Physical Health and Body Archives - Page 8 of 22

Yoga Wheel Pose For Removing Mental Blocks

Some larger-than-us life wheels are metaphors for us to gain balance in the slow motion! 🎡

You can use Wheel Pose to learn how to gain confidence in your life. Too often we overthink and get inside our heads. Like in Bird of Paradise Pose that can also be challenging…

When our gut instinct and initial thought is often the one we should follow. This is different than a knee-jerk reaction which is based on removing immediate pain and often based in fear or insecurity.

You know the difference because knee-jerk usually causes some pain backlash.

Sometimes we react defensively because we’re hurt, we haven’t processed fully what is hurled our way, or we’re too busy to think through what aftermath our words and actions will cause.

Afterall, we’re busy and have many areas of life that we try to balance in our life wheel: work, relationships, family, health, fitness, spiritual, and finances.

All can be sources of joy when good. Or become a worrisome disturbance that can cause turmoil unbalance, tipping the scale toward what’s heaviest.

In those moments you can use Wheel Pose to be a metaphor for restoring your balance.

It won’t mend your problems, but getting in the yoga pose will give you some encouraging moments and feelings that bring back a smile and some confidence. And help you with mental blocks, being in the moment.

That’s how I feel when I’m making my whole healthy pizzas 🍕 with a whole lotta peace in the pieces.✌️There’s a hole in whole but not in this one!

Shrimp on the barbie with artichokes and homemade barbecue sauce for a new kind of pie

And whatever daily inspires you, here’s how to get in Wheel Pose…

We can find it difficult to get our body off the ground if we’re not used to the yoga pose. That can be a metaphor for anything we are hesitant to try because it’s challenging (and our wintery Kapha minds want us to do the easy and our Kapha bodies like the lazy pose 🧘🏻‍♀️).

And that can keep us away from moving forward or succeeding in our victories. But we don’t have to live that way!

We can cooperate with our Kapha mind-body tendencies. I get it… life is hard enough, our wheels grow, and everything needs a sliver piece on the balanced Wheel of Life.

So to give ourselves an instant helping hand, we can take a known alternate route where the easier path gets us halfway there without effort…

You will still reap great health benefits from Wheel Pose.

The first step is: start by sitting on your bum instead of laying on your back.

Lazy or not, then you’re almost halfway there.

In yoga, we’re often laying on our backs or fronts like on a massage table or when we try to catch a tan on the beach. We forget that seated is another starting position. It’s the one we’re in when we’re driving forward. 🛞

But this easier way starts in a relaxed seat position. Your legs bent with knees up help. You’ll still catch the rays of the Wheel Pose!

Hands on the mat beside you, then you position your fingers and wrists toward your feet (or the opposite direction they normally would face if you were lounging on a beach towel on the beach).

Then use your arm strength to lift yourself off the mat.

When you get comfortable and know how it feels to be in baby Wheel Pose, then you use that confidence of having been-there-done-that to challenge yourself to the full proper Wheel Pose where you peel your entire back and body off the mat when you’re ready.

Now we’re talking!… Then you’re in your merry-go-round feeling Wheel.

You’ll be stronger afterward and have forgotten about your real life at least for a few moments.

Remember to breathe in to take in the moments that feel slow motion in the process (like on a carousel).

Removing Mind Blocks

And in the slower moments, you find balance and can remind yourself that everything is possible, and you’re capable if you get out of your own way.

Often, we can’t get past our mind blocks until we can see glimpses of the other side to believe our way through.

So, round and round we go. Our ego blocks us from seeing what could be ours.

But, we can get off the repeating mind carousel and help ourselves by letting go of what was.

Then when you show and tell yourself you can do a new way from a healthy perspective, you overcome the block. You get a new breakthrough on the carousel that helps your life wheel balance.

And if that isn’t enough to push you over the almost-there hump (you’re so close!), look at others who have gone before you in those areas and defied the odds.

They’ve given Wheel Pose its name. And you can invent your Wheel of Life version.

Life is cheering you on. Give it a spin! 🤸🏻

7 Stress Eating Habits + Easy Fatayer Appetizer Recipe

Stress eating habits are made better by celebrating occasionally, practicing moderation, and developing the habit of eating healthy foods daily.

Party planning is fun, and good to come up with a sweet and savory spread to enjoy in moderation and share the table joy!

Last time I shared some healthy de-stress tips… so it’s fitting to add the healthy relationship we have with food as a way to stay healthy.

I know that sounds like “easier said than done” advice considering all the tempting stuffing and holiday sweets that deck the holidays. 🎄

Plus, winter season is a natural time to bring out our Kapha body and mind tendencies that welcome in accumulating and comfort foods (stored in our comfort pants 😉). That’s what we don’t want or wish for, but happens unless we make alternative healthy, daily plans.

I thought I’d never get to a savory breakfast as sweet was my go-to all my life. But with healthy desires, one breakfast led to another and these days, it’s almost always savory. So don’t sell yourself short. Your tastes will change with your habits. And you never have to go back to old habits.

This article is meant to inspire your delicious healthy, anti-inflammatory eating habits to kick the holiday stress eating habits to the curb and inspire a healthy eating new year.

Ready?

…Here we go!

1.Lean into the seasonal produce foods that interest you. Like squashes, citrus, apples, and winter berries. You can find so many new fruit varieties like jackfruit and dragon fruit on the grocery shelves (and so many others haven’t even made it from our tropical climate lands to our markets).

2.Reinvent sides. The stuffing sides can be what gets some of us in trouble, and if the carbs is what you’re worried about, you can reinvent the starchier side carbs to work for your body.

Stick with veggies carbs that are the opposite and with very few calories, and some have great flavors such as mushrooms, asparagus, and onions that you can turn into a Provencal herby-forward experience with a little tarragon, white pepper, vinegar or sherry.

Carrots (raw and cooked) are so versatile for sweet and savory dishes where you can substitute the fun marshmallows with a divine anti-inflammatory diet pairing like ginger and textures like nuts or seeds. You can also learn to appreciate food textures as a no-calorie add.

3.Make healthy desserts. This is my specialty area and weakness turned into a positive. It’s no baking secret that butter and refined sugar add to weight gain. And ingredients like white flour and white sugar are inflammatory foods. Moderation is still the modern way. Plus incorporating healthy foods.

Keeping a balance between tasty and healthy is the dynamic pairing duo. And the sweet spot is they are usually easy bakes in minutes like a healthy pear or apple pie with cinnamon sweetness.

You can make a pumpkin pie from pumpkin puree that’s loaded with antioxidant Vitamin A and beta carotene. Mix in some plant-based almond milk. And add allspice that’s all anti-inflammatory goodness as the sweet five-spice version! Think creative sweet potato and green veggie dishes.

For holiday stress eating prep dish habits, you can start with those whole food ingredients, a ‘lil milk, and holiday spices… and then zhugh up with the celebrational peppermint sticks and marshmallows… you don’t have to give up the party sides 😉 (I personally wouldn’t want to because I breathed hospitality party planning for years. Some of the sweet celebratory joy sides are worth a few calories).

Still, it’s all about balance and moderation.

Easy Fatayer Appetizer Recipe. — These hot water pastry fatayer appetizers were inspired by my party planning days. 🥟

Easy Fatayer Holiday Appetizers

Course Appetizer

Cuisine lebanese, Mediterranean, middle eastern

Author Brandy @ Healthy Happy Life Secrets

Equipment

Knife or pizza roller for classic pyramid empanada shapes
Drinking glass for empanada half moon pie shapes
Rolling Pin

Ingredients

Flour
Olive oil or butter
Water

Instructions

Slice and dice up your fillings. spinach and feta or ground meat is traditional for fatayer. Or use what you have in your freezer likeI brussels sprouts (good bitter ingredient like spinach) and fresh red onions. And soft green beans from a can that worked great for blending textures!
Make your hot water pastry. No planning or prep time! Just add warm-hot water to flour and a ‘lil butter or olive oil to form a soft ball that holds together. Flatten and roll out with a rolling pin. Fold in half moons like empanadas. and for 3-D triangle shapes you’ll want to cut out squares (at least two inch squares so you can hold enough filling).
For classic 3-D pyramid triangles, it’s like origami. You just fold so the corners meet. and then the third side closes it all up into a pyramid-type shape that doesn’t have to look perfect. You don’t need egg water to close like wontons, but you may want to brush with egg for a glossy look.
Bake on 350°F for about 25-35 minutes

…Compared to sugar, cream, and butter that was used for daily Grandma southern cooking that didn’t prioritize healthy or wearing our best sized clothing.

And maybe a few pats of butter instead of a stick will do?

Those less healthy daily cooking styles grow on us Vatas, Pittas, and Kaphas alike.

And, sometimes we’re not the ones in charge of doin’ the cookin’, so the better way would be to be choosy and show some love to the host cook by adding a dollop on your plate to try. That doesn’t have to be your main meal leaving leftover regrets.

4.Get inspired by longevity as a goal. We can all learn a thing or two from the Blue Zones that have the largest pocket of Centenarians in the world. They’ve changed our concepts of health. As an example, instead of growing their waist sizes, they’re lowering Earth waste and preparing fresh meals from their natural land.

They’re daily climbing hills while we’re sitting in front of our devices. They’re gathering naturally grown ingredients while we’re foraging in the weekly store. Even though our modern lifestyles are so different, we can still do our healthy bit…

We can be healthy selective.

We can use a list like this rainbow variety 200 Anti-Inflammatory food list to be our angel side guide into the store. And we use our healthy awareness as our cart checkout guide instead of robotically picking up the boxed processed versions.

We can also select the fresh, healthy ingredients that are usually 2-step dish easy.

Such as, abundant whole potatoes can be our purple imo like in Okinawa Blue Zones where they have a high number of living 100 year olds.

Like them, you can peel and boil simple potatoes. Compare that to a processed spud packet loaded with preservatives and sodium. The open packet instead of peel effort is a minimal difference. The extra minutes in cooking is worth it for your body… don’t ya think?

Sometimes what’s needed most for better stress eating habits is a ‘lil freshened up education between our daily eyes. Then when you have a healthy way or recipe in mind, you beeline to those healthy ingredients in the stores… 🐝

You can usually find the unsexy whole potato bags along the sides of the grocery stores in bins.

5.Eat fiber. When I professionally planned parties, I almost always recommended a starter platter called Crudite which is the fancy French word for a raw veggie platter. When you start with celery or carrots every day, you add fiber roughage that helps move along the heavier foods. It’s a good way to prep and rev up your stomach engines.

6.Eat spicy foods. If you can’t do cayenne pepper or hot peppers because of the spice, try red hot chili pepper flakes that are mild and still have capsaicin that’s anti-inflammatory and known to burn calories (and not tongues).

Fresh wasabi and horseradish are other hot sauces you can use if you can tolerate. They not only help clear out sinuses and toxins, but if you’re eating those foods, then you lose your hankering for the sweet and buttery.

7.Skip the high beverage calories. You can skip the loaded coffee beverages and eggnog calories and go for the plant-based milk latte drink that will be even better with a strong flavor pairing.

If you like licorice, you can lean on anise and fennel spices. And if you like peppermint, go for the mint leaves. And for a brighter drink, zhugh with some citrus zest. These are all calorie saving ideas that are pleasing to the gut, mind, and body.

Add some warming spice with your daily beverage habit when you want something comforting to drink or taste. Now that’s a great stress eating habit you can toast to! And you can make it fun and easy if you keep the spices by your beverage making station. You’ll always have a decked out drink.

Cheers! Cin cin! Salut! ☕️

Holiday peppermint tea is actually good for your aches and the zhughing with candy cane is a sweet way to deck the holidays! ❤️

This site is all about happy and healthy living and eating ways and inspiration. If this is your first time here, I encourage you to find out more about me and this healthy lifestyle blog.

Mountain Pose Yoga Journey For Kapha Stimulation

Mountain pose yoga is a great way to get you into your daily groove in more ways than one.

Mountain steps are often uneven like these where you can practice your mountain pose yoga at the mountain top. — This is a 340 natural mountain step challenge 🎉

Mountain Pose for starters can be a morning pose to wake up your body. You can do wherever you have a floor or ground to stand on.

Standing tall with hands in the air helps additional blood circulation and Ayurvedic Kapha stimulation especially when you’re in a tired season (that can rob any imbalanced Kapha mind-body of excited feelings).

This article is about how to use Mountain Pose yoga this season, both in yoga and climbing your mountain top or hill.

Yoga Mountain Pose

To get the most out of your yoga Mountain Pose, swoop swan dive arms gracefully down like your arms are eagle spanning wings. And then forward fold your hands to your yoga mat or your ankles grounded on the floor. 🦅

And then weightlessly reverse swan dive your arms back up into the air. That’s a good way to be purposeful in your daily moves.

Mountain Pose yoga can be part of your Vinyasa flow.

It’s a way to finesse your ways as you grow, and is a good metaphor for personal growth moves with intentional motion today.

Repeat your Mountain Pose, but next time, coordinate your deep breaths, with inhales up and exhales down in going up and down your pose. This keeps you purposefully engaged from head to toe.

Remember this Mountain Pose and your breath practice when you’re outdoors on a walk, hike, or journey up a mountain.

This outdoor practice is a great way to get energy flowing when you’re lacking energy, need new calm headspace, or just a ‘lil motivational push. It’s great exercise for your entire body.

And when you challenge yourself to get up a mountain if you’re nearby to one, you’ll get all the mind-body benefits.

If you’re feeling tired, stop and take a sip of water to refuel. Look around at your surroundings in awareness and mindfulness. Maybe do your stretching Tree Pose.

“They will soar on wings like eagles, they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” – Isaiah 40:31

Mountain climbing is a great way to accompany a mini-sabbatical journey. What’s interesting about each hike, is that there are different trails to choose from.

And every day, each trail is slightly different because the nature elements change… everything from the trees, sky, and ground you walk and rely on with each step.

Changing foliage reminds us that this moment is just a blink.

When you come back around, leaves and twigs have fallen and flowers and fruit change up the scenery.

Selecting a path or trail that suits you is fun. Take the hike that inspires you or sounds inspiring. The first time will always be a surprise. 🎉

Usually people who’ve never been on a trail, listen to what others have told them who have walked the trail. Sometimes it’s better to listen to your heart and nature as guides instead of other’s opinions.

Because we all interpret differently…

One time, I kept hearing the message about how much more difficult a specific trail would be. That reminds me of younger years when we didn’t have info. at our fingertips.

And so I avoided that one as a first-timer, so I could build up.

And then when I actually did the hike, I found it was the easier one than the long winded one. The “strenuous” reputation trail had hundreds of steps at the end, and that’s what was meant by “harder.”

But, steps to me actually shortcut the climb process because it provides interest and variety that keeps present awareness. So fully engaged, that feels like the process is sped up.

Mindful about your uneven steps, you’re already at the top before you know it.

The alternative is to take a longer trail path without a steep incline and as many steps. And that’s where natural Kapha tendencies differ from Vatas.

Know Your Individual Strengths

There’s a general fork in the road in body types.

Kaphas naturally prefer the endurance exercise which means longer courses and duration over steps that is perceived as work.

Vatas prefer the shorter, variety trail with different interest points that doesn’t seem like work.

And Pittas just want the challenge, so either trail is fine as long as there’s a little sprinting up and down the hill that wouldn’t hurt either. 😉

Each of us have our body strengths.

Climbing trails is an individual journey.

And in each season, we’re holding onto an imbalance even if just a smidge that we can course correct on our individual journey.

The first steps are the ones that can be mentally the hardest to get going on. And a part of you might be wondering: is it too late to turn around?

But when you focus on the baby steps of each step, it’s easier. You remove the blocks. And actually that’s what little kids on the trails do on their steps. They enjoy the climbing challenge and play with the immovable Lego blocks.

We need more of that in our everyday, where we look forward to trying a healthy challenge as part of our play.

It’s great natural exercise in the process.

With every step and turn, you can find your balance and appreciate how your body assets work for you.

Having a nudge motivation like seeing the mountain top view helps us get to the goal. The cherry on the top of the mountain doesn’t disappoint. And that’s a general consensus for all…

The ending is predictable. But the getting-there journey is not. The middle changes as you get different perspectives. And the next time, you’ve grown some. So you see life from a different lens and that can help you maneuver this season.

Balancing Kapha On Your Trail

If you’re needing a little push out of a tired mind that can make a tired body, on your trail, look for pops of color like fiery red leaves in autumn. Or berries on trees.

Wear a pop of color on your arm or shoes… (if you’re drawn to the bright or neon colors, that could be why as your body is intuitive). Just a pop of color though because bees are attracted to bright clothing and mountain air. 🐝 We can share the calm space.

Find a pine cone or forest fresh scent. Some natural bug spray scents have lemongrass and rosemary that help to wake up the senses. They’ll keep the certain bugs away and keep you awake.

Take energy food and water. Great snacks are nuts and energy bites. So, ready to get your Mountain pose on? ⛰️

Print Recipe

Gluten-Free Carrot Bread Squares

Course Side Dish, Snack

Cuisine American

Author Brandy @ Healthy Happy Life Secrets

Ingredients

1/2 cup gluten-free almond flour or coconut flour
1/2 cup oats
2 eggs
1 tbsp coconut oil
2 tsp honey
1/2 cup raisins and chopped walnuts (optional)
1 cup finely grated carrots
1/2 tsp of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg each (optional)
2 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

Mix ingredients and bake on 350°F for about 40 minutes.

Homemade energy squares with: carrots, raisins, coconut, and apple cider vinegar.

Child Pose Yoga DeStress

Child Pose yoga was something I wish I knew when I was first starting out in corporate work life for stress. I’m young at heart.

But this pose is also called Reclined Hero’s Pose… so your inner child can turn into your hero.

But before that, the adult challenges I started out with were NO fun…☹️

The day in hotel catering where I started was long and full of pressures, stress, and being in go-go-go mode.

The perk was good food and meeting nice people. 🥘 🤩

…But then there were tough office moments that invited in negative energy that would linger into the evening and then the next day where the same triggers started all over again. Maybe you can relate?

Weekends seem to fly by where I was never caught up with rest and completing errands.

There was always more to do, but then the rat race workweek started with Monday. And I couldn’t remember what I did over the weekend. It was like being in Plow Pose but not the yoga kind. I felt hit by a plow catching up with sleep.

The balance in social activities was long forgotten.

If you have a corporate work life, you know exactly what being in the rat race lifestyle means, that’s rarely 9-5.

And I felt no work-life balance in my first work gig in hotel catering that averaged twelve hours a day roundtrip plus some weekends. While I did have hotel management perks of staying overnight on request, but who wants to stay at there work when they can go home and feel like a human again? That’s how I felt. Even if you’re in a fun place, it’s never the same when you’re working and you take your job seriously.

Stress-free life is a foreign concept in those long hour environments where you’re always “on.” Today, we don’t have to be so much like a professional robot, we can leave that to the actual AI robots. 😊

Then, years later I had a WLB epiphany… oh, that’s what work-life balance looks like.

I had an actual 9-5 work life that gave me time balance. But as all things come to an end, moving on and years later, I found other 9-5 work that came with the tradeoff of toxic work environments.

In those roles, I would’ve easily traded fewer hours to work around positive work energy. I carried anxious energy that robbed me of life and enjoyment on my days off during those work seasons, kinda like first job. The Universe was definitely sending me clues. And decades in, I caught on to the recurring patterns like Groundhog Day.

Until once again, I got out of those sometime miserable work seasons… and then I could breathe in the moment and feel calm in mindfulness. I was not thinking of past situations or what could happen in the future. I was living free.

And through years of work trials and tribulations, that’s how I determined self-care, protecting your calm energy, and valuing yourself is most important. Life is too short to live unfulfilled in the process because you have future end goals in mind. There’s a balance because no one is guaranteed tomorrow or their certain plans that goals count on.

Plus, living with prolonged stress is outright damaging to optimal health and longevity.

Relaxing-calm energy is a prescription for mind-body health that we all need.

One way to get your calm energy back sooner rather than later is to reverse the negatives into positives…

And in any “bad” situation, realize in awareness that the situation you’re in today, will one day end.

…Either by you or circumstances beyond your control. So today, what you are gaining in resilience and lessons learned will pay dividends for your future endeavors. And today and in this moment, you can practice this relaxing perspective in Child Pose yoga and these ways:

1) Take deep breaths in and out in your Child Pose. You can do this in the morning and night to help calm. You don’t need to have any certain energy, just a pulse. And if you have pent-up energy, push it out into deep huff and puff breaths onto your yoga mat.

2) Then when you get more time, you can flow into a peaceful walk outside to appreciate calm spaces and surroundings. Like a child, wonder about the trees and all those similar curiosities you had in your earlier days. These days, it’s easy to stop and stare at nature off-balance compared to previous years, and that can stir up some fond nostalgia memories of the happy inner child that are peaceful and innocent.

3) Meditating on daily devotionals is great way to start your morning with positive affirmations and mantras, hopeful Psalm Scriptures, and check in and see what thoughts pop up.

4) Do a few minutes in a productive joyful activity that’s a daily outlet. Maybe you have a personal project you’re working on. When you’re fully immersed, that gets your calm mind-body back.

5) When you go back to your yoga mat, do an active Child’s Pose where your fingers are facing each other and touching, pointed straight ahead on the mat. And also move them with palms down on the floor to about the 2 pm hand dial position. Stay there for a few breaths.

Then move along to 3 pm for a few breaths. And turn your Child Pose into Hare Pose with a rounded back. Looking down and inward, you gain a few more breaths of calm and comfort. And maybe find out what your inner child is needing.

Focus on relaxing muscles and your breath to be in present moment where anxious energy doesn’t exist. That’s all in the past thoughts and uncertain future worry that causes us unnecessary negative sensations. Just focus on this moment.

6) Listen to relaxing music to help put you back into a calm mind-body balance mood. I like to have soft music like Ingrid Michaelson, Ed Sheeran, or Norah Jones upbeat moody tones in the background that won’t put me to sleep. Having seen them all in concert, I can put some surround sound and lights to memory too… and that pleases my inner child.

7) And turn your Child Pose to an upside down Child Pose where you hug your knees. Doesn’t that feel good? If you were like me you grew up in a family that didn’t know how to give hugs and kisses. This hugging Child Pose is a great way to validate your inner child that didn’t get hugs and outward expressions of love.

What pleases your inner child? 👶 Maybe a Plow Pose.

Relaxing Easy Autumn Bread Recipes to Inspire You

autumn leaves inspires autumn creativity and autumn bread recipes for me that i share in this blog article. — When you blend autumn leaves together, they look like a colorful painting that life is. And that can give you inspiration for expressing creativity and your creative talents! One way I like to stay creative and express creativity is through baking. I share autumn recipe inspiration below that can help YOU find your colors. 🌈

Autumn bread recipes can be comforting for the soul. After baked, the hearty loafs with sweet or savory flavors bring moments of joy and satisfaction.

And creating your own easy autumn bread recipes is easy when you know what to do! You probably already have the few essential bread making ingredients needed in your kitchen cupboard. So you’re already half-way (or more) there to spark your inspiration. 🎨

After you’ve practiced and perfected your foundational bread making skills (aka making progress over perfection), you realize you don’t need “special” recipes to create your own bread masterpiece that will wow your taste buds and friends.

…And that can even be a table centerpiece for a few days, just long enough for you to have that enjoyment factor before it wears off. 😉

The simple things like bread can bring the most joy in this life. 🎉

And with satisfied feelings, bread baking is more an art, than a science experiment with baking measurements (in case that scares you off).

Bread chemistry science happens in the oven, so it’s mostly outta your hands! That can be comforting and take the pressure off.

And below step-by-step, I show you the easiest bread you can make and bake.

Your part is to put your love in your bread dough making process, and not to get mired down with complicated step-by-steps that doesn’t always pan out.

…And I learned this over many self-taught bread lessons. The a-ha is that sticking to the basics pans out every time. And that’s good for balancing Vata where the balance recipe is consistency.

The secret in making good bread is using your calm energy and heart where you enjoy the process. And maybe finding your bread making relaxing place, kinda like the one you find outdoors on a perfect fall day with no clouds in the sky.And then when the clouds roll in, spend time in your kitchen making progress on your bread baking skills. 🥖

Bread Making 101

Starting with pizza dough or crust is one easy way to learn bread making.

Because pizza crust is bread, and even if there’s no or low rise (or you don’t get it exactly right the first time), it usually tastes great. And will get eaten in minutes if you have delicious ingredients as toppings.

Oh, btw, did I mention I was a pizza maker for 4 teenage years, lol?

So in many ways, I got my feet wet with bread baking lessons starting from a young age. And in my more mature weekly recent home baking experiences, my pizza making lessons come inspired from those years.

When I do the bread in the young at heart way, then it works out. And you can do this too with practice.

You need four common ingredients: bread flour, water, salt, and instant yeast.

(Tip: keep the salt and yeast in separate corners of the flour before the dough is formed, as salt can kill the yeast early on).

After breaking down the gluten by kneading and then forming a cohesive dough ball, you can let the dough rest and proof in a covered plastic bowl for a couple hours or longer. That’s proof that even bread need rest! 😁

You will get the hang of the elastic dough texture (like soft Play-doh) after you do it a few times. It becomes some of the easiest baking prep you can do!

Instead of intricately cutting out cookies or delicately icing your cake just right, bread doesn’t need slicing or icing precision. You might add a decorative incision or a glaze at the end, but those take less focused gaze on your part.

You can make rustic and airy bread when feeling a bit Kapha tired because it doesn’t require finesse (for my Great British Baking show friends who like to make cottage loafs). 🎪

The hardest part (if there is one), is remembering to make and prep the dough hours or a day in advance, so the dough has time to proof. You let nature of time do the work.

So here are the easy steps to by pass flops. This is the skinny on what does work for quick bread making wins… and without making skinny bread! 🍞

Learn to Make Inspired French Bread Pizza Crust

Once called “poor man’s bread,” this is actually an American invention that students love. In the public high school cafeteria I ate in, French bread pizza made a debut on certain days kinda like Taco Tuesdays.

With the same 4 ingredients you make pizza crust dough (mentioned above). After proofed, move the dough over to your baking sheet, and shape your dough in an oval or more football shape than a pizza circle.

Use a little bench flour to prevent sticky dough on your hands and the baking sheet.

When you’re about ready to bake and your oven is pre-heated to 350°F/180°C, you can flatten the dough center if you’ll be adding toppings that are wet like tomatoes.

Or make your traditional French bread pizza with cheese and sauce only, and leave the center alone so it can rise in the middle (or the reason why you proofed the dough in the first place).

The trick to airy bread loafs, is to gently handle your dough (kinda like in baking cakes where at times you want to fold in your batter or ingredients like meringue whites, so you don’t flatten and knock out the air you just worked on).BUT, you’re the artisan, so you decide!

And then bake (or be-ake! in Great British Bake Off terms).

Healthy Autumn Bread for Balancing Vata and Kapha

Keeping bread healthy, breads that have light airy pockets like French bread interiors or pita bread will not be as heavy and can melt in the mouth.

Here’s the quick bread breakdown low-down on body science:

When bread first enters our mouths, the breakdown starts as an enzyme called amylase in your mouth that initiates the process. Bread is one of the unique foods that doesn’t have to get to your gut first to start digesting (breakdown).

And it’s also one food, if not chewed well in the mouth, that can sit in your stomach like lead (or at least feel that way).

If you have a Vata sensitive stomach or bloating that’s common, or more a Kapha body who’s trying to lose weight, then not eating as much dense bread like sandwich rolls and fast food buns definitely helps your healthy cause.

Whole grain and sprouted breads are wholesome alternatives that could be a game changer for your heartier and healthier bread life.

3 Sweet A-B-C Healthy Recipes (From Autumn Bread Recipes)

And when you have a sweet tooth, these are some autumn healthy wise tips and healthy recipes that can easily turn into healthy autumn bread recipes.

What I most appreciate about easy autumn bread recipes are the intense hearty flavors. Hearty is anti-inflammatory spices and ingredients. It’s healthy comforting food alongside your meals.

You can sweeten pair with a divine pear and cinnamon duo or add a chai tea flavor twist. And you can turn autumn bread recipes into a bread cake, scone, or muffin recipe with just a few simple tweaks.

And these 3 sweet autumn baking recipes below are the healthy (my fave kind!)… with these ABC’s: apple, banana, or citrus orange. And loaded with other fall healthy spice and vinegar ingredients. And have no shortage of flavor burst wow! 🤩

Fall Apple Bundt Bread Cake with ACV (or pears) are loaded with polyphenols and apple cider vinegar is shown to lower blood sugar levels that’s good for losing weight and reducing risk of diabetes.

Healthy Fall Apple Bundt Cake Recipe

Chocolate Banana Cake Bread – banana and cocoa is loaded with polyphenols. Both will help to put a smile on your face so you don’t have to reach for processed foods and refined sugar sweets that lead to weight gain.

Chocolate Banana Cake Bread Recipe

Orange Scone – orange zest as a sweetner is loaded with Vitamin C and flavanoids. High in fiber and water content, that will help you feel full so you don’t eat other “bad” sweets with refined sugars.

Orange Scone Recipe

And before I leave you this week, I’m sharing some work inspiration from having professionally planned thousands of party menus with Lebanese food stirring up memories because of the pomegranates, that are an in-season autumn fruit. The red rubies are a dazzling pop of color that leave a juicy finish.

What do ya think?