Category: nutrition

Dandelion Sauté – Recipe – Medical Properties and Nutritional Benefits

Dandelions, also known as simhadanti or lion’s tooth, are often viewed as weed, ripped out, thrown away or sprayed with weed killer. Before eradicating them from your yard, get to know their medicinal uses. Taraxacum officinalis, is the botanical name since one to the chief constituents of the plant is taraxacin, a bitter glycoside. In English it is also affectionately called blowball, priest’s crown, puffball, swine snout, wild endive or dandelion.

The whole plant is edible and nutritious. The leaves, flowers and shoots can be sautéed or stirfried. The leaves can be added to salads. I often place 1 cup of leaves into the blender with 1 cup water for a gentle detox juice. Or you can make a saute.

Cringy Cat – Ayurveda for Children – NOW AVAILABLE

Cringy Cat, an Ayurveda book for children that I wrote, is now published and available for international shipping just in time for Christmas. This is an easy and funny story with big print and bright illustrations to teach children basic Ayurveda and helps children problem solve the nutrition and lifestyle sources of 3 types of “cringy.”

Pumpkin Spice Okra Stew

This year I grew pumpkins in my back yard planter. Not really sure what kind, but they looked like a tasty pumpkin spice okra meal.

Sweet Potatoes & Vitamin A

Did you know that a sweet potato is not actually a potato? Sweet potatoes are a dicotyledonous plant that belongs to the bindweed or morning glory family, convolvulaceae. This easy to grow large, starchy, sweet-tasting, tuberous root does not belong to the nightshade family. Sweet potatoes are so easy to make. You can steam them, mash them, bake them or put them in a stew. Here’s a basic nutrient profile below. Look at the vitamin A load!

Baked Zucchini Casserole

Baked zucchini casserole is packed full of flavor and nutrients. Zucchini is filling, satisfying and a great substitute for noodles in a casserole. Did you know that zucchini is high in vitamin A which helps support the health of your immune system, skin, heart, digestive system and vision? Zucchini is also rich in antioxidants that…

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Red Lentils & Spiced Celery

I love cooking up lentils. They are mildly flavored, filling and very versatile. Lentils are a great source of protein, fiber and lots of vitamins and minerals. Here’s the breakdown!

Chia Pudding – Health Benefits

As a little girl, I loved tapioca pudding, but I’m not into the sugar and processed ingredients, so today I am sharing a simple chia pudding recipe. Chia seeds offer an excellent source of antioxidants and omega 3 fatty acids. Chia seeds help reduce inflammation, constipation and LDL “bad cholesterol”. The fiber helps improve HDL…

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Healing Digestion – Ayurvedic, TCM & Functional Nutrition as Tools for Transformation | Online Training Series

Join Craig Williams LAc of Ayurveda Austin and I starting April 30th as we cover Ayurveda, Traditional Chinese Medicine, and Functional Medicine approaches to healing and balancing the digestive system! TOPICSModule 1: Healing Digestion: Ayurvedic Tools Recognizing the signs, symptoms and sources of digestion abnormalities based on Ayurvedic principles. Learn Ayurvedic approaches for healing digestion.  …

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Winter Vegetables and Ayurvedic Health Tips

When Vata increases our bodies may feel dry, cold, windy and achy, manefesting dry skin, dry bowels, creaky joints, cold hands, poor circulation, gas, bloating, insomnia or anxiety.

Ayurvedic Nutrition Guidelines for Balanced Doshas by Dr. Christie Smirl

Ayurvedic Nutrition Guidelines for Balanced Doshas by Dr. Christie Smirl Ayurveda is the comprehensive science of wellness that originated in India over 5,000 years ago and is still widely practice globally. In Ayurveda each person has a unique Prakruti which is your body constitution. Each person’s Prakruti is determined by a unique combination of Doshas,…

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Macro-nutrient Digestive Science and Health by Dr. Christie Smirl

Too many people consume far too much glucose in the form of simple carbohydrates, complex carbohydrates and protein. Remember that excessive glucose causes high insulin levels, weight gain and multiple disease processes discussed above. Transfats are dominant in junk foods and fast foods and are harmful to your overall health. Start looking at your food in terms of fuel and life source. My biggest recommendations are

Health Benefits of Intermittent Fasting by Dr. Christie Smirl

Intermittent fasting means of voluntary abstinence from food and nutritive drink for a set period of time. This type of nutrition planning has been shown to reduce the risk for several diseases. One way to intermittently fast is to only eat during a few hour window each day or set days. For example only eating during a short window of time such as noon and 4 pm, then refraining from food for 20 hours. Let us take a look at the benefits.

Ayurvedic Spring Health by Dr Christie Smirl

The vernal equinox signals the beginning of spring once the sun crosses the celestial equator from south to north. After the spring equinox we will start enjoying earlier sunrises, later sunsets and beautiful blooms. This change in season also triggers a change in the doshas (Ayurvedic biological forces) within our bodies. The ancient science of…

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Zucchini Avocado Scramble by Dr. Christie Smirl

When practicing an ketogenic ovolacto-vegetarian nutrition regimen, eggs are often a staple protein source for any meal of the day. This zucchini avocado scramble is a delicious satisfying meal for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Power Packed Ketogenic Vegetarian Chocolate Smoothie by Dr. Christie Smirl

To maintain a successful ketogenic nutrition plan it is important to have easy, healthy, nutritious go to meals. This ketogenic vegetarian chocolate smoothie recipe is delicious and packed with power boosting and anti-aging ingredients such as matcha powder, MCT oil and cacao. Here are a few things to know about matcha green tea powder.  Packed…

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Ketogenic Vegetarian Lettuce Wraps by Dr. Christie Smirl

With busy schedules it is easy to just grab convenient food that is not necessarily healthy. I’m always trying to create meals that are full of balanced nutrition, flavor and freshness.  Here’s a great recipe for Ketogenic Vegetarian Lettuce Wraps I designed.

Kapha Pacifying Khichdi with Dr. Christie Smirl

Khichdi, also known as kitchari, is an ancient yogi meal that balances the dhatus (tissues) and doshas (physiological forces). Khichdi is often prescribed to be consumed for 30 days to balance the doshas vata, pitta and kapha to detoxify the body. In India I enjoyed the availability of this nourishing, filling meal anytime of the…

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Avoid smoothies that cause disease by following Ayurvedic principles. 

Smoothies have been all the rage for quite some time now. The smoothie health craze has created a different way of obtaining nutrition, which at first glance seems “Oh so good”. I remember the first time I walked into a popularized smoothie retailer and ordered a concoction that sounded like a really healthy meal. I…

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Amazing Benefits of Fennel by Dr. Christie Smirl

Fennel is a delicious celery-like winter vegetable full of amazing health benefits. The white bulb, long green stalks, seeds, and leaves are all edible. Fennel is harvested in the fall and traditionally seen in fall or winter recipes. Fennel as a vegetable can be steamed, sautéed, chopped in salads, blended or juiced in health drinks…

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Kapha reducing Garden Vegetable Bean Soup by Dr. Christie Smirl

Ayurveda strongly suggests warming soups to reduce kapha accumulation. Kapha’s gunas (qualities) are guru (heavy), snigdha (unctuous), sheeta (cold), manda (slow), mrudu (soft), sthira (stable) and slaksna (jelly like). If kapha over accumulates in the body, these qualities create stagnancy and diseases related to blocked srotas (channels) such as obesity, high cholesterol, diabetes and abnormal…

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