Warming Foods

Fall is when our bodies start to need and crave more warming foods! When raw foods are ingested, the body utilizes its internal energy to warm these foods up in order to digest them optimally. Generally, cooked foods require less of the body’s energy to be processed, and since we need more energy in the fall and winter months to stay warm and fight off colds (hello flu season!), we should be eating them as much as possible.

Warming foods also assist with healthy digestion by unlocking certain nutrients and making them easier to absorb in the body. Adding warming spices and herbs to the diet during the winter months is another easy way to improve digestion. Cinnamon, turmeric, ginger, cardamom, cayenne, nutmeg, and cloves are all great options! In traditional Chinese medicine, there are many types of foods and seasonings that contain warming energy including:

Garlic

Squash

Sunflower seeds/walnuts/chestnuts/pine nuts

Coconut

Dates

Coriander/caraway seeds

Chives/parsley/green onion

Rice wine/vinegar

White/black pepper

Green/red/chili peppers

Mustard greens

Rice milk

A great fall dish that incorporates many of these warming foods is below!

QUINOA + MUSHROOM STUFFED ACORN SQUASH

Serves: 4

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 medium acorn squashes

• 3 tbs coconut oil

• 8 medium mushrooms, diced

• 1 medium carrot, diced

• 1 medium yellow onion, diced

• 1 tbs olive oil

• 1 1/2 cups cooked quinoa

• 2 cups kale

• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts

• 1 garlic clove chopped

• Sea salt & pepper to taste

• 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

• 1 tbsp mustard

• 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast

• 1/2 tsp ground cayenne pepper

• Pomegranate, sunflower, parsley seeds to garnish

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat the oven to 375ºF and slice the ends off the squash, then slice each in half width-wise.

2. Scoop out the seeds and place the squash (flesh side up) in a baking dish.

3. Rub each half with coconut oil and sprinkle with sea salt and pepper.

4. Bake on the center rack for 40 - 45 minutes until squash is tender.

5. While the squash is roasting, heat olive oil, apple cider vinegar, mustard, garlic and cayenne in a large skillet over medium heat. Add add mushrooms, carrots and and onion and saute for 5 mins.

6. Add spices and quinoa and cook until quinoa is warmed. Then add kale and walnuts, and cook until kale is crispy.

7. Transfer this mixture to a bowl and stir in nutritional yeast

8. Divide the mixture evenly between the four squash halves. Place back in the oven for 5-10 minutes.

9. Remove from the oven, garnish with pomegranate and sunflower seeds

10. ENJOY!