Class with Dharma, Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls, Slaw Dressing

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Hello Bloggie Friends!  Well, Monday and most of Tuesday are behind us.  What have you been up to?  I had a super, amazing special day on Monday.  I haven’t done something this cool in ages!!!!!  I went to a 2.5 Hour Master Class with Dharma Mittra!

Esquire Magazine Photo Shoot

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    The non-yogi readers are like, huh, who?  Kinda like I am when my husband told me something important happened with football this past weekend.  I was like huh?  More on my Master Class with Dharma in a hot second.  But first, thanks for all the amazing compliments you left me on my Vegan Gluten Free Pancakes!

    Vegan Gluten Free Pancakes with syrup and blueberriesUp close of Vegan Gluten Free Pancakes

    Yes, Pancakes were one of those kitchen frontiers I was sorta scared of.  Not any longer!  Seriously, my recipe is pretty much goof-proof.  Heather told me in my Comments Section (who was told by one of her readers) that unless you use Baking Soda in the presence of an acid, i.e. buttermilk, that it won’t activate.  For my recipe, therefore, only Baking Powder will become activated because it is heat activated, but since I didn’t even use Baking Powder, and they still “turned out”, it basically means that you don’t have to use either, and they’ll still “work”.

     Vegan Gluten Free Pancakes after cooking

    Now that your eyes are thoroughly glossed over, we can move along.  In case Alton Brown’s reading or anything, I wanted to give the science behind the baking powder vs. soda issue.

    Vegan Gluten Free Pancakes with syrup, blueberries and butter
    Up close of pancakes with dripping syrup
    The pancakes were so good, can you hear the toot-toot of my own horn?  Thought so.  Alisa the Dairy Free Goddess has a great vegan, GF, SF Waffle Recipe very similar to my pancakes if you’re interested, check it out.

    Next there was yesterday’s epic Yoga FAQ Post!  Everything you’d ever want to know about getting into yoga, what styles to look for, what DVDs I’d recommend, how to score free podcasts on itunes, yoga attire, types of yoga classes/levels, the whole yoga magilla.

    Plus Tons of Yoga Pose Pics

    Woman doing yoga pose

    Moving Along to My Super Cool Day with Dharma Mittra…and about 250 other yogis, I kid you not, it was packed.

    Dharma Mittra standing in front of wall
    Room full of people on yoga mats

    The day started out beautifully.  A cloudless, crisp, sunny, but still chilly, winter day in Scottsdale, AZ.

    Skyline of Scottsdale with palm trees
    And I drove to the Intercontinental Montelucia Resort & Spa.  A pretty swanky place which was a nice bonus!  And I walked through this lovely archway with crawling ivy.
    Intercontinental Montelucia Resort & Spa showing archway and walkway
    Intercontinental Montelucia Resort & Spa with vines going up side of building

    And an open air courtyard

    Open air courtyard at the Intercontinental Montelucia Resort & Spa

    And walked Into a Ballroom

    Ballroom full of people on yoga mats

    Complete with 200+ sweaty yogis, who’s mats are literally touching or inches apart.

    Various people on yoga mats

    And Chandeliers shined brightly and annoyingly in our eyes illuminated our hearts.

    Chandeliers in Ballroom

    And here is the Master: Dharma Mittra

    Dharma Mittra sitting addressing room full of people
    Dharma Mittra Yoga Life of a Yogi Book

    The man has been teaching yoga daily, daily!!!!!, since 1967.

    Dharma Mittra standing with two people in front of wall
    Inside Dharma Mittra Yoga Book
    He’s in his mid 70s.  Like many of the masters’, his birth year is simply sometime in the later 1930s, not really sure when.

    If you look closely, you can see my reflection in the mirror as I am snapping pictures.  No shame, I tell you, gotta get the shot!

    Dharma Mittra addressing room fool of yogis
    Dharma Mittra talking to room full of people on yoga mats

    Before Class Started, I asked the girl next to me to take my picture.  Her comment, “Wow, you look so happy?!”  I said, “Why wouldn’t I be…I am doing yoga with a Master in a roomful of like-minded yogis with all this great energy; I’m ecstatic!!!!  She said, “Wow, that’s a good way to be!”  As if this was somehow news to her.  It was like Christmas morning for me….how could I possibly be anything BUT ecstatic!!

    After class, I handed my camera off to another random girl after standing in the photo op line for about 20 minutes.  I noticed she had a really bad case of shaky hands.   After she took the picture, I asked, are you sure you got it?  “Oh Yeah, I did!” she exclaimed.   I didn’t bother to review the pics.  I was kind of blissed out and not wanting to deal with technology at the moment.
    Woman posing with Dharma Mittra

    She captured a blurry lovely picture of me and Dharma!  More than a little bummed ’bout the blur, but hey, my yoga work is letting go of a chance-of-a-lifetime photo op that went blurry.  Om shanti, let the blurry pic go.

    All in all, it was an utterly fabulous class.  The sense of sangha (community) was palpable, the energy in the room was glorious, the messages that Dharma had for the students were beautiful.  A few highlights were:

    • Sirsasana (headstand) is the second most important pose, and do it for 10 minutes per day (we held a 5-minute headstand in class.  People were droppin’ like flies, but not me) .
    • But, the most important pose is sitting tall & upright with a straight spine.  On the floor is better, but sitting in a chair is fine, too.  Keeping your spine straight keeps your energy channels clear so you can tap into your 7th and highest chakra at the top of your head.
    • God is in your heart.
    • Find bliss and happiness from inside and within, especially when you are young, because nothing external will ever fulfill you and this only intensifies as we age.
    • Be comfortable sitting with yourself, doing nothing, just being still.  He mentioned that most people can’t even sit still for 10 minutes, I agree.

    So, from a wise sage, those are your Tips of the Day!!!!!!!

    Moving onto Some Food Round Here…

    My Pumpkin has a little cold

    Young girl sitting at Childs table eating a plate of strawberries

    Poor thing, watching your kiddo sniffle and cough breaks a mama’s heart.  But she’s still making goofy faces for the camera, so she’s hanging in there like a trooper!

    Young girl making silly face while eating strawberries

    I decided to give her some Kidz Amazing Grass

    Kidz Amazing Grass Wild Berry Flavor Package
    Grape Vitamin Water in sippy cup

    Grape Vitamin Water, basically.  And she digs it.  Cool because it’s better than Flinstones Vitamins!

    Young girl holding sippy cup smiling

    The Food…
    A Raw Veggie Salad:  Brock, Sugar Snap Peas, Carrots, Tomatoes, Mixed Greens, Cukes, & Brussels Sprouts (I steam the Brussels for 1 minute in 1 inch of water in the micro)

    Raw Vegetable Salad with dressing
    Close up of Raw Vegetable Salad with Dressing

    And I tossed Everything with a fresh batch of my Homemade Vegan Slaw Dressing

    [print_this]

    Vegan Slaw Dressing contained:
    1 cup Veganaise
    1/3 c sugar, or to taste (Or try stevia, Truvia, lucama, agave)
    1/3 cup Apple Cider Vinegar
    Whisk until combined

    [/print_this]

    Homemade Vegan Slaw Dressing in front of Veganaise and Apple Cider Vinegar containers
    Jar full of Homemade Vegan Slaw Dressing

    It will keep in the fridge for a long time…at least 2 weeks.  This will last our family about 4-5 days.  I like to strike a balance between very freshly made items coupled with practicality and common sense:  If I am gonna make my own salad dressing, I need to do it smart so that I am not enslaved to my kitchen and prep work.  Batch cooking whenever possible is the name of my tune!

    Overhead of top of jar of Vegan Slaw Dressing
    Vegan Slaw Dressing with lid on countertop

    For Dessert, I had made a fresh batch of my high Raw Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls episode.  For full recipe info, click right on over to here!  10 minutes til heaven in your mouth if you get started now!

    Cashews & Oats

    Cashews and Oats in blender
    Ground up cashews and oats in blender

    Add the Liquids (Maple and/or Agave or both, Vanilla Extract)

    Liquid added to the ground oats and cashews

    Add the Chocolate Chips

    Chocolate chips added to blended mix

    Blend for a Secondor by hand

    Raw Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ball dough in blender

    Form the balls

    Formed and stacked Raw Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls
    Close up of Raw Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls

    After refrigeration they looked like this.  And they will keep for weeks in the fridge.  I forgot about a batch I made before we went on our 3+ week long trip to Aruba and when I came home, they were fine.  I mean, I don’t recommend it on purpose, but there you have it, they’re “good keepers”.

    Raw Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls after refrigeration

    I love the big hunks of (vegan) chocolate chips.

    Raw Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls close up showing vegan chocolate chips
    I have never met cookie dough I don’t love, though!
    Two Raw Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls in container

    Yoga Today is Everything I Just Mentioned!

    Tip of the Day: Dharma Mittra’s Tips that I mentioned above!  Do any of those bullet-pointed tips resonate with you?  Do you have an easy or a difficult time sitting still and just doing nothing?  In our fast-paced, instant-gratification culture, it seems that we want everything…..yesterday.  And that heavens forbid, if we have to work, sacrifice, plan, or have patience or faith for something it throws everyone into an anxiety-ridden tizzy!  It seems that many people have a hard time just sitting back, and letting things unfold, letting things come to them, having the faith and patience that things will work out if you just let it.  Or if you work, sacrifice, and plan for them.  I believe good things come to those who wait; and also to those that  make a conscientious, focused, and honest effort.

     

     

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    Comments

    1. I made myself a huge kale salad with any chopped off veggies I had (I LOVE my rabbit food) and I have to say your slaw dressing totally made the salad! I didn’t know adding a tiny bit of sweetener and some ACV would do so much. And soaking the kale prior to serving made all the difference. YUM. :)