Day 4: The Seasons Have Their Reasons

"Live each season as it passes; breathe the air; drink the drink; taste the fruit; and resign yourself to the influence of each." --Henry David Thoreau

Reflections:

Spring: Earth, water, rich, fertile, lubrication, solid, moist, growth, grounded.

Summer: Hot, charged, dry, sharp, burning, radiant.

Fall (and early Winter): Wind, ether, Dry, cold, rough, light, moving.

Food for Thought:

Spring's harvest is predominantly dry and is the antidote to the mucus-producing rains & moisture; it also prepares the body for Summer. Examples are sprouts, leafy greens, mushrooms, grapefruits, citrus, some roots & berries. The harvest is naturally low fat and much of it has fat burning properties.

Summer's harvest is abundant in green vegetables & fruits which cools accumulating heat. Accumulated heat will dry out the body if not tended to by clearing it out with summer sweet & cool foods like apple, pomegranates & melons.

Fall's harvest is abundant in lubricating nuts, grains & meats; high protein & fat packed options to keep us warm during those cold, dark months. Fall/early Winter is when the body most effectively stores proteins fats, minerals & vitamins. A diet rich in these nutrients builds in the body as reserve for the rest of the year.

Ayurvedic Constitutions:

Individuals, like food, are Spring, Summer & Winter types also. In Ayurveda they are called Kapha, Pitta & Vata constitutions, respectively. It is unusual to find a person who is strictly predominant in one of these constitutions types. Most of us are a combination of these, usually with a primary and secondary type. Today, let us look at what the textbook kapha, pitta, vata individual is like...

Do you know someone who has a sturdy frame, muscular, has a great memory, has thick, strong hair and nails, cool & moist skin, gives great hugs, is warm, calm and easy-going? This is a balanced Spring type or Kapha individual

Do you know someone has a warm body temperature, sweats easily, can eat anything (and digests it), has a sharp intellect, is a natural leader, is competitive, driven & strong willed? This is a balanced Summer type or Pitta individual.

Do you know someone who has a slender frame, tends to have cold hands & feet, articulate speech, has a quick mind, a creative resource, has good coordination, is mentally alert and prefers to keep busy? This is a Fall type or Vata individual.

Mungnificent, those sprouted beans

have multiplied in volume!

Quinoa & Sprouted Mung Salad

best for Pitta & Kapha

What you need:

Quinoa, red & white

Mung Sprouts

Arugula

Spring onion

Black pepper

Dressing:

Toasted Sesame oil

Ume plum vinegar

Brown rice vinegar

Bragg's

Sriracha hot sauce

Ginger

1 Lemon

Cook the quinoa. About 1 anguli of grain to 2 part water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat & cook for about 10 minutes; then cover & simmer low heat until fluffy.

Make the dressing. 4-6 counts of oil (more for the vata, less for kapha), Two splashes of ume plum vinegar. 2 counts of brown rice vinegar. 1 count of bragg's. 1 dash or squirt of sriracha. 1-2 angulis of ginger (see terms key), grated. 1/2 lemon.

Place ingredients in a blender or food processor. Zap. Black pepper and little salt to taste.

This dressing is modified from a recipe handed down by a friend, Cata, via my friend, Brittany;) I have substituted the sriracha with other hot sauces and the ume with balsamic vinegar. The

ume plum vinegar is a divine flavor worth checking out. The sesame, ginger & bragg's is what really binds this dressing together. Bragg's is now making a very similar dressing which is available in organic. This is great for saving time!

Chop Arugula and in a bowl mix all ingredients including 2 angulis of mung bean sprouts. This is a great salad! Cool & cleansing.

A Forager's Cabbage

best for Pitta & Kapha

What you need:

1 head of cabbage (today I am using a beautiful Savoy Cabbage)

1 large Chanterelle mushroom

Corn or sunflower oil

Black mustard seeds

Cumin seeds

Turmeric

Asafoetida

Sea salt

Coriander powder

Lemon juice

Honey

Chop cabbage & mushrooms into shreds. Heat oil in large pan or caste iron skillet and add the mustard seeds, cumin, asafoetida & mushrooms. When the mustard seeds begin to pop, add turmeric, cabbage, salt, coriander powder & lemon juice. Cook about 10 minutes on medium heat. Take cabbage off heat and add the honey.

This dish is quite delectable. I can't get enough of it when I make it.

Cabbage, high in minerals like calcium, vitamin C & A, is not the best balancing vegetable for someone with a Fall/early Winter constitution or imbalance; however, the mustard seeds, cumin and asafoetida help make it digestible for those individuals on special occasions.

Mushrooms are usually harvested in the wet & moist season when the earth is saturated in water, but can also be found in the Summer. They are astringent, sweet and pungent. They are also cool, dry and light making them great for Spring & Summer (kapha & pitta seasons), but, are generally unsuitable in the Fall/early Winter or for those type individuals (vata). They move excess fluid out of the body & significantly support immunity with B vitamins & germanium. Ayurveda says that mushrooms are tamasic in excess, meaning they will dull the mind and senses. So it is best to limit your mushroom intake to seasonal and fresh.

"Diets may work at first but they will later fail. Eating seasonally is our best diet. There are no absolute restrictions because there are no bad foods; there are just foods which are better for you when they are in season." Perfect Health for Kids ~Dr. John Doulliard

Keep posted: Capping off the week with a 101 on Ayurveda's signature one pot meal-Kichidi

Also,

when things go awry:

Constitutional imbalance

Day 3: Spring Greens, Beans, & Hibiscus Heaven Served

Healthy eating is conscious eating.

We continue with day 3, Spring (Kapha season), and the logic of nature with our food and lifestyle. You may have noticed a joy in yourself when seeing the color yellow these past few days. Yellow mustard flowers, yellow clothes, yellow umbrellas... Warm and bright yellow is used in kapha reducing therapy. It has the power to uplift and stimulate the heaviness and slowness that Kapha characteristically possesses. Other colors that balance kapha are warm, bright orange, gold and red. Warm gems are used also, such as ruby and cat's eye.

Let us continue with balancing the moist, heavy, cool, slow effects of Spring upon the earth with our highlight food this week, the mung bean!

Your beans have now grown tails.

(To learn how to sprout mung beans, begin

with Day 1: Divine Offering)

Greens & Sprouted Beans

serves 2-4

What you'll need:

One large pot and/or a steamer

One bunch of chopped leafy greens: rainbow chard and/or collard greens, etc

One bunch of broccolini chopped in large bite sizes

Ghee (see ghee below)

Black pepper

Bragg's (equivalent to tamari or soy sauce; I just started using it in a spray bottle and it's fantastic because you end up using much less.)

Sprouted mung bean

A clove of garlic

Set up your steamer. Add the leafy greens and broccolini. Lightly steam (until they turn bright green and are just tender to the fork; this way you maintain the nutritional value of the greens, for instance, chard and collards are astringent and primarily blood purifiers. They also have an extremely high calcium content and are high in vitamins A & C.)

Then place your greens into a bowl, add 2 anjulis (see terms key) of sprouted mung beans , add approximately the equivalent of 2 angulis of ghee, add 2-3 sprays of bragg's, lastly add 1 crushed clove of raw garlic to the hot greens and mix. The aroma of the garlic will enchant. The benefits of the garlic will also be at it's most potent being raw and just warmed.

Enjoy with basmati rice cooked with 3-4 peppercorn or cloves.

And, what are the benefits of garlic???

Garlic is another Kapha reducing food. It is hot, drying and it possesses the tastes of sweet, salty, pungent, astringent and bitter. Garlic is antibacterial, antifungal, antidiabetic, reduces blood pressure and promotes digestion. The benefits of garlic are many. Ayurveda teaches that garlic is good. Excess usage of garlic, however, is tamasic, dulling to the mind and to the senses.

I could easily dedicate this whole day to ghee; however, I will wait until Summer time to really get into the amazing goodness of it. For now, being that it is Kapha season, oils should be used sparingly and we should receive our EFA's that come naturally from our food. (An exception would be if you are feeling dry, cold, rough, spacey, shakey, or have joint pain (general Vata season characteristics). One important thing to note about ghee is what it is. Ghee is clarified butter. The milk solids have been removed. It is considered medicine and gold in Ayurveda. Ghee builds ojas, the essential energy of our body which is equated with immunity and vigor. (For more see How To Make Ghee)

Hibiscus Heaven

Makes 4-6 cups

Filtered water

Dried hibiscus flowers

Cinnamon

Dry ginger powder (fresh can also be used instead)

Jaggery (panela, or a concentrated juice sweetener)

Pour 1 1/2-2 quart jars (like one in foto just above) worth of filtered water into a pot.

Add a 5 finger pinch of hibiscus flowers to water

Add one or two pinches of dry ginger

Bring to a boil then turn down the heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes

Add 1 stick of cinnamon (1 stick is about 3-4 angulis (finger digits); approximately one anguli per cup)

Lastly, add a quarter size rock of jaggery, or use a concentrated juice sweetener to taste at the end.

And allow to simmer another 5 minutes

Remove from heat an serve warm if it's a cool spring day. Serve room temperature if it's a warm spring day. (If you are running hot or it's really hot out, add ice and ahhhh, you have a cooler.)

I think I love this time of year because I love this brew. Enjoy!

Hibiscus is named japa in sanskrit, the language of Ayurveda. Japa is another word for mantra, and it is said that this beautiful deep red herb strengthens devotion in meditation. Hibiscus flowers are used to destroy life's spiritual and material obstacles. They promote wisdom & purify the heart. Hibiscus is a cooling herb used to reduce the effects of summer heat and for treating fever. Because of its astringent taste it pacifies kapha making it a good spring time brew, especially on the warm days. In the body, hibiscus is a blood cleanser and is especially beneficial for the kidneys, for reproduction, it improves complexion and enhances normal hair growth. It is commonly used by Ayurvedic practitioners to regulate the menstrual flow. The tea normalizes blood pressure and has a protective effect on the heart.

Cinnamon is heating & drying. It has a sweet, spicy and astringent taste. This is a great spice to reduce the effects of Spring (Kapha season) and Winter (Vata season) and is best avoided in the Summer (Pitta season). This warming herb is a fantastic addition to the hibiscus brew we are making today. It is also used to promote menstruation and is a muscle relaxant. Cinnamon increases general vitality, counteracts congestion, stops diarrhea, improves digestion, relieves abdominal spasms, and is used is Ayurvedic formulas to treat diabetes. If you are pregnant, be conservative with cinnamon because large amounts can irritate the stomach.

This brew has a pinch of dry ginger per 4 cups. I could dedicate a whole other day to ginger because it is one of the most widely and successfully used herbal medicines in the world for the most varied conditions. Ginger is commonly known by herbalists as "the universal medicine". For now I will simply mention that ginger is warming and it's taste is pungent. It reduces the kapha effects of Spring. It increases circulation, promotes digestion and reduces phlegm in the lungs(and it is another herb used in women's formulas for menstrual cramps).

Continue rinsing your sprouted mung beans 2x/day to keep off any funk, and keep them covered and cool. Watch those tails grow!

Stay Posted: Tomorrow, A Forager's Cabbage, A Delectable Quinoa Salad and more!

Day 2: Spring Clean Mung Bean Pancakes.

"Without proper diet, medicine is of no use.

With proper diet, medicine is of no use." -Ancient Ayurvedic proverb

The fundamentals of this recipe got me very excited when I first heard about it from a fellow Ayurvedic practitioner. We were working together and used it as an alternative for a client who needed a lighter, yet satisfying breakfast. Our client had a kapha imbalance (an excess of oil, heaviness & dampness in the body), and had been eating cheese with fruit and nuts every morning. I know, sounds good, but traditional wisdom like Ayurveda teaches us that cheese has kapha qualities. It is a cold acting, moist, oily and hard to digest food that is increases kapha. Cheese is best eaten soft, very fresh (homemade is best), in the Fall-early Winter (Vata season), and it's good in the Summer (Pitta season).

When eating Ayurvedically with the seasons, springtime is when we are highly susceptable to mucus build-up, colds, allergies and other kapha aggravations. Eating large quantities of food that contain the elements of Kapha, water & earth, will increase Kapha. These foods are heavy, dense, sweet, oily and moist. These foods include nuts, seeds, avocado, banana, and melons. Other Kapha increasing things are overeating, eating while experiencing sadness or grief, a sedentary lifestyle, sleeping to much or sleeping after meals or during the day. So this time of year reduce your intake of Kapha aggravating foods and get active.

The wisdom of nature also teaches us that we should never mix 2 concentrated proteins together, like dairy & nuts, or any concentrated protein with fruit, like dairy with fruit. These combinations chemically confuse the digestive process. Food particles go undigested, become harmful bacteria and are toxic to the body. Every time I mention this to someone new to Ayurveda or unfamiliar with the idea of proper food combining, they are overcome with shock and disbelief. Yes, we culturally grew up with and love cottage cheese and fruit, strawberry ice-cream, fruit and dairy smoothies, cereal with banana and milk, creamy desserts with fruit or nuts... This can be heartbreaking to think about; but, if you train yourself to never do it, you notice the difference, and you get over it (then you suddenly cannot believe you ever did it!).

Fruit digests quickly and protein takes time. When eaten together fruit sits in the gut and ferments; we're talking bacterial growth that is not beneficial for the body. Over a lifetime, or even much less, this fermentation stresses the gut and problems result like a chronically sluggish metabolism, gas, bloating, coldness, cough, allergies, chronic respiratory problems, diabetes, heaviness, cysts, tumors, growths, depression, cloudiness, lethargy, and apathy. Next time you eat dairy and fruit combinations, notice how your body responds (and let me know what you discover!). You may notice gas, slight nausea or a rumbling belly. That is your body telling you that it's not properly assimilating what you've eaten. (For more on food combining see Ayurvedic Food Combining Principles.)

"It is likely that most gastrointestinal problems begin with poor food combining" -Dr. Vasant Lad

Ok, mung bean pancakes.

What you need:

Soaked mung beans

Ginger

Spring onion

Lemon

Turmeric

Cayenne

Black pepper

Salt

Corn or Sunflower oil

Optional- Fresh yourt & dill

We've soak the beans overnight (visit Day 1: A Divine Offering to recap).

The volume of the beans has approximately doubled. Rinse your beans well.

This recipe makes for 2-3 people.

Gather 2 1/2 anjalis of the soaked beans. Set aside the remaining beans.

2-3 angulis of ginger (finger digits, from tip to knuckle; one anguli per person or less for a milder effect)

one or two stalks of spring onion

3-6 pinches of turmeric

2-3 pinches of salt

2-3 pinches of cracked black pepper

a dash of cayenne

1/2 to whole juice of a lemon

about 3-4 counts of corn (best) or sunflower (good) oil.

Place all ingredients in a food processor and process. A blender can work. Instead of adding more oil (if needed) add a little water to blend well.

Coat a pan or iron skillet with some oil. Heat on a medium-low flame. Spoon a large dollup of mix onto pan.

Allow the first side to become golden and firm. With a spatula, flip and flatten. Cook other side golden firm.

A great condiment to these pancakes is a little yogurt mixed with some dill. Both yogurt and dill have a warming effect. With the warmth of the pungent onion, black pepper & cayenne, along with the astringency of turmeric and alkaline effects of mung and lemon, you have a winning combination for the Spring season and your hungry loved ones.

* Note: If you are feeling any sort of Kapha imbalance like those mentioned above, use the yogurt & dill sauce sparingly and consult with your nearest Ayurvedic practitioner.

TO SPROUT the remaining MUNG BEANS:

They have been rinsed well. Place them alone in the pot or bowl and cover them. This simulates the experience of a bean being in the cool, moist, dark earth but with out the dirt. Over the next 3-4 days rinse your beans at least 2x per day and watch the sprout grow!

Stay Posted, Tomorrow:

Sprouted mung with warm greens & ghee

And,

Hibiscus heaven!

Today, boost metabolism and reduce Kapha in the body...

Walk in the sun, well wrapped so that you retain the heat you absorb and sip small amounts of well diluted ginger tea through out the day.

Blessings!

Day 1: A Divine Offering

Añjali means divine offering. When you bring together your palms in front of your heart, a common greeting for Buddhists or Hindis, that is called anjali mudra.

The scoop is this: when cooking, the volume of food that you can hold in two hands is called an anjali.This is Nature's way of determining the appropriate amount food you need to consume.

"In the Vedas, the hands and feet are referred to as "organs of action." By using our organs of action, we engage in the moment-to-moment remembering of the five elements of our nature. Our hands are vital extensions that enable us to touch, and be touched with, creation. Ayurveda exhorts us to use our body as the ruler and measuring cup for our needs...

In keeping with this principle, you need to become comfortable using your hands and eyes for all measuring. In Sanskrit, the term anjali refers to the volume that can be held by your two hands cupped together. An anjali of grain or vegetables from your own hands is designed by Nature to fill your stomach...

Likewise gauge your spices or accents with your own pinch. Like your handful, it is tailored to provide a suitable amount for your own personal needs. Angula refers to the distance between the jointsof each finger. This unit of measure is cosmically designed to gauge spices and herbs, such as cinnamon sticks and ginger...

Use only those tools that are absolutely neccessary. As soon as possible, give up using measuring cups, spoons, and useless kitchen paraphernalia. These adjuncts are distracting and interrupt your direct energetic exchange with the food."

From Ayurveda: a Life of Balance by Bri Maya Tiwari

Many of the recipes and food preparation instructions here will be measured by hands, digits and approximations. This is to enhance our connection to the sensual world we live in; as well as to build our intuitive strength when preparing foods.

So, I left you last with more than a whisper of Spring; a time of rebirth, of renewal, of burgeoning sexuality and of completing the projects from Winter, so we can move forward, freshly and open to the creative juiciness of this season. Nature is so intelligent, that when a season comes around, the appropriate foods which are readily available at that time are the ones we should consume more of so that we can maintain good health. Spring is a season of dampness, coolness and heaviness; the earth is cool and richly soak with rains. In Ayurveda these qualities are the ones of Kapha. Kapha is a physiological process consisting of earth & water. To balance kapha we should include more foods (see Grocery List for Kapha Season) and lifestyle practices of a pungent (spicy), astringent (pucker/drying), bitter (clearing) nature. Mung beans are one of the few legumes that can balance the effects of all seasons. It produces little gas, cools the blood and supplies high amounts of protein. When cooked and seasoned with warming spices, it is a wonderful food for the Fall/early Winter or vata season. (In general sprouted legumes should be used sparingly or warmed if you have a more willowy, thin boned, cold body type, or are experiencing a lot of dryness or spaciness (vata constitution)). Sprouting mung in the Spring and Summer makes these legumes alkaline, making them rich in minerals and chlorophyll to clean the blood. It's pretty exciting; this is truly a living food!

These are mung beans, available whole, split with skin & split without skins. Use the whole bean for sprouting. In San Francisco, Rainbow & Nijiya groceries carry the whole bean variety. Ayurveda teaches us that the whole food is the better food because by nature it has everything we need in order for it to be fully assimilated.

My methods for sprouting mung beans have been experimental and without any fancy sprouting equipment. You only need a pot or ceramic bowl with a lid on it. The first step in preparing the beans is to soak them overnight. Measure out 2 1/2 anjalis of the dry bean into a colander to serve 2-3 people (over the course of 4 days, or 4-6 people over the course of 2 days)

Rinse and sort out any foreign matter.

Place beans in a pot or bowl and cover with water in a 1:2 ratio. Place lid on the pot; go to bed.

Keep posted:

TOMORROW The big rinse and Mung Bean Pancakes. We will continue with day 2/step 2 of sprouting the beans and begin using them in recipes. Yummm, pancakes...

Mung Bean Sprout!

It's officially Spring or Kapha Season one week from today! This the time of new beginnings, creative endeavors & cleansing. We are in a period which Ayurveda calls ritusandhi, or the junction between two seasons. Ritusandhi lasts two weeks before and two weeks after the season crossover. This is an ideal time to modify your diet and eat foods that facilitate a lightening of the body and clearing of the blood to prepare it for the approaching warm days. Now is a time for legume sprouts and spring vegetables; a generally lighter fare compared to Winter's heavier foods.

Spring/kapha season is a time of moist, cool, heavy and fertile energy. The season affects you whether you are aware of it or not. We are slowly moving into a time of activity, like the hibernating bear coming out of it's den; it's slow going. This is a time to gradually increase your exercise & it's intensity. Also a time to eat more bitter & astringent veggies. We are more susceptible to getting sick; so this is a good time to use your jal neti pot, use pungent spices like black pepper & cayenne, drink teas with orange peel, cloves or strawberry leaf, use lemon & honey, & keep the echinacea on hand. Ayurveda asserts that we are affected by nature in every way; also that we are by nature designed to be self-healing. It's through proper food and routines that we can align ourselves with what is gong on in our environment.

Grocery List of for Kapha Season

Fruit

Dried

Vegetables

Alfalfa sprouts

Bean sprouts

Beet greens

Brussel sprouts

Burdock root

Cabbage

Carrots

Cauliflower

Celery

Chicory

Chilies, dried

Fresh Corn

Collard Greens

Daikon radish

Garlic

Green beans

Kale

Leafy greens

Lettuce

Mushrooms

Mustard greens

Onions

Parsley

Peas

Spinach

Sprouts

Swiss chard

Turnips

Turnip greens

Watercress

Grains

Corn

Millet

Rye

Protein

Goyas

Lima

Kidney

Mung

Sweetener

Raw Honey

Spices

Black pepper

Cayenne

Cloves

Oils

Corn

Teas

Pungent (spicy) teas

Cardamom

Chicory

Cinnamon

Cloves

Dandelion

Ginger, esp. dry

Hibiscus

Orange peel

Strawberry leaf

Stay tuned for 5 days with Sprouted Mung Beans, beginning this Monday. I will introduce you to mung beans, sprouting and more. Posts will include easy ayurvedic recipes, ideas, suggestions, and photographs to support you transition from Winter into Spring!

Once again we shall

See the snow melt,

Taste the flowing sap,

Touch the budding seeds,

Smell the whitening flowers.

Know the renewal of life.

-From an Anishnabeg (Ojibway) Thanksgiving for Spring

For more information contact me at ayurvedamama@gmail.com