The documentary below gives an amazing run down of the development of biotechnology in the last 50 years, and the dangers of the unregulated and immoral use of such technologies.  I encourage all of you to watch the whole video and share it with as many people as you can.

For further reading, check out these links:
http://yogashaastra.blogspot.com/2008/05/beat-heat-with-sheetali-sheetkari.html
http://www.healthandyoga.com/HTML/news/sheetali.html
http://living.oneindia.in/yoga-spirituality/yoga/sheetali-surya-bhedan-pranayama.html

–Rishi

Ro and I would like to thank all of you for your love and support.  We’re both excited for the new year and look forward to bringing you all some great new recipes, videos, and info posts and also learning from all of you.

Wishing everyone well,
Rishi

So here they are, the first two videos in our series on pranayama:

Pranayama – Part 1: Introduction

Pranayama – Part 2: How to Sit

If you have any comments or questions about the videos, please leave them below.

I hope you enjoy these!

–Rishi

(click for more views and to enlarge)

Ingredients
Milk:
* 2 tsp rose water
* 1 handful cashews (~1/2 cup)
* 2 tbsp agave nectar
* 4 green cardamom seeds – powdered
* water

Rusgulas (balls):
* 2 handfuls cashews (~1 cup)
* 2 handfuls almonds (~1 cup)
* 5-6 soft dates

Directions
Milk:
Place all milk ingredients in a blender, and add water until total volume is just over 2 cups.  Blend it all together.

Rusgulas (balls):
In a food processor, grind down 1 handful of cashews and 1 handful of almonds into a fine powder.  Again using a food processor, grind down the other handful of cashews and almonds into small granules.  In a large bowl, mix ground nuts with dates by hand until evenly distributed.  Add 2 tablespoons of the milk into the mix and mash further. Next, shape the mix into 1 1/2 inch diameter saucers, and set aside.

Finally, place the rusgulas in a bowl, and pour the milk over them.  Allow everything to sit for 7-8 hours so the rusgulas soak up the flavor from the milk and soften.  Before serving, top with crushed pistachios.

Now go make yourself some!

Please check out 2 new projects we are running focused on LOCAL FOOD:

Follow the ‘local’ movement:

Our home, which we have converted into a suburban farm:

–Rishi

Ingredients

*3/4 cup almond pulp – squeezed dry
*2 tablespoons olive oil
*1 large date
*5 long sprigs rosemary, chopped
*1 tablespoon dried parsely
*1/2 teaspoon salt
*1/2 teaspoon grated ginger
*1/2 apple, grated
*1/2 pomegranate, peeled

*8 button mushrooms

Directions

Well the directions for this one are just too short, so I have to write  a little extra so it looks more substantial.  I hope you’re ready for this.  Gather ingredients.  Chop and grate as instructed above.  Mix everything besides pomegranate first, then add pomegranate.  For a little extra fruity flavor, pop some pomegranate seeds into the mix. Finally, put the stuffing in mushrooms. Serve!!!

Happy Thanksgiving!

–Rishi

(click for more views and to enlarge)

Ingredients

Curry:

* 2 bananas
* 1 tomato
* 1 tbsp coconut oil
* 1 tsp coriander
* 1 tsp cumin
* 1/2 tsp garam masala
* 2 pinches cinammon
* 1/2 tsp turmeric
* 1/4 tsp salt
* red chili powder (to taste)
* 1 handful cashews
* about 1/2 cup water

Koftas:

* 1 1/2 handfuls walnuts
* 1/2 tsp cumin
* 1/2 tsp coriander
* 1 tsp Nama Shoyu/Bragg’s Liquid Aminos
* 1 large soft date

Directions

Place bananas, tomatoes, and coconut oil into food processor and mix until smooth.  Next add spices and cashews.  Depending on the thickness of the curry, add water until it reaches the desired consistency.  Taste a little and see if you’d like it a little spicier (if so, add equal amounts coriander, cumin, garam masala).   To make the koftas, pulse walnuts, cumin, coriander, and nama shoyu in food processor until walnuts are in small pieces.  Mash walnut mixture together with dates by hand, then roll the mixture into little balls.

To serve:  Places koftas on plate and cover with sauce.  For “rice,” use shredded cabbage, and for “naan” use pieces of any leafy lettuce.  For salad, use cherry tomatoes or sliced tomatoes.

And remember to eat with your hands to get the full flavor!!!

Please check out 2 new projects we are running focused on LOCAL FOOD:

Follow the ‘local’ movement:

Our home, which we have converted into a suburban farm:

–Rishi

However, while I was attending a yoga training program in the ashram, I was made to practice oil pulling every morning.  All I have to say is wow!  Within two weeks I found my skin was the softest it had been since I was a child.  A bleeding problem I had with one spot in my gums also dissappeared, along with sensitivity in one of my molars.  After getting such great results I knew this was something I had to share with everyone I knew.

What you need:

- A bottle of cold pressed sesame or sunflower oil (preferable sesame)
- A tablespoon

How to do it:
As soon as you wake up, place around one tablespoon of oil into your mouth.  Keep your jaw closed and relaxed, and push the oil through your teeth with your tongue.  Bring the oil back inside your teeth using your cheeks.  Keep repeating this process.  After about 10 to 15 minutes, the oils thick consistency will change to become much thinner and watery.  At this point, spit the oil out of your mouth into a sink.  If the oil is watery and whitish in color, you did it correctly.  Quickly rinse out your mouth with water several times.  And your done!

Important Notes:

- Oil pulling should be done BEFORE brushing
- Oil pulling should be done on an empty stomach
- Try not to swallow any of the oil

Benefits:

- Removal of toxins from the digestive system
- Clearer skin
- Whiter teeth
- Healthier gums
- Better overall Health

If you decide to try kavala graha out, tell us!  We’d love to hear whether it worked for you or not and share the results with everyone else.

Also, I’ll be posting an instructional video for this post later this week.

–Rishi

I practice kavala graha everyday with Raw Coconut Oil. It does wonders for the hair and skin. Basically, you can do this with any raw and cold-pressed oil.

–Rohit

Ingredients

* 1 1/2 tbsp Nama Shoyu/Braggs Liquid Aminos
* 1 1/2 tbsp Ume Plum Vinegar (if you have it) or Apple Cider Vinegar *
* 1 tbsp Agave Nectar
* 2 tsp Sesame Oil
* 1/4 tsp Grated Ginger
* 1 pinch Asafoetida or 1 clove Garlic **

* 1 zucchini – chopped
* 1 carrot – chopped
* 1/2 head broccoli – chopped
* 1 bellpepper – chopped
* 1 cup pealed and chopped sunchokes ***
* 1 cup peanuts

* 1/4 head iceberg lettuce

Directions

Lets see how short I can make this (just to show you how simple this really is):

Put chopped vegetables, except lettuce, and peanuts into a bowl.  Mix in the rest of the ingredients.  Let sit and marinate for 15-20 minutes.  Serve over lettuce as pictured.  Eat it and enjoy!

Notes

* Ume Plum Vinegar can be hard to find raw, and its very expensive.  So if you don’t mind normal ume plum vinegar, use it, otherwise ACV works just fine.
** Asafoetida is a powdered spice available in most Indian grocery stores.  It is used as a replacement for garlic, because garlic (along with onion) is considered to be rajsaic.
*** Sunchokes are a native American vegetable that for some reason haven’t really caught on in their home country.  I usually find mine at Trader Joes.

–Rishi

Hi everyone! Well, here it is, my first recipe post since I got back from India.  After traveling around for three long months, I learned a lot about how Indian food is put together and what all the spices can be used for.  I also learned a lot about the different styles of Indian cooking.  Food really differs from state to state in India, almost as if each state is a different country with a different culture (each state also has its own set of dominant languages).  Most of the Indian food you are probably familiar with (such as Tandoori Paneer or Naan or Paneer Makhani) is from the state of Punjab (my families home state), but there is so much more variety in Indian food that most people in the West are unfamiliar with.  So I’m going to try to bring some of that variety here, and of course, do it raw!

To start with, I’m bringing you an all-over-Indian all-time favorite known as halva.  Halva is usually made out of semolina, but there are dozens of other varieties like almond, carrot, jackfruit, and strawberry.  Halva was something I grew up with, and it was always one of my favorite desserts/breakfasts.  Its sweet, spiced, buttery, delicate and just overall amazing.  If you’ve ever had freshly made homecooked halva, you know what I’m talking about.  I really tried to capture that traditional halva taste in this raw halva, and I think I hit this on the head.  I hope you all try this one out and enjoy it. And to all of Roshi’s Indian followers who have given up this tasty treat, I hope this brings you back to your childhood like it does for me.

Ingredients

* 3/4 pound almonds
* 1/2 cup white sesame seeds
* 6-7 whole green cardamom seeds (or to taste)
* 2 tbsp agave nectar (or to taste)

Optional Mix-ins:

* 1 handful almonds
* 1 handful raisins

Directions

Put all the almonds into a food processor until they are ground down to be as powder-like as possible. Put the sesame seeds and 3 cups of water into a blender on a low setting.  Don’t allow the blender to run too long because you’ll need the sesame seed pulp.  Using a very fine strainer or cheese cloth, separate the sesame seed pulp from the water.  Take the sesame seed pulp and mix it together with the almond powder by hand.  Skin and grind the cardamom seeds into a powder and add to the mixture.  Next add the agave nectar.

Mix-ins:

Some people like their halva straight, others like a little variance.  For the almonds, crush them up a bit and then mix them into the halva.  For the raisins, you can mix them in straight, or soak them first and then mix them in to give them a more cooked texture.

And that’s it!

Simply the best raw halva you’ll ever try.  We promise!

Pictures from India

I’ve uploaded a select few photos from my trip to India for everyone to see, and by few I mean around 150.  They all have a little caption, and if you follow the link to Google’s Picasa, you’ll be able to see on a map exactly where each picture was taken.  If you’ve never been to India, I hope these pictures will give you an incentive to go there.  It’s really such a wonderful country filled with so much knowledge, mystery, and beauty that everyone needs to see at least once.

–Rishi