Alternatives to Cow Milk

Hello!

Milk is an everyday household item and can be used in cooking, baking and drinking straight out of the carton. However, there are cons to drinking this dairy item. Some of the most obvious ones are that cows produce a lot of waste and greenhouse gases, a seemingly innocent glass of milk may have man made ingredients added into it - including engineered hormones, antibiotics and pesticides. It has also been proven that cow's milk is perfectly suited to quadruple the weight of a 30 kilogram calf in one year which means that the amount of protein and mineral content may even (in very few cases) prove harmful when consumed too much.

In saying this, milk is a sufficient source of many nutrients including calcium, choline, potassium, riboflavin, niacin, phosphorus, protein, B12 and vitamins A and D. Other possible health benefits are strong bone and heart health, improved blood pressure and a good source of protein which can aid in muscle building. 

Of course, I'm not going to tell you whether or not you should be drinking cow's milk - I still occasionally do. However, in finding out this information I wanted to also find out what alternatives there were out there that would also supply me with the nutrients that cow's milk did. I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of alternatives that there were, and when I tried some at home I found the different tastes, textures and colours of these milks to be interesting and very yummy. 

1. Soya Milk - soya milk has a lot of protein and fibre. It is safe for the lactose intolerant and anyone who has dairy allergies. Soya milk is made from plants and is therefore more environmentally friendly. However, the sugar content can be high but the overall impact is much less than that of cows. 

2. Almond Milk - almond milk is an excellent source of magnesium, manganese, selenium and vitamin E, unsaturated fat, protein, flavonoids and potassium. However, if you are looking for a true cow's milk alternative, this doesn't taste at all like it. The taste takes some getting used to, and it is considerably pricier than cow's milk. 

3. Rice Milk - rice milk is extremely nutritious and has a lot less fat than all the cow milk alternatives. It contains unsaturated fats, niacin, vitamin B6, iron and copper. However, as rice is starchy so will rice milk be and the protein count is lower still. 

4. Oat Milk - oat milk is cholesterol and lactose free while still containing vitamin E, folic acid and phytochemicals. However, oat milk can be high in sugar and doesn't have the calcium to match cow's milk and is no good for people who have to avoid gluten. The taste is also distinctive and doesn't appeal to everyone.  

5. Hemp Milk - hemp milk is a good alternative for people who have soya and nut allergies as well as being cholesterol and lactose free, low in saturated fats and rich in healthy omega fatty acids. It provides an excellent source of protein and has a very individual flavour and texture.  However it does lack calcium and can be hard to supply. 

6. Cashew Nut Milk - cashew nut milk is an outstanding source of copper and also provides magnesium, like calcium. 

7. Coconut Milk - coconut milk is a handy alternative for those who are lactose intolerant or allergic to any animal milk. Coconut milk has minimal starch content, is a vegan drink, soya free, gluten free, cholesterol free, nut free, 'good fat' containing and can be rich in lauric acid. However, the saturated fat content can be considerably high and has a strong flavour which many not be appealing. 

I'm not here to tell you what to consume, and if you enjoy your cow milk then by all means, stick to it. I still do and I also enjoy having a glass of milk at the beginning and end of every day now because I have the option of having cow's milk or mixing it up and trying a new recipe that may contain one of the mentioned alternatives. My favourite of the alternatives are almond milk for hot drinks, rice milk for cold drinks (however, the flavour can be a bit overpowering) and coconut milk whenever (any coconut product wins for me). 
I hope this proved helpful or informative even in the slightest. 

Much love,

Duchess

He for she?

Hello everyone!

As the title reads, today I'm going to be tacking a quite controversial and perception based topic. I know that people have different views and ways of looking at things, which I would love to hear about, I by no means mean to shove my opinion into your face or am trying to change your own opinions. My blog was made for a place for me to display my own thoughts and hear other people's, so this isn't me saying that I'm right and you're wrong.

Today's society is beginning to become more and more aware about the topic of feminism. As the media begins to scan over it some more, and better known people begin to draw attention to it, today's pop culture and youth are taking notice. However, change seems to be following a little behind. Today in one of my classes I was listening intently to the opinions of a few of my classmates and was intrigued to listen to what they thought of the concept, especially a few of the men.

When we were younger feminism was a word that we learnt to be afraid of. In my mind, the word meant that a few intimidating ladies were trying to make themselves superior to the rest of us. In my mind, that was scary and unfair. However that picture was only painted by the other judging minds of the people surrounding me, and the people informing me on the subject. Feminism by definition is the movement for granting women equal political, economic, cultural and social rights. What feminism is is the movement of getting everyone on even ground, as we were born.

I thought it was romantic when a guy chased after a girl after she explicitly told him no, in my mind the lady was always in despair while the gentleman rode up in shining armour to save her, the fact that women are not paid as much as men in some countries was an accepted fact when I was younger, in history classes no one really stopped to question why women weren't allowed to vote or have any other political rights unless someone compared it to human rights in recent days. I have been conditioned, since I was little, to accept these facts and only with this recent light have I been able to realise that this isn't just acceptable.

There are videos now - videos of just about everything on the internet - but some of these videos really display what I'm talking about. Attached will be a few of these videos. These show the street harassment that women have to deal with every single day, these show the new strides women are taking to beat these things down, these videos show men, and even other women, taking advantage of women as we are seen as the inferior. We are not the inferior, we are just touching the tip of the iceberg to show that we are equal.

What really annoys me is when men tell you, for lack of better words, to suck it up. Suck it up, why? I personally think that this topic scares some people, like the Big Bang theory scared some people. Society, as a whole, is so used to men being in authority and having higher power that now when women start taking tiny steps towards any direction, it immediately becomes a threat. Women are finally getting the recognition they deserve and their opinions are only beginning to be heard, and I think this is a step in the right direction.

Of course I'm a feminist, I would be an idiot not to be on my own side.

Much love,

Duchess

ATTACHED

Videos:

Street Harassment

He For She

Catcalling

Links:

Street Harassment Survey

A Slice of Serenity

Hello there! 

Today I made a day trip to one of my friend's houses on the border of the Central Coast of New South Wales and the inner suburbs, in Brooklyn. She lives a very picturesque train trip away from me and when I arrived I got to witness some of the most breath taking scenery of anywhere remotely close to where I live. As soon as I got there, I seemed to enter a completely different atmosphere and it felt as though the location of the town had influenced the people's lifestyle. Everything was very laid back and relaxed and it was really magic to be able to catch a train ride and feel like you'd travelled for hours to reach somewhere completely different. 

A photo from the railway station.

The town.

Some boats. 

A pelican!

I found this mesmerising and couldn't resist the urge to take a shot.

Yes, that is a real dog sitting out on the ledge. It was very cute.

The view from a simple walking trail through the houses.

It was such an amazing day, despite there being a couple of showers. I cannot wait to visit again and be captured by the essence of the place. 

Much love, 

Duchess

Karlie Kookies

Hello friends, 

As you'll soon find out I love experimenting in the kitchen. So when I found out that Karlie Kloss, one of my many inspirations, had made a cookie recipe to raise money and food for hungry children all over the world, you could imagine my eagerness. Once discovering this I made a beeline to try and find a recipe and stumbled across Jourdan Dunn's, another one of my favourite peoples, cooking show. Coincidentally, Kloss and Dunn happen to be great friends and had made a meal together and had included a visual recipe of these Karlie Kookies. 

From the beginning, I had high hopes - I was not disappointed. When I first found the recipe, I had no idea that my brother was soon to be diagnosed with Coeliac disease, which would mean that gluten would not be an option in his diet anymore. As soon as this became known to my family however, my mother had a mental break down, trashing everything in our pantry that contained the faintest hint of anything gluten related. Much to my relief, my father stopped her before she could make an advance on my food. Since then all four of us have been scanning the web, reading books, asking friends for any tips and tricks on how to maintain a healthy, satisfying and fulfilling diet while avoiding gluten. 

So when I found out that these cookies were also gluten free, I was over the moon. And they tasted like bliss. 

KARLIE KOOKIES

2 cups almond flour/meal

1 cup rolled oats (gluten free, but normal works just as well)

1/2 teaspoon of salt

3/4 teaspoon baking soda 

1/2 teaspoon xantham gum

1/2 cup olive oil 

1/4 cup agave syrup

1 tablespoon vanilla (or extract)

3/4 - 1 cup of dark chocolate 

1/4 cup slivered almonds (lightly toasted adds even more flavour) 

Mix all dry ingredients together and then add the oil, agave and vanilla. 

6 - 8 minutes at 325 degrees Fahrenheit or 162 degrees Celsius.

Enjoy, easy as that.  

Much love, 

Duchess

Welcome!

Hello,

This may be as unusual for you to read as it is for me to write, please keep in mind that this is my first ever blog post. I have been wanting to start a blog for a very long time, and have been considering it for a couple of years now, but never had the motivation to get on with it and ended up always questioning why and how I would end up going along with. At long last, I have decided to set up this blog, but still am hesitant to disclose too much about my life, even when sitting behind a computer screen.

Sorry for the pseudonym, but the main things you need to know about me are that I'm currently living in Australia but I plan on moving overseas as soon as the opportunity arises, I am well established in my teenage years, and by the end of this decade I will be well into my twenties. I believe in looking after my body, and seeing where it can take me. Other interests and hobbies include playing the piano, cooking, singing in the shower, attempting to create some art, ballet and other dance, doing henna tattoos, designing, traveling, reading and listening to interesting sounds.

I'm excited to see where this goes and it's been lovely to meet you. Please don't hesitate to talk to me, and any advice would be deeply appreciated.

Much love,

Duchess