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Moving gracefully through Autumn with Ayurveda

10/10/2017

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Autumn always feels like a storm, powerful and graceful. Its wind can give us clarity or make us lost and confused in thousands of useless and stressful thoughts. And it invariably changing, day by day, hours by hours. One of the crazy power of Vata and its Air element. Everything is moving, shifting, never resting, making us energy less and tired.

At fall, all nature is in transition to prepare for the winter. The days become shorter. The bright light that uses to shine into the sky during the summer is now returning to the ground, in the glowing leaves of the trees that litter the ground like a brick road to another OZ country. Associated with the teasing wind, the climate plays tricks, alternating hot and cold days, rain and fine weather. An instability in the image of our mental agitation.
As temperatures diminish, our gaze shifts to the earth that stored the summer heat; it is the season for harvesting apples, walnuts, hazelnuts, chestnuts, mushrooms, squashes ... The attention is directed towards inside in conscious reflections, like internal lights to help us to leave behind what does not serve us anymore and to set new goals.
 
By these attributes (cold, dry, light, changing ...), autumn is the classic vata season, governed by the energy of change. However, depending on our geography situation, the dry and changing qualities of vata may also have appeared earlier in the summer. In the early autumn, the vata accumulates and is provoked causing typical imbalances such as: constipation, joint pain, gas, sciatica, dry skin, emotional instability ... As the wind is good at reviving the flames, Pitta accumulated from summer  may also come out at this time in the form of skin problems or migraines. End of Autumn, it will be the turn of the Kapha to accumulate. The organs to be regulated at this season are the colon, the ears, the skin, the joints, the lungs.

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5 Good Ayurvedic reflexes for fall

1. Detox at the beginning of the season
Ideal period to refocus after the summer holidays, fall is time to clean our excretory organs to prepare for the winter. How? With a mono-diet. However, beware of extremes which increase vata! 3 days are enough! But it takes as much time before and after to slowly rehabilitate the body to heavier foods. Best: promote a simple diet based on cooked and spiced bitter vegetables (soup or steamed sautés), grape / cooked apples / cooked pears, or kichadi (Indian dish mixing cereals, legumes, vegetables and spices). Reduce step by step all heavy food 3 days before (incl meat, dairies, gluten, nuts, sweets...) and re-introduce them slowly over 3/4 days after the detox.
 
2. Support healthy digestion and elimination
It is the moment to help our transit to avoid the disagreements not so glamorous (gas, bloating, cramps, gurgling ...) of an increased Vata. For that, we use spices. The best for vata are heating, digestive and carminatives such as: cumin, fennel, cardamom, coriander, sage, rosemary, curry, cinnamon, ginger.... Most of the spices being fat soluble, they must first be first fried in a little bit of oil to make them active.
With the drop of temperature that decreases blood flow, our dear colon is slower. It is then subject to frequent imbalances alternating constipation and diarrhea. For constipation, we prefer demulcent herbs (mallow, marshmallow roots, lemon balm ...) in the evening or some triphala at night; for diarrhea, tisanes with astringent plants (strawberry, alchemille, agrimony ...).
 
3. Focus on heavier foods with sweet, sour and salty flavors
Nutritious foods, fleshier with a soupy texture seem attractive. Their anabolic actions reconstruct the diminished tissues after the summer (especially the skin which is super important to nourrish to isolate from the winter cold). The sour, salty and sweet flavors are heavy and softening to anchor and moisturize the agitated air element. Salty counteracts dryness by helping to preserve liquids. Sour has an emollient action that induces the secretion of digestive juices. Beware of the excess of sour and fermented flavors which may provoke Pitta!
 
FRUITS
More: Apples (Sweet), Apricots, Avocados, Coconuts, Dates, figs, Grapes, Green and yellow lemons, Mangoes, Oranges, Pineapples, Plums, Quinces, Tamarind, Tangerines, Clementines, Pears
Less: Sour Apples, Bananas, Berries, Cherries, Grapefruits, Kiwis, Papayas, Peaches, Pomegranates, Strawberries, Watermelons

VEGETABLES
More: Artichokes, Asparagus, BokChoy, Cooked carrots, Green beans, Watercress, Gombos, Parsnips, Rutabagas, Courgettes, Sweet potatoes, Winter squash
Less: Mushrooms, Jerusalem artichokes, Choufleur, Tomatoes, Turnips, Eggplants, Carrots , Cabbages, Radishes

CEREALS & LEGUMES
More: Brown Rice Short Rice Oats Wheat Quinoa Barley Azukis Beans Mungo Urad Dhals Chickpeas Lentils
Less: Rye Millet Buckwheat Amaranth Rice Long Bulgur Beans (all) Peas broken

DAIRY
More: Unsalted butter, Cow's milk, Goat's milk, Ghee, Yoghurts, Fresh cheeses
Less: Anything that is too cold, salty or fermented: aged cheese, cream, salted butter, ice-cream

HERBES & SPICES
More: Cinnamon, Cumin, Ginger, Cardamom, Curcuma, Garlic, Oregano, Paprika, Parsley, Anise, Coriander, Mustard, Asafoetida, Saffron, Clove, Fennel, Mint, Dill
Less: Excess of pungent and heating! Cayenne pepper, Raw garlic, Mace, Marjoram, Raw onions, very strong curry

OILSEEDS
More: Grated coconut, white sesame, Toasted sunflower seeds, Poppy seeds, Blanched almonds
Less: Cashew Too much oilseed will be too dense to digest at this season, a source of indigestion and toxins.

 
4. Boost circulation
At fall, our skin loses much of its luster. Indeed, due to the vasoconstriction, the vitality of the skin decreases. When the temperature drops, our body protects itself against heat loss by reducing blood flow to the skin, arms and legs. The trees experience something similar: when the weather becomes cold, they draw their sap in their heart, their roots. This is why it is so good to consume roots in the autumn: tubers in our plates and roots in our herbal teas!
Some advices:
Massage the whole body with heating and tonic oils (sesame oil, essential oils of cypress / basil / tarragon / cinnamon) before showering in the evening, then shower with hot water.
Drink hot lemon ginger honey in the morning.
Add a pinch of turmeric in the dishes to keep the circulation.

 
5. Take care of your joints
In the fall, joint pain tends to come out. In Ayurveda, the bones are directly related to the colon. The best thing is to massage the painful zone with vegetal oil and chamomile and camphor essential oils.  To calm the vata, you should limit alcohol and caffeine and drink anti-inflammatory herbal tea such as white willow bark. Birch bark, blackcurrant leaves, chamomile matricaria ... It is also important to eat more minerals by adding nettle gomasio (it is a delicious topping!).

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"Fall flower" salad

11/22/2015

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These last days, after the tragic events that happened in Paris, Majda and I felt the need to gather and cook together. Cooking and sharing are the values we take refuge in when we face violence, hate and despair. So the day after the attacks, we met and cooked a couscous. A meal of comfort and gathering, a meal to heal the wounds and calm the pain. It’s not a coincidence that couscous is served in funerals in the Maghreb countries. It is also the meal that follows the Friday prayer. Comfort and communion…
This is why we decided to organize a vegetarian couscous dinner to gather people willing to discover new ways to eat, share and dialogue. Food is a beautiful way to discover other cultures and way of lives, and to start to dialogue with them. (You will find below the details of this event, you are very welcome to join.)
 
But in these difficult times, we also need poetry. Therefore, this fall flower salad is very welcome! No doubt that this colorful mix of flavors, sweet and sour, raw and cooked, is our favorite salad of the season.
 
We are sure that the sweetness of apple, the softness of squash, the crunchiness of toasted sunflower seeds won’t leave you indifferent.
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“Fall Flower” Salad
Serves 4

150 g spinach leaves
1 small pumpkin (approx. 1 kilo/ 2 pounds), diced
1 avocado, crescent shaped sliced
2 apples, peeled and crescent shaped sliced
1 tsp ghee
2 tbsp olive oil

1 handful sunflower seeds
1 sprig of rosemary
1 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp ginger
Salt
Pre-heat the oven 180°C. Pour the squash on a tray and gently oil. Cook for 25 minutes.
In a saucepan, heat the ghee. Add the apples and ½ tsp cinnamon; cover with a little water. Cook for about 10 minutes.
In a pan, toast the sunflower seeds with cinnamon and rosemary for 5 minutes.
Remove the squash, apples and sunflower seeds from fire and let cool.
 Arrange the spinach leaves on a plate. Lay the other ingredients at your convenience. Drizzle with olive oil.

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Why this recipe?

Ayurveda and salad ... a long story! According to Ayurveda, everything can be good but it depends for whom, when and how it is prepared. From an ayurvedic perspective, raw food is rather recommended for Pitta individuals, in summer and rather at noon. It is difficult to digest for Vatas because its qualities are very similar: light, crispy, airy, dry, cold, sometimes dense and rich (oils, seeds, nuts). It slows the digestive system of Kaphas, which is already as fast as a turtle, because it shares the same identical qualities: dense, slow (to digest because not cooked), rich and especially cold. To summarize, nothing to help digestion! Therefore a salad with raw and cooked ingredients is really better for everyone J
On a bed of raw spinach, we chose ingredients that balance Vata (which tends to be higher during fall). Baked food, hot, tender, rich and digestible: pumpkin, apple, avocado and sunflower seeds.
Squash V ↓P ↓K ↑ (decreases Vata and Pitta, Kapha increases)
  •  Its sweet taste and its “heavy” quality make it a rich and nutritious food that is involved in tissue and energy regeneration.
  •  Its metabolic action "heating" also promotes digestion.
  •  Its digestive action "spicy" is catabolic, which has a slightly laxative effect.
  • Baking is very good for Vata and also gives a gourmet taste, very important right now.
  • Other action: emollient and expectorant (it liquefies the mucus and helps their elimination)
Spinach V ↓ ↑P ↓K ↓
  • Its pungent taste stimulates appetite, increases circulation and adds flavor to other foods. Its astringent side is anti-inflammatory and supports coagulation.
  • Its light, crispy and dry qualities can increase Vata. That is why it should always be served with oil.
  • Its metabolic action is cooling which supports its anti-inflammatory action.
  • Its digestive action is "pungent", which supports detoxification and elimination.
  • Rich in: antioxidant, calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium, Vitamin A / E / K
  • Other actions: decreases the activity of the thyroid, bone tonic.
Pumpkin V ↓P ↓K ↑ (winter squash)
  • Its sweet taste, its creamy texture and richness make it an excellent food to nourish all tissues.
  • The anabolic action on the tissues is promoted by the cooling action on the metabolism.
  • Its heaviness (oil) is comforting and calming. It lubricates the intestines and helps eliminate. The pumpkin melts in the mouth like ice-cream or cheese with its creamy texture that many people are looking for in dairy products. So it is a great choice for people who do not consume dairy or who are vegetarian / vegan.
  • Food that benefits all levels: taste, metabolism, ojas (promotes energy) and also mental with its 'tamastic "/ dense side that roots the mobile Vata.
  • Rich in: Omega 3, potassium, vitamin E.
  • Other important actions: emollient, liver tonic, alkaline
Apple V↓ ↑  P ↓ K↓
  • Its taste depends largely on the variety. Here, we chose a sweet apple, just a little sour, which is more balancing for both Vata and Pitta. The sweet taste generally increases the sugar in the blood. However, apple keeps a low glycemic index and caloric intake.
  • Its sour taste promotes saliva production and therefore digestion. This helps to cleanse the liver and it also cools the temperature of the blood by increasing the production of bile in the small intestine.
  • Its metabolic action is cooling.
  • Its digestive action is "sweet" which supports tissue regeneration, while having laxative action due to its composition high in fiber and water.
  • Raw apples can be cold, drying and difficult to digest; while when cooked, they are soft, warming and very digestible.
  • In the US, it is said: "One apple a day keeps the doctor away". Ayurveda could easily share the same opinion.
Sunflower seeds V ↓ ↑P ↓K ↓
  • Its sweet flavor and tender and oily qualities promote growth and energy.
  • Its metabolic action is cooling.
  • Its digestive action is anabolic.
  • Sunflower seeds are grounding and calming for Vata and Pitta.
  • Dry roasting them make them more digestible, especially with the addition of carminative herbs (cinnamon, ginger, rosemary). Besides, it's delicious!
  • Rich in: Magnesium, proteins
Olive oil V ↓P ↓  K↑
  • Its "sweet" flavor and digestive action support tissue regeneration. It also has a bitter side which increases bile production to clean the liver. That’s why it is very famous for "liver flush".
  • Its metabolic action is cooling.
  • Other actions: detoxifying, emollient

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Vegetarian Couscous Dinner
 
Friday 27 November, 7 pm – 10 pm
Paris 18ème – Métro Château Rouge (adress details provided after booking)
https://www.facebook.com/events/1676846655870928/
 
This will be an opportunity to meet people, share a comforting meal and talk about non-violence ("ahimsa") in our relationship with others, food and ourselves.
 
Namasté
 
Participation fee: 10€ /person
Booking: eloise.ayurveda@gmail.com
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Squash Lentil Soup with Candied Ginger Cream

10/21/2015

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This is the story of an encounter… between two passionate girls. Passionate about yoga, cooking, and traveling… Such a meeting could only happen in Bali, an island of discovery, exchange and surprises! As a matter of fact, none of us could have imagined that such a creative and joyful collaboration would be born one year and a half later…
 
When we met in Bali, in April 2014, during a yoga immersion, Majda and I were seeking for a new impulsion and inspiration in our lives. And the Island of the Gods was just the right place to be for that… With a former career in business and management, and after having spent some years in international companies, we both decided to go towards a more balanced lifestyle and search for our wellbeing. In Bali, our choices were confirmed, and new aspirations were born. After this travel, Majda decided to launch Bread & Olives –lien, and I followed a special program in Ayurveda (traditional Indian medicine) – Lien Hypertext sur blog HelloAyurveda.
 
One year and a half later, we met again in Paris, and so much progress has been made! A common work on cooking seemed obvious. We both like simple and generous cooking, and we see food as an essential element for wellbeing. So we naturally decided to unite our energies and inspirations to offer you ‘fusion’ recipes: Mediterranean and ayurvedic, healthy and delicious, simple and creative, and always vegetarian!
 
For us, local and ayurvedic food is above all about respecting products that nature offers at a certain time and the cycle of seasons. This is why we’ve decided to start this collaboration with a special recipe to help you handle the change of season with this rough beginning of autumn  J
 
Ayurveda states that the macrocosm reflects in the microcosm and therefore influences directly our metabolism. So it recommends a seasonal life-style. It means we have to understand the characteristics of each season and adopt a special routine and diet accordingly. Every season has specific attributes and obeys to certain energies.
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Autumn is generally described in Ayurveda as dry, light, humid, rough, changing and windy. All these attributes are those of Vata, one of the 3 doshas - these fundamental energies that governs psychic and physical functions in the body. Vata is therefore in excess during autumn.
 
An increase in Vata can lead to different disorders: stress, insomnia, fatigue, gas, constipation, joint pain, sciatic, irregular appetite, loss of memory, feeling of loneliness…
Since Ayurveda aims to find balance between the different doshas, it will therefore looks for reducing Vata influence during the fall, through a specific diet and habits.
 
We choose to present you a generous, savory and unique recipe, specially conceived to reduce our Vata that is going out of control at the momentJ. So we were looking for attributes that are the opposite of those of autumn: oily, warm, liquid, heavy (nutritious), soft and stable. In other words, digest, energizing, nutritive, rich and generous ingredients!
 
To do so, there is no better way than going to the market and start from seasonal products! When they are well combined and seasoned, these products are our best allies to struggle against fall disorders and bring us back to balance.
 
This squash and lentil soup will bring your body the softness it is craving for. And the candied ginger cream will give you this energy boost we all need at this moment!
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Squash Lentil Soup with candied Ginger Cream
Serves 4

1 kg squash
125 g brown/green lentils
1 onion, sliced
1/2 leak, sliced
2 tbsp ghee/smen
1 tsp ginger powder
1 tsp fenugreek
1 tsp turmeric
2 garlic cloves

Candied ginger cream

125 g silken tofu
50 g candied ginger
1 tbsp hazelnut oil
Pre-heat the oven 180°C. Put the squash unpeeled, roughly cut, on a baking sheet. Lightly oil with hazelnut oil. Cook for about 40 minutes. Check with a knife if the flesh is tender enough. Remove from oven, let cool and cut in big cubes.
 
Cook the lentils in big volume of water, with the garlic cloves. Depending on the type of lentils you use, the cooking time will vary between 20 and 30 minutes.
 
In a cooking pot, heat the ghee with the spices. Add the onion and the leak, and let brown for 5 minutes. Add some water if needed. Pour the squash and the lentils; then cover with lukewarm water little by little. Cook for about 10 minutes over medium heat.
 
In a food processor, mix the preparation adding some water, until it is the right consistency. The result we are looking for is closer to a purée than the one of a « velouté » or a liquid soup.
 
To make the ginger cream, mix the ingredients in a blender until you obtain a homogenous consistency.
 
Serve warm in large bowls. Drizzle with the candied ginger cream.

What is Ayurveda?

Ayurveda is the ancient Indian medicine. Literally the "Science of Life", Ayurveda is a global healthcare system which aims at improving not only human health but also its relationship to the cosmos. Its purpose is to cover the wellbeing of the individual, both physical and psychological, and to restore balance.

Ayurveda is based on the system of doshas. The doshas are fundamental energies of the body and organizational principles that govern physiological and psychological functions of the body. It is a system based on the 5 elements used to codify the functioning of the body, mind and soul.
There are three doshas:
Vata = Air + Ether
Pitta = Fire + Water
Kapha = Earth + Water

Why we chose these ingredients?

In addition to nutrition and herbal medicine, Ayurveda teaches a seasonal rhythm of life called "rutucharya". In Sanskrit, the word "rutu" means time and seasonal movement, "charya" means rhythm or routine life.

Each season is dominated by some elements, doshas and attributes that characterize it. Given that the macrocosm reflects in the microcosm, these same characteristics directly affect our metabolism, our organs, our body and our mind. Understanding seasonal components is fundamental in order to adopt the pace of life in harmony with the seasons.

Winter squash V↓P↓K↑ (Vatta decreased, Pitta and Kapha increased)
  • Taste: Sweet, astringent
  • Metabolic Action: Heating
  • Digestive Action: Pungent
  • Attributes: Heavy
 
Nature has a wonderful intelligence. So it's not for nothing that squashes abound in the fall. They are there to help balance us! We chose winter squash, lighter than its cousins (butternut, acorn ...) to marry the brown lentils, without making the soup too heavy.
  • Its sweet taste and "heavy" quality make a rich and nutritious food that is involved in tissue and energy regeneration. This combines with its high Beta Carotene.
  • The metabolic action "heating" also promotes digestion, assimilation and absorption of nutrients.
  • Its digestive action "pungent" is catabolic which has a slightly laxative effect.
  • Another of its particular actions is its emollient and expectorant action that helps fight against seasonal colds by liquefying the mucus and helping their elimination.
 
The brown lentils V↑P↓K↓
  • Taste: Astringent
  • Metabolic Action: Heating
  • Digestive Action: Pungent
  • Attributes: Rugged, heavy
Basically, brown lentils with its astringent taste and its rough quality tend to increase Vata. However, when it is well spiced, it can be very balancing for Vata:
  • The metabolic action "heating" increases the enzyme activity in the stomach and therefore digestion, assimilation and absorption of nutrients
  • Its digestive action "pungent" supports the catabolic metabolism during digestion and elimination. Its richness in fiber is laxative and detoxifying for the colon. Autumn is a season of transition that is important to perform some Detoxification to rebuild a stable and solid ground before winter. The brown lentil is a good ally for this purpose.
  • It is also "heavy". Indeed, it is a nutritious food, rich in protein, iron, potassium, phosphorus and digestible fibers. Vata dosha is the one who most needs stability, energy and nutrition. However its digestive weakness often prevents it to enjoy the benefits of its diet. We must therefore choose carminative herbs targeting Vata to compensate for that.
Garlic V↓P↓K↓
  • Taste: Sweet, sour, pungent, bitter, astringent
  • Metabolic Action: Heating
  • Digestive Action: Pungent
The list of the qualities of garlic is really long! In Ayurveda, garlic is a widely used ingredient to calm Vata. Its root nature grounds Vata (air and ether). Its virtues are many: heating, laxative, detoxifying, anti-fungal, stimulant, vasodilator, antispasmodic, blood thinner, diaphoretic, diuretic ... Garlic, with its purifying action on the blood, helps support the elimination of toxins and to fight against colds.
 
Cooked onion V↓P↓K↓
  • Taste: Sweet, Pungent
  • Metabolic Action: Heating
  • Action catabolic: Sweet
  • Attributes: Digestive, stimulant, carminative
 
The V spices V↓P↓K↓
We chose a trio of ginger, turmeric and fenugreek.
These three herbs are very beneficial herbs for vata. Thus combined, they also temper Vata, Pitta and Kapha. All three are heating. They increase metabolism, appetite, digestion, assimilation and absorption. Their catabolic action supports the elimination of toxins and aid digestion problems. They are an allies of choice in the autumn to allow our body to digest the food.
 
Ghee / Clarified butter V↓P↓K↓
Ghee is clarified butter. This action removes casein. Ghee can be used by lactose intolerants.
Ghee is used in many cultures of the world and exists under other names as Smen in the Maghreb. In India, it is used in cooking for its sweet flavor, for its resistance to high temperatureq (does not burn easily), its nutritive qualities, as well as a therapeutic remedy. Indeed, there are medicated ghees prepared with many herbs to treat mild or advanced health problems.
 
Hazelnut (oil) V↓P↑K↓
  • Taste: Astringent, sweet
  • Metabolic Action: Heating
  • Digestive Action: Pungent
Hazelnut oil promotes vitality. Its sweet taste is nostalgic and also calms the mind.
 
Silken tofu V↓P↓K↓
  • Taste: Astringent, sweet
  • Metabolic Action: Cooling
  • Digestive Action: Pungent
Properly prepared and spiced, tofu is beneficial for three doshas. However, its coolness should be balanced by adding heating spices. Candied ginger and hazelnut oil are used for this purpose. This gives a smooth mixture, sweet and soft, ideal to calm Vata.

Article cowritten with Majda Fahim, author of Bread & Olives.
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