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Mindful Chocolate Exercise
Some fun with chocolate and mindfulness. A seriously fabulous combination.
Compassion…Good for Your Health, Good for the Planet
The word compassion has a Latin origin meaning “to suffer with”. Several dictionaries offer variations of the definition of compassion as “the act of feeling pity for the suffering of others”. I was surprised to read that the word suffering is attached so commonly to compassion—from my perspective, compassion is reaching out to others in a caring, kind, and generous manner. Compassion is a way of being that brings balance to the world and joy to those giving and receiving the sentiment.
Compassion opens the way for acceptance, tolerance, and forgiveness; I suppose from that perspective, there is an element of “feeling pity for one’s suffering”, even if that “suffering” is experienced personally. Nonetheless, cultivating compassion as a readily available emotion is a practiced skill — the more often compassion is evoked, the more familiar that emotion becomes and the more readily it is accessible to you as a response. When we are able to share a compassionate response with ourselves and others, we spread joy and bring balance. Personal health benefits are noted as well: decreased inflammatory markers, quieter brain activity, lowered pressure in the blood vessels, and an enhanced immune system. That makes sense, doesn’t it? Responding with kindness, caring, and generosity is healing and soothing emotionally and physically.
These two websites offer more information about the practice and benefits of compassion:
Compassion Rx
A Seasonal Spring Cooking Class
I’ll be co-teaching another of the seasonal cooking class series, with Wendy Van Wagner of In the Kitchen. Join us to have some fun around the chopping block table–to cook, eat, and learn about real food. You’ll go home with a big smile, satiated belly, and all kinds of delicious and easy-to-make recipes. See you there!
Posted in Calendar, upcoming | 
Tags: In the Kitchen, real food, seasonal cooking class | 
No Comments »Gratitude Is the Attitude!
Expressing gratitude has benefits to you, personally, as well as to all of us, globally. When we live from the heart, grateful for the small blessings that each day brings, the whole world becomes a better place.
Gratitude is a practice. And, like other habits, the more often it is invited in, the more familiar it becomes, so that the gift of gratitude can be evoked more readily. Begin by reminding yourself, every day, to look around your personal world and name three reasons for your own gratitude at that very moment. After a few weeks of this daily practice, that attitude of gratitude will permeate the way you look at all the events in your life.
You will come to see that even challenging times have lessons for which you can feel grateful. That while you impatiently wait on line at the grocery store, the child in the cart before yours turns to you with a blissful smile that melts your heart — a reason to be grateful. That when you run from your office to your car in the rain and just happen to glance up at the sky, a rainbow has just popped — a reason for gratitude. That when you can’t find a book you’ve been wanting to read and search high and low in your house, you come upon some old photos of your child as a baby and spend an emotional hour savoring those precious moments — a real opportunity for gratitude…
Gratitude brings joy, acceptance, forgiveness, and tolerance. Can’t the world use a bit of that right about now?
Posted in Balance, Mindfulness, Your HeartMatters Journey | Tags: forgiveness, gratitude, joy | 2 Comments »A Sunday Run in the Rain
What to do on a rainy Sunday morning…a bike ride wasn’t an option (we no longer ride fat-tired bikes!), snowshoeing–which had been a heavy favorite–fell out of favor when we learned that the snow level had risen to 6500 feet, and the indoor option just didn’t jazz us (elliptical and air-dyne bike–effective but oh-so-mundane)…we have not been running lately because of the recent snowfall, so when my sweetie suggested that we take Grace for a run on the ditch, I immediately responded with a hearty YES!
What a blast! We ran through snow, splashed in puddles, laughed with Grace as she bounded joyfully after a stick, leapt over fallen branches, smelled the delicious wood smoke wafting from chimneys, and appreciated the strength in our legs–even after two weeks without running–so much so, that we went for a second lap of our standard loop! About an hour later, we returned home with exuberant energy, wet feet, and big smiles.
What marvelous activities do you have planned for this rainy Sunday?
Inspired to appreciate real food and the joy of preparing it…
“I truly did enjoy myself at the Eat to Your Heart’s Content cooking class the other night. You both have inspired me toward a new appreciation not just for food, but for real food and the joy of preparing it. I look forward to attending and being a part of future classes co-taught by the two of you.” –J.R., Grass Valley
This lovely note arrived as an email, in reference to a recent class that I taught with Wendy Van Wagner of In the Kitchen cooking school. Our classes are now filling up within the first couple of weeks of them being posted, warranting additional classes to be put onto the schedule!
Romance! Food! LOVE!
My sweetie and I just savored the most divine meal — an early Valentine’s dinner — since he will be out of town on Monday. I wanted tonight to be special…and it surely was!
My winter CSA box was picked up last eve, rewarding me with a veggie array to create a masterpiece meal. I stopped at Nevada County Seafood on the way home from yoga this morning for two gorgeous, fresh-off-the-boat swordfish steaks.
Ok, here goes: I started with the massive amount of cauliflower greens, after removing them to reveal the luscious head that was nestled inside. To them, I added two giant handfuls of arugula for a quick saute with garlic chunks, in olive oil.
The cauliflower head was sliced thickly, rubbed with olive oil and sprinkled with salt and pepper and roasted for ten-ish minutes at 400 degrees.
I cut the CSA carrots into thick strips and briefly sauteed them in coconut oil with grated candied ginger. OH MY! This carrot concoction may become my new favorite veggie side dish. The combo of the coconut oil and its rich flavor with the sassiness of the ginger is simply amazing. I just made that dish up, by the way, as I was contemplating how this meal was going to come together. Brilliant!
A world-renowned chef gave me the instructions for the swordfish. Fish is one food that I struggle with in terms of knowing how to prepare it, and I rarely do cook it because of this. He assured me that rubbing it in olive oil and sprinkling it with salt and pepper, before broiling it for a few minutes on either side was the secret…and he was right. Thank you, Brian! Xoxo. I made a sauce of white wine, butter, capers, and fresh meyer lemon juice. Can I just tell you that the fish turned out to be restaurant quality?! Simply fab!
All of this was happening at the same time, so I was mindful about the what/when/how’s and completely enjoyed the time I spent creating this special dinner to share with my true love. This meal will be remembered by us for it’s beauty — so many colors, textures, and flavors: the fish was lovingly laid on top of the sauteed garlicky greens, over which the lemon-caper sauce was drizzled; the carrots nestled alongside in a gooey, delicious puddle of coconut-y ginger glaze, and the roasted cauliflower took its own proud place on our plates, standing tall in 3-D glory.
We ate slowly, enjoying each other and the spectacular flavors. Sigh. It was magic.
We’re nearly done digesting that gourmet meal. Dessert is planned for 8:30 PM, 30 minutes from now and 90 minutes from the completion of dinner (give or take a few moments of smooching). The piece de resistance will be a decadent chocolate sauce that is simply made by melting an organic dark chocolate bar and after it cools, adding in 1/2 cup of whipping cream. We’ll be dipping–with our fingers–juicy ripe slices of pear and mango into this sensuous sauce. Imagine it. Yes.
Posted in Eat, Recipes | Tags: luscious., Nevada City Seafood, recipes, sensuous food | No Comments »
