Inspirations:
March was a short production month for us as we were blessed with the opportunity to visit Sri Lanka for the last two weeks of the month - and travelling right into the day of the Equinox!
In early March, I felt the need for a detox with quite a bit of liver cleansing, using Milk Thistle and castor oil packing. Then, as we travelled in this most amazing country, I felt a lot of peace internally and did not physically feel any issues with my body to do with the Equinox or even the 1st lunar eclipse. Following the detox, I guess the warmth, the sun and the variety of wholefoods available there made the transition much easier than if we had stayed in the UK.
Sri Lanka is a magical country with such a colourful diversity of fruits and vegetables, animals and vegetation, landscapes and people! We simply loved it! I genuinely feel honoured to have been able to visit the country and I'm so grateful for the immense knowledge and experience Sri Lanka has given me. Is it that, due to the prevailing Buddhist religion, it felt submerged with love and kindness? In the entire two weeks we never witnesses any negative behaviour and felt very safe. Perhaps a good indicator of this love, kindness and respect was seen in the street dogs - all of them were so friendly!
On our return, I had a chance to rest and recover over the weekend. As I was reflecting on the trip, I ended up going for a run on two occasions and realised just how diverse my existing world is here in Wales. As I ran to my local forest and noticed many birds (heron, ducks, blue tits), animals like squirrels and rabbits, I picked a bunch of wild garlic to add to my cooking, some nettle tops to make a decoction, as well as wild flowers like bluebells and forget-me-nots, some camellia trees were still blooming and a eucalyptus tree was flowering. Even though I'm not a dedicated follower of Buddhism, I felt like taking a little bunch of each of these plants as an offering to my little stone buddha at home (see photo) and thought, life is also very beautiful around the corner! Please take time to notice the diversity around you and this will help you build a sense of peace and contentment.
In Buddhism, the New Year is celebrated on the 13th of April this year, which makes so much more sense as it is the beginning of Spring where new beginnings can happen, particularly after the Solar eclipse on the 8th and the new moon on the same day. I loved sitting and meditating on this idea of New Beginnings and honouring the ending. It will be an opportunity with the New Moon on the evening of the 8th of April to set your intentions and may be do a Moon Salute, held by Adrienne.
There's a wide diversity of foods in Sri Lanka, I felt so healthy eating all sorts of amazing fruits and curries and I discovered how easy it is to make coconut cream and milk from just shredded coconut. My favourite which was served with all meals, including breakfast, was Coconut Sambal
We also looked at fermented foods and drinks in Sri Lanka. The main food which we had most of the time for breakfast, was Hoppers (some type of rice pancakes, tasting a bit like a light crumpet) usually served with a curry or dahl. The second was a drink called Toddy or Raa. We were lucky to try some that had been collected in the same morning by this lovely farmer in the area of lower Ella. It was collected from the Kithul tree and not coconut and tasted very similar to water kefir amazingly!
Before travelling I managed to pick the garlic buds to make this delicious elixir! And it's not too late! There are still lots of buds around. You can also still use wild garlic in your next batch of kimchi or in Becky's flatbreads recipe!
Cooking with freshly picked nettles is also amazing as they are packed with minerals, particularly magnesium and are great for cleansing the blood! You can make soup or tea with them, but I love this vegan cheese cake recipe from Spicy Moustache.
My mantras for this month:
I embrace every moment
I am grateful for the diversity of my world
GOOD TO KNOW:
> Festival Season is coming up:
We have a few festivals coming up where Laure will also be talking about fermentation!
Coed Ffest (June)
Welsh Fermentation Festival (August)
> South Wales Fermentation Revolution:
The WhatsApp group for fans of fermentation is growing with more fermenters being added at each market and event I attend. If you are keen to learn and up for sharing your fermenting experiences, text me your phone number and you'll soon be on the journey with us! (07515493402) You will need to be based in the area of South to West Wales.
> Talks to Spread the Health: We want to share our knowledge with more people and want ferments to be accessible to ALL! If you know of any people, groups or places who want to know more about fermentation, please get in touch. We can offer talks, demos and workshops, and run tasting sessions of water kefir and sauerkraut. Here is a little feel for it!
> Bridge Studio News: Our 2nd production container has now been fixed and can now be fully used. We will now be able to hold more stock for our shops and events!
> Website links and references: Our website has been updated and a page with links to authors, books and podcasts that we like has been added! Check it out!
> Accessories: Absorb Glasses and T- Shirts: our colourful T-shirts and stylish drinking glasses are still available to order on-line or buy at markets.
> Drinking Water Kefir for better health: If you want to drink our Water Kefir regularly to support your health journey, there are 2 money-saving options available:
Join our subscription scheme by filling in this document and emailing it back to us at (absorbhealth@outlook.com) *.
Learn how to make it yourself! We can sell you some grains, give you a receipt and teach you all you need to know!
*We deliver all around Cardiff and surrounding area - and further afield (see below).
> Grouped Deliveries outside of Cardiff: We have 2 separate delivery runs each month that go east of Cardiff one week and west of Cardiff on the other. Please get in touch if you live in the areas detailed below and want a Water Kefir delivery:
Gower, Mumbles, Swansea, Swansea Valleys to Ystradgynlais: Next runs are Thurs 11.04/ Thurs 9.05
Newport, Monmouthshire and Bristol: Thurs 25.04/ 23.05
WORKSHOPS and TALKS on Fermentation and Digestive Health:
We have a couple of workshops coming up in May and June
Tuesday 14th of May, Pantri Box Porthcawl - 6.30 to 8.30 PM
Saturday 29th of June, Insole Court, Cardiff - 10.30 to 12.30 AM These are both workshop where you will be making your own sauerkraut.
Please check my calendar for the latest updates on which markets I'll be attending in the next couple of months and links to workshops (some will be updated later)!
WATER KEFIR
Our spring green kefir is back! Lemongrass, Lime, Nettle and Spirulina
Do your bit for the environment and remember to return your empty bottles and sauerkraut jars - reusing is much better than recycling!
Happy Spring season! Thank you for following Absorb!
Looking for Absorb products?
Local markets and where to collect, check out my calendar: https://www.absorbhealth.org/calendar
Or stockists: https://www.absorbhealth.org/stockists