The Buddha Bowls

What's a yoga retreat without buddha bowls? 

    This endearing term for what is essentially a healthy, cruelty-free bowl of taste explosions, was proposed by my best friend, Hayley. She undoubtedly saw this on a menu or blog somewhere so I am not claiming that either of us came up with the term. But a "buddha bowl" can really be anything you want it to be. Choose a whole grain like brown rice or quinoa, and top it with veggies and sauce. 

 

 

Cafe gratitude specializes in what I would qualify as buddha bowls. My favorite being: 

I AM GRACIOUS Hemp seed pesto bowl with brown rice or quinoa, shredded  kale, tomatoes  and brazil nut parmesan drizzled with olive oil and topped with sprouts 

Hayley said she usually makes hers with "all kinds of veggies, steamed or raw", a chipotle cashew sauce, and tops it with avocado. Or sometimes she just pours her famous vegetarian chili over some quinoa for a "Mex version".

For the yoga retreat, this dish was Saturday dinner, and I made the "bowls" with toasted quinoa, roasted butternut squash, sauteed kale, and drizzled over some hot and spicy red curry. 

It's safe to say that this dish was the number one favorite of the yogis. They were literally scrounging for more even after second helpings had been served. This recipe may be so loaded with deliciousness, it will have you believing the old expression, "never enough of a good thing," So on that note, let me remind you of the fourth Yama from the 8 limbed path:

Bramacharya

Describing the eight limbs of yoga is a long discussion in itself, all you need to understand, for the purpose of this post, is that the ancient practitioners of yoga compiled a system about how to practice their craft, as a way of reaching a truly deep meditative state called Samadhi, a sort suspension of the mind and what some believe to be a 'holy' type of experience. Samedhi is the eighth limb, but before that are 7 steps, one of which is breath, another is postures, but the first being a code of ethics to ensure that the yogi interacts harmoniously with their surrounding community. Among this list of ethics we find our word, bramacharya.

Some interpret this word as "sexual purity," or "celebacy," but these days, most interpret this ethical precept as "moderation" or "self restraint."

I encourage you to look for ways that you can observe bramacharya in your daily life. For me, it's not always getting dessert, or sometimes it means skipping a day of exercise because my body would do better with rest. Moderation doesn't always mean cutting back on the things you enjoy however, sometimes it can mean allowing yourself to have a little fun when you find yourself taking things too seriously.

 

I haven't done this in a while, so I'm pairing this recipe with Toe Stand. A pose that requires great balance. It's not often that a teacher calls this pose out in class, but it always takes me back to my Bikram days. Great for the fascia in your feat, and the steadiness of your mind.

Starting from a standing tree, or figure-four pose, bend your standing leg and rise up on the tips of your toes. You may need to balance on your fingers at first, but eventually your hands release the earth and you find balance.

"Health is the greatest gift, contentment the greatest wealth, faithfulness the best relationship."
-Buddha  

The Catalina Island Buddha Bowl

For yogis who attended the retreat and want to recreate this exactly, I've even provided the type of curry sauce that I used. Happy cooking.

Ingredients: 

• 1 Butternut squash, peeled & cubed
• 2 cups dry quinoa 
• 4 cups water
• 1 bunch tuscan or cavolo nero kale, chopped
• 1 can curry paste
• 2 cans of coconut milk
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

step 1.
    Get your squash in the oven, as this will take the longest. Roast for about an hour with a little olive oil and salt @ 375 or until tender. 

step 2.
   Toast your quinoa over medium high heat in a large sautee pan until most of it has obtained a little golden color. This adds a nutty flavor and keeps the quinoa from getting mushy. Add the water and bring to a boil, then cover and simmer on low heat until the little spirals of the grain start to show. Test for consistency.

Maesri Brand Curry Paste

step 3.
   While your quinoa is simmering, begin your curry. Follow the directions for whichever curry paste you prefer. I like Maesri, and the direction say to warm it in a small pan and slowly stir in about 1/4 cup coconut milk at a time. I always use a little more coconut milk than the recipe calls for. With Maesri, I use 2 cans of coconut milk to 1 can of paste. Keep warm until ready to serve.

step 4.
   Drizzle some olive oil in a skillet and saute kale until it reaches a dark green color or a favorable consistency.

step 5.
   Build your bowl. Start with a few scoops of quinoa, toss in some kale and squash, and spoon over that tasty curry sauce. 

enjoy....

....in moderation.

 

Milk & Cookies

I spent the last two weeks or so experimenting with Gluten-Free recipes. I love wheat, but I thought it'd be fun to give a few other whole grains a try. First I made pizza dough, which I will admit went pretty well, but it's not quite ready for the blog. And then, quite unexpectedly, I found myself making Gluten-Free cookies. Here's how it happened:

I was at the farmer's market, buying my favorite honey-roasted almond butter. I had $5 left and I decided to buy a couple scoops of raw almonds. And then I remembered that I'd been meaning to try making almond milk, so I asked the kid (literally pre-teen) who was manning the tent until his parents returned, "Do you know how to make almond milk?" He quickly replied, "One cup almonds, two cups water, blend until milky and strain." Done. I just had to pick up some cheese cloth at whole foods, and I also grabbed a few dried dates and figs, and then I was on my way home to make milk.

Almond Milk:
4 cups raw almonds (soaked in water overnight)
8 cups water
4-5 pitted dates or  dried black mission figs ( I went half and half)
1-2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon

Equipment:
Blender/Food processor
Cheese Cloth
Hand Held Strainer
Pitcher 
1 Cheese cloth

Soak almonds in water overnight and then strain. Add 1 cup of almonds, 2 cups of water, 1 date or fig, 1/2 tsp of vanilla, and a few dashes of cinnamon to a blender or food processor. Blend until finely pureed and milky. Place a hand-held strainer over a bowl or pitcher and line with cheese cloth.

Pour almond mixture over the cheese cloth and when most of the liquid has drained, rinse and twist the cloth with your hands to extract as much liquid as possible.*Save the sweet almond paste that is left over and place in the refrigerator. Repeat until all the almonds have been milked and your pitcher is full. Add more cinnamon or vanilla to taste.

This was surprisingly easy and it's extremely rewarding. I felt sooo good about pouring that milk over my cereal in the morning. And for this reason, I have decided to pair this recipe with a poem about bliss, the feeling I got when I poured this bowl of cereal (Poem featured at end of entry).

 And so, suddenly blessed with a large quantity of fresh almond meal, i began looking for a recipes. I found a good one in Gwyneth Paltrow's 'my father's daughter'. It's actually her mother, Blythe Danner's, recipe (and I love Blythe so it was settled). Coincidentally, my best friend Hayley had also just sent me her recipe for gluten-free thumbprint cookies.

The two recipes are quite similar, so based on my tastes, and what I had in the kitchen, I came up with the following recipe, to me it is the best of both worlds.:

4 cups quinoa flour
3 cups fresh almond meal
1 cup melted coconut oil
3/4 cup maple syrup
zest of one lemon
1 tsp salt
tiny pinch of baking soda
1 jar of jam/preserves (I used Quince Jam)

Combine ingredients (except for the jam) until a dough is formed. Form into tablespoonful balls and space evenly on a parchment-lined cookie sheet. Using your thumb or index finger, make an indent in each cookie and fill with a small spoonful of jam. (At this point if you put the cookies in the fridge for about 30 min. they will hold their shape better). Bake for 20 minutes or until slightly golden.

I could not get my hands off these guys; And i didn't feel one shred of guilt. Also, I brought a batch to the yogi potluck to celebrate the completion of teacher training (more bliss). When I shared this recipe with my sister, she commented that I could survive the apocalypse.


Et, voila!  Milk and cookies from one $5 scoop of almonds!

 Song of The Soul - from 'Light on Yoga,' by B.K.S. Iyengar

I am neither ego nor reason, I am neither mind nor thought,
I cannot be hard nor cast into words, nor by smell nor sight ever caught:
In light and wind I am not found, nor yet in earth and sky -
Consciousness and joy incarnate, Bliss of the Blissful am I.

I have no name, I have no life, I breathe no vital air,
No elements have moulded me, no bodily sheath is my lair:
I have no speech, no hands and feet, nor means of evolution -
Consciousness and joy am I, and Bliss in dissolution.

I cast aside hatred and passion, I conquered delusion and greed;
No touch of pride caressed me, so envy never did breed:
Beyond all faiths, past reach of wealth, past freedom, past desire,
Consciousness and joy am I, and Bliss is my attire.

Virtue and vice, or pleasure and pain are not my heritage,
Nor sacred texts, nor offerings, nor prayer, nor pilgrimage:
I am neither food, nor eating, nor yet the eater am I -
Consciousness and joy incarnate, Bliss of the Blissful am I.

I have no misgiving of death, no chasms of race divide me,
No parent ever called me child, no bond of birth ever tied me:
I am neither disciple nor master, I have no kin, no friend -
Consciousness and joy am I, and merging in Bliss is my end.

Neither knowable, knowledge, nor knower am I, formless is my form,
I dwell within the senses but they are not my home:
Ever serenely balanced, I am neither free nor bound -
Consciousness and joy am I, and Bliss is where I am found.