Welcome to
Raíces & Returnings
Returning to your raíces – one recipe, ritual,
and reflection at a time
A space for the stories we carry, the ones we're still learning how to tell, and the ones we're finally ready to live.
Here, you'll find reflections on identity, queerness, healing, spirituality, and home. You'll find recipes passed down and reimagined. You'll find reminders—written and wearable—that speak to the parts of you still becoming.
This isn't a brand.
It's our life—offered with intention.
With love,Oly & Ashley
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Raíces & Returnings
New reflections. New recipes. Same corazón. Catch the latest stories, kitchen moments, and real talk—straight from us to you. Scroll through, click around, stay a while.
Missing What Never Was
I think it’s okay to miss something and not want it back.In my previous relationship, my partner and I almost had a baby together. We had a miscarriage. And years later, I guess I’m still working through it.There are days I go back to the imagination I had of what my baby was going to be like. His face. His hair. His eyes, like his father’s.I pictured him as a toddler.I pictured my dynamic with him.I pictured myself trying my best to create a life for him that I didn’t have, or maybe one I would have wanted.Years later, I’m no longer in that relationship. I don’t have my baby.I’m in another relationship now, and I’m very happy.And yet I still hold the tension.I still imagine what my life would have been like if my baby had been born. The trajectory it might have taken.I can’t say I know exactly why things happen. I have my ideas, my theories. Most of them are probably coping mechanisms. Maybe some of it is divine revelation. What do I know?But on days like today, it’s like my body remembers. It feels like something was meant to be and just chose not to be.And I say “meant to be” through my own filter. Because if it really was meant to be, then he would be here, right?This is the interesting part of the human experience. We like to think in all or nothing. But it’s not always all or nothing. Sometimes it’s a little bit of everything. And sometimes it’s a whole lot of nothing.So today, I don’t miss what I used to have.But I do miss what I imagined could have been.I still wonder what it would have looked like.Am I guilty for that? Am I wrong? Is it selfish?I don’t know.What I do know is this: it’s okay to grieve even something that didn’t happen. You can grieve what your imagination hoped for. You can grieve the story your mind thought was going to unfold.Because whether I admit it or not, my body knows grief.The moment I get quiet with myself, the tears come.Like my body has been waiting all this time for me to feel it.So yeah… that’s that.That’s where I’m at today.
Quick Grass-Fed Beef Tacos
(Simple, delicious, and made unforgettable by the magic sauce)Some nights we don’t feel like cooking much… but we still want to eat really well.These tacos are my perfect go-to: made with grass-fed ground beef, gluten-free tortillas (because we’re taking care of ourselves), and a homemade sauce with attitude that takes everything to the next level.✨ Ready in 15 minutes. Full of flavor. No fuss.Ingredients:½ pound grass-fed ground beefGluten-free tortillas (corn or cassava)Salt, black pepper, garlic powder to tasteOnion (if you have some—it adds great flavor)Grated Parmesan cheese (optional, for topping)For the magic sauce:1 tbsp mayonnaise or sour cream1 tsp sriracha1 garlic clove, grated or finely choppedBlack pepper to tasteHow to make it:Cook the beef:In a skillet with a bit of oil, start by sautéing the onion (if using) until soft and fragrant.Add the ground beef, season with salt, pepper, and garlic powder, and cook over medium-high heat until browned and juicy.Make the magic sauce:In a small bowl, mix the mayo (or sour cream), sriracha, grated garlic, and black pepper.Stir until creamy and flavorful.✨ This sauce is the game changer.Assemble your tacos:Warm up the tortillas, spoon in a generous amount of beef, sprinkle some Parmesan (if you want), and finish with your magic sauce on top.✨ And just like that… dinner is served.In under 15 minutes, you’ve got tacos that don’t apologize for being simple.Because when the ingredients are good… simple is more than enough.
