If you read my last blog article, then you know that my first attempt at this recipe was “a fail.” Well, I am happy to report that when I prepared “Teja’s Turkey-Free Thanksgiving Vegan Delight” again on Thanksgiving Day, it tasted quite delightful! Although I was feeling a tad bit sad that I wasn’t sitting near Amma at her California ashram, I made the very best of the day. I dressed up in Indian clothes that I had purchased in Amma’s store, placed a sparkling bindi on my third eye, and chanted the Gayatri Mantra many times for all the turkeys who were killed for Thanksgiving.

I have always loved Thanksgiving, and I find that being a vegan is no reason to stop celebrating the abundance of the harvest season. After all, there are plenty of ways to create a festive vegan meal. (For the full menu that I created, see “A Vegan Yogini’s Thanksgiving Menu: Turkey-Free!”)

I was filled with Infinite Gratitude as I prepared this vegan stuffing recipe, which of course I did not stuff into a dead bird! My boys really enjoyed this stuffing, topped with cranberry sauce (from a can but organic!)…

Teja’s Turkey-Free Thanksgiving Vegan Delight

Before cooking, I lit candles, burned some of Amma’s fragrant Rose-Sandalwood incense, and turned on a CD of Amma’s Bhajans (devotional songs). Then I placed 3 Tablespoons of walnut oil into a large skillet, turned the burner on medium-high heat, and added the following ingredients, in this order, as I chopped or measured them:

1 medium yellow onion, chopped
15 crimini mushrooms, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped (a very full ½ cup)
2 Tablespoons soy sauce
2 Tablespoons dried oregano
½ Tablespoon dried sage
½ teaspoon Himalayan krystal salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
1 ½ cups pecans
1 ½ cups walnuts

Sauté all of the above ingredients on low heat for a while longer, while tearing the bread. In a large mixing bowl, place 6 full cups of your favorite loaf of bread, torn into small pieces. Currently, my boys and I are really enjoying a specialty artisan bread from the Village Baker in Ashland – it is a hearty loaf called “Basil Garlic -n- Onion”. Add 1 cup of applesauce, ½ cup of vegetable broth, and the sauté to the bowl of bread. Stir gently, being careful to not totally break the bread down into mush!

Place 1 Tablespoon of walnut oil in a pan (I used a 9 ½ x 13 glass pan), and spread the stuffing evenly in the pan, pressing down on the top slightly. Bake at 385 degrees for 40 minutes. I covered it for the first 20 minutes, and then uncovered it for the remaining 20 minutes. Serve with cranberry sauce for a wonderful taste sensation!

Breathing in Gratitude. Breathing out Gratitude.

May all beings everywhere have adequate food, clothing, shelter, and peaceful sleep each day. And may all beings realize that One Bright Energy connects everyone and everything… including the majestic bird beings who grace this sacred planet earth with their beauty.

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

Photo of Teja with Delightful Stuffing by Teja’s son Gabe. Photo of Teja with sons (Gabe and Zak) taken by Teja Shankara.

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In this photo I’m wearing my new beaded eyeglasses necklace that my sweet friend Jill and I made together a few weeks ago. As a highly creative person, I find it necessary to continually engage in artistic expressions. This week I’m focused on creating a vegan Thanksgiving menu, and I’m absolutely filled with Gratitude for the abundance of good, organic foods in my life. Here’s what I’ve got planned ~

~ Curried onion and red lentil dahl. For this hearty, thick soup, I plan to include several different kinds of onions. I’m particularly hoping to find the small pearl onions to plop whole into the pot!

~ Quinoa cooked with parsnips.

~ A raw salad with greens and lots of colorful vegetables.

~ A baked pie pumpkin with cinnamon, nutmeg, and maple syrup drizzled on top.

~ Cranberry sauce. (Canned, but organic!)

~ And finally, a new dish that I am making tonight for the first time, and then I will post the recipe here on the Teja Blog. It’s called “Teja’s Turkey-Free Thanksgiving Vegan Delight” and it’s a “stuffing” that is NOT for stuffing into dead birds! With celery, onions, garlic, mushrooms, pecans, walnuts, your favorite bread, and more, this recipe will be sure to delight all your senses!

May all beings, including the U.S. turkeys, be free to live in harmony.

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

Photo of Teja wearing new beaded eyeglasses necklace taken by Teja Shankara.

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Well, I just have to write a blog on this magical date of 11-11-11… And, I’m writing it about the simply amazing breakfast I enjoyed early this morning. Often the small joys in life are the most profound. As I ate that bowl full of warm food-medicine, I speculated that one day I will live in a vegan community in a warm climate, and I will prepare incredibly delicious foods in a healing café that many people will visit, from all over the world… but, back to this now moment! Here I am, a simple vegan yogini in a cold town, blissing out with Deep Abundant Gratitude for the fabulous vegan breakfast I enjoyed today. With the recipes below, you too can soon delight in this vegan creation! And, please stay tuned for the details of the Voices for Vegetarianism Campaign which will soon be revealed on this blog!

As always, please buy organic food whenever possible.
It is healthier for our bodies and healthier for our sacred planet earth.

Teja’s Amazing Apple Breakfast Sensation
1 cup Teja’s Savory Applesauce (recipe below)
¼ cup walnuts
1 corn tortilla

Pour the applesauce and walnuts into a skillet. Stir, then move to one side of the pan. Place the corn tortilla next to the sauce. Heat, turning the tortilla over once. Then, using the stirring spoon, gently break the tortilla into several small pieces. Serve in your favorite breakfast bowl. Breathe deeply, and cultivate Deep Gratitude for the healing you are receiving through this simple vegan food.

Teja’s Savory Applesauce
1 ½ Tablespoons extra virgin coconut oil
1 small-medium yellow onion, chopped finely
¼ teaspoon mild curry powder
¼ teaspoon Himalayan krystal salt
½ teaspoon garlic powder
5 apples with peels – 2 big and 3 small (suggest Fuji or similar variety) – cored and chopped
5 cups water
1 teaspoon cinnamon powder
2 Tablespoons coconut palm sugar (low glycemic index!)

While I was preparing this applesauce for the first time, my older son came home from school. He took one look at the cutting board full of apples, and asked, “What’s for dinner, apples?” I chuckled as I continued making the applesauce. First, sauté the onion in the coconut oil with the curry, krystal salt, and garlic powder, for 10-15 minutes on medium-high heat. Next, add the water, chopped apples, cinnamon, and coconut sugar. Bring to boil, then simmer covered until all is soft. Pour into a glass bowl and mash with a potato masher. Enjoy!

Happy 11-11-11 to one and all… And remember to watch for the upcoming Voices for Vegetarianism Campaign! You won’t want to miss this dynamic new way to help reduce global green house emissions.

May all beings live in harmony, free of suffering. This includes the turkeys, so may many of the human beings in the United States consider a vegetarian Thanksgiving this year. More blogs to follow on ways to go vegetarian or vegan for Thanksgiving. 

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

Photo of apples (given to Teja by Amma) taken by Teja Shankara.

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Lately I’ve been thinking about the word “fun” and what it means to me now, at 41 years of age. I mean, what I consider to be fun now is very, very different than what I considered to be fun twenty years ago! Back then I was a party girl, and even though it wasn’t deeply fulfilling, I thought it was great fun to go out drinking with friends. Now I haven’t had a drink, not even a glass of wine, for almost four years, and the thought of drinking does not sound at all fun.

So what is “fun” for me now? Well, basically it’s anything that opens my heart and makes me laugh and/or cry! I have the most fun chanting the Names of God, dancing barefoot on this sacred earth, preparing organic vegan food, giving Reiki healing energies to others, and communing with Nature. One of the absolute most fun days of my life was the day I went hiking alone – and barefoot – at Red Fir Flat on Mt. Shasta. I chanted the Hanuman Chalisa sweetly to that enchanted forest, and then I chanted Om Namah Shivaya all the way back to my car. I took a little 21-second video of that barefoot chanting which you can watch by clicking here: Yogini-Bliss on YouTube. 

I also snapped some photos on that hike, including the one here of my feet on the rocks. The forest was quite magical, although it wasn’t as bright as it appears in this photo. Another thing that I have “fun” doing is fully saturating the color of photos! Born in the Chinese Year of the Rooster, I just love bright colors! To read more about my fun hike that day, please click here: “Happy Teja Chanting the Hanuman Chalisa on Barefoot Hike at Red Fir Flat (on Sacred Mt. Shasta)” 

What do you have fun doing? Please feel free to share in the comments section below this article.

May all beings have fun on this playground of life. May all beings be free.

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

Photo of Teja’s barefeet (color saturated) taken by Teja Shankara.

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Did you know that sesame seeds are the most abundant source of calcium? They have ten times more calcium than cow’s milk and more protein than chicken or beef! And did you further know that properly produced wheatgrass juice contains well over a hundred vitamins, minerals, amino acids, enzymes, essential fatty acids, and antioxidants? Wheatgrass juice can single-handedly support the human body! I learned these things, and so much more, by reading I Am Grateful: Recipes & Lifestyle of Café Gratitude, by Terces Engelhart with Orchid.

I Am Grateful had been on my shelf for a few years, but I just hadn’t gotten around to reading it yet. I had eaten at one of the Café Gratitude restaurants though. Last June (2010), when I attended the training program with Insight Prison Project in San Rafael, California, I was delighted to discover that there was a Café Gratitude right across the street! As a vegan I was just thrilled to eat lunch there every day that week, and it was so fun to experience the ordering process. At Café Gratitude, each item on the menu is an affirmation, so when you place your order, you say something like “I Am Sensational” or “I Am Cheerful”, and then when the server brings your food, they say “You Are Sensational” or “You are Cheerful”. 

In addition to opening several living foods restaurants, Terces and her husband Matthew have invented an explorational board game, The Abounding River, that introduces people to their view of being abundance. And, they have written The Abounding River Personal Logbook that offers a 42-day practice in “opening up to the unceasing flow of everything.” After reading about their philosophy and lifestyle in I Am Grateful, I am inspired to get that workbook. Actually, I spontaneously used the recipe book as a workbook, because along with all the great information, delicious live food recipes, and inspiring quotes, there are wonderfully probing questions, such as: “For whom or what can you kneel and kiss the ground?” “Do you adore the person in the mirror?” “When do you experience the ecstatic?” Without planning to, I found myself writing my answers to the questions throughout the book! Such a beautiful self-reflection process!

I Am Grateful was one of those books that I was sad when it was over, but the beauty continues as I am now trying out the recipes. A few nights ago I made the “Peppery Avocado Caesar Dressing” and it tasted so fabulous on fresh romaine lettuce. And, it was fun to get the blender out again. Some of the recipes call for the use of a food processor or dehydrator, and I don’t have either of those (yet), but I’m not letting that stop me. Since I tend to improvise and change recipes as I go anyway, I’ll just keep trying the recipes while following my inner guidance.

I am really grateful to Terces and Orchid for publishing this high vibration recipe book. We really need books like this to inspire people to eat plant-based diets. As they write in I Am Grateful, “The meat and dairy industries are resource-dense; they require a lot of fossil fuels, water, and other resources. By eating vegan you make more food and resources available for all of us. In recent years the exposure of factory farming and its cruelty to animals has become more apparent; by eating vegan you vote for the ending of this cruelty. You also stop ingesting the violent energy that is held deep within the tissues of these animals. We are becoming more aware that animal foods are not healthy for the human body. We have to transform everything we eat, and animal foods require the most energy to transform, keeping us slow, less alert, and less active.”

The organic, vegan, living foods served in the Café Gratitude restaurants provide a wonderful example of what is possible on a diet that is free of animal products. Many people wonder if they will be able to get enough protein on a vegan diet, and I used to wonder that myself when I first shifted from a vegetarian to a vegan diet, but then I met someone who eats only raw foods, and he told me that the primary concern is not about protein, but rather it is about healthy fats and oils. Terces mentions this as well, when sharing what she and Matthew experienced when they first tried a living foods diet. She writes, “We came to realize that it was healthy fat we were craving when we thought it was protein. An avocado, a few macadamia nuts, or olives sustained us well.”

I could write all day about how much I loved this book! If you get this book and try the recipes yourself, let me know what you think… 

May all beings everywhere have plenty of healthy food to eat each day. May all beings know the Bliss that arises from a Grateful Heart.

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

Photo of I Am Grateful on Teja’s coffee table taken by Teja Shankara.

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Last week I saw an ad about an evening lecture at our local food co-op. It was called “Collaging Your Top Five Passions!” and it was being offered by Belle, Sharry Teague, and Sheila Filan. I wasn’t able to attend the evening, but I was inspired to do the things on my own, so I wrote out my top five passions and a list of 10 simple statements beginning, “When life is ideal I am…” And then I made this collage to reflect what I had written. A few days later I googled “The Passion Test” and took the Passion Test Profile Questionnaire, which was really fun and revealing. (The Passion Test by visionaries Chris Attwood and Janet Bray Attwood.)

I’ll share what I wrote, and maybe you will be inspired to do a bit of writing yourself… If so, please feel free to share your passions in the comments section below this article!

Teja’s Top Five Passions

1. Vegan Organic Food

2. Chanting the Names and other sadhana (spiritual practices), and leading sadhana circles

3. Barefoot dancing on the earth to live drumming by a Fire burning ~ healing self, earth, stars, and worlds through that magic

4. Reiki healing to self, to others, to this Sacred Earth, and to all the beings in all the worlds (including the space beings!)

5. Teja Blogging (including creative photographing)

Teja’s Ten Statements of an ideal life

1. When life is ideal, I am comfortably warm/hot – i.e. the weather is at least 85 degrees.

2. When life is ideal, I am reading and writing creatively each day. (Teja Blog!)

3. When life is ideal, I am exercizing each day.

4. When life is ideal, I am shipping out hundreds or even thousands of books each week.

5. When life is ideal, I am invited regularly to lead Radiance Rising Retreats all over the country and world.

6. When life is ideal, I am managing a vegan café with healing arts studio: educating people about vegan diets and giving Reiki energy healing sessions.

7. When life is ideal, I am leading Radiance Rising Circles in a variety of settings, with different groups. (i.e., at-risk youths, veterans, prisoners.)

8. When life is ideal, I am traveling away from Ashland frequently.

9. When life is ideal, I am chanting the Names daily with my harmonium.

10. When life is ideal, I am spending a lot of healing time on Maui (i.e. this December! ~ attending the retreat with Ram Dass and Krishna Das!)

With so much Gratitude for this process of collaging my passions, I send Reiki healing energies out to all the beings in all the worlds.

May all beings experience the healing energies that come from intimately knowing and living their passions.

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

Photo of Teja’s passions collage taken by Teja Shankara. Images used in collage are by unknown artists. My apologies for not being able to give them credit here. (The exceptions to that not-knowing are: photo of veggies taken by Teja Shankara, and images from Teja’s business card – the card was designed by Gaelyn Larrick.)

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One hot afternoon this week, I put together an amazing vegan snack… a plate filled with the following: raw macadamia nuts, clover sprouts, cilantro, and basil leaves, topped with the juice of half a lime, a few sprinkles of Himalayan krystal salt, and a few shakes of Nama shoyu (raw or unpasteurized soy sauce). It tasted so phenomenally great!

As always, please buy organic, vegan foods whenever possible. Your body will thank you, and this sacred mother earth will thank you. Oh, and all the creatures will thank you, too!

May all beings everywhere be free. May all the humans learn to love and protect all the creatures. May we all directly experience the interconnectedness of everyone and everything!

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

To see a short video of me talking about Love Soups, my vegetarian soup cookbook, please click here: Yogini-Bliss on YouTube.

Photo of Teja’s Amazing Afternoon Vegan Snack taken by Teja Shankara.

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Lalla, 14 Century Lioness Mystic of Kashmir, said:

When you eat too much,
you forget your truth, 

and fasting makes you conceited,
so eat with some discipline,
and consciously. Be
an ordinary human being.

Then the door will open,
and you’ll recognize the way.
Lalla, be moderate!

(From Lalla: Naked Song, translations by Coleman Barks, Maypop.)

Eating a vegan, organic diet is a highly conscious way of living. Vegan, organic foods are best for the health of our bodies; best for the creatures; and best for our sacred mother earth. For more information on why I eat vegan, please read my previous blog article “Why Eat Vegan?” (Teja Blog, 9-9-10.)

Today I’m offering some tips that help me eat healthy during a busy workweek. Now that I am working as manager of my brother’s outdoor gear shoppe, plus blogging regularly, and being the mama of two boys, I find that cooking a big meal once or twice each week works fabulously as it creates many leftovers for the rest of the week.

As I’m doing my best to juggle it all, I’m really appreciating leftovers, more than ever! For example, one night last week, I cooked a big pot of bean soup, roasted some yams, and boiled some polenta. (For simple instructions on cooking polenta, see my blog article “Vegan Yogini Prepares A Thumb’s Up Dinner for Her Sons”, 2-11-11) As I put the leftovers away in containers, I put some of each dish into a bowl to take to work the next day. As I sprinkled fresh parsley, seaweed, and red bell peppers on top, I thought, ‘this is the most beautiful, colorful bowl of food ever’ so I took a photo of it… and the idea for this blog article was born…

Even when we are busy and stressed, we can still make healthy, vibrant, fresh, organic, vegan food a priority. The yams in that meal were super easy to prepare: I simply scrubbed them, cut them into wedges (with skins on), and tossed them with extra virgin olive oil, cinnamon, and paprika… then roasted them uncovered at 395 degrees for about 40 minutes. Yams are especially wonderful in a work lunch, because they are very grounding. For more information on grounding, see my previous blog articles: “Grounded at the Root” (9-24-10) and “Vegan Yogini is Grounded and Healthy!” (3-9-11)

If you have other food tips for busy jugglers, please post them in the comments section below this article.

May all beings have food to eat each day. May all beings know Peace and Happiness.

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

See me live talking about my vegetarian soup cookbook here: Yogini-Bliss on YouTube

Photo of Teja’s leftovers lunch taken by Teja Shankara.

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Recently I discovered a chocolate company called theo, that makes high quality, organic chocolate bars that are suitable for vegans. Unfortunately, the number of chocolate bars suitable for vegans has decreased, as many of the companies, including Dagoba and Green & Blacks, now put milk in many of their dark chocolate bars. If you intend to buy only vegan, you really have to read the ingredients on the labels!

My favorite theo bar is called Peppermint Stick. A few weeks ago, I was enjoying some of that dark chocolate-crispy peppermint delight whilst cooking this vegan meal for myself. The recipe is very easy, and tasty too.

As always, please buy organic food whenever possible. You will receive showers of Gratitude from your body and from our sacred Mother Earth.

Teja’s Easy & Tasty Vegan Mung Beans

Soak 3 cups mung beans overnight, change soaking water in the morning, and change the water again before cooking. Bring to a boil, then add 1 medium yellow onion, chopped; 1 strip of kombu seaweed (about 4-5 inches long); 1/3 cup fresh ginger root, chopped; 2 burdock roots, chopped; and 2 carrots, chopped. Simmer for 30 minutes, covered. Then add the following:

1 teaspoon mild curry powder
1 Tablespoon turmeric powder
1 Tablespoon dried basil
1 Tablespoon coriander powder
2 teaspoons sea salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper, ground
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
2 Tablespoons soy sauce

Simmer covered for about 45 more minutes. For the last 10 minutes, add the juice of one small meyer lemon. So easy, and so tasty! Hope you enjoy.

May all beings – especially the nearly one billion people who are now starving on planet earth – have food to eat each day.

And, may all beings know the delight of a good vegan chocolate bar!

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

See me live talking about my soup cookbook here: Yogini Bliss on YouTube

Photo of theo Peppermint Stick dark chocolate bar by Teja Shankara.

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A few nights ago I made a new vegan recipe for you… As always, please buy organic food whenever possible!

Teja’s Spring Quinoa Creation

Soak 2 cups quinoa (ancient sacred grain of Peru) overnight. Cook covered, in the soaking water (with a sprinkle of Himalayan krystal salt), for 20 minutes.

While the quinoa is cooking, mix the following in a large bowl:

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
juice of one small meyer lemon
12 medjool dates, chopped
1 cup fresh parsley, chopped (Italian flat leaf)
olives, chopped – 25 kalamata and 10 green stuffed with red peppers
½ cup wild capers
1 Tablespoon paprika
1 Tablespoon cumin powder
3 Tablespoons nutritional yeast
½ teaspoon Himalayan krystal salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper powder
1 Tablespoon maple syrup

Mix those ingredients well, then add the quinoa and toss well again. Please enjoy!

With incredible Gratitude for the food on my table, I pray that all beings have food to eat each day.

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

See me live talking about my soup cookbook here: Yogini-Bliss on YouTube

Photo of Teja with quinoa creation by Teja’s son Gabe.

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