What is ojas anyway?
Ojas is a subtle essence that creates radiance, vitality and joy. Strong ojas gives bright eyes, glowing skin and a sense of peace and stability. Sounds like something you want a little more of in your life, right? Here's how.
Ojas is the final product of the digestion of food, air, water and experience. It's a golden essence builds as the nutrients we ingest are gradually assimilated into the body’s tissues. So, the regular consumption of wholesome, organic foods in a balanced way results in consistent vitality and strength over time.
Dates are particularly revered in Ayurveda for their capacity to quickly and effectively contribute to our reserves of ojas. Unlike other fruits, dates combine well with grains and vegetables and are a nice complement to a balanced meal. At Hale Pule we also use dates regularly in our baked goods. Delightfully sweet and wonderfully nourishing, dates are an ideal alternative to desserts made with refined sugar.
Here is one of our favourite ojas-building recipes for radiance.
Augmenting
Makes 12 cups
Preparation time: 20 minutes
You'll need
2 cups whole wheat flour (freshly ground red and white wheat mixed is ideal)
1 cup rice flour
1 cup coconut flour (optional, could substitute rice flour)
2 Tbsp flax meal
1 tsp mineral salt
3/4 tsp cinnamon powder
1/2 tsp cardamom powder
pinch of clove powder
4 Tbsp ghee
8-12 large dates soaked in ghee for at least 2 weeks (if you can't wait to try the recipe, you can use dry dates lightly cooked in ghee and water also)
12 whole pecans
water
Here's how
Mix all dry ingredients in a large bowl with your hand. Add ghee and enough water to make a soft moist dough (not sticky).
Make balls of dough about the size of golf balls and lay them out on a stainless cookie sheet or glass baking dish. Press your thumb into the middle of each ball and shape them into cups with equal thickness of bottom and sides.
Bake in an oven at 375F or 190C for 7-8 minutes and remove.
Place the dates and just a splash of water into the blender and blend to a thick consistency, adding water as needed. Place the date paste into the cup and bake in the oven for 5-7 minutes then remove and cool.
Enjoy each ojas-building bite!
Visit our Ayurveda Lifestyle page for kitchen essentials