Serves 6

Ingredients

1 tbsp olive oil
2 onions, peeled and chopped
1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed
500g/1lb 2oz pumpkin, skinned, seeded and cubed
2 baking apples, peeled, cored and chopped
2 sprigs fresh sage
salt and pepper
570ml/1 pint vegetable stock
300ml/½ pint dry cider or apple juice

What to do

1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan and add the onions and the garlic. Cook for 2 minutes and then add the pumpkin, chopped apples and sage.
2. Cook for another 2 minutes, season well and add the stock and the cider or apple juice. Bring to the boil and simmer for 15-20 minutes until the ingredients are tender.
3. Liquidise and serve piping hot with crusty bread.

Yoga Wellbeing Tip

After you have finished carving out your face, use your leftover pumpkin flesh for this recipe.

Make sure you all enjoy your Hallow’s Eve.

I cooked this last night and it was so tasty I wouldn’t mind eating it again now. Give it a go, it only takes 30 minutes and serves two very hungry people.

Ingredients

2 medium aubergines

120ml/4fl oz olive oil

salt and freshly ground black pepper

ground cardamom

25g/1oz pine kernels, toasted

For the dressing

2 tbsp natural yoghurt

1 tbsp tahini paste

1 tbsp olive oil

salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 tsp thyme leaves

lemon juice, to taste

What to do

Set the oven at 200C/400F/Gas 6. Remove the leaves from the top of each aubergine, then cut it into four from stem to tip. Cut each piece into three short, fat lengths. Toss the aubergine with the olive oil and tip it into a roasting dish. Season with salt, black pepper and a little freshly ground cardamom. Roast for forty to forty-five minutes, until the aubergines are soft and toasted.

Make the dressing by mixing the yoghurt, tahini paste and olive oil in a blender or with a small whisk. Season with salt and black pepper and most of the thyme leaves, then check the flavour. You may want to add a squeeze of lemon juice.

Tip the warm aubergine into the dressing and toss gently until lightly coated. Spoon on to a serving plate and scatter with the toasted pine kernels and the reserved thyme leaves.

Yoga Wellbeing tip

You can always heat some pitta up in the oven, with a little drizzle of olive oil it’s a perfect partner to your aubergine with tahini.

Enjoy this autumn favourite,

Peace and warm wishes

Lx

Hello lovely yoga people. Hope you are enjoying your weekend so far, here’s a little recipe to tantalise your taste buds and get you all set for the weekend. I have put together a little Mung bean Dahl recipe for you all to enjoy in the up and coming Autumn months.

Ayurvedic healers recommend the mung bean(yellow lentils) and its split version, mung dahl for all body-types because it’s nutritious and easy to digest.

Ingredients

• 1 cup mung dahl (yellow lentils) or split mung beans
• 1 t. black mustard seeds
• 1 medium size Onion (chopped)
• 7 cloves of garlic (finely chopped)
• 1″ ginger root (grated or finely chopped)
• 1 t.turmeric
• 3 green or black cardamon pods (cracked)
• 2 small red chilies (or ¼ t. Cayenne)
• 3 cloves
• 3 bay leaves or a pinch of neem leaves
• ½ t.coriander seeds
• ¼ t.cinnamon
• 1 pinch saffron
• ¼ t.black salt
• 2 t butter

Method

1. Melt butter or sunflower oil in a large pot.
2. Add the mustard seeds, cover the pot, wait for the seeds to pop. Add the seeds, sauté lightly.
3. Dice the Onion and sauté until translucent. Add the garlic and ginger, sauté a little longer.
4. Add the rice and lentils and cover with water twice the depth of the rice and lentils.
5. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat.
6. Add the powdered spices (turmeric, cayenne) and the coriander, cinnamon, bay leaves, saffron, cloves, and cardamon.
7. When the lentils are tender, add the salt.

This is a great dish to have bubbling away when your reading the weekend papers and taking a bit of time out. Don’t forget to make (or buy) some chapatis for extra dipping. Make sure you send us any feedback about our recipes.

Make the most out of your weekend,

Peace and warm wishes

The YogaWellbeing teamx

Yogi tea was an inspired choice for our first food and drink weekly instalment. Seen as there is a small chill is in the air we have decided to focus on something with lots of ginger to keep the colds at bay and make you all feel sprightly when you step into Autumn. This is such an simple and effective idea and here at Yoga Wellbeing we can’t get enough of the gingery goodness. Get stuck in.

Ingredients –

• For this recipe you need a vegetable juicer
• 8 large carrots
• 1 – 2 inches fresh ginger root

What to do -

• Peel the ginger, wash the carrots
• Put the carrots and ginger through the juicer
• Drink immediately if possible

Yoga Wellbeing tip –

• This is a magic juice it helps keep your liver healthy
• It also is packed full of antioxidants which will help your skin fight the effect of  Ageing
• Carrots will help improve your eyesight (the old wives tale is true)
• It will also improve your body’s immune system no end.

The Five Spices
This feel good tea includes Cardamom, Cinnamon, Cloves, Ginger and Black Pepper.

Many years ago, Yogi Bhajan began serving a special spice tea to his students, which they named "Yogi Tea". Today this tea is still one of our most popular and is known as Classic Cinnamon Spicy tea. I drank it constantly when I was backpacking through India, it was a great friend to me on chilly nights in the desert and always went well with a piece of cake (or two)

Yoga Wellbeing tip -

The five original spices are very tasty and they have beneficial properties. Cardamom aids the digestion, Cinnamon is for the bones, Cloves are excellent for strengthening the nervous system, Ginger helps alleviate any physical weakness and Black Pepper is a blood purifier. Given the cleansing properties of these spices they add a huge boost for your overall Wellbeing.