This week our hearts are heavy and our bodies are exhausted as we continue the process of unlearning. We didn’t mention the 4th of July (Independence Day here in the U.S.) last week because we didn’t remember that it was coming up. Camille has many fond memories of celebrating this day with food, fireworks, and family. Never once did she stop think what this holiday is actually celebrating. She was taught that we were celebrating a great feat of independence, but today we are wondering independence for whom? While the core values claimed by the Declaration of Independence ‘life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness’ seem worthy of pursuit, the fact is that it was only White cis-gendered heterosexual Christian colonists who were meant to receive these benefits. On July 4th, 1776 when the colonies adopted the Declaration of Independence chattel slavery was both legal and integral to the economy of the colonies. As the settlers claimed independence from the British Empire, we did so on stolen lands while committing genocide of indigenous people. This year we are seeing amazing protests sweep the world asking that our institutions stop killing Black people because of the color of their skin. While in 2020 chattel slavery isn’t supposed to exist anymore the prison industrial complex partners with police brutality to a similar affect. Feeling lost at how to reply to well-intentioned folks wishing her “happy 4th of July”, Camille used Rachel Cargle’s wise words “happy for who?”.
We are sitting with the questions of how to hold all of this knowledge. How do we hold the fond memories, the love of the values that should be core to our existence as a country, and also the death and brutality that this nation is built on. And, as we face this knowledge, how do we move forward? What do we do now that we know this? If you’re also having these thoughts reach out to us through email or text. If you’re also wondering how to hold the complexity of the life we are living, we are too. Let’s do this together.
This week we are celebrating with gratitude the full moon, the long July nights, and having fresh berries in season! In honor of these berries we’ve decided to share Camille’s favorite pitaya bowl recipe. We recognize that this bowl will be pretty expensive if you don’t already have a number of these ingredients on hand, and we don’t recommend trying to make it without a Vitamix with a tamping attachment. Feel free to play around with your own base and toppings and let us know what you love best!
We cook at home for a number of reasons including the pandemic, food allergies, money, and our love of cooking. Also, sometimes it makes more sense to eat out. For example, some recipes require so many ingredients that buying all of them to make one dish is very expensive and creates a lot of waste. For us, pitaya bowls often fall in the ‘makes more sense to eat out’ category. However, if you do want to make pitaya bowls from scratch at home, have some money to spend on ingredients, and have a Vitamix blender with tamping attachment then we highly recommend this pitatya recipe. It is sweet, fruity, salty, hearty, and delicious!
Time: 15 minutes
Serves: 1
Ingredients
for the pitaya base:
6 oz almond milk
6 oz frozen banana (if you have 24 hours you can chop your own banana and freeze the night before)
6 oz frozen mango
1 pack of frozen pitaya
1 tbsp chia seeds (optional)
1 tsp maca root powder (optional)
for the topping:
1/2 cup granola (gluten-free option)
2 tsp coconut oil, melted (optional)
1/4 tsp spirulina powder (optional)
1/2 banana, sliced
2 strawberries, sliced
12 blueberries (roughly)
1 tbsp chopped salted almonds, lightly toasted
2 tbsp peanut butter (we love Once Again for the flavor)
1 tbsp coconut flakes
2 tbsp coconut whip cream
1 tsp bee pollen (optional)
honey drizzle (as much/little as you like, if you don’t have coconut whip you might want extra honey)
If you want to experience the spirluna coconut ‘shell’ then start by melting the coconut oil and stir in the spirulina powder. If you aren’t using this you can start by slicing your almonds, and toasting them lightly in a dry pan.
Put all the pitaya base ingredients in Vitamix blender and blend on high using tamper to make sure everything gets fully incorporated. Be careful not to over-blend. Aim for a sorbet-like texture.
To assemble, layer the granola then the pitaya base. Next drizzle the warm coconut oil/spirulina mixture over the pitaya base (optional). As it cools it will form a coconut oil shell. On top of this, put sliced banana, sliced strawberry and blueberries around the bowl. Add the peanut butter in a clump and the coconut whip cream in a clump. Sprinkle the toasted almonds on top of the peanut butter and then sprinkle the whole bowl with coconut flakes. Top the whip cream with the bee pollen and then drizzle the entire bowl with local honey. Enjoy!
