Avast, ye of avid apathy!

The 45th World Earth Day took place on Wednesday of this week, with this year’s theme “It’s Our Turn To Lead” encouraging people ahead of the Climate Change Summit in Paris to “redefine progress” and lead in the combat against climate change at a community level. My Instagram feed was full of photos of picturesque places around the world, with the captions commenting mainly on the beauty of nature and wishing all a #happyearthday. This was great to see – it truly is a breath-taking place, this world of ours, and we ought to stop and appreciate it more. I shared a similar photo myself. But as I did, I felt a pang of guilt. I recalled the words of Meghan Markle, speaking at the One Young World conference in Dublin last October about the “Bring Back Our Girls” photo campaign that began in response to the kidnapping of over 270 Nigerian school girls by Boko Haram in April 2014. Without criticising the campaign, she made the point that it’s all too easy for us these days to jump onto social media, share a photo or a video and then feel like we’ve done our part to help that cause. As I flicked through those photos, I wondered how many of those sharing them had heard of, read or signed the Earth Statement that launched that same day (http://earthstatement.org/), or whether many would feel that they had played a role in Earth Day just by sharing a photo. I’m not casting judgement on anyone – I’ve certainly been guilty of doing the same in the past – but this day, like John Cage faced with a life predicament, I was troubled.

As some of you may know, a couple of months ago I reverted back to an old habit of mine – vegetarianism. Not for health reasons, as you might assume - #eatclean #cleanliving #instahun - but because I’d been reading a lot about how reducing your meat intake vastly reduces your carbon footprint. I’ve always had some sort of an environmental conscience. I recycle. I walk when I can. I wash my clothes at 30 degrees. But I’ve been doing these things just because I know I should be. Global warming, and the ice caps melting, and all that jazz. Global warming is a bit like the wooden spoon of the Irish childhood. We’re cautioned that if we don’t stop what we are doing this instant, it will materialize and we shall suffer its wrath – but yet, we never actually see it, it’s not fully tangible, and therefore we question whether it really exists. I didn’t really believe in those seemingly insignificant actions, nor in the difference that they could make. It is only this year that the message about global warming, and our individual culpability and responsibility, hit home for me.

This is predominantly attributable to the monthly delivery of my subscription to the National Geographic, a birthday gift from an astute amigo of mine. This magazine is fantastic. I have learned more about the world from reading it over the past 6 months than I have over the last four years of college. I also took advantage of some great events that took place throughout this college year; the One Young World conference, as mentioned above, and smaller events organised by Trinity societies like Law Soc, TCD Environmental Society and Global Development Society, such as a panel discussion on Climate Justice and a talk from leader of the UN World Food Programme, Ertharin Cousins. The net result of all of this was the activation of my antennae of atmospheric awareness. Things are bad. Things do need to change. And we do need to act on an individual level. One of the ways I felt that I could improve my own carbon footprint was to become a vegetarian again. These are some pretty convincing results to be fair:

From the National Geographic, obvs.

I’m not going to sit here and preach facts about climate change to you – I probably can’t tell you anything you haven’t heard already, and besides I know from experience that it takes more than reading a few statistics to inspire people to action. The point I really want to make is that we are window-shopping our way through life’s calamities and injustices. We see a cause, maybe we’re slightly moved by it, or maybe we think it’s absolutely awful – but most of the time, that’s as far as it goes. We might write a status on it. We might share a photo. Yes, this raises awareness and that’s always great – but are we doing it purely because we care or in part because it alleviates the guilt we feel that we aren’t doing anything more? I am sick to the teeth with myself for feeling passionately about something and yet doing nothing proactive about it, except ruminating on it from time to time. Apathy is an affliction I am choosing to elude from now on.

As great as it would be if we all became vegetarians, I’m not going to come around snatching burgers out of your hands and stuffing my aubergines down your throat (unless I make a really good moussaka. Then y’all gonna want me to put that in your mouths). But if you have a passion about something, please – do something about it. Our mothers told us to pick our battles, but they left out the second half of the sentence. Pick your battles - and fight them. Whether it’s the environment, animal rights, refugees in Syria, the plight of the endangered Yangtze finless porpoise, whatever your passion may be – just don’t be the person left wishing they had done something more. 

Cmon, who wouldn't want to fight for this guy? He's fecking adorable.

Wholemeal Oat Banana Bread

If the thought of a warm slice of banana bread and a cup of tea doesn't summon saliva to your mouth or make your stomach dance with desire, then you should probably get that checked out. :P

Banana bread is a much-loved tea time treat, and is often viewed as a healthy opinion (eh, it's got fruit in it like, so obviously it's not bad for you? Obviously.). This can be the case, but some recipes do contain a lot of sugar and butter - so this is my version of a healthier banana bread, which is sugar and butter-free. If you want to make it vegan, omit the egg and reduce the flour to one cup, and substitute the honey for agave syrup. 
It won't rise as much as a regular loaf of banana bread, but it's got a really nice texture due to the oats and dessicated coconut (which I am currently having trouble leaving out of any recipe I make. Scones? Chuck it in. Cookies? Chuck it in. Thai curry? Sprinkle a bit on top. Shepherd's pie? Must..not..reach for coconut...)

So quit monkeying about, and whip up a loaf of this pure joy :)

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup flour - I use wholemeal or spelt
1 cup oats
1 heaped tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup dessicated coconut
2 tsp cinnamon
1 egg
1/3 cup honey (or agave)
3 tablespoons coconut oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 ripe bananas, mashed
Pumpkin or sunflower seeds to sprinkle on top
Optional - walnuts, dark chocolate chips, raisins


Method

1. Line a loaf tin with baking paper. Preheat your oven to 150 degree C. 

2. Place flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, dessicated coconut and cinnamon into a large mixing bowl and mix together.

3. Place the coconut oil in a bowl with the honey and vanilla extract and melt in the microwave on a low heat, stirring regularly.

4. Add this, along with the mashed bananas and egg, to the dry ingredients and stir together until fully combined. If using any of the optional ingredients, stir them in once the mix is combined.

5. Pour into your loaf tin. Smooth the top with the back of a tablespoon and sprinkle some your seeds on top, pressing them in lightly to make sure they stick.

6. Bake for 50-55 mins or until a knife inserted into the centre comes out clean.

7. Enjoy! :) This tastes delicious with almond butter on top, or serve with some yogurt and berries as a healthy after-dinner treat. If you are worried about it going stale, slice half the loaf and freeze it. You can just take slices out as you want them and pop them in the toaster!

Berlin in brief

Christmas 2014.
The first time since coming to university that I didn't have Christmas exams, meaning that I could enjoy the run up to the holidays properly for a change. My housemates and I were in full Christmas mode. Fairy lights bedecked our living room, Hark Hear the Bells became our apartment anthem and Christmas jumpers were daily attire. But despite the spirit of the holidays flourishing inside our flat, something was missing outside..
Let's face it - the Christmas markets in Ireland are rather disappointing. The Docklands Festival was the best offering in recent years, but it was overpriced and lacking in atmosphere. The arrival of a host of wooden huts at St Stephen's Green last Christmas got my hopes up - a much better location and stalls that were actually festively decorated. Four hotdog stands and a Wok 'n' Roll later, my hopes were quenched. My Yuletide yearnings remained unsatisfied. 

The solution to my problem was clear - to get that Christmas kick I so craved, I'd have to travel to the motherland of the Christmas market - Germany. Berlin was a city I'd long wanted to visit, ever since I'd missed it on my inter-railing trip around East Europe four years ago. My boyfriend - although attracted more by the prospect of well-stocked record stores than mulled wine - had a similar desire, and so in the first week of our Christmas holidays, off we went to Berlin.

The markets did not disappoint. They were fabulous, from the lights, the stalls, the produce and the sheer amount of them - we visited three different ones, each far beyond anything we've had here in Dublin, and still there were plenty we didn't make it to. 
We drank mulled wine. We ate roast chestnuts. We zoomed down an icy hill on a rubber tire. 

The Christmas market at Gendarmenmarkt.

Delectable goodies on all sides..

 ..none more delectable than the Gluhwein, of course ;)

I'd have been satisfied by just visiting these markets and heading back to Ireland with a box of Vanillekipferl and my souvenir Gluhwein mug in tow. But Berlin has so much more to offer, and so we dragged ourselves away from the Christmas markets long enough to take in some of the other tourist attractions too.

I would highly recommend a visit to the Reichstag Dome. Set on the roof of the parlimentary buildings, you get a fantastic view across the city, and the Dome itself is spectacular. It requires booking in advance, but it's free (we love free things) and you get an audio guide to listen to as you walk in a spiral up the side of the Dome. The officials are a tad scary though. Eye contact discouraged.

We took in a 3 hour walking tour on our first day, which unfortunately also happened to be the coldest day of our trip (an emergency pit stop in H&M for wooly socks and gloves had to be made). There are all sorts of tours you can do, but we opted for the classic historical one with Sandeman's. This is also advertised as free, but really you're expected to give a donation of around €10, which is actually very reasonable given the length of the tour and the knowledge of the guides. The tour is not the most aesthetically pleasing, but it's extremely interesting and a great way to get an overview of the history of the city.

Pariser Platz, with Brandenburg Gate in the background

The Jewish Holocaust Memorial

Remnants of the Berlin Wall

We also visited the East Side Gallery, where the remains of the Wall are far more cheerful than those pictured above, and Museum Island, where a student ticket costs just €9 and gets you entry to four amazing museums. 

A section of the artwork at the East Side Gallery.

Renoir - Summertime at Alte Nationalgalerie

Sarcophagi at Neues Museum

Carved lions at the Pergamonmuseum

Of course, I couldn't do this post without talking about the food. Berlin is brimming with excellent restaurants and street food markets - but I think I'll let the photos do the talking here ;) There are some great Berlin food blogs you can consult if you need inspiration or want to find a particular type of cuisine - try Foodie Berlin and Berlin Food Stories.

Taiwanese bao and Berlin Balls at Street Food Thursday in Markthalle Neun, which boasts an impressive array of food stalls, each more delectable than the last. Decision-making at its most challenging.

Vietnamese pho at District Mot in Mitte

Baked pumpkin and potato with cranberry cream cheese at Neue Heimat 

Chocolate schnecke from Zeit Fur Brot

Brunch at Barcomi's Deli

No trip away would be complete without finding a scone and soy cappuccino..

I like to sample the local cuisine whenever I travel. But I'm going to be honest with you here - I'm not the biggest fan of sausage.

Now now, stop that, you dirty-minded divils. ;)
I'm not the type to wake up after a night on the Morgans and crave a dirty sausie sambo. Superquinn never won me over with their celebrated cylindrical sizzlers. 
But there's something about a juicy Berlin bratwurst that beggars belief..

Succulent, delicately spiced, served on fresh bread rolls to a pair of very cold, hungry Irish tourists.. It was sensational. It's not something that I would eat every day (certainly not now that I've gone vegetarian :P), but I couldn't go to Berlin and not sample this traditional cuisine.

In the same way, I felt I couldn't go to Berlin and not sample the traditional nightlife. Those of you who are into the dance scene will be aware that Berlin is revered as the current techno capital of the world. It's home to some world-famous clubs like Berghain and Tresor, where top techno DJs like Ben Klock and Marcel Dettman are residents and which are notorious for their strict door policy. Tips for getting in include: Don't speak in the line. Don't be too drunk. Don't go up in a group with more than 2 boys. Don't be a tourist. Not a lot to ask now, is it?
We were there mid-week, meaning most clubs were shut until the weekend, but Tale Of Us were playing in one of the large clubs, Watergate, on the Wednesday night. We decided to chance our arms at getting in. Sure, two pale, ginger(ish) Irish people, with a bottle of wine downed on the U-Bahn and not a word of German between them - what could go wrong?
We joined the queue around midnight, watching nervously as some people walked back down the line looking dejected. We made friends with the toothless homeless man wobbling up and down the queue in search of alcohol. We practised saying "Ich spreche kein Deutsch". We shared some vodka with the alt-looking Slovenian pair behind us in the queue (until the homeless man caught wind of it and that was the end of that). And finally, around 12.45, we were at the door. Lines prepared, IDs in hand, expecting but dreading rejection... 

Hours of stomping techno later, we emerged into the early-morning light, shells of our former selves. Inside, the music thumped on, the fists pumped on, but we weary travellers slumped on home. Watergate had defeated us, but what a glorious battle it had been..

So inconspicuous..

Berlin may not be as warm or welcoming as some other European cities in terms of its climate, its people and its architecture, but it more than makes up for it with its history, its diversity and its arts and culture (yes, techno counts under culture). Normally after I visit a new city, I don't intend to return in the near future - I'm on a world mission, you know. That Scratch Map ain't gonna scratch itself ;) - but Berlin is an exception to that rule. I'd gladly return at the next opportunity that arose - plus a few extra pairs of socks and minus any notions of vegetarianism ;)

cinnamon and chia seed pancakes :)

...also known as oatmeal banana pancakes. But cinnamon and chia sounds much more exotic ;)

These are really easy to whip up and they taste deeelicious. I honestly prefer them to normal pancakes. They are pretty healthy too - flourless and sugar-free - which means of course that you can eat twice as much as usual. That's my logic at least.. ;)

As Soulja Boy would say, stacks on stacks on stacks..   

Ingredients

Serves 2

 - 2 bananas
 - 2 eggs
 - 1/2 cup oats 
 - 1/2 tsp baking powder
 - 1/2 tsp cinnamon 
 - 1 tsp chia seeds (you can use 1 tsp ground linseed if you don't have chia)
 - pinch of salt

Method

1. Place all of the ingredients in a blender. 
2. Blend to combine. You can choose how smooth you want the mix to be - I like to keep a little bit of bite to the oats.
3. Heat a non-stick frying pan over a medium heat. Fold a piece of kitchen towel in half and moisten with oil (I use coconut). Carefully rub the pan with oiled towel.
4. Using a tablespoon, place 2-3 spoonfuls of the batter on the pan, depending on the size of your pan. Make sure to only put one spoonful per pancake.
5. Fry until golden-brown on both sides.
6. Serve with your choice of topping - maple syrup, fresh fruit, yogurt, coconut, almond butter.. The choices are endless! 
I like mine served with low fat vanilla yogurt, blueberries, banana, toasted coconut, a dollop of almond butter and a drizzle of honey. Mmmmm...
To make a really quick berry coulis (as seen in the picture below), place a handful of mixed berries in a bowl and sprinkle a little sugar on top. Heat in a microwave on high for two minutes, stirring after one minute. 

Top with some toasted almonds and low-fat greek yogurt. If you're not drooling yet, you need your taste buds checked. 

jungle boogie

Apologies for the brief blogging hiatus over the holiday period - my laptop was lost somewhere amidst a deluge of turkey leftovers, Celebration wrappers and one too many bottles of vino. Of course, I could have taken some time out of the many hours spent watching Harry Potter to do something useful with my life - but that would have been a betrayal to the spirit of Christmas, I feel. ;)

I will have a nice European travel post coming your way in the next while, but to tide us over till then, I thought I'd share this painting I did for my boyfriend as part of his Christmas present. He studies Botany in college and has really taken a shine to the old plants, so I decided to draw on the works of Henri Rousseau and create this jungle scene for him..

There's us in the middle there, having a right old laugh. 

I used acrylic paints and colouring pencils, and the page size is A2. It's been a long time since I painted something of this size, and I have to say I'd forgotten how much I enjoy it. It's so relaxing to throw on a record, light some candles or incense and just paint away for a couple of hours - only while wearing old clothes, of course. There is absolutely nothing relaxing about realising you've gotten white acrylic paint all over said boyfriend's good Superdry hoody. Oops. All in the name of art, eh..? :P

This isn't the type of song I'd choose to listen to while painting now, but if you feel like having your own lil jungle boogie, here's Kool and The Gang to take it away:

wrong until you make it right..

This is one of those songs I put on when I'm feeling a bit off. There's just something so calming and comforting about it.. Maybe it's the tambourine. Maybe it's the synth effect on the vocals that give it a dreamy, surreal mood. Or maybe it's the repetition and hammering-home of the message - that everything will in fact be alright. :) 

What's your go-to pick-me-up song?

caramel without the cavities ;-)

I'm on a Psychiatry rotation at the moment, and though I'm really enjoying it, Tuesdays are a day that all my group used to dread. We have lectures from 9-5 in a stuffy little room in St Pat's on some pretty heavy-going topics. Come 5pm (come 3pm even), brains are fried and at least half the class is asleep/playing on their phones/AWOL. 

One of the girls in our group was more astute. Anna observed our battles to stay awake, watched our incessant scrolling through Facebook, took note of all those tactical toilet breaks. She recognised the need to make Tuesdays a little less heinous and a little more delicious. And so Treat Tuesday was born! 

Each week, 3 or 4 people from the group bake something and bring it in to share at our 11 o'clock break. Offering have included brownies, cookies, fifteen's (a delicious Northern Irish treat), malteser squares and a very impressive Pavlova and Yule Log (although maternal involvement was suspected in this case). The ensuing sugar high is enough to keep you going till, well, at least 3.30pm. 

When my turn to bake for Treat Tuesday came around, I decided to experiment. I had wanted to try out date caramel for awhile and happened to have a bag of dates in my cupboard at the time (pilfered from home, of course :P), so I thought I'd try a healthy version of the delicious classic millionaire shortbread. 
I was a bit worried about how they would go down amongst my classmates - not everyone is a bit of an 'eat-clean' hun like myself - but the empty lunchbox by 11.15 told me that they were a success! Nobody seemed to notice the difference - even my housemate Rachel, caramel shortbread fanatic and simultaneous raisinphobe, ate one and thought it was delicious ;) 

These squares are no-bake. The base is gluten-free, dairy-free and vegan and the caramel is dairy-free and refined sugar free and can easily be made vegan by substituting honey for agave. I used normal chocolate on top but this also could be easily substituted for a vegan alternative :)
Use a square brownie tray to make these. 

Healthy Caramel Squares

caramelly heaven..

Ingredients

Base

180g ground almonds

100g oats

4 tbsp coconut oil, melted

2 tbsp honey

Optional: 50g desiccated coconut

Caramel

250g pitted dates

2 tbsp honey/agave

1 tbsp smooth almond butter

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Dash of water

Topping

150g milk or dark chocolate

Method

1. Place the oats, ground almonds, sugar and coconut if using into a food processor and blitz briefly. Sitr in the coconut oil until combined. (If using honey, omit the sugar and melt the honey with the coconut oil.)

2. Press the mix firmly into the base of a tin lined with parchment paper - I had to use a large lunchbox and cling film due to lack of resources :P Place this in the freezer for 20mins until firm.

3. In the meantime, make the caramel. Place the dates into the food processor and blend until they have broken up and are starting to look like caramel. Add in the honey, almond butter and vanilla extract and blend to combine. Add a small amount of water - just enough that is necessary to loosen the mix. 

4. Take your biscuit base from the freezer and spread the caramel evenly on top. Return to the freezer for 1-1.5 hours until the caramel has set.

5. Once the caramel has set, remove the tin from the freezer. Melt the chocolate and spread on top. Allow to harden. 

6. When it comes to cutting the squares, take a cup of boiled water and a knife. Heat the knife in the water for a few minutes, wipe dry and then use to cut the chocolate. This should stop the chocolate breaking in large chunks and give you a clean cut. 

7. Store the squares in the fridge overnight or until you're ready for some guilt-free indulgence! :)