Category: Healthy Living

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Beautiful Places Healthy Activities Healthy Living

Himalayas of the American West

“Can you hear the roar of the universe?” MC Yogi

Back from Wanderlust with a yoga glow (or is it a sun burn? or both:)
all the while vibrations are still reverberating in my head almost “like billions of bees buzzing” to quote MC Yogi again.

To get the idea of the significance of the locale of Wanderlust, here’s an excerpt from Tahoe Social:

“World class athletes call Tahoe home, but so do thousands of outdoor enthusiasts who can’t wait to try something new. Here’s a question you can ask yourself in Tahoe: Mountains, meadows, lakes, beaches, rivers… where do I want to play today?

Have you seen the view from Mt. Tallac? Too steep? Then consider a beautiful walk through Kahle Meadows to the lake shore or an aerial tram ride to the top of Squaw Peak.

Is a paddle wheeler cruise your style, or do you want the adrenaline rush of water skiing? Truth is, the list of things to do in Lake Tahoe is nearly endless.”

***
The Lake is ringed by Sierra-Nevada mountains, tallest of which is Freel Peak, standing at almost 11,000 ft. in altitude. What a rush to practice in the midst of so much magnificence. You get the natural high from mother nature’s high peaks. To me, it’s the Himalayas of the American West. (The beauty is – you can still breathe up on the top unaided, with the best visibility of the Lake!)

Fun Facts:

Highest Peak in Sierra-Nevada mountains = 3,352 meters
Mount Fuji, Japan = 3,776 meters
Aconcagua, Andes = 6,961 meters
Himalayas (Mt. Everest) = 8,848 meters

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Healthy Food

Sharon Gannon’s Chocolate Mousse Recipe

I admire Sharon Gannon. Founder of Jivamukti Yoga school in NYC. I love her teachings, I love her voice, I love her music, and … I love her food:)  Locally, her protege-like advance student, Giselle Mari teaches at several premier yoga studios in the San Francisco Peninsula. Her class is always full of joy and light. Giving this Mousse a try and will upload a photo of it soon – Too busy taste testing:)

INGREDIENTS

1 box extra firm tofu
1 box firm tofu
1 bag Vegan chocolate chips
2 Tablespoons unsweetened Cocoa powder
1 Tablespoon Raw Cacao powder
1 can (13-14oz) full fat canned coconut milk
1/3 cup maple syrup
2 Tablespoons coconut oil
2 Tablespoons vanilla extract
Pinch of salt

My dream would be to go to New York and taste this at her very own Jivamukti Café! Unfortunately, no plans to visit NYC anytime soon so with this recipe, we can make it in our very own kitchen whenever we crave … chocolate mousse decadence:)

Sharon Gannon, describing this mousse: “The mousse is light, smooth and airy and at the same time deep, dense and rich. Yogis embody a balance of both the terrestrial and celestial forces. Yogis are deeply rooted and aligned with the earth and because of that connection they are able to transcend the binding heaviness of physical existence and soar into heavenly realms of spacious delight. So the mousse is light and heavy at the same time—I think that’s really cool! Also, just fyi, I recommend using a hand mixer and saving your arms for practicing handstands!

Put tofu into a food processor add a pinch of sea salt and blend, then add maple syrup, coconut milk, vanilla extract, cocoa and cacao powder and blend again. Meanwhile, melt the chocolate chips and coconut oil in a double boiler. Add to tofu mixture the melted chocolate chips and coconut butter and thoroughly blend. Then transfer the mixture to a large bowl, using a spatula to scrap out all of the mixture. Now using a hand mixer whip for 3-5 minutes at high speed—this will lighten and more add air. Using a large spoon—spoon into serving cups or crystal champagne glasses and refrigerate till cold about 1-2 hours.

Optionally you could serve with a dollop of vegan whipped cream on the top. Makes about 10-12 servings depending on size of cups. ”

Calling for both, this recipe made me realize that there’s a difference between:

Cocoa powder vs. Cacao powder (it’s RAW)

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Healthy Food Uncategorized

A Golden Gift of Apitherapy

Few weeks ago, a couple who frequents my Thursday evening yoga class gave me a gift unexpectedly.  Honey!  I was pleasantly surprised to find out that this is no ordinary honey off a store shelf as It wasn’t purchased.  To my amazement, it came from their own beekeeping.  Wow.  In the middle of Silicon Valley, I did not know you can collect so much honey – I did not know you can harvest honey in Silicon Valley from local flowers.  Such a city girl that I am -it’s a discovery that beehives can be kept privately and harvested on your own. I heard that chicken cooping for your eggs was popular among Silicon Valley types (almost said geeks) but now, may beekeeping also be something on the rise among them?

As yoga students, these two beekeeping yogis have been very dedicated with virtually never miss attendance record for my Thursday night yoga class. It’s so lovely to see a couple practice together, side by side.  There’s just something very heart warming in watching these two lovely yogis’ backs as they head out after a class, together slinging a yoga mat.  When they say goodbye or good night, there’s a look of peace, maybe some relief and a gentle smile.  You see the Before and the After effects of a yoga practice first hand.  Having a partner or a friend to share a yoga practice with always makes it more special – and when it becomes a routine part of the schedule, all the better.  Watching them take off into the night, I am happy they yoga together to deepen what already must be a special relationship – after all, they are partners in bee keeping – and that’s pretty special.

Their hand-made label in the back of the bottle is full of fun honeybee facts:  “Bees need to provide 70,000 loads of nectar, and travel 50,000 miles to produce a single pound of honey.  Darker honey has higher mineral content and antioxidant potential.The queen bee can live to 3-5 years. Honey should not be fed to babies under the age of 1 year.”

Only few months ago, I had bought a jar of bee pollens from a local honey purveyor – In fact, these yellow mini fuzz balls of a pollen in smoothies fixed my allergies as I now breathe freely.

IMG_3288 IMG_3287Did you know that honey, aside from being a great natural sweetener is wonderful to use as an ointment to heal cuts and burns?

Apitherapy is the term given to the medicinal use of honey, bee venom, as well as honey bee products. This is a very old form of medicine that can be traced back to ancient Greece and Egypt. In the ancient times, honey was treated as medicine.This golden nectar…is precious.

Thank you Margie and Steve.  BTW, did I ever share the beehive meditation?  It’s a way to turn inward into your own beehive=brain…It really clears your mind …You two would love it:) – probably already a master at it!

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