Mom was visiting for the weekend. She brought along the most amazing granny square blanket she just finished for me.

On Saturday I made Marta's savory muffins for breakfast with salmon, pesto and ricotta (I'd been drooling over her post about them for days) and this morning I had the leftovers for breakfast. So good.

Here are some glimpses from a lovely breakfast I was served a while back and from a trip to Lammassaari one sunny day.

There's good in life, always, however hard it might also be. There's always something good. Find it and embrace it! Concentrate on the good and try to laugh at the tougher things; they'll pass. (Later there'll be other things rising up against you - keep concentrating on the good stuff. And with everything you are lean on the love of God; from there you can face anything.)

I am also learning grace so much. That really, I was never even supposed to make it on my own. That in my weakness the perfect strength and goodness of God is at its best. I am learning (some days it feels so brutal) to accept that I am human and I make mistakes and fall short - but that it's ok. I'm good. I'm loved.

TOP 5

1) grace; that I was never even supposed to make it on my own
2) overnight oats (inspired by Green Kitchen Travels)
3) (73) The nearness of you by Loud Harp
4) friends and family who love me so well
5) the feeling that a new season is just around the corner

Not many at all have stolen my heart like she did on an ordinary day in South Africa seven years ago. There's something about Africa; it gets into your heart and never leaves. I wonder when (or whether) I'll be back. (I'm almost booking tickets every time The Kenyan Children's Project or Abide Family Center in Uganda post pictures of all them brown babies!)

Meet my new love: beetroot pesto. It works both on bread and as a dip. And also I finally got around to making this life-changing bread. So tasty, nutritious and supereasy to make! Happy Sunday folks!

BEETROOT PESTO

(from Glorian ruoka&viini)


400g beetroots (you can use beetroots in vinegar or boil fresh beetroots and let them cool)
2 cloves of garlic
100g grated parmesan
100g cashewnuts
1 bunch of basil
about 100ml extra virgin olive oil
salt
black pepper


Throw everything (but salt and pepper) in a food processor and mix until smooth. Season to taste.

This was all captured in about an hour of sitting on my windowsill some weeks ago. I absolutely love living here with this view and the cloud shows. I love watching the clouds, like paintings or moods, in how they keep changing.

“We do not want merely to see beauty; we want something else which can hardly be put into words - to be united with the beauty we see, to pass into it, to receive it into ourselves, to bathe in it, to become part of it." (C.S.Lewis)


I love the feeling of new beginnings that comes with Autumn. And I love the beginnings of new friendships, getting to know darling hearts like this one. And how the littlest things sometimes bring us together. Yay for life and new chapters!

(And I'm loving apples! I'll post a sugarfree crumble recipe soon!)

Mornings around here are calm and slow. I am taking everything out of this time I now have with no agenda; I make good breakfasts and spend lots of time with the Bible. I've also finally gotten around to trying baked oatmeal. Here's how I've been making it, in praise of autumn.

BAKED APPLE OATMEAL

(serves 2-3)

300ml oatmeal
0,75tsp salt
0,75tsp baking powder
1tsp cinnamon
0,5tsp pure vanilla powder
400ml coconut milk
1 organic egg
1-2 apples
coconut oil (or butter) for greasing
natural yoghurt, almonds, blueberries etc. for serving


Mix the dry and wet ingredients first separately and then all (except the apples) together. Grease an ovenproof dish (about 25cm in diameter) with coconut oil and pour the mixture in and top with sliced apples. Bake in 175 celsius for 30 minutes. Serve with a dollop of natural yoghurt, blueberries and chopped almonds (or go crazy like we did one morning with a little bit of everything; bananas, homemade apple jam, dried mulberries, and everything I already mentioned!)

Somehow the best memories almost always revolve around food.

 

CANNELLINI BEAN PASTE

(adapted a little from Eeva Kolu)


300-400g cannellini beans
half a clove of garlic, cut in small pieces
a squeeze of lemon juice
1tsp grated (organic) lemon zest
a handful of parmesan
some tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
flat leaf parsley for garnish


This is one of those recipes that's hard to give exact measures for; just trust your tastebuds as you make this!

Rinse the beans in a colander. Throw everything (except salt, pepper and parsley) in a food processor (or blender) and blend until smooth. Season to taste and add more olive oil (and a little water, too, carefully, if it seems to need it) until your paste is nice and smooth. Garnish with olive oil and parsley.


(Recipe for the banana coconut pancakes here. The porridge recipe is coming later!)

My friend's family's cottage on a small island. I've quickly grown to love the place. (So I did take my camera with me after all. Here's to a great summer!)

This is where I'm going. I'll listen to the wind play in the trees, make pancakes outside on the open fire and sleep in the yellow little house (the one in the picture is just the outhouse!) or one of the granaries. We'll also continue on our summer house project I suppose (and at least test the new sauna!) and I'll go check on how the red and black currants are doing after last summer's pruning. Read more about the summer house project from two years ago and from last summer. (It's my dad's old home we're slowly making into a family summer house.)

I have a radical feeling I'm leaving my camera at home for the trip (I'm still a little smitten with my new phone and its camera and how easy it is to bring everywhere) which means I won't be blogging until I come home again in some weeks. But welcome to follow me on Instagram! (And I'll also come to Oulu, let's get together sweethearts!)

Have a beautiful, blessed July peeps!

Love people. Love them if they deserve it, love them if they don't. Make space in your agenda for them. Think of ways to give. You'll be blessed as you do; there are so many fantastic people out there! Get to know people you wouldn't normally spend time with; your world will expand and so will your heart! Look people in their hearts. What do they love? What makes them happy? What makes them laugh? What's their favorite memory? What are they passionate about, what are their dreams?

Loving looks different to different people. To me it can look like baking a loaf and taking it to a neighbor who's stuck at home with a broken leg. You could clean someone's house or car, volunteer to babysit their kids, listen to someone with a heavy heart or invite them over for dinner. Go wild and invite a stranger who has no one to invite them. For love sees people. Love trusts them and has faith in them.

"Love comes from God" (1 John 4:7). And 1 Corinthians 13 breaks it down more: "Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance."

Get out there. Give time. Find a new best friend, who knows.


(I am very inspired by this article.)


(photo by dad: me and mom all matchy-matchy back in 1986)

I love this season I'm in. I've got so much time in my hands: time to listen, time to rest, time to heal, time to dream, time to be with friends and family, time to eat breakfast slowly, time to try out new recipes, time to make music all day if I want to. I really try to savor every day; I know that in time I'll have my hands full again!

In the summer I tend to not add any dried fruits in my granola because I love having it with fresh berries or fruit (strawberries and nectarine are my favorites). I tweaked my basic granola recipe (coming here as well) a little yesterday:

CRUNCHY CHIA GRANOLA

800ml rolled oats
300ml buckwheat
200ml coconut flakes
200ml almonds
75ml cocoa nibs
50ml sesame seeds
50ml chia seeds
0,25tsp salt
150ml sunflower oil
2 heap tbsp honey


In a big bowl mix all the dry ingredients. Heat up the sunflower oil in a kettle, add honey and mix until they merge. Pour the mixture in to the dry ingredients and mix well. Line an oven tray with baking paper and bake the granola in 150 celsius for about 20 minutes; after baking for 10 minutes mix a few times to bake evenly. Let cool completely before storing.

I sit on my windowsill a lot, marvel at the sky, dream of summer cottages and eat lots of granola. (New recipes on the way!)

 

COCOA BUCKWHEAT GRANOLA

(adapted from My New Roots)

300g rolled oats
200g buckwheat
75g coconut flakes
100g hazelnuts (or any nuts really; hazelnuts are the crunchiest though)
30g chia seeds
0,5tsp salt
35g coconut sugar
100ml maple syrup
100ml coconut oil
1tsp vanilla powder
150ml raw cocoa powder


Chop the hazelnuts roughly. Mix oats, buckwheat, coconut flakes, hazelnuts, chia seeds, salt and coconut sugar in a bowl. Melt coconut oil in a saucepan and add maple syrup, vanilla powder and raw cocoa powder and mix well. Pour the cocoa mixture in with the dry indredients and mix thoroughly. Line an oven tray with baking paper and bake the granola in 150 celsius for 15 minutes. Keep baking, mixing every few minutes, for 10 minutes more (or more, depending how dark you want to roast it. Taste a hazelnut to test if it's done to your taste). Let cool down completely before storing. Serve with milk and e.g. fresh strawberries, nectarines or banana.


This granola is seriously addictive. Just saying.

My time in Stockholm consisted of lots of walking with Eva and Avon, good, genuine talks on just about everything in our lives, good food and lots of coffee. I was so at home in my friends' cozy little home and they took such good care of me! My favorite café find was Pascal (picture 4) which had only just opened in March. The place was a mixture of funky, charming and cozy, their coffee very tasty and service heartfelt. They serve coffee from small Swedish roasteries (Da Matteo, Love Coffeeroasters, Koppi Roasters) and you could pick what you liked for your V60. Drop Coffee (picture 1) was as good as I'd expected it to be. (I'm all inspired; I want a small Kalita!) Another nice find was Snickarbacken 7 (picture 7), a beautiful café in an old garage. Their coconut brownie was just too good (and I kind of fell for kardemummabullas..) On Saturday night I grabbed a lamb burger from Vigård barbeque, and had it by the sea. Not bad at all.

Tack Stockholm, vi ses igen!

(For more pictures from the trip check out my Instagram; it appears I only took my proper camera out in the cafés..)

I am off to Stockholm for a week to spend time with Eva and the boys, yay! Last week was terrific with new friends made and also new recipes discovered but we'll get to those later!

And! You can now follow me on Instagram!

I am truly blessed to have a friend like her.

It is so beautiful when two people love each other so much that they want to spend each coming day together.

I'm off to Turku to celebrate Helena and Stephen and their love!

He will stay faithful to his promises.