Voices on the Mountain

Our good friend Alana Foeller joins us today to talk about the differences between Western and Chinese Medicine. Which route is better at treating what diseases?  What is health? And what is the goal of medicine?

For real this time, we get into the first two of these amazing points and their uses. 

Are you familiar with Ma Danyang's heavenly star points? Don't worry Steven had never heard of them before.  Today a short introduction to these points. Hope you enjoy tangents!

Wrapping up this series on diet we go over some lingering questions, get lost in nuts and spices, and review helpful attitudes on making dietary changes. 

Fat has gotten a lot of press over the last 70 years since the American Heart Association hypothesized a detrimental link between fats and heart health. While in the last decade or so this link has been challenged and debunked, its prevalence is still responsible for  many American's understanding and attitudes towards fat. And still we have an absence of knowledge about what types of fats we should be eating and how much we should consume. 

You know how we are always going off on tangents  mid-episode? Well this time we did a whole episodes worth right from the get go, you're welcome! In this episode we introduce an idea of movement as a part of your diet and get into some specifics for shoulder rehab. 

But seriously who doesn't like cake? And with all the carb bashing on this podcast you might think you have to give up your tasty treats. But what if we told you, you could have your health and eat cake too? Cake for breakfast you say? Now that's a diet we can all get behind.

Steven's Recipe:

Keto Shortbread
8 tbsp Butter (or 4/5 coconut oil and 1/5 almond milk)
1 tbsp Vanilla extract
1.5 cups Almond Flour
1/4 cup Coconut Flour
1 tsp pure monkfruit powder
1 tbsp baking powder
1/4 tsp Sea salt
8 egg whites (1 cup) (or sub 8 tbsp ground flax seed with 24tbsp water, mix first and let sit for a few minutes before adding the rest of the ingredients)
4-8 tblsp almond or coconut milk
Optional but recommended:
¼ tsp or more of freshly grated nutmeg (esp for cold spleen/stomachs)
½ tsp of Saigon cinnamon OR sprinkle on cake after baking (esp for those wanting a little more Yang)

Mix together and put in an oiled glass cake pan (8x8 works well) or something of similar size, bake at 325-350F for 25-35 min until slightly browned on top and toothpick comes out clean.

A fun chocolate variation of the shortbread!
Same recipe as above, but I recommend using the flax seed meal instead egg whites, and adding 1 whole bar of dark chocolate, we use 86% Ghiradelli, since it’s been shown to have some of the lowest lead and cadmium levels of all chocolates on the market. I melt the butter in the baking dish in the preheating oven, and when it’s mostly melted, I add the chocolate bar for a few more minutes until melted, than fold all the melted butter and chocolate into the batter, then back into the baking dish to back.  Bake until butter knife or toothpick comes out mostly clean, that way it stays a little fudgy in the middle.

Running into a lot of conflicting  dietary advice? Eating--it seems like one of the simplest and most basic human activities. We've been doing it forever and today loading up your plate is easier than ever. But what should be on that plate seems to be a perpetual question.  In this series of episodes we lay a foundation for our conversations around food based on an understanding that has been around for 4,000 years and is just as relevant today as it was centuries ago.

You may have one, you most certainly know some one who does. Whether you are listening for yourself, or to empathize with those around you do not miss this episode. Today we get into the second half of the menstrual cycle from a Chinese Medicine perspective. While certain parts of this episode are geared more for practitioners there is plenty of diet and lifestyle advice for our muggle family. Enjoy!

You may have one, you most certainly know some one who does. Whether you are listening for yourself, or to empathize with those around you do not miss this episode. Today we get into the first half of the menstrual cycle from a Chinese Medicine perspective. While certain parts of this episode are geared more for practitioners there is plenty of diet and lifestyle advice for our muggle family. Enjoy!