Hello Everyone!
My most favorite Workshop is approaching! The Rest & Renewal with Marma Chikitsa and Essential Oils Workshop is extremely relaxing and rejuvenating, which is especially helpful during this busy time between the Holidays. This workshop gives you the opportunity to take care of yourself and restore your energy for the season and New Year! I invite you to sign up quickly because there are only two spaces left! See you on Saturday!
Love, Hannelore

​Hello everyone. If you're in New Hampshire then you are aware that today we had our first snow! For me, it originally felt so dreadful because my snowblower wouldn't work and I had to leave for errands in Manchester. So, sadly I had to go outside in the cold and shovel snow by hand! 

I have just returned home from Manchester though and everything went well. I am here now, enjoying a delicious, warming cup of Chai Tea... it's in moments like this that I am grateful for my knowledge of Ayurvedic recipes like this chai. 

As I sit here sipping my tea, I can't help but also feel excited about the upcoming day of Thanksgiving. I find myself now planning ahead in regard to which recipe I will make - I love giving in to the gourmet side of myself ;) 

This year, my vegetarian turkey won't have creme because my joints have been more sensitive to dairy and so the "turkey" will instead have tahini and almond butter mixed with chestnut and mushrooms of all kinds... oh! And its served either in a pumpkin or a butternut squash!  Without yoga, mindfulness and Ayurveda, I wouldn't have been aware as to why my body ached sometimes. Thank goodness for these wonderful and healing practices. :) 

I'd like to share my vegetarian turkey recipe with you here now so that you can possibly enjoy it's deliciousness as well! The mushrooms and chestnuts in it have so many nutrients that are beneficial to your body, including protein! The tahini is calcium and mineral rich, and the almond butter has a sweet taste to balance out the bitter taste of the tahini. The sauce is mixed with Ayurvedic spices like curry, turmeric,  paprika, cumin, coriander, and ginger, as well as fresh thyme, rosemary and oregano which help to kindle your Agni (digestive fire) and harmonize your digestive system. The whole recipe is full of vitamins, which will help your immune system during this winter period :) 

If you have any questions about how to prepare it, please feel free to ask me! ~ Hannelore

INGREDIENTS

* Cut the top off the pumpkin (about 1/3 of the upper part) so that it forms a bowl. Remove the insides (you can bake the seeds in the oven with a little bit of oil - feel free to add spices to it later and then enjoy them as an appetizer) and bake the pumpkin bowl in the oven between 380-400 degrees until it is soft. **** It is recommended that you oil the inside of the pumpkin with olive oil or sesame oil, as well as sprinkle some nutritional yeast inside of it. ****

* If you are using a squash, cut it in half, long ways, so that it also forms a long bowl. Scoop out the insides and bake both sides of the remaining squash in the oven, just as mentioned above regarding the pumpkin. Don't forget to add oil and nutritional yeast to the inside of the squash bowl. 

In the meantime...

* Heat the Ghee first and then add and saute all of the spices and herbs in the ghee until the spices foam and you can smell them (be careful not to burn them, this requires all of your attention).
* Now add the diced onion and let them sautee in the spices. You want to saute the onions until they are covered in spices in ghee. Stir until they become golden.
* Next, add the chopped mushrooms. Stir them in until they are also covered in the ghee and the spices. Maybe chant love into your mushrooms as you cook them ❤
* Next, sprinkle some nutritional yeast onto the mixture and mix it together.
* Next, add some wine to this lovely mixture. Allow the wine to bubble up and form a sauce. 
* Next, add some tahini and almond butter, stirring it in until the mixture is smooth and thick.
* Finally, once the pumpkin or squash is finished baking (it is soft but not too soft - pay attention to it), remove it from the oven and fill the bowl portion with the above mixture. 
* Garnish with a branch of rosemary or parsley.  ENJOY!

Just a reminder that tomorrow's workshop starts at 1:30! I have two spaces left, so if you would like to join now last minute, you still can. Simply let me know asap :)  This workshop on Saturday, November 17th includes a combination of Yoga, Ayurveda, and the Science of Western Nutrition, which when combined, is so worthwhile! For this amazing workshop, I am collaborating with Maria Larkin who is also at Inner Balance as a Registered Dietitian, Nutritionist, and Functional Medicine Practitioner. For more information about this workshop, visit the previous blog. Here is the link :)