Quick, very healthy and gluten free lunch sandwich

It’s Memorial Day weekend, and we practically live outdoors now, especially since the temperatures are wonderful, around 65 degrees!  Perfect!

Great Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim has invited us to all kinds of great outdoor activities, including a BBQ.  But until then, hungry warriors are storming Jung Suwon, and something has got to be done about that!

It can’t take too much time to make food either, so here is a very healthy and very fast sandwich idea to keep Jung Suwon warriors going!  This can be made with regular bread, or, like I do, with your favorite gluten free bread.

Asparagus sandwich:

Pre-heat oven to 400 F.

Wash, and thinly slice lengthwise a handful of asparagus spears (about 6 or so spears per 2 sandwiches).  Sautee in one tablespoon of oil, with freshly crushed garlic, and add a tablespoon of chopped cashew nuts.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Saute until the asparagus is crip/tender.

While you saute the asparagus, toast 2 slices (per serving) of your favorite (gluten free) bread, and spread thinly with mustard.  Put on a layer of thinly slices avocadoes.  Heap the asparagus mixture on top of the avocado slices, and top with a sprinkling of parmesan cheese.  Broil for a few minutes until cheese is melty.

If you have really ravenous Jung Suwon warriors knocking at your door (or anyone else for that matter), you could also add a basted egg on top.  Either way, it’s delicious!

Happy Memorial Day to all, and please take a minute or two and think of all our service members and the great sacrifices they make to make the world a better place to live in!

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Midnight miracle muffins

We had some unexpected guests over, and it was late.  Very wonderful people, but I had nothing to offer, and I was about to get stressed about this situation.  But just in time I remembered something Great Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim shared with us in  Jung Suwon class, (thankfully it’s also written down in her book, “Seven Steps to Inner Power:”

“Ideally, your awareness should be like a pool of water.  Light travels easily into still water, and you can see right into it.  It becomes very clear.  But when the wind blows and the water is agitated, or when the water is polluted, you can’t see what’s in it clearly.  So how can you make your mind like a pool of still, clean water, undisturbed by turbulent surface thoughts, free from polluting feelings and emotions, so that the light of your consciousness travels easily into your awareness?”

I calmed down and went to work.  The guests, even though not Jung Suwon warriors themselves, would appreciate something reasonably healthy, so my initial thought was to make my “go to” pound cake recipe, but as muffins for shorter baking time, and add fruit and nuts.  But, halfway through mixing it up, I realized that I didn’t have some of the key ingredients, such as buttermilk or even milk.  Oh, and it was a gluten containing recipe too!  Stress returning – I had already creamed the butter and sugar (half of the original recipe) and eggs!  Now what?

“You are creative energy,” these words from Great Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim rang through my head.

I gathered all the different kinds of flours I had at home, and meanwhile turned on the oven to a safe, all purpose 350 degrees.  Lined muffin pans with cute butterfly liners and went back to the mixing.

Want to see the result?

Want to try re-create them?

Here is what I did – and feel free to substitute to your heart’s content, as long as you know what you are doing!

Recipe for gluten-free, Midnight miracle muffins:

2 1/2 sticks butter (I imagine coconut oil would work, 1 stick butter = 1/2 cup) and 2 sticks would work well too I imagine

1 1/2 cups brown or palm sugar

4 eggs

3 1/2 cups flour total, I used 1 cup almond flour, 1/2 cup Teff flour, and 2 cups of Shirley’s gluten free flour

1/2 tsp Xanthum gum,

1/2 tsp baking powder

1 cup yoghurt, strawberry banana yoghurt (you can, of course, use any flavor you like!)

cream together the butter, sugar and add eggs one at a time.  Slowly mix in yoghurt and rest of ingredients, but make sure all the flours you use are blended together well before incorporating into the batter.

Bake for about 15 – 25 minutes, then share these wonderful morsels with those you love!

If you train at Jung Suwon, remember to bake up a batch and share with your fellow Jung Suwon warriors (hint 😉 )

Credit where credit is due: the very original recipe I started to work from was from here.

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More tomato love

Don’t these cherry tomatoes look really good?  I love them!  They are perfect after a tough Jung Suwon class, as they help you cool down, plus, as Great Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim points out, they are packed with vitamins and minerals and are great to replenish your body.

Today we are blessed with some torrential rain, which I think is awesome!  To me, this spells soup!  But since it’s a weekend, it’s not just plain tomato soup which I told you about yesterday.  This is a soup that eats like a meal!  Great Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim teaches her students about proper nutrition, and balance.  Not only do we need to balance our bodies after a Jung Suwon workout, we also need to make sure we have a balance of all the nutrients we need!

So todays tomato soup is “enhanced, ” as Great Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim likes to call it.  It is the same recipe as I posted yesterday, except today I didn’t run it through the blender and left it chunky.  But go ahead and make it whatever consistency you prefer.  While the soup is cooking, get started on the “enhancements.”  In this case, Great Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim’s version of matzo balls.

You can start out with your favorite matzo ball mix (comes in nice little boxes such as this:

One quick note about kosher foods.  Great Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim at times recommends the use of Kosher ingredients, and even mentions this at Jung Suwon.  Why?  “Kosher foods are prepared under strict supervision, under the watchful eye of a Rabbi,” Great Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim explains, “Kosher foods therefore are pure and clean.  You do not need to be Jewish in order to benefit from Kosher foods.

Prepare the dough according to directions, and add some ground beef (that you have boiled out, and drained well.)  Add some finely chopped Italian parsley and/or any herbs you like.  Let this mixture sit for at least 30 minutes.

In a large pot, bring salted water to boiling, then put in the matzo balls you have rolled meanwhile.  Keep them small-ish, maybe as big as half an egg.  Turn the heat down and let the matzo balls simmer for 15 – 20 minutes.  Drain and put into the tomato soup, let it simmer for another 5 minutes, then serve and enjoy!

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Soup on a rainy day

In weather like this, and especially after a good, hard Jung Suwon workout, soup is the only logical solution to me.

So you see, today requires a good soup.  Great Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim talks about the healing properties of food, and that on cold, rainy days our bodies need hot, healing foods.

Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim taught me how to make great soups, and make them quickly.  After training at Jung Suwon, and working up a hefty appetite, most people think noodle soups, ramen, or perhaps meat based soups.  All those are good, no doubt.

But there are also many wonderful vegetable soups that nourish body, mind, and spirt, and are so quick and easy to make!

Here is what Great Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim suggests:

If you have Kimchi, cut some up and boil for a while, add some freshly ground garlic (or whatever garlic you have on hand.)  Add some of the Kim chi juice. If you have tofu, cut into cubes and add.  And from here on, have fun!  Great Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim teaches that when you prepare food, have the best of attitudes, put a lot of love into it.  Any kind of vegetable can be added, I prefer celery, zucchini, broccoli, and asparagus.  But be free!

If you have some cooked meat on hand, perhaps some chicken, you can add that as well.  Season to taste – and Great Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim recommends red pepper, some Kosher Salt, or Himalayan Salt, a little anchovy sauce if you like (no MSG) and some cut up green onions.

Now you are ready to enjoy with rice, or, you could add your noodles, dumplings, or rice cakes.

Enjoy!  As Great Grandmaster Kim would say, “Dig it in!”

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Jung SuWon style cake pops

 

I know.  I said this wouldn’t turn into a cookie/cake/cupcake type  blog, and I promise again, it won’t.  But just see here what Great Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim has to say about being flexible in mind and spirit:

“I have to plan, “you may say.  “I have to think about what I am going to do ten minutes from now, or tomorrow, or it own’t happen.”  Yes, you should make plans in the present moment.  You don’t ever stop thinking, but be watchful to keep yourself open to new incoming ideas that may change what you plan.  Th epoint is to be aware every moment of what you are thinking, because whatever is going on now is on the way to manifesting.  How important it is, then to keep everything you don’t want out of your moment to moment consciousness.  how can you do that if you are not focused here, now?”

See?  So this is perfectly all right to blog about cake pops even if you never planned on doing so.

Great Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim teaches about healthty foods, and also states that healthy can include, once in a while, healthy sweet treats.  And these little goodies, are as healthy as sweet treats can be!  First offf, they are gluten free.  Secondly, they were made with lots of love, one of the most important things to consider when prepareing food, Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim says.

If you feel like making these, start with a home made gluten free pound cake, I prefer this one from Shirley.  Once cooled off, break it apart into little pieces.  Now comes the fun part.  You can either use any type of frosting/filling for the next step, my favorite is to take a block of cream cheese, and blend in a generous amount of nutella.  Or, blend in some strawberry jam into cream cheese until it’s perfect.  Use a little frosting at first and add until you can roll cake pops of the size you prefer.

For the chocolate ones, I used a glutenfree brownie mix and as the “cement” I used the above mentioned cream cheese with nutella.  But go ahead, try your own creations!
You are creative energy!  As Grandmaster Kim always says!

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Jung Suwon style (also gluten free) “Fast Food”

I have been busier than ever at work, and haven’t had much time to share about cooking and food preparation.  How can one possibly have a healthy diet with such a crazy schedule?

Well, Great Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim has a perfect solution for just such emergencies.  She has taught me that good and healthy food doesn’t have to take hours to prepare.

Great Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim loves to cook.  She cooks with lots of love and you can taste that love!   Food prepared like this has to be good!  🙂

It helps if you are close to an oriental store, especially Korean grocery store.  Get some plain rice cakes, either fresh, or frozen, both varieties work well, and you can get the ovalettes, or the little strings or fat ropes – they are all very good.

What if you can’t get any rice cakes?  Be creative! Great Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim reminds us ” find your own solutions!”  You could just sautee plain rice, and go from there.  If you can tolerate gluten, then you could boil any kind of pasta (and if gluten free, you could use gluten free pasta)

You can either just sautee the rice cakes, whatever the shape, in a pan with either olive oil, or sesame oil (or any oil of your liking) and add salt, black pepper, and garlic.  Sautee until very light brown and crispy – or, if you prefer, you can just sautee until they are soft.

At this stage, you can either eat as is, or add an egg or two.  Add some kimchi on the side, and you are all set!

 

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More on Lunar New Year

This year, Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim treated us to a very special New Year dinner.  She invited us to a restaurant, and the owners put on a very special menu for Grandmaster Kim.  Since it is the Year of the Dragon, the chef prepared a very creative center piece, complete with dry ice as the dragon breath!

As we admired each dish, each one more creative then the one before, I started thinking about Grandmaster‘s Silent Master Images.  Let’s review those here.  (If you want to learn more about them, you can read about them in Grandmaster Kim’s book, “Seven Steps to Inner Power”)

You are one of a kind

You and the Life Force are one.

Your thoughts create reality

You are creative energy

You have the power to fulfill your dreams

You are complete, peaceful and fulfilled.

In this case, I thought especially about “Your thoughts create reality”  and “You are creative energy.”

Grandmaster Kim always emphasizes that in order for us to do something, we have to think it first!  If we can think it – we can do it!

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Jung SuWon Wedding……

So the reason I haven’t been posting for a while is that we had a big wedding to prepare.  A couple of happy Jung SuwonWarriors got married!  (Here is the happy couple at Jung Suwon….)

Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim recommends this after a long day, when you are all tired, had all the restaurant food you ever want to see, are caked out, and simply want to relax and have some good old home style meal.  Of course, do make this ahead of time, the last thing you want to do that day is cook….

If you look at some of my previous posts, you could try any of the soups I mentioned – they would work well.  If you need something more substantial, try to make a roast a couple of days before and keep on hand.

Or, if you really like a spicy pick-me-up, try this old and tried recipe for Gulasch.

Use stew meat – coat all pieces in flour that was seasoned with salt and pepper;

heat olive oil in a pot, put in a couple of tablespoons ground garlic, add sliced onions – about 1/2 as much onions in volume as you have meat and brown

add meat, brown on all sides, add Hungarian paprika if you can get it, else use regular paprika, if you like it really spicy, cut up a small hot green pepper and add

Add beef soup (water will do in a pinch) to at least cover the meat, you can use more if you like Gulasch more like a soup, cover, and cook until meat is soft.  This dish improves when it cooks for long time over low heat and is ideal for a crock pot.  Just before you serve it, add salt, paprika and red pepper to taste, and if you like, serve with a tablespoon of sour cream on top.

You could also add some cut up potatoes 10 minutes before serving.  You can serve this with rice, or noodles, or simply with some French bread.  I guarantee you, it’s good, soothing and thoroughly enjoyable.

I will leave you with this quote from Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim, which comes in handy during the crazy time of wedding preparations:

“Always find something to appreciate – no matter what.  Appreciation does wonders to keep your mind free from the heavy negativity that encloses you in limitation, fear, and oppression.  You have seen those hot air balloons that rise so lightly?  Appreciation is like the force that tosses out the weights that keep the balloons on the ground.  Without those weights, the balloons rise naturally and freely.  That’s how you can be when you allow appreciation and gratitude to fill your heart and mind.  Appreciation keeps you focused on good things, and this causes more good to manifest.” (The Silent Master, page 156)

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Spaghetti, the Jung SuWon way

Spaghetti!  Here is another one of those marvellous foods that has received such bad press because of the -gasp! – carbohydrates.  But trust me, spaghetti, especially when you serve it with a nice green salad, is a wonderful and balanced meal that can turn your everyday dinner into a 5-star experience.  And for the health conscious, let me just remind you that doctors highly recommend a mediterranean diet, complete with healthy carbs and healthy fats, all in moderation.

I am a snob when it comes to spaghetti and I don’t settle for opening a jar of sauce and heating it up, no matter how good the sauce is supposed to be.  I insist on doing some work and the end result is worth it and should I have leftovers my guests ask to take them home! 

Word to the wise:  I am pretty sure there are as many recipes for spaghetti out there as there are cooks, and yes I do claim my recipe tastes fantastic.  My source?  Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim, of Jung SuWon, of course. 

For the sauce, I use a generous amount of ground beef, and boil and rinse before I use it.  Once dried, I roast that in olive oil with chopped garlic and if you like, put in a little finely chopped pastrami, or some smoked meat.  Roast that in the final cooking pan and once its nicely browned, set aside.

In flat pan, heat olive oil, add chopped onions, and sautee until yellow, then add a generous amount of sliced mushrooms.  Sautee until the juices are almost all gone.  Add to the meat.  In the same pan you used to cook the onions, heat more olive oil, and put in a bunch of cut up tomatoes, some green and red bell peppers, finely chopped fresh basil, parsley, and add some fresh thyme.  When the juice of the tomatoes has cooked down, add to the meat mixture, mix well together, and add some red wine.  Cook until reduced and then add some tomatoe sauce from a jar.  Newman’s is good, but any other good quality sauce will work. 

I typically don’t add any more salt, but go ahead and add to your liking.  Cook for at least an hour, on very low heat, or you can cook for several, it will only improve the taste.  However, you need to stir frequently to prevent burning.

I am not good at giving exact quantities as you might have guessed by now, but if you have any idea about cooking you’ll catch on very quickly. 

As for the noodles, use whatever shape you like.  Lately I have fallen in love with whole wheat pasta and I cook that and sautee in olive oil where I have browned some chopped garlic, and mix in some fresh basil, finely chopped.  Mix well and use that as base for your outstanding sauce. 

Now sit down and enjoy. Part of the mediterranean diet is to take your time to eat and enjoy.  For the Jung SuWon warriors among us, this is a great dish to make ahead for after class.  You can make it the night before, or the same day – make the sauce, and boil the noodles.  While you shower after class, start heating the sauce and then quickly sautee the noodes, or you could conceivably skip that step. 

Enjoy, without guilt!  You worked it off before you ate it!

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