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Hard Freeze Forecast (Heyam Dukham Anagatam)
My favorite sutra in Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra’s is, II.16, “heyam dukham anagatam.” This translates roughly as “the pain that is yet to come can be avoided.” What does this have to do with a forecast of a hard freeze?
My chard, beets, and turnip greens are still flourishing. They can manage with a night or two in a row in the high 20sF, and that is all we have had so far. The forecast for later in the week, though, is for the first true cold snap since 1994 (you may remember that as the year when lots of people’s pipes froze). My winter garden (which does not have a cold frame due to lack of space — maybe I’ll get more creative next year, and I’ll try an experiement with plastic bags on Thursday night) cannot survive lows in the low teens highs in the twenties.
I could suffer today by bemoaning the coming cold, worrying about the garden, and remembering that I don’t like cold. That would be present suffering in anticipation of potential future suffering. I certainly can avoid that. I can also do what I did yesterday, which was harvest lots of the chard and most of the beets, put the beets into cold storage (vegetable bin in the refrigerator) and make pasta with sauteed garlic and chard. Between now and Wednesday night, I’ll harvest most of the remaining greens. I’ll make a big vegetable soup with the beets and the chard, maybe make chard pie or calzones (truly delicious), and eat the rest over the following days. I’ll feel grateful that in the bitter cold, I can be eating fresh garden greens. I’ll be even more grateful that I can just shop at the grocery store or the farmers’ market and don’t need to rely on my garden feeding me year round. I’ll also be happy for the hard frost. Part of the reason the aphids and the mosquitoes have been so bad is the absence of a hard frost in winter.
Some bitter cold in winter in a temperate zone is inevitable, as are sickness and death. We can avoid suffering by not just getting anxious and unhappy and suffering in the present, but not taking action to alleviate potential suffering. With preparation and practice, we can avoid some suffering. Just has preparing for winter in the garden can allow it to be productive for greater parts of the year, so too, with a steady practice of asana, pranayama, and meditation we can avoid some physical and emotional pain and suffering. Most important, with steady preparation (preparing for the potential for difficulties in the future is not the same as being anxious about it), when the inevitable comes, we will likely suffer less, at least in our hearts, if not in our bodies.
Vegan Cranberry Walnut Oatbran Muffins
At what point does a recipe cease to be the one from the book and become one’s own? These muffins are loosely based on Martha Rose Shulman’s “Overnight Bran Muffins” from her book Great Breads. Her ingredients are: raisins, bran, boiling water, eggs, sunflower oil or melted butter, honey, molasses, buttermilk, whole wheat flour, white flour, baking soda, and salt. She bakes hers at 400F for 20-30 minutes. If I had just replaced the raisins with cranberries (sometimes I use other berries or dried fruits), or replaced the buttermilk with soy milk or juice, or used all whole wheat flour instead of a mixture of whole wheat and white flour, and added a few spices, it would not have been my cooking. But when one changes nearly every aspect of a recipe, is it a new recipe? I just happened to start with this one, but I could just have easily started modifying the recipe on the back of the bag of cranberries for cranberry bread or any one of a number of the recipes I have for apple, cranberry, or bran muffins and came to the same place.
I used chopped cranberries, succanat, walnuts, oat bran, egg replacer, walnut oil, soy milk, ground flax seed meal, whole wheat pastry flour, cinnamon, allspice, baking soda, and salt and changed some of the proportions, the order in which I prepare and mix some of the ingredients, and the baking temperature and time. Ms. Shulman’s muffins are richer and more classic for having the eggs, buttermilk, and white flower, but the ones I made this morning tasted pretty good, and I recommend her book as an excellent place to find solid, easy to follow recipes. I honor her recipe as a starting point, the way I honor my teachers on the yoga path, but still bring in my own experience.
Want to make your own?
- Take a cup of cranberries (these are the last of the cranberries I bought last fall and then froze to use through the winter; you might not be able to find cranberries this time of year, so use whatever you have on hand), chop them in a wooden bowl, toss with a few spoonfuls of succanat (dried fruits or sweeter berries do not ask for the extra sugar) and set aside.
- Wisk together in a large bowl egg replacer (one egg’s worth), 1/4 cup walnut oil, and 1/4 to 1/3 cup maple syrup (or other liquid sweetener, including fruit juice concentrate). Soften 1 cup oat bran with about 7/8 cup boiling water. Mix oat bran into liquid ingredients.
- In a separate bowl, mix together 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour, 1/2 cup ground flax seed meal, a pinch of salt, and a slightly rounded teaspoon of baking soda.
- Quickly fold the dry ingredients into the wet without over mixing. Add the cranberries and then the walnuts. Bake at 350-360 for 18-24 minutes in lightly oiled muffin tins. Makes 12.
- Modify to your delight. If you are allergic to nuts, skip the walnuts and use safflower or canola oil instead of walnut oil. Go to Ms. Shulman’s recipe as a starting point and create your own.
I freeze muffins and then take one to work (I transport muffins wrapped in a cloth napkin or a reused bag from nuts or dried fruit) instead of buying coffee shop muffins. Saves on packaging, calories, and I know it was made with love. Keep the coffee store pastries for a special treat or for when you’ve temporarily run out of your own.
Icy Weather Cancellations
I participated today in the determination as to whether the noon gentle/therapeutics class at Willow Street should be cancelled due to the weather. It is hard to know when and what to decide unless the roads are absolutely unpassable or it is clear that that storm is not impacting most roads and sidewalks. Some students will have wanted to come to class regardless of the weather, even if it would have been both difficult to get the ice off of their cars if driving and very slippery going from house to car and parking spot to class. If class was held, other students would have wondered why class was not cancelled and felt it unfair that they now had to do a make-up since they were too sensible to go out in the ice. It is a balance of trying to offer the yoga as committed and making decisions about the reasonableness of trying to hold class given safety and logistical concerns. For a class with lots of physically intrepid students within walking distance, the determination is different than for one with people who are facing injuries and other challenges of embodiment, which can make it a challenge to get to class on even a beautiful day.
I’d love to get your feedback on where you think is the weather line between holding class as usual and cancelling. For me, part of the call was that within an hour of class, my porch, front stairs, and sidewalk were still solidly slick with ice. It would have been a challenge even to get to the corner, much less walk ten blocks and take the metro. Things did not really start to melt until mid afternoon.
My Latest Favorite Hot Drink for Winter
Hot water with a wedge of lemon (squeezed); a couple of slices of fresh ginger; one dried chili pepper whole (I still have a bunch from last year’s garden)–or use a dash of cayenne; stevia or agave nectar to taste. Spicy, astringent, and sweet all at the same time. (This also makes delicious cold lemonade in summer).
A couple of other winter hot drink options from Cate Stillman–ayurveda practitioner and educator and certified Anusara yoga instructor: hot water with either a little bit of turmeric or a little cinnamon.
Guacapacho — or is it Gazpamole?
Puree in a blender or food processor:
peeled cucumber (seeded if necessary; use peels to garnish drinks if peels aren’t bitter)
tomatoes of any mix of colors:
assorted garden herbs and greens (based on taste and availability);
a sweet pepper of any color or variety (and a jalapeno or other hot pepper to taste)
a little minced sweet onion, white of scallion and a hint of garlic if desired (even if you are a garlic junky be gentle with the garlic lest it overwhelm the subtlety of the other flavors)
avocado
chilled vegetable stock or water
a little fresh lime or lemon juice (the acid in the juice helps keep the avocado from discoloring when the soup is chilling; a splash of white wine would also serve)
Chill the soup for 1-2 hours; do not let sit longer; garnish with chopped herbs–chive flowers are nice
