Sweet Lime Veggie Noodles

Here’s a little twist on your regular stir fry or veggie bowl. Try this tangy fry for a sensationally easy dinner your tastebuds and health will thank you for. 

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Ingredients 

2 cups rice noodles

1 head of broccoli

1/2 cup purple cabbage

4 medium carrots

1/4 cup creamy almond butter

2 tbsp extra virgin cold pressed coconut oil 

3 tsp chili powder

1 tsp turmeric 

Juice from 2 limes

A pinch of salt

A pinch of pepper 

Toppings

Shallots

Cilantro

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Bring 3 cups of water to boil and add rice noodles, cook for 5-7 minutes or until soft. Chop veggies and place in a frying pan with coconut oil on medium heat. Season to taste, mix well, and cover with a lid. Once the veggies are cooked, add almond butter and 1/4 cup of water. Mix well. Add lime juice and remove from heat. 

Run cooked noodles under cold water and strain. Mix noodles with seasoned veggies and almond sauce. Garnish with shallots and cilantro. 
Enjoy ❤️

Pose of the Week: Firefly

Model: Lacey Grillos 

Firefly

TITTIBHASANA

“It is through the body that your realize you are a spark of divinity.”

~ B.K.S. Iyengar

Pose Benefits:

• Strengthens arms and wrists
• Opens and stretches groin, hips, back, and legs
• Improves balance
• Tones abdomen

Asana Breakdown:

Begin in a squat with your feet positioned less than shoulder width apart with your slightly arms firmly planted between your legs. Walk your hands back as far as you can, fingers pointing forward. Engage all five knuckles as you gently begin to tilt your torso forward. Carefully begin to lift yourself off of the floor and extend your legs forward. Keep your inner thighs as high on your arms as possible. Straighten your arms, hollow your chest, and widen your shoulders to get as much lift as possible, then spread your toes apart. Slowly begin to lift the head upward. Breathe — see if you can hold this pose for at least 15 seconds, then release.

 

References:

Firefly Pose

Love without Attachment, Live without Fear — the health philosopher

A woman says to her husband, a rabbi, “While you were away, a friend of ours visited us and left two jewels of incalculable value here for me to look after. They’re really lovely jewels! I’ve never seen anything so beautiful before. He has since come to claim them back, and I don’t want to […]

via Love without Attachment, Live without Fear — the health philosopher

Gut Reactions: How to Heal the Self

The gut plays a major role in our health and happiness, however, due to the cultural habits of today’s world, many people experience imbalances in the gut that show up as allergies or disease. In this talk we will learn what the gut microbiome is, what it used to look like in the recent past versus today, and how we can move forward in order to heal ourselves by using food as medicine.

Vegetarian Goddess Bowl

This latest dish was inspired by a local eatery, Earth Girl Goodies, designed as a complete protein that is completely delicious. This dish is completely vegetarian and can be made with vegan substitutes, if desired. The best part about this dish is that it is super nourishing and packed with flavor! Check out the recipe bellow to taste for yourself ❤

Ingredients

Quinoa

1 1/2 Cups of Quinoa, rinsed

2 tbsp Extra Virgin, Cold-Pressed Olive Oil

1 tsp of Himalayan Pink Salt

Tzatziki

16 oz Organic Greek Yogurt

2 Cucumbers

3 Cloves of Garlic

2 tbsp Olive Oil

1/2 of a Lemon

Himalayan Pink Salt

1 tbsp Mint

Toppings 

Falafel Mix

Avocado

Kalamata Olives

Hummus

Spinach

Red Onion

Cherry Tomatoes

Feta Cheese

 

To begin, bring 3 cups of water to boil, add quinoa, cover with a lid, and turn down to medium heat. Follow the instructions on your falafel mix. Most add several cups of water and ask you to let the mix soak for about 10-15 minutes. Once your quinoa is done, take off of heat, drizzle with olive oil and salt, then set aside.

Meanwhile, begin to prep your tzatziki by placing the yogurt into a medium size bowl. Then, peel and finely chop your cucumber and garlic. Add cucumber, garlic, salt, lemon, and olive oil into the yogurt and mix well.

Once the falafel mix has absorbed the water, begin to make 1/2″ thick patties. Fry in coconut oil over high heat for 2-3 minutes or follow instructions on the box.

To make your dish add quinoa, tzatziki, falafels, and your choice of toppings to your bowl   ( I highly suggest using all of them 😉 ).

Enjoy ❤

 

Pose of the Week: Scorpion

Model:  Lacey Grillos

Scorpion

VRSCIKASANA

“A flower does not think of competing against the flower next to it, it just blooms.”

~Unknown

Pose Benefits:

• Strengthens shoulders, fore arms, low back, and abdominal muscles
• Opens vertebrae, hips, and neck

Asana Breakdown:

This is no doubt a challenge-pose. To get into it, one must be sufficiently warmed up and prepared. Begin in a handstand or forearm stand, externally rotate your shoulders, and press all five knuckles into the ground. Begin to raise your head and allow your knees to bend. Engage the abdomen and legs; keep your backbend even and maintain the breath to hold the posture.

Variations:

1. Begin in forearm stand, instead of hand stand (See photo).
2. Begin in handstand about 1/2-1 ft away from a wall. Slowly begin to bend the knees and raise the head. Eventually, you can work your way away from the wall to a free standing position. In the meantime, you can still experience most of the pose’s benefits.

 

 

Do It Yourself: Simply Homemade Cranberry Sauce

Try this traditional and easy holiday recipe with a little bit of a twist. Nothing says Thanksgiving like a sweet rendition of cranberry sauce.

Ingredients

1 bag of Organic Cranberries

3/4 cup Coconut Palm Sugar

1/4 cup Organic Brown Sugar

3 tbsp Orange Juice

1/2 cup Water

1 pinch of Salt
Take a pot and fill with water and cranberries. Place on medium heat and cover with a lid for 5-10 minutes. Stir occasionally. Next, stir sugars, salt, and OJ in the pot and cover with a lid. Check frequently until most of the water has boiled off and the cranberries have become a jam-like consistency. Sweeten to taste, let cool, and serve. ❤️

Happy Holidays!

A Raw Account of Starting Over and Beginning to Trust

“Fear is a natural reaction to moving closer to the truth” ~Pema Chödrön

What does it take to rebuild trust?

Ideally one does not break it in the first place. But what if it is inevitable? What if in one way or another you let someone down? Then what? Is your foundation ruined? Your sheets soiled? Your garden dismantled?

No.

Do you know what really happens when trust is broken? It provides a creative opportunity for new life, for new growth, and new beginnings. It is a strange concept, but true none the less, that only when trust has been broken can authentic trust begin. Authentic trust is dynamic, deep, and pliable. It creates a foundation made not of rock, stone, concrete, or shoddy plumbing, but that of which holds the ocean, the mountains, volcanoes, and the sky; something that shifts, adapts, and changes. Something designed to meet the other exactly where they are, exactly as they are.

What does it take to rebuild trust once it has been broken?

My honest opinion:

Sweet relentlessness and devotion.
What does it take to trust someone who has betrayed you?

Forgiveness and the willingness to let go of all that you have known for the possibility that something could be new.

Moving forward into authentic trust does not mean that the other person is not responsible for their actions, but that there is a willingness from both parties to relay the foundation and take the time necessary to mend together with honesty and vulnerability. When we shed our labels, identities, and ideologies of who or what the other should be, we see there are no others, for the other is ourself. The people who have wounded us, betrayed us, and abandoned us are merely an aspect of our own shadow self. We spend our time delineating, dwelling, repeating, and fantasizing about the future or reminiscing about the past. Real love however, and real forgiveness, is here and now. All that we can remember or anticipate is merely a shadow of love. When we give into our true nature, we relinquish our need to be separate, to isolate, to judge, to be right or wrong. Let go today. Judge not today. For when we judge, we make another person wrong for thinking a certain way or acting a certain way.

The interesting part of this journey is that we are all God playing hide and seek with ourself, and when we find ourself, we realize there is no amount of abandonment or betrayal that could harm us.

So how do we begin again?

Trust, the absence of fear, and the willingness to let reality be new. 

“People get into a heavy-duty sin and guilt trip, feeling that if things are going wrong, that means that they did something bad and they are being punished. That’s not the idea at all. The idea of karma is that you continually get the teachings that you need to open your heart. To the degree that you didn’t understand in the past how to stop protecting your soft spot, how to stop armoring your heart, you’re given this gift of teachings in the form of your life, to give you everything you need to open further.” ~ Pema Chödrön

Pose of The Week: Hanumanasana

Model: Lacey Grillos 

Monkey Pose

HANUMANASANA

“Hanuman not only gives us liberation, but he also fulfills our beneficial desires.”

~Krishna Das

Hanuman, the monkey king and son of the wind, teaches us the strength in surrender and devotion. We learn through surrender, the balance of holding on and letting go. When we come to this space, we can open ourselves to peace, clarity, and stillness in the heart.

Benefits of the pose:

• Relief for Sciatica
• Opens hips and groin
• Engages abdomen
• Improves function of vital organs
• Stretches and strengthens hamstrings and thighs

Asana Break Down:

Begin kneeling on the floor with both legs slightly apart. Place one foot in front of you extended with your heal touching the floor. Sink into your hips, allowing your heart to move forward as your hands come to frame both sides of your extended leg. Slowly begin to extend your back knee behind yourself until both knees are simultaneously touching the floor. Once you have come into the split position, raise your arms over head and gently find length in the spine. Stay here for a few breaths. To get out of this posture, press both hands into the earth and slide your back knee under your hip coming into the initial position. Then repeat on the other side.

Variations:

Advanced:

1) From the split position, exhale and bring your arms down and fold your heart down towards your front knee.

2) From the split position, inhale and lift your back foot. Reach for your foot with one hand, open the chest forward, and tilt your head back.

Adjustments: 

1) Place a bolster or folded blanket underneath your pelvis or your back knee.

References:

http://www.artofliving.org/us-en/yoga/yoga-poses/hanumanasana-monkey-pose

Monkey Pose

3 Tips to have Healthy, Glowing Skin from Within

We all want beautiful, glowing skin. It carries a lot of weight in a first impression and it also seems to be one of the first things we criticize about ourselves if it isn’t flawless. If you are one of those people who seem to have tried everything on the market to get rid of acne, age-spots, dark circles, and redness, but nothing seems to work, try some of these methods bellow. Your skin is the largest organ in your body and many of the external impurities or “imperfections” are related to internal imbalances.

TIP #1 Hydrate

  Hydration may seem like one of the most obvious things we can do for our skin and our entire body, but it is one of the most commonly over-looked steps when it comes to healthy, glowing skin. The key here is that when you keep your body well hydrated through out the day, your body can more efficiently flush out toxins through your kidney’s and liver. The best way to do this is to start your morning off with one of the following:

Can of Coconut Water

Fruit-Infused Water (Strawberries, lemon, and mint in the picture)

Warm water with lemon and/or ginger

Be sure to drink one of these thirst quenching options at least 15 minutes before you eat anything. Then, be sure to drink water through out the day. There is no real recommended amount of water, despite false-scientific studies; just drink when you feel thirsty and remember to hydrate often.

TIP #2 Superfood Vitamin C Smoothie Bowl

Seriously, this is one of the most delicious ways to support your body. Vitamin C increases your body’s collagen production which will reduce darkness, age spots, increase elasticity, and heal your skin from within! Not to mention the long list of benefits of the superfoods, which load up the body with much-needed nutrients.

Here is the ingredient list:  Blend 1 mango, 1 orange, almond milk, 1 banana. Top with: goji berries, hemp hearts, strawberries, flax seeds, and chia seeds.

TIP #3 Eat Your Greens!

The best thing you can do for your entire body, not just your skin, is to eat your greens. Eating 3-4 servings of greens daily is known to improve your immune system, increase your life span, reduce disease and inflammation, and make your body feel good! It’s best to eat your greens raw as much as possible, so that the heat sensitive nutrients stay in-tact. My personal favorite way to do this is to add greens to my smoothies, add a salad to my dinner, or add greens to my carrot juice (side note: carrot juice is packed with carotenoids which have anti-inflammatory properties that tighten skin, even skin tones, reduce scarring, prevent wrinkles, naturally moisturize, and improves digestion). Keeping a regular routine of eating your greens will serve you and your body for the rest of your life!

Thanks for taking the time to read this post! If you are curious about what your body might be telling you based on where your impurities is on your face, click here to learn more about what you can do to support your body.

❤

As always, feel free to leave questions and comments bellow!