Strawberry-Basil Lemonade...

We have a popular Lemonade with Mint at the cafe, but this week, I
don't know what happened but there is no mint in the market...So, we
came up with a new lemonade. Strawberry-basil...We used 2 frozen
strawberries, 4 leaves of basil and a cup of regular lemonade. It is
very simple, creative and tasty. Lets see how popular it will be..

My little sister is getting married...

My little sister, hmmm not so little if you do the math, but I dont
want to go there...Anyway, they are a happy couple, and today her
fiance's family were in our home to ask for my dad's permission. If
you ask me I would say, my family is not traditional at all, but in
reality, yes, we are very very traditional!...In turkish we say, allah
sonunu hayir etsin:)))

http://www.flickr.com/photos/guliz83/2763004092/in/set-72157606722042458/

Unattended kids will be fed espresso and given a kitten...

absolutely necessary code of conduct at Cafe Organico!

Happy Holidays...

It is a beautiful afternoon in the tropics and today is Christmas! All my employees left early and i am by myself hanging out in our chill room, absolutely chilling...I need some time off because I am getting tired. Today I made olive oil lemon dressing with no lemon juice...but it happens, right? In the middle of this little town, I can't believe how amazing families pass by. Juliet and Tony, from the UK. They have been here for almost two months and Juliet is the the founder of VIVA, . They also have twin sons, one red head and the other blonde and they walk around town with "GO VEGGIE" shirts...So adorable! Juliet has started VIVA, 15 years ago and they have awesome campaigns. One of my favorite one is called Hey Meaty, you are making me HOT! Check it out!

Montezuma Film Festival

Come to Montezuma this weekend and enjoy the movies!
http://www.montezumafilmfestival.com/

New Season, New Colors, New Menu

We have finished the redecorating and the cafe looks beautiful, peaceful and really amazing. I am proud of myself doing this all alone with great friends. We spent hours in the hardware store but I got to the depth of the painting business, the color charts, quarts, rolls, happy times...The beauty of doing business in Montezuma is finding peace in chaos, usually because there is enough time to sit and meditate what is going on around you. Work is slow here. At the hardware store, it takes about 2 hours to go and get your stuff. Every moment is a movie scene,a comedy, almost impossible to believe for those of us who are used to the fast pace of "wash and go culture". But, these are the times worth appreciating what we have. Finding a good friend waiting in the car in front of the hardware store, seeing him everyday come and help in return for some vegan peanut butter and cheap veggie lunches is also amazing. The universe is sending me what I need, I am blessed with gifts every moment. Right now, I have everything I need. I dont want more but just days to enjoy these gifts, light breeze and happy smiles and lots of love.

I can't wait to post new pictures. In the meantime, the vegan peanut butter cookies are delicious and super easy, so if you like peanut butter, give it a try.

Peanutbutter Cookies

Mix the dry ingredients well in a bowl.

1 cup white flour
1/4 cup oat flour (or whole wheat)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

Blend in a blender:

1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon ground flax seeds, 3 tablespoons water
1/2 cup smooth peanutbutter
1/2 cup oil, coconut oil is the best
1/2 tsp vanilla

Then add the mixture into the dry bowl. Spoon onto a cookie sheet and mark with the fork for the traditional peanutty goodness. 350 degrees, 13 minutes.

Enjoy!

Cafe Organico Tropical Chutney

This is one my favorite dishes in our dinner menu. It goes great with Indian curries, rice and of course over freshly baked bread. You can do so much with chutneys, its incredible..try different fruits, don't be shy and experiment with your taste buds and buddies:))

The key ingredients are your spices. Make sure you have fresh spices. This dish is not spicy!

Makes about 2 cups

Masala
1 tablespoon cumin seeds
1 tablespoon freshly grated turmeric or 1 tsp. dry turmeric
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon

2 tablespoons of olive oil

Heat the olive oil well and add the spices. Fry the spices for about 2 minutes. Listo!


1 onion, diced fine
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 red pepper, diced fine
1 cup papaya, cut into small chunks
1 cup pineapple, cut into small chunks
1/2 cup cilantro
1 teaspoon white vinegar, apple cider vinegar works great
2 teaspoons of sugar
2 teaspoons of salt
1 lime or lemon

Once the spices are done, add onions garlic and red pepper and saute until the onions are browned under medium heat. Add the pineapple, papaya, vinegar and sugar. Cook about 20 minutes or until the fruits are cooked and the chutney is not watery. Add salt about 2 teaspoons but you may need to add a little more as you like. And finally add the cilantro. If you don't have cilantro, Italian flat leaf, would also work.

Squeeze one lime or lemon before serving...

Enjoy!

Months go by...happy

It has been so busy in the last couple of months, I am shocked to see I haven't posted much...Well, I got a dog. Prema! She is amazing, fun, loving and very very time consuming and difficult. I have discovered that I am a very self-centered human being..oh well, that is me...me and baking..and now Prema...My friend Jorge named her, after his first dog. Prema means love in Sanskrit. More love to the world..

News from the cafe...We are officially closed, but open to friends and any random strangers who happen to be in Montezuma in the crazy month of September. It is rainy season here and there is absolutely nobody in town. In absence of crazy work hours, I am spending my time thinking...about the new season, new menu items, new menu lay-out, employees, where to spend my two week vacation with my dog, ayurveda and ayurvedic cooking, chocolate, my family and how much I miss them...

And in the last two days, I have been thinking about everything but apples because I am doing an apple fast. It's incredible how food plays such an important role in my life and taking a break from it helps me shake it off a little bit, clean up my home, check in with my emails, write my blog, call my parents..also I spend time thinking what I want to eat right off the fast (Godiva chocolate that is sitting in the refri for two days!)

May all the cacao trees be happy and tranquilla.

I will post more often... Some recent photos..

Happy Times

Once in a blue moon, some person walks in Organico and I can't help myself making friends. It is hard to live in a transient place, people come and go and it becomes hard to open up to strangers you know they will leave in a few days...Still, someone like Lizard, is pretty rare to come by. You won't miss her in any way. She is from NY, so of course she is extremely difficult with her orders but also she is super sweet and funny and weird, she would find a way to make you do everything for her. We ended up naming a drink after her. Lizzle Dizzle, ice coffee with frozen banana and almond milk. Yum!

Rumi again...

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.

I am planning work trip to Nashville soon...I need to visit the south! Baking Fairy on the go! Just before Lizard left, we stayed in a fancy smoochy hotel in San Jose, went to shopping spent all our money on incredible dresses, went to dinner, made friends with the owner and gladly accepted 30% discount on our bill. The most fun part at the end, poor girl's facial clay. Trial size celebrity skincare...

Challenges

Its been tough couple of days, and now I have a big challenge on hand.
I spent so much time to figure out the menu, design the little details
but from outside, it still looks like a little shack my beautiful
restaurant and that makes me sad. Its incredible how much work there
is to do...the signs, the floors, tables...so i need help. If you have
an idea or a picture of a nice patio, send it to my way. I will post
some pictures so you can see what I mean...I am looking for smart ways
of improving the looks, attracting more people...sooo hard...it is
overwhelming...

Tree Yoga

I have done this! My new favorite!
http://treeyoga.org/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/sunstone_11new_ty_instructors.jpg

I LOVE YOGA

www.Iloveyoga.com

These people are heaven sent. I am so grateful to the universe, it is incredible. One of the nicest groups ever and they love the cafe, they love the food, I love them. Well, I feel pretty up in the air because some people even came up to me and said I make the best food they had in their lives. There are four amazing kids and they dig the icecream. I get so much pleasure feeding people. One love, we are one. I am so happy.

Check out the website, the cloths are fantastic too!

My favorite spice: Tumeric

Here is why you should also eat Tumeric. We add it to almost everything, but especially goes great with brown rice.

The medicinal properties of this spice have been slowly revealing themselves over the centuries. Long known for its anti-inflammatory properties, recent research has revealed that turmeric is a natural wonder, proving beneficial in the treatment of many different health conditions from cancer to Alzheimer's disease.

Here are 20 reasons to add turmeric to your diet:

1. It is a natural antiseptic and antibacterial agent, useful in disinfecting cuts and burns.

2. When combined with cauliflower, it has shown to prevent prostate cancer and stop the growth of existing prostate cancer.

3. Prevented breast cancer from spreading to the lungs in mice.

4. May prevent melanoma and cause existing melanoma cells to commit suicide.

5. Reduces the risk of childhood leukemia.

6. Is a natural liver detoxifier.

7. May prevent and slow the progression of Alzheimer's disease by removing amyloyd plaque buildup in the brain.

8. May prevent metastases from occurring in many different forms of cancer.

9. It is a potent natural anti-inflammatory that works as well as many anti-inflammatory drugs but without the side effects.

10. Has shown promise in slowing the progression of multiple sclerosis in mice.

11. Is a natural painkiller and cox-2 inhibitor.

12. May aid in fat metabolism and help in weight management.

13. Has long been used in Chinese medicine as a treatment for depression.

14. Because of its anti-inflammatory properties, it is a natural treatment for arthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

15. Boosts the effects of chemo drug paclitaxel and reduces its side effects.

16. Promising studies are underway on the effects of turmeric on pancreatic cancer.

17. Studies are ongoing in the positive effects of turmeric on multiple myeloma.

18. Has been shown to stop the growth of new blood vessels in tumors.

19. Speeds up wound healing and assists in remodeling of damaged skin.

20. May help in the treatment of psoriasis and other inflammatory skin conditions.

Electricity Costs

We are now paying 35% more to electricity and it sucks big time with my new A/C room....I need to find a way to install solar energy. If you have any information, please share it with me, I am sooo disabled when it comes to installing stuff. Also, I want to look into buyin the panels from the states, as someone told me it would be cheaper. Any ideas? Can I bring them in my luggage?

Amazing Dance

http://www.mysticaldance.net/

Faith...

When you walk to the edge of all the light you have, and take that first step into the darkness of the Unknown, you must believe that one of two things will happen: There will be something solid for you to stand upon or you will be taught how to fly.  Patrick Overton-

And hence my trampoline! It feels great to jump.

new roomies

Well, this time a family of three...Bats! Last night, right after I fell asleep, I woke up with a noise, lit up my flashlight (that I sleep with) and saw 3 bats flying over me......I was ok with crabs, spiders, ants, mosquitoes and frogs but bats they totally scared me...I was up all night designing my new menu....Please don´t get scared and still come and visit me. I am feeling a little off these days, I would love to see my friends and family! It is beautiful and not so hot here.

Immediately I checked the psychic meaning from the Medicine cards...Very interesting....

http://www.globalpsychics.com/serving-you/sample-readings/animal-totem.shtml

In the meantime, if anyone has an idea to get them out of the house, please email me. I need help.

Feelings

From my good friend Maria!

"The wide discrepancy between reason and feeling may be unreal; it is
not improbable that intellect is a high form of feeling - a
specialized, intensive feeling about intuitions."

-Susanne K. Langer, 1967

Our topic this week is feelings.. A lot of time we hear about the
difference between the heart and the head, or between feelings and
reason. But even if there is a difference between them, there is a
connection between them. We can assimilate the two, and use the power
as one, to make the important choices in our lives. It's that merger
that empowers us to overcome any challenges we come across.

-Lissa Coffey

Where is my HR department?

You will not believe this...I love my employees, they have been
working hard, keeping the restaurant going and being reliable for more
than six months now...I am really proud to find such a good
team...However, I was shocked on Saturday when I interrupted a
conversation between one of the employees and a customer. The customer
was asking about our "Turkish Delight" shake It has coffee, dates,
cardamom, cinnamon, soy milk and bananas. I love it. I admit that it
is not every ones favorite but if you like cardamom and coffee, it is
really good but it also takes time to prepare, as it has way too many
ingredients that needs to measured, cut, ect on the spot. So, we
charge more for it, end of the story...Nope!

As this guy was asking about the shake, what caught my eye in terror
was the "disgusted" face of my beloved employee! I could not believe
it...I jumped into the conversation right away and then talked to her
immediately. Apparently she doesn't like cardamom. I don't believe
her. I think she was just tired to prep it and we do have much easier
drinks to prepare, so she was trying to manipulate the customer.
Awful! Maybe she just doesn't like it and I am being evil, but that is
how I feel! Sorry! Yes, I know training, training, training. I need
to take time to train people. But, give me a break, how could you make
that face...Funny thing, the guy ordered Turkish Delight,
regardless....Sigh......Though I am not in the cafe 100% of the time
anymore, I do look at the sales item by item and we have been selling
Turkish Delight quite a lot, despite that FACE! My god!!!

My next stop...

BALI....Here I come...

http://www.ubudbodyworkscentre.com/ubud_aura.html