once!)...

Cafe is doing well but I am overwhelmed with the amount of work, two people leaving and totally burned out friends. It stressed me so much last week, I exploded on two of my friends and created a total drama. It sucks and I apologized but I have to learn to do business with friends or decide not to do it. I lost another employee because I don't know how to handle the situation. There is so much work and i don't know where to start...

In the meantime, I signed a lease with additional space and got the office in between the kitchen and the cafe. I have so many new ideas but slowly...

The most amazing thing these days, is the birth of five kittens from our cat Maya. It was my first time seeing a birth and everyday they are growing and becoming cuter and cuter...I love to get two of them for my house but I am not sure if I can handle more responsibility...

News from the menu....I am so happy to get Rice Paper Rolls to the menu and they are selling amazing. I am selling breakfast and lunch the most and very few baked stuff so i had to discontinue the baking section until i get a better grasp of things. It sucks that I have to stop baking for business and focus, but I need to learn to be flexible...

Finally!

This is what I intended to post couple of weeks ago...Finally!!

I am back! I had a terrible accident last Sunday and fell off from a
quad. Luckily, I still have everything in place and got nasty blue
spots and a couple open wounds. Considering what could have happened,
I feel grateful to this opportunity to sit back and thank my angels.
Today I was able to get out of the house by myself, so that also feels
very good. Too bad we could not go out for my birthday party but I had
a lot fun and friends kept visiting every single minute. The whole
thing just opened my eyes...I was working from 7 in the morning to 10
at night again, exhausted, ect...And of course you start to make bad
decisions, poor judgements and it hits you at the very unexpected
moment. I was rushing to get things done as fast as I could....Really
stupid! I just want to pass on my understanding of how life goes,
don't take anything too serious, and have fun. If you are not having
fun, make a change as fast as you can. Life is too short and we have
no control at all!

Also, good news, we are still up and running in the cafe and
they are doing a fantastic job so I really didn't have to worry about
anything but rest. Aloe Vera (Sabila) also helped a lot with the
wounds and we have sooo much fresh here. I am thankful to my angel
friends here so all is good, I am happy.

things we cant plan

I was so happy to come to San Jose to meet my parents yesterday
morning and got this call from my dad, telling me they had to cancel
the trip because he was sick for a week and the doctors told him that
he cant fly...I could not believe it, I had no idea he was even sick
for the last 10 days...No one bothers to tell me these little details
when I am busy taking care of business:( I feel stupid sometimes, how
in my small world I worry about ice cream melting, running out of tofu
or not making enough money to buy a vehicle. Damn!

It was a huge shock in the beginning and mostly feeling alone and
disappointment. I wanted to do so much with them, we were going to do
a trip to Nicaragua, take time from work, celebrate my birthday,
ect...Of course things like this happen in the movies, but in my
perfectly planned life, I have no room for spontaneity...Well, another
lesson learned, life is all about spontaneity after all...I am
grateful that he is ok and they just have to delay the trip. I feel
lucky to have my family and I know they will be here eventually.

For now, I am staying with my amazing friend Maria, baking many kinds
of chocolate chip cookies and developing secret recipes and watching
food TV. The store is also open, I have friends and good employees in
charge...and Maria and I are leaving for Nicaragua tomorrow. It´s not
that shabby at all.

Maria´s Lemongrass Ice Tea

A great ice tea recipe, it is sooo hot here, iced cold tea is the best
way to keep cool!

A stalk of lemon grass, cut fine wrapped in cheesecloth
4 cups of water
3 bags of black tea or loose tea if you have

Boil water with lemongrass and let simmer for 30 minutes.
Add the tea bags and let cool.
Discard the tea bags and lemongrass.Refrigerate the tea for half an hour.
Serve with honey and lemon slice over ice!

Muy bien!

Sad!

Marlon left Montezuma yesterday. He was here for a month and he is by
far the coolest employee ever! We had so much fun working together and
he helped us sooo much working from 8 to 8 most of the days....He is
still at school so he went back to finish up a couple of unnecessary
classes, though I tried to convince him that schooling is
overrated...Well, work is even more overrated, but it makes such a
difference to work with fun kids! He is off to a bungee jumping
experience and a couple new tattoos, possibly a kitchen aid...Gallo
Pinto and Marlon (aka Maria) rules! Tuanis! (means cool in Costa Rican
slang!) Pictures sooon, I promise!

Burrito Special

It is great to live in a small town...Today I found out that one of
the restaurants ordered some stuff to take out from us, disassembled
and created the same to serve at their restaurant...Wow! I am happy to
see people take me serious! The restaurant is growing so much, its
great to be here.

Many new items on the menu, as always:

Mango-Passion fruit-Coconut is the killer ice cream on the menu...I
just cant find a good name for it...
Starfruit Shake, with pineapple and mango juice
Oatmeal cookies, with white chocolate, pistachio and apricots.
Spinach Salad with lentils, tomato, feta cheese and parsley

We also painted the store---It is now brightly green! My favorite
color! Days are going by...ups and downs, happy and sad, but it is all
good and very hot!

Feliz Ano!

Montezuma reminds me of a big crowded city these days. It is packed
with people, loud, traffic, cars, crazy crazy people and very
impatient customers...All the tables are full most of the time, I am
trying to stay on my feet without collapsing but its been really
difficult. Managing slow times was hard but managing busy times is
harder. On top, I had a few day when an employee had to leave for a
medical emergency and I discovered a feeling I had no idea I had in
me. Anger! I am an angry person, if you can believe it! It wasn't nice
at all, I don't like myself when angry at all but I can't help it. Of
course, I signed up for a massage today and it was great.

In the middle of my breakdown, a customer asks if she needs to make a
reservation for lunch! Yup, we now accept reservations!

In the last couple of weeks, I made a new menu, got 3 new employees
(all boys!) and fell in love with Manu Chao! Since we have listened to
my ipod for 100 billion times, Melanie was sick of the same old music
and started to play her own ipod, after listening hers for 100 billion
times, we got a new one from another friend that I love her music
taste..However, the lastest Ipod we got is from Marlon and he has
heaps of techno music that I absolutely can not listen to...So we
agreed on Manu Chao. I am not sure if they are famous anywhere else
but I love it. Me gusta bailar, me gusta su!

Heading off to the cafe to finish a spiderman cake and prep for dinner
tonight. My parents are arriving in two weeks, and I can't wait to see
them!

Cenk on NY Times!

http://travel.nytimes.com/2007/12/09/travel/09Foodie.htm

I had to run

I had to run to check my email just because I have tons of people
working in the cafe...It is so strange, everyday I am amazed of the
worker flow in this little town. I wish I kept a list of the people
and showed you in a graph. There is either 2 people or 6...So
weird...If one day someone from the USF Business School reads my blog,
I am ready to give my diploma. I agree that I haven't learn a thing at
school...To my credit, I learned a lot in one year...I can say no much
easier now:) With some exceptions of cute guys...Now, strangely more
guys are willing to take a job than girls...They don't mind doing the
dishes, serving or chatting with the customers...I like to have a
balance, so it is nice to have some male energy around.

What are we baking these days....Chocolate chip cookies,
apricot-almond oatmeal cookies and chocolate coconut cake. The rest is
still the same...I got a few requests for a cookbook...That's
something...I also got a request for a wedding cake this sunday.
Things are moving well...

Latest on the menu, get ready for this....Veggie Fries...Plantains,
Yuka and Sweet Potato! I swear I would have never imagined selling
fries a year ago, but I am...They are so tasty...Healthy Fries...yeah
sure:)))

ouch!

I got a notice from the muni that they will close down the store in 3
days if I dont have the paperwork and the fines paid by then...this
was 2 days ago...After spending hours in between several unnecessary
bureaucratic conversations, paperwork, copies, signatures, crying, all
is done and what a relief...for 10 minutes...my only costa rican
employee, who was working with me for 8 months, tells me she is
leaving for vacation for one month!!!!! By the end of december, the
busiest time of the season...you would think I am used to this by now
but still it gets me...Come on...I was closed for 2 MONTHS!

I have no idea...it will be fine of course, as it was before...Let the
new energy fill my beautiful cafe with lots of love and ideas...Let
the sprit enjoy the flow and dance with eternity...Now, I really want
to kick ass with open buffet vegetarian dinners! I am sooo on it!

what a great idea

The best part about Costa Rica is the coconuts...they are everywhere,
almost free if you know how to open them...Even if you open one by
smashing against the ground, getting the meat out is a painful
process. I broke many spoons, cut my hand and fingers many many times.
Yesterday, at Jeylin's house in Cabuya, I discovered the best tool
ever. Her father built this machine specially to take the meat out
from the coconuts...They have actually built a small scale assembly
line. All the coconuts are gathered in one location, you take one and
move on two the second base, where there is a big wood piece and an
axe. The coconut stays in put in this location and it is easy to cut
it..(relatively easy) Then the best part. Station three. There is a
big metal knob with sharp round points all over...Like a all around
comb... it turns in one direction really fast with electricity. You
take the coconut half and hold carefully stable. As the thing turns,
it shreds the fresh coconut in seconds...It is amazing...Fantastic
idea, life saver and of course the shredded coconut is so tasty, soft
and smells like heaven. We made coconut rice...She makes coconut milk,
coconut oil and so many other things... Sweet life!

working away

its been a tough and rough adjustment back in Montezuma...all is going
ok, working long hours as I have some groups for breakfast and
dinner...

Not much is new, trying to revise and simplify the menu one more time.
However, I got super excited today because we got the Elvis Sandwich
back into the menu with homemade peanut butter!!! I made it with my
new Champion Juicer and it rocks...

Yes, now I have a juicer and we make all kinds of fresh juices,
pineapple beet orange is sooo good, as well as carrot banana
ginger...Thai Greens with cilantro and lime is next to try... Totally
unrelated, I also got a Thai massage this morning and it is the best
ever, I am intrigued by the idea of learning more about it...Maybe
Thailand for my next vacation...

o la la!

there is a snake in my house. I saw him a week ago and I am dead
scared. Dona Betty, my superhero, came by to check on him and we
couldn't find any trace...Yesterday, I was home cleaning up and found
a meter long snake skin on my shoes...it is soooo freaky...

Then all over is scorpions, spiders and on top today in the kitchen, a
rat...I have no idea who to call for help or what to do, so I just
took a break and came down to check my emails. I am soooo ready to
leave here.

Gobble Gobble!

http://yumsugar.com/tags/cupcake+of+the+week

:)

I don't learn

Worked all day, it was so busy and I had new people to try...by noon,
I recounted the money at the cash, $60 missing...I fired the girl. I
can't do it all alone. Also today, left these amazing people from the
film festival..Eric and Stephanie..They are angels! Eric promised to
come back soon to check out some other ideas...That's a blessing here,
to meet with angels, day by day...

I am freaking out about 18 people...ordering food for them, doing the
prep work....awwww...

Happy Sunday!

Train yourself in doing good
that lasts and brings happiness.
Cultivate generosity, the life of peace,
and a mind of boundless love.

Making yogurt, soy milk, green tea ice-cream and having 18 people for
breakfast and dinner for next week! Busy!

Film Festival!

http://www.ticotimes.net/culture.htm

Its about to start and I have soooo much to do...100 different kinds
of bugs ate all my flour, oats and nori sheets! Cleaning
non-stop...It's raining today so, I am not missing much out there.

in the bank

A couple days ago...Me in the bank to exchange dollars. I had 600
USD. I hand the money to the teller, she takes my bills and gives me
colones and a receipt. The receipt says, I gave her 500 USD. I ask her
to count again, since I am 100% sure that I gave her $600. She counts
the dollar bills in front of me, with a weird look on her face and
smiles with a "este $ 500, don't you know to count!". Opps, my fault!
I always lose stuff, nothing new...so feeling guilty that I misplaced
my money, or possibly dropped it in between two seconds, I removed it
from my wallet to place into my passport...Banks never make mistakes!
woowooo!

I had to step away from the teller, frustrated with myself, not
knowing what to do...i need to complain but i cant do it a lone, i
dont speak Spanish. I need to learn Spanish. I beg the Universe,
please help me with this. I need to learn this language or I am going
to sink in this country. I was lucky to have a friend with me,
embarrassed of the situation, I told her what happened and she told me
many stories where banks did similar things to her. A little relieved,
we walked back to the cashier and complained...We talked to the
manager and complained again...Finally they agreed to recount the
money in the cashier. That took 5 minutes and I was rightttttttttt! We
took the $600...the girl never apologized...not even a I am sorry
smile. I wanted to punch her in the eye so bad...i couldn't of course
but the whole feeling of been taken advantage of sucks...so lesson
learned, double count money, in front of the teller; watch them count
the money without blinking the eye; go to the bank with a friend
until fluent in Spanish!

and of course, don't be nice!

Heading to Montezuma

Goodbye wireless internet, goodbye city life. Its been 2 months I've
been away and now its time to go back to Montezuma. It's 5:30 am in
San Jose. I am half asleep, I couldn't sleep last night. I am nervous,
it is strange, I am not sure if I want to jump back to fire but I have
got so many new ideas, I know once I get there, it will all come
together. The festival, the yoga groups, friends coming for a visit,
friends to hang out....

I am so grateful to my friend Maria, aka Dirty Spatualas. She has been
taking me around San Jose, to find the best flour, ice-cream cones,
buckwheat (only one Russian lady in the middle of no where sells
buckwheat, her name is Irina). We found mung beans, adzuki beans,
matcha powder in a Taiwanese store that looks like a home unless you
know the secret code to enter. I am trying to convince Maria to start
consulting for new businesses. She knows every little secret place, if
she doesn't know it, she would find a phone number and call...If they
don't pick up, she will call again and again!

I have 11 boxes all packed with ingredients, new tools, plates,
cookbooks, ect. It feels like moving...I probably don't have that much
stuff in my house right now. Its hounding on me how I will manage to
get all that stuff into the bus, then into my house, then into the
cafe, but I know it will work some way or the other.

Katy is taking me to the bus station. Mark and Kati also are my
family, they have taken such good care of me here. Knock knock!
Somebody is at the door, this is Mark with a cup of coffee for me...I
am heading to MONTEZUMA!

Secret Superfood! Pumpkins!

I am amazed to learn that pumpkins are superfood!

A cup of cooked pumpkin has very little fat (.17 g), 2.7 g of fiber,
87% of daily requirements of vitamin A, 15% of daily requirements
vitamin C, along with beta-carotene and potassium. It doesn't end
here, seeds contain omega-3 fatty acids (powerful anti-oxidants). Its
loaded with alpha-carotene that help fight tumor growth!

I always loved pumpkins, but growing up in Turkey, we only eat them
sweet, very sweet indeed. It tastes great but on my New Zealand trip,
I fell in love with the savory pumpkin dishes. Especially the
pumpkin-lemon ricotta bruschetta with olive oil and pumpkin seeds, we
ate at Morrison's, best food in Nelson.

The second one is a hearty soup recipe, mom and I created at home. It
is a great cold weather soup, perfect for supper with family or to
cuddle with a bowl while watching Grey's Anatomy, my new addiction,
under cozy blankets!

Save the seeds, they make a great snack toasted and kill harmful parasites!

Pumpkin Soup Recipe

* 1 lb of pumpkin, chopped and roasted for 45 minutes
* 1 tablespoon olive oil
* 1 medium onion, finely chopped
* 2 cloves garlic, crushed
* 4 cups vegetable stock or just boil water with carrots, celery, onions
* 1 tablespoon tomato paste
* 1 can of kidney beans
* 1 cup of peas
* 1 carrot, diced
* 1 potato, diced
* 2 teaspoon each of cumin, curry powder and cardamom
* salt and pepper to taste

First roast the pumpkin until well done. It will have some brown skin,
that's ok, it tastes great.

Then, saute the onion and garlic in olive oil in a large saucepan
until the onion is translucent.

Add three cups of the stock and your vegetables (carrots and potato),
spices and simmer for 15 minutes.

In a separate bowl, add a cup of this mixture and your roasted pumpkin
and blend with a hand blender.

Add the blended pumpkin to your base.

Add canned kidney beans and peas. Simmer for another 15 minutes....

How to cook your life

There is a special invitation for the San Francisco Premiere of How to Cook Your Life on Tuesday, October 23rd at 7 pm at the Zen Center.

Edward Espe Brown will be in attendance, I love his cookbook Tassajara Cooking and I am excited to see him in the movie! It sounds really exciting.

"What is the meaning of cooking and eating for the community and the individual? Is cooking a political act? How does cooking reflect our attitude toward life and the world?

Edward Brown is a happy priest, but for sure no saint. To him, the whole world can be found in a watermelon. In his pots, rivers and mountains are cooked. Fast food restaurants, organic farmers, starving homeless people and a woman who only eats what other people discard. Doris Dörrie's observations in San Francisco reveal a world of contradictions and diversity.  80% of all Americans don't eat at home, neither do they cook. If you don't know how to cook and you are poor, you have to live on cheap and bad food. No time for cooking and eating together is a loss of community and culture. To learn how to cook means to experience and preserve the richness of one's culture and traditions."

http://www.cookyourlifemovie.com/home.html

Love Poems from Rumi

I cannot sleep in your presence.
In your absence, tears prevent me.
You wa tch me My Beloved
On each sleepless night and
Only You see the difference

Rumi

NZ pictures uploaded!

Check out my NZ pictures! I miss it very much for sure! Especially these two!

Happy Tuesday!

"The miracle is not to walk on water. The miracle is to walk on the green earth in the present moment, to appreciate the peace and beauty that are available now.  There is no enlightenment outside of daily life."

- Thich Nhat Hanh

Maple Walnut Cookies

The recipe is from Vegan with a Vengeance with some slight changes. We used wholewheat flour and more walnuts.

Makes 15.

1/2 cup canola oil
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
2 tablespoons molasses
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup soy milk
2 tablespoon arrowroot or cornstarch
3/4 cups all purpose flour
1 cup wholewheat flour
3/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine oil, maple syrup, molasses, vanilla, and sugar in a mixing bowl and stir until mixed well. Add the soy milk and arrowroot and mix until the arrowroot is mixed well. Add flour, salt and baking soda, mix with a wooden spoon, fold in the chopped walnuts.

Drop on cookie sheets lined with parchment paper and bake for 10 minutes. Wait until cool, if you can! In New Zealand, you are not allowed to touch your cookies if you haven't finished your wine...That's at least what these two crazy friends of mine (Miss Supreme Cupcake and  Jason Sutter) made me believe. Pepperjack Shiraz from Australia, great wine. Highly highly recommended!!!!

Maple Walnut Cookies

Back in Istanbul with fresh memories of New Zealand, I had to post about these cookies.
Lane and I made these in about 20 minutes and Sutter finished them all in about 10 minutes.

ps. During my stay, we also had a little house guest, related to Remy from Ratatouille, he might have helped with the cookies!

Now I have to log-out from Blogger and signin to my gmail to get the recipe. It sucks that I have to login to blogger to post a picture and log out to get to my gmail.

Alex Grey

Alex Grey's work is amazing, I had seen this painting a couple years ago in San Francisco and was totally scared. Now, I am trying the buy his book from Amazon. People change.

Best quote ever...

I have no idea what this company Zain, does but this quote was in their print ad in the Emirates in flight magazine. I love it.

"If you could see the sky as your rooftop and the moon as your night lamp; if you could see the lakes as your mirror and the fields as your backyard; if you could see the birds as your choir, mountain ridges as your chart and all of the civilization as your family then you'd know that the world is yours. After all, what matters most isn't what you are looking at but what you are looking for."

Life sucks.

A very dear friend of mine, Vihara, is in the hospital under very serious conditions. I am so lucky to have known her in Montezuma and spent so many days dancing, laughing, having great conversations and getting a chance to peek into her divine world. She has been more than a friend, an angel and a wonderful spirit...I miss her now, I miss her more than ever and I am so sad that I might not hug her again.

She wanted to have a recipe book with her specials. She has been on raw foods over 30 years and knows so much about how to eat healthy and tasty. She is so beautiful and full of light, it is hard to describe. She has also taught me how to make a raw apple pie, that I would love to share it with everyone someday.

Life is tough, it is getting harder everyday and this suffering is here to stay, no matter how much we try to keep the balance of our minds.

May all beings be happy, liberated and in peace.

Blissed!

New Zealand in one word is the land of bliss...It is beautiful, no not really, it is gorgeous and peaceful. I am enjoying it a lot. This is what we had for dessert for dinner...Delicious and so good for you! I totally made it up, inspired from a dessert menu at a local restaurant but it came out really good so we wrote down the recipe.

Blissed!

1 cup coconut
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup cranberries
1 cup dates
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp salt
1 tablespoon peanut butter
1/4 cup soy milk
1/2 cup sunflower seeds

First, soak raisins, dates and cranberries in hot water and wait 10-15 minutes, then blend everything in the food processor and make little balls and cover them with more coconut.
Sometimes dates can be very sweet, so taste and adjust. If you like to add more sugar, try agave or honey or maple syrup...

We made three versions by adding some blackberry liquor and fresh mint. Cardamom, green tea or ginger would be perfect separetely. Give it a try!

Going to New Zealand-FOR REAL!

I am at the airport. 2 minutes ago, the agent at the ticket counter told me that New Zealand doesnt accept my visa! What? After a few minutes, they figured that the embassy here spelt my last name wrong and they had to override the visa system....After the check in, I went to the passport control and the police stopped me since I didnt pay the tax for going abroad. I totally forgot about it since in the last 7 years, I was working in the US. My sister was all excited that I was going to cancel the trip and stay with her!

I paid $15 to go out for vacation and all is good now, I am going to Dubai, staying there overnight, complements of Emirates and then flying to Australia and then to Auckland. Many hours of flight but totally worth it...I am going here and then here.

Cafe Fernando

Cenk and his blog, Cafe Fernando , made it to Hurriyet, one of the most read newspaper's in Turkey. His blog is amazing as well as his  food photography. Check it out!

Going to New Zealand

is so difficult, for the last two weeks I have been trying to get a visa from the NZ consulate. The amount of documents, the details they ask for is incredible and the money we spent to get everything done is close to a Istanbul-Europe ticket. I am not even counting the time and the energy my dad spent to get everything done, including a trip to Ankara since New Zealand doesn't have a consulate in İstanbul. And today I got my visa! Super happy! For only ten minutes. First they told me only today that I have to get a visa from Dubai, since I have a stopover there but it is an easy visa, you can get it at the airport...Then the bomb dropped. I also need a visa from Australia. What the F? I could not believe it, I don't even have a stopover in Australia. Apparently, I need a transit visa for going over their air space. Can any sane human being explain me the logic behind this?

 

In the end, my flight is on Sunday. I already bought the ticket, the embassy doesn't work Fridays and I have one day to get the visa. It will happen if its meant to be, if not, I am going to be sad, really sad!

Vegan Baking and Flax Seeds

I have learned to veganize any recipe by simply getting rid of the eggs and replacing them with delicious, nutritious and cheap flax seeds. In traditional baking, you need eggs for binding and texture but not for the taste, who wants eggs with their lemon cake? So, even if you are not vegan, take my advice, 1 tablespoon of flax seeds (whole flax) and 3 tablespoons of water equals to one egg. My famous banana bread have up to 4 flax-eggs and it still works perfect.

You can add the flax with water in a blender and continue adding your wet ingredients for even mixing. It also works great with recipes that need oil...Since we are baking vegan, go ahead and drop that butter and add some canola oil...Oatmeal cookies, breads, muffins, pancakes, even FRENCH TOAST!

Why are they good for you?
Flaxseeds are known as Linum usitatissimum, meaning "most useful." They are rich in Omega 3 fatty acids, protect against cancer, help healthy digestion, control against high blood pressure, are great for skin, add shine to your hair and sooo much more!

Strange

Flickr blog has been suspended for Turkey...No access from here, so strange, has anyone know the background?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/redmum/1239630250/

For Healthy Thyroids

I have thyroid disease and I stopped taking the medicine a year ago, a decision I made on my own thinking I can cure myself eating naturally. This wasn't a very good decision and now I am back taking the medicine again. However, I am doing a lot of research and found this information from Andrea Beaman. Thyroids are so vital for your energy and overall health. So, check this out. I eat a lot of soy, almost all the cruciferous vegetables (see below for the list) and no yogurt or miso. Instead I should have I wish I knew this before!

"Foods that can contribute to enhanced thyroid health include natural unrefined, non-iodized sea salt.  Sea salt contains an abundance of minerals and trace minerals imperative to overall health.  "Iodized salt" (common table salt) focuses solely on iodine and neglects the balancing minerals and trace minerals, and can disrupt the body's natural process of absorption.

Sea vegetables can benefit the thyroid because they contain high concentrations of calcium, iron, phosphorous, potassium, sodium, zinc, magnesium, copper, chromium, vitamin A, vitamin B1, B2, B3, B6, manganese, iodine and more.

The thyroid takes in iodine and combines with tyrosine (amino acid) and is converted to T3 & T4.  A lack of tyrosine can lead to depression.  Natural sources of tyrosine include meat, fish, wheat, oats, almonds, lima beans, pumpkin and sesame seeds, and fermented foods like miso and yogurt.

Some common "healthy" foods can contribute to thyroid dysfunction. For example, goitrogens inhibit the body's ability to use iodine, promote goiter formation and act like anti-thyroid drugs.  Foods from the Brassicacae family (cruciferous vegetables) and others, contain these goitrogenic compounds: broccoli, cabbage, kale, collard greens, mustard greens, cauliflower, watercreass, brussels sprouts, radishes, turnips, bok choy, arugula, daikon and rutabaga.  Goitrogens are deactivated by HEAT.  These specific foods needs to be COOKED (most often). 

Fermented soybean products, a healthy staple (in small quantities) in many Asian cultures, include tempeh, miso, shoyu, natto and tamari.  In America we've mass produced the soybean without properly fermenting it to release the antinutrients contained within, and it has become an unhealthy "health" food.  Improperly processed soy products have been linked with thyroid disease, digestive disorders and many other illnesses."

For more information continue reading on Andrea's site.

Ice-cream machine that sucks!

Hmmm, future holds not much freedom, even with our ice-cream! Check out the "Voice-stress ice-cream dispenser". The machine is programmed to serve more portions for sad. The spaceship to the moon will certainly have one of these and what will be next, a machine that tells you what flavor you need when you are sad???? I want my chocolate, no matter what, when and how sad I am.

Montezuma Film Festival

Organico is the official restaurant for the International Film Festival in Montezuma! I am so proud and excited! It starts in November 1st, please come by and say hello!

Tomas Sanchez

I discovered Tomas Sanchez at Maria and Jorge's house. They are amazing art collectors, and know him personally. He is a Cuban artist, his work is truly breathtaking, the paintings are so peaceful and meditative. I can look at these all day long.

http://www.remediosvaro.biz/tomas_sanchez.html

He has a book on Amazon as well...

from Amsterdam

The noodle place at the Airport is fantastic. Very small place, they
have only 6 items on the menu, one vegetarian. I am going to do this
dish at Organico. Noodles, wakame, snap peas, corn and sprouts. It is
so good and easy too. I am already considering to have the same soup
for dinner too. I am here at the airport for 10 hours and it is about
enough time to go through the stores and catch up with the new
technology. 7.2 meg digital cameras on sale? Wow!

I am going to pass on dinner though, I realized the soup costs 14
Euro, about 17 dollars, what??? This is sooo expensive, This might
explain the huge line at McDonalds upstairs, People rushing over for
cheap and tasty plastic.

I am heading over to duty-free to buy my dessert, Smarties! Yes, my
all time beloved Smarties, next to a huge M&M stand, M&Ms are just too
fake next to Smarties. Sigh!

a beautiful day

I went to pick up my passport to the DHL office. There was a nice song on the radio and I asked the guy if he knew the song. He said his name was Mana and he could make me a copy of the CD. I could not believe it, random stranger offering me to make a copy of the CD. Such a nice heart and too bad I was leaving next Tuesday. In a few moments, I even imagined going to the store and buying the CD- totally pre-paid for the CD-mentally:)

To my surprise, he said he can make it by Monday and give it to me if I am in area! I was so touched! You have no idea how much sleep I lost over good friends telling me to go and buy CDs. So once again, life is really worth enjoying every moment, and not knowing what is in the corner and the beautiful connections we make with each other. Exciting and juicy! So, be happy! Speaking of juicy, I had the most weird vegetable for dinner last night. It is called here "horse balls" and tastes like cow brain. Apparently it was good for the liver but I could not eat it, very rare that I don't like a vegetable. Karl didn't eat it, either and it made me feel better:)

It is T-2 days before I go home, but my mom today told me that I will be home Thursday. I am leaving Tuesday and it is taking me 2 days to get home. I have 10 hours of a wonderful wait in Amsterdam. Anyone wanna meet me there? I can bring cookies!

Jai Uttal and Plastic Dog Bamboo!

Nataraja from Jai Uttal is the my favorite song ever. Dagmar introduced me to this wonderful song a couple months ago and I can't go to bed without listening to it over and over again.

I woke up to a beautiful morning and found my favorite one of a kind flip flops eaten by Bamboo! We used to make fun of him and call him "plastic dog" (because when Kati and Mark found him, he was almost dead on the street and Mark thought he was a toy, hence plastic toy) and now he really is a plastic dog. You are what you eat Bamboo! I am so disappointed.

Watch out for Raw Almonds, they are about to disappear!

It is getting more and more difficult to live on healthy food. Now, raw almonds are about to disappear. This is very serious and I am not sure how many people are aware of the problem. It is sickening how the government is controlling what the people eat. Almonds are so good for you, maybe you might become healthy and be a threat to the community.

"The FDA has taken it upon themselves to say that from around Sep 1 2007 all almonds in the USA, Mexico and Canada can no longer be raw. While they will still be labelled 'raw', they will be 'pasteurized'. Some will be pasteurized with steam but many will be treated with a carcinogen Propylene Oxide."

We get the almonds from the States in Costa Rica and good thing I am going to Turkey, so I will stock up but in the long run, I just have to find a way to grow them here, or export from home.

http://www.relfe.com/07/raw_almonds_banned.html

In the meantime, go to www.livingnutz.com and click on the almond pasteurization petition link on the front of the page and sign your name as well as your state, town, and zip code.

Painted Bottles

When I was very sick in San Jose a couple months ago, I started painting bottles. I got my first bottle as a gift from my friend Reina, I got so many complements for it from people asking if they could have one. Sure, why not paint it yourself?

Anyhow, it was a perfect project to calm me down and keep me busy with something outside the kitchen. I started for pure selfish fun and now I think I could turn this into a community project and have people walk around town with their own painted bottles.

I am also involved with a new community group in Montezuma where we are trying to create a more eco-concious, more rooted and connected community and recycling water bottles is one of the major issues in our tourist invaded little town. I suggested we can do water bottle painting as an after class at the school and we will begin working on it next season. I am excited!

Below are some of my favorites, I use acrylic paint and each bottle has its own theme depending on my mood. Blue's are when I am "blue", pinks are when I am in love and my favorite is still my first one named as "my costa rica".

Some more on flickr!

Hope you like them!

got a skype account!

Karl hooked me up with Skype and my nickname is bakingfairy! Yay!

In San Jose

It has been one of the longest bus trips with the heavy rain and two
huge luggage, but I made it to Kati and Mark's in Escazu. I am here
for a week and then head back home to Turkey!

It was a little crazy when I got out at the Coca Cola terminal, some
private taxi guys were waiting outside and I asked one of them to help
me out with my stuff. They thought I was a tourist and asked me pay
double the fare. Though it was raining so bad, I said no, it really
gets me when people try to take advantage of me. Maybe in a few years
I will learn to pay the extra for the comfort, but these days, I chose
to say no. It was difficult but manageable to carry my luggage and I
found an official taxi pretty quickly.

Then we came to the house but no one was home. I didn't call a day
before to confirm with Kati, I should have but I was busy surfing
(nice tropical excuse!) and I waited in front of the house with the
taxi driver for half an hour...Good thing I didn't let him go, and he
was also nice enough to climb over the fence and shout and finally
have one of the other guests hear us. There was no electricity and the
phone and the door bell didn't work!

I love it here always...It is so peaceful and they are so good
company. They invited me to dinner and I accepted immediately (hmmmm
home meals!)

A day in paradise

~ woke up at 9:00 am, finally I can sleep better!

~ went to yoga

~ had breakfast in front of the ocean and decided to sell my granola to the supermarkets, so I can have good breakfast when I am not at the cafe.

~ met Mauritzio and went to surfing

~ surfed all day at Playa Grande, catched so many waves that I am proud of my progress since I first moved here! I am a surfer girl!!!

~ headed back to town and saying goodbye to friends

 

no tears but I will miss Montezuma, especially now it is really quiet and romantic with big waves, rain and memories...

 

 

 

Waiting for Godot

Fascinating article from LiYana, and so true for me too...I spent five hours closing the cafe today and ignored my friends desire to get together before I leave. Now I am tired, ready to home and it sucks that I still need to pack. It is raining sooooo bad, I am happy I am out of this mud craze for a while.

 

"I believed that to deserve pleasure and to earn any reward, I needed to work hard and to go through pain and suffering.  I was sure there was a direct correlation between how hard I worked and how much suffering I could endure and the amount of pleasure and reward that was to be mine as a result.  And being a perfectionist and overachiever, I decided I'd arrange my life to work even harder than those around me; I built my muscles to endure even more pain and suffering than those around me; and I waited patiently for the pleasure and reward to descend upon me.  I waited through a 10-year career as a professional dancer, I waited through two long-term relationships, and I waited through countless to-do lists that I diligently completed.

 

Then I realized I was waiting for Godot.  Enjoyment was not coming, no matter how long-sufferingly I waited for it.  It began to dawn on me that I had needlessly put the obstacles of pain, suffering and hard work in the way of my enjoyment.

 

I never got to the whole point – enjoying my life, being happy. "

http://www.redefiningmonogamy.com/articlesobstacle.html
 

From Tony

"Within each of us is a light, awake, encoded in the fibers of our existence. Divine ecstasy is the totality of this marvelous creation experienced in the hearts of humanity" Tony Samara

www.samarafoundation.org

almost over...

We are closing tomorrow...I can´t believe the season is almost over and today it was so busy in the morning,  I kinda felt I don´t want to leave! Maybe only for a moment:))  I really would like some vacation. In the meantime, no more baking, no more ice cream...So we started to do some crafts projects for next season. We hanged up a board for drinks and it already made such a difference. Lizzle Dizzle sold sooo much today. We replaced the glass windows so they won´t be able to sneak into my ice cream and we are now making fans from old magazines to put on the tables.

 

I am at a strange place in my heart now. I am officially on vacation for two months!  It is also freaking me out a little not knowing what exactly I will do, but I am really not going to the kitchen for a while. Though I promised my mom to pay my rent in Istanbul with ice-cream and granola so you figure it out.

 

For next year, I need a water tank and I would die for a solar oven, maybe hot water too...

Days go by *fast!

Better it is to live one day
seeing the rise and fall of things
than to live as hundred years
without ever seeing the rise and fall of things.

Dhammapada 113

 

My last week at the cafe, I can't believe a season is over!

Tsunami Warning and Sweet Life

It rained all day yesterday and late at night we heard about the
Tsunami warning for Montezuma. I was up the hill at a friends house,
no TV, no Internet..but only my cell phone. I called all my friends in
town and got most of the news from Marlen. She was scared because all
her family lives in Cabuya, on the beach and she could not reach them
by phone. She saw what happened in Peru and they also said on TV that
Tsunami would hit Montezuma around 9:00 or 9:30....I was scared, all
negative thoughts come to mind one after another and it is difficult
to keep calm.. there was nothing we could do but wait...The phone
contact was amazing though, everybody calling each other, hotels were
evacuated and almost everyone in town moved to Cobano.

Marlen called in 10 minutes and said she reached her brother and they
took all her family outside of the beach. That was a big relief, but
then on top of all this, a friend of mine was supposed to arrive
yesterday. He called right before I heard about the tsunami thing and
boarded the ferry. I could not believe that they would let the ferry
when there is a tsunami warning. I was worried. I prayed that he would
be safe and not die in the middle of the ocean. Yup, my prayers worked
and he made it safe here! Today, life is back to normal but it was a
great wake up call to see how little control we have over life.
Nothing is permanent and all there is this moment and it is beautiful.
I am so grateful and at peace. Now, all I want is to go back home and
visit my family and bake some treats for them.

P.S. Someone asked me about the visas to Costa Rica. It is true that
Turkish citizens do not need a visa to enter Costa Rica.

Feeling Insecure

I am being tested for security these days...Two days ago on my way
down to the cafe, a man with a machete shows up and hides behind the
bushes. I don't understand what is going on but I felt suspicious so
and stopped walking towards him. He kept hiding and taking a few steps
back. Very creepy and scary especially with his big machete. I turned
back and walked away as fast as I could, in the meantime he started
following me. It was 6 am in the morning, no one around but I wasn't
too far from home so I just went back to my place and waited behind
the bushes. He came went by and I waited a ride to walk down. I was
really scared...

Today, they broke in and stole two ice-creams. Coffee and pineapple.
This is the third time and I am not sure what to do about it. We are
moving everything as far away as possible from the windows and
covering the windows with big signs but they manage to get my
ice-cream somehow. I would love to install cameras, it would be
soooooo fantastic to watch what is going on at night....I feel
insecure and violated and there is no one to complain, no one to
report...It sucks big time...

In the meantime, I got a vita-mix. Someone I met at the cafe, went
back to the U.S. and came with a vita-mix...I am shocked! It was my
ultimate request from the universe and it happened...Well it is really
expensive but I am going to make good money soon:)

My first day experience with it was not really good though. It stopped
working twice, once while making black bean dip and once making the
crepe batter...Then it exploded while I was mixing leftover greens,
celery, spinach, mint, cilantro and basil...The color was fantastic
but the taste was horrible...

Now, a new request for a champion juicer! Then I am all set!

BakingFairy Land-Volunteers Needed!

I got a card from a friend I met here and she wrote "hope all is well
at the Baking Fairy Land". That touched my heart... I am not doing
that great these days but that is life... I had to let go of an
employee, she worked with me for four months and last week I had it
with stolen stuff, no respect and greedy eyes with money...I just had
to do it...She was doing most of the cooking and I was able to leave
for a few hours...Oh well. I am here only 3 more weeks and I figured I
can do some cooking...and clients are happy about that too so at least
my business is booming.

In the meantime, I met Melanie, she is a friend of Dariana and hired
her right away. She is fantastic. It is amazing how the universe
works, I just have to go with the flow and let things come to me.
David, for example, he just happened to be here, having breakfast when
we had a mountain of dishes, no help at all...I made him a breakfast
burrito, served it to him and said hello. He was very happy to see me
and said he is staying for a while and he can help if we needed any. I
said I will think about it. I asked him if he was serious, and he said
he can help for a couple of hours. I showed him the dishes and he
didn't mind helping at all...He is a vegetarian too! He left to stay
with friends in Cabuya but now I have a great new vision to offer
volunteer work exchange programs with people all over the world.
Vegetarians and vegetarian wanna be's are all welcome. I am not sure
how the program will work, does anyone have experience with volunteer
work?

I would like to involve as many locals as I can, so they can benefit
from the culture exchange as well. Maybe setup sleeping facilities
with them, so they make some money and also get introduced to
vegetarian food, happy healthy people...Montezuma really needs this
beautiful energy....I like to dream....

Finally!

Lane's photos are so popular in Montezuma. I am happy to see her
making her stuff available. Check it out!

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=48973

Check this out...

I can't wait to try these burgers and the cheez sauce. Thanks Lane!
http://yeahthatveganshit.blogspot.com/

Jerry on a skirt!

I miss Jerrito so much!

http://animatedcloset.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=AC&Product_Code=1476-8&Category_Code=S

Hmmmm Caramel and Sea salt

Finally, I have all vegan caramel ice-cream. Before I was using dulce
de leche, which is fantastic but it is not dairy free and it was my
only dairy ice-cream on the menu, which sucked. My friend Karen gave
me this book, Voluptious Vegan and I tried the caramel recipe from
there. It turned out fantastic and so easy to make, I don't know why I
had struggled making caramel so much in the past. As always, when life
flows, it is fun and easy. When I try too hard, and try to go against
the flow, things get really difficult and not fun at all, so you get
the idea, I am happy these days:)

So, here is the recipe if you like to try home. If you like to make
your own ice-cream, use this base instead of the sweetener and add
some coarse sea salt on top. If you are lazy, you can also mix caramel
to a store bought vanilla ice-cream and sprinkle salt on it. This
version will be sweet though!

Caramel Sauce
Makes 1 and 1/2 cups

1/2 cup molasses
1/2 tapa dulce or maple syrup
1 tsp coarse sea-salt
1 cup soy milk
1 tsp tahini
1/2 tsp peanut butter or sesame butter
1 tsp lemon juice

Mix soy milk, tahini and peanut butter and salt in a small cup
Add the lemon juice

Boil the molasses and the tapa dulce until it reaches a soft ball
stage, 250 degrees. You can test it by dropping a spoon into
ice-water. It is supposed to be pliable.

Slowly add the soy milk mixture and let boil another 3 minutes. Let it cool...

Stuck

I would like to go home in September, but I don't have a visa for the States and all the flights are going thru the US. The US embassy here is scheduling appointments for visa in 20 days. Crazy!

I got two websites to search for tickets for Europe, www.airgorilla.com or www.airtech.com I don't know any travel agency in Costa Rica and I am not sure how to get home with no visa. This visa issue is killing me...Any help would be appreciated...

Vipassana on CNN

http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2007/07/23/100135590/index.htm

I got accepted to serve in NZ in October!

back in the kitchen

Today we opened a little late, since we didn't have anything
ready...The day started a little slow and I was happy that we got time
to finish stuff... By 10 o'clock, people started flooding the place. I
don't know what happened, I guess closing a week was a good idea in
the end, it created some kind of a buzz in town....People said they
changed their travel plans to eat at Organico.

Then I met the nicest guy from Florida. He came in with friends, all
vegetarian and they ordered a few items. He looked at some stuff,
asked questions but didn't order anything. He kept looking at stuff,
finishing off the tasting bowl and complementing the food. I offered
another piece of a cake, he was shy but accepted it. I sensed it was
something to do with money, he didn't look like a tramp but I figured
either he is out of cash, (no ATMs in Montezuma and people often come
here without enough cash) or he left his wallet in the hotel or
something...I was right that he was out of cash, but his story was
horrific. He got robbed in Jaco. This popular tourist town, 3 hours
off San Jose. He was with his friends walking to the beach and some
nice looking people offered them to show the way. On the way, they
jumped on the guys with a machete and asked for their wallets. He gave
his wallet and got a bad scar on his back. Now he is here and maybe he
will help me for a while in the kitchen. Tomorrow he is coming in to
cook some Indian treats and I am dying for some Indian food, so this
will be a fun week!

Catching up with my sister!

http://guliz83.blogspot.com/2007/07/nintendo-ds-yoshi-touch-and-go.html

She always wins at these damn video games. I need to get up to speed before she beats me again in a month. Check out yoshi and touch! I also recommend Animal Crossing. Lane Collins favorite!

Vipassana in NZ

I am planning to be in NZ in October and there is a 10 day course starting Sep 26. Afterwards, I will be visiting my friends Lane and Sutter who are in Nelson...Of course all depending on me getting a visa and a plane ticket...more on this soon....

http://www.medini.dhamma.org/grounds.htm

 

Correo Central, San Jose

One of the most amazing places I have been in San Jose is the post office building. El correo is in the middle of the crazy town, a very old, semi clean, high ceiling building. I loved being there, there are so many post boxes and so many interesting people coming and going...I think I am longing for connections, it made me so happy to be there and observe people sending mail, receiving mail, boxes and mostly everyone was happy...there were no lines...I can't wait to go back.

Here is the bonus:) Reina took me to the coffee shop next door, Cafe Teano...They have a two page drink menu but you can order off the menu and get my special, "American drip" with cardamom...hmmm, not sure how Americans got to put their name into coffee but everywhere you go there is American coffee. I decided to add this to my menu as Turkish Delight as of tomorrow...:)

Here is the Correo Central:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/oreore/686213670/

travelling kitchen

I have been out of touch with a good reason. I discovered how amazing food we have in Organico-and how other travelling veggies must be feeling when they get to the cafe! Brown rice, almond milk and vegan baked stuff do not exist here. I am surprised and happy....

 

On the road though, we suffered...We could not find one decent restaurant, no avocados, no fresh squeezed orange juice, no whole grains...So, we had to have our own travelling kitchen...I am not sure if I should write all that we carried on our backpacks (I felt like a turtle) because in the end Reina and I agreed that we are extremely obsessive...I will write some of the stuff we carried and you tell me what you think...

1. Curry Powder, I add it to anything.

2. Cardamom, especially good with coffee.

3. Wakame

4. Lemon

5. Granola

6. Almonds, walnuts

7. Mango

8. Dark Chocolate

9. Soy cookies

10. Soy sauce

 

On one of the nights we stayed at this nice hot springs with a fancy restaurant in San Carlos and we took our wakame, soy sauce and avocados to the table. The waiter was puzzled, mostly because we took our groceries to make a salad and also we ordered french fries with that...Yeah, I still love french fries.

Highly recommended hot springs:

Termales del Bosque

Total disappointment:

Recroverde

 

Independence and Self Sufficiency

From Tony Samara:

"This spiritual path is dedicated to making people independent and self-sufficient. By everyone taking initiative, free of ego and its judgements, then we have creative action. With this action we discover that within our self-sufficiency we have the ability to love the differences and the uniqueness in each other.

When one speaks of self-sufficiency this means taking a mature attitude towards life. Whatever choices one makes life reflects it. There is no running away from all the responsibilities that we face in life. Looking for ways of simplifying and easing things for ourselves creates selfishness. By instead creating joy for everybody it is possible to build a joyful selfless service to humanity."

www.tonysamara.org

Out in the jungle

I am in San Carlos,  2 hours north of San Jose. I came here with a quick decision on Monday, left Montezuma with the early bus. I met Reina in town and we spent the night in the best hotel but still really really not up to my expectations at all...No fruit trees, no garden, no touch...The hotel feels like a prison and I don´t feel secure at all...We had breakfast at the hotel (in Reina´s room) with mangoes and granola and checked out from the place. Walking around the city, I found maca powder and flax seeds...strangely fascinating...

It is great to be out free though, I am free and not have to deal with employee issues for a while. Then, following Jorge´s advice, I will have to be the boss!

Today we are headed to hot springs for some relaxation and green!

Point of Nervous Breakdown and Lizzle Dizzle

I left at 3pm yesterday to take a yoga class in Mal Pais. It was a
fantastic class and Flor Blanca is a beautiful place to get away from
everything. I left the cafe to my employees and Dariana and they were
supposed to close kitchen by 4:00 and close up everything by 5:00.
Since the yoga class ended by 5:30, I went directly home and came down
to the cafe this morning.

This is what I saw...All the produce that was delivered yesterday (a
weeks worth of organic produce) on the kitchen table. I accept that I
am emotional and that is not a good thing, but come on...I was mad,
how could someone who works in a restaurant can leave produce (and I
mean delicate lettuce, herbs, spinach, ect) out on the table, in the
hot kitchen overnight. I didn't cry, but I was soooo frustrated. We
threw out some stuff, beets and carrots were ok. What bothered me most
was the way they handled things. When I asked the woman that why she
left them out on the table, her response was I did not specifically
instruct her to do so. Then she laughed. I have worked with so many
people since I started Organico, and the truth is no one is better
than the other...(except for those special angels that I am grateful)
but I will always have employee issues and I just have to be a better
manager. I need to figure out how to delegate and make them
responsible and then if it doesn't work, they are out. Fired. I
decided to close for next week, mostly because I am tired, also I want
to meet up with Reina but then I met two new guys who are interested
in helping me and it sounds like fun, I changed my mind. Its time to
work on details of running things, not only doing everything and
training is part of it. I also feel lucky because I felt so yucky
today and some great customers were around to give me hugs and support
and kisses and love, so all is good. Just challenging but I asked for
this at this point of my life and I can do it.

P.S. Also, it sucks that I don't speak spanish and trying to explain
stuff is sooo difficult. I will learn Spanish. It is really a must.

In the meantime, a new special on the shakes...The Lizzle Dizzle,
named after Liz. Jeremy's creation. It is my signature frosty ice
coffee with almond milk and frozen banana.

Not Dogs...

Looking for a vegan not dog recipe, let me know if you got one....
bakingfairy@gmail.com

Lettuce Cups!

Lettuce cups made it to the menu! I have come a long way from eating
the lettuce on the side at several different places (thanks Carrie)
and now finally I have my own place and I make my own lettuce cups. In
the heat, they make a fantastic lunch as well. Today we sold four, a
very good start!!!

Next up on the menu is Vegan Meatballs meets Spaghetti Monster!
Dariana made the meatballs from soymeat and Beth did the artwork for
the wall. It is hillarious!
Learn more about Spaghetti Monster here:
http://www.venganza.org/about/open-letter/

Chalmond

We are selling a lot of almond milk and that is a good
thing...However, the refrigerator has been piling up with almond
leftovers! I use them to make vegan mayo but the amount of mayo we go
through is so little....I have mentioned the problem to Dariana and
she suggested to use it in an ice-cream...Of course, I tried that a
couple of times before and it never worked, the ice-cream was more
grainy and sandy and I didn't like the taste...but I tried it again,
this time with more liquid to almond ratio and with cacao...It turned
out better than I hoped and we even test marketed it to some
customers. On top, one of our regulars, Noah named it for
us...Chalmond!

So, there is hope to go through that almond pile, and that is the good
news...The bad news, as always, I didn't write down what I put in it,
so I tried it again today and it wasn't even close....I really have to
write, ughgghghgh! Ok, this is it...I am starting tomorrow...and this
will be the first step towards my vegan ice-cream book! Here we go!

Go Sarma!

I adore Sarma!

http://www.welikeitraw.com/rawfood/2007/07/sex-pain-madnes.html

Liz left, sad again and lucky again...

Liz left this week and I am really sad. I met her at the cafe, we
became instant friends and spent everyday together, including spending
a night at Santa Teresa. We ate together, surfed, gossiped a lot,
talked about girly stuff, about men, sex, love, affairs, boys and boys
and food almost everything you could think of. She worked at the cafe
when it was so chaotic, she had to rush behind the counter to take
some orders since Claudia doesn't speak any English...

I rarely let people in my life but Liz was so special with her
charming personality, it is impossible not to like her. Everyone in
Montezuma thinks she is a local. She was here for three weeks, to
learn spanish, do yoga and surf. Having a good friend like her also
made me realize, I really need friends here. I am lonely. However, I
am lucky too, because Liz left Monday and her good friend Dariana is
staying for one more week. She also offered to help at the cafe and I
was delighted to have her. She is a fantastic employee to have....I
asked her today if she would be willing to train my
employees...Unfortunately she likes her job in NY and she will be
leaving this Friday...I am really blessed to meet these amazing people
that makes me appreciate Organico more. Although I am not too excited
about the routine, the fact that I can't travel as much, I don't make
as much money as my employees or I don't get to eat as well as the
clients, the experience is really fantastic. I am lucky to be here.

A new special on the board today from Dariana: Lasagna con Platanos

Dariana is from Dominican Republic and she has sooo many great
recipes. Today, we tried her lasagna and it is the best lasagna I have
ever had...We used plantains instead of pasta, sunflower ricotta for
the cheese, mixed veggies and soy meat in the filling and breadcrumbs
on top. Sooo delicious!

Week in a nutshell

This week was fantastic. It was busy, I had the best numbers ever and
I managed to do yoga everyday, went to surfing, had dinner with
friends and really had fun. Tomorrow is my day off-even better:) Life
is good!

My new favorite at the cafe is the Bowl of Rice and Happiness. Brown
rice, black beans, cilantro, tomato and avocado. Dressed with lemon
and sea-salt. So simple and deliciously happy!

I am in heaven

After being in Costa Rica for 7 months, I finally made it to the next town, Santa Terasa for a short weekend getaway. Oh my god, this place is amazing. I am doing a yoga workshop at this wonderful resort, Flor Blanca  It is 500 USD per night so we decided not to stay here for this time (!) I have to admit, I missed hot showers, large patios, white table cloths...

I also met people here who ate at Organico and they liked it very much. "Wow, you are the owner of Organico, I love it there. My favorite place!" I am a little famous now in this little town! I better come down to earth. Interestingly, we were very busy in the last week, even though I started doing yoga during the week, started surfing and spent less time in the cafe,  things are running smooth and I paid the rent already!!! 

One last thing, I finally realize how hard I am on myself. I am going to stop that now. Nothing has to be perfect and I am tired of running after perfection. It is a process. I am changing, I am moving forward and it feels great to have people around me who I can talk about anything. Life, once again, is fun and I am enjoying it. Of course I am grateful to my guiding angels, my family and friends who love me just the way I am.

Latest and greatest

Microwave made its way to the kitchen. I hate it. I never used it and
didn't want it there but heating stuff is so difficult and I have to
turn the oven on and off all the time just for one apple pie or a
cake. And the electricity bill has been really high in the last couple
of months so I am trying to cut costs...But everyday I realize how
hard it is to stick to your values, keep resisting to other's trying
to influence you. Is microwave really an energy saver? I don't eat
anything out from the microwave, I don't feel good serving things from
the microwave, Larry even says, stay away from it as much as you can
to minimize damage...That's it! I am not going to have a microwave in
the kitchen. I just have to serve everything room temperature. I am
tired of trying to please everyone, and if you want good healthy food,
here it is, luke warm. Come'on people, it is already boiling hot
outside, why should we heat the apple pie???? Why did I not think
about this before, I don't know...Microwave is gone. Wow, I have made
an executive decision! In the meantime, why do I serve eggs? I don't
even taste eggs anymore....Veganize Ozlem, veganize! Soon:)

Dinner Party

I had my first official dinner party! Marlen, Maya and Larry came over
Monday night. It finally feels like I am happy here...It is so
strange. Though it was not anything like my usual dinner parties back
in San Francisco where I would stress over the menu for at least a
week, stay up late to read and try recipes and rush back home to prep
everything...This time, I just got a pack of nori, sushi rice, two
avocados as Larry is a big avocado monster and some veggies. Marlen
made a salad from her garden and Larry got some coconuts from my back
yard. I don't even have 3 cups or plates or chairs...but we just
laughed the whole time. I got a private lesson on opening coconuts and
how to cut your thumb but that will be another post.

P.S. For dessert, I stole some coconut-chocolate treats from the cafe
as dessert!

Dinner Special!

Since Reina introduced me to rice crackers and avocados with curry on
top, I have been having the same thing for dinner, almost like a daily
ritual! I'm addicted! Her original creation has garlic on the base, if
I am not too lazy, I also like it with garlic but some nights I am
just hungry and go without it. It is so wonderful and fulfilling...

Not much is different at Organico, the town is empty and it makes it
difficult to keep motivated. Though I discovered a new drink on a
little piece of paper. I think Larry wrote it but I haven't got a
confirmation. Passion fruit, banana, mango with almond milk. It is
sooo good. Almond milk so expensive here so I am going to sell it with
soy milk instead.

Meantime, I am trying to get a better idea of my costs, pricing and
menu items. I am back in front of the computer, working with
numbers...There is no escape! I think Ev once wrote it, if you can't
measure it, you can't improve it. So true.

Remy

I can't wait to see this movie. I have been waiting for it almost two
years now. Erdem was talking about it secretly when he was at Pixar. I
have no idea when it will be available in Costa Rica. I suspect it
will not be soon.

http://cookingwithamy.blogspot.com/2007/06/ratatouille-movie-review.html

Meanwhile, the Vipassana course in Costa Rica is full! They do not
even accept names for the waiting list. I am a little upset about that
but maybe this is a good challenge to find where else I can go....

Going Back to Montezuma

It is hard to believe that I have been in San Jose for the last two
weeks. It went by so fast, mostly because I was sick the whole time.
Now I am packed and leaving tomorrow morning, but not sure I am ready
to apart from this wonderful living situation, mangoes for breakfast,
wireless internet and access to the comforts of the city. No
mosquitoes or loud neighbors...I have already abused Larry's
generosity to take care of the place and I am sure he is ready to give
he keys with a big smile.

I will have to come back...Maybe sooner than I think, because there is
a Vipassana course in July that I am interested in joining. Also, I
discovered the best kept secret vegetarian restaurant in San Jose.
Thanks to Reina and her friend Jorge. It is a real Taiwanese place and
today we had cheese made from palmito, heart of palm. I swear it
tasted like real smoked cheese. They also make lots of seitan and tofu
and their soups are to die for. They have cooking classes and maybe I
will join one next time I am in town. If you are in the area, just
call me first then we can go together.

creativity

I am trying to paint....Its been wonderful in the last couple of days
to forget about all the problems I have and just paint...Paint sheep,
birds, palm trees...In the meantime, I have been trying to do
something for Larry. He has been working at the cafe and I am not
quite sure how to thank him. I wanted to paint him a water bottle, but
the more I try, the more I can't...the colors are not right, the
shapes don't work. I am trying too hard and I hate that...Reina says,
sometimes I have to stop. It is true but it is so hard to accept
that...He doesn't even know, he doesn't even care but I am sitting
here stressing about a water bottle....too much time I got on my
hands...time to go back to the kitchen and work.

dentist

I went to the dentist today and had a filling done. I paid 12,000
colones, a little above 20 USD. I am really sad about all the fortune
I paid in the States. It is cheaper to buy a plane ticket, get a
treatment here and stay for a few days...So in case any of you need
dental work, I would be happy to hook you up with wonderful people.
Just FYI....

video upload

Testing out the new functionality...This was recorded in Istanbul a couple years ago. Enjoy...