You raised the roof in January!

Three days ago my friend Sally texted me those words. Reading it, I had one of those spluttering moments: tearing up with emotion, choking on relief, and giggling with delight all at once. I felt myself fold in half with a long exhale, while at the same time stand up, throw my arms out and expand in elation.

It took a moment, a long walk actually, to put some coherent thought to that visceral response. That’s when I realized, Sally’s right. In January, I made a little more room for myself. The month was challenging, at times overwhelming. It left me sore in places I hadn’t felt in a long time, and it raised the roof, expanding my sense of place in the world.

My guess is you probably raised the roof in January too, didn’t you? Made a little more room for your life, your heart, your voice, your values? Felt yourself standing a bit taller because of it?

We all need to stop regularly and acknowledge what we’ve faced, accomplished, survived.  We need a moment to celebrate the power, patience, commitment and creativity we bring to our every day lives. Often we need a friend to remind us, to say in her own way, “I see you,” and to celebrate with us.

Sally is that for me, and I want to share that blessing with you.

So, congratulations on raising the roof in January!

Because of you, there’s a lot more room for all of us to raise our voices, raise our values, and raise our hearts to love – to love even more wildly this mad, crazy, beautiful world of ours.

“Thank you for your dedication and beautiful service to the world,” as Sally wrote. You are magnificent. Your magnificence makes a difference. I am grateful for you.

Given that January was that roof-raising, February is about catching up with the new year promise of warm soups, eating well, and savoring every slow moment of winter’s wonder.

To that end, I offer you a sampling of my own daily meals. With the right intent and a little prep, they become a Winter Cleanse to reap the nourishing, nurturing, purifying, re-balancing joys of this season’s sumptuous, edible love.

GENTLE WINTER CLEANSE

Breakfast: Mung Beans & Greens
Recipe below.
{ I used whole mung beans for this because Banyan Botanicals sent me a sample, (as an Ambassador) and they are good. But I’ve also appreciated the Organic Sprouted Mung beans from Truroots. }

Lunch: Kichari
Numerous recipes here on my blog: As in this everyday Kichari, Dr. Jay’s Kichari midway down this page, and this wintry one here.
{ Kichari is typically made with split mung beans, also called mung dal, which don’t need pre-soaking and cooks up quickly. But you can make it with whole mung – just remember to soak beans overnight. }

Dinner: Vegetables – steamy, soupy, sumptuous
Steam your veggies, make a soup or puree, or pop a root vegetable in the oven and roast your way to creamy, carmelly delight.

Snacks: Fruit
Only if hungry.

Beverages: Hot water
Sip throughout the day. You can add lemon slices to your water, or boil it with fresh ginger for flavor and extra inner sparkle.

Repeat one day, two days, three days – as long as you have an appetite for it. Your digestive system will tell you when it’s had enough… which might sound something like, “bleh!”

Detox Mung Beans & Greens
Makes 2-4 servings (2 if it is your meal, 4 if it is one part of a meal)

Ingredients
1 knob of ghee (or earth balance or coconut oil)
2 inch piece of leek, chopped and rinsed
2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
1/2 inch ginger, peeled and chopped
1 pinch mustard seeds
2 shakes curry powder
1 c whole mung, soaked a minimum of 6-8 hours
4 cups water, low sodium veg broth, or a combination of the two
4-5 stalks rainbow chard, rinsed and chopped
1 bunch dandelion greens, rinsed and chopped
pink or sea salt
black pepper

Instructions

Melt the ghee (oil) in a medium sized saucepan over medium high heat. Sauté the leeks. Once softened, add the garlic, ginger and mustard seeds.  When the mustard seeds begin to pop, shake in the curry powder, and give your pot a whirl.

Rinse and strain the mung beans. Stir in the pan. Add broth/water and cover. Once it comes to a boil, reduce heat to low. Allow to simmer 20 minutes. Add greens.

Simmer on low heat for 5-10 minutes. Taste and season with salt and black pepper. Turn off heat and let sit for 5 minutes.

Serve with a spoonful of kimchi, or your favorite ferments, to fire up flavor and digestion. Garnish with pumpkin seeds for a salty crunch and the fiber/minerals that power up your cleanse.

The homemade kimchi added to my beans and greens were provided by none other than…. who else? Sally Tinker Smith!

#myfoodlovestory

You will find many cleansing, healing, nourishing recipes in my book Ayurveda Cooking For Beginners. With just 5 ingredients for most recipes, this is an easy and quick approach to letting mother nature love you all year this new year. 

Click here to get my book and get started.

Lots of love!