Comfort Food To Pacify Vata

Has anyone noticed the change of season really kicking in over the last few weeks? If you've got any Vata in your constitution (like me), it is likely you have...  You see, the change of season into Autumn is one of the most Vata-aggravating times of the year. And when Vata is aggravated, you tend to feel an increase in Vata's qualities in your mind and body - COLD, DRY, LIGHT, ROUGH  and MOBILE. But how is this experienced? How do you recognise aggravated Vata? Talking about 'an increase in qualities' may seem like an abstract concept but it is actually completely literal. If your Vata is aggravated, you will literally feel more cold, dry, light, rough and mobile! But let me break this down so it makes more sense....

When Vata increases, you may feel a chill down to your bones, or at least in your hands and feet. If you have any existing pain in your joints or other parts of your body, it will be exacerbated by the cold. Your skin, hair and nails may become more dry and rough. Your bowels may become a little drier too, leading to constipation.... or they may become more mobile, leading to vata-type loose stools (usually brought on by nervousness or anxiety). Your muscles may become more mobile leading to random twitches. Your emotions may also become more cold, light and mobile - you may feel a little more anxious or stressed or just be thinking more than usual.  This, in turn, may lead to headaches, light sleeping, insomnia or night-waking at the click over into Vata-time around 2-3am. And of course, your Agni will be affected... turning into Variable Agni. This is the fire that blows in the winds of Vata - flaring up and starving hungry one minute and blown out with no appetite (or capacity to digest) the next. It is a time of big shifts in appetite, bloating, pain and gas.  It is also a time of craving comfort food.  This is our Vata desiring the one thing that pacifies it the most - LOVE.

So, how do you comfort your Vata? The best way is with the Sweet taste. Yes! It is all good news.  The Sweet taste is made up of the elements of Earth and Water... and Earth and Water pacify the Air and Ether elements of Vata! And the emotion that corresponds most strongly with the Sweet taste? LOVE! This is why we all crave it so much. But the Sweet taste eaten in the wrong way or in excess may also kill your Agni....so it needs to be the right kind of Sweet, the right kind of comfort food.

I have a Vata-Pitta constitution and, like all people (especially women) who live in this rather busy, crazy world of ours, am prone to Vata-imbalances. In the last few weeks I've had an aching foot, a killer tooth ache, headaches, dry skin and a busy little mind. I've been responding to my season-change-induced-Vata-imbalance by taking extra good care of myself. I've been giving myself a warm sesame-oil massage every morning before my shower, trying to eat on time and trying to stay warm. But I think one of the best things I've been doing for myself is regularly starting the day with the most awesome comfort food around. This comfort food is pacifying my Vata at the very beginning of the day, helping me to make better decisions for myself as the day unfolds.

This comfort-food is warm, heavy enough to pacify vata but not so heavy it'll kill your agni, smooth, slightly oily, and sweeeeet. Sweet pancakes!!  Here is the recipe...

Buckwheat Pancakes with Maple Syrup

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 cup organic buckwheat flour

1/2 cup spelt or atta flour (or organic wholemeal flour)

1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon powder

1 tsp cardamom powder

a dash of organic unhomogenised milk (optional)

cold water

METHOD:
Mix all of the ingredients together then add enough cold water to turn it into a reasonably thin batter. Heat up a non-stick fry pan... then add 3/4 of a ladle to the pan into a lovely round pancake. Now, add a little ghee to the edges of the pancake. Let it cook on a medium heat until the top is dry and the edges are curling up... then gently turn over and cook the other side. Remove from the pan... and repeat. Serve with a little ghee and a splash of maple syrup. This batter makes about 10 pancakes. They take no time at all in the mornings to whip together.... and, if you have batter left over, you can pop it in the fridge to make pikelets as an afternoon snack! Enjoy! Your Vata will thank you for it....

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