Chats with Em and Ash from Eatable.com.au

 

A few months ago it was as though fate stepped in to make sure that Em and I met. Our paths crossed a few times and now her day job's office is just one level up from Koja HQ in Richmond- talk about in sync! (And we're huggge fans of the Nutrition Bar just around the corner- if you haven't tried it yet- do)

Em and her friend Ash have an amazing blog, ideal for anyone who's ever suffered from any food intolerances or allergies. Personally I've found it inspiring that these girls manage so well with a range of intolerances themselves, whilst still keeping it real when it comes to food. I just had to share their stories with you guys here- read on...

 

Kate: Can you tell me a little about who's behind Eatable, and how you know each other? 

Em and Ash: Eatable is the lovechild of the two of us, it emerged from what first bonded us as friends: food intolerances.

We both grew up in the small town of Wangi Wangi, NSW on the eastern Australian coast. Actually we met because Em was dating Ash’s brother about five years ago! Their relationship didn’t last long, but we kept in contact over the years and when Ash moved to Melbourne in 2013 we realised that we had been following a very similar path to health. Both of us have food intolerances and are incredibly passionate about sharing what we CAN eat with the World, enter Eatable.

 

Kate: I believe that most wholefood foodies have come from a place where health wasn't always a priority or a possibility. What was your path to health and wellness like?

Em and Ash: Interestingly, we share a very similar background in that the early part of our lives was dominated by a standard Australian diet, we both picked up intestinal parasites in S.E. Asia and both are intolerant to gluten, dairy and soy. Ash also can’t stomach corn and Em has some troubles with fructose.

Ash’s food intolerances were diagnosed in 2008 and Em found out in 2012, which is when we really started to develop our friendship and support for each others’ path to health and wellness. Collectively we’ve explored a variety of testing and treatment methods including; Western medicine, kinesiology, naturopathy, skin allergy testing, blood tests, bowen therapy, bioresonance, herbal medicine and elimination diets.

We have found that there is no such thing as “perfect health” and that taking responsibility for our own health is one of the best, if not THE best, thing that we have done. Choosing to create the healthy lifestyle that we want for ourselves is a continual process that we experiment with and improve upon every day.

 

Kate: What inspires you?

Em and Ash: Other health-loving babes, travellers, people who create their own lifestyle regardless of societal barriers, people who are open to new food experiences even if they don’t have food intolerances.

We love challenging peoples thoughts about food. We are continually inspired by the feedback we hear from Eatable readers who have made our recipes for their loved ones, who are perhaps are little apprehensive about something like kale chips, and end up being blown away by this new food experience! We think that when you can help someone to move past their apprehensions and outside of their comfort zone, then beautiful, delicious things happen.

 

Kate: In what way do you think what we eat affects how we feel and our relationship with ourselves?

Em and Ash: Food is life; it is an expression of our culture, our individual history and our values. So much of what we do centres around a meal time, eating is both a necessity and an integral part to our social interaction. At Eatable we believe that what we put into our bodies is a conscious choice and that every positive choice we make will promote good health. Quite literally, what you feed yourself is the fuel your body has to use on a daily basis; it affects how your body operates, how you feel physically, emotionally and mentally - a connection that needs to be respected and honoured through the food and lifestyle choices we make for ourselves.

 

Kate: What's your ultimate recipe and why?

Em and Ash: We are obsessed with Bliss Balls! Not only are they delicious and super easy to make, but they pack a nutritional punch! Our favourite thing about them is you can change up the recipe depending on what you have on hand. So long as you have the ‘essentials’ you can create so many different variations. They are quick, easy, full of goodness and a favourite with pretty much everyone.

 

Kate: What are your 5 pantry essentials?

Em and Ash:

Coconut oil: you can literally use coconut oil for everything, from making dairy-free chocolate, to frying fish or making your own toothpaste.

Raw Cacao: not only is it versatile, but it’s packed full of nutrients like magnesium, calcium, zinc, B vitamins, protein and fibre… it is so handy when you’re making your own raw desserts or our go-to favourite: bliss balls.

Something sweet: we like to keep it refined sugar-free at Eatable, so we stick to Medjool dates, maple syrup, raw honey or rice malt syrup to add a bit of sweetness to our lives!

Almonds: pretty much our favourite nut, you can make almond milk, eat them as a snack or chop them up into a salad… don’t forget to activate them to keep your tummy safe from too much tannic acid.

A binder: if you’re into gluten-free baking you will have had moments where things fall apart, we love chia seeds or flax seed meal for an egg-free alternative to bind cakes, pancakes, raw desserts and make delicious chia mousse.

PS: always keep a banana in the freezer, you never know when you might want a smoothie!

 

Kate: What are your hopes and dreams for Eatable?

Em and Ash: We dream of spreading Eatable’s message all over the World to empower people to create their own healthy lifestyles. We both love to travel and hunt for new cultural and food experiences, so global exploration is something that is definitely on the cards for Eatable! We would also love to create a physical space that emulates what we’ve created online - essentially so we can hang out in a health-loving cafe, sharing with people the food and products that we love, practicing yoga, creating new recipes, sipping green smoothies and supporting people to be their healthiest, happiest selves!

 

You can get in touch with Eatable (Em and Ash) via their socials:

Instagram  Facebook  Twitter  

Also make sure you check out www.eatable.com.au for their amazing allergy friendly recipes and other awesome stuff.