This recipe is as simple to make as it is satisfying.
It is a big hit and something of a conversation-starter! Take: 5 parts of coconut milk (not coconut water) Heat on a stove at medium low until it starts bubbling a bit. Mix with: 1 part sugar, preferably sucanat Stir until it has dissolved. Take off the stove. Stir in: 1 part mung bean flour You’ll need to stir slowly and completely to get the fine flour to mix in. Add a good deal of ground cardamom, but not too much. (For 1 liter of coconut milk to start with, I add 1 teaspoon of ground cardamom.) Same thing goes with some high quality vanilla. Allow to cool before serving. That’s it. Vaata and Pitta decreasing, Kapha increasing. from a conservative Catholic web site:
Does the Spirit even speak through the very construction of vegetables and fruits? A sliced carrot looks like the human eye. The pupil, iris and radiating lines look just like the human eye…and yes science now shows that carrots greatly enhance blood flow to and function of the eyes. A tomato has four chambers and is red. The heart is red and has four chambers. All of the research shows tomatoes are indeed pure heart and blood food.” Grapes hang in a cluster that has the shape of the heart. Each grape looks like a blood cell and all of the research today shows that grapes are also profound heart and blood vitalizing food. A walnut looks like a little brain, a left and right hemisphere, upper cerebrums and lower cerebellums. Even the wrinkles or folds are on the nut just like the neo-cortex. We now know that walnuts help develop over three dozen neuron-transmitters for brain function.” “Kidney beans actually heal and help maintain kidney function and yes, they look exactly like the human kidneys,” it is pointed out. “Celery, bok, choy, rhubarb and more look just like bones. These foods specifically target bone strength. Bones are 23 percent sodium and these foods are 23 percent sodium. If you don’t have enough sodium in your diet the body pulls it from the bones, making them weak. These foods replenish the skeletal needs of the body. "Eggplant, avocadoes and pears target the health and function of the womb and cervix of the female — they look just like these organs. Today’s research shows that when a woman eats one avocado a week, it balances hormones, sheds unwanted birth weight and prevents cervical cancers. And how profound is this? …. It takes exactly nine months to grow an avocado from blossom to ripened fruit. There are over 14,000 photolytic chemical constituents of nutrition in each one of these foods (modern science has only studied and named about 141 of them). Figs are full of seeds and hang in twos when they grow. Figs increase the motility of male sperm and increase the numbers of sperm to swell to overcome male sterility.” “Sweet potatoes look like the pancreas and actually balance the glycemic index of diabetics,” we are told. “Olives assist the health and function of the ovaries. Grapefruits, oranges, and other citrus fruits look just like the mammary glands of the female and actually assist the health of the breasts and the movement of lymph in and out of the breasts. “Onions look like body cells. Today’s research shows that onions help clear waste materials from all of the body cells. They even produce tears which wash the epithelial layers of the eyes.” What a good article. The original had beautiful pictures that made the piece sing. Like an individual wave rising from the ocean, it is not separate from the ocean. Just so, anything truly organic is ancient and anything ancient is organic.
My first review will be on Ancient Organics brand ghee. They are fully worthy of the high honor. Ghee is an essential to Ayurvedic cooking. It is a rasayana (medium), it is a food, it is a nectar. Well, just read the article linked to above. I met the guy who makes this ghee at last year’s Ayurvedic Conference. I was impressed by his clarity, calmness, and glow even in the midst of the rajasicvendor spaces. He explained to me that the ghee is made under the full moon when its powers peak. Mantras are said. I waited until a friend ordered some. I might have been put off by the price: 32.50 for 32 ounces, plus substantial shipping and handling. (They now offer smaller jars.) I had some and I was convinced. If you use ghee, this is real ghee, the right way. The taste is smooth, cooler and denser but less oily than other commercial ghees. The color is richer, perhaps from the higher chlorophyll diet of these cows. They use Stauss fermented butter for extra Agni. (There is lots of information on how they do everything on the company’s website.) It’s not just marketing pap. I was a tad bit cynical at first, but the free sampling won me over in an honest way. My friend uses it on everything now and I’m convinced, it is THE ghee to use, for cooking and for medicines. I may review other ghees, but the reviews will all be in the negative. This is the first commercial ghee that feels like its life force is intact. An interesting trivia is that Ancient Organics ghee was determined by Gourmet magazine to be the best “butter” in America. That used to be on the Ancient Organics website but now is not. I don’t blame them for removing it. Anyway, I wish them well in their height of gheedom. Ayurvedic Healing Cuisine by Harish Johari is my favorite go-to book for Ayurvedically innovative recipes that reach to the heart of old India.
It has a decent introduction to Ayurveda for those just starting out, yet can also finally answer those more esoteric questions of how to for example, properly use cumin seeds or bitter gourd. It is a complete recipe book too in the sense that everything from chutneys to chai is covered. My favorite recipe is Chickpea Soup with (Fresh) Garam Masala, on page 113. It’s like poha, simple, but delightful (like all his recipes actually) and a wow-er. All his recipes are so delicate and strong and sensitive. (Gosh, sounds like a good man — sorry, couldn’t resist.) I do not doubt that if one ate from the recipes in the book for 3 weeks (perhaps with an Ayurvedic consultant to point out appropriate recipes) and did yoga with breathing, healing would be obtained. The late wonderful Harish Johari was a Vedic man, writing books on Tantra, Cooking, Ayurveda and more. They all are exceptional: beautiful, simple, and powerful; a tasty sampling of the perfect life. Pleased with myself and my poha, I told my guests yesterday, “Thank you for coming. Without eaters there would be no food.” (It would just be stuff on a plate, otherwise.)
My friend piped back, “Without food there would be no eaters.” Ah, the elegant dance of life. Talk about Pitta reducing! (The sweet and rose tastes and the prabhav of lime all reduce pitta.)
Perfect for summer. Rose Limeade 1 quart filtered water 2-3 freshly squeezed limes 1 cup rose water (can be found in Indian stores) Agave to taste Mix. This was courtesy of our friends at Peaceful Meadow Retreat. There are many good recipes for kitcheri, an important food for Ayurvedic cleansing and maintenance.
My guests and I however seem to like best when the dal (beans) are separated out from the rice and vegetables. I guess I appreciate the leela of divided colors and textures. Here’s my recipe for dal soup, a protein centerpiece of the triumvirate. serves four: Take 1/2 cup of unsoaked split mung beans 3 cups of filtered water Put in pot. Stir to reduce sticking. Allow to boil. Reduce heat and simmer (at boil point) for 30 minutes. Add: 1/4-1/2 teaspoon of salt (I like black salt the best for this.) 1-2 teaspoons turmeric Bring to a boil again. Allow to simmer for another half hour, after which the beans are soft enough to be edible. Add the following, stirring after each: 1 teaspoon cumin 1 teaspoon coriander 1 teaspoon garam masala a sprinkle of chili powder a sprinkle of cinnamon a sprinkle of asafoetida Let simmer for 15 minutes. Serve hot with rice and vegetables on the side. Tridoshic. Cooking is the first line of Ayurveda.
Many of us know that the smallest thing ingested can cause pain or incredible delight. The Indian cook, and every Indian grandmother, knows about the 6 tastes and the 3 doshas of Ayurveda. These principal themes of Ayurveda are essential to yummy food, good health, and happiness. What amazes me too about cooking is that you help someone create their experiences, whether mystical, emotional, or physical. For example, good food has sattva quality, helping people make sattvic decisions and have sattvic experiences. Cooking then is a way to create the universe. I think it is very exciting stuff. I hope here to present recipes, reviews of cooking materials and books, and the connections a good cook makes. Yum (the heart seed syllable) to food! A good pot is a beautiful thing. It is sturdy, reliable, trustworthy, able to withstand abuse and yet supports the creation of amazing things other than itself.
It is the symbol for Aquarius ruled by a lord Shani, Saturn, who represents responsibility, duty, hard work, and perseverence. What cook doesn’t know the rewarding gleam of a pan after the cleansing ritual of washing dishes? The pot can be used again and again, selflessly giving of itself once more to the betterment of the whole, just like a Kumbha, Aquarius. And we are all an Aquarius somewhere in our lives. I am especially fond of Korean old style handmade pots that were hand thrown with a small intentional flaw. They indeed recall the forms of ourselves, never perfect, but perfectly so. |
ARTICLESAuthorRenay Oshop - teacher, searcher, researcher, immerser, rejoicer, enjoying the interstices between Twitter, Facebook, and journals. Categories
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