Blueberry and nut power drink – Dr. Tae Yun Kim’s recipe

Sometimes I get really lucky.  A couple of days ago, I got to try Dr. Tae Yun Kim‘s her super secret – and now shared – recipe for a very healthy power drink.  You can either have this as a smoothie, or a more liquid drink.  If you prefer a smoothie, make sure your blueberries are frozen, and add some ice cubes.

Here is the original recipe, but feel free to experiment if you have any nut allergies.  The blueberries are there for a reason, as they are helping with antioxidants, fight Alzheimer’s, and do a host of other good things for your body.  But of course, you are welcome to experiment.

Start by assembling the nuts.  To save time, I have made up individual serving baggies that look something like this:

In each bag, there are (approximately) 3 – 4 of each (except more of the pine nuts because they are so small):

Put those in a blender, along with about a cup of blueberries, more or less.  I always use frozen ones.  Add honey according to your sweet tooth, and add enough water to make it your desired thickness.  If you want more of a meal replacement, use any milk instead of water – coconut milk is superb with this.

Blend really really well, and enjoy ice-cold.  If I have this for breakfast, I am not hungry for a long time!

And my quote for the day, by Dr. Tae Yun Kim, doesn’t really have to do with either nuts or berries or even food, but I happened upon it and loved it so much I wanted to share it with you:

“The whole purpose of change, the whole purpose of continuous cycles of yin and yang is to take you higher, to make you grow, to give you more of what will lead you to a truer expression of your Real Self.  Never be afraid of change.  All changes lead you into greater good.  That is the purpose of change and the purpose of life.”  (Seven Steps to Inner Power, page 51)

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Down home comfort food

Today, I decided to take charge and get back into the kitchen.  After all, I had just read what Dr. Tae Yun Kim has to say about taking charge:

“Who are you?  Waiting quietly within you is a Presence, a Force, a state of Consciousness that gives you power to overcome mental and physical limitations in your life power to harmonize and change discordant situations, power to create and to achieve goals, power to experience peace and joy regardless of the circumstances around you – power to be who you really are.” (Seven Steps to Inner Power, page 3)

All right – armed with these positive feelings, I made my way into the kitchen.  I wanted to make something easy, yet very comforting.  I found the perfect recipe for that here: http://glutenfreeeasily.com/gluten-free-mug-pancake/

I absolutely love the idea of mug muffins, mug cakes, mug anything.

I wanted to experience that joy mentioned above, and so I set to work.  As I was assembling the ingredients, I saw some lonely black berries in the refrigerator, and right away I had an idea.  What if I made that mug pancake with its own sauce/syrup in the mug?  Hmmmmmm.  I heard Dr. Tae Yun Kim’s voice in my head ” how are you going to find out unless you try?  What do you have to lose?

I put some maple syrup on the bottom of the mug, and added some black berries, and microwaved that for a little less than 2 minutes.

I mixed the rest of the ingredients (substituting coconut oil for the butter) in a separate bowl

and poured it over the “sauce” in the mug/ramekin.

I cooked it according to the directions, and the most delicious pancake with built-in syrup was ready!

The flowers, by the way, are a gift from Shirley, the originator of this recipe, and a dear friend. After 10 days, they continue to provide great enjoyment!

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A beautiful breakfast surprise

As you might know, I have had foot surgery a couple of weeks ago, and I haven’t been very mobile as a result.  So, because we live in a very busy world, I have been having cereal for breakfast – gluten free, nutritious and delicious cereal.  I do cook still, but it’s all a lot simpler than what I would normally do.

You can imagine my complete, and delighted surprise when this appeared for breakfast this morning:

Gluten free French Toast!

Delivered with a big smile by a wonderful, 16-year old Jung Suwon warrior.  He not only had the idea all by himself, but also had made it all by himself!  And this from a kid who had been a notorious trouble maker, but whom Dr. Tae Yun Kim has helped transform from a troubled youth to a true warrior!  How beautiful this is!

I was filled with gratitude – and not just for the delicious breakfast – also that there are people who care, and that Dr.  Tae Yun Kim is one of these people.  But not only does she give youngsters a chance – she does so repeatedly.  This young man has had some “relapses” as we shall call it, however, Dr. Kim isn’t one to give up.  With the patience of a Saint she keeps helping.

So, today I wanted to share my gratitude.

“A very powerful expression of love is simple gratitude.  Why is gratitude powerful?  When you express gratitude, you are acknowledging that something good exists.  This action energizes that good thing and gives it momentum to continue existing. “

(The First Element, page 140)

Thank you, young warrior, for such a delight!  I will always remember this day!

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Simply delicious brunch

This is Easter weekend, and there are so many recipes out there for wonderful and filling foods, desserts, candy and such.  So I am offering you something really tasty and healthy from Great Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim’s “tool box.”  Sometimes you need to get ready in a hurry for a Jung Suwon class, even during Easter weekend, and you don’t want to feel stuffed and heavy !

So here is what teacher Great Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim recommends: a light and healthy version of quiche.  If you are on a gluten free diet, like I am, you can use any recipe gluten free pie crust, or, like I do, leave out the crust altogether.

You will need:

Pie crust, either store bought or home made, or none at all

fresh spinach, a couple of bunches, well washed

fresh kale (or if you don’t like the taste, just use more spinach)

half a yellow onion, finely chopped

handful of sliced mushrooms

one cup organic, low fat cottage cheese (make sure it’s made from certified organic milk)

2 eggs

salt, pepper,

Pre-heat oven to 400, line small ramekins, or any small dish that withstands the heat in the oven, with the crust, and bake for about 10 minutes or until light brown.  Lower heat to 375 or 350, depending on your oven.

To make the filling, heat some olive oil in a pan, sautee a couple tablespoons chopped garlic.  Add the onions, sautee until see through, then add spinach, kale and mushrooms.  Lightly sautee, add salt and pepper, lemon juice if you like it more tangy.

In a blender, mix together the eggs and cottage cheese.  Squeeze out the sauteed veggies (you can save the juices to add to some soup later) and add the veggies to the egg/cottage cheese mixture.  Adjust seasoning, fill the baking dishes, and bake until set, around 15 minutes.

Let it set for another 10 or so minutes, then decorate with parsley and cherry tomatoes, or any garnish to your liking!

Now, sit back and enjoy the fruits of your labor, and know that Great Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim’s recipe will contribute to your health and well being.

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Another excellent Jung SuWon breakfast: rice and kimchi

I wanted to write more about breakfast foods, and I want to mention a very simple, yet healthy and nourishing breakfast.  I am talking rice and kimchi here and not like the fancy foods in the picture I posted.

 Again, Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim was my source.  She has a knack of knowing what does a body good, and what gives you energy to sustain you.  Of course, rice and kim chi tastes great any time of day, but the way she showed me to expand on the concept, it’s a sure winner.

If you have a rice pot, make some mixed rice, with brown rice, some beans (soak them before you cook them), millet, sesame seeds or whatever you feel comfortable with.  Korean stores sell some great already mixed bags of grain.  When the rice is almost done, make a couple of eggs (about 2 – 3 per person) any style you like.  I prefer scrambled myself, but this is entirely up to you.  If you really want to go traditional, just as the rice cooker stops cooking, drop some eggs on top of the rice and close again.  Let sit and after about 5 – 10 minutes you got some wonderfully cooked sunny side up eggs sitting right on the rice.

To put it all together, scoop out as much rice as you like, into a bowl.  Mix with salt, sesame oil, pepper and some sesame seeds, mix it well, add the eggs and any kind of kimchi. 

Now enjoy!  This will keep you satisfied all morning without making you tired, and it’s great just before or after a Jung SuWon class!  Now go and try it out!

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Jung SuWon breakfast – continued – Buchu Jan

Here is another one of my favorites.  It’s actually not just a breakfast food, but since it’s easy to make, nutritious, and similar to pancakes, I thought I would post it under breakfasts. 

Yes it is like a pancake, although infinitely more healthy and nutritious.  It contains a lot of vitamins, minerals and fiber, and keeps you going for hours. 

One word of caution:  there are many different recipes for this, and I am not saying mine is the one and only one, although I am prejudiced (this is my blog after all!) and I do think this is the best version.  I got this recipe from Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim, my Martial Arts teacher at Jung Suwon Academy, and it’s been proven time and again.  I will also mention how you can make this in many different ways.  But first things first.

In a blender, put in one egg, a handful cloves of garlic (you could use less), a couple of very hot peppers cut in chunks and enough water to fill to 3/4 of the blender container.  Blend until very fine, then put in a bowl, and add a little salt and pepper.  With a whisk, mix in either some flour, or some special buchu jan mix you can get at any Korean store.  I personally prefer the mix, the end result tends to be better.  Put in enough to make a thin pancake batter.  Now add some buchu. 

Where do you find Buchu and what is it?  It basically looks like thin wheat grass (and I have a feeling if you used that it would work just fine) and I have only seen it in Korean stores.  Ask for it there.  And while you are there, pick up some fresh sesame leaves.  Clean the buchu, and cut them in about 2 – 3 inch lengths.  Finely cut the sesame leaves and mix in as well.  There should be more vegetables than batter….

Heat some oil in a pan, and when very hot, add some of the mixture.  Spread it out with a couple of forks or spoons until very thin.  When you turn them over, flatten the pancake further with a spatula.  Cook until barely brown on both sides and repeat until batter is gone.

Server with the soy sauce you learned to make earlier in this blog (as used for tofu). 

I have a feeling you’ll be making this a lot!  So what if you cannot get buchu?  You can make this with old kim chi – squeeze it very very dry and cut up into thin strips and this is very delicious as well. 

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The unofficial Jung SuWon Korean breakfast recipe

So from the comment to my last blog entry you can see that there is a demand for specific recipes.  I am not a native Korean cook, and I won’t make any claims about the authenticity of my recipes.  I am only going to tell you how I I have learned to make this from Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim.  She sometimes teaches about food and food preparation right at her school, Jung SuWon, or in more depth and detail, at the Self Discovery programs. 

For the freshly made rice – I use a rice cooker.  Simply go by the instructions that come with the cooker.  Get a cooker the size you need – if you have a big family, get a big pot.  If it’s just you, get the smallest one.  Fresh cooked rice is always a lot better!  Once you are familiar with the basics, try adding some brown rice and beans, barley, are some of the possibilities. 

For the radish soup, start with some soup meat.  First, slice the meat or cut into small pieces.  For each person, about 1/4  cup is plenty.  Boil it in some salted water, enough to cover the meat.  Boil only until the dirty foam comes up, then rinse.  For most recipes that involve meat, I treat the meat this way.  Grandmaster Kim explains that this pulls out all the pollutants, antibiotics and other things that aren’t good for you.

Put the meat in water, add coarsley chopped garlic, dried anchovies, and sliced Korean Radish.  These are the big, plump, white radishes.  Cook until radishes are tender, then add salt and pepper and a touch of Korean Soy sauce.  You can also add a spoon of finely chopped green onions for the final touch. 

As for the fried fish, I like to use the smaller King fish, available in Korean stores.  You can of course use other fish, but this and mackerel seems to be the more authentic ones.  Ask the store person to clean the fish for you – they usually do that free of charge.  At home, make 3 shallow incisions on the top of the fish, then coat it with flour seasoned with salt and pepper.  You can then fry the fish in a pan, on both sides, which will take about 15 – 25 minutes depending on the size of the fish. 

Or, you could put the fish on aluminum foil, and put some crushed garlic and soy sauce on the fish, close the foil and bake in a pre-heated oven at 375.  Again, the timing depends on the size of the fish. 

To serve and enjoy your Korean breakfast, you would put some kim chi (of course you picked up a jar when you purchased the fish, right? ) in a little bowl, then you take some rice in a bowl, and some soup, and arrange the fish nicely on a plate.  Eye appeal is important at the Korean table, and Grandmaster Kim also emphasizes that in order for your body to enjoy the meal, it should look nice and inviting. 

So go ahead and start your day with a delicious, light, yet satisfying meal!  And by the way, this tastes good any time of day, too!

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Breakfast the Jung SuWon way

 

A couple of friends called me to remind me that while it’s nice getting so many dinner and a couple of dessert ideas from my blog, I haven’t said anything about breakfast or lunch yet.

Well, number one, I haven’t been blogging for that long, so give me a break please!  And for number two – my philosophy about breakfast is – its the first meal of the day, and whatever you happen to eat first you call it breakfast!  How did we ever come up with the rule that you should have cereal or some eggs in some form for breakfast!  As long as it’s nutritious and balanced, anything goes!

My mother, on the other hand, had different ideas.  When I grew up, I got my birthday cake in the morning!  Her idea was that if you have to “sin” in the food consumption department, it should be first thing in the morning so that you got all day to make up for it – eat healthy stuff, work out – in short, make up for the hunk of cake you just had.   Cake after dinner?  Dessert after dinner?  Never!  It just turns into fat instantly!

So, what should I tell you?  I asked Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim, of course, what an acceptable breakfast would be.  It turns out that I wasn’t too far off.  As long as the food is fresh, nutritious, and well balanced – go for it!  She recommended I try a Korean breakfast.

I remember a few years ago I was in Korea, and in the hotel they had three breakfast options:  Continental breakfast, American Style, and Korean.  Of course I ordered the Korean breakfast.  In came a tray, and the smell was overwhelmingly good and appetizing.  I received a small bowl of radish soup, very light and very good, a bowl of fresh steamed rice, cooked to perfection, sauteed fish, and of course, various kim chees.  (For those not knowing:  Kim chee is the Korean version of very spicy pickled cabbage.  Stay in tune, I’ll blog about that very soon!)

It was one of the best breakfasts I ever had.  Light, yet satifsying, and I didn’t feel hungry for several hours.  It’s something you’d want to have before going to Jung SuWon, especially before a testing, when you need good nutrition without being weighed down.

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