Homemade Samoas and “Taking Care”

Before I begin, I’d like to thank EVERYONE who left such kind and supportive comments and messages. This is indeed a difficult time but I feel the love sent my way. Truly, as mushy as that sounds.

And in all honesty I dont have much to write today. I was busy juggling my dad’s situation and returning to work. And boy teaching kids was hard today. I always lack patience, but I couldn’t take their naivety today. And seeing their parents pick them up made me want to cry.

I’d like to be picked up, taken care of, etc. But I not only have to take care of myself, (which I admit I do a shitty job at) I need to start to take care of own parent.

How well do you take care of you? Do you find you take better care of others? Do you miss being taken care of?

Maybe this was why my ED started, maybe I was silently screaming people to take notice that I needed care and that i did a poor job of being my own caretaker. Eh, thats one theory. But as most people know, there are many roots in this ED plant, that whole “take care” is just one of them.

Anyhow…..

I have always dreamed of opening a bakery that sells homemade versions of girl scout cookies just to piss off the girl scouts. Well, my money is tight right now, so making these with my desserts class would have to do.  I have never met someone who didn’t care for Samoas – even people who say that they usually don’t like coconut (like moi!). I think that the cookie is just a good and rather unique combination of flavors.

1 package of shortbread cookies

3 cups shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)
12-oz good-quality chewy caramels
1/4 tsp salt
3 tbsp milk
8 oz. dark or semisweet chocolate (chocolate chips are ok)

Preheat oven to 300. Spread coconut evenly on a parchment-lined baking sheet (preferably one with sides) and toast 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes, until coconut is golden. Cool on baking sheet, stirring occasionally. Set aside.

Unwrap the caramels boil them with milk and salt. Let them simmer on high for 3-4 minutes, and keep stirring to help the caramel caramel melt. When smooth, fold in toasted coconut with a spatula.
Using the spatula or a small offset spatula, spread topping on cooled cookies, using about 2-3 tsp per cookie. 

While topping sets up, melt chocolate in a small bowl. Heat on high in the microwave in 45 second intervals, stirring thoroughly to prevent scorching. Or simply melt over a “double boiler” (pot with boiling water underneath a bowl with the chocolate). Transfer  chocolate (or melt a bit of additional chocolate, if necessary) into a piping bag or a ziplock bag with the corner snipped off and drizzle finished cookies with chocolate.

yea, its that good (and Abby, it does not taste like suntan lotion!)

and this might happen…

 

 

Myth Busting Monday: “Brainy” Edition

My emotions have been on a roller coaster (and according to google, “roller coaster” is two words, geez I’m dumb, I thought it was one word).

Anyhow, some of you might think that you could not blog in times of crisis with your parent’s life in danger. But in all honesty, this is the one thing that actually feels good. I can’t even put myself through a yoga class right now.

Some moments during the day I’m feeling hopeful and strong, but other times I feel like I’m about to burst. And often, I just feeling like yelling at friends and family of my dad that keep calling.

“How’s you dad?”

“Did they move him?”

“What happened?”

“Can he talk?”

“Do you need anything?”

I feel like yelling “EFF YOU!” but thats rude and if by chance I have the guts to actually say that “yes, I need a new Marc Jacobs bag” they will for sure refuse.

I feel like people wont read posts unless the have pictures, so I'm just posting a bunch of my dad

I took this picture of him in his hometown in Antwerp, Belgium. That's a pond behind him that was frozen solid.

Also in Antwerp, we were being silly and climbed the frozen jungle gym

Anyhow, I want to follow the Eden’s Eats tradition and bring you a myth busting monday. Ever since this happened, I’ve been researching information on the brain and memory. So here’s a special “brainy” myth busting edition:

Brain damage is always permanent.
It used to be believed that each person was born with a finite number of brain cells, so if you damaged any of them you operated on a deficit for the rest of your life. Evidence now shows that the brain remains “plastic” throughout life: it can rewire or change itself in response to new learning. Under certain circumstances, the brain can even create new cells through a process called neurogenesis. This discovery not only refutes the  whole “we are born with a finite number of brain cells” myth, but it also raises hope for victims with brain injury caused from either diseases or trauma.

Myth #2: Depression is all “in your mind”

It seems hard to believe that in this day and age there are still people who think that depression is all in the mind and that all you have to do to get out of it is pull yourself together. This is not only untrue, it is a dangerous misunderstanding. Depression is real and people need to know that. We’re not talking about feeling a bit down in the dumps here, that is a normal part of life, we are talking about clinical depression that causes people to be unable to carry out their normal lives. There can be many reasons why someone will develop depression and another doesn’t, ranging from chemical imbalances, genetics, and environmental toxins to social circumstances and life events. What we do know is that people do not choose to become depressed and that without professional help they are far less likely to get through it. The problem with perpetuating a myth like this is that people who are truly depressed are going to be less likely to seek the help they need.

You lose memory as you get older

It’s a commonly held misconception that memory loss is inevitable as we grow older. There are many different factors that can affect our ability to take in, store and recall information, such as genetics, disease, drugs, general health, and so on. Yes it’s true that many people will appear to have less of an ability to remember things as they get older but no, memory loss isn’t inevitable. To keep your brain active and in good condition in your twilight years the best thing you can do is eat a healthy diet rich in nutrients (yea, this is why I think I failed chemistry when I was college: malnourishment!). Moderate exercise also improves the blood flow to the brain and keeps it oiled up and in good working order and if your diet provides the right fuel then you’re laughing. Unfortunately, we do tend to become more sedentary as we get older and we also have lots more experience and information to store as the years go by. My grandmother is 88 and she tends to remember better things than me!

I will be teaching tomorrow so be prepared for a recipe. I haven’t been adding recipe lately but hopefully I’ll get back on that. And as far as my dad, he was indeed moved out of the ICU but we are not out of the woods yet. I will have to be patient.

In the spirit of this “brainy” myth busting, what is the strangest detail you remember about your past?

“Get Well” Challah and Some Other Random Mish Mash

I know these past couple of posts have not been in the standard Eden’s Eats “format” (not that I think I really have a format, but you get the idea).

I dont want to jinx anything or get my hopes up too high, but looks like my dad will be out of the ICU tomorrow! He will still be in the hospital, but at least out of the ICU which is a big sigh of relief.

I had a good visit with him earlier today and found myself actually laughing which I haven’t done since this whole ordeal happened. My dad’s friend (who’s known to be quiet the jokester) came to visit while I was there and managed to get my dad and I laughing again. He brought an electric razor so my dad could stay nice and clean shaven (after a certain age, scruff doesn’t look sexy, it start to make you look like a bum). My dad said they had a woman come shave him earlier, but she did a pretty iffy job. My dad’s jokester friend said its because women are just used to shaving legs (and armpits, unless they are hippies).

yep, he raised his table to be silly. at least it got my dad to smile

My dad’s colleague and good friend (who was with me when this all transpired on Wednesday) brought two loaves of challah bread he made in his homemade clay oven. If homemade bread in a homemade oven doesn’t say “labor of love” to you, I dont know what does.

I know, I wish I would have made it too

I’m glad my dad is not lonely, and that people are visiting him. What i dont like is having everyone on my dad’s blackberry call me asking about him. I sort of want to send a mass email or text to all of them saying “If your so worried about my dad, go visit and see for yourself!”. But that’s cruel and I know its only natural to be worried and want to know information. Its just that its causing my stress and it doesn’t help that I don’t know all the time either.

And on a totally random note, I found that each floor in the ICU building has a meditation room. Only in LA…..But hey, I’m is support that every hospital invest in one. 

I came again in the evening and my slightly more hopeful sprits went down a little. He was angry, mostly that he could not remember things and it hurt me to hear him repeat things he’s told me many times before. His appetite was rather non-existen and asked my if I wanted any of his dinner. All I could see was anger and irritation about his situation. Plus, his pain in his head was still there. I can’t imagine having such a sharp pain in my head constantly. I really wished he would feel better. I left and let him sleep, hoping to get some myself tonight.

I might go back to the old “format” tomorrow and churn out a “myth busting monday” and maybe a recipe. I do plan on going to work on monday for my desserts class. Nothing gives me any pleasure so I might as well keep myself busy at work. And on that note, I’m sorry if I have not left any comments lately on your guys’ blogs. I’ve kind of lost interest in reading about left over ideas and oatmeal right now. I’ll be back in the saddle at some point. But right now, I just would like to express what I’m going through via my blog and be with my dad.  Dont take offense, I’m sure your overnight oats or pumpkin whatevers are fantastic and if my dad gets out, I’ll do a whole “make-up” thanksgiving and I’ll go back and check all those thanksgiving posts for ideas.

Thanks again for all of your support, seriously, each comment helps me feel a little better. And I promise to have better Eden’s Eats posts.

What I learned in the Past 48 Hours

The past 48 hours have felt like a truck ran over me multiple times.

I’m lucky I’ve had tim off work this week, but I wish I had something, anything to keep my mind busy from worrying about my dad.

Instead of wallowing, I’ve decided to post some FYI’s I’ve encounter through this whole ordeal. Please forgive me Abby, I’m too stressed to think of my own names for this so I’m stealing your idea. I have a feeling you won’t mind, and even if you do, I know you’ll still think I’m cool.

-There appears to be no shortage of good looking male nurses (however I look like utter crap most because of my anxiety and lack of interest in intensive grooming).

-Hospital food is not that disgusting (and at least my dad can eat now). I’ve been a few times to the cafeteria and they have everything from a giant salad bar to a frozen yogurt bar. Not to mention every kind of soda, chip, bar, coffee flavor, and sandwich. But with my luck, a very sorry assortment of teas.

-Even celebrities use the ER (yea, amid my dad, and some homeless people, I spotted Howie Mandel. I know, I’ve heard he was a germophobe).

-You really know who your true friend are in times of crisis.

-Exercise seems really trivial when you see so many people on bed rest

-Thanksgiving doens’t need to involve stuffing onesself, or even a turkey for that matter.

– I heard “Tangled” wasn’t bad but that doesn’t mean I’ll see it

– I heard “The Nutcracker 3D” sucked balls and theres very little ballet in it. You can’t have “The Nutcracker” without ballet!

-The view from my Dad’s hospital room might cure some sort of ailment.

-Laughter is a very good form of medicine

-Dropping off empty doughnut and/or pizza boxes at the nurses station is just plain cruel

-Hospital archetecture can be rather fasniating

-Sometimes, I trust nurses more than doctors

-My dad has trouble remembering most people’s name but he knows mind. I’d like to think its because I’m extra special 😉

-When everyone calls me asking if “I need anything” and I’m tempted to reply “Yes, I need an Ipad, gas in my tank, a James Franco lookalike to be my boyfriend, and I’d like my dad safe and sound”. But I think it might be too much for them to handle.

My dad and I are so appreciative of all the wonderful comments and wishes you guys have left, thank you!

Thanks for Being My Medicine

I hope everyone had a nice thanksgiving.

Again, I’m not gonna try to BS you and this blog is one of the few things preserving my sanity right now so I will fill you in on whats going on.

With my dad, not much has changed. No worse or better, but at least stable and under heavy watch. There is a big clot on the left side of his brain but its a very delicate region so they dont want to opporate unless the absolutly need too. Since there has been no major change in the clot, they are hoping to wait it out so that the swelling will go down on its own without surgery.

What does that mean? A few days in a horrible limbo. I’m not sure if its better, I dont know if its worse, I dont know what to expect, all of my dad’s family and friend are calling me. Its weird.

The worst part is when I can see my dad frustrated that he can’t remember names. I’m beyond elated he knows mine, but his short term memory is not great.

Today I did no activity. Very rare for me as I’ll usually be active in some way or another. But I can’t think about going into downdog or running and even walking back to my car from the hospital seemed irritating. Everything seems annoying, even reading blogs (so if you dont see me comment, don’t get offended, but its hard to read all of your guys’ fabulous thanksgiving recaps when mine was spent with tea in an ICU).

But I will try tomorrow to go to a yoga class in the morning to help quiet my mind. I didn’t want to go, but my dad’s girlfriend wanted me to engage in something that might ease my anxiety. I’ll give it a go. Just like prayers, it can’t hurt.

And a big ass thank you to all of your prayers and support. I’m so ashamed if I’ve ever doubted the blog community in anyway. You guys are amazing and you guys help me tick in this rough time. I have no plans to stop blogging, and no matter what happens, I will continue my usual shenangigans and recipes. But for now, I need to get this out. You guys are the best medicine for me right now. And lord knows, my own brain needs to be relieved. So thanks, and I’ll be sure to update you.

Deep Breath, Eden

I have had a rough day. Deep breath, Eden.

I don’t know how well to express it but here goes nothing. Deep breath, Eden.

In all honesty, I dont want to write much and I was considering not writing at all. But I didn’t want you guys to think anything happened to me and I want to be honest with what I’m going through.

My dad suffered a brain hemorage today. We were supposed to to go grocery shopping for thanksgiving when I called and he said his head hurt and wasn’t feeling well. I wont go into to much detail but we went to the ER and he has sever bleeding on the left side of his brain. He’s going fairly well considering the circumstances but he can’t remember names (although he knew mine) and hes in the ICU currently. His girlfriend suggested I go home and eat and rest, and that is where I’am right now.

He will likely be in there for a few days. So no thanksgiving dinner for me tomorrow. I’m hoping this will blow over and we’ll have a lovely make-up thanksgiving. But I’m anxious as hell right now and as some of you know, I lost me mother when I was 13 and my dad is all I have right now.

I dont need a pity party but I want to be honest about my feelings.

I’m scared, I’m worried, I’m confused, I’m tired, and I’m helpless.

Luckily, he is in great hands (seriously, if any of you are ever in LA and have an emergency, Cedars Sinai is the best place you can go!) and a good family friend of ours who is a doctor, was with me the whole time, translating the medical jargon for me and putting me somewhat at ease.

And I must thank Abby for reminding me to take care of me and for reminding me to take deep yogic breath.

In the spirit of thanksgiving, I’d like to thank all of you for your support and I will update you when I know more.

Till then, have a wonderful thanksgiving.

Deep breath, Eden.

Butternut Hash and The Final Thank You Letter to YOU!

American Thanksgiving is creeping up on us, and hence this is my final thank you letter. Of course there are many people and things I should thank in my life, and this week of thank you letters barely scratched the surface. But I needed to include this one. It is a truly sincere thank you to all my fellow bloggers, readers, and yes, even those silent lurkers.

Here goes nothin….

Dear Eden’s Eats readers,

First off, I must comend you for putting up with my terrible grammar and spelling. Seriously, I often get asked “who learned me how to right” (hopefully you understood that was a joke). And I must give you bonus points for putting up with my rambles. I have far too many posts I wish I didn’t and I hope I’ve never come off as whiny or a brat (because I was seriously beginning to think that after my lululemon post).

Like many bloggers when I first started out it was basically out of curiosity, and a simple way of virtual socializing. The great part of it was I found that I could participate when I wanted to, and didn’t have to sit there and try and make small talk amongst a group of people like you do in a standard setting

In all honesty, it is you that keep my coming back to my computer, typing up whatever shenangins I have swirling in my mind, creating inventive and some not so inventive recipes. In many ways, you’ve helped me in my journey to self fulfillment. I have felt so in adequate most of my life; that I have no purpose. But knowing that someone, even if its one person, gets a kick out of me…… well, that makes my heart smile (hmm, thats corny, “hearts smiling”, eh whatever, I’m leaving that in there).

Going to the foodbuzz festival this year really reminded me that I am indeed capable. Sure, I’m not “popular” and I high doubt people her wispering about me as I walked by. It was as simple as Sophia crushing my arms with hers in a tight embrace and a shriek, “OMG! Your Eden!”.  Its as simple as seeing bloggers comment on every single post of mine even if I dont get a chance to comment on theirs. Yep, even those of you who never read my posts but leave a comment anyhow(and yes, I can usually tell who you are by your comments and boy do I hope you actually read this one!). Even the snarky commenters I embrace, because I’m not excatly miss nicey nicey myself.

So I’m happy there are actually people that give a shit about what I have to say or what recipe I conjure. I’m happy you all aren’t obsessed with what I eat at every meal or “healthy” I am (not!). I’m thankful for you just caring even for a breif moment. I don’t find myself all that interesting. I dont consider myself “recovered”, I dont know how to brilliantly “veganize”  foods, and lord know my photography needs a lot of work. But if I have ever just once made you smile or smirk, well, my job here on earth might be done. But don’t worry, I hope to stick around for a while. I am just thankful for all of your support and your friendship.

So I hope you bloggers that indeed never actually read take a small moment to merely skim if you must, because I do want to extend a thank you to each and every person who had come and visited me. Has reading or writing blogs helped you or maybe harmed you? Are you thankful for them?

On a totally unrelated note, I dragged Sophia for a Whole Foods run and I’m sharing the evidence of this excursion.

Foodbuzz would be so proud sophia!

 

there is nothing like sophia coming to attack you with brussel sprout bat in the middle of whole foods

stroking vegetables

Ok, so now for a recipe since I’ve been test running them for the big day. This one was quiet a hit so it might make an appearence on my table this year. For the hash you will need:

-1 peeled and seeded butternut squash

-1 onion sliced thinly

-2 tbs mararine or butter

-cumin

-cinnamon

-salt and pepper

Saute and the onions in the butter until they are translucent. Add the shredded butternut squash and spices. 

Cook the squash until golden for about five minuets.

Hash it out

Persimmon Muffins and A Thank You Letter to (Gasp) My Eating Disorder

Hey readers and lurkers (and lurkers, why dont you delurk every once in a while).

Ok, so I’m back with the “thank you letters” but I’m seriously thinking they are kinda unpopular among readers so I’m only doing two Why two? Well, because I really need to get these last two out there. The first of the two that I will present to you today is a thank you letter to my eating disorder. Yep, gasp if you need to. Here goes nothing:

Dear Eden’s Eating Disorder,

What’s happenin hot stuff? Actually, you are not very hot at all, in fact you lack so much body fat that even in 86 degree weather you complain of being chilly. Anyhow, I know I am not the best of friends with you at the moment (and I’m not trying to make amends here, dont get too excited), but I need to once and for all thank you in order to truly let go of you for good.

Thanks. Thanks for killing time when everything bored my to death. You gave my mind something to think about, something to calculate, something to criticize, and something to occupy the emptiness I had. I was depeleted after my mom passed away, and you filled that space. You became my “stress ball” and my best friend. Instead of drugs or alcohol, I chose you. Not that you were the healthiest choice, but quiet possibly the cheapest compared to the going rate of cigarrettes and drugs these days. You saved me money when I got things at half price because they were from the children’s department. And perhaps you didn’t cause me to drunk dial anyone and totally embarrass myself.

You did serve me. Maybe I needed you. I needed something, anything to fill that emptiness, that hunger. And you seemed to keep me functioning. You got me through high school, college, even culinary school (I even think you pushed me to go there!). Yes, I think that if you had not been around, I would have not had such an obsession with food and feeding everyone and hence I otherwise probably would have not gone to culinary school.

Ok, but enough stroking you ego. Like I said, I’m not here to be friends again.

Because lets face it bud, you ruined my relationship with food. You caused me to feel anxious about certain foods and dictating rules about which foods were “good” and “bad” and how often I could eat them. You convinced me to punish myself when I broke your rules, and you even forbade me from eating my favorite fruit. You made me forget how to eat normally. You depleted me of my natural enthusiasm and optimism and caused me to isolate myself from my family and friends. You made me forfeit birthday parties, girls nights out, and even chance to travel because you didn’t want to me to eat certain foods and you told me I needed to exercise. You took away my sense of humor and instead made me sad and hopeless. What a crazy bitch you were! Sure, you got me jeans or whatever from Gap kids, but doesn’t take a genius to realize that without a functioning heart there would be no one to even put on the jeans. ED, you don’t make any sense, and I’m sick of it so take your jeans back. I’m not a kid anymore and I haven’t been for a long time.

Therefore ED, as hard as this may be, this is probably the last you’ll hear from me and  I hope I never hear from you again. If you try to contact me, I will be busy living the life I deserve and have no time for you. I won’t “friend” you on facebook, follow you on twitter, or even answer a text. I plan on deleting you for good. C’ya, and wouldn’t want to be ya!

With sincere hatred,

Eden

And now, on to some more Thanksgiving recipes. I’m actually not to excited about thanksgiving this year. I feel it will be very blah. Lots of people my dad’s age, my roommate, and the dog we are sitting that weekend for. Anyhow, I have the whole week off from work so I’m testing some recipes. These were a good, they just might end up on the menu. The following recipe make about 14 mini (and yes, they are teeny) muffins, so maybe double it up if your planing to make this for a hungry crowd.

-1/2 cup oat bran

-1/4 cup oatmeal

-1 tbs honey or agave

-1/4 cup soy/almond milk (or regular milk)

-1 tbs flaxmeal

-1/2 tsp baking powder

-2 tbs canola oil

-1 persimmon, diced into small chunks

Mix the dry and wet ingredients and then add the chunks of persimmon. Spoon into mini muffin tins (or just polp them like a cookie). Bake at 400 degrees for about 30 minuets or until golden.

Thanksgiving Myth Busting Monday and Restorative Yoga Poses

Hey everyone!

I was at Yoga school today so I didn’t get a chance to test run my thanksgiving recipes, but I have the whole week off from work so I’ll have plenty tomorrow. I know I’ve been doing “thank you” letters this week, but I know how popular “Myth Busting Mondays” are. So, I’ve decided come back to my thank you letters tomorrow and indulge you in some of the restorative yoga poses I learned over the weekend in addition to a fresh batch of myth busting. I also know many of you tend to be ADD when it comes to blogs and dont like reading too much. If thats the case feel free to just go to the section you’d like to indulge in. Or just hit that X at the corner of your screen. I won’t hate you. Ok, maybe I will….

Anyhow, here are your Thanksgiving Myths:

1. The Bigger the Turkey, the Better

When I was a kid, my mom took me to the supermarket a week before Thanksgiving and let me pick out the frozen turkey. I went for the one with the biggest breasts. Done laughing? Here’s the thing, the ones with big breasts don’t have much flavor.I learned in culinary school that larger-breasted turkeys are actually new breeds that were created to produce a larger amount of meat–not a better flavor. The smaller the ratio of breast meat to whole bird, the closer the turkey is to the original model and better the flavor. My advice, go with a proportional, farm fresh turkey.

2. Fresh Pumpkin is Better Than Canned Pumpkin

Repeat after me: “Canned” isn’t a bad word. Canned tuna and canned tomatoes have a place in the pantry of any great cook. The same rule goes for pumpkin. Canned pureed pumpkin from the grocery store often produces a more reliable and consistent result–especially in baking. If you insist on using fresh pumpkin (and, let’s be honest, preventing your guests from enjoying the traditional flavors of Thanksgiving) be sure to use “sugar pumpkins”. The pumpkins you buy to carve at Halloween are watery, mealy, and not great for recipes. If you ask me, get all sorts of different winter squashes like Kabocha (which is actually known as Japanese pumpkin), golden nugget squash, or buttercup squash. And of course, embrace he can, and remember to recycle when you finish.

3) All that turkey will make you fall asleep like Ambien

If you find yourself nodding off on the couch after the Thanksgiving feast, don’t blame the poor old turkey. While it’s true that turkey contains tryptophan–an amino acid that’s a precursor to calming, feel-good serotonin–there’s not enough tryptophan in roasted turkey to tire you out. In fact, there’s more tryptophan in cheese and chicken breast than there is in turkey. The real reason you’re sleepy? It’s likely the stress of the holiday, the hours spent cooking, and the wine outta do it!

And now for the good stuff! Restorative yoga poses! Restoratives are underrated. Although they look peaceful, restoratives can be challenging for beginners. Just because the body rests quietly doesn’t mean the mind will settle into stillness too. Be patient, and be prepared for days when every inch of you rebels. These are NOT about stretching so dont focus on getting a good stretch. These help you quiet the body and most importantly, the mind (note: I took these pictures so I must thank my fellow yoga teacher training classmates for being my models):

 

Ladies, this is one is awesome for "that time of the month". And guys, this just feels awesome. But I warn that both genders should do this pose clothed.

 

This on is called Supta Baddha Konasana. To come into the pose, sit on the floor in Bound Angle pose (souls together knees out to the sides). Lay back on the floor or over a bolster. Allow your knees to open to the side, resting them on blankets for comfort. Stay as long as you are comfortable.

This is a supported childs pose. I find this one is great when I’m really upset or restless. Sit on your shins, knees spread wide around the bolster/pillow-pile in front of you. Lay forward in Child’s Pose resting the body over the bolster. Arms can rest forward or behind, the head should take equal time being turned to each side. Make sure to have enough support under the belly. You don’t want any strain in your back.

 

I also like calling this one: instant valium

 

This one is great if your having pain in your lower back or kidneys. Sit on the floor with both legs folded to the left side. Rest you whole upper body on the blankets/pillows/bolsters and allow your head to rest on which ever side feels the most comfortable. Repeat on the right side. And once again, stay as long as you are comfortable. Go ahead, stay for an hour if you’d like.

 

I know, this looks silly, but actually a really cool way to try downdog

 

This is just supported down dog. Simply use blocks or blankets as a foundation to lay your head. But just like any downdog, make sure your arms and legs are straight. Don’t worry about you heels touching the mat. Mine won’t and never will.

 

This is just another version of supported child's pose. It just has more blankets underneath the tummy area so you are resting a little higher up.

PS I meant to post this yesterday but I wanted to wish Heather and Andy a very happy birthday (it was on sunday). Heather was one of my first readers and comments on almost every post of mine. Plus, she has the cutest doggies in the world. Andy is one half of one of my favorite blogs and he’s seriously just an awesome person. He and Amanda (his wife) were the only people I met before I went to foodbuzz and I still consider them my “safe” posse. When I got intimidated by a truckload of health or popular bloggers that cringed at the sight of me, I knew Andy would think I was cool. They made me feel “safe”, if that makes any sense. And when Andy thinks your cool, well thats pretty much all the validation you need. Hope you guys had a fun birthday!

 

Butternut Squash Wontons and “Thank You” Letter To Lululemon

I know, your probably sick of this “thank you” letter kick I’m on.

Suck it up, I’m gonna do two more and than back to normal Eden rambles.

Today, I’d like to thank something very vain. Yoga has done a lot for me spiritually and physically, but this is not a thank you letter to yoga. I thank yoga at every class I take when I bow my head to my heart.

No, this is a thank you letter to lululemon.

Dear Lululemon,

Where do I begin?! Well, the addiction started innocently enough with a pair of yoga pants. Now I’ve read the fabric description that you come up with to use in your yoga pants (“Luon”) and that’s all fine and good. But I’m pretty sure it’s some NASA scientist’s discovery on how to make every woman’s booty look good. I can weay them to yoga or to dinner. You can stuff them into Uggs. OK, I won’t win a fashion award for this look, but it’s the ultimate in comfort. They’re indeed an incredible improvement on sweats (as sweats make me feel fat, you?) and they make my legs look slim (especially black yoga pants). And hey just make me feel fit. Awesome, instead of the gym, I slip into yoga pants and I’m fitter already!

I love that you give discounts to yoga teachers in order to wear your gear and give feedback on items so you are constantly looking to improve on the original.

Being veritcaly challenges, most pants run super long on me. So I thank you tremendously for offering to hem them for free. Could you do some work on my jeans?

Yes, you can be pricy,but I wont hold that against you. I can buy a dress at $90 and wear it once or a ski jacket at $100+ that I wear maybe a few times a year. In my mind, based on my wear pattern of Lulu gear, I consider it money well spent.

And after being in Yoga teacher training school all day, I myself am spent.

Sincerely,

Eden (and Eden’s Ass)

And now lets look at the many ways I wear yoga pants:

In snow

On the couch

Stuffed in Uggs at social occasions

Is there an article of clothing you’d like to thank? Do you have a “uniform”, an outfit you find yourself wearing all too frequently? Personally, I find myself resembling a Lululemon retail sales girl with flip flops. And no, I dont work at Lululemon, but they better start paying me dontcha think?

Ok, so like yesterday, I am testing some thanksgiving recipes for the big day. Oy….what a  mess did I get myself into telling everyone I’m fine with hosting! Anyhow, these can be light dessert or appetizer. I tried these on the sweeter side today. You will need:

-Wonton wrappers

-peeled, seeded and steamed butternut squash (or pumpkin or any other type of winter squash)

-cinnamon

-pumpkin pie spice or nutmeg

– 1 tbs brown sugar

-walnuts (optional)

(for a savory version, omit the sugar and try it with sage and a little butter)

Mash together the squash with the spices, sugar, and walnuts. Take a little spoonful of the mash and place it in the center of the wonton. Wet you finger and run it across the edges to ensure it seals. Fold the wonton wrapper in half and crimp the edges a little bit. Bake at 350 for about 10 minutes. It might take a little more or less but these wont take very long so dont go watch an episode of glee or something. Stick around the kitchen and check to see when they are golden. You can garnish with some cinnamon or powdered sugar or some kosher salt if you are making savory ones.