Here's the menu we made for our last yoga retreat...

Friday Dinner

Miso Soup with green beans
Fresh bread, rice crackers, cilantro, basil and wild leeks pestos
Plain Brown Basmati Rice (homemade seaweed Gomasio)
Beet greens stir-fry (garlic)
Spicy tempeh Nori Rolls, dipping sauce , wasabi, pickle ginger
Greens, White Miso Salad Dressing (parsley or basil or chives)
Asian carrot salad, Zucchini and pesto salad, Seaweed salad
Tamari almonds, roasted sunflowers and pumpkin seeds
Chai Tea (caffeine free, with honey and soy milk)

Saturday Lunch

Cilantro Cream Soup / Summer Squash Soup
Savory Summer Vermont Muffins
Zucchini Frittata with tomato sauce
Potato and zucchini casserole
Roasted Green Beans
Plain quinoa, Crispy Kale
Greens with balsamic dressing, sharp cheddar, nuts
Apple and black currants brown betty , Vanilla Rice Dream
Bee Balm Tea

Saturday Dinner

Dal, White Basmati Rice with Saffron
Samosa Casserole
Indian-Style Green Beans, Indian-Style zucchini
Fresh Greens, raw carrots and flowers, Yogurt Dressing
Chapattis with cilantro-mint chutney
Fennel seeds for digestion, fermented dates
Cashew Cardamom Balls
Mint and fennel tea

Sunday Lunch

Leftover soups, pestos, bread, crackers
Leftover rice & quinoa mix together or other grain
Kebab with zucchinis and marinated tofu
Leftover salads with greens and dressings, Deviled eggs, Nori Rolls +++
Soy Milk Chocolate Pudding (individual bowls with mint leaf)
Big bowl of raspberries
Bee Balm Tea (or Ice Lemon/Honey/Mint Tea)

Cilantro Soup

3 cups fresh cilantro
6 cups broth
8 Tbsp soy butter
8 Tbsp flour
2 cups soy milk
8 garlic cloves (more or less)
½ tsp red pepper
½ tsp cumin
Salt
Lemon juice

Blend cilantro and broth. Melt butter, mix with flour then add to the blended  mixture until thick. Add spices, milk and some lemon juice.

Lentil Soup

Soupe aux lentilles

4 tasses d’eau (4 cups water)
1 tasse de lentilles (1 cup lentils)
4 à 6 branches de céleri tranchées (4 to 6 branches of celery or some fresh lovage)

2 carottes tranchées (2 sliced carrots)

1 gros oignon haché (1 chopped onion)

1 ou 2 gousses d’ail émincées (1 or 2 minced garlic cloves)

2 c. à table de margarine ou de beurre (2 Tbsp of margarine or butter)
2 c. à table de tamari (2 Tbsp of soy sauce)
3 c. à thé de persil (3 Tbsp of pasley)
1 c. à thé de sel de mer (1 tsp of sea salt)
½ c. à thé de basilic, d’origan et de thym (½ tsp basil, origan, thyme)
Une pincée de poivre de cayenne ( a pinch of cayenne pepper)
½ c. à thé de graines d’aneth (facultatif) (½  tsp dill seeds)

Amener les lentilles, les légumes et l’eau à ébullition et laisser mijoter 1 heure à feu doux ou jusqu’à ce que les lentilles soient très tendres. Ajouter le reste des ingrédients et faire mijoter un autre 15/20 minutes en brassant occasionnellement. Cette soupe se conserve une semaine au réfrigérateur. Faites-en une bonne quantité et congelez-la!

(Bring the lentils, vegetables and water to boil and cook for 1 hour on low heat or until the lentils are very tender. Add the rest of the ingredients and cook on low heat an other 15-20 minutes, stirring once in a while. Enjoy!)

Photos!

Some photos from a past retreat... more to follow... Enjoy.

Aloo Gobi - Potatoes & Cauliflower

This is a recipe that we use in our Indian themed meals during retreats. The recipe was adapted from the DVD Bend It Like Beckham. It was featured as an extra on the disc where the filmmaker's mother prepared the dish and shared her traditional recipe.

Ingredients
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 large onion, peeled and cut into small pieces
Large bunch of fresh coriander, separated into stalks and leaves and roughly chopped
Small green chilies, chopped into small pieces (or one teaspoon chili powder)
1 large cauliflower, leaves removed and cut evenly into eighths
3 large potatoes, peeled and cut into even pieces
1 LARGE 28oz can of diced tomatoes with juice (or two regular cans)
Fresh ginger, peeled and grated
Fresh garlic, chopped
1 Teaspoon Cumin seeds
2 Teaspoons Turmeric
1 Teaspoon Salt
2 Teaspoons Garam Masala


Heat vegetable oil in a large saucepan.
Add the chopped onion and one tablespoon of cumin seeds to the oil.
Stir together and cook until onions become creamy, golden, and translucent.
Add chopped coriander stalks, two teaspoons of turmeric, and one teaspoon of salt.
Add chopped chillis (according to taste)
Stir tomatoes into onion mixture.
Add ginger and garlic; mix thoroughly.
Add potatoes and cauliflower to the sauce plus a few tablespoons of water (ensuring that the mixture doesn't stick to the saucepan).
Ensure that the potatoes and cauliflower are coated with the curry sauce.
Cover and allow to simmer for twenty minutes (or until potatoes are cooked).
Add two teaspoons of Garam Masala and stir.
Sprinkle chopped coriander leaves on top of the curry.
Turn off the heat, cover, and leave for as long as possible before serving.

Basic Pan Fried Tempeh

8 oz tempeh
2-4 Tbsp. soy sauce
4 cloves minced garlic
1 diced onion
2 cups water
2 Tbsp. sunflower oil

Variations: Add sauerkraut, ginger, coriander, curry, or cumin

Pan-fry onion and garlic in oil until translucent, then add cubed or sliced tempeh, soy sauce, and water. Simmer until liquid is evaporated.

Serve on rice, pasta, or salad.

Serves 2-4

From Rhapsody Natural Foods

Miles’ Apple Crisp

3 cups whole wheat pastry flour

3 cups ground sunflower seeds

¾ cup oil

½ cup sugar

¼ teaspoon salt

Cinnamon

Ginger

Nutmeg

Apples

Barley Malt

Mix the topping. Pack apples. Drizzle barley malt on apples. Pack topping about ½ inch thick. Bake until it bubbles.