If you are in the mood to celebrate Christmas or the end of the year with food that is both delicious and healthy, then try my menu!
It is truly a banquet that won’t leave you feeling bloated, constipated, or with heartburn.
This Ayurvedic Feast for the holidays is sure to indulge your palate and your loved ones.
Not all of them are into eating healthy?
Then, serve these wonderful dishes as a compliment to their traditional holiday dinner and let them taste how good Ayurvedic cooking really is.
Maybe you can change their minds for next year 😉
The Menu
I want you to think of this menu not only as a way to treat yourself with food that is delicious, but also as a chance to keep your healing journey going.
And that means, pouring your heart — even if you are cooking only for yourself — onto the cooking.
Feel the foods in your hands while chopping them, smell them, play good music, and have a glass of wine, if you are not too Pitta aggravated!
Enjoy yourself from the moment you shop for the ingredients until you are washing the dishes.
Healing in every step.
These are the cute menus, in English and Spanish.
Print them in color and put them on the dining table for your guests!
The recipes are below with all modifications for each dosha.
Ayurvedic Feast Menu
AYURVEDIC FEAST MENU — SPANISH
The Recipes
You probably noticed that the menus are vegetarian.
However, if you want to indulge in meat, you can add some organic chicken to the curry.
Wanna do it fully vegan?
Switch the ghee for avocado oil (Vata), coconut oil (Pitta), or sunflower oil (Kapha).
Vegetable Pakoras
This humble dish is as delicious as it’s easy to make, perfect for the winter weather.
It can be served as an appetizer for your holiday dinner or as a party finger food with a warm cup of chai tea.
Vegetable Pakoras
Ingredients
- 200 grams red potatoes sliced really thin
- 2 cups chopped spinach
- 1 chopped white onion
- 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
- 1/2 cup chickpea flour
- 1 cup water adjust as necessary
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 1 tbsp ghee
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 1 tsp ginger powder
- 1 tsp cumin powder
- 2 tsp coriander seeds
- red chili flakes to taste
- ghee for frying
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat ghee in a medium-sized skillet over medium-high heat. Add the coriander seeds and red chili pepper flakes. Cook, stirring constantly until the spices are toasted and fragrant.
- In a medium sized bowl combine the chickpea flour, water, lemon juice, turmeric, cumin, and salt and pepper, to make a smooth batter.
- Gently fold the sliced potatoes, onion, spinach, cilantro, and toasted spices from step 1 into the batter.
- In a saucepan, heat the frying ghee over medium-high heat. When hot, use a large tablespoon to drop loose spoonfuls of the pakora batter into the frying oil. Don’t compress the batter too much when you scoop it. Cook the first side until deeply golden and crispy, flip and cook the other side. Drain cooked pakoras on kitchen towel.
- Serve with creamy cilantro sauce: just blend a bunch of cilantro, spinach, water, nutritional yeast, 1 clove of garlic, olive oil, and salt and pepper.
Potato and Pea Curry
Aloo Matar is an Indian curry made with potatoes and peas. It is comforting, healthy, and filling. The recipe calls for whole spices, dry roasted in a skillet, then cooked in oil. That way, every spice infuses the dish with their fragrance. Eat the warming curry on its own, or with a bowl of steaming Basmati or Jazmin rice.
Potato and Pea Curry
Ingredients
- 5 medium potatoes chopped in small cubes
- 1 cup fresh peas
- 1 tomato chopped
- 1 red onion chopped
- 6 cloves garlic
- 2 tsp ghee
- 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 tsp mustard seeds
- 1 inch ginger chopped
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- 1/4 tsp red chili powder or to taste
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp garam masala
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 cups water
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
Instructions
- Heat the ghee in a large skillet over medium heat. When the ghee is hot, add cumin and mustard seeds. Cook until the cumin seeds are fragrant.
- Add onions and cook until translucent.
- In the meantime, blend the tomato, garlic and ginger into a puree.
- Add the tomato puree and spices to the rest of the ingredients. Cook until the puree thickens and garlic smells aromatic.
- Add the potatoes, salt and pepper and water. Cover and cook for about 10 minutes.
- Add the peas, taste and adjust salt and spice. Reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer for another 10 minutes or until the potatoes are cooked to preference. Add more water if the potatoes start to stick or if you prefer more curry.
- Mix in the cilantro. Add some lemon juice if needed. Taste and adjust salt and spice. Serve hot with the saffron rice.
Saffron Rice
Rice cooked with saffron makes your holiday dinner extra special and is nearly as easy to make as regular rice.
This spice provides not only its signature flavor to the rice, but also gives it a gorgeous yellow color. Because saffron is pretty expensive, this recipe calls for just a small amount.
To enhance the yellow, don’t forget to add the turmeric, a spice with incredible health benefits that also gives the rice a vibrant, beautiful tone.
Saffron Rice
Ingredients
- 2 cups white basmati rice
- 3 cups vegetable stock
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
- 1/2 teaspoon good quality saffron threads
- 1 squeeze lime juice
- 1/4 tsp salt
Instructions
- Pour the stock and 1 cup of water into a medium-sized pot with a tight-fitting lid. Place the pot on the stove over high heat.
- While the stock is coming to a boil, add the turmeric, saffron, salt and the lime juice. Stir well.
- Add the washed rice. Bring to a boil.
- Reduce the heat to low and cover tightly with a lid. Cook in low for about 30 minutes.
- Before serving, fluff rice with a fork.
- Decorate with pomegranate seeds if you feel that festive 🙂
Sweet Lentil Pudding
This is a traditional dessert from the South of India.
It might seem unconventional for us, but its texture and taste is divine. The spices, coconut, and raisins make it the perfect dessert for the holidays.
You could also prepare it for breakfast.
Sweet Lentil Pudding
Ingredients
- 1 cup Red Lentils
- 1 cup Almond Milk
- 2 cups Water
- 1 tsp Vanilla essence
- 1 Cinnamon stick
- 1/2 tsp Cardamom powder
- 1 tbsp Unsweetened coconut flakes
- 1 tbsp Raisins
- 2 tbsp Coconut sugar
- 1 tbsp Coconut oil
Instructions
- Wash the lentils thoroughly
- In a pan, add the water, cinnamon, and vanilla. Bring to a boil.
- Add the lentils and cook until tender and water evaporates.
- Mash the lentils. They should feel smooth.
- Now, take a frying pan and add the coconut oil. When hot, combine the cardamom powder, coconut flakes, and raisins. Stir-fry until fragrant.
- Add the almond milk and the coconut sugar. Mix well. Cook for a few minutes, until it becomes thicker.
- Lastly, pour the mashed lentils and combine well.
- Cook for other 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Serve warm and top with coconut flakes and your favorite nuts.
Happy holidays!
Sending you all my love this holiday season, and wishing you much joy in the new year ahead!
Mónica xx
