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Clear Secum, Clear Mind

November 12, 2009

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Hey Guys!

So I’m still here in La and things are going great. How is your week? It is not as hot here as I would ideally like- but it isn’t freezing either. :) I was secretly hoping to get more sun time in though, since I’ll be heading back to NY soon. Oh well!

Last night I had a dinner party that went pretty late, so I am officially entrenched in West Coast time. Actually I’ve made dinner for dinner parties the last 2 nights in a row! I’ve been going and going, and there are moments when I feel thrown off. During those times it just seems that things are a little harder to deal with and work out that normally aren’t. And I know EXACTLY where it relates to- my backed up belly! When I travel and my bathroom schedule gets even slightly off, it really makes a huge difference in everything, including my yoga practice, my mentality and my appetite.

There are energy lines in our body that run up and down, and interconnect. In Oriental philosophy they are called meridians. My friend Yvonne who is an acupuncturist is the real expert in meridians, and acupuncture can help opening these lines of energy. However, we don’t have to resort to acupuncture to immediately remove major blockages in our bowel- but we need to resort to something! Otherwise we will really start to feel the effects- even if they are subtle and even if we don’t necessarily equate them to our bowels.

The secum of our intestines, which is on the right side, is connected via meridians to the skull. And so on and so forth throughout the whole body. I know I am backed up immediately when I start getting a bit, um…testy shall we say. :) Agitation, headaches, feeling overwhelmed, overly nervous, etc. can all be related to this. Part of the yoga practice is maintaining equanimity, and I definitely consider how I choose to eat and keep my body clean as part of my practice. It sure helps keep the mental equanimity- which is not always easy. Authentic and ancient yoga books discuss various forms of keeping the bodily temple clean along with asanas (poses).

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This was one of the best weather days I've had here. I love all the plants in Southern California!

So I can’t stress enough how important it is to not let yourself get to the point where you feel backed up. It can and will energetically affect all areas of your life. Energy permeates, everything is full of energy, and stuck energy will not allow the life force to flow through you. You will not feel as vibrant, and you will certainly not feel your best. We can not have stuck waste in our bodies and except to be on top of our game- and right now I’m not even talking about the old toxicity, I’m talking about stuff from yesterday, and possibly the day before!

Oh- so back to the trip. I was feeling okay at the beginning, but hit a little low point a few days ago of being a bit backed up. For me, the best quick fix is downing some Kombucha on an empty stomach. Out here I get the bottled kind. There is something about the liquid delivery of a hefty dosage of probiotics that really helps rebalance everything, usually pretty quickly or at least in 24 hours or less. So yesterday was a great rebalancing day, and I feel great again today, even when I am up late at night and up early in the morning the next day, like I was this morning, with lots of stuff going on. :) If you have access to coconut kefir, which is also liquid, that would be amazing also! I had some of that last night also, courtesy of my friend Jon Biel, and it was great. There are many foods of course, such as spinach, which is said to have somewhat of a laxative effect on the bowel, but these foods will not usually be as immediate.

So please be conscious of how important of an issue this is to deal with when it comes up, and do what you have to do to stay clear-minded!

Have a wonderful day!

Love, Kimberly

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Old Dogs Movie Premiere

November 10, 2009

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Hey Guys!

Okay, this is just one of the occasional Hollywood blogs I throw in, just for kicks. :) Last night I went to the world premiere of Old Dogs, which was in LA. It was a really fun family movie, and it opens Thanksgiving weekend! Lots of laughs for the fam.

Admittedly, I was just the tiniest bit starstruck to run into some of my favorite actors. First of all, when I grew up Splash was like my favorite movie ever. Mermaids!! So I love Tom Hanks (his wife Rita Wilson is in the movie)…

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And Robin Williams…I love Dead Poet’s Society. What a nice guy. If you look to the left, that is him with the glasses. (Still took this sneaky picture!).

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And at the party afterward, which is always much smaller than the movie premiere itself, I chatted with the absolutely lovely Kelly Preston.

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I started the night with a slick ponytail but half way through the night went to the bathroom and took it down. Have you ever done that when you’ve been out? Not been entirely happy with your hair?? I realize I don’t like myself that much in a ponytail- or maybe I am just not good at making it look good myself. :) Okay, I’ve thought Seth Green is one of the funniest young actors since Austin Powers, and what a nice guy he is. I didn’t realize how um, petite he is (in a good way!). So I think this picture is funny because next to him my head looks HUGE!!

Okay, that’s all. Thanks for doing that little red carpet tour with me. Back to food stuff next post!

Lots of love, Kimberly

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It’s Not Just WHAT We Cook…But What We Cook WITH

November 9, 2009
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Here's a shot from MY perspective, with like 50 camera people on set making everything look smooth. :) I use frying pans myself very, very rarely, but doing this segment made me think about this topics...

Hey Guys!

I hope you had an amazing weekend!! I’m still out here in Cali, and I must say that this New Yorker is sure having a swell time. :)

I was thinking about this topic when I did my egg white demo, and also because the holidays are rapidly coming upon us. It’s a time when many of us are going to be making some cooked food. We discuss topics like switching to healthier oils, upgrading into more organic ingredients, and consuming more greens. But what about the cookware we use??

What’s scary is that using Teflon or other nonstick pans will make any dish you are making in them, with even the most organic and natural ingredients possible, suddenly toxic. I know- What the heck!??!! How lame is that?? As if there isn’t enough to worry about with the quality of our food itself.

The fact is that there are dangerous, toxic chemicals in non-stick pans, and they can cause the leaching of dangerous heavy metals into our food and into our bodies! The slick, nonstick surface is made of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA). PFOA may cause toxic alterations to our body’s organs, and have been linked to stimulating tumor growth.

Over time, the nonstick surface breaks down and flakes off into your food, PFOA accumulates and remains stored in our bodies. Yes, stored in our bodies! These types of chemicals are very hard to detox out of the body, even when you have been engaged in methods of very deep cleansing over long periods of time. Toxic fumes from Teflon™ and other non-stick cookware release into the air at relatively low cooking temperatures, adding yet another entry point of this dangerous chemical into your body.

So the first step we must do is to go through our cabinets right now and throw away all our Teflon cooking gear! I know it might seem like a waste, but just remember that our bodies are much more important than a few bucks we put towards some crappy pots and pans. Aluminum cookware is not a much better option. Glass is better (though there have been reports of explosions!) and stainless steel is a better option also. There is even cookware now made from non-reactive ceramic, which may also be a better option.

So remember, when you do cook or bake, watch what you are cooking with! We have to think of all parts of preparing our food, and that includes what we are actually preparing our food in and with. Of course, we wouldn’t have to worry about any of that if we all ate only raw food…but that day is not yet upon all of us. Just teasing!! :) Eating some high quality cooked food is okay as long we we balance it with eating lots of Green Smoothies and salads, etc. :)   :)

With Love!

Kimberly

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Here is a beautiful carp fish to send you Good Luck for your week! I saw him at a Japanese garden this morning.

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E! Segment on Nutrition

November 5, 2009

Hey Guys,

Hope you like this segment! And that you think twice about having a big pile of egg whites. :)   I had a great time at E! and loved working with them.

Hope you are having a great day!!

xx Kimberly

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How To Eat Soup

November 3, 2009

Hey Guys!

Hope you are having a fabulous week so far. :)

So last night I ate at a Vegetarian Thai restaurant and had my favorite soup of all time: Tom Kha. The base  of this soup is coconut milk, and it is traditionally and usually made vegan (you could ask if you’re not sure at a particular restaurant). When I do eat some cooked food, this type of soup and some other Thai dishes are top of my list!

So now that cold weather is coming upon most of us- although no sign of that here in Southern California- soup sounds awfully tasty. It just calls to us on cold days, doesn’t it! And non-cream based soups can be great! I don’t recommend having any soups with any dairy (so be careful of even seemingly innocent old tomato soup), but clear soups like vegetable and miso can be great, easily digestible options.

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How cute are these big fatties!!? I love seals so much. I went to visit them yesterday to watch them sun bathe and stretch their blubbery necks. :)

But here’s the thing with soup: Make absolutely sure that you eat it at the beginning of your meal! If you haven’t already, you should check out my blog called, “The Easiest Weight Loss Tip Ever.” It discusses how consuming liquids and water with your meals only serves to dilute the hydrochloric acid in ours stomach, as well as other digestive juices. What does that mean?? It means that our food doesn’t digest as easily, and it encourages weight gain. Yikes!!! So while we often remember this with drinks, sometimes we might forget that it also applies to soup. But it absolutely does! So have your soup be the first thing that you eat at a meal as an appetizer, and ideally there will some at least 10 minutes before anything else goes down the old hatch.

So, along with that…

- Don’t eat a salad with your soup as an appetizer. Be clear with your waitress that you want your soup delivered first.

- If you are having a soup and sandwich lunch, have all of the soup before you eat the sandwich! Don’t go half and half as far as a bite of this, a bite of that. Uh uhh!

- If you’re going to have a big entree soup, like a huge Thai Tom Kha soup, it would be best to skip the appetizer altogether. Otherwise you will get bloated and not feel so great.

So happy soup eating!!! And remember soup on an empty stomach is best.

Have a peaceful and beautiful day. :)

With Love, xx Kimberly

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Essential for Travel: Hotel Mini Fridge!!

November 1, 2009
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My mini fridge is packed to the gills! I love olives, and I have those, plus triple washed arugula and spinach, Kombucha, coconut water, tomatoes, avocados, carrots, sprouts, parsley, cilantro, and more! :)

Hey Guys!

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On the countertop I keep some fruit, onions, olive oil and my favorite herbal teas. :)

Since I’m staying at a hotel for 8 days, one of the most important things for us is to pick out a room with a mini fridge.  I actually consider it essential! While I can’t eat exactly how I do at home, it helps keep me from getting very far off track at all!! For this amount of time, if I can’t be sure that I’ll have access to getting Green smoothies and drinks, I’d rather make sure that I can. I have no qualms about checking in all my luggage and bringing a large purse with books and a separate carry on for my blender or juicer on the plane. To me, it is SO worth it, because when I am eating well I am feeling great. And I want to feel great when I’m traveling!  I probably wouldn’t do this internationally, but domestically sure! Actually- maybe I would carry kitchen equipment internationally, depending on where. :)

Sure there are dinners out that we all like to have when we are away. But at least I can control breakfast and snacks/meals during the day, and not have to resort to heavy hotel breakfasts that get the day started off wrong and heavy!

Here are the essential things that I love to keep in the mini fridge (even if you don’t bring your blender) :

IMG00015-20091031-2134-1-    A bag or box of triple washed spinach. You can literally stick it on a paper plate and slice up avocado on it, with a squeezed lemon. This is great for a healthy lunch, or a light dinner if you were out all day long and just want to chill at your hotel with a healthy meal.

-    Along with that, lemons and avocados.

-    Unsweetened almond milk, which you can pick up at good ‘ol TJ’s. Great for adding a dallop to some herbal tea to feel nice and satisfied at night.

-    Baby carrot sticks to snack on.

-   Celery sticks, which you can snack on to get something alkaline in your stomach first even if you know you are going out and eating a heavy dinner. Better to start a meal with that than nibble on too much table bread when you are waiting on your dinner and hungry!

-    Fruit galore!! Organic plums, apples, pineapple chunks, etc.

IMG00008-20091031-2117So next time you are on the road, you might want to check with your hotel and find a room with a little, life-saving mini fridge. :) I hope you had a great Halloween and weekend. Have a great beginning of your week!

Talk to you soon. xx Kimberly

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Trick or Healthy-Halloween-Chocolate Treat!

October 29, 2009
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Photo courtesy of photobucket.com

Hey Guys!! Hope you are having a great week. :)

Halloween is right around the corner, and chocolate is in the air!! And probably all around your office, your kids’ schools, and maybe at home right now! As you might be able to tell from some of my recipes, I am definitely a chocolate lover. Make that a cacao lover- the original bean from which chocolate is derived from. Commercial chocolate creeps me out. What’s in THAT can be a real Halloween scare!!!

So if you’re going to Halloween parties, office parties, shopping for treats at your house for trick-or-treaters, or buying for your kids, here are some tips to have the healthiest chocolate possible. I know we don’t have all time to make raw 300 cacao truffles! (Though I will mention that I have done that before for some events :) ), so when we buy we can just make the best choices we can. Eating chocolate does NOT have to mean it is automatically makes us fat, bloated, and zit-faced. :)

Hmm yum! Dark chocolate is packed with flavonoids, magnesium, iron and polyphenols. Photo courtesy of healthcare4me.net

- Choose organic chocolate, which has more of the healthy nutrients and flavonoids, and less chemical and pesticide contamination. A Fair Trade certification means that it was made according to the highest standards of social and environmental responsibility. We should choose the organic/Fair Trade combo wherever possible!!

- Choose dark, organic chocolate that is at least 72% cacao. Trader Joe’s, which many of us have access to, has some great organic, dark chocolate choices.

-  Avoid chocolate made from milk or milk byproducts of any kind!!! Pasteurized milk in chocolate zaps the goodness of the chocolate. Fzzzzzzzzzz………… :) Besides its mucus-forming (read: toxin-inducing!) and energy-eating qualities, milk in chocolate can diminish the potent antioxidant benefits.

-    Avoid chocolate products containing any high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) – which leeches B vitamins and other nutrients in our bodies, and raises blood sugar levels…leading to insulin resistance and weight gain.

- Avoid anything with artificial sweeteners. Chemical poison!! All that “sugar free” stuff made with anything artificial is pure crap, and will take our beauty down.

- Avoid chocolate made with soy proteins or soy protein isolates. Check the label! They could be lurking in there. These are highly processed ingredients that could block our bodies’ absorption of protein and depress thyroid function.

Okay sorry about all the “avoids”, but we are still left with plenty of choices if we nose around for the dark, dairy-free varieties. Remember not to overdo any kind of chocolate though, because it still contains caffeine. Halloween can not only be chocolatey-fun, but healthy chocolatey-fun!

I’m headed to Cali so I’ll write from there. Lots of love, Kimberly :)

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Boo! Happy Halloween loves. I'm afraid I won't be dressing up this year. I'm actually sort of glad I won't be in NY this year for it. Not to sound like Grandma- but it gets a bit crazy for me. :)

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A Potent Cleanser to be Used Correctly: Garlic

October 27, 2009

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Hi my loves! In lieu of many of us being concerned with immunity and keeping ourselves healthy right now, I thought I would talk about an old, common kitchen friend: Garlic. Well maybe not so much of a friend to some of us! Many of us have strong reactions to garlic. It notoriously may cause some stinky breath, which doesn’t seem to go away for a while…. But this can be offset with some strategically placed parsley. :) I actually love the lingering smell of garlic on my fingers hours after I chop some up for a recipe. (Is that weird???!?)

Garlic can be extremely helpful in cleaning out our bodily houses. Garlic is rich in mustard oils and in conjunction with the cleansing elements that make it up, is beneficial for our whole system. Garlic promotes peristalsis and diuretic action- both of which are important flushing mechanisms to support our ongoing cleansing efforts, as well as boost our immunity. 

Its potency is also an important ingredient to eliminate intestinal parasites. We don’t want parasites and unfriendly bacteria to build up and unbalance our bodies, which can be a contributing cause to not so great skin. So some garlic can really help keep that in check!

Garlic is so potent that is can dissolve mucus in the sinus cavities, flushing this waste out of our systems for good. This is extremely important for my friends that are still transitioning away from dairy! And have you ever felt when you had a bunch of garlic that is was just pouring out of your skin?? Well it probably was to an extent, as garlic can help poisons exit the body through the pores of the skin itself. A little smell might be worth it for some cleansing/purging action!!

Photo courtesy or wikimedia.org

Photo courtesy of Wikimedia.org.

Now that being said, garlic has to be respected and utilized properly in our diet. Garlic’s medicinal and cleansing properties are strongest when it is raw and crushed or very finely chopped. Therefore, it is best used in nut pates and blended into salad dressings. When garlic is cooked- as it often is to start sautéing vegetables or roasted and added to certain dishes- it retains very little (if any) of these amazing cleansing properties. 

We also don’t want to overdo garlic- especially if we have a very high vibration diet (mostly raw food), and we don’t have much mucus in our body. In these cases it can overly irritate the digestive tract and the lining of our mucus membranes. So use moderation and intuition to assess how much you personally need. It can and should be eaten with plenty of greens. Again, defer to the salad! 

 Have a great day and see you soon!! 

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Warning: Do not try this at home! Having huge quantities of garlic has been known to cause bad breath and an upset stomach. :) Use garlic in moderation. Everyone's system is different, so we have to individualize our own diets. I personally consume garlic only a few times a month at most, but I used to have it a lot more.

Love!

Kimberly

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Raw Food and the Mind, Part 2

October 25, 2009
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There is Coki on the rock, with his huge, partially webbed feet. Aren't they amazing looking?! And there's Mottsy hanging out in the water below.

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You can see Coki and Mottsy's tank behind me. Ha! They know by now that they are going to eat whatever we eat. So today it is going to be curly kale!

Hey Guys,

So several months ago I introduced you to my 2 turtles, Coki and Mottsy. Coki, the huge monster one, was the one who used to be a crazy nut for turtle pellets. For the first year that I had him, it truly seemed that his only mission in life was to eat as much as possible. Each and every time I would walk by his tank he would go nuts begging me for more food, scrambling at the glass side of his tank, frantically swimming back and forth! Mottsy, the little one, mostly stuck to eating the raw greens I also fed them. He was always more of a docile turtle, looking up at me with big eyes when I came near, then go back to chewing his lettuce, totally unconcerned. :)

P1011303 It has been only about 4 months since Coki has been eating a 100% raw diet and I stopped feeding him turtle pellets. There have been some astounding changes! Sure, he didn’t go raw by choice! :-)  But like any mom, I was doing it for his own good. It was a hard transition for the little guy I’d say, and I did have to give some hard love and turn a blind eye to his begging for many moons. But now finally he has stopped with the antics and drama.

P1011304It was obvious before that he was thinking about food all of his waking hours, and he would motor over Mottsy with his huge feet to snap up every pellet that came into the tank, and eat it whole. What a piggy turtle! He was also jerky and overly sensitive, and dive off his rock into the pool at any sort of loud noise in the apartment, and swim-no flouder!- like a banchi in the water.

Now he stays on his rock for most of the day, keeping me company when I am working at home. He enjoys fully relaxing while sticking his huge feet straight out. He doesn’t even flinch when I put my hand in his tank to pet him or drop some raw greens in, which is all that he eats now. His growth has slowed down, while Mottsy, always the raw foodist, has caught up to be about ½ his size how- whereas before he was about 1/5 his size!

Even though Coki is “only” a turtle, it is fascinating for me to observe that keeping him in the same tank and in the same environment, by only changing his diet, his entire attitude about life and energy have completely changed. He is now calm, peaceful, not obsessed with food, and content to swim in a relaxed manner in his water or be on his rock. He is not crazed by the sensory pleasures of waiting for and pouncing on his next food treat. Food is no longer running his life!

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And so it is with us- food definitely has an effect on our mind, and it is undeniable that the body and the mind are connected. The food we eat isn’t just a compilation of calories and various nutrients (or toxins!) that build up our body. It is also matter and energy that can open up or clog the body- and therefore the mind. The more we eat certain foods which really stimulate us- refined sugar, artificial sugar, and artificially sweetened sodas, salty chips, meat, etc.- the more we will be driven and ruled by food.

We can change our mental outlook by our diets. Exciting! There may be a transition period when we switch over to eating more raw and unprocessed foods. But after that our minds will inevitably calm down and relax. It may get a bit harder before it gets easier, as we work to break old habits that have kept us prisoners to sensory attachment with food. After the transition though, we are free, and we will feel much more calm, relaxed and peaceful. There is a great deal of mental balance that can be promoted by eating raw, natural foods.

Be conscious of how much better your body AND your mind feel as your start to shift your diet! Hopefully you will start to see some wonderful changes all around.

Have a great Monday!

xx Love, Kimberly

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Fresh Mint Tea: Rethinking Tea

October 22, 2009

 

Fresh Mint! Photo courtesy of expat21.files.wordpress.com

Fresh Mint! Photo courtesy of expat21.files.wordpress.com

Hi Guys!

I’m always surprised, and slightly amused, when I make fresh mint tea at a dinner party or for friends, and they act like it is the most novel and amazing thing in the world! 

It made me contemplate that there are so many things that we have accepted, just because we are used to them.  Like mint tea for instance. If you want an herbal mint tea and you go to Starbucks, you’ll pay $2.50+ for a tea bag made from tea fillers and tea dust, and hot water- which who even knows is filtered or not. Besides not getting the freshest flavor, each time we get a tea we also have to throw out a tea bag, and the individual packet that the tea bag came in.

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It doesn’t have to be that way! If we make our own tea, we can experience the freshest possible taste of that tea on earth, AND we will not be consuming excess packaging.

Something as incredibly simple as making mint tea can be a great first step to someone being more in touch with making their own food. This is especially true for some of you that write me that you really “aren’t a chef” and that you are uncomfortable making your own food. The very sourcing of the green, beautiful mint, and the ceremony of making this tea, could help connect you back to your food source. And then we can move on to making our own almond milk, raw sauerkraut, salad dressing, flax crackers, etc.- things we are always used to buying- but things we could make fresh and natural ourselves. :)  

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1. Make sure to pick mint that is robust and a beautiful green color. You can buy mint at your local farmer’s market (highly recommended!), at Wholefoods or most grocery stores. 

 2. Simply pick 4-6  leaves off of the stem and place in your mug.

 3. Pour hot (not boiling), filtered water on top of the leaves, and let them steep for 3 minutes or so before drinking.

4. If you like sweet mint tea, Egyptian style, stevia or a bit of agave would probably be your best bet! 

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Ta daaaa!!! That is it!! Try it out, and see how much more special your mint tea drinking experience becomes! Especially now that it is snuggly tea weather. :) Make fresh mint tea for your friends and family, or serve after a dinner party with a  new yummy dessert to really impress everyone! 

Happy tea making!

xx Kimberly