Flu and cold season is upon us and as if a full awful week of illness back in October wasn’t really enough, I caught another cold last week! I’ve spent most of my time feeling horrible and laying in bed, because if I get a cold I get it in full force (if you’re one of those that only get mild symptoms of colds, just know I envy you oh-so-much!) and during that time I did a lot of researches on how to survive a cold (basically shorten it + get better sooner) and I largely appreciated any blog posts or videos on the subject. So I thought, since researches have been done, I could share my tips and tricks on how to survive a cold or flu: if you’re feeling dreaful, your nose is aching and your eyes look as puffy as they could ever be, I totally, completely understand where you’re coming from.

Hopefully some of these tips will help you get through your cold or flu quicker – or just bring some relief! So here are my top 5 tips on how to survive a cold…

03 :: Open your window (when you’re not in the room!). Breathing good quality air it’s essential when you have cold, so remember to open your windows to let new air come in and add a humidifier in the room you spend most of your time in if needed.

04 :: Try some herbal cough drops to treat cough or sore throat, or some classic mints (mine are from Tiger and I’m obsessed!) if you are stuck with a blocked nose and really crave some relief (and to get back into breathing some sort of normal!). You can also create (or commision someone else to make them for you) your own herbal cough drops with honey and herb infusion!

05 :: With blowing your nose every two seconds, your eyes weeping all the time and your body’s fluids starting to lack (if you don’t drink enough!) your skin will start to feel tight and dry and annoying. Not to talk about the skin around your nose – you know what I mean! When I’m sick even my oily skin becomes dry and I want to put all kind of oils back into it. Maybe is not the wisest thing during the day since you touch your face all the time and moisturizers won’t even have the time to sink into the skin, but it’s a good idea to apply a good amount of a nicely moisturizing lotion before going to bed, that is the time when you most likely will leave your eyes and nose alone, so it can work its magic during the night. I like the Aveeno Daily Moisturizing Lotion with Oatmeal for the face and any L’Occitane Hand Creams for my hands!

Would love to know about your home remedies as well!
And if you’re ill and stuck in bed, hope you can get well soon! x 

It’s Pancake Day in two days, and even though I believe you can ‘treat’ yourself to pancakes literally everyday (there are a lot of healthy versions that tastes just as good!), it’s a pretty exciting recurrency isn’t it?!

Here in Italy Pancake Day is called ‘Martedì Grasso’: it’s the very last day before Lent, the last chance to enjoy some traditional ‘fat eating’ and the last day of our well-known Italian Carnevale. We actually don’t have a custom of eating pancakes but a traditional food we eat is ‘Chiacchiere’ (Angel Wings), sweet fried dough (very simple flour, eggs and sugar dough with a touch of rum) covered in icing sugar, very basic but such a nice delicious classic. Differently from classic pancakes, they are friable and crispy. But I’ll reveal something: we love just pancakes as much, in any of their forms, so we use it as an excuse to have them too on Pancake Day!

And today I’ve a new exciting pancake recipe just in time for Tuesday! This chocolate buckwheat pancakes are healthy,  indulgent and delicious and I won’t be surprised if you’ll find yourself eating them even after Pancake Day is gone! I love how melted chocolate chips create a fudgy heart and how well they pair with thick delicious blueberry jam (did you know IKEA has the best organic blueberry jam out there? No, me neither!).

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Chocolate Buckwheat Pancakes + Blueberry Topping

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Serving Size: 7 medium pancakes

Ingredients

• 50g Buckwheat flour
• 25g white flour*
• 1 coffespoon baking powder
• 2 tablespoons chocolate chips
• 2 teaspoons cocoa powder
• 2 tablespoons unrefined brown sugar
• 100ml whole milk (or non-dairy milk)
• 1 medium egg
• Coconut Oil to pan-fry & Blueberry jam + butter to top
• *Replace with gluten-free flour if needed.

Instructions

1 :: To start measure out all your dry ingredients (sugar, flours, cocoa powder, baking powder and chocolate chips) and mix them together in a large bowl.

2 :: Whisk the egg and the milk together in a different bowl, then add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and whisk well until nicely incorporated. The mixture should be quite liquid and runny - if too dry add a couple of splashes of milk.

3 :: Heat up a non-stick pan and melt down 1/2 teaspoon of coconut oil, then place two heaping tablespoons of pancake batter into the coconut oil. Cook on the first side until bubbles form on top, then use a spatula to flip it over and cook on the other side for a minute or two. Repeat for all the pancakes (use 1/2 teaspoon of coconut oil for each one).

4 :: To serve pile them up on plates, place a cube of butter into the pan you used for the pancakes and melt it down just slightly (not completely); top the pancakes with melting butter and sweet thick blueberry jam! Enjoy!

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http://www.miel-cafe.com/2016/02/chocolate-buckwheat-pancakes-blueberry-topping.html

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Let me know if you give this one a try and what are your Pancake Day traditions and plans! x

I believe in the power of makeup and clothes. They might seem insignificant but we girls know what a nice foundation, a pair of jeans that just fits very nice, comfortable but beautiful shoes, a radiant red nail varnish or lipstick could do to our confidence. Yet what I’ve learnt in the past few years about body confidence is that it comes from underneath all of that. Body confidence is not about hiding what you don’t like but come to appreciate what you have. And what better way to start by getting naked (or almost?) and start by appreciating how your body looks in your underwear?!

A couple of months ago I came to the point where I felt very uncomfortable with most of my underwear pieces, feeling like they didn’t fit me very well and I haven’t bought any new pair for way too long. It’s not the first time I’ve felt that way: it’s something that happens to me very often to feel unhappy with my lingerie pieces and how they look on me and feel the urge of emptying my underwear drawer to start afresh. While comfortable ‘granny pants’ are good for one week each month, I know for sure there’s a strong link between lingerie and body confidence and between that feeling of looking good in your own body and the attitude you happen to put into things during your days.

I came to realize once again that when in front of a mirror looking at my body with only underwear on, it’s not my body I need to change to start feeling comfortable and at ease in what I’m wearing but it’s my current lingerie that doesn’t make the cut for me and my body figure anymore! It’s not about neglecting what you have but enhancing the good of it instead.

The most challenging part about it all, I’ll tell you, is figuring out what actually works for you. I felt disheartened and it totally started influencing the way I felt and behaved in the everyday life. And you know what, hiding away the ‘granny pants’ and starting afresh with that drawer of mine totally worked a treat!