Sun sparkling on the water. Dragonflies settle on tall grass. They cling, painted wings fluttering as soft wind plays over the hill. As I walk toward the waters edge the earth crumbles under my feet, spilling into my sandals and towards the water. The erosion is kept at bay by plastic netting which covers the open, sun-baked soil. A young deer stands stock-still at the first sight of me rounding the curved bank. It bounds into the forest after I take one, two steps. Curious, as if it rarely encounters a human in this protected reserve.

It's quiet. The sound of birds and chittering insects reverberates over the water. Fog is starting to form where evening shadow settles over the water's surface.

This isn't a dream. This was yesterday.

Swimming in serene, clean waters with my bandmate Laurel. Light on the air-disturbed water like infinite yellow-white diamonds. Dragonflies looping in pairs, jetting from one side of the lake to the other. Our laughter the only human noise for a mile. I floated facing upward, whole body aligned with the sky. The temperature of the water just slightly cooler than my own blood. Like floating in nothingness. Like floating in moonlight.

I imagine this is what's it's like in the after-life, if we're even conscious in the liminal planes. Completely at ease, with no body at all. Witnessing the ever-created and ever-destroyed drama of our human affairs. Wakeful and yet asleep.

On the bank, I ate a cold plum. Juice dripped into the dirt near my feet. I took a deep inhalation. The humid air tasted of sweet grass, sweet water. We sat out an old sheet on the bare ground. Read tarot and fairy cards. Before us a broken spider web between two trees aligned exactly with the setting sun. Luminous and fae.

This is all I need. Water, freedom, peace. A friend, good conversation, real food. It's what we all need.

Miracle Vegan Mint Chocolate Mousse Tarts

These miracle vegan mint chocolate mousse tarts are that feeling encapsulated in food. Easy-breezy. Refreshingly minty and cool. Decadent thanks to cocoa and healthy coconut-derived fats. It's sweet, creamy, mousse-like and it whips up in 25-30 minutes. Personally, I can't ask for more than that in a divine chocolate treat!

This recipe is the result of a brainstorm session with my bandmate Anna B whilst I was on my moon-cycle. Her idea + my wizardry = MAGIC. As you can imagine, it was born of a deep need for chocolate right now. I'm particularly impatient when I'm on my cycle. So this fit the bill perfectly!

I've tested this bad boy about three times. The first two times I made it I figured it was a fluke because it was so easy and so good. 

Turns out, it's just one of the more perfect things that exists in the universe.

Well, other than the fact that those tiny bubbles in the final tarts make the Virgo in me eye-twitch. But really tho. Who cares? IT'S TOO FRIGGIN DELICIOUS TO CARE ABOUT STUPID DETAILS LIKE THAT.

Oh, little note: make sure you blend the filling until it comes together and becomes really smooth. If you blend it for too short of a time, it'll look curdled or separated. BLEND BABY. Blend. It'll whip together, trust me.

Note 6/22/2016 This filling is a bit like "mayonnaise" in that it you just want to blend it until it's smooth. Under blend and it will be separated. Over blend and it will curdle. So just blend until its creamy. The environment I shot my video is was warm, so my filling poured as a liquid. But if your environment or coconut cream are very cold yours may end up quite thick and need to be spooned out of your blender. xoxo -- Renee

Miracle Vegan Mint Chocolate Mousse Tart

Created by Renee on June 17, 2016

Tip: if you can’t get 4.5″ tart pans with removable bottoms, use large mason jar tops! They’re around 2.5″ -3″ so you’ll need 4-6 of them.

• Total Time: 25m

• Yield: two 4.5" tarts

Ingredients

• 5 medjool dates, pitted
• 1/2 cup almond meal
• 1 teaspoon coconut oil, melted
• cream from 1 can full fat coconut milk (~1 cup)
• scant 1/3 cup melted coconut oil
• scant 1/3 cup maple syrup
• 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• handful fresh mint
• pinch fine sea salt
• garnish: more fresh mint, to top

Instructions

1. Add the dates, almond meal and 1 teaspoon coconut oil to the bowl of a high powered blender. Blitz everything together until you have a malleable, sandy mix. Press the tart crust equally into two tart small 4.75” tart pans. Set aside.
2. For the filling, add the coconut cream, melted coconut oil, maple syrup, cocoa powder, vanilla extract, mint and sea salt. NOTE: Avoid as best you can adding coconut water from your can of coconut milk to the filling. It will make the filling icy and will keep it from setting up properly.
3. Blend the filling ingredients together for about a minute. If you blend and the filling looks curdled or uneven, keep blending! It will whip together eventually.
4. Pour the filling into the tart molds. Set the tarts in the freezer for a minimum of 20 minutes for a semi-soft mousse. Remove from the pans, garnish and serve! Or freeze longer for a firmer mousse (up to overnight), but make sure you let it thaw for at least 5 minutes before popping it out of the tart pans and slicing or it will crack. Enjoy!