Announcing: How we Heal

Are you ready to move beyond the exploration stage and begin healing? We thought so. 

So tune in now and hear about our exciting new series, How we Heal.

Then please head over to wherever you listen to podcasts, search for How we Heal and hit subscribe so you don’t miss a single juicy conversation.


Announcing: How we Heal

Are you ready to move beyond the exploration stage and begin healing? We thought so. 

So tune in now and hear about our exciting new series, How we Heal.

Then please head over to wherever you listen to podcasts, search for How we Heal and hit subscribe so you don’t miss a single juicy conversation.


Announcing: How we Heal

Are you ready to move beyond the exploration stage and begin healing? We thought so. 

So tune in now and hear about our exciting new series, How we Heal.

Then please head over to wherever you listen to podcasts, search for How we Heal and hit subscribe so you don’t miss a single juicy conversation.


Announcing: How we Heal

Are you ready to move beyond the exploration stage and begin healing? We thought so. 

So tune in now and hear about our exciting new series, How we Heal.

Then please head over to wherever you listen to podcasts, search for How we Heal and hit subscribe so you don’t miss a single juicy conversation.


Announcing: How we Heal

Are you ready to move beyond the exploration stage and begin healing? We thought so. 

So tune in now and hear about our exciting new series, How we Heal.

Then please head over to wherever you listen to podcasts, search for How we Heal and hit subscribe so you don’t miss a single juicy conversation.


Apple Pear Crumble with Ginger

With a nod to my Foix friend Sanna Phinney, I share with you this super simple dessert. It’s was Sanna’s delicious recipe that she prepared for our welcome meal that served as an inspiration.  

Ingredients

4 apples, cored and cut into chunks

4 pears, cored and cut into chunks

1 T Fresh Ginger – finely grated

2-4 T maple or date syrup or honey

 

½ cup each of pumpkin, sunflower, and hemp seeds

1 cup of Almonds, Walnuts, or Pecans or a mixture

1 cup coconut flakes or chips

1 t cinnamon

¼ t of freshly grated nutmeg

¼ t of vanilla powder or  1 t of vanilla extract

½  to ¾ cup of melted coconut oil

1-2 T maple or date  syrup or honey (more depending on desired sweetness)

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Mix the fruit, ginger, and syrup together and pour into a baking dish.

In a food processor lightly process the seeds, nuts, and coconut leaving texture.  You can also use a blender but be careful not to over-process.

In a mixing bowl combine spices, oil, and maple syrup with the nuts.  You may need to adjust the proportions by adding more syrup to taste or a bit more oil if it is too dry.  You will want all of the mixture lightly coated. 

Place in preheated oven and bake for 35-40 mins.  The top should be golden brown and the fruit should be fork tender.  

Serve warm or at room temperature.  Consider topping with coconut ice cream or a plant-based whipped topping.


Explorations of Polyvagal Theory: All About Blended States Recap

You’ve learned Polyvagal basics, the states of protection, the state of connection but did you realize there are blended states?  In today’s final recap Maegan, Cameron and Lauren discuss the nuances of blended states which are more common than you might realize.  And then just to take it up a notch we play a bit with the idea of the Vagal Brake.  This biological function is exactly what permits mobilization without fight or flight.

In this organic series, Gemmotherapy expert and educator Lauren Hubele, Japanese Acupuncturist Maegan Lemp, and the Passionate Polyvagalist Cameron Scott explore the blended use of the Polyvagal Theory, Asian Medicine and Gemmotherapy extracts to restore a sense of safety and connection.


A Warming Spiced Chia Porridge

When last week, during the fierce winter storms in Texas,  all I wanted to do was to warm my children and give them comfort there was an ocean between us. And as often my go-to, when I am distressed, I look for relief in the kitchen. In search of  something warming but not grain-heavy like oatmeal I played a bit with Vegan Richa’s Chia Banana Pudding. The results were exactly what I desired, warming and comforting but light and digestible. I hope you will give it a try this final stretch of winter and enjoy it as much as I did.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cup (366 ml) non-dairy milk – a combination of almond and coconut milk is very nice
  • 2 medium-sized ripe bananas
  • 1/2 tsp (0.5 tsp) pumpkin pie spice or cinnamon + nutmeg
  • A splash or two of maple syrup or honey to taste
  • A bit of freshly grated ginger
  • 4 tbsp each of chia seeds, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, and hemp seeds
  • ½ raisins or other chopped dried fruit, plus more for topping

Directions

  1. Combine all of the ingredients listed up to the seeds and blend until smooth using a blender (immersion or high speed). Alternatively, the banana can be mashed with a fork and mixed with milk and spices.  
  2. Pour mixture into a saucepan and heat to a simmer.  Stir well as it thickens.  Add seeds and continue cooking for another few minutes. 
  3. Turn off heat, add dried fruit and allow to sit for the seeds and liquid to gel for 15 minutes or more if desired.
  4. Warm gently to serve, divide into dishes, and top with remaining dried fruit or fresh if you prefer. 

Enjoy!


Explorations of Polyvagal Theory: Reviewing the State of Connection

In addition to your two states of survival, your nervous autonomic nervous system has one state for connection. That state is the ventral vagal state.  It is where you not only feel a connection with yourself but also desire connection with others.  In today’s third recap session you will hear more about this state and how Cameron, Maegan, and I use people, places, and activities to anchor ourselves in ventral vagal.

In this organic series, Gemmotherapy expert and educator Lauren Hubele, Japanese Acupuncturist Maegan Lemp, and the Passionate Polyvagalist Cameron Scott explore the blended use of the Polyvagal Theory, Asian Medicine and Gemmotherapy extracts to restore a sense of safety and connection.


Spiced Walnut Lentil Patties

These patties.  They are just the best. Plate them up with some roasted veg and a salad or pack them along as I did on your next hike.  Consider precooking the lentils and rice to cut down on the last minute prep or prepare the full mixture and allow to sit overnight in the fridge. You can top these any way you like but I am partial to the avocado mayo that follows. 

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup chopped red onions
  • 1/3 cup walnuts, ground
  • 1 bunch of  fresh cilantro finely chopped
  • 3/4 tsp each of ground cumin and coriander
  • A pinch or two of cayenne 
  • 1 tea of sweet or smoky paprika 
  • 1/2 tsp garam masala
  • 3/4 cup cooked brown or white rice
  • 1 1/2 cups cooked brown lentils 
  • 2 Tbsp tomato paste
  • 1 flax egg 1 tbsp flaxseed meal mixed in 2.5 tbsp warm water, let sit for 2 minutes
  • 4 or more tbsp gf ground breadcrumbs or chickpea flour to firm up the mixture
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • Olive oil for cooking patties

Instructions

  1. Saute onion until soft. Add ginger, walnuts, and cilantro.  
  2. Mix well and add to the food processor with spices, salt, basil, rice, half of the cooked lentils, and pulse a few times until well combined. Transfer to a bowl with the rest of the lentils. 
  3. Add tomato paste, oil, flax egg, and mix everything with your hands or heavy wooden spoon until evenly mixed in. Mashing a bit if needed. 
  4. Adjust seasonings as needed. Add in the breadcrumbs or flour.
  5. Let the mixture chill for 10 minutes.
  6. Add in more flour or breadcrumbs if too moist to form into patties.
  7.  Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Add just a splash of oil and spread it around. Once oil is hot place patties on the skillet and cook for 4 to 6 minutes per side.
  8. Serve with your favorite sauce, sriracha mayo, or try this avocado-ranch

 

Inspired by Vegan Richa


Explorations of Polyvagal Theory: Reviewing the States of Survival

Your nervous system comes well equipped with two states of survival. One of those is the sympathetic state that provides you with the energy to fight or flee and the other state allows you to disconnect and is called the dorsal vagal state.  Knowing the terms is one thing but learning what they feel like is another.  Step into our second recap session and learn how Cameron, Maegan, and I experience each of these states.

In this organic series, Gemmotherapy expert and educator Lauren Hubele, Japanese Acupuncturist Maegan Lemp, and the Passionate Polyvagalist Cameron Scott explore the blended use of the Polyvagal Theory, Asian Medicine and Gemmotherapy extracts to restore a sense of safety and connection.

 

Watch this episode on my YouTube channel here!


Spring Cabbage Rolls with Lemon Shallot Glaze

The secret to easy cabbage rolls is, to begin with, a large loosely packed head of cabbage, the kind found at your local markets or organic coop. I so love the concept of cabbage rolls as they allow me to literally let my imagination run wild.  They are a fantastic end of the week dish to use up whatever bits have been forgotten in your fridge and can easily become a comfort staple. In this version, I was inspired by leftover short grain brown rice, a single fennel bulb, two lonely leeks, and a handful of mushrooms.  The end result was remarkable.

Cabbage

6-8 large outer cabbage leaves 

Remove leaves careful not to create any tears. Stack in a deep large bowl of layout in a deep dish baking pan and cover with boiling water.  Allow them to sit in the water until tender.  Drain and lay them out on toweling to dry.  Cut into the thick stem at the base of the leaf just enough to ease folding.  This may be just a cut inwards or perhaps a small triangle is required.   

If you are working with a cabbage head with tight leaves there is another method of submerging the entire head in a boiling pot of water until the leaves drop away. 

Be sure to save the center of your cabbage to chop up for this soup or salad recipe. 

 

Filling  

  • One prepared cup will fill 3-4 rolls depending on the size of cabbage leaves.
  • 2 leeks
  • 2 medium or one large fennel bulb and fronds. Thinly sliced and chopped
  • 12 finely chopped mushrooms
  • A few handfuls of thinly sliced fresh spinach leaves
  • ¾ cup of pan-roasted hazelnuts, coarsely chopped (sub with walnuts, pecans, or almonds).
  • 1-2 cups of cooked rice or other grain (amount depends on the number of rolls you are preparing) 
  • ½ cup of fresh chopped herbs such as parsley, thyme, basil, and mint or 1-2 TBL of a dried herb blend. 
  • Salt and Pepper to taste
  • Olive Oil

Slice leeks in half down the length, wash away any grit and pat dry.  Chop all the way up to the green stems which hold just as much flavor as the base.  

Heat oil in a heavy skillet, add leeks and sauté over medium heat, once they begin to soften and brown remove to a plate. 

Add more oil if needed and chopped mushrooms, cooking over medium heat until golden in color.

Add fennel to mushrooms and continue cooking until fennel is aromatic and just slightly softened.  

Remove mixture from heat, and pour into a large mixing bowl along with all remaining ingredients including the leeks. Combine well and season to taste.

Sauce

  • 6-8 shallots peeled and sliced
  • 4 TBL Coconut oil or Vegan Butter
  • 2-3 TBL Rice Flour or starch (arrowroot, cornstarch) for thickening
  • Juice from 2 lemons
  • 1 cup plant-based milk or cream ( the thicker the milk the creamier the sauce)
  • 1 cup vegetable broth prepared 
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 3-5 saffron threads- allow them to bloom in a bit of boiling water for 15 mins before adding (optional)

Using the same pan over medium heat add coconut oil or vegan butter and when warm add shallots. Sauté until soft and beginning to caramelize. They can burn quickly so keep a close watch on the temperature.  

Use the flour or starch to make a roux for thickening. 

When well integrated with the shallots slowly add the prepared vegetable broth and saffron with water.  Whisk until smooth and bring this all to a simmer and allow to thicken.  

To finish off this sauce add lemon juice and plant-based milk or cream, heat thoroughly and season to taste.