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The first time I saw Pana Chocolate my heart did a flip. They say it’s what’s on the inside that counts, but a cute package never hurt anyone. And in this case the friendly looking critters, silver hearts and recycled packaging definitely convinced me to put down my bar of Cadbury chocolate and try this new treat.

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I wasn’t disappointed. Upon opening the box the love just keeps on coming; what lies within is some sweet printed choccy wrapping paper (no boring silver foil here) and 6 squares of raw, organic, vegan chocolate heaven.

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That’s right, this isn’t your average bar of chocolate. Pana is raw, vegan, organic, handmade, low GI, dairy free, soy free, gluten free and has no added sugar. Healthy chocolate, sans guilt. For those who haven’t tried raw chocolate before and are at this point feeling rather sceptical reading that list, FEAR NOT! Here’s what the bars DO have:

♥ 50-60% cacao solids (raw chocolate material)
♥ Cacao butter & cacao powder (lots of chocolate-y cacao goodness!)
♥ Agave nectar & coconut oil (yum)
♥ Wild carob, cinnamon & himalayan sea salt
♥ Pure essential oils and superfoods, depending on which flavour you’re lucky enough to be holding in your hot little hands!

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So now to the important stuff, what does it actually taste like? I was the lucky recipient of 4 flavours: Cinnamon, Goji & Coconut, Mint & Orange!

♥ It’s rich & fudge-like in consistency. Deliciously so.
♥ While it’s different to milk chocolate, there’s none of the bitterness commonly associated with dark chocolate, which is a win in my book.
♥ The Coconut & Goji flavour has lots of yummy chunks of both goodies throughout.
♥ The other 3 flavours are smooth, as they’re flavoured with ground cinnamon/essential oils.

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The best part is, because these bars pack a concentrated chocolatey punch, a square or two is enough to satisfy even the most rampant of sweet tooths. I award this chocolate company a gold star for outstanding flavours, deliciously creamy chocolate & being super healthy and environmentally friendly. Pana Chocolate, will you marry me?

RRP $6.25-$8.50, available to buy online, or check here for your closest stockist and make your way there quick-smart!

Tell me, have you tried Pana Chocolate or seen it around? I’d love to hear what your favourite flavours are – there’s even a limited edition ‘Rose’ flavour that I’m desperate to get my hands on! Lets talk chocolate in the comments!!

This is a sponsored post, however my love for the chocolate is 100% official!

Be well,

Annette

xoxo

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I’ve always restricted my diet for one reason or another – vegetarianism in my teens, a milk intolerance picked up in my twenties. Over time, I’ve come to appreciate that my somewhat ‘sensitive’ system does better without dairy, wheat and sugar. A helpful discovery, yes, but one that makes me feel quite isolated as I scour menus for an item I can actually eat, and makes me cringe when friends invite me over for dinner. It can also make cooking a bit of a challenge which, to be honest, I’ve always been a bit lazy about, relying on a few tried and tested basics.

So it was with great delight that I recently came across Lee Holmes’ wonderful book Supercharged Food: Eat Your Way to Good Health.

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The book emerged from Lees’ own health struggles with an auto-immune condition that left her barely able to function. Through trial and error, she discovered that radically changing her diet to exclude wheat, dairy, yeast and sugar led to a dramatic improvement in her health. Inspired, she set out to share her message and ideas with others, and the Supercharged Food brand was born.

♥ Photo from Superchargedfood.com

The book includes over 90 recipes based on Lee’s dietary philosophy. It is beautifully presented, with gorgeous photos that make your mouth water, enticing you into the kitchen. There’s also helpful information about healthy living, as well as support with getting organised for a new way of eating, such as sorting out your ‘supercharged pantry’.

The sign of a good cook book is that it doesn’t stay pristine for too long and my copy of Supercharged Food is now happily splattered with my culinary experiments! Current favourites are the genius ‘Crustless Quiche’ which finds its way into my lunch box most days, salmon and turnip patties for a simple but tasty supper (who’d have thought a turnip could taste so amazing?) and the gorgeously named ‘Vegetable soup on a cold night’.

Lee’s website is also fantastic and includes an online shop where you can source some of the ingredients for her recipes, such as stevia, as well as other yummy healthy stuff.

Supercharged Food has totally reinvigorated my relationship with cooking (and eating!) and I’m so looking forward to creating many more of Lee’s appetizing delights!

Where do you get inspiration about eating more healthily? Are there any books or websites that have ‘supercharged’ your food?

Review by Karen, who has a big appetite for both food and life!

Be well,

xoxo

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Having been on the smoothie wagon for a bit, I decided to jump back to juicing today for a pure shot of easily digestible nutrients that my body was craving. I recently bought this set of 4 glass jars (approx $25) so that I can make bulk juice/smoothies and refrigerate for later use – win!

I’m also currently doing a little experiment with another exciting use for them, which I’ll tell you about later!

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Due to the number of carrots I put in, the juice turned an orangey-brown colour. It was still delicious and energising though, even the whale thinks so 🙂

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Inspired by the meditation workshop with David Michie at The Inspiration Factory, I packed a bottle of water, this book and jumped on my bike to head down to the beautiful lake that I am very lucky to live so close to. It was a perfect Sunday and baby birds & teenage ducklings were out in full force. The sun shone down and my cells revelled in it. I spent some time reading, and then meditated for 6 minutes (it’s best to start out with small amounts, and build up) – a feeling of bliss began to emerge as hoped!

I’m probably going to be talking about meditation a bit more than usual, as I’m really fired up about it after this workshop. I have high hopes for the effect it is said to have on productivity, stress reduction & going through life with ease.

It goes without saying that I HIGHLY recommend Hurry Up and Meditate for anyone who is even considering finding out a little more about meditation and whether it might be for them.

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There’s not much I enjoy more than baby animals, and baby ducks have to be up there with the cutest of the lot. These ones have ventured beyond childhood to what I call ‘teenage ducklings’, as they are about half the size of an adult. So, so pretty! Just another reason I love living so close to a beautiful lake in springtime.

Warm Roasted Root Vegetable & Quinoa Salad

Unfortunately I don’t have a picture of this one, as it was a bit too dark at my table, but this evening I met up with lovely fellow blogger Elizabeth from Life With Elizabeth Rose at the Subi Hotel. As I checked out the menu, I was excited to find this dish before my eyes:

For $13.50 I was sold, and it was incredibly yummy! Roast beetroot, baby carrots parsnips, spinach, crunchy spices – it all came together so well, and despite not being able to see what I was eating, I was very happy with this dish and will definitely be back to have it again!! If you’re in the area and need a healthy bite then this wont disappoint.

What are your crushes this week? Be sure to share them so we can all be inspired to continue reaching for optimal wellbeing!

Be well,

Annette

xoxo

cialis generico

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2 Day Raw Food & Detox Course
with Amy Rachelle, naturopath and raw food/detox expert (USA)
August 11 – 12
8:30 am – 5:30 pm

Saturday Chef Course & Sunday 1 Day Detox

Want to learn more about raw foods and how to transition to eating healthier? Curious about detoxing your body? In this weekend course, Amy will teach basic food prep principles that include how to set up your kitchen, to stocking it, to planning and preparing for tasty, easeful eating – and she will lead a one day detox tailored to your needs.

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About Amy:

Based in New York City and Bali, Indonesia – Amy Rachelle created Pure Raw in 2005. Coaching individuals and groups on the Pure Raw approach to rawfoods (candida free vegan rawfood, proper food combining, low glycemic, little nut use, emotional work) – her work is a successful formula based on sunfood nutrition, internal cleansing, developing healthy habits, therapeutic emotional processing, meditation, and yoga.

Amy has worked in the U.S. and abroad for the past 10 years guiding thousands of people through her sequential raw food, cleansing, and life transformation programs. In her work she's witnessed the transformation of issues related to weight, skin imbalances, acne, colitis, constipation, digestive difficulities, bloating, headaches, depression, mental instability, fatigue, candida, aging, emotional disturbances, insomnia, purposelessness, and more. With Amy at the helm and supported by her hand picked personally trained teachers, Pure Raw offers beginner to advanced body, mind, and spirit purification programs and education for personal growth and physical/emotional healing.

Amy began her holistic studies as a child with her mother as her first teacher. She received formal education from The University of Georgia and completed her naturopathic doctor degree with Trinity College in the U.S.

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“I've lost about 10 pounds, and keeping it off this time! Thank you so much for all you do, your insight, your experience, support, etc.” – Kimberly

“You are an amazing goddess! Kiyo and I thank you for sharing your pure raw wisdom! David `Avocado` is the god and you are the goddess of true healthy eating and living! We honor you!” – Shivani & Kiyo

♥ Course Weekend Schedule ♥

If you're interested in an amazing weekend of complete wellbeing, detoxing and an intro to raw foods – plus plenty of delicious treats, breath work, meditation and more, then I hope you can come along! As soon as I found out about this workshop I knew I had to share with you all, especially since it's so reasonably priced for a 2 day wellness love-in!

Plus, if you mention Wellness WA / Annette when booking in, you'll receive a 15% discount! Taking the already reasonable price down to $191.25 for two days of total wellbeing 🙂 Hope to see as many of you there as possible, spaces are limited to 25 and quite a few places have already been taken, so get in quick! 🙂 XO

Investment: $225 – 15% for mentioning Wellness WA = $191.25
Location: Fremantle
More info: www.amyrachelle.com
Contact Yuliana Tan – tanyuliana@gmail.com to book in!

Be well,

Annette

xoxo

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Équilibre (the French term for balance) is a collaboration between fitness fanatic and foodie, Pascal and Nicole van Kan.

Our business combines Pascal’s years of expertise and experience as an exercise professional, with Nic’s passion for great food and cooking. Together, we provide a refreshing approach to health and fitness that is realistic, back-to-basics and sustainable.

Staying fit and healthy is a way of life for us, but it doesn’t mean that we miss out on delicious food, a great glass of wine or a well-made coffee! So for us, it’s all about helping our clients to find their own personal equilibrium.

We champion good health over weight loss, promote positive body image, strive to simplify exercise and encourage people to get back to REAL food. There are no gimmicks, quick fixes or empty promises.

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We’ve been delighted to introduce our 8-week Fitness for Foodies program this year. It combines outdoor exercise sessions with practical advice and simple habits that can be easily implemented on a week-by-week basis – including plenty of recipe inspiration, useful templates and exercise routines to do at home.

Sessions are held 3 times per week at central Perth locations (such as King’s Park, Subiaco, City Beach and Lake Monger) and our groups are friendly, approachable and designed to accommodate all levels of fitness. Read what our members are saying about it here.

We pride ourselves on delivering an inspiring and uplifting program that is both supportive and personal. And at only $139 for 8 weeks, it’s also great value for money.

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Fitness for Foodies is all about giving you the tools and knowledge to be able to self- manage your own health and fitness and to change your approach for good.

Our spring program commences on the 20th August and we’d love to have you join in the fun!

www.equilibre.com.au
www.equilibre.com.au/fitnessforfoodies
www.facebook.com/fitnessforfoodies

Photo credit: Jessica Shaver Photography

This is a sponsored post, as always though, we will only bring you posts with content we think you will find relevant & inspiring!

Be well,

xoxo