Vegan Chai Cookies

Delicious must-have Chai cookie recipe

My Sunday morning turned out being more successful than lazy! I found an easy, simple and kind of healthy recipe – well at least it sounds like one.

And believe me it’s not only the fancy name that makes the cookies special.

Everyone bakes vanilla crescents, gingerbread, and coco macaroons – so I thought to try something more unique.

But I am neither that girl who follows every trend nor am I vegan. I love my Mom’s calorie bomb cookies and don’t mind craving them.

That’s the thing, because I am not the perfect baker or cook, I wanted to make something different. Special cookies those are not comparable to other classic Christmas delicacies.

Cinnamon, cardamom, ginger and black pepper combine to create an incredibly aromatic spice blend that is worth trying!

Ingredients

•        4 tea bags of Chai
•        200 gram oleomargarine (1 cups)
•        50 gram cane sugar (¼ cups)
•        Pinch of salt
•        300 gram spelt flour (2 cups)
•        100 gram sugar to roll (½ cups)

Preparation:

1. In a food processor or mortar pulse the tea mix until the tea is pulverized.

2. Cream the margarine and cane sugar until light.

3. Add the tea mixture and flour. Pulse together just until a rough dough is formed.

4. Let the dough chill for at least 1 hour.

5. Form cherry-sized balls and press them slightly flat.

6. Preheat oven to 150°C (375 °F)

7. Place the balls on the baking sheet and bake 15-20 minutes.

8. Before eating roll the cookies in sugar.

Happy baking!

White Christmas

Healthy Christmas cookies

„It’s begin to look a lot like Christmas...“ sings Michael Bublé on my Spotify Christmas Playlist, while I try getting into the Christmas spirit.

And what goes better with Christmas than cookies? It’s the time of the year everyone goes cookie-crazy – me included.

So I make the most of my lazy Sunday morning and get inspired by cookie recipes.

It feels like that Christmas eating season kicks off just as early as the shopping one does. 
That’s why I hoped to find some healthy but delicious ideas.

Despite my intention to avoid winter weight gain, I think the season just wouldn’t be the same without occasional indulgence.

Christmas is not about calculating calories, however there are simple recipe tweaks that can make cookies a better fit to a clean eating style.

Let's see how my baking went. If my kitchen didn't catch fire and the cookies taste like cookies than I will post the recipe later :-)

SUNday

Layering winter essentials

Sun, flowers and green fields – the cows might be happy – but I am not. Walking around Christmas markets in sneakers and a leather jacket doesn’t feel very wintery.

It’s nice not to freeze my fingers or other parts of my body off but snow is my favorite part of Christmas time.

There is always (well most of the time) a good sight of the story. Thick and bulky winter coats can rest a little bit longer in the corner.

Sunday-funday was beautiful. It didn’t feel like the 2^nd Advent Sunday, more like a nice fall or spring weekend. To welcome the sun in Salzburg I took my coffee up to my rooftop and enjoyed the view.

Instead of a down jacket I threw over some light layerings for a simple winter look. I sat there in a leggings from Wolford, ankle boots from Aldo and a Mango jumper.

To pimp the outfit more wintery I put on my Liebeskind scarf and a dark brown Superdry leather jacket.

Running motivation

4 ways not to slack off on December running

Shorter days, nasty weather and overindulgence can all put me off my stride.

Last week the winter (finally) arrived in Austria. Honestly I love winter, but especially the month December can be a difficult time to find time and motivation for exercise.

It is not only the stressful Christmas shopping and hectic advent time, but also the cold and the snow that wake up my inner’s weaker self. Actually my thoughts sound like my grandma “It is too cold, you get sick, the ground is slippery,…”

Last week I had so much going on and I spent my only free evening on the Christmas market instead of the treadmill.

Which is totally fine I have no problem with that. But if I don’t get to do exercise I feel unsatisfied with myself and that leads to a bad attitude and makes me insufferable.

All near ski resorts haven’t opened yet, so instead of pouting, I unpacked my ski touring clothes and wear my touring layers and ski gears for running until there is enough snow to hit the slope. 

Take a rest from all the stressful and hectic advent shopping. Instead of clicking or swiping through online shops, go outside for a walk/ a run and think about what your friends and family really need instead of getting distracted from all the commercial Christmas consumptions.

Don't let your grandma thoughts make you fell unsatisfied und unhappy. Get up, warm up and run up!

1. Go easy: Avoid an ass-kicking hard training. Instead go easy and get your running passion back. December is a good time to build up the necessary condition base you need for the warmer seasons.
2. Get warm: Take an extra few minutes to stretch and get your muscles warmed up. 
3. Stay warm: Don't overdress. Wear several thin layers and don't forget a headband or hat, as well as a pair of running gloves. Layers keep you much warmer and more comfortable running than one heavy jacket. 
4. Feel better: Christmas cookies, Gluehwein, Gingerbread and other indulgence taste better when you feel comfortable eating it. Running is a power tool for preventing holiday weight gain. 

Winter fashion

More functional, more fabulous

Isn’t it so much easier to dress cool and stylish when it’s warmer outside?

Fact: I knew that there will be a day this winter that is so freezing cold, that I am forced out of my chic, body skimming coat and into something warm and fluffy. But I didn't expect it coming so early.

Last weekend I was in Vienna. Snow, wind and zero degrees Celsius made dressing complicated. My to-do list was long: Christmas markets, shopping and dining - of course I wanted to look good, but it is so hard to bundle up and still wear a chic outfit.

The abundance of cold weather accessories combined with bulky swearers, coats and boots can be overwhelming and give me the feeling I look like a haphazard snow-woman.

Good thing I didn’t pack that much so I hadn’t really lots of clothing choices. In the end after three rounds of changing I finally found an outfit that was simple chic and kept me warm walking around in Vienna.

Summer and bright shades come to mind when anyone talks about color blocking. But it needn't be the case: Silvery gray on black is a combo neutral that'll go with anything, but it brings a fresher feeling to my winter wear. I combine a very warm Sportalm Kitzbühel down jacket with a black ripped Jbrand Jeans and grey leather ankle boots from an Italian boutique. And a Liebeskind Berlin scarf with is a perfect accessory, which I even leave on as part of my outfit.