Swannanoa School of Culinary Arts

Every year since 2005,when my son True was just three weeks old I have been teaching at the Swannanoa School of Culinary Arts on the campus of Warren Wilson College. This year I will be teaching a session with Laurey Masterson on diet related to Cancer and Hormonal Changes.

Around 15 chefs highlight each weeks classes and contribute their recipes to a cookbook,available for sale with each year’s course.

Here are some of the recipes I will be contributing this year:

Dark Chocolate Chia Seed Brownies Ingredients:4 oz. unsweetened baking chocolate,such as Dagoba Organic Chocolate 6 tablespoons organic butter 2 local or organic eggs 1 scant cup organic sugar,Sucanat,or Rapadura 2 tsp. Organic vanilla 1 cup brown rice flour (or spelt or other grain) mixed with 2 tablespoons chia seeds 1/2 tsp. Cinnamon a few grinds of black pepper Preparation:Preheat the oven to 350º. Gently melt the butter and chocolate together in a double boiler or the microwave. Allow to cool and then stir in eggs,sugar and vanilla. In a separate bowl combine the flour,salt and optional spices. Fold the flour mixture into the chocolate batter. Pour into a buttered 8”x8” baking pan (stoneware works nice) and bake for 20 minutes or until the cneter is just set and a toothpick comes out with no liquid batter on it. Cool completely (in an ideal world) before slicing and eating. And also:
GREEN MUNG BEAN SOUP Ingredients:1 cup whole green mung beans – soaked overnight8 cups water1 tbs. sunflower oil/or ghee½ tsp. mustard seeds1 pinch. asafoetida (called hing in Asian stores) (get @ health food store in the frontier herb section)1 bay leaf½  tsp. turmeric½ tsp. ground cumin½  tsp. ground coriander1½ tsp. chopped ginger root1 tsp. salt1½ tsp. fresh lemon juice1 tsp. raw sugar cane or jaggery (available in Indian grocery stores) I use rapadura1 pinch garam masala powder  (see recipe below for this spice mixture)Preparation:Soak the mung beans overnight in water. Drain and wash the beans two times with fresh water. Cook beans in large covered pot with 3 cups water until tender,bring the beans to a boil,and then simmer for 30-40 minutes,until the skins have broken.Heat the oil in large deep saucepan and add mustard seeds. When mustard seeds pop,add asafoetida,bay leaf and stir. Add the spice mixture to the cooked beans.  Add 1 cup water,bring to a boil and add all remaining spices. Simmer for a few minutes more.Benefits of Mung Bean Soup:Mung bean is used in Ayurveda to balance all three doshas and eliminate toxins. Spices are used medicinally to create a delicious and nourishing soup.  When eaten daily over a period of time,it will have a powerful detoxifying effect that is quite remarkable. Garam Masala To make your own garam masala:roast 1 tablespoon each of cardamom,cloves,cinnamon bark and black pepper. Grind to a powder and store in an airtight container.This recipe is shared courtesy of Naomi Scott LMBT,NC# 09102,Surya Practitioner,Meditation Instructor,Holistic Lifestyle Consultant-www.bodyworkforwholeness.com.