Beans are nutritional powerhouses. Relatively cheap, high in fibre and protein, keeping you full for a long time… these are a rich comfort food with zero guilt.This recipe features lower sodium, sugar and fat than canned versions. It makes 4 – 6 servings so plan for left overs.
My favourite way to enjoy these beans is with buttered toast. They also make a great accompaniment to a brunch menu.
Recipe:
Drain and rinse a 15 oz can of white cannellini beans (also known as navy beans). To see how to prepare dry beans at home for this recipe, see this video.
Grease a 3 quart casserole dish well.
Add 1.5 cups diced tomatoes (can used canned or fresh), 1/4 cup molasses, 1/4 cup maple syrup, 1 T grainy mustard, 1 diced carrot, 1 finely diced onion, 1/2 tsp dry mustard, 1 tsp smoked paprika, a pinch of ground chipotle, salt and pepper to taste.
Add cooked beans and stir well.
Bake, covered, in a 350 degree oven for about 1.5 – 2 hours.
Celebrate the season with quick and easy treats that pack a great punch of protein as well as fibre, vitamins and sweetness. Much lower in fat, sugar and gluten free, these bars can be frozen for mid week snack treats.
Scroll down to download a printable version of this recipe.
Practicing therapeutic rest can help reduce or even reverse the detrimental health effects of chronic stress.
When you survive in this modern jungle, your system experiences a chronic cocktail of stress hormones that were more suited to earlier days. Our systems react the same way as our ancestors’ when encountering a threat but we’re not running away from sabre toothed tigers anymore. We’re most likely chained to our devices and inhibited from burning off that adrenaline and cortisol.
It’s not likely that you’ll be able to fix modern day problems by tonight. But what you can do by tonight is take effective action to mitigate the effects of chronic stress.
The research on therapeutic rest is compelling. But the real reason you may want to incorporate it into your daily routines is that is feels good! Of all the self care you adopt, consider that therapeutic rest is free, has no published side effects and is available to anyone who is currently breathing.
Want to learn more? Here is a FREE six video course that explains what therapeutic rest is and how to do it.
Why do some people seem to manage stress well? What is the secret to finding hope even when things are messy? Research is pointing more and more to the concept of “resiliency”.
What does yoga have to help build resiliency? Tons! But let’s look at 3 key pillars of building resiliency.
Acceptance: Growing up, along with my formula, I swallowed the fairy tale that if I just worked hard enough, suffered enough, helped enough, was pretty enough… well, you get the picture… that I would be happy. You might label this the Cinderella syndrome. It’s time to grow up and accept that life will be challenging and often unfair. In his landmark book, The Road Less Travelled, Scott Peck’s first sentence was, “Life is hard.”. And it can be.
Yoga helps by giving us a lived experience of getting comfortable with the slightly uncomfortable. Holding a pose or learning to balance on one leg is challenging! Your instructor lovingly, skillfully and gently brings you along to accepting more and more of this challenge. Eventually, you gain confidence that you’re flexible not just in body but mind too!
2. Gratitude: This is mindful awareness of what is really going well. Taking time to notice the gifts, no matter how small. We have to consciously cultivate this skill. We are hardwired to search for environmental risks as a survival skill. This can lead us into constantly striving to “fix” our environment. This leads to difficulty because not all environmental risks can be fixed, and our internal environment (ie emotions) are what they are. The way we can master a new language or quit a job does not work to control emotions.
Yoga helps on several levels. A complete yoga class should weave in mindfulness and a meditative focus. Dwelling in this present moment awareness literally shifts the activity in the brain from “gotta fix that” to “acceptance”. It’s like the transmission on your car. You shift gears from stress response to seeing things more clearly.
Yoga helps as well by drawing your awareness to what is really working well. The range of movements and topics is so vast, you’re bound to see things in a new light after your practice.
3. Make Choices: We always have choices. When faced with a choice, ask this key question: “will this decision serve me or help me? Or will it likely bring me harm?” Almost 90% of our behaviours are routine or guided by instinct/habit. Exercising your discernment muscle builds ability to say no when needed or to recognize when something doesn’t serve you well.
Yoga helps when the instructor constantly offers choices and reinforces his/her confidence that you will take your unique path. There are no categories or graduations in a yoga practice. Every time you hit the mat is a fresh experience. This is drastically contrasted with most of our modern activities. As you get more familiar with truly listening to your body’s sensations and messengers, you’ll take that skill into asking that all important question from above.
Sweet, spicy, vegan and satisfying, this entree packs a protein punch.
Plant based eating might be the best gift to yourself and the planet right now. This entree was a feast for my senses and provided complexity of flavour.
If you’d like to ditch meat for even just this meal, I promise you’ll be full and nourished with these “meat” balls.
The secret? Eggplant! A vegetable that I don’t enjoy on its own that much but am just understanding its versatility.
You can form the balls earlier, even freeze them, and bake while you’re preparing the sauce.
Recipe:
Step 1:
1 large eggplant, cut into 1″ cubes (don’t even peel)
Place in oiled skillet with 1/4 cup water. Bring to a boil, remove lid. Let cook over medium heat for about 10 – 20 minutes until eggplant is very tender and maybe a bit browned. Set aside and cool.
Step 2:
Mix 1 T ground flax seed with 3 T water. Mix well and set aside. This will be the egg substitute.
Step 3:
In the bowl of a large food processor, mash 1 can drained and rinsed black beans. Add cooled eggplant, 1/2 cup bread crumbs, 1 tsp onion powder, 1/2 tsp garlic powder and salt/pepper to taste. Process just until the eggplant is lumpy. Too much action creates a “gummy” ball texture.
Form into uniform balls and place on oiled parchment paper. Balls can be frozen like this (packaged into containers after they are solid) or baked now at 400 degrees for about 15 – 20 minutes or until browned and firm.
Step 4:
Using food processor for efficiency, chop one cooking onion, 3 cloves garlic and 1 1″ piece of peeled ginger. Heat skillet over medium high heat and add 1 T coconut oil. Saute aromatic vegetables until fragrant and a little browned. Add 1 red pepper (seeded and chopped into bite sized pieces) and 2 cups broccoli (again, diced into bite sized pieces). Cover and cook for 5 minutes or until veggies are tender-crisp.
Step 5:
In the same bowl of the food processor, mix 1 cup salsa, 1/4 cup sugar or agave, 1 T chili paste (samba oelek or sriracha – go easy and add more to taste), 1/4 cup soy sauce. Blend well then add to pan. Simmer for a few minutes until sauce gets glossy and thickened. Gently tossed in cooked balls.
Therapeutic yoga involves breaking down poses to understand the specific effect on the physical, mental, spiritual and emotional bodies.
Yoga is a terrific exercise program. Every bit of your body is pulled, squeezed and massaged for a full workout. Maybe you’ve discovered that it feels like something more.
Yoga emphasizes movement timed with breath. This creates a magic bridge between body and mind that leaves the practitioner feeling integrated and more coordinated than before the class.
Isn’t all yoga therapeutic then?
In a vast market such as fitness, there is room for all sorts of classes. Here are a couple key points that differentiate a yoga class from a therapeutic offering. And here’s what to look for if you want to use yoga as a transformational tool.
The level of training and experience of the teacher. To be considered a Yoga Therapist, the instructor should have over 1000 hours of dedicated training from a licensed school as well as hundreds of hour of practical experience.
The pace of the class. Since the practices are meant to have lasting impact, they need to be broken down and digested slowly. A fast paced class will not land the same way as a meditative flow class.
The adaptation to the individual. Each participant should feel that the class has been aimed at their particular needs. There will be a variety of props demonstrated.
The depth of information shared. Knowledge is power. It’s important for the participant to understand the “why” of this practice and for the practice to fit with their core beliefs and comfort levels.
The feeling of empowerment. Rather than desperately trying to keep up, or follow elaborate rituals, or pushing to graduate to another level, therapeutic yoga meets the participant in that sweet spot of competence, comfort and challenge. Language that encourages the participant to “push”, “achieve” or physical assists to that effect are absent.
In our group classes, Cheryl works diligently to create these standards for all participants. Unfortunately, many individuals have tried “yoga” and been disappointed. Seeking a therapeutic class may be a whole different experience.
Here’s another article about the power of taking therapeutic yoga online. Before the pandemic, Cheryl would never have guessed how much energy and impact could be shared via zoom.
Guest Blogger: Oda Lindner, E-RYT500, Yoga Therapist
Much of yoga is about embodying wisdom in our daily life. In practice our wisdom is often hindered by our reactions or by the patterns that are the result of our past conditioning and experience. Automatic reactions keep us often from embodying what we know to be true. Yoga has tools that help us see the dysfunctionality of these reactions and patterns, and it can help us become more who we truly are.
In traditional Yoga each human being is seen as a system that contains many lines [nadis] through which the life force flows. The flow of Prana in these nadis support our physical, psychological and mental functioning. The flow can often become interrupted, and the lines can become twisted and tangled. The reasons for the tangles can be found on the physiological, psychological level and mental levels. Many centuries ago yogic texts identified three major groups of tangles or ‘knots’ (granthi) that appear in our system. These knots are located along the central axis of our system. They are the ‘knot of desire’ in the lower belly, the ‘knot of action’ in the heart region and the ‘knot of ignorance’ in the center of the forehead.
The lower belly knot (Brahma Granthi) is associated with ego-centered desires -think Amazon ‘must haves’. The knot in the heart (Vishnu Granthi) is our attachment to ceaseless action, doing and achievement. And the knot in the forehead (Rudra Granthi) is the ignorance about who we are and what we are here for. In order to embody true wisdom in daily life we have to open and untangle all three of these knots.
Interestingly, yoga has different tools that can be applied to untie these knots. On the level of embodiment it can use physical poses like strengthening the lower belly, opening the chest and releasing tension in the neck and the head. On the level of energy we can use breathing, mudra and manta to untangle and guide our energies. And on the level of awareness Yoga can apply reflection, realization and meditation.
To further explore how yoga can help you “untie”, please consider the “Masterclass” starting February 4 and running for 6 weeks (Thursdays 7 – 8 pm EST). During this course we will spend 2 classes on each knot. We will explore each area on the level of embodiment, energy and awareness. We will then see if, with the help of these tools, we can surface some the reactive patterns that form the basis of each knot. And in the end we may be able to loosen each area a little so that the natural wisdom that is at the heart of our being can shine forth into the actions of our daily life.
A recent article in Alive magazine got me thinking. What is self care? The medical definition refers to a patient’s ability to follow through with doctors’ orders. How will they be able to take the steps necessary to build health.
In modern marketing, self care has been used to peddle spa treatments, luxury shoes and exotic travel. Are these items, for example, necessary to health? They may be very pleasant and desirable but they don’t have any direct benefit to your organism.
This is where it is important to understand that self indulgence (what’s a little dark chocolate between friends?) is lovely but it is not self care. By defining self care as those luxuries, we leave out huge swaths of individuals who can’t afford them or who don’t have access to them (maybe they’re tied down with family responsibilities or travel is unsafe).
And I’m in the business of supporting self care. Yoga therapy is not something that is done to you, like massage. Yoga therapy is the active process of evaluating where we’re at now and deciding what simple techniques can be employed (ie self care) to bring more balance. Almost anyone, anywhere can practice yoga therapy. As a yoga therapist, I spend considerable effort to communicate the tools clearly and freely. In this, I hope to include as many as are interested in the self care rituals.
When you are evaluating your lifestyle and thinking about improving your mood, physical health or mental abilities, please consider your responsibility in making that happen. Ultimately, no one practitioner can “fix” you. It’s up to you to take responsibility for your own self care. It’s not a “luxury” to hit your yoga mat or take time to therapeutically relax. It’s not something that goes on the “to do” list only to be outmuscled by shopping or travel (something more fun). Yoga is self care … health care.
Please try some of the free video resources on this site. It takes as little as 10 minutes a day, and can be absolutely free, to practice true self care.
As many of you know, I enjoy escaping and embodying a “hippie” sort of lifestyle for several months a year. My refuge is a 17′ travel trailer that we have outfitted with all the comforts necessary. When you spend that much time on the road, you need to make a commitment to healthy lifestyle which means you’re not really “on vacation”. That means eating healthy, bringing my yoga mat along and maintaining a meditation practice.
In this video, I try (with my little iPhone) to give you a sense of the space inside the trailer and I demonstrate preparation of a lovely Thai style shrimp stir fry. It’s always fun to peak into someone else’s kitchen, I think, and this one is unusual… about 50 square feet or less. Let me know if you try the recipe and send me your tiny kitchen tips.
Our modern lives are permeated with advanced chemicals. Compounds that would be unrecognizable just 100 years ago abound in everything from foods to fabrics to manufacturing processes. Although each of these compounds has been tested for safety, I sometimes wonder about the cumulative exposure.
In laboratory settings, research scientists expend due diligence to create a test environment where most things stay the same so they can study variability of the factors under study. The real world isn’t like that. The mercury in my dental fillings is probably safe on its own but what if my toxic exposure is increased by my personal care products, living next to a factory and drinking from the heavily industrialized great lakes?
It makes sense to reduce your chemical exposure wherever possible. Cleaning vinegar is a relatively recent discovery in our household but has quickly become popular as it eliminates so many other cleaning and household products…. all of which have complicated chemical backgrounds.
By contrast, vinegar is really just watered acetic acid which is produced by the fermentation of ethanol or sugars by acetic acid bacteria. It has been around for millennia. Cleaning vinegar is a stronger solution than that we use for cooking, usually 10% or more. It costs about $4 for 2.5 litres at your local grocery or hardware store making it a very economical choice.
And what can you do with cleaning vinegar? There are probably so many more uses but here are a couple occurring in our house regularly:
Clean the bathroom. Use full strength on a micro-fibre cloth to clear soap scum, disinfect and polish. Rinse with clear water. To sanitize, leave on the surface for 10 – 30 minutes before rinsing.
Clean your floors. Use ¼ cup vinegar to 1 gallon hot water and dissolve grease, stains and sticky gunk. I don’t rinse but if you have a shiny finish, your floor might need one.
Polish mirrors and glass. Prepare a spray bottle with ½ cleaning vinegar and ½ water. Use like Windex.
Dissolve hard water calcification in the washing machine or coffee maker. The vinegar is acidic and can be corrosive if used too frequently. I just add about ¼ – ½ cup full strength to the machine (in the fresh water container of the coffee maker or the drum of the washer) and run the machine through a normal cycle. Run two or more clear water cycles afterward to rinse thoroughly.
Add as a laundry rinse to brighten. Dullness in clothing can be due to soap residue. Adding ¼ vinegar through the fabric softener dispenser can dissolve that scum and brighten fabrics. Test any precious pieces first in a discreet area because vinegar can fade.
Kill weeds! Use full strength in a spray bottle directly on weeds. It will kill all plant life so take care when using in the lawn. Use a very directed spray, right into the base of the plant. It’s not as long lasting as herbicides and deep rooted plants like dandelions can recover, but it’s much safer for pets and kids.
Unfortunately, it is has not proven effective on Coronovirus so other disinfectants (like 70% rubbing alcohol) can be sparingly used on high touch surfaces.
