Ratatouille <3

Think the movie is great? (me too!) Well, the meal is even better! I absolutely love this dish, it has got to be one of my absolute favorites. And it’s easy! Ratatouille is a French dish made up of lots of fresh veggies and herbs. The herbs really make the dish. And i’ve learned a few tricks to make it even yummier.

In my opinion, there is no exact recipe for ratatouille, but the staples of the recipe include:

eggplant

yellow squash

zucchini

tomatoes

bell peppers

onion

garlic

herbs-either herbs de provence or a blend of rosemary, basil, thyme

I took 1 medium onion and sautéed it in a blend of EVOO and butter for about a minute and then roughly 4 cloves diced garlic for another minute. I added 1 sliced green pepper next and sautéed for another minute or so until those 3 ingredients were starting to brown.

Next I added 1 HUGE zucchini that was chopped into 1/4 inch half moons, 1 medium yellow squash chopped similarly, and a large eggplant chopped into 1/2 inch cubes. I  added the seasonings-rosemary, basil, thyme, salt, pepper (save some basil for later!)- covered the pot, turned the temperature down to medium low heat and let it cook for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

When all the veggies are soft (not mushy!), add about 4 diced tomatoes and let cook about 3 more minutes. My secret trick is to add some very fresh basil leaves about 1 minute before you are finished cooking. The flavor is just amazing this way!

For this particular meal I had planned on serving the ratatouille with quinoa, but because I only had a very small portion of quinoa left, I just tossed it in with the dish and mixed it all up! I garnished with parsley and VOILÀ! Fin!

My top tips for conquering this dish is to 1)use the freshest herbs available 2) use a combo of butter and oil to do the sautéing and 3) add basil at the end to keep the flavor

Namaste

Cassandra

Strawberry and Parsley Salad

This masterpiece was created when I was craving something fresh, flavorful, and a little sweet. I started with a bed of romaine and parsley-about 50/50. I topped it with about 2 tablespoons of coarsely chopped Walla Walla onions and 2 tablespoons of celery. Lastly I spread 6 yummy strawberries on top.

The dressing ingredients are shown below. I used 2 parts oil to 1 part vinegar and added italian seasonings to make it a bit more savory. Add salt to taste.

This would be perfect with some fresh bread and a glass of wine on summer night!

Enjoy!

Namaste

Cassandra

Spicy cucumber and white bean salad!

Yummmmm! My garden has produced so many cucumbers I had to start getting creative. This meal is amazing, tons of flavor, totally vegan, fat free, and very cheap to make as well! What more can a gal ask for?

2 cucumbers

1/4 c red onion

1/4 cup parsley (cilantro might be even better!)

1 can white beans

teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon cayenne

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder (fresh is better!)

juice from 1 whole lime

salt and pepper to taste

I quartered the cucumbers, diced the onions and parsley and then added all the seasonings. Toss well and let sit for a few minutes so all the flavors can soak together! You can eat this dish just like it is or spoon it over a bed of lettuce. I topped some kale with this, no dressing necessary!

The importance of breath

Ok friends, it’s time to talk about breath.
Your breath has much more control over your life than you know and it is integral part to your overall health.

Here are some breathing techniques I use in my everyday life…

3 part breathing– Ancient Yogi wisdom tells us that we are all born with a finite amount of breaths. Slow your breathing and you prolong your life. Fortunately, there’s science to back this up. Deep breathing helps manage stress- a known killer.

For this technique pretend you are a balloon filling up with three different parts. First, your belly inflates, next your ribs, and lastly your chest. Now exhale and go the opposite way. Chest deflates, ribs deflate, and lastly belly deflates. This pattern will slow your breath and make sure you fill up every nook and cranny, encouraging the release of toxins.

Alternate nostril breathing– Feeling all sinus-y and blocked up? Get things moving again with alternate nostril breathing. This one is a bit more complicated so I am going to link a video i found to do the explaining.

Alternate nostril breathing simultaneously energizes and soothes. People naturally alternate between nostrils every few hours, breathing through them both at the same time helps harmonize the left and right brain.

Holding your breathe– I do not know if this breath has an official name or not, but it’s super easy and effective. Breathe in for 6, hold the air in for as long as you can (I usually do about 6-8 seconds) and then exhale for 6. Holding the air in at the top helps the exchange of oxygen, which increases alertness. I use this one when I start to feel tired when studying. The effects do not last super long, but luckily it only takes a few seconds, so you can repeat it frequently!

I encourage everyone to try these out and watch the immediate effects they can have on the body. The process of exhaling actually slows the heartbeat, temporarily reducing the stress response.

Namaste

Cassandra