DEEPTI S YOGA KITCHEN

DEEPTI S YOGA KITCHEN

All the energies that go to make up our body and mind come from the food we eat. We could say that our bodies and minds become like our food. If our mind is constructed from the food, then we could claim that food will inluence the way we think and feel. In other words, eating right is important not only what, but also how much. In this small booklet, we have compiled some of the recipes that we have offered our students during the month-long yoga teacher training courses that we conduct at Anandavan Yog Peeth, our school in the eastern Himalayas of India. We decided to put down some of the recipes which were popular with our students. In fact, this idea is theirs. Many thanks to Anastacia Brunelle who took it upon herself to compile, design and produce this booklet from shoddy notes.

APPLE KHEER (Apple pudding in milk) 1. Milk, 1 Litre. 2. Condensed milk, ½ Tin. 3. Three medium sized sweet apples. (Never use green apples, else the milk will curdle). 4. Cinnamon Powder 1 teaspoon. 5. Roasted and sliced almonds and raisins as garnish. Pour milk in a heavy-bottomed pan (preferably non-stick). Bring milk to a boil. Let it simmer on low lame for - minutes, stirring occasionally. In the meantime, peel and core apples and grate them. After simmering milk for - minutes, add the grated apples, bring to a boil and remove from ire. Add condensed milk and cinnamon powder. Garnish with almonds and raisins and serve the Kheer cold. DEEPTI S SECRET TIP: Add one table spoon corn starch mixed in ¼ glass of cold milk. Then pour this mixture over the simmering milk when the simmering time is over. Keep stirring while pouring, This will give the kheer a creamy and a thick texture.

PALAK PANEER (Spinach and cottage cheese curry) DEEPTI S SECRET TIP: Sometimes spinach tastes a little astringent and maybe with a touch of bitterness. To avoid this taste in a healthy way, add 2 or 3 chopped carrots to spinach when you are steaming the spinach then go ahead and puree the whole thing as described above. Carrots will not be visible in the pureed spinach, but will take the bitterness away because of their natural sweetness. 1. Milk, 1 Litre. 2. White vinegar 1 to 2 tablespoons.. Fresh green spinach grams. 4. One large onion. 5. Garlic 6 to 7 cloves. Chop the roots and the thick lower stems of the spinach and discard. Wash the spinach 4 to 5 times in water so that al traces of soil are removed. Chop the spinach coarsely and steam it for 5 minutes in a steamer vessel or boil (keep the container covered for minutes in half a glass of water if a steamer is not available. Cool the spinach and puree it in a blender. Making Paneer: Heat milk in a heavy-bottomed pan until it boils. Be careful not to let the milk spill as it comes up very fast once it starts to boil be there and be alert. Lower the lame as the boiling starts. Add half a capful of vinegar to the milk. The milk should curdle. In case the milk solids do not separate fully, add a few drops of vinegar more. Be careful while adding vinegar. If this is in excess, the paneer will become hard. When the curdling is over, you will see solidiied chunks loating in a whitish, watery luid. Strain this luid including the solids through a big soup strainer. Let the paneer (the solid part) rest in the strainer for minutes to drain out the excess luid. Invert the strainer over a plate to get a thin cake of paneer. Cut this into 1 inch cubes and add these to the spinach puree. Take 1 tablespoon of cooking oil and heat it in a wok. Sauté chopped garlic until it is light golden-brown and then add chopped onion. Sauté until it becomes translucent. Add fresh ginger paste and ¼ teaspoon of red chilli powder. Pour the spinach puree with the paneer into this and bring the mixture to a boil. Add ¼ teaspoon of salt (preferably Himalayan). Take care not to put too much salt as spinach has salts of its own. If you don t want to make paneer, get grams of readymade paneer from the market. Home-made paneer works best so with a bit of practice and experimentation, you can get the hang of it.

BLACK CHICKPEAS (For breakfast or a snack) 1. Black Chickpeas washed and drained: 2 cups. 2. Water: 6 cups. 3. Salt: to taste. 4. Oil: 1 table spoon. 5. Kitchen King masala: 1 table spoon. 6. Juice of half a lemon. Soak washed chickpeas in 6 cups of water, adding one teaspoon of salt. It is important to add salt at this stage before soaking the chickpeas overnight or for 5 to 6 hours. This helps to cook them faster. Take the chickpeas along with the water they were soaked in, into a pressure-cooker. Cook on high lame until pressure-cooker starts to whistle. Lower the lame and keep the cooker on this lame for - minutes. Switch the gas off and let cooker stand for - minutes, letting the steam under pressure do its job. Open the cooker and check if the peas have become soft and have been cooked nicely. If they still need more cooking, put the lid back on and cook for 5 minutes. If the peas are done, strain the water. This water may be kept aside and can be used to add to soups or other vegetables. You can even use this water to make dough. Heat oil in a pan. Add cumin seeds, one tablespoon of Kitchen King masala and the cooked chickpeas. Add the lemon juice and stir this into the mixture over medium lame for two minutes. Garnish with inely chopped fresh tomatoes and coriander.

SEMOLINA KHEER (Dessert) 1. Milk (full-cream or skimmed as per choice): 1.5 litres 2. Semolina (Sooji): ½ cup. 3. Sugar or Jaggery: ½ cup.. Almonds inely chopped:. 5. Raisins: 2 tablespoons. Roast Sooji in a heavy-bottomed pan on low heat for - minutes or until it is golden-brown. Keep it aside. Bring milk to a boil in a pan. Keep stirring occasionally until the milk reduces to about one litre. Add roasted Sooji and keep stirring to prevent lumps from forming. Cook on high lame to bring this mixture to a boil. Add sugar and let it simmer for two minutes. Add the almonds and raisins. Serve hot or chilled as you like.

GREEN CORIANDER CHUTNEY 1. A bunch of fresh coriander leaves washed in clean water. Remove roots and thicker parts of the stem. Keep the upper leaves and the thinner stem. Chop coarsely. You will need two cups of this. 2. Wash and peel 2-inch length of ginger. 3. 2-3 green chillies. 4. Cumin seeds (optional): 1 teaspoon. 5. One large tomato washed and chopped. 6. Mint leaves: ½ cup. Put all the ingredients in a heavy-duty blender and make a smooth paste. DEEPTI S SECRET TIP #1: If you have sour grapes or apples, put some in the chutney while blending. No need for lemon juice in this case. DEEPTI S SECRET TIP #2: If you have fresh green mangoes, peel and remove the stones and chop the mango. Add this to the chutney and don t add the lemon juice. DEEPTI S SECRET TIP #3: You can also substitute lemon juice with 2 teaspoons of dried mango powder sold as Amchoor powder in Indian stores. 7. Fresh lemon juice: 2 tablespoons.

BEETROOT RAITA 1. One medium beetroot boiled, peeled and grated. Mix and blend in all ingredients and serve chilled. 2. Plain yogurt whisked: 2 cups. 3. Salt to taste. Can use rock salt (known as black salt in India). 4. Roasted and powdered cumin seeds: 1 tablespoon.

GAJAR KHEER (Carrot) 1. Two carrots washed, peeled and grated. 2. Milk (full cream): 1 Litre. 3. Sugar: ¼ cup. 4. Green cardamom powder: ¼ teaspoon. Boil milk in a thick-bottom pan until it reduces to ¾ of its original volume. Add carrots and boil for to -minutes more over a low lame. Add sugar, raisins and cardamom powder. Stir this in nicely and serve hot or chilled. 5. Raisins: 2 tablespoons.

RAJMA (Kidney Beans) 1. Rajma beans: 2 cups. 2. Cloves: 4. 3. Large Cardamom: 2 4. 1-inch cinnamon stick or 1 teaspoon cinnamon powder. 5. Salt: 1 ½ teaspoon. 6. Paste #1: Grind in a blender: a. 2 large onions, coarsely chopped. b. 4 cloves of garlic with 1 tablespoon of cumin seeds (Jeera). 7. Paste #2: Grind in a blender: a. 5 medium-sized tomatoes, washed and chopped. b. 1 green chili c. 2 stick of ginger. Wash Rajma beans and soak them in 6 cups of water. Add salt, turmeric and crush 4 cloves, cinnamon (stick or powder) and two large cardamoms. Keep this overnight or at least 5 to 6 hours. Adding salt before soaking is important as it will ensure that the Rajma beans will become soft when you cook them. After the soaking period is over, put the Rajma along with the water used to soak it and the spices in a pressure-cooker. Add paste #1 to this mixture, close and put it on heat. After you hear the pressure after 3 to 4-minutes (or hear the irst whistle, lower the lame and cookfor to -minutes over this low lame. Rajma beans should be cooked so that they become quite soft. If they are not done in minutes, put the cooker back on the lame and cook for more minutes. The time to soften the beans depends on the quality of the beans and the altitude of the place you are cooking. If the beans and water remains separate, the cooking is not yet done. Switch off the heat and open the cooker after all the pressure is released about minutes. Now add paste #2 and bring this to a boil with the pressure-cooker lid off. Serve hot with rice.

SOOJI HALWA (Semolina) 1. Semolina (sooji): 1 cup. 2. Sugar: ¾ cup. 3. Water: 3 cups. 4. Almonds roasted and chopped: 5 to 6. 5. Raisins: 2 tablespoons. 6. Cashew nuts roasted and chopped: 5 to 6.. Ghee clariied butter : 2 tablespoons. Heat 2 tablespoon Ghee in a heavy-bottom pan. Add 1 cup of Semolina and keep stirring it over a low lame for to minutes until you smell a nice aroma. Semolina will turn light-golden or light-brown in colour. Keep the lame moderate to low otherwise the semolina will get burnt (it becomes dark-brown when burnt you don t want to do this). Add roasted almonds, raisins and cashew. Keep 3 cups of water ready in ajug and pour over the semolina and add sugar. Keep stirring until the semolina starts getting thicker and becomes semi-solid and assumes a consistency suitable for pouring. Switch of the heat. Semolina will thicken slowly. Halwa is then ready. Serve hot.

BLACK MASOOR DAAL (Lentils) 1. Black whole Masoor lentils: ½ cup. 2. Chopped ginger: 1-inch stick. 3. Chopped onion: 1 4. Chopped garlic: 2 cloves. 5. Turmeric: 1 teaspoon. 6. Salt to taste ( ½ to 1 teaspoon). Wash lentils in water and drain. Put them in a pressure-cooker with 2 ½ cups of water. Add salt, chopped onions, garlic, ginger and turmeric. Fix the lid of the cooker and turn on the heat. Cook until you hear the irst whistle or the sound of the pressure building up. Lower the lame and cook for minutes more. Switch off the lame and let the cooker stand for another minutes. Open the cooker. Place Dall in a serving bowl. Add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice. Heat 1 tablespoon of Ghee in a small pan. Add one or two cloves of chopped garlic. Fry until the garlic turns golden-brown. Remove from lame. You may add ¼ teaspoon of red chilli powder if you want to make it a little hot. Pour this seasoning over the cooked daal and serve with rice or chappati.

BEANS AND POTATO SABJI (Suficient for 2-3 people) 1. Fresh, green beans washed and chopped into ½-inch pieces: grams. 2. Two medium-sized potatoes washed, peeled and chopped. 3. Ginger: 1-inch stick chopped into ¼ inch cubes. 4. One onion chopped. 5. 2 garlic pods chopped. 6. Mustard seeds: ½ teaspoon. 7. Turmeric: 1 teaspoon. 8. Two fresh tomatoes either grated or pureed. Heat oil in pan. Add mustard seeds and let them sputter. Add chopped garlic and onions. Stir them and add turmeric. Add salt, chopped beans and potatoes and stir everything in. Cover the lid and cook over moderate lame. In a minute or two, you will see some water in the pan which appears as the beans lose their moisture. Cook the vegetables for to minutes, stirring occasionally. Once this is soft and tender, uncover the lid and let the water evaporate. Adjust the lame as required. Add the tomato puree and keep cooking without the lid. Once all water evaporates, it is ready. 9. Mustard oil or any vegetable oil of your choice: 1 tablespoon.

POHA WITH PEANUTS AND VEGETABLES (Flattened, beaten rice lakes for breakfast) 1. Poha: 2 cups. 2. Roasted peanuts: ½ cup. 3. Vegetable oil: 2 tablespoons. 4. Boiled peas: ¼ cup. 5. Boiled and diced potato: ¼ cup.. Carrot, inely chopped: ¼ cup.. One onion, inely chopped. 8. Mustard seeds: 1 teaspoon. 9. Fresh, green curry leaves. Washed and chopped coarsely: to.. Half a Lemon. 11. Sugar: ½ teaspoon. Take 2 cups of Poha in a pot and pour water. Give it a wash. Immediately, strain out the water through a strainer so that all water drains out, leaving the wet Poha in the strainer. Sprinkle salt on top of Poha, and sprinkle ½ teaspoon of sugar as well. Leave this in the strainer and keep it aside for 2 to 5 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare the other ingredients; take oil in a wok or a wide pan and heat it. Add the mustard seeds. Keep heating until the seeds start to splutter. Add chopped onions and saute them for a minute. Add the curry leaves and the mixture of vegetables. Now add the poha directly from the strainer to the wok. Keep the heat on. Use a fork to luff open the rice lakes. Stir for half a minute and add the peanuts. Squeeze the lemon on top and stir it well. Poha is ready. Serve hot.

PUMPKIN SABJI (Without gravy) 1. Pumpkin: ½ Kg. 2. Mustard or any vegetable oil: 1 tablespoon. 3. Fenugreek seeds: ½ teaspoon. 4. A pinch of Asafoetida (optional) 5. One green chilli (if you want it hot). 6. Turmeric powder: ½ teaspoon. 7. Coriander powder: 2 teaspoons. 8. Gud (Jaggery) or brown sugar: 1 tablespoon. 9. Dry mango powder (called Amchur): 1 teaspoon or 11/2 teaspoon lemon juice. Peel and chop pumpkin into 1 inch pieces. Take 1 tablespoon oil in a pan or a wok. Add Fenugreek seeds once the oil is hot. Add one green chilli (split or chopped), salt and the Asafoetida powder. Add the pumpkin pieces and stir. Add turmeric powder, coriander powder. Stir and cover. Keep the pan on low lame for minutes. TIP: If the veggie gets dry, then add a little water ml or so). This depends on the type of pumpkin, season and region. Once the pumpkin is soft and cooked, add jaggery and Amchur (or lemon juice).press lightly the cooked pumpkin pieces with back of the spatula, so if becomes soft. Serve hot with roti, parantha or as a side dish with lentils and rice as the main course.

CHOCOLATE BALLS (aka Bliss Balls) 1. Any brand of cookies (we use glucose biscuits available in India): enough to make 1 cup of cookie powder (see method, below). 2. Cocoa powder: 1 cup. 3. Honey to make dough. 4. Butter: 1 tablespoon. Crush cookies with your hands coarsely and then powder them in a blender until they become ine. Make 1 cup of this powder. Take 1 cup of cookie powder with 1 cup of cocoa powder. Add butter and use your ingers to mix in the ingredients well. Make a soft dough with honey. Make small balls out of this dough. Use your palms to roll the dough into balls. These are round and shiny. Ready to serve with a smile.

DEEPTI E-RYT SENIOR TEACHER/DIRECTOR Deepti is an -E-RYT yoga teacher and has been on her yoga journey since years. She started teaching yoga in studios in New Delhi in and discovered quickly that this was her calling in life. After completing her training from Rishikesh Yog Peeth under the tutelage of her guru Roshan, she has been teaching and hour TTC courses in Rishikesh Yog Peeth since, training more than students during this period. Deepti divides her time between Kalimpong and Rishikesh, continuing as a visiting faculty member, Board of Studies at Rishikesh Yog Peeth. Deepti specializes in traditional Indian Hatha Yoga. She is interested in deepening her knowledge of asanas through the traditional texts, and relating these to a scientiic understanding of the human anatomy and physiology. She hopes to share her love for Yoga and reach out to more people through her school.

Namaste