Nepal Tibetan Arts Shop in Samui

Thought of posting this here for those who'd like to shop for a Tibetan singing bowl in Samui.

Success in Yoga through Moderation in Diet

"One who devoted to Yoga, practicing continence, moderation in diet and renunciation, attains, success in one year or a little more..." - Hathapradipika I:57

Potato Spinach Soup

Had this for dinner last night.

INGREDIENTS
2 large potatoes, peeled and diced
1 bunch spinach
1/2 cup green peas
1 vegetable stock cube
1 tsp sesame oil
salt and pepper to taste
sprinkle of dried rosemary
500ml water

INSTRUCTIONS
Bring the water to a boil then add the potatoes. Cook for about 10 minutes, then add the green peas, vegetable stock. Bring to a boil again and add the rest of the ingredients. Turn off the heat and let it cool for a moment before pureeing using a hand blender. Quick and tasty.

Vegetarian Chilli from Maria

Ingredients

2 tbsp olive oil
1 red onion, sliced
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1½ tsp mild chilli powder
2 green chillies, de-seeded and chopped
255g/9oz vegetarian mince such as Quorn
85g/3oz chestnut mushrooms, chopped
55ml/2fl oz red wine
450ml/16fl oz vegetable stock
400g/14oz can chopped tomatoes
400g/14oz can red kidney beans, drained
salt
freshly ground black pepper

Method
Heat the oil in a large frying pan. Toss in the onion and fry for 3-4 minutes.

Stir in the garlic, chilli powder, green chillies, vegetarian mince and mushrooms and fry until browned.

Pour in the red wine and, when this has evaporated, add the stock and the tomatoes. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes.

Add the kidney beans and simmer for a further 15 minutes.

Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Serve with corn bread and/or steamed rice and a spoon of tomato salsa.

Tofu, Broccoli, Eggplant with "Mapo Tofu" Sauce

This was breakfast, lunch and dinner today. Not that good but it was ok. This was the first time that I used the "Mapo Tofu Sauce". It's not quite the way I thought it should taste, but anyways.

INGREDIENTS:
Tofu
Broccoli, nuked for 1 minute
Eggplant
Lee Kum Kee Mapo Tofu Sauce
Vegetable Oil
Dash of Sesame Oil

INSTRUCTIONS
Fry the eggplant and tofu. Add the broccoli, stir fry for about 1 minute. Add the sauce. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve over steamed rice.

The Fellowship of the Cheesecake

Trin, Nicola, Livia, Jane & Nat, proudly present their cheesecakes. One of those afternoons at the Art Cafe by June in Bo Phut. ;-) Nicola liked the muffins more though.

Body Intelligence Tips

1. Eat in a settled atmosphere.
2. Never eat when you are upset.
3. Always sit down to eat.
4. Eat only when you feel hungry.
5. Reduce ice-cold food and drink.
6. Don't talk while chewing your food.
7. Eat at a moderate pace, neither too fast nor too slow.
8. Wait until one meal is digested before eating the next(2-4 hours for light meals and 4-6 hours for full meals).
9. Sip war water with your meal.
10. Eat freshly cooked meals whenever possible.
11. Minimize raw foods - cooked food is much easier to digest.
12. Do not cook with honey - heated honey is considered toproduce ama.
13. Drink milk separately from meals, either alone or withother sweet foods.
14. Experience all six tastes at every meal.
15. Leave 1/3 to 1/4 of your stomach empty to aid digestion.
16. Sit quietly for a few minutes after your meal.

Source: Perfect Health by Deepak Chopra. Three Rivers Press. NY 2000. pp310-311.

Food Journal 11-25

Breakfast at 6:45am
Split Mung bean with Butternut Squash (Pinoy Dhal)
Papadum
Rice

Coffee at 9am and 10:30am

Lunch at 12nn
Salad dish with humus and Arabic bread from the cafeteria

Dinner at 7:30pm
Same with breakfast

Food Journal 11-24

Breakfast at 7am

A bowl of Dorset muesli with slices of bananas, 1 tbsp brown sugar, laban.
1 pc toasted wheat bread with butter
1 cup of coffee with brown sugar

Tea at 10am

Lunch at 12nn

Pumpkin & Basil Stir Fry with Egg
Steamed Rice

Coffee at 3pm and 4 dates bar

Dinner 5:30pm
Felafel

Broccoli, Cabbage & Cashew Stir Fry

Had this for lunch today... a full plate!

INGREDIENTS
2 cups shredded cabbage
2 cups broccoli flowers
a handful of cashew nuts
2 cloves garlic, sliced into thin sticks
about 1 tsp ginger, sliced into thin sticks
1 tsp black sesame seeds
1 tsp roasted white sesame seeds
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp vegetarian oyster sauce
salt and pepper to taste

Laziness can be an advantage sometimes at it makes you explore your creativity, hehehe... yeah, I'm making an excuse for nuking the vegetables before stir frying them. 4o seconds on high.

Heat the vegetable oil in a wok or frying pan, add the ginger and garlic slices and stir fry for about a minute then add the sesame seeds, and sesame oil... stir fry for another minute... add the vegetables and cashews, stir fry for another minute... add the vegetarian oyster sauce, salt and pepper to taste... and serve over steamed rice. Sattvic? NOT... omit the garlic if you like... but that's probably one thing I will take a long time to let go of, hehehe... cheers.

It's dessert time. I'm having some chocolate balls now.

Chocolate Balls & A Cup of Hot Milk

Since I can't get Tim Tams in this part of the world... or maybe I'm just not looking hard enough... and I haven't asked Peter, my Aussie boss, if he knows where to get one... but anyways, I've found an alternative... Swedish chocolate balls and guilt-free chocolate balls with a cup of hot milk... hehehe... talk about sugar rush and chocolate addiction.

Recipe courtesy of Yoga Thailand recipe book. Glad I bought a copy. ;-)

Swedish Chocolate Balls

I want to be greedy and won't be share this recipe... hahaha... not. The cook book from where I got this recipe is at home so I won't be able to post the exact ingredients for now. Hopefully, I'll be able to visit this post again so I can update it.

INGREDIENTS

Oatmeal, cocoa powder, brown sugar, vanilla powder, 1 tbsp strong coffee powder dissolved in 1 tbsp water, butter at room temperature.

INSTRUCTIONS

Mix the dry ingredients all together in a large mixing bowl. Add the butter and mix well until there's no more lumps. Add the coffee, again mix well. Form into 1 tbsp balls and roll over freshly grated coconuts or coconut powder. Freeze for 20 minutes and it's ready to serve.

Guilt-Free Chocolate Balls

One of the favorite after meal sweet at Yoga Thailand.

INGREDIENTS
2 cups dates (the YT recipe book recommends apricots or figs for Kapha people)
2 cups raisins (I used 4 cups of dried mixed fruits instead of dates and raisins)
1 cup sunflower seeds (can't find shelled ones so I used walnuts)
1/4 cup black sesame seeds (or white if you can't get black)
2-3 tbsp cocoa powder (more if you like)
oil to facilitate grinding seeds (or tahini)
ground up peanuts, cocoa powder, or sesame for rolling (I used coconut powder in some)

INSTRUCTIONS
Soak the dried fruits for a couple of hours. Grind the sunflower seeds and sesame seeds in a blender, add a little oil to aid mixing. I used tahini to facilitate grinding. Didn't measure how much I put though but approximately 3-5 tbsp. Put the mixture in a large bowl. In the same blender, add the fruits minus the water and coarsely grind them and add to the seed mixture. Mix all ingredients well. Scoop 1 tbsp of the mixture and roll into a ball, and roll over ground nuts, sesame seeds or cocoa powder. I used coconut powder as I still had leftovers from the Swedish chocolate balls. I also used some Cadbury mint chocolate powder and it tasted just as heavenly.

Makes about 15-20 balls.

Freeze for 20 minutes and enjoy with a cup of hot milk or coffee.

French Toast with Fruits

A quick and easy to prepare breakfast.

INGREDIENTS:
4 pieces wheat bread
1 egg
1 cup milk
butter
cinnamon powder
Confectionary sugar

fruit slices of your choice

INSTRUCTIONS:
- Mix the egg and milk together.
- Dip one piece of wheat bread on the milk and egg mixture.
- Heat the pan and add a dab of butter.
- Cook the dipped bread on the pan for 1-2 minutes per side.
- Serve with fruit slices on the side and sprinkle cinnamon powder and/or confectionary sugar over the french toast. You can also pour honey or your favorite syrup over the toast.

Veggie Burger with Korean Barbeque Sauce

Had this for dinner the day I made veggie burger patties. A long overdue entry.

Too Lazy to Cook

Wow, suddenly this site has been visited by people from 15 different places around the world.

I told Maria yesterday that kitcherie is my "lazy day food". It's easy and quick to prepare. Just chop all the ingredients, nuke the potatoes and carrots to make sure they cook evenly with the rice and mung beans, dump everything into a rice cooker and do whatever you need to do while the cooker does the rest.

Today is even a lazier day though. Since I had to be at the University for the evening recreation activity program until 9pm last night, I went to bed late and of course, woke up this morning a bit late as well. Didn't have time to prepare proper lunch today so what's the solution? Steamed rice and canned beans with tomato sauce. Nutritious yes, but prana-wise, it must be deficient.

Breakfast was so-so. 2 pcs Pan de sal with herbed cheese. My meals are definitely not very colorful today. Hopefully I don't get too lazy tomorrow. Cheers.

Bikram Yoga Posture Seminar

Got this email just a couple of minutes ago. I've tried Bikram before when Tristan was still offering free classes at his parent's house in Greenhills. I think it's a good workout and really works out a sweat even though he didn't have heaters yet at that time.

I'm not sure if the experience would be the same if it was in a heated room though.

Rice Pudding with Lemon Sauce

LEMON SAUCE:
1/2 c. sugar
1 egg, separatedJ
uice of 1 lemon

PUDDING:
2 eggs, separated
1 c. milk
1/2 c. sugar or to taste
1 lemon, grated rind
2 c. cooked white rice (1 c. raw white rice equals 2 c. cooked)

Mix by hand: rice, sugar, milk and grated rind of 1 lemon with slightly beaten egg yolks. Beat egg whites until stiff and fold into rice mixture. Grease lightly medium casserole. Pour in pudding mix and sprinkle top with cinnamon. Bake 30 minutes at 350 degrees. In small saucepan, combine lemon juice, sugar and egg. Bring to a boil. Take from heat and whip egg white until stiff. Fold into lemon sauce, put back on low heat to cook egg whites until thickened, being careful not to burn sauce (about 1-2 minutes). We always double the sauce recipe because it's so good. Also can be used for bread pudding.

This recipe is from Cooks.com.

Kir

INGREDIENTS

1 cup white rice
1.5 cups water
1.5 cups low fat milk
1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
10 cardamom pods, seeds removed and crushed finely
1/4 tsp cinnamon powder

METHOD
Put everything in a rice cooker. Press "cook" and wait till done. Top with honey or brown sugar to serve. If you want a "soupy" meal, add more milk just before serving. Very sattvic.

Lemon Ginger Scone from Livia

My friend Livia sent me this recipe with a photo to match. Looks really yummy specially with cup of hot chocolate.

Baking is something I still need to learn though. I think I've only baked two things in my life so far, potatoes and macaroni to melt the cheese. Bummer.
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Lemon Ginger Scone

Scone Dough:

2 cups (280 grams) all purpose flour
1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated white sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (113 grams) (1 stick) unsalted butter, cold and cut into pieces
1/2 cup (70 grams) crystallized ginger, chopped into small pieces
Zest of 1 large lemon
2/3 cup (160 ml) buttermilk

Egg mixture for brushing tops of scones:

1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon milk

Makes 6 - 8 scones.

Instruction

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C) and place rack in middle of oven. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Cut the butter into small pieces and blend into the flour mixture with a pastry blender or two knives. The mixture should look like coarse crumbs. Stir in the chopped crystallized ginger and lemon zest. Add the buttermilk to the flour mixture and stir just until the dough comes together. Do not over mix the dough.

Transfer to a lightly floured surface and knead dough gently four or five times and then pat the dough into a circle that is about 7 inches (18 cm) round and about 11/2 inches (3.75 cm) thick. Cut this circle in half, then cut each half into 3 or 4 pie-shaped wedges (triangles). Place the scones on the baking sheet. Make an egg wash of one well-beaten egg mixed with 1 tablespoon milk and brush the tops of the scones with this mixture.

Bake for about 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Remove from oven and then turn your broiler on high. Sift confectioners (powdered or icing) sugar heavily over the tops of the scones and place them under the broiler. Broil for just a few seconds, turning the pan as necessary, until the sugar has melted and turns golden brown. Make sure to watch the scones carefully as the sugar will burn very quickly. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Note about buttermilk: If you are cannot find buttermilk or don’t have it in the fridge you can make your own buttermilk by adding 1 tablespoon of white distilled vinegar, cider vinegar, or lemon juice to 1 cup (240 ml) of milk. Just stir the vinegar into the milk and then let it stand 5 to 10 minutes before using.

Veggie Burger Patties

This recipe was a variation of what Tina gave me. Really yummy.

INGREDIENTS
1 medium potato, cubed and nuked for 2 minutes.
1 carrot, cubed and nuked for 1 minute.
1 cup bean sprouts, nuked for 30 seconds
1 cup rolled oats
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, minced
1 tsp dried rosemary
1 egg
salt and pepper to taste
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp olive oil
bread crumbs

Instruction:
1. Mix and mash everything except bread crumbs.
2. Form into patties and dust with bread crumbs before frying. Tina recommended grilling.
3. Make it a sandwich or eat with steamed rice. I had it plain with rice for lunch, then topped it with some home-made korean barbeque sauce and again with rice for dinner. Delicious!

Nutty Brown Rice Salad

A recipe from Maria. This recipe is for one person

Portion of cooked (steamed) brown rice
Small handful of cashew nuts
Small handful of raisins
1/3 grated carrot
handful of French (string) green beans, lightly cooked and roughly chopped
1 cm cubed piece of raw ginger grated or finely chopped
Sprinkle chilli flakes
Sprinkle of coriander
Squeeze of honey
Juice of ½ lime
Good splash of tamari (or regular soy sauce)

Method:Mix all ingredients togetherIts best to do it when the rice is still a little bit warm, then the honey lime soy dressing can really blend into everything
Keeps for a day or two. Enjoy

Ashtanga Workshop with Manju Jois

Bela emailed me some changes in the schedule Manju Jois visit to the Philippines. It was supposed to be a retreat at her new center in Samar. The schedule remains the same but instead of having it in Samar, it will be at the new yoga studio, Pulse Yoga, in Greenhills. I still won't be able to attend though because I still have work until December 12.

Here's the info:

Traditional Ashtanga Yoga with Manju Jois

Photo Credit

Biographical Information

Manju Jois, the oldest son of Sri K. Pattabhi Jois and recognized world wide as the foremost authority on Ashtanga Yoga, uses only the ancient practices, offering truly authentic guidance for all who wish to follow Ashtanga’s life enriching path to Enlightenment. Manju Jois began his own personal yoga practice at the age of 7 with his father as his Guru and began teaching at the age of 15. He has taught continuously throughout the world for the last 45 years.

Manju is dedicated to his mission of teaching the ancient tradition of Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga, for a total mind-body-spirit unification with Self and God. Manju and his father, Shri Pattabhi Jois, brought Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga to America in 1975 and Manju has traveled worldwide teaching this tradition as taught to Pattabhi Jois by his legendary teacher T Krishnamacharya.

Ashtanga Yoga

Ashtanga Yoga is a form of Hatha Yoga that uses a powerful sequence of postures combined with breath to create an internal heat that opens the muscles and purifies the body. Ashtanga Yoga is an ancient systematic practice of yoga that slowly builds in difficulty to allow students to safely access their full potential. Focus on breath, balance, and energy allows students to bring all their attention to the flow of postures in moving meditation. Ashtanga yoga is a rigorous, physically demanding practice in a heated room.

Manju will introduce the original Sanskrit counting method, helping students learn the correct breath sequence of Primary Series. A combination of meditation chants, pranayamas and asanas make each practice session the purest experience of Ashtanga Yoga. The Shanti Mantras, or Vedic Peace Chants, spread the benefits of practice beyond the self. Taking the time to learn and repeat the Shanti Mantras is very powerful -- having occasion to practice them with others is astounding. Manju offers truly authentic guidance for all who wish to follow Ashtanga’s life-enriching path to Enlightenment.

Manju’s dedicated life long mission is to provide training for students and teachers in the ancient traditions of authentic Ashtanga Yoga. He is honored to offer guidance to all who wish to learn and benefit from Ashtanga Yoga’s ancient and time-honored practices. Manju’s teaching style is spiritual, intensive, inspiring and humorous. He is renowned for assisting students deeper into poses. He honors the ancient Ashtanga tradition and teaches his students with clarity and enthusiasm. We invite you to join us. Enjoy this rare opportunity to learn from a genuine Indian Master as he guides you to “Unite with Yourself”. Ashtanga Weekend Workshops are suitable for all students of all levels.

*********************
*Friday Evening, 6:30 pm to 9:00 pm
Ashtanga Introductory Class (light practice ideal for beginners), Pranayama, Chanting, Discussion / Questions & Answers
1000 pesos

Saturday morning 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
In Exploring the Ashtanga System Manju will give an overview of the Ashtanga Yoga practice and conduct a led Primary Series. Participants will explore the use of Pranayama in the context of the Ashtanga practice as well as experience traditional Vedic chanting.

During The Primary Series and Beyond Manju will take students through the Primary Series to warm up the body and then explore the Second Series, working with each practitioner's abilities. This workshop will end with traditional Vedic chanting.
2500 pesos

Saturday afternoon 1:00 pm to 2:30 pm:
Pranayama, Chants, Discussion / Questions & Answers
700 pesos

*Sunday morning, 8:00am to 12noon
Mysore Practice, Pranayama, Chanting and Satsang

The Mysore Practice is a silent self-paced practice with individual assistance from Jois. Participants will go deeper into the practice of Pranayama and mantra with Jois, and the class will end with "satsang" (spiritual discourse).
2000 pesos

Weekend Package: 5,700 pesos

Students Should Bring:
A well hydrated and well rested body, refraining from eating at least 2 hours prior to the workshop. When eating, select foods like fresh fruit, vegetables, whole grains. Low acidic food choices are optimum. Wear loose comfortable clothes. Bring an open mind, body and spirit.

A Tortilla Recipe from Dave

cheese, sun dried tomato, olives, bell pepper all toasted in a totilla - good stuff! - Dave

Filipino Mung Bean Dish

This was a bit soupy than the original version though.

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup Split mung bean, soaked for 20 minutes
1 cup squash, cubed
2 cups broccoli leaves
1 vegetable stock cube
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 onion, sliced
6 cups water
Ghee
2 tbsp soy sauce
dash of black pepper powder
1 tbsp sesame oil

Instruction
1. Heat 1 tbsp ghee. Saute garlic and onion.
2. Add the beans, mix well.
3. Add the squash. Mix well.
4. Add water. Increase heat. Wait until the mixture boils. Then decrease the heat to minimum and cover.
5. Wait for 20-30 minutes.
6. Add the stock cube. Soy sauce. Black pepper. Mix well.
7. Add the leaves. Cover. Increase heat and wait for a few seconds. Turn off heat and allow the leaves to wilt.
8. Add sesame oil.
9. Serve over steamed rice.

Chocolates, anyone?

Photo Credit

More reasons to eat chocolates... at least the dark variety.

A Japanese study showed that dark chocolates can improve blood flow to the heart, lower blood pressure and reduce a person's risk of diabetes.

The study showed that eating 1.4 ounces of dark chocolates per day for two weeks may improve coronary circulation. Again, 1.4 ounces only!!! That's about 40 grams.

The health benefits of flavonoids won't set in if the overall food intake is high in fats and simple sugars. The sugar and fat content of the dark chocolate should still be within the daily recommended allowance for each individual.

Red wine for flat abs and dark chocolates for good coronary circulation... hmnnn... not bad, aye? ;-)

Read the full article here.

Congee

Woke up at 3:30am today. Really early. I decided to make congee in the rice cooker but when I checked the product after doing pranayama, it was a bit dry. Some of the water spilled out and I was thinking, "Oh boy, there goes my nutrients".

It had 1 cup of rice, 6 cups of water, some ginger sliced into thin sticks. Taste was ok but it was too gluey I had to add water to make it the consistency a bit better. I'll fry some tofu cubes to go with it in a little while. Will probably add bits of spring onions as well.

Will do the asanas in the afternoon so I can have a full practice. Got to leave the house by 7:30am for my 8:00am class.

Feeling good this morning. Hope it lasts until the end of my class this afternoon.

Cheers.

Food Journal 11-10

Breakfast at 7:00am
Angel Hair pasta with Pesto (courtesy of Marshal)
A bowl of choco-peanut oatmeal with banana slices

Coffee at 8:30am
1 cup black with sugar

Lunch at 12:00nn
Spaghetti with Sauteed Tomato, Onions, Olives, Chili Flakes & Pesto.

Gino D'Acampo

Got this link from Maria. Here is a list of his Italian Cooking Secrets:

1. Do not attempt to do any cooking if you are not in the mood - get a take away!

2. To make a quick hot chocolate sauce - place 3-4tbls of nutella spread in a saucepan - add in some double cream and gently warm through - amazing!!!!

3. Easiest way to take out an avocado stone is to place a sharp knife across the stone - twist gently and out it pops!

4. Before cooking pasta make sure that the water in the saucepan is hard-boiling and salted!

5. When cooking with wine, don’t use the cheapest available it will make a difference to the taste and always allow the wine to evaporate!

6. When making a risotto never cook the rice with the lid on otherwise the rice will steam and therefore not have the al dente texture!

7. Olive oil is for cooking or frying. Extra virgin olive oil is for dressing, using extra virgin olive oil in cooking is a waste of money!

8. When cooking with mussels always make sure you clean them and always discard unopened mussels after they have been cooked!

9. When making a tiramisu do not over soak the Savoiardi biscuits in the coffee - dip in only for a second allowing the biscuit to remain crunchy!

www.ginodacampo.com

Spinach and Zucchini Soup Recipe

The Othaim boys went to Hyperpanda Supermarket last night and I bought some zucchini. I made a nice roasted vegetable soup two nights ago and I'm now on the soup roll.

Zucchini brings me back to Belgium, where I first tasted a soup made from this vegetable. I was with the UP Filipiniana Alumni Dance Group participating in folkloric dance & music festivals around France, Belgium and Switzerland. This is not the exact recipe of my foster mother. I just googled it and picked a website from the list. Sounds light and healthy.

A recipe from 101 Cookbooks by Heidi Swanson

INGREDIENTS
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 medium onions, roughly chopped
big pinch of salt
2 1/2 cups potatoes (2 medium) cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 1/2 cups zucchini (2 medium), loosely chopped
4 cups vegetable stock
4 cups fresh spinach leaves, loosely packed
1 cup cilantro, loosely chopped
one lemon

In a large, thick-bottomed pot over medium-high heat, add the olive oil. When the oil is hot (but not smoking) add the garlic and onions and saute for a few minutes along with pinch of salt - just until they soften up a bit. Stir in the potatoes and zucchini. Add the stock. Bring to a simmer and cook until potatoes are soft throughout, roughly 10-15 minutes.

Stir in the spinach, and wait for it to wilt, just ten seconds or so. Now stir in the cilantro. Puree with a hand blender until smooth. Whisk in a big squeeze of lemon juice. Now taste, and add more salt if needed. Finish with a drizzle of olive oil and serve.

Serves about 6.

Link: http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/spinach-and-zucchini-soup-recipe.html

Vegetarian Lentil Pie from Julie

This recipe is from my friend Julie Hirunchai from Phuket, Thailand. Will try this tomorrow. Cheers.

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Hey Jon, here's that recipe I was telling you about for your blog.

Ingredients

3/4 cup brown lentils
1 large onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, smashed and chopped
4 ripe tomatoes, chopped
1 small head of cauliflower or broccolli cut in flowerettes
1 small carrot, grated
1/2 cup chopped beans
1/2 cup chopped mushrooms
1 chopped green pepper
1 vegetable stock cube
1 teaspoon each of oregano, thyme, sage & rosemary
1 Tablespoon vegetarian Bisto

Method
Cook lentils in lightly salted boiling water until soft, and set aside to cool.
Use a pressure cooker if you have one, as it is faster and saves on gas.
In a medium saucepan, cook the garlic and onion in a little oil until the onion is transparent.
Add the chopped tomatoes and cook down until it's mushy.
Add all the prepared vegetables, then just cover with water and add the stock cube.
Cover and simmer until the hard vegetables are soft, and the water has boiled down to half.
Now add the cooked /drained lentils and season the mixture with the spices.
Add salt and pepper to taste.
To thicken add the Bisto, and continue to cook over medium heat until it is thick and smells good.
Put the mixture into an overproof casserole dish and put in the fridge for an hour or so.
Before serving, cook and mash the potatoes with some butter and milk until smooth.
Spread over the cooled lentil mixture and top with grated chedder cheese.
Bake in the oven at 350C (180F) until bubbling, (about 45 minutes.)

This recipe takes a bit of work, but it is really yummy.
Serve with salad and whole wheat rolls and it's a beautiful meal for four friends.

Good luck,

Julie

Food Journal 11-06

Breakfast at 7:30am

1 cup muesli
1 cup melon cubes with raisins and honey
1 banana, sliced
2 cups laban

Coffee at 9:30am... equivalent to 2 cups
Coffee at 10:30am... equivalent to 2 cups

Lunch at 12nn

Fried tempeh with Hoisin Sauce, Chilli flakes and Sesame Oil
Steamed Rice

Dinner at 8pm
Roasted Red Bellpepper and Carrot Soup
3 pieces toasted wheat bread with pesto

Goodbye to Seafoods???

It was vaman time again this morning.

Marshall, Ruby and I went to have pizza at the Pizza Company yesterday after work. As usual, we ordered Seafood Supreme with Cheese-filled crust and Shrimp & Brocolli Penne. It was actually very thoughtful of them to consider my food preference. They know that I'm vegetarian but I allow some seafoods in my diet specially when I go out with them, when I'm in a party and most of the time, whenever I don't have any other choice. Of course there's always the option of not to eat, but I think I still need time to practice that. Sometimes, being a middle-class Filipino living in an environment that does not really understand yoga and its philosophy can be very challenging. It's good that I'm actually surrounded by people who are very considerate and open-minded.

When I was practicing pranayama this morning, I already felt the heaviness of excess mucus in the stomach. I thought I could wait until the weekend to do vaman but it was just very uncomfortable. After bhastrika, I decided to do vaman so I prepared the 1.5L of saline solution and did the "ritual". I felt relieved after.

Now, the question is, am I ready to totally omit seafoods from my diet? Or at least start with the shrimps and crabs as they are mucus-inducing? I don't want to be so rule-obsessed but I think I've experienced enough to know that my body has become sensitive to seafoods. Maybe next year.

Preferred Kitcherie Consistency

I like the consistency of this recipe better. Forgot to add grated fresh ginger though.

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup rice
1/4 cup split yellow mung bean
1 cup diced potatoes, nuked for 1 minute on high
3/4 cup diced carrots
1/4 cup diced red bell pepper
1/4 cup raisins (should have lessen this though)
1/2 cup roasted cashew nuts
6 cups water
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp mustard seeds
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper

Eating to Support Yoga Practice by Guy Donahue

Maria sent me this link a couple of days ago and I was thinking of re-posting it here but it might not be ethical. Will just post the first few paragraphs. It is an article by Ashtanga teacher Guy Donahue about the Yogic Diet.

"If you look at the ancient texts on yoga they recommend a minimal diet of a little rice, a few vegetables, some mung dal (lentils) and ghee (clarified butter). The assumption here is that the practitioner is spending most of the time sitting in meditation or study and otherwise minimalising activity. However, a diet like this may not be sufficient for someone who has a stressful job or is physically very active.

What is perhaps most important to note is that food and eating are there for the purpose of nourishing the body which has an inate healthy apetite for what is beneficial. Unfortunately, in our modern society, divorced from the rythms and influences of nature, our apetite has become completeley disturbed and confused and all kinds of unhealthy eating habits have resulted.

We no longer know what is healthy to eat, how much to eat or when to eat. We use food for the sake of pleasure instead of nourishment, we eat excessive amounts and we eat all the time. The foods we choose are produced in all kinds of artifcial ways and many kinds of chemicals to stimulate the taste buds and encourage us to eat to excess."

Read the full article here.

Michael Gannon in Dubai

Michael Gannon will be conducting his first workshop in Dubai at Zen Yoga on January 11-13, 2008.

Course fee is AED 225 per session and AED 750 for all 4 sessions.

Please contact Sacha Thompson at 050-6599856 or email her at sachiyogi@hotmail.com for details.

Antonieth's Dance & Fitness Studio

Just came across this website while I was searching for that news about Paul's workshop in Cebu.

The studio also offers yoga in their program. The owner, Antonieth, originally from Gensan, migrated to Australia and has come home to establish the First Belly Dancing School in Cebu.

Check out her website at http://www.antonieth.com/index.html

Tempeh & Spinach with Sweet Ginger Sesame Sauce

Food has been basically the same the past 2 weeks. Stir fried tofu or tempeh with vegetables, just using different stir fry sauces.

Woke up a little tired this morning. Probably because I woke up in the middle of the night feeling the head aching a bit. I needed to turn the AC on as that usually solves the headache problem. The weather was colder as I expected this morning.

Tempeh & Spinach with Sweet Ginger-Sesame Sauce

INGEDIENTS

250 g tempeh, sliced into thick strips and fried with 2-3 tbsp oil
1 bunch spinach, cleaned and stalks removed
1 tsp ginger, sliced into thin sticks
2-3 tbsp sweet soy sauce
1 tbsp roasted sesame seeds
salt and pepper to taste

Using the remaining oil from frying the tempeh, add ginger and stir fry for 30 seconds, add the sesame seeds, mix well, add sweet soy sauce. Be careful not to burn the sauce. Add the spinach, mix well. Remove the spinach, keeping the sauce in the pan. Add the tempeh slices and coat it with the sauce. Arrange the spinach in a plate, arrange the tempeh on top, pour on the remaining sauce... eat with steamed rice.

On Ashtanga Practice

"When it rains heavily, the water does not necessarily penetrate the earth. If the surface is dry and hard, the rain water floods the surface and run off. But if it rains gradually for many days continuously, and the ground is moist, then the water seeps deep into the earth, which is good for cultivation and for life" - BKS Iyengar

The Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga system follows a strict series of asanas that should be followed and practiced regularly. Each pose opens and prepares the body for the next one. The primary series is called yoga chikitsa, or yoga therapy, which has a detoxifying and healing in the body.

The use of deep breathing called ujjayi breath, bandhas or energy valves, and vinyasa or the synchronization of movement and breath, in this method cultivates internal heat and sweating that leads to the cleansing of the body and calming of the mind. In this system of hatha yoga, the body must be cleansed and purified before the more subtle practices of pranayama and meditation are introduced. However, done properly, the practice itself integrates these subtle practices as ujjayi breathing is always emphasized and the rhythmic flow of each movement makes the whole practice a meditative one.

The same sequence of asanas must be practiced daily so that like the rain that pours gradually each day, the cleansing and detoxifying effects of the practice can penetrate deep into the body.

Maria's Favorite Soup

Maria emailed me the recipe of her favorite roasted vegetable soup. Was thinking of buying peppers a while ago when I was at Othaim. Maybe tomorrow... or I can call Macky now and ask him to buy me some red peppers...

====

SOUP!!!!!

What you need

5 large carrots
2 Red peppers
1 large onions
1-2 Tbs Olive Oil
1-1.5 pints Vegetable stock
half teasp of cinnamon
1 Lime
fresh or dried coriander
pinch chilli /cayenne powder
What you do

Roughly chop the carrots and peppers into chunks, toss them in some
olive oil and roast in a hot oven (200-220 celcius) until the peppers
start to char, it takes about 15-20 mins, but you have to watch them

Finely chop the onions and sautee slowly in olive oil

When the veg are ready, remove from the oven add them to the pan with
the onions and mix all the ingredients together

Add the pinch of cinnamon here, coriander (if using fresh coriander,
only a sprig or two, as you dont want it to overpower the soup. If its
dried coriander, a sprinkle is enough), the chilli/cayene powder, salt
and pepper, and juice of half lime

Then add the stock and bring up to the boil

Reduce the heat and allow to simmer until the vegetables are softened
( i like them to still have a just a bit of bite, so again, the timing
on this depends on your taste, but be carefull not to over cook)

Then, blend/puree the soup in a blender or liquidizer

Serve with a squeeze of lime and a dollop of youghurt/creme fraiche
(or on its own!!)

The soup will freeze no problem, just omit the cream/yoghurt at the end

Enjoy!!!!

Maria :-)

Kapotasana

Photo from Ashtangayoga.info

Dreamed about doing kapotasana A last night with Paul adjusting me into it. It felt a little weird though. Maybe because it was a bit blurred in the dream. Don't know what that meant but in this morning's practice, I practiced up to kapotasana. Took me 2 and a half hours to finish my practice today.

Finished late, 11:30am, so breakfast was lunch and lunch was breakfast. Muesli, laban, mint chocolate drink, bananas, 2 pcs toasted wheat bread with butter and orange marmalade. Now, I'm ready to take my afternoon nap. zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.