Ingredients for tonight's dinner: cilantro (anti-inflammatory, digestive for Vata), leeks (immune boosting), carrots (Vitamin A, antioxidants), Swiss chard (bone health, antioxidants), sweet potato (blood sugar balancing), garlic (potassium, bone building minerals), cinnamon (digestive for Vata and Pitta), nutmeg (digestive for Vata, liver protection), rosemary (nerve tonic, anti-inflammatory), sage (anti-inflammatory,blood sugar balancing), salt (essential component for the body, iodine for thyroid health), and ghee (digestive, aids absorption of nutrients from food). Of course all these are also packed with vitamins and minerals!
Tonight I created another soup that my family and I prepared together. This is by far the best thing I have discovered this week! Here is the recipe:
Sweet potato and carrot soup
Ingredients:
-2 leeks, cut into 1/4 inch slices
-2 large sweet potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
-4 cloves garlic, chopped
-3 small sprigs rosemary
-5 leaves sage
-3 medium sized carrots, cut into 1/4 inch pieces
-pinch ground nutmeg
-pinch ground cinnamon
-ghee
-about 4 cups soup stock or vegetable broth
-4 spoonfuls cooked split yellow mung beans (I cooked a huge batch of these a couple days ago)
1. Place stock, mung beans, carrots, sweet potatoes, rosemary, sage, cinnamon, and nutmeg in large pot and start to simmer.
2. Put about 2 tbsp ghee in a pan and melt over medium heat. Add leeks and garlic and sautée until soft. Add to stock.
3. Increae heat to high and bring soup to a rolling boil, then reduce heat to simmer and cover. Simmer for 30 minutes or until carrots and potatoes are soft.
4. When soup is done cooking, remove rosemary sprigs.
5. Blend using hand mixer or blender.
6. Eat and enjoy!
Tonight I created another soup that my family and I prepared together. This is by far the best thing I have discovered this week! Here is the recipe:
Sweet potato and carrot soup
Ingredients:
-2 leeks, cut into 1/4 inch slices
-2 large sweet potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
-4 cloves garlic, chopped
-3 small sprigs rosemary
-5 leaves sage
-3 medium sized carrots, cut into 1/4 inch pieces
-pinch ground nutmeg
-pinch ground cinnamon
-ghee
-about 4 cups soup stock or vegetable broth
-4 spoonfuls cooked split yellow mung beans (I cooked a huge batch of these a couple days ago)
1. Place stock, mung beans, carrots, sweet potatoes, rosemary, sage, cinnamon, and nutmeg in large pot and start to simmer.
2. Put about 2 tbsp ghee in a pan and melt over medium heat. Add leeks and garlic and sautée until soft. Add to stock.
3. Increae heat to high and bring soup to a rolling boil, then reduce heat to simmer and cover. Simmer for 30 minutes or until carrots and potatoes are soft.
4. When soup is done cooking, remove rosemary sprigs.
5. Blend using hand mixer or blender.
6. Eat and enjoy!
Today was a trying day. I have been dealing with emotional cleansing, which unfortunately but necessarily brings forth the emotions one needs to cleanse. Today I have been dealing with stored anger, which was so deeply stored in my liver that I was unaware of it before my cleanse. I want to be clear that I am not venting my vitriol on anyone, but just feeling the emotions, examining their causes, and letting them go. It is a truly freeing experience.
I should tell you all as background that my house is not a quiet place. There is always chaos over here. We have four dogs, a cat, two chinchillas, and a twelve year old boy. One dog is just finishing potty training and another is in the midst of it. So while I have had my cleansing week, I have been home every day with dogs running about and getting into mischief. There is always someone other than me who needs caring for during the day.
One of the reasons I chose to cleanse at home was that it would force me to learn how to relax and be calm amid the noise of my everyday home.
Thankfully, my son is a very mature twelve. He has been training under me in Ayurveda and healing since the age of 5 when he began to learn the health benefits of different vegetables. He has been cooking with me all week and he always does the important job of washing the dishes each night. He has also been making healing teas for me all week. Today he gave me some wise words way beyond his years when I was getting flustered by our usual hectic Friday evening routine.
I decided last night that today was the day to clear anger. Earlier in the week I released grief and jealousy. Today the universe really tested my resolve because the dogs were extra wild, one of them urinated all over one of our couches, and our evening was hectic because we had some necessary errands to do before making dinner. Despite the chaos, I did let go of my poisonous anger today. I did decide that it's okay to feel angry when my dog pees on the couch...as long as I just feel it, then let it go and don't store it until my fall cleanse!
I should tell you all as background that my house is not a quiet place. There is always chaos over here. We have four dogs, a cat, two chinchillas, and a twelve year old boy. One dog is just finishing potty training and another is in the midst of it. So while I have had my cleansing week, I have been home every day with dogs running about and getting into mischief. There is always someone other than me who needs caring for during the day.
One of the reasons I chose to cleanse at home was that it would force me to learn how to relax and be calm amid the noise of my everyday home.
Thankfully, my son is a very mature twelve. He has been training under me in Ayurveda and healing since the age of 5 when he began to learn the health benefits of different vegetables. He has been cooking with me all week and he always does the important job of washing the dishes each night. He has also been making healing teas for me all week. Today he gave me some wise words way beyond his years when I was getting flustered by our usual hectic Friday evening routine.
I decided last night that today was the day to clear anger. Earlier in the week I released grief and jealousy. Today the universe really tested my resolve because the dogs were extra wild, one of them urinated all over one of our couches, and our evening was hectic because we had some necessary errands to do before making dinner. Despite the chaos, I did let go of my poisonous anger today. I did decide that it's okay to feel angry when my dog pees on the couch...as long as I just feel it, then let it go and don't store it until my fall cleanse!