Have you been feeling really cold? Have dry skin, dry scalp and chapped lips? Feeling a little spacey, pulled in too many directions and basically ungrounded? That is the energy of vata dosha, and we are in the midst of vata season. Vata dosha has the qualities of cold, dry, light and mobile. In Ayurveda, to balance the force of doshas we use opposites. So, at this time of year we focus on things that are more warming, heavy, and grounded. And oily and unctuous, which are the opposite of dry.

One great way to help balance vata is to eat a warm and grounding breakfast every day. This is a basic oatmeal porridge recipe with some extra add-ins to make it more appropriate to balance vata. Grains, like oats, are very balancing to vata as they are heavy and grounding. The spices in the oatmeal – ginger, cinnamon and cardamom – add some heat and help make the other heavy ingredients like oats and dates more digestible. Dates are also heavy, and they also build ojas. Ojas is your resilience and immunity – definitely needed at this time of year. The chia seeds, hemp seeds and sunbutter are grounding and are healthy fats that help balance dryness in the body.

Gather:
1/2 cup oats
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 cardamom pod, smashed
Grated ginger from 1/2-1” inch ginger root
Pinch of mineral salt
2 chopped dates
Optional: 1/2 cup of fruit (I like to use apple)
1 cup water
1 cup oat milk 
1 tbsp chia seeds
1 tbsp nut butter (I use sunbutter)
1 tbsp hemp seeds

Make:
Add the oats, dates, dates, fruit, spices, oat milk and water to a small pan. Heat on high until it’s boiling. Turn to low and simmer, stirring frequently, for about 10 minutes. It should be creamy. Turn off the heat and stir in the chia seeds. Let sit for a few minutes to let the chia seeds absorb liquid. Put the porridge in a bowl and top with hemp seeds and nut butter. Enjoy! Makes 1 good size serving.

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