baking
Singing to your food
I know it might sound ridiculous and you’re afraid people might laugh at you or judge you if they catch you doing it. However, being kind to your food actually helps you in the long run.
Sensitive people can tell the difference when someone makes them food, and they really put their love and care into that food. When we get food prepared for us (especially from a fast food restaurant), it’s disconnecting in a way. Sure, it might taste good, but somehow it doesn’t fill us up like Grandmas Apple Pie did.
We can be magical just like our Grandparents and make amazing food with depth and meaning if we just focus our attention on our food in a conscious way. Most people live to eat. We should be making the switch to eat to live. If we slowly stop overconsuming food because the food that we cook or eat has our intention cooked into it, we can become “full” even easier. Thus learning to stop overeating can become easier.
Many people that are Reiki practitioners bless their food with Reiki. Hey, if that floats your boat then cool! I actually pray by singing. I connect my intention with my voice and singing always puts me in a good mood. I intentionally connect with the food that I’m about to cook and will often sing to it. What does that mean energetically? I am blessing my own food and eating my prayers. I’m not as disconnected from my food and I feel a sense of connection to something bigger out there in the big web of life.
Even if you’re a horrible cook and can’t cook for yourself, try just humming something to your microwave dish. Make the intention to connect to your food and give gratitude for the many hands it took to get it to your table. If you’re also looking to deepen your Shamanic Practice, set a little food aside for the land spirits and ancestors in gratitude for the food that is about to nourish your body.
When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.
Gluten Free Brownies? Yes Please!
One of my co-workers has a gluten intolerance. I always feel bad because there are a high amount of goodies that float through work – whether it be cookies, brownies, cakes, muffins, or other forms of baked goods. If she wanted to eat them or not, she can’t because she knows the repercussions she would be responsible for. So what did I try? Baking gluten free brownies! They actually aren’t that bad.
I found the recipe here on the Trader Joe’s website. I love that store, can buy so many things there that are on the healthier side.
The original recipe called for dark chocolate covered espresso beans. I don’t know about you, but I’m not really a fan of espresso beans or coffee, so instead I substituted them with chocolate chips! (Not to mention the fact that I am a squirrel and squirrels tend to go supernova when introduced to caffeine) I also didn’t have grapeseed oil, but I did have canola oil instead. I also added flax seed, which is a really great bran that is high in omega 3’s. So here is the modified version:
- 1/3 cup chocolate chips
- 1 can Black Beans, drained and rinsed
- 3 Large Eggs
- 3 Tbsp Canola Oil
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 3/4 cup Organic Sugar
- 1/4 cup Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
- 1 tsp Baking Powder
- 1/4 cup Flax seed
I made the mistake of adding everything into the same bowl and trying to mix it with a mixer. Wrong choice. The black beans didn’t get ground up quite as well as I wanted it to. I didn’t have a food processor handy, so instead I used an old fashioned blender! It worked great, and everything was mixed to a nice consistency.
The next step would be to grease the pan with canola oil. I just put a tablespoon onto the pan and then rubbed it around with a paper towel. You could get fancy and spray a non-stick spray onto it, but I don’t like aerosol, and I’m klassy with a Capitol K, so I just stick with the simple stuff.
The whole time I’m mixing, I have the oven preheating to 350 degrees. After greasing the pan and making a hot mess of myself, I pour the batter from the blender into the pan (from my experience, the blender tends to make less of a mess when the lid is actually on. Not going to admit if I was the one that did that or not).
Pop it into the oven for 30-45 minutes and voila! You have your gluten free brownies!
![IMG_20140131_211106_969[1]](https://i0.wp.com/eagletherapies.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/img_20140131_211106_9691.jpg)
Regarding the texture and flavor – it’s not that bad. It has a slight bean after taste, but it’s rich and moist. It tastes nearly like a regular brownie, but you can tell it has more protein in it. Try it at home with your own variation! Let us know how it goes!