Cooking > Meditation. Especially when it’s a PEANUT SATAY that sets you up for a week of stress-less meals. Because when the point of meditation is to free the mind and live in the present….that’s cooking. At least in my book. So ya know what? No longer am I going to try to “practice” meditation when….maybe it’s not for everyone. If you’re looking for other ways to find mindfulness, read on for a few thoughts…and a recipe for a ZOODLE PAD THAI that will keep your mind off meal prep all week long.

When I first tried mediation, I thought maybe I’m just not “good” at it. Or maybe I need to “practice” more. See, I’m not someone who likes to sit still. And generally, my mind is going a mile a minute and my husband might even claim that “multi-tasking” is my middle name. I don’t lose sleep over it, but like a lot people, I could stand to put my phone down more often, focus my full energy on the task at hand and live more in the present. The thought occurred to me this weekend though, that maybe stillness isn’t the only answer to achieving a meditative state. Maybe, like so many things in life, mindfulness can be achieved in a multitude of different ways. One of those, for me, is cooking.

You might be familiar with mindful eating (savoring the taste, textures, smells of your food, truly enjoying the experience and nourishing your body), but mindful cooking is next level euphoria. It’s being present in the process and changing you perspective from cooking as a chore to cooking as an opportunity to get creative, an opportunity to do something good for you and your family, an opportunity for meal prep to free up your time for the rest of the week. That sense of calm after meditation, is exactly how I feel during and after cooking.

This revelation that meditation doesn’t have to be a cookie cutter definition, actually came to me after taking a Soulctivate class at Soulcycle. If you’re familiar with Soulcyle, you’re probably imaging the traditional high cadence dance-a-thon that made this cycling studio a cult favorite. Soulactivate, in contrast, is a high intensity interval class that encourages you to push yourself to your limits for short bursts (imagine 50 strangers on bikes, red lights blaring, sprinting with all their hearts and some literally screaming out loud) followed by complete motionlessness. It’s a bit animalistic and entirely freeing. Everyone is living in the moment, shutting out everything else. And isn’t that the whole point of meditation? To free the mind and live in the present? So for me, cooking is mediation. Motion is mediation. And meditation, doesn’t have to have one definition.

Here’s a few thought starts for how you can find that meditative state:

1.) Cooking as Mediation
2.) Movement as Meditation
3.) Art as Meditation
4.) Music as Meditation
5.) Stillness as Meditation

The freeing part is also knowing that you can choose your definition. And if cooking is your meditation of choice, or you’ve just been waiting for that amaze ZOODLE PAD THAI recipe, you’ve come to the right place. Get the much-awaited recipe below so you can whip this up and zen out the rest of the week.

ZOODLE PAD THAI with PEANUT SATAY
Makes: 1 mason jar of thai peanut sauce and countless meals!

Ingredients:
Thai Peanut Sauce
– One 13.5 oz can of full-fat, unsweetened coconut milk like Thai Kitchen
– 1/4 C of red curry paste like Thai Kitchen
– 3/4 C natural, creamy and unsweetened peanut butter like 365 Everyday
– 3/4 C coconut sugar (or white refined sugar)
– 2 T apple cider vinegar
– 1/2 T salt
– 1/2 C water

Additional Ingredients
– veggie noodles of choice (zucchini, butternut squash and carrot are great choices!)
— protein of choice (hard-boiled eggs, tofu and chicken are fantastic options!)
— optional fresh veggies (sliced bell peppers, diced carrots and snow peas as shown)
— top with crushed peanuts and cilantro for extra texture and flavor

Directions:
Step 1: Make the sauce by adding all of the ingredients to a medium sauce pan over medium heat. Whisk until it comes to a gentle boil, then reduce the heat to low and allow to simmer for another 3-5 minutes whisking sporadically to ensure the bottom does not burn. Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature.
Step 2: Cook the veggie noodles by placing in a large saute pan with a drizzle of olive oil. Heat for 3-5 minutes over medium heat until desired doneness.
Step 3: Assemble the pad thai by distributing the veggie noodles to individual serving dishes, top with as much sauce as you’d like and add protein along with additional veggie and toppings of choice. Enjoy!

Want more ways to use this THAI PEANUT SAUCE? Check out this THAI RAINBOW BOWL or these THAI TOFU TACOS.

The post Cooking as Meditation appeared first on The Shooks Life.

Sometimes all Monday needs is a splash of color. This Thai Rainbow Quinoa Bowl was just the spritz of color I needed to put an extra pep in my step for the last working Monday of the year! Let that sink in for a second. Last Monday in the office. Now go ahead and give into that mental “raise the roof”. You know you wanna. In this week’s meal prep, a bed of quinoa gets a burst of color from rainbow carrots, red cabbage, curly kale and spring peas, plus a snap of satay-inspired flavor with a creamy peanut sauce. Get the lowdown on why eating the rainbow matters and sashay to that recipe below.

Take a gander at those technicolor veggies! Pretty trippy, right? Veggies are having a renaissance and now you can find carrots, Brussels sprouts and cauliflower in an array of colors that are pleasing to both the eyes and taste buds. And, it’s not just specialty stores or farmer’s markets that sell these pretty jewels. Just last week I discovered these purple Brussel sprouts at Whole Foods, the rainbow carrots at Trader Joe’s and Broccoflower (or green cauliflower) at Cermak, my (traditionally Hispanic) neighborhood grocery store.

So the question is, are these just pretty on the eyes, or is there something more to eating colorful veggies? Unlike those technicolor poinsettias this time of year, these veggies are not dyed these pretty hues. According to WebMD, they get their vivid array of coloring from phytonutrients that protect the plants, which then offer a multitude of benefits when you consume these vegetables. And according to America’s PhytoNutrient Report, 8 out of 10 Americans are falling short of almost every color in their daily diet. Wondering the benefits from each color group? Check out this blog post I wrote a few weeks ago.

Now that I’ve hopefully satisfied your visual curiosity, let’s get to tantalizing your taste buds. You’ll want to lick the spoon with this creamy peanut buttery sauce that has a hint of spice and just the right touch of sweet. It comes together in 10 minutes or less and only requires 5 simple ingredients – natural creamy peanut butter, coconut milk, coconut sugar, red curry paste and apple cider vinegar. A couple of tips: make sure to get natural peanut butter without any added emulsifiers (the kind where there is a layer of oil on the top) to get the right texture and also pick up full fat, unsweetened coconut milk in a can. Remember that your body needs a little bit of fat to digest the nutrients in these vegetables, so don’t skimp on the good stuff and watch out for added sugars that aren’t necessary.

The beauty of this recipe is that 1.) the most complex part is the sauce 2.) it will make tons of this delicious sauce, which can be used in a variety of other recipes (best dipping sauce for skewers, just sayin’) and 3.) the sauce can be stored in the fridge for a couple of weeks. While the sauce is simmering, you can get the quinoa going on the stove top. Make sure to always rinse the quinoa beforehand, which removes its natural coating, called saponin. This coating can otherwise taste bitter or soapy. While a lot of packaged quinoa is pre-rinsed, it doesn’t to double down. With the sauce simmering and the quinoa cooking on the stove top, you can multi-task and chop up the veggies for this fresh salad!

Thai Rainbow Quinoa Bowl
Serves: 3-4

Ingredients:
Quinoa
– 1 cup of quinoa like Bob’s Red Mill
– 2 cups of vegetable broth like Pacific Foods Organic (or water)
Thai Peanut Sauce
– One 13.5 oz can of full-fat, unsweetened coconut milk like Thai Kitchen
– 1/4 C of red curry paste like Thai Kitchen
– 3/4 C natural, creamy and unsweetened peanut butter like 365 Everyday
– 3/4 C coconut sugar (or white refined sugar)
– 2 T apple cider vinegar
– 1/2 T salt
– 1/2 C water
Salad
– 1 bag of Mann’s Kale Beet Blend (or chop your own kale, red cabbage and golden beets)
– 1 bag of fresh snow peas, cut in half
– 1 bunch of rainbow carrots, cut into thin medallions
– 1/3 C of roasted, salted peanuts, chopped
– optional cilantro garnish

Directions:
Step 1: Start the quinoa by adding the vegetable broth to a small sauce pan over medium heat on the stove top. After rinsing the quinoa under water, add it to the sauce pan of vegetable broth. Once the mixture is boiling, reduce the heat to medium low, cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes, or until the liquid is absorbed and the quinoa is light and fluffy.
Step 2: Make the sauce by adding all of the ingredients to another small sauce pan over medium heat. Whisk until it comes to a gentle boil, then reduce the heat to low and allow to simmer for another 3-5 minutes whisking sporadically to ensure the bottom does not burn. Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature.
Step 3: Assuming you chopped the vegetables while the quinoa was cooking, it’s time to assemble everything! Once the quinoa is cooked, put it in a medium bowl and add as much of the kale beet blend, snow peas and carrot medallions as you’d like. Divide into 3-4 portions, then garnish with the chopped nuts and as much of the sauce as you’d like.

Stay tuned for another recipe using this sauce because you will have leftovers!

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