No Recipe
Cooking as Spiritual Practice
Author: Edward Espe Brown
How we value ourselves in the kitchen…what is the purpose…what is the intention, when cooking in the kitchen?
Turning the light inward, connecting with the outer world.
I myself have struggled with cooking when all that’s running through my mind is, “I want it now!” So rather than being in the space of “IN” and NOW, I might end up reaching for an unhealthy quick food fix to feed my impatience until the actual meal is ready.
I’ve had many moments of stressing out in the kitchen…heck, even stressing out before stressing out…lol…preparing myself for, “I’ll probably be stressing out about something soon!”, only because it’s been a pattern for me that now I’m aware of it so now I can change it!
In reading No Recipe, I’ve already reached acknowledgement of my own issues and now, from here, I will always know when to recognize if I’m falling in to an old pattern or habit.
The author encourages the reader to trust in their own instincts and to “listen” to what speaks to them. The author also goes into how we seek pleasure to pleasure (as in avoiding pain or discomfort) when we “believe” in a task as some kind of trouble or burden.
Just like in conscious parenting, what may sometimes feel like a chore, that very moment of experience could also be experienced as a magical time of, let’s say, bonding…sharing…or as the author beautifully writes, “The activity is not in charge.” 😀
The author writes from real life experiences of Zen teachings.
What might have been a cool addition to this book (at least for me), would maybe be some kind of interactive exercises to go with it. To take what’s being read into being actively being practiced. Still, this is one of the coolest books I’ve gotten to read this year!
Available at: Amazon.com/NoRecipe
Other books by this author: EdwardEspeBrownBooks
Facebook page: EdwardEspeFacebook
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Sweet Potato Soul: 100 Easy Vegan Recipes for the Southern Flavors of Smoke, Sugar, Spice, and Soul
AUTHOR: Jenne Claiborne
I HAVE SO MANY PAGES bookmarked!!!!!
This book totally called me by the title alone!!! I may not be Vegan, but I LOVE these recipes!
Highlights for me are the Sweet Potato Skillet Home Fries, Smoky White Bean Sausages, Tempeh Bacon, Hot Pepper Pecans, Jalapeno Hush Puppies, “Sweet Jesus Mac & Cheese” (HECK YES!!!), and that yum yum yum recipe for Sweet Potato Hummus! Seriously, there are SO MANY MORE great looking recipes in this book that I cannot wait to try!
Vegan or not, I recommend checking out this cookbook. Cook from it and your friends will thank you!
Check out the Sweet Potato Soul Website for some FREE RECIPES!!!
Available at: SweetPotatoSoulCookbook
Authors Website: SweetPotatoSoulPage
Authors Facebook Page: SweetPotatoSoulFB