This Immunity Spice Mix is warming and purifying, with primarily the pungent, astringent and bitter tastes, considered so medicinal in Ayurveda. Try to have a teaspoon, as tea or cooked into your foods, every day. This is a great recipe that can be made up ahead of time and used through out the season to keep you and your family healthy and happy. The spices can be sautéed with ghee or coconut oil before cooking in vegetables, rice, or grains to increase the benefits of the recipe.
You could also add it to boiling water to make a tea ~ As a morning tea, it will rev up your system, encouraging circulation. As a tea to accompany meals, add a splash of lemon juice and a touch of honey and sip warm to strengthen digestion.
Ayurveda Immunity Spice Mix for the Winter
I love creating and making teas during this time, with almond milk, a dash of cardamom, maybe a spot of honey, too. You could even add this spice mix to your smoothies with a date or two.
The sweet taste lubricates and tonifies which is important to balance Winter Vata. This spice mix also helps your body absorb the nutrients of the other tastes, so ghee, milk, dates are all part of the medicine.
A note of caution – this could be stimulative. It’s best to avoid taking near bedtime.
Immunity Spice Mix
6 parts ground turmeric
3 parts ground cumin
3 parts ground coriander
6 parts ground fennel
1 part powdered, dry ginger
1 part ground black pepper
1/2 part ground cinnamon
Mix spices together thoroughly. Store in an airtight container. Use within one month.
For Vata Dosha, add a dash of Himalayan pink salt, and a sprinkle of sesame seed. For Pitta Dosha, replace the cumin with mint or cilantro. Optionally, use cardamom powder instead of black pepper. For Kapha Dosha, it is perfect all year round. You could even add 1/4 part clove or cayenne.
What I love about Ayurveda is how though food, herbs, spice, lifestyle and exercise that we can cultivate healthier choices to support our unique constitution to keep our bodies and minds healthy and thriving. Once you learn the principles and start practicing it’s really quite simple and fun!
LIFESTYLE ADJUSTMENTS
One of the surest ways to keep vata happy this winter is to establish a predictable routine. Get up and go to bed at the same time every day. Eat regular meals at regular times. Develop habitual patterns with work, exercise, and other obligations. Massage your skin with warm sesame oil every day, if you can. The winter months will allow you to push yourself physically more than you might be able to at other times of year, but you’ll still need to be careful not to overdo it. If you practice yoga, move mindfully and gracefully, include a couple of restorative postures, and wrap up your practice with a long shavasana. This is a critically rejuvenative time of year for you so try to resist any temptation to overbook yourself. Instead, take advantage of the slow, quiet nature of the winter to replenish lost stores of energy and embrace a certain slow stillness in your life.