Let yourself be enchanted by our Ayurvedic 3-course menu! We have put together delicious and nourishing recipes that are perfect for the festive season. Enjoy a light and healthy menu featuring a sweet mango-pineapple cobbler for dessert, a flavorful Brussels sprout, sweet potato, and spinach soup as a starter, and a hearty main course of Ayurvedic mashed potatoes with colorful roasted vegetables – all easy to recreate and savor.
Brussels Sprout, Sweet Potato, and Spinach Soup
Ingredients:
- 400 g Brussels sprouts
- 500 g sweet potatoes
- 200 g spinach
- 2–3 tbsp ghee
- approx. 100 ml oil or ghee
- 1 small onion (optional)
- a few sprigs of parsley
- 3–5 tbsp crème fraîche
- 1/3 tsp ground cumin
- 1/3 tsp yellow mustard seeds
- 1 tsp grated or finely chopped ginger
- 3 pinches asafoetida (hing)
- nutmeg
- salt
- pepper
- black cumin (kalonji)
- sage
Preparation:
Preparation steps:
Clean the Brussels sprouts, trim the root ends slightly, and cut them in half. Wash, peel, and dice the sweet potatoes. Wash the spinach and remove any thick stems (alternatively, use baby spinach).
Roast the spices:
Heat the ghee in a pot. Add the mustard seeds to the hot ghee and let them pop. Then add the ginger, cumin, and asafoetida.
Prepare the soup:
Add the Brussels sprouts, sweet potato pieces, and (optional) onion to the pot along with the spices, and sauté gently. Reduce the heat if necessary. Add water, cover, and let the soup simmer for approximately 15 minutes.
Add spinach and parsley:
Wash the parsley, remove the leaves, and add them to the soup along with the spinach. Let simmer for a few more minutes. Stir in the crème fraîche. Blend the soup with an immersion blender, and add more water if needed. Season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg.
Prepare the garnish:
Using a vegetable peeler, slice thin strips from the sweet potato. Pluck the sage leaves from their stems. Heat the oil or ghee in a small pot. Fry the sweet potato strips and sage leaves until crispy, then let them drain on a paper towel.
Serving:
Pour the soup into bowls or plates. Garnish with the crispy sweet potato strips, sage leaves, and a sprinkle of black cumin.
Ayurvedic Mashed Potatoes
Ingredients for 4 servings:
- Potatoes, approx. 200–250 g per person
- ½ cup coconut milk
- 3 tbsp cream
- approx. 1 cup potato water
- 2–3 tbsp ghee
- ½ tsp Vata Churna
- 4–5 pinches nutmeg
- a few pinches of black pepper
- a pinch of asafoetida
- rock salt
- fresh parsley, finely chopped
Preparation:
Prepare the potatoes:
For a smooth mashed potato, use floury potatoes, as they bind better. Avoid early potatoes. Peel, wash, and cut the potatoes into halves or quarters, depending on their size. Cook in plenty of water with rock salt on low heat for about 20 minutes until tender. Drain the potatoes and save some of the potato water.
Mix the liquids:
Whisk the potato water, coconut milk, and cream together in a saucepan and heat gently. Add this mixture to the cooked potatoes.
Make the purée:
Mash the potatoes using a potato masher until smooth and delicate.
Incorporate the spices:
Heat the ghee in a pan. Add the Vata Churna and asafoetida, stirring briefly. Pour this spice mixture into the purée. Add the nutmeg, black pepper, and finely chopped parsley, then mix everything well.
Serve:
Serve the mashed potatoes warm. Enjoy your meal!
Note on Ayurvedic Nutrition:
In Ayurvedic cuisine, milk is not combined with salty foods such as vegetables, potatoes, or meat, as this is considered an incompatible combination that can burden the digestive system. For this reason, coconut milk is used as an alternative in this recipe.
Colorful Roasted Vegetables for 4 Servings
Ingredients:
- 300 g carrots
- 200 g parsnips
- 200 g parsley root
- 300 g fennel
- 250 g celery
- 2–3 green and red chili peppers
- Ghee
- 3–4 tbsp sesame oil (or other frying oil)
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tsp ginger juice (grate fresh ginger, squeeze out the juice)
- ½ tsp ground coriander, fennel, turmeric
- 3 bay leaves
- 2 sprigs rosemary
- 3 sprigs thyme
- 1 pinch unrefined sugar
- Salt and pepper
Preparation:
Prepare the vegetables:
Trim the carrot greens to about 2–3 cm. Wash and peel the carrots, parsley root, and parsnips. Cut the root vegetables lengthwise into quarters so they cook evenly in the oven.
Prepare the fennel and celery:
Wash the fennel, and if necessary, remove the outer skin or carefully peel it (as the outer skin can be woody). Wash, peel, and slice the celery into half-moons.
Prepare the peppers:
Wash the peppers, remove the seeds, and cut them into quarters.
Make the marinade:
Place the sesame oil in a large bowl. Add the lemon juice, ground coriander, fennel, turmeric, salt, pepper, and sugar. Stir everything together to make a vinaigrette. Add the prepared vegetables to the marinade and let them sit for about 30 minutes to absorb the flavors.
Bake:
Preheat the oven to 200°C (top/bottom heat) or 180°C (convection). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Spread the marinated vegetables evenly on the sheet. Place the rosemary, thyme, and bay leaves on top. Optionally, brush the vegetables lightly with melted ghee using a brush.
Cooking time:
Bake the vegetables in the oven for about 35–40 minutes, until they are soft and lightly browned.
Serve:
Serve the vegetables on top of mashed potatoes, or enjoy them separately as a side dish.
Mango Pineapple Cobbler
Ingredients:
- 2 ½ cups diced ripe mango
- 1 ¼ cups diced ripe pineapple
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 125 g spelt flour
- 5 tbsp cold butter
- 10 g baking powder
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 4 tbsp brown sugar or maple syrup
- A few pinches of cardamom
- A few pinches of ground ginger
- 1 pinch of salt
Preparation:
Preheat the oven:
Preheat the oven to 175°C (top/bottom heat).
Prepare the fruit mixture:
In a bowl, mix the diced mango, finely diced pineapple (or mashed pineapple), sugar or maple syrup, lemon juice, cornstarch, ginger, and cardamom well. Transfer the mixture into a baking dish.
Make the dough:
Combine the spelt flour, cold butter, baking powder, sugar, and salt. Knead everything together until you get a crumbly dough mixture.
Apply the dough:
Evenly spread the dough mixture over the fruit in the baking dish. Optionally, sprinkle a little cinnamon on top.
Add butter and bake:
Place some thin slices of butter evenly over the dough. Bake the cobbler in the preheated oven until the topping is lightly browned and crispy, and the fruit filling is bubbling. This should take about 25 minutes, depending on your oven.
Serve:
Serve the Mango Pineapple Cobbler warm. Optionally, enjoy it with a scoop of ice cream or whipped cream.
We are very excited to share this Ayurvedic Christmas menu with you and hope you enjoy recreating it. Feel free to let us know how it turned out – we look forward to your feedback!
© Maharishi Ayurveda Privatklinik Bad Ems
