Happy Thanksgiving to all Healthy Indian readers! This unique year, we have several things to give thanks for. For having a job, money in the bank to pay for food and rent, our health, family and friends, for our kitchen adventures and disasters (I have had my share). And much more. Venu and I are immensely grateful for all the love, support and encouragement that you have bestowed on our blog posts.

 

Many Moments of Gratitude

 

For me, the year has been interesting in so many ways. For one, all my best laid travel plans were laid to rest. Two visits to India, a trip to Croatia and Hungary, a safari adventure to see the wilderbeest migration in Kenya, and several other domestic travel plans – all bit the dust. For another, some of my yoga students decided that they would wait out the pandemic, to resume in-person classes. Suddenly, I found myself with plenty of time on my hands.

As they say, when one door closes, others open.

 

A Deeper Journey into the World of Yoga

 

I have been practicing yoga for a couple decades and have been teaching it for the past 5 years. A chance online contest gave me the opportunity to enroll in a 300-hour yoga certification program. As part of the curriculum, I’ve had the immense pleasure of teaching yoga (as part of ‘seva’, aka service) to health care workers. I have had the chance to delve into yoga philosophy (this goes way into the spiritual practice; beyond the sweaty yoga workouts most are used to seeing) and meet other wonderful yogis.

Slowly, old students came back to Zoom classes. The world of online instruction has shattered geographical restrictions and has given me the opportunity to teach new students from outside of my local area, including outside of the US. Now, more than ever, we need the mindfulness and the strength to stay calm and at peace within ourselves.

A huge shout-out to my devoted band of yoga students who enrich my life and experience every single time I interact with them.

You can access all our Yoga & Mindfulness Blogs here.

 

Helping Covid-19 Affected

 

Just after the Covid lock-down, I was also looking for opportunities to help people affected by the pandemic. As part of a group of volunteers, I made several calls to people asking if they needed help with the grocery shopping or chores. But it didn’t seem I was doing enough. However, I was scared to expose myself by volunteering face-to-face.

That was when another door opened.

I had volunteered for my city a couple of years back. The manager I was reporting to, called me out of the blue and asked if I could work on a Covid-19 project for the city. My job would involve remote work helping people in our city get mortgage/rent help during these tough times. Suddenly, I was in the thick of things. Coordinating with various charitable organizations, reading heart-wrenching emails from people affected by job loss and sickness, and making sure the funds were judiciously and speedily disbursed to those with the greatest need.

Read our wonderful blog on how Harini is finding Ways to Cope with Covid and suggestions from Thejasvi on how you can Manage Emotions During Covid.

 

Spread the Garden Love

 

And one more door opens…

I had given a couple of talks to small groups of people earlier in the year, on how to start a small vegetable garden. I had started a WhatApp group to help first time gardeners with their trials and errors. Once the pandemic was in full swing, the number of people on this group grew and grew. What started off as a small group of 25 aspiring backyard gardeners has grown to over 120!

So many strangers in my city have come together to grow edible plants in their backyards. Sharing seeds, excess produce, personal knowledge exchange, online presentations on Rain Water Harvesting and Urban Composting have taken place. People show off their produce proudly. To many, gardening has been a huge stress buster. When you grow something in your garden, you are far less apt to waste food, and you are far more likely to eat new vegetables and herbs. What a great way to reduce our carbon footprint!

 

What new doors and windows have opened for you in 2020?

 

Ingredients for Vegan Walnut-Goji Berry Fudge

 

I am normally not into desserts. But this one is a definite winner in my book. There is no cooking involved. Just 4 simple, but delicious ingredients go into this fudge:

• 72% or higher dark chocolate chunks (I use the “Simple Truth Organic 72% Cacao Dark Chocolate Chunks” variety)
• Creamy cashew butter (I like this variety)
• Walnuts
• Dried goji berries

 

 

You can get creative and change up the ingredients. If you have nut allergies, substitute for chia, sunflower and pumpkin seeds. If you prefer almond butter, use it. Hate walnuts? Use pistachios or pecans. Want it a little salty? Sprinkle Himalayan pink salt. Don’t have goji berries in your pantry? Substitute with raisins or dried cranberries.

You can distribute this to friends and neighbors as holiday gifts, but make sure you save some for yourself! You can easily freeze them in an airtight container for later use.

 

 

 

Healthy Desserts

Are you craving for healthy desserts? Here are some of our favs…

• Chia Seed Pudding
• Mango Rasayana
• Hesarubele (Split Mung) Payasa/Kheer
• Sweet Pongal (Huggi)
• Gasagase Payasa (Poppy Seed Kheer)
• Date Almond Boats
• Creamy Instant Pot Carrot (Gajar) Halwa
• Akki-Haalu Payasa (Rice Kheer)
• Zucchini Banana Bread
• Avocado Chocolate Mousse

 

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