Garden-to-Table Food Philosophies & Recipes Archives

Acai Berries – Eco Harvesting the ‘Old School’ Way by Sangtu

March 2, 2017/in Blog Snippets, Garden-to-Table Food Philosophies & Recipes /by balisilent

Acai Palm, ever so popular by juice bars and health drinks.

Originally from Brazil it’s acclaimed to be high in anti oxidants. Interestingly, the seed is huge compared to the fruit: about the size of a marble (10 millimetres in diameter – about .4 inch/ or just under 2cm). But the fruit is only 1 millimeter, very dark purple and not easy to come off. It also deteriorates quickly – within 24 hours. So once the big seed cluster is cut from the tree, pulling off the pulp needs to be a smooth and speedy process.

Tree food vs plant food

January 12, 2017/in Blog Snippets, Garden-to-Table Food Philosophies & Recipes /by balisilent

Eating well is a hot topic, hitting an obesity epidemic despite 3 decades of dietary trial and error (fat or low fat, eggs or no eggs, sugar or fake sweetener?)

It seems we are left with this bit of wisdom: ‘Just Eat Real Food’ (JERF)

So what is real food? And can I even buy real food at a real supermarket?

To understand what we need is to understand what we want to change. The current system that fuels the bodies of nearly 7 billion humans runs mostly on crude oil, natural gas, and other finite resources. The fuel for the machinery, factories, fertilizers and refrigerated trucks that fill up those miracle aisles in our local one stop shop wonders.

Use Our Imagination? BIG or small?

January 30, 2016/in Garden-to-Table Food Philosophies & Recipes /by balisilent

The Future of Food: big mono crops or small organic farms?

All that’s left to ask our farmers: ‘are you growing food or commodities?’
All that’s left to ask our cooks: ‘are you cooking for love or profit?’

: Tomatoes fresh from garden

: Banana

: Going banana

10 Cs of Conscious Living

November 1, 2015/in Garden-to-Table Food Philosophies & Recipes /by balisilent

Since you are reading this, it is likely that you have awakened from the illusion of a mediocre life. You feel the need to live a purposeful existence but perhaps are overwhelmed and don’t know where to start. The 10 C’s of conscious living are helpful tools to get you on the right track, one breath at a time.

The first 3 C’s are the most important ones. These are about building a solid foundation, growing your roots, so to speak. Once you have completed the first 3 steps, you are ready to follow the next 7, which are about taking inspired and mindful action.

The 10 C’s of conscious living

Celebrate what’s right with your world. Let’s appreciate the abundance and opportunities that are available to us. It may seem odd to start with focusing on what’s right in order to create change, but this really is the key. Simply pointing out the wrongs of the world doesn’t inspire anyone to create radical improvements. If all of us today make a list of all the things we love about our lives and the planet we share, it could create an unprecedented ripple of positivity, powerful enough to create lasting change.

Simplistic? Perhaps. Read more

Foods that Save the Forest

November 19, 2014/in Garden-to-Table Food Philosophies & Recipes /by balisilent

It’s hard for us to imagine that not just oil and gas, but soil and water are now precious resources under threat. We do, in fact, have the power to turn this around in every choice we make.

Where did it go wrong?

Cookies for health

January 28, 2014/in Blog Snippets, Garden-to-Table Food Philosophies & Recipes /by balisilent

Cookies for health – are you serious?

What’s worse for your health? Eating a sweet, sugary cookie, or having guilty thoughts whilst eating a sweet, sugary cookie? Read more

Living Food makes a difference: Garden-to-Table cuisine

January 20, 2014/in Blog Snippets, Garden-to-Table Food Philosophies & Recipes /by balisilent

Here’s a posty note left by a guest and our perspective on why Garden-to-Table is cuisine is tops! Read more

The Cycle of Food

November 13, 2013/in Garden-to-Table Food Philosophies & Recipes /by balisilent

Have we slid from stone age bricks of bread, shared around a bon fire, to an enlightened bearded man magically feeding a whole village with one single loaf, to modern day sad, lonely and moldy breads weeping away in plastic bags on thousands of urban kitchen counters around the globe. What’s next? Read more

Rotten Tomatos?

November 13, 2013/in Garden-to-Table Food Philosophies & Recipes /by balisilent

Before and beyond all the expert advice of nutritionists, chefs, magazines and school teachers who tell you what you should eat: Please eat local! And I mean really local. I mean so extremely local, that you question where your sandwich grains have been grown. Or at least who is the hero that woke up at 2 am to bake that bread. Read more

BANANA bonkers!

November 11, 2013/in Garden-to-Table Food Philosophies & Recipes /by balisilent

Go Go BANANA!

For banana aficionados:

We have 17 species of bananas at Bali Silent Retreat and a chart you can read, indicating the purpose and characteristics of each species. How and when to harvest is a full and complicated process, unless your Balinese.If you’re Balinese you’ve grown up within the culture of many many Balinese ceremonies and offerings, using all the different types of bananas and you know which banana is used for what. Read more