swiss blogger

New Restaurant Find: Roots In Zurich

New Restaurant Find: Roots In Zurich

Moving from Lausanne to Bern has brought it's many benefits. Not only am I 10 minutes away from a local Tibits, but I am just a short hour train ride away from Zurich. We in Switzerland are not very 'spoiled' when it comes to healthy eating options and Lausanne is right up there in terms of vegan-unfriendliness. The change in residency might not be the best for my wallet (read: I am taste testing every health hot spot in my way of destruction), but my taste buds are happy campers.

Before going to the Rhythm108 event at Balboa with Victoria, we had some serious catching up to do. We decided to grab a quick lunch at Roots, which opened a couple of months ago and has been getting lots of attention since. I'm happy to see such positive reactions towards a healthy, trendy restaurant; maybe it will encourage more of this type to pop up?

Rhythm108 x Balboa Event In Zurich

Rhythm108 x Balboa Event In Zurich

First off, apologies for my lack of posts these days; I've been a bit overwhelmed with my workload at the moment. I'm a very determined person and like to pack my schedule to the rim, but sometimes it just all gets too much. So please bear with me until I figure out a good routine for myself that allows me to juggle work, studying, blogging, training for my first full marathon and being a good friend, girlfriend and daughter. Yikes!

Thankfully, I had the chance to recharge my batteries a bit yesterday and just let the #fitfoodie in me go 'nanas. My friend Laura had dragged me to Balboa in Zurich for a workout before, but this time I had the pleasure to attend their event in collaboration with Rhythm108. It involved lots of crossfit (alright, it was only 30 minutes but it felt like an eternity) and a fun and interactive yoga sequence with Deddou from Pop Up Yoga. On that note: she will also be giving a lesson during the Heart Beat Up Festival in Zurich on the 10th of October, so come join us if you're around! Our green-loving palates were spoiled by Sasou whilst Bryon&Bronte delivered the yoga goodies. Now who said Switzerland wasn't finally jumping onto the health bandwagon? I'm so thrilled to see more and more young and fresh health-conscious companies pop up everywhere. Yay!

Vegan Lemon Coconut Cheesecake With Nutmeg

Vegan Lemon Coconut Cheesecake With Nutmeg

Holy Mother. Why haven’t I done this before?

I'm talking about this delicious raw cheesecake. I've done raw cakes before, but never have they tasted anything like this. One bite of this vegan cheesecake and you'll never look at cheesecake the same way again. It's made with all natural ingredients, requires no baking and the citrus flavour makes it the ideal cooling dessert for warm weather days. Trust me, wether you're vegan or not, you will fall in love with this cake. In fact, if there is one dish I would have to make for someone to prove to them vegan food isn't boring, it would be this recipe.

Wholesome Travel Guide To Paris

Wholesome Travel Guide To Paris

Excited has to be the world's biggest understatement when it comes to my feelings about going to Paris. Which girl doesn't love the city? Paris is known for many things - romance, art, fashion, the Eiffel tower - but, until recently, the city of baguette and crepes in the land of cheese and wine hasn't earned much of a reputation as a healthy eating hotspot. Apparently, less than 2 % of the French identify themselves as vegetarian, compared with four times as many Brits and Germans. Over time, I have become used to receiving weird, confused, bewildered and annoyed faces when requesting a meal for specific dietary needs. Thanks to more and more healthy restaurants, cafés and juice bars popping up, the grass is starting to look a bit greener.

Ginger And Coriander Sweet Potatoes

Ginger And Coriander Sweet Potatoes

Over the holidays I've been rummaging through my iPhoto collection in the search of nice pictures for a scrapbook that I'm currently working on for me and my boyfriend. As I was going through the different folders I found a bunch of food pictures that have never seen the daylight because they were taken before I started this blog. Such as these shots of the Leon - inspired ginger and coriander sweet potato dish. It's not a secret that I'm a sweet potato fan. My favourite way of indulging in them is to make sweet potato fries, but I've ventured outside the box a little lately with a sweet potato dip, sweet potato patties and even sweet potato brownies à la Deliciously Ella. But with this dish I'm bringing it back to the basics. Sweet potato, ginger and coriander. That's pretty much all you need. Clean eating doesn't have to be complicated and it doesn't always have to require exotic ingredients that you can only purchase in special health stores. Sometimes less is more.

Healthspo Talk With Marie Ferrari From Smoothies Addict

Healthspo Talk With Marie Ferrari From Smoothies Addict

#healthspotalk number 3 is featuring Marie Ferarri, the woman behind Smoothies Addict. I first met Marie while absolving my internship with Fit 'n' Tasty, the Swiss-based organic and cold-pressed detox company that I'm sure you have all seen me bombarding Instagram with. We were on the lookout for health bloggers in the Swiss scene and at this point Marie was just kicking off her own little business. A big advocate of green smoothies and superfoods, she decided to sell superfoods online (you might be surprised to known how hard it is to find superfoods in Switzerland) and launch her own blog on which she shares her knowledge and passion on healthy living. She also hosts weekly "Smoothie Workshops" in Geneva, which I have had the pleasure of attending. Here some shots (and click here for more information about the dates and location)

Healthspo Talk With Jess Moses

Healthspo Talk With Jess Moses

Remember the time I went to Phuket? Well, while I was researching for healthy café's and food alternatives on the island, I stumbled across Jess Moses Instagram account and was immediately mesmerised. Originally from London, the 22 year old has fled the home nest and is currently  was discovering the healthy wonders of Phuket where she was working at Phuket Cleanse, a fully raw/vegan detox retreat.  Back home she is not a fully raw vegan, but for her stay at the resort she was immersing herself into the lifestyle and documenting her journey through beautiful pictures. Unfortunately I didn't get the chance to pop by the retreat and get to know this beautiful soul in person, but at least I got to pick her brain in this latest #healthspotalk. Shall we start?

A Word On Organic Vs. Non-Organic Produce

A Word On Organic Vs. Non-Organic Produce

I know how confusing it can be to navigate the conflicting and ever – changing health philosophies that are out there. Fat makes you fat. No wait, fat is good for you. Fruits are healthy. No, fruit has too much sugar! Don’t eat carbs after 5 PM. 801010 all the way! The conflicting advice is never ending. What are we supposed to believe?

I am still on a journey of discovery and experimenting with different food philosophies. I have gone from vegetarian to trying to be fully vegan to attempting 801010 for a week. I believe in the long term healthy benefits of a high carb diet, but I wouldn't mind having a six pack, so shouldn't I eat high protein and low carb instead? I am not the one to give you answers to all your health and nutrition questions, that’s for sure.

Buckwheat Chocolate Granola

Buckwheat Chocolate Granola

Good morning and Merry Christmas to ya’ll! Depending on where you are, you might still be eagerly awaiting christmas eve and the unpacking of presents, like I currently am. The rest of the fam is out doing some last minute grocery shopping, so I decided to seize the moment to turn on some cheesy christmas jingles and get busy in the kitchen. The smell that wavered out of the kitchen half an hour later made me feel like I had landed in Willi Wonka's chocolate factory, to say the least.  I’ve actually been meaning to share this recipe with you guys for a while, but I’m still struggling to take nice pictures with this gloomy winter lighting and just couldn’t get the pictures right. They finally turned out to my liking, I hope you agree.


Caramel Tofu Mousse With Rebel Kitchen Mylk

Caramel Tofu Mousse With Rebel Kitchen Mylk

It's easy, it's decadent, it's super rich, and it's made of tofu. Yes, you read that right - tofu.  Tofu blended with my favorite non-dairy milk, a little sweetener and some nuts makes the perfect vegan caramel tofu mousse. I have to admit: I eat this for breakfast as opposed to dessert. It's that good. To me, it tastes like a delicious batch of caramel cookie dough and since I used to be a Ben & Jerrie's cookie dough ice-cream addict (scratch that, I still am), this is like heaven to my taste buds.

Products I Love: Rebel Kitchen Mylk

Products I Love: Rebel Kitchen Mylk

I'm always on the lookout for new healthy and "clean" brands, so you can imagine my delight when I discovered Rebel Kitchen during one of my last visits to Hiltl in Zurich. I was even more excited when the Rebel Team contacted me a few weeks ago and proposed for me to try their full range of mylks. Of course I jumped at this opportunity!

Rebel Kitchen’s mylks are the definition of wholesome, unprocessed drinks as they only contain few basic ingredients: Coconut milk, water, date nectar and cacao. I’m a coconut addict, so the fact that they’re made from coconut milk is a big tick in my box. They contain absolutely no additives, no preservatives and so, no worries. I'm also thrilled that they use cacao instead of cocoa. In case you didn't know, cocoa is the processed, heated version of raw cacao and hence only contains a small percentage of the "feel good" nutrients that it's natural alternative has to offer. It just goes to show that we don't need loads of unpronounceable chemical ingredients in order to make our food taste good.

Healthspo Talk with Elle

Healthspo Talk with Elle

There are two reasons why today is extra special. One, I am launching my first Wholesome Stef segment called #healthspotalk. The idea is to introduce you to the amazing ladies (and hopefully sometimes gents) behind my favourite blogs and Instagrammer's and to provide you with a good dose of inspiration from around the world.

And two, I’m introducing you to the talent behind one of my favourite Instagram's @livewellewithelle: Ellie Ficken, a psychology graduate and personal trainer from Melbourne Australia. She has a beautiful and inspiring mindset and truly walks the "wellness talk". I for my part can learn the one or the other thing from her, and I hope that you will too. She has been very supportive of my blog plans since day 1 and I am happy that she pushed and encouraged me throughout. As busy as she is, she allowed me to pick her brain for this Q&A session and I couldn't be more excited to have her kick start this segment!