Lentil Stew

• Yield: 1 1/2 qts (about 6 Servings)
• Prep: 5 mins
• Cook: 45 mins
• Ready In: 7 hrs 30 mins

What to do with those winter vegetables in your CSA box?  Carrots, parsnips and celeriac - release their sweetness into this earthy, humble Lentil Stew. Mustard greens, stirred in at the very last minute, wilt in the residual heat of the stew and provide just a whiff of pungency. Serve it with good quality olive oil and balsamic vinegar. To make it vegetarian, substitute olive oil for the bacon fat & vegetable stock for the chicken stock.
Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups French green lentils
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1 tablespoon bacon fat
• 1 medium yellow onion (chopped fine)
• 2 bay leaves
• 3/4 pound celeriac (peeled and chopped into 1/4-inch dice)
• 3/4 pound carrots (peeled and chopped into 1/4-inch dice)
• 1/2 pound parsnips (peeled and chopped into 1/4-inch dice)
• 1 teaspoon unrefined sea salt
• 1 1/2 quarts chicken stock
• 1 dried red chili pepper
• 2 bunches mustard greens (trimmed and sliced very thin)
• unrefined extra virgin olive oil (to serve)
• balsamic vinegar (to serve)

Instructions

1. Pour the lentils into a large mixing bowl, cover with warm water by 2 inches and stir in vinegar. Cover the bowl loosely with a kitchen towel, and leave it in a warm spot in your kitchen for 8 to 12 hours. Drain the lentils and rinse them well.
2. Melt the bacon fat in a heavy-bottomed stock pot over medium heat. Toss the onions into the bacon fat, and cook them until fragrant and translucent. Stir in celeriac, carrots and parsnips. Sprinkle the vegetables with salt, cover the pot, and sweat for 6 to 8 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Stir in lentils, chicken stock, chili pepper and bay leaves. Simmer, uncovered, for 30 to 35 minutes until lentils are tender. Pluck out the chili pepper and bay leaves.
4. Turn off the heat, and stir in mustard greens. Cover and allow the greens to wilt in the residual heat of the lentils for about 5 minutes. Serve with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

 
Your Partner in Health,
Georgia D. Austin, MSACN, CCN, CNS
Certified Clinical Nutritionist
FLT Lifestyle Educator
New Leaf Functional Nutrition

A healthier GF version of granola bars that has less sugar than the overly processed ones & has only whole food ingredients! And they are delicious!

INGREDIENTS

• Coconut or extra-virgin olive oil

• 3 cups gluten-free rolled oats

• 1/2 cup unsweetened dried cherries

• 1/2 cup unsweetened dried dates

• 2 tsp ground cinnamon

• 1 tsp coarse salt

• 1/2 cup smooth natural almond butter (at room temperature)

• 4 Tbsp ground flaxmeal

• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce

• 1/2 cup honey

• 3 Tbsp orange juice

• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Brush an 8-by-8-inch pan with oil and line with parchment paper.

2. Combine oats, cherries, dates, cinnamon, and salt in a medium bowl. In another bowl, combine almond butter, flaxmeal, applesauce, honey, orange juice, and vanilla and stir to combine. Add wet mix to dry one and stir to combine. Press mixture evenly into pan with your fingers and bake on middle rack until golden brown and firm, 30 minutes. Let cool completely, then remove from pan and cut into 9 squares.

COOK'S NOTES

Store bars in an airtight container up to three days.

June 19, 2015, 9-3pm   

Christine Tyrrell Baker, PhD
WellBeing.CNY
Transformational Workshop Series
Key Learning Points:

Stress is a functional part of our experience. All humans are programmed with reactivity to stress.
We can learn to observe stress reactivity and link it to common mental and physical struggles in our lives. 
Healing and connection occur when people can understand their difficulties in a new light and develop compassion for themselves and for others.

Have you ever noticed that people struggle with holding stress in their bodies even when they have worked on the stressor in their minds?

Practices that address the mind-body connection, like mindfulness, are essential for building resiliency. Through awareness, we can interrupt the destructive pathway in which stress can lead to mental and physical symptoms and illness.

June 19, 2015 9-3pm
$90 per person
$75 for students
limited to the first 25 registrants

The Synergy Center
4500 Pewter Lane, Bldgs 8 & 9
Manlius, NY 13104
www.synergyhhw.com
To register: Email Christine Tyrrell Baker, PhD at [email protected]

Deadline for registration: June 11, 2015

I am a health care provider. Is this workshop relevant to individuals or intended for those providing services as well? 
This is workshop relevant to individuals AND healthcare providers helping any population.

Mindfulness is essential for interrupting the stress response. Research shows positive benefits of mindfulness for immune function, chronic pain, parenting and relationships, anxiety, depression, cancer, and hypertension.

Looking for a delicious springtime veggie recipe that's low in carbs & free of heavy dairy products? Try this Creamy Pesto "Pasta" with Spring Veggies. You can use a vegetable peeler to create fettuccine style or a spiralizer like Veggetti  to make spaghetti style noodles.
 
Ingredients:

• 4 medium zucchini, peeled and sliced into thin noodles
• 1 cup asparagus pieces
• 2 tablespoons virgin olive oil
• 8 ounces crimini mushrooms, roughly chopped
• 2 ounces prosciutto (omit for vegan and add ¼ teaspoon salt)
• ½ cup frozen peas (omit if you’d like for Paleo)
• ½ cup cherry tomatoes, cut in half
• 1 cup raw cashews
• 4 cups boiling water
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 garlic clove
• 2 tablespoons chopped basil
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• dash of white pepper
• dash of nutmeg
• Garnish with toasted pine nuts and fresh basil

Instructions:

1. Boil the 4 cups water, then pour it over the cashews. Soak them in the boiling water for 30 minutes.
2. Bring another large pot of water to a boil, then add the zucchini noodles and blanch quickly for 1-2 minutes. Remove the noodles with a slotted spoon and place in a colander. Immediately run cold water over them then turn them out onto a baking sheet lined with paper towels. Set off to the side until your sauce is done.
3. Add the asparagus to the same pot of water and cook for about 3 minutes until tender but still crisp. Drain the water and set the asparagus off to the side.
4. Sauté the prosciutto and mushrooms in the olive oil for 5 minutes over medium heat. Reduce heat to low while you make the sauce.
5. Drain the cashews, but reserve the soaking water. Blend the cashews with 1 cup of the soaking water in a blender. Add the lemon juice, nutmeg, basil, salt, pepper, and garlic and blend to a smooth sauce.
6. Add the sauce, asparagus, and the peas to the mushrooms and prosciutto and simmer for 7-10 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes and remove from heat. If your sauce is a little too thick, add a bit of the cashew water to help thin it out.
7. Serve the sauce over the zucchini noodles garnished with toasted pine nuts and fresh basil.
8. The pasta will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Some water will gather at the bottom of your container because of the zucchini. You can drain it before heating, or simply stir it into the sauce to help thin it as it thickens when chilled.

Counseling in a New Light: the Role of Spiritual Advisor 
March 13-15, 2015 


It has always been part of the human experience to seek understanding and merge with that which is timeless and bigger than one’s own self. This longing for a connection to the divine will ultimately manifest itself as spiritual belief and aspiration, and can be a driving force for cognitive and behavioral change. Yet as yoga instructors, ministers, counselors, coaches and therapists, we often do not utilize this aspect of human nature for motivation or transformation, and it remains an untapped resource for change. 


This workshop will give you the skills to begin integrating spirituality into your professional practice. Join Hari Nam Singh Khalsa, minister, yoga teacher, and mental health counselor, for this interactive, hands-on workshop as we explore the following areas of Spiritual Advising: 
 †How the role of Spiritual Advisor differs from that of conventional counselor, psychologist, or life coach

 †The relationship of Spirituality and Existential Psychotherapy

 †When Spiritual Advising is appropriate and beneficial

 †How a Spiritual Advisor perceives and interprets reality

 †How to conduct a Spiritual Advising session

 †Ethical considerations in Spiritual Advising 

When: Friday, March 13th through Sunday, March 15th (see schedule for details) Where: The Synergy Center in Manlius (Syracuse), NY
Cost: $215.00 before March 1st/ $265.00 after March 1st
To register: Contact Julie Walenta at 302-588-4416 or [email protected] 

About the Instructor
Hari Nam Singh Khalsa received his Master’s degree in Counseling Psychology in 2000 and since that time has maintained an active private practice counseling individuals, couples and families. He is also the founder and director of The Center for Existential and Spiritual Counseling in Portland, Oregon, where he effectively utilizes the counseling techniques that are shared in his workshops.
Hari Nam studied yoga and meditation for 30 years with the renowned Yogi Bhajan, who was a pivotal force for the introduction and growth of yoga (specifically Kundalini Yoga) in America. Yogi Bhajan was known for his effective “Poke, Provoke, Confront, and Elevate” style of counseling, which he taught to Hari Nam. This methodology is known only to a select few, and Hari Nam continues Yogi Bhajan’s legacy by including these teachings in the Spiritual Advisor workshops.
As an ordained minister in the Sikh faith, Hari Nam provides guidance, inspiration and counseling to members of both the Sikh community and the larger, general community as a whole.
Hari Nam’s broad professional background brought him to his current path of educator. Synthesizing what he has learned as a yoga instructor, minister, and counselor, Hari Nam created an in-depth course of study in Spiritual Advising, which unites the fields of conventional counseling and life coaching with timeless spiritual wisdom. Hari Nam has taught hundreds of people all over the world the skills to apply this knowledge to their own practice.

For more information on Hari Nam and his work visit www.spiritualcounselor.org

 



For directions to The Synergy Center, please call Rosemary at 315-663-6725 

       

 

Are you looking for a healthy sweet treat? Why not try these Chocolate Bliss Balls? Raw cacao in these treats provide a high antioxidant value & has natural compounds (called polyphenols) that protect the heart & brain. In fact, cocoa polyphenols have been shown to increase nitric oxide production, which can enhance not only circulation but also sexual vigor!
 
Not a chocolate fan? No problem, these Sesame Bliss Balls promote healthy digestion and purify the body and mind by promoting a more alkaline pH. An alkaline pH is known to help the liver & kidneys get rid of toxins more efficiently, plus all of the enzymes in digestive system function better.
 
Use organic ingredients for best effects. These recipes are gluten free & the Sesame Bliss Balls can be made dairy-free & vegan by substituting coconut oil for ghee.
 
Recipe 1: Chocolate Bliss Balls

Ingredients:
1 cup of cashews blended until smooth (or you can cheat and buy cashew
butter)
2 Tbl of raw honey
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
8 dates (pitted and soaked for at least 4 hours)
2 Tbl raw cacao powder
1 cup of shredded coconut for coating

Method: Place all the ingredients, except for the coconut, in a blender/food processor & process until
smooth. With your hands, roll the mixture into small balls. Then pour the coconut onto a chopping board and roll the balls in it to coat them. Place the balls on a plate and refrigerate (or freezer for quick results) until hard.
 

Recipe 2: Sesame Bliss Balls

1 cup toasted sesame seeds
½ cup golden raisins or regular raisins
2 tsp ground ginger powder
2 inches fresh ginger root, peeled and chopped
2 tsp ground cumin
1½ tsp ground cardamom
2½ Tbl ghee or coconut oil

Method: Place all the ingredients, except for the sesame seeds, in a blender/food processor & process until
smooth. With your hands, roll the mixture into small balls. Then pour the toasted sesame seeds on a chopping board and roll the balls in it to coat them. Place the balls on a plate and refrigerate (or freezer for quick results) until hard.
 

Feeling overburdened or trapped by life’s demands? 

Always on edge, like your body and mind are reactive to just about anything? 

Coping with family, relationship, or parenting stressors that you want to respond to differently?

Sapped of mental and physical energy despite your best intentions to live well?

Dealing with anxiety, depression, chronic pain, sleeplessness, headaches,  and/or other medical conditions?

Interested in learning more about mindfulness and its many health benefits?

The Mindful Path: Transforming Stress through Awareness

Instructor: Christine Tyrrell Baker, PhD, Clinical Psychologist

Three sessions provide core content on stress reactivity and the basics in mindfulness skill practice. March 12, 19, and 26;  5:30-7:30pm

$295.00 for the entire course.

Our mind and body responses to stress play a large role in how well we feel. Stress does not only come to us from external forces in our lives but also comes from our reactions to stressful circumstances. Our bodies are programmed to react to stress in a fight or flight mode.  When are bodies react in this natural way to stress, our minds also respond by being on high alert to respond to threats and to solve problems.  These stress reactions can leave us with experiences of depression, anxiety, exhaustion, illness, physical pain, and general life dissatisfaction.

The Mindful Path will not instruct you to change your life circumstances or magically reduce your commitments or life stressors. Instead, it will teach you a way to better respond to these experiences so that they are livable. By retraining how our bodies and minds respond to stress, we can free ourselves from the most damaging aspects of stress in our lives.

This course provides a pathway to awareness that diverts us from our usual mind and body responses to stress. Learning about this pathway has the potential to change your response to stress forever. 

This approach is backed by substantial medical research that shows mindfulness has positive benefits for immune function, chronic pain, parenting and relationships, anxiety, depression, cancer, and hypertension. 

To register, please email Dr. Christine Tyrrell Baker at [email protected] or call her at (315) 790-0717

Katrin Naumann, MFA, E-RYT, QGT, VH

January 21 - Feb 11 2015 (Aquarius)
May 19 - June 11 2015 (Gemini)
September 17- October 9 2015 (Libra)

When a planet is said to be retrograde, it is a cyclic phenomenon in which the planet is in a phase of its orbit where it appears to be traveling backward. Though the planet is only apparently moving backward, its energetic impact is felt nonetheless, and experienced differently than when the planet is cycling direct. It all comes down to perception, which, as we know, is highly subjective, but our perception of any thing or situation affects us deeply, regardless.

The planet Mercury is closer to the Sun than Earth; as such, it travels in its orbit around the Sun faster (Mercury: 88 days vs. Earth: 365 ¼ days). Mercury is retrograde when it is closest to the Sun in its cycle, and positioned between the Earth and the Sun. Three times a year, it would appear, from the perspective of the Earth, that Mercury is moving against the grain of its usual cycle, or backward.

When Mercury orbits the Sun and ‘catches up’ with then passes the Earth, the planet seems to be moving backward against the backdrop of the zodiac. To paint a clearer picture, we might use the analogy of when we are driving on the highway and observe the tires of a car moving faster than we are. It would seem that they are revolving backward. We accept that this is an optical illusion, based on our particular perspective, and slower rate of speed. All planets retrograde, but Mercury, considered an inferior planet, due to its proximity to the Sun from Earth, has a very powerful impact energetically, because it retrogrades more frequently. The sign and house in which Mercury retrogrades, as well as our specific planetary aspects, also affect how we will experience Mercury's energy, during this phase.

Retrograde cycles are opportunities to look back and reflect on what has brought us to where we are now, and to release anything that may impede our forward motion. This is not a time to begin new projects, but, rather, we want to tie up loose ends, by completing what we have already started.

Mercury embodies the energies required to bring the unconscious to Light in the Conscious Mind. (Hermes, the Greek name for Mercury, was the only god able to travel unimpeded to the underworld of Hades/Pluto and back again.)  Mercury allows us to bring forth what lies beneath the surface for the conscious mind to process and assimilate in a logical, linear manner. The subjective becomes objective, in this sense. As a result, we often revisit old, outmoded patterns of which we still have to let go.

While in this phase, our perception can be somewhat skewed, because we might be dredging up long suppressed emotions in order to integrate them fully; as such, miscommunication with loved ones and colleagues may ensue. It is important to take this time to cleanse and release stagnant emotional energies. We must recognize and then fully embrace those aspects of ourselves that we have denied, forgiving our self and others for perceived transgressions. This is the best way to take advantage of this backward pull. Then like an arrow, we can shoot forward toward our target, emotionally unencumbered.

Mercury was also deemed the “Messenger of the gods,” so communications may be interrupted and schedules disrupted. It is advisable to hold off signing any contracts or legal documents as well. Otherwise, it may be necessary to revisit the issue or renegotiate terms, once Mercury goes direct. It is best to wait until about a week after station direct, because the energies linger for about 5-7 days. It is important to note that we start to feel the 'backward pull' about a week before, so resist trying to rush a completion before Mercury retrogrades. Again, we will likely have to revise it once Mercury goes direct. 

One should also refrain from making big purchases, like a home or a car. Additionally, hold off buying electronics, or anything with “moving parts.” If we impulse buy during Mercury retrograde, we may wind up with buyers remorse. Mercury also rules travel. So, before heading off on a journey, it is important to double-check all travel plans. Reconfirm all reservations, leave ample time to make connections, and make sure to have packed all necessities, especially documentation.

Mercury retrograde has gotten a bad rap, over the years. It really isn’t the bringer of chaos some would make it out to be. It offers us, rather, the opportunity to slow down, to reflect, to become more mindful of our limiting patterns, and to make adjustments to our current state of consciousness. Flexibility is key. If we are too set in our ways, Mercury retrograde will highlight the areas into which we need to breathe a little space. Take a long, deep inhalation, hold it, and then exhale as slowly as possible. This process will release long held tension. In the same way we can use the retrograde phase of Mercury’s cycle to cleanse and purify the body, mind, emotions and spirit.

Katrin offers Evolutionary Soul Astrological Chart Readings for deeper understanding. This Natal or Birth Chart represents a mandala or symbolic picture of the Soul for this lifetime. It reveals potentialities based on the electro-magnetic template of the planetary energies at the time of birth. The chart maps these potentials, as well as karmic patterns that have been carried through from other incarnations, and gives an accurate picture of how those energies are likely to play out. Whether these potentials remain dormant or are actualized is wholly up to us.  Each of us has the capacity to ignite the beneficial energies or to re-channel those that have less productive qualities, and to direct or alter the course. When we understand the “lay of the land,” we will then be able to venture in the direction we truly wish to go. The chart serves as a useful tool that shows guide posts and pit falls that can further us along, or block our progression. Consider it a treasure map that offers up clues to help us discover life’s riches that lie dormant beneath the surface, just waiting to be un-earthed and put to beneficial use.