FINDING FOCUS

This blog has been a lot about everything, but never (except when I was on my Erasmus exchange) had any special focus. I have always hated that, but to tell you the truth, I always tried to focus on something, but nothing ever stuck.

I have always been passionate about food, cooking, baking, recipes and MUSIC. While posting recipes is fun and quite easy, writing anything about music scared the shit out of me. How would I know anything about music or bands or whatever. I'm just a regular girl that likes a certain type of music. Why would anyone listen to things I have to say about music.


And then I met THE BOY and he is all about music. Plays in a band, loves going to good concerts, knows tons of bands. And after some debating (and convincing), we decided to give blogging a try. As a couple. Writing about music, bands (mostly interviews) and also, about vegan food, since we both became vegan sometime in spring.

And the blog has been a success. Well, to me it has been. Especially because of the gratefulness and kindness we got from the bands we interviewed so far.

It's still hard to stick to writing, especially when there are so many other things in life trying to mess with our time, but we are not going to give up. He is my motivator and I am his. And I'm really happy that I found my focus, my blogging niche.



I can't say that I'm officially "killing" this blog, BUT, at least in the near future, there is not going to be anything new posted here. I moved my ass to SAWDUST & BEER, and if you would still like to read the stuff I write and post, follow me there. As it is appropriate, we have a lot of social channels, so you can follow us on:


Hopefully, see you there, my friends.

Love, Kaja. ♥

CHIA PANCAKES - VEGAN


Hello there! How are you? I hope Monday is treating you well. Me? Oh well, it could be better. On Friday my boy left and went on a tour with his band through Austria, Germany and Belgium all the way to England (they are a punk rock band and if you like that kind of music, you should check them out, cause they are awesome! Just click here: Start At Zero). So I'm at home and gonna be here most of the week. But I decided that these 10 days are perfect to try something, I normally wouldn't. I'm going vegan. For now it's just a challenge, to see, if I can stick to it, but if I'll like it ... well, who knows. ;)

And even though it's only been 3 days, I already have a recipe that I want to share with you (I adopted the recipe from here). Vegan pancakes. No cow milk, no eggs, no butter. Yeah, no animals or animal products in here. But they are still the best "American" pancakes I have ever made and ate. Seriously. I couldn't believe the fluffiness when I tried the first pancake. And of course I had to eat like 6 more of them after that. Yummmmmmm! :3

But, how can you make pancakes without eggs, you ask me. The secret is: chia seeds. They act as eggs and tie everything together.

You will need (I made approximately 15 pancakes):

  • 1 cup whole wheat flour (250ml)
  • 1/2 cup regular white flour (125ml)
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder (13g or 1 whole package)
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 + 1/2 cups rice milk (375ml)
  • 2 tablespoons chia seeds
The procedure:
First mix all the dry ingredients. Add the vanilla extract and rice milk and mix again. Add the chia seeds, mix well and let the mixture rest for 5 minutes, so the chia seeds moist (or expand or whatever they do in moist environment ... damn, that sounds so professional haha).

Use a non-stick pan (so you won't need any additional fat) and put the stove on low heat (well, medium, a little bit lower than the heat you usually use for making pancakes ... so the pancakes won't burn that easily ... but it takes just a second or two longer to make them ... be patient, they are worth it!). When they are golden brown on one side (the bubbles will form, but they form before the pancake is done, at least they did in my case, so they don't help a lot), turn them around and bake them on the other side too. Don't make them too big, cause it will be harder to turn them, because they are soooo fluffy.

And that's all, folks. I topped them with peanut butter and banana. You can also use any other (vegan or not) topping. They go with everything. Hope you'll like them. :)

Love, Kaja ♥

DETOX? WHY NOT!

Disclaimer: this is a LONG post, because it contains the description of my one week detox diet and my analysis. If you are not that much interested in detox diets, you can skip it, but if you are, just go on. It will be worth it (I hope). :)

  

This post will go well with the last one, since is in the spirit of my new year's resolutions. I tried a (detox) diet two weeks ago and I want to share my experience with all of you. Detoxing is something I have never tried before and I was (still am) really satisfied with the results.

My mom and I found a diet that is all about a "magical" cabbage soup (for all the Slovenian readers: recept in navodila lahko najdete tudi tukaj). Have you heard about it? Well, we decided to try it out. I know that the "you will lose from 5 to 7 kilos in a week" is a pile of sh*t, but I wanted to try it either way, just to see the results.

THE DIET

The magic is supposed to be in the soup, which is quite easy to make. You need:
  • 1 medium size head of Cabbage (about 1 kilo)
  • 6 big young Onions (well, my mom used 2 huge regular onions)
  • 1 whole Celery (the head and the leaves) (about 1 kilo)
  • 2 Peppers (the color doesn't matter at all :D)
  • 800 ml of canned Tomatoes (or "strained tomatoes", the so called Tomato Passata)
  • 1,5 liters of Water
  • 2 Bouillon (Soup) Cubes
  • Salt, Pepper
Cut all the vegetables into small pieces. Put the vegetables, the water and bouillon cubes into a big cooking pot and cook until the vegetables are all soft and cooked through and through. According to the recipe it takes about 45 minutes. In the end you add some salt and pepper, for a better taste.

Ok, so now that we have the soup, let's go to the main points of the diet. You are supposed to eat a lot of this soup. According to all of the articles about it, the more you eat it, the more you will lose weight. Well, no sh*t Sherlock that you will lose weight, if the soup is almost the only thing you eat (nah, just kidding, but I felt like this before I started it - I was freaking out, cause I couldn't imagine that I would eat so many bowls of the same soup in a week).

Beside the soup, which you should eat, as I said above, as much as you can (I don't really think I ate it more than 3 times per day, which is a LOT if you ask me), you can also eat:

  • Day 1: Any kind of fresh fruits, except bananas.
  • Day 2: Any kind of vegetables (fresh or canned), except for peas, beans and corn. You should eat a lot of greens (spinach, salad). You can eat two big potatoes for dinner (unpeeled, wrapped in aluminum foil and baked in the oven). You can add a spoon of butter or sour cream.
  • Day 3: Fruits and vegetables.
  • Day 4: 3 bananas and "non"-fat milk (1,6 %).
  • Day 5: 200 grams of beef and a can of tomatoes or 6 fresh tomatoes. The beef has to be prepared without fat (I prepared it in a non-stick pan on high temperature).
  • Day 6: 2 or 3 beef stakes and vegetables (preferably greens).
  • Day 7: Brown rice (cooked in water) and vegetables. Everything prepared without fat. You can drink natural fruit juices.
And this is all. Oh yeah, you can substitute the beef with chicken or fish, but since you are supposed to eat beef at least once that day (and I only ate it for lunch), I don't know if the substitutes are really useful. Oh, and you can drink coffee of course (or at least it doesn't say you can't :P).

You should also drink a lot of water. Try drinking 2-3 liters per day. It helps a lot. It's good for you anyway. ;)

THE ANALYSIS

Did I stick to the diet? Haha, nope. :D I ate fruit also on day 5 and 6 (I ate two slices of honeydew melon for breakfast, because I cannot wake up properly without breakfast). I also ate half of a rice milk pancake with Nutella on day 6. And normal (white) rice with vegetables that also included peas on day 7. And fruit! OMG. And a piece of Snickers on day 7. Oh, and cashew nuts on day 5 for dinner. And ate a raw bar on day 6. Oh so many cheats.

Did I lose 5-7 kilos? Nope. But I did lost 3 kilos. :) Which is A LOT if you ask me. But it's the exact number of kilos I hoped I would lose (can you imagine that). I know that losing weight so fast is not healthy at that you normally gain it back even faster than you lost it, but since I'm sticking to healthy not so high-caloric eating, the number is hopefully not gonna change so fast.

THE CONCLUSION

I'm really happy that I tried this, not only because of the weight loss (which is great, but always so evasive), but also because of the realization, that I can survive without junk food and sweets. I think that I established a good (weight and habit) basis to continue with healthy eating. I'm so happy that my boyfriend is really supportive and excited about the whole "healthy/bio/eco/sometimes-vegan eating plan". Babe, thanks for the motivation. :)

Soooooo, I know it's not the beginning of January (when people normally start dieting and exercising and all that), but if you haven't started anything yet, maybe this post will convince you to at least try detoxing (like I did, or in any other way you like). ;)

Love, Kaja. ♥

NEW YEAR, NEW ME?

   
                  
Some moments of 2014 (mostly second half of the year).

 Happy 2015 everybody! I hope this year will treat you well, bring you joy and happiness, lots of love, success and personal growth.

How were your holidays? Mine were quite busy, full of food, family gatherings, some concerts and a little bit of skiing.

I realized that one of my last year's resolutions was to go back and check if I fulfilled my resolutions. So here is my analysis:
  • Nope. Unfortunately I didn't write more than last year. I guess my life wasn't as interesting as last year in regard to thing that I wanted to share with the world. I didn't go to Sweden again, I wasn't on an Erasmus exchange, etc. But still, year 2014 was the most life-changing and amazing year of my life. I have met so many new people, new friends, discovered new bands and music, met the boy, traveled a bit, graduated, had the time of my life. I also lost a lot last year. But not everything is meant to be shared, right? Some things are personal. And sometimes happiness is even stronger if you don't share it with the word (oh, you selfish bastard).
  • Nope. I posted 8 posts about food last year, 6 of them were actually recipes. So no, didn't realize the second resolution either.
  • Nope. No tea. But a lot of coffee. Good coffee. And beer. And these two are much much better than tea. :P
  • Check! I graduated! Yay! I'm doing my masters this year (and probably the next year too).
  • Check! I traveled at least once. I went to Malta and Gozo in June and had a blast.
  • Check! I have been to more concerts than I thought I could even go when I was writing my last years resolutions. So yay for me. And thanks to Ana and Izak, the main reasons I attended so many gigs last year.
  • Nope. It's just too big and the lens is crap. But I got a new phone at the end of the year and my photos got a bit better.
  • Kind of. I started going to gym and eating well in spring and I reached my "goal" weight and figure and I was soooo happy. But then the summer came and everything went down the drain. At the moment I'm not really satisfied with myself, but at least the new year is here and the chance to start everything again.
  • Check! There are for sure more than one, but if I stick to one, I have to say: my longboard. Even if it caused some bruises and pain, but it's still my best investment from last year.
  • Kind of. It's not the end of last year, but actually the beginning of the new one. But screw it. CHECK!
Should I write new resolutions for 2015? I did. But they are not much different from last year's.
  • I still want to live a healthier life, therefore I have to eat better and spent more time moving, especially outside, in the nature.
  • I want to discover new food, therefore I have to find new recipes, try them out and if they are good, share them with you.
  • I want to discover new music, therefore I have to go to concerts and use Spotify.
  • And last but not least, I want to be happy in general, therefore I have to spent time with my love, my friends, my family and have the best year possible.
This is all from me. What about you, did you make a list of resolutions or are you against sh** like this?

Love, Kaja. ♥

NUTELLA-GLAZED MINI CINNAMON DONUTS

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Even the name looks yummy ...

Ok so, my lovely brother brought me a mini-donuts baking pan from Sweden (I ordered two really cute jars with straws - perfect for smoothies and cocktails ... mmmm gotta try that. Everything is from a shop called Lagerhaus). And of course I had to try it out and bake some mini (actually miniature) donuts. I searched for the recipe on Google and kind of picked the first one I got, but I changed it a little bit (since Christmas is just a few days away). Also, I felt like adding Nutella, so I made a delicious Nutella glaze for them (also from the internet, but modified).

Donuts (around 40 servings):
  • 150 g of All-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp of Baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp of Salt
  • 110 g of Brown sugar
  • 1 tsp of Cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp of Nutmeg
  • 120 ml of Milk
  • 2 Eggs
  • 20 g of Butter (melted)
  • 2-3 drops of Vanilla extract
Pre-heat the oven to 160°C. In one bowl mix the flour, baking powder, salt, brown sugar, cinnamon and the nutmeg. In the other bowl combine the milk, eggs, melted butter (I melted it in the microwave) and vanilla extract and mix well. Then slowly add the "wet mixture" to the dry one and mix well. Butter up the baking pan (the donuts shouldn't stick than ... well, mine still kind of did) and fill the holes with the mixture - make sure they are only 3/4 full, cause the donuts will gain in size and if they raise up too much, the hole in the middle will disappear. Bake them for 12-15 minutes (use a toothpick to see if they are baked through and through). Wait for them to cool down a little bit.

Nutella glaze:

  • 1/3 cup (75 ml) of Powdered sugar
  • 1 big spoon of Nutella
  • 1-2 spoons of Milk (first add one and if the mixture is too dry add the other one)
  • 1 drop of Vanilla extract
Mix all the ingredients well. Dip the upper side of each donut into the glaze, place them on a plate and wait for them to dry a little bit (or not, it depends how strong is your will :P).

And that's it. :)

The donuts were perfect for breakfast. With a cup of coffee and a glass of elderflower yoghurt. Yummmmmmm. :3

Oh, here is a photo of the baking pan.


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Love, Kaja.♥

SOTW: THUNDER CLATTER

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Song of this week is Thunder Clatter by Wild Club. Why?
  1. Cause I fell in love with it the first time I heard it.
  2. Cause I have been a little mess these past few days and when I heard it when I was in the shower, it made me happy in a second.
  3. Cause maybe, just maybe, he is the love of my life.
I hope you'll like it. :)



Btw, yeah, that's me on the photo. I went longboarding on Sunday (probably the highlight of my whole week) and I took some time for a quick photoshoot and this is one of the photos I made. Can't wait to go back there again.

 Love, Kaja. ♥

BREAKFAST IDEAS

If you follow me on Instagram, you can tell that most of my photos of food are photos of my breakfasts. Yeah, I love them. They are usually the most colorful and photogenic meal of the day. And since I'm a slow and lazy wake-up-er (is that even a word?!) I probably take more time to enjoy my breakfast than normal people do. And not only that it has to taste delicious, it also has to look good. Oh yes, and a cup of coffee with milk is a must as a side.






Here you have three examples of the breakfasts I eat. I wanted to share them with you, so if maybe some of you are not really breakfast fans, maybe now you will because. Because breakfast is the most important meal of the day (oh, look at me, being a smart-ass here and then eating pizza for dinner). And look at them! They are too cute not to make and eat them! :3

Breakfast 1: 

  • Mixed fruit (this time: banana, pomegranate, blueberries)
  • Vanilla or plain yoghurt
  • (Sometimes) granola
Breakfast 2: 

  • Oatmeal cooked in milk
  • A teaspoon of honey
  • Fruit (strawberries in this case, but most of the time a banana)
Breakfast 3:

  • Banana pancakes (2 eggs, 1 banana)
  • Cottage cheese
  • Blueberries

Do you make breakfasts like this? Do you even have breakfast in the morning or are you one of the even lazier ones that just skip it? And yes, I know I have already talked about breakfast a bunch of times, but ... come on, look at it. :D

Love, Kaja. ♥

SOTW: I LIVED

Song of this week is I Lived by OneRepublic.

Why? Cause I went to their concert on Sunday and I still haven't calmed down. It was sooooooo awesome. I wasn't really close to the stage, cause I was too late to go into the fan pit, but it didn't matter to me. I went to the concert to hear OneRepublic (well, and Kongos, the opening group) live, a band I have been listening to for 7 years now, and that is what I did. And of course, I sang my heart out. I luckily wasn't surrounded with squeaky teenagers, which made the concert even more enjoyable. This concert was definitely put on my top 3 concerts in life list.





Love, Kaja. ♥

NEW DESIGN, NEW IDEAS

Well, hello there. Damn, I should start studying, but changing my blog design seemed like so much more fun, that I did this instead. It took me a few hours and all the nails, but I finally did it and I really love the result.

I feel like the design will motivate me to write more. I already have in mind 3 topics or groups of posts I think about writing:
  1. I have decided to start again with the Song of the Week posts, since I have been discovering a lot of new music over the last few months (also thanks to my new, amazing boyfriend <3). 
  2. Also thanks to him, I'm (we are) cooking a lot more than I did in the past, so there is a big possibility I will start posting more recipes in the future. I got really good in making home-made semi-whole-wheat pizza, so if you are a pizza lover, you can get excited (and also rush?force me to posting the recipe with your comments :3).
  3. Over the last few months I have been to more concerts than I ever thought I would go in such a short time. And I have many more dates marked on my calendar. So, if you are into this, I can review them or do interviews with some bands, let you get to know them a little and than maybe you will decide that they seem so cool and amazing that you should go to their concert. What do you think about that?
I would be more than happy for your opinion on everything (the design and the post ideas). Even though I will have to start studying eventually, I will still take some time to write a post per week (or two weeks), at least to unwind a little.

In the end, a quick comparison between the previous and the current design ...





I hope you like it as much as I do. ;)

Love, Kaja.  ♥

BEER & BURGER FEST

I spent this weekend in Ljubljana again. Why? It’s because of the Beer & Burger Fest that was on Saturday and Sunday. I love events like this. I had a chance to try 3 delicious burgers and bunch of really good beers. My taste buds were jumping with excitement, not only because of the juicy beef in the burgers, but because of the whole combination. Beef Burgers + Beer = Triple B HEAVEN. I think I will definitely visit the restaurants that made the yummy burgers I tried sometime in the future.

Burgers:

  • As Aperitivo: The Boss
  • Tokyo Piknik: Wagyu Burger
  • Dobra Vila (Hot Amigo): Čizluiz

Beers:

  • Bevog: Whyc, Ond
  • Human Fish Brewery: S.I.P.A.
  • Laško: Striptis, Goulding, Cidra Lager
  • Union: Bok
  • To-Øl: Sundancer
  • O'Hara's: Irish Red

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Love, Kaja. ♥

BEST. SHOW. EVER.

Shell Beach + Roam + Enter Shikari @ Kino Šiška (12. October 2014)

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I’m trying to find the words to describe this crazy, extraordinary, awesome show I went to yesterday, but I will just let the photos and the video talk for themselves (please, click on them if you want to see them in full size).

Great company + Crazy bands + Energetic crowd + Amazing music + Meeting band members + New hoodie = PERFECTION!


 Hint: I’m also in the video (around 2:00), screaming back at the singer haha. I’m telling you … crazy people. :D

P.S.: As you can see, I'm not so blonde anymore. But I'm getting lighter and lighter every time I wash my hair, so I'm probably gonna be blonde again in a week or two. So no need to change my blog's title.

Love, Kaja. ♥
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