…I’ve received several emails from advertisers and entrepreneurs asking me to stick an ad on my site or review a product, book, or appliance. (Umm, one kick ass juicer, please.)”

That kick ass juicer I mentioned? It came in the mail last weekend. Oh, praise hootenanny! Oh, glory be!

Let me start by saying that this is a sponsored post, but all the opinions expressed in it are my own, starting with this one: HOLYFREAKINGCRAPIGOTAFREEJUICER, followed by this one: OHTHANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU, and ending with this one: THISTHINGROCKSMYFACEOFF.

I’ve never owned a juicer before, but have been mesmerized by them for several years now, the way they effortlessly turn rather large, unruly, seemingly impenetrable fruit and veg into frothy juice in the blink of an eye. Our good friends in Kansas City, Aaron and Bev, often treat us to fresh, invigorating concoctions from their juicer when we’re visiting. and I’ve spent and arm and a leg on Naked juice over the years, so this new juicer was a welcome and fun upgrade.

The day we got the juicer, Hubs and I acted like it was Christmas morning. I unpacked it, assembled it and placed it on the counter like a trophy for Hubs to see when he got home. I ran to the store for fruits and vegetables, like carrots, kiwis, grapefruit, apples and wheat grass. We had ourselves an all-out juicing party, sampling each juice and experimenting with combinations and flavors.

The juicer itself is pretty amazing. It’s small, quiet, efficient and really freaking powerful. It turns apples into a poof of fluff in nanoseconds. It shreds kiwis into oblivion. It turns an orange into orange zest faster than you can say… well, orange zest. It pours the juice out of one side of the chamber into a pouring container, and even has a handy lid to strain off the foam, if that’s your preference. It’s also really easy to clean, breaking down into three pieces, and it takes up way less space than my 1990 food processor, a gift from my Grandbetty that I still use.

Because of our new juicer, I’ve started taking an energizing mixture of grapefruit and carrot juice to work with me every morning, we’re drinking fresh orange juice instead of the bottled kind (sorry, Simply Orange, you ain’t got nothin’ on this stuff), and we’re having fun coming up with new recipes. One of our favorites so far has been:

4 carrots
2 apples
1 kiwi
1 grapefruit
1/4 pineapple

What’s also cool is that you can use the fruit and vegetable remnants to cook with. Just last night, Hubs made a carrot cake using the carrot shards left over from a carrot juicing session. Waste not, want not!

Check out the maiden voyage of our new juicer in the gallery below:

That was me blowing the dust off of this thing.

As you can plainly see, my days are no longer spent creating goofy instructional yoga videos, talking to my camera about feelings of insecurity, or writing droning musings about my latest yoga class or dinner. Granted, I’m still writing about yoga and other inspirational things, but with a gig that provides a paycheck every other week, a gym membership, and a cozy little office space at the Gaiam headquarters.

I have mixed feelings about this. On one hand, I’m so thankful to have found a job in this godforsaken economy, and I’m so fortunate to have found one that is on-point with my interests and lifestyle. On the other hand, I have abandoned my baby – my blog – the one that I had not too long ago told myself that I would somehow, someday, make a living off of. Upon moving to Colorado, I told myself I would do only what I love, and nothing else. I would blog daily, get discovered, become famous, and eventually rule the world of Yoga-Food Blogging. I would say goodbye to office life, bid farewell to stress and anxiety, and live my life to the absolute fullest. Then reality came knocking, the rent came due, and I did what I had to do: I got myself a job, at an office, with co-workers and regular working hours. Existential crisis, commence.

I will say that my brief stint at Elephant Journal de-glazed my rosy outlook on the life of a career blogger. It showed me that blogging for a living is not all the effortless networking and writing and brainstorming that I thought it would be. The life of a career blogger is all-night turmoil when your site goes down and you have no IT department to turn to. The life of a career blogger is answering the bazillion emails flooding your inbox at 3 a.m. while wondering when it was you last ate. The life of a career blogger is trying to keep your shit straight while you’re going on three hours of sleep and six cups of coffee. (Thank you, Waylon, for pouring some truth serum over this notion for me. I honestly don’t know how you do it.)

In my defense, Prana & Pie was a project created by an overeager optimist who had just quit her soul-sucking job (that would be me), moved to the mountains (me again), and was teetering between the world of blogging and the world of gainful employment (hi). Obviously, gainful employment won out, and blogging was left behind, only to collect cobwebs and spammy comments about Rolex watches and Viagra.

This leads me to a rather embarrassing and somewhat humbling confession: I am a serial quitter. I love to start new things, and I hate to finish them. I dive headfirst into new projects with fiery passion and vigor – until I burn myself out and the next new thing comes along, leaving the old one in the dust, only to collect cobwebs and – well, you know. I quit gymnastics in preschool. I quit board games that I’m not winning. I quit basketball in elementary school. I quit movies that become boring. I quit Spanish in high school. I quit the honors program in college. Do you see where I’m going with this? I do this with hobbies. I do this with books. I do this with exercise regimens. I do this with food trends. I do this with blogs. I do this with…friends? Two things that aren’t subjected to this pattern of quitting are jobs (I get one and I keep it) and romantic relationships (see previous statement). For whatever reason, I seem to hold onto these two things with an iron-clad grip. Psychoanalysts, I beg of you an explanation.

Part of me says that it’s only natural; that there is a fluidity to life that allows for new things to come and old things to go, that it’s all about ebb and flow, that nothing’s permanent, and that humans are in a constant state of evolution and change. I even keep a Snapple lid in my purse that, to me, says it all:

Finding myself by process of elimination.”

But another part of me wonders why I can’t stick to anything, and is annoyed by my perpetual flightiness and inconsistency.

A theory I have is that when I start something, I’m overly ambitious in the beginning and put forth entirely too much effort to be sustainable, thereby setting myself up for failure when the enthusiasm wanes. If I could turn down my ambition, perhaps I could extend the life of my interest. But throw work, home, family, bills, obligations and life into the mix, and it’s really just easier to completely quit the thing that’s least pressing.

I’d like to think that somewhere, a happy medium exists. That somehow, I can be efficient and energetic enough to work a full-time job that is fulfilling and inspiring, write whimsical stories about yoga and food on my popular blog, spend at least an hour on the mat or in the gym, walk my dogs daily, cook creative, nutritious meals every night, remain a vibrant and attractive spouse, and have a glass of wine and watch a movie when it’s all over. I aim for this. I yearn for this. I want this. I WILL DO THIS.

So please do not consider this Prana & Pie’s (rather complicated, long-winded) eulogy. This is my confessional – merely a cathartic way for me to 1) update you on what’s been going on in my life, 2) do away with the guilt that has been tugging at my shirtsleeve for the past month, and 3) possibly generate some much-needed motivation to keep the dust off this thing and post more often. 2011 has been an amazing year for change, growth and self-realization, but there’s always more row to hoe. I hope that you’ll pick up that hoe with me, and whatever it is that you’re aiming for in your life, you’ll go after it with calculating determination, a dash of reality, and plenty of grace in 2012. I know I will.

xoxo,

L.

The shallots, garlic and sage give the casserole a nice savory undertone, while the cherries and pecans add a sweet, almost candied element. And of course, nothing brings a casserole together better than buttery, salty Signore Parmigiano (and for the love, none of that stuff from a can).

Try this out on your family this year, and see what they think! They’re sure to thank you for expanding their horizons – and it may just become a staple at the Thanksgiving table every year. Enjoy!

Wild Rice & Squash Casserole

Preheat the oven to 450°. On a rimmed baking sheet, toss the chopped acorn squash with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Roast for about 30 minutes, tossing occasionally, until the squash are soft and beginning to brown. Remove from the oven and set aside.

Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, melt the 2 tablespoons of butter over medium heat, and add the shallots, garlic and sage, and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 4 minutes. Add the wild rice blend and 1 3/4 cups of water. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce the heat to low, and cook until tender, about 25 minutes.

Remove the rice from the heat and fluff with a fork. Add the dried cherries and pecans. Carefully fold in the roasted acorn squash and 1/2 cup of parmesan cheese. Place rice and squash mixture in an 8”x8” baking dish, and top with more parmesan cheese. Bake at 450° for about 15 minutes, or until the cheese has melted and the casserole is bubbling a little. Remove from the oven, and serve.

The Seven Chakras

With the holidays around the corner, I’ve received several emails from advertisers and entrepreneurs asking me to stick an ad on my site or review a product, book, or appliance. (Umm, one kick ass juicer, please.) Now, as many of you know, this is my personal website and not a billboard, but at the same time, I don’t want to deprive my readers of learning about something that really does deserve attention or some good ol’ American commerce. I got such an email from a sweet chickadee in Virginia, who’s even offering a special deal to Prana & Pie readers. Let me say that she didn’t give me anything for free or any special perks for doing this – I just think she’s a creative, ambitious hard worker who deserves a shout out. Here’s the scoop:

Yoga Sutra 1.1

At 21 years old, Jen Livingston has been a self-employed entrepreneur for 3 years, and is the owner of the cute Etsy shop Exaltation, a wire jewelry shop that specializes in creating conversation starters of all kinds. The jewelry is very customizable – stainless steel, sterling silver or hand-painted wire in any color is available, to fit any budget or price point. Jen makes customized pieces of any phrase or mantra: words of wisdom, bijoux en français, joyería en español, Sanskrit yoga necklaces, and inspirational Latin phrases are just the tip of the iceberg. Jen’s love of language, science, and spirituality strongly influence her designs, as well as a desire to create affordable, environmentally friendly art that expresses her customers’ uniqueness and values. She is based out of Charlottesville, Virginia, and lives a happily nomadic life with her rambunctious cat, Lilavati.

Om Necklace

Every purchase from Exaltation is mailed in one of a kind stationary that Jen hand-dyes through a unique bubble-coloring process. Not only does she add on cute Etsy-esque perks like personalized service and hand-dyed stationary, but she also donates 10% of her profits to charity, usually educational or environmental causes,to help make the world a better place. As the cherry on top of the sundae, Jen offers returning customers 10% off all future purchases.

For Prana & Pie readers, Jen is offering a Buy 3 Get One Free deal, as well as the coupon code DAILYYOGA10 for a 10% discount. Visit her shop over at Etsy to check out the cuteness.

What was your first experience with yoga?
Happy baby.

How would you describe your personal practice?
The more I practice the more I want to practice. I have a strong affinity for chaturanga dandasana and I nurse a love/hate relationship with my sitting cushion.

What’s been playing on your iPod lately?
Selva de Mar, Ludovico Einaudi and Bluetech. Always.

You‘re a T-Shirt slogan. What do you say?
Today’s your big day.

How do you practice yoga off the mat?
By attempting, usually feebly and after the fact, to find equanimity and comedy in the constant unfolding of circumstance. By working to see myself in others. By constantly re-framing expectations, intentions and presuppositions in order to make room for the perpetually evolving moment. And where the rubber meets the road, by trying to cultivate compassion and selflessness in my relationships. I can do better at all these things.

Bikram Choudhury. Discuss.
His system has proven to inspire health and well-being in some and narcissism and close-mindedness in others, just like many of the systems of yoga I’ve encountered. As for the man himself, I’ve never met him.

The world ends tomorrow. What will you eat tonight?
Pizza and cookies.

What’s the last book you read?
The Hindus by Wendy Doniger.

Imagine you’re on the cover of Yoga Journal. What pose would you strike?
Padmasana.

What did you eat for breakfast this morning?
Banana, blueberry, mango, almond butter, acai, maca, ashwaganda, spinach, blue green algae, coconut milk smoothie.

If you could roll out your yoga mat anywhere in the world, where would it be?
On the ceiling.

There are only three things on your sandwich. What are they?
Did I mention I love pizza?

What inspires your practice?
The sensations of breath. Really good break-dancers. The strength of curiosity. My brother Dylan who runs 100 mile races. Compassionate people. The calling to continuously redefine my edge. And, my partner Torrey.

You’ve got the day off. What do you do?
Enjoy a series of leisurely pursuits with a slight sense of urgency.

Complete the sentence: I wear my sunglasses at night, so I can ___.
Embody the ancient saying from the Upanisads, ‘the sun never sets on a true gangsta.’

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Jason’s adoration for the art of yoga budded at around the onset of adulthood. Since then the inertia of perpetual study and practice has paved the way for a continuously renewing enchantment. It is with a keen sense of curiosity and fascination that he nurtures his love for creativity, interpersonal interaction and the human body. Having lily-padded around the pond of tradition for some time, Jason’s passion blossomed in recent years through the practice and study of Astanga Yoga with Richard Freeman and Vipassana Meditation through the teachings of SN Goenka. The unabashed simplicity and rigor of these systems has greatly inspired his teaching. Always drawn with gravity to the meeting place between art and technology, Jason’s classes create a framework to experience the ways in which these two things interface in the practice of yoga. He strives to bait the meeting point between theory and intuition by honoring the roots of practice while encouraging a subjective inquiry into the vast ocean of wisdom that lies in direct experience. You can find Jason’s music, writing and yoga information at The Wander Home.

For the next week, I’ll be providing you with recipes that are inspired by the holiday table. First up, Sweet Potato Gratin with Poblano Cream. This recipe was inspired by one I found while flipping through an old Food & Wine magazine. In the article, chef Julie Robles of Tavern in L.A. makes this at-home version of her popular restaurant favorite by layering roasted butternut squash with a crème fraîche-laced poblano cream and crumbly farmer cheese.

As much as I love butternut squash, I absolutely dread cutting into the dang thing. One machete, two sore thumbs, twenty minutes and several close calls later, I’m left wondering why I didn’t just pay the $7.00 a pound for the pre-cut stuff. So I switched it up; instead of the delicious-yet-burdensome butternut, I opted for the user-friendly sweet potato, which I chopped up and roasted until the chunks were soft and just starting to brown. Similar in texture and taste to butternut squash, roasted sweet potato adds just the right amount of subtle sweetness to offset the fiery poblano cream.

The dish goes together in layers, with sweet potatoes, poblano cream, ricotta (which, by the way, I smooth in the food processor with a little cream and olive oil) and Monterrey Jack nestling on top of one another. After a good half hour in the oven, the dish comes out bubbling hot and melty. The soft sweet potatoes mix and mingle with the spicy poblano cream, and the ricotta and Monterrey Jack add a creamy richness. Careful, now: a little goes a long way. Seconds should only be attempted if you’re fully prepared for a food coma.

For the full scoop on the dish, head on over to the Fayetteville Flyer.

Sweet Potato Gratin with Poblano Cream

Using your oven’s broiler or your grill, roast the poblanos over open flame, turning occasionally, until they are charred and the skin is blistered. Transfer the poblanos to a bowl, cover it tightly with plastic wrap and allow to cool. Peel, stem and seed the poblanos, and cut them into thin strips.

Preheat the oven to 400°. Drizzle the sweet potatoes liberally with olive oil, and salt and pepper. On a rimmed baking sheet, spread them in a single layer and roast for about 30 minutes, until they are tender and just beginning to brown, flipping them once. Remove them from the oven, set aside, and increase the oven temperature to 425°.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the sliced onion, thyme and oregano, and cook over medium heat until the onion has softened, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for a minute longer. Add the poblano strips and cook about 5 minutes longer. Add the heavy cream and simmer over medium-low heat until thickened, about 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and add the sour cream, stirring to combine. Season with salt and pepper.

In an 8×8 baking dish, spoon half of the poblano cream into the bottom of the dish. Top with half of the roasted sweet potatoes, half of the ricotta, and half of the Monterey Jack. Repeat the layers with the remaining ingredients. Bake at 425° for 30 minutes, until the gratin is golden and bubbling. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 10 minutes. Garnish each serving with toasted pumpkin seeds, and serve immediately.

Given the fact that Bluebird makes an effort to serve only local, sustainable, and organic dishes, one would think that I would’ve chosen something from the menu that just screams sophistication, worldliness, and hipstertude… Oh please, of course not! I made my decision the split second I saw it: Fancy grilled cheese with arugula salad. SOLD! I immediately counteracted my rather juvenile menu selection by ordering a glass of organic champagne, so I would seem as cool as a cucumber in front of Bev’s fancy friend, and like I didn’t totally belong at the kiddie table… George Clooney, y’all! My palms are still sweating.

Fast forward a couple years: it’s Saturday afternoon, and I’m home alone. I’m done with my grocery shopping, done with my chores, and I have a bottle of Moët & Chandon staring me in the face. With the memory of my best lunch ever lingering in my mind, there was only one thing to do.

The sandwich didn’t take long to grill, and I watched it carefully from beginning to end, monitoring its browning process with an eagle eye, flipping as needed. The cheese melted into oozy swirls, sandwiched together within the crispy-chewy roll. The arugula was dressed and waiting, and the champagne was bubbling. While I didn’t have my girl crew to make me giggle, gossip and rant my way through my meal, I can say that it was just as lovely, but in a different way.

For the full story, head on over to the Fayetteville Flyer.

Heat a griddle over medium-low heat. Place one slice of the buttered bread, buttered side down, on the griddle and top with the shredded cheese. Place the other slice of bread on top, buttered side up. Check the bottom slice occasionally, until you see a nice browning. Using tongs, flip the sandwich and grill on the other side until it’s equally browned and the cheese is melted. (Now’s the time to give the sandwich a big smoosh, if you like that kind of thing.)

Serve the arugula alongside the sandwich, with a good squeeze of lemon, a dousing of olive oil and salt and pepper to your taste. Cheers!

1. I have Italian dual-citizenship – love my Italian passport! Va bene.

2. The language I know and took in school is Sanskrit. As in, the dead, ancient Vedic language from India.

3. I wish I listened to my parents and kept taking piano lessons. All I can play now is Fur Elise. It’s a good party trick.

4. I went to an alternative school where we meditated and did yoga everyday with a focus on the Self and wellness (K-12), alongside our classes.

5. I can’t watch scary movies. I’ve never seen any of them.

6. I moved to Boulder three years ago for no apparent reason but intuition. I packed up my car and headed West with no job, no place to live, and no friends here.

7. I’m a super geek and love the online-technology-startup world I work in.

8. I was raised vegetarian and now consider myself a pescetarian. Fun fact? I’ve never had a hamburger or steak.

9. I have really small hands. Super small. See my dorky, personal blog name: smallhandsbigideas.com.

10. Related to #9, I can beat anyone in a typing contest. I type about 120 words per minute (give or take).

11. I love to travel. My favorite trip was living on a sailboat and sailing around the Greek islands.

12. Favorite foods include: sushi, BBQ, avocados, rigatoni with my family’s marinara sauce covered in fresh parmesan, anything with lavender in it, fruit tarts, chocolate covered pretzels and sweet potatoes. (Note: not all together or in that order.)

13. My dad is a gemologist/gem dealer. He travels the world going directly to the source/mines buying and selling gemstones. He brought me to Thailand when I was 15 on a business buying trip. I grew up working in his business.

14. Both my parents are entrepreneurs.

15. I love side projects on top of my job. I run gracefullplate.com and Boulder Food News to help share food news locally. I also work with small businesses to help them connect with their customers and community online.

16. I grew up riding horses and competing / traveling in three day eventing. I owned my own horse, a Thoroughbred called Keep the Wind.

17. In college, I had five internships. Call me crazy.

18. I love food. I could talk about it for hours that includes the local farms, to production, to making and creating recipes.

19. I’m 5’1″. Shorty.

20. Yoga is my go-to reset happy place. I’ve been practicing since I was five.

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Grace Boyle is a 20-something adventurista. She is the Director of Marketing and Sales for the online startup, Kapost, and lives in Boulder, Colorado. She’s an avid blogger and a (non-pretentious) foodie who runs Grace(full) Plate and Boulder Food News. She loves the mountains, travel, laughter, cheese plates, yoga, red wine, her big Italian family, boyfriend, puppy, and crazy-good friends.

Whatever your opinion of America’s prison situation, the fact remains that the majority of prisoners, because of backgrounds of neglect, abuse, violent behavior, and drug and alcohol addiction, have become disassociated from their feelings and bodies as a result. But all is not lost: James Fox, M.A., a yoga instructor with over 20 years of experience, founded the Prison Yoga Project in an attempt to help prisoners shift unconscious behavioral patterns of reacting into conscious ways of responding by teaching them the skill of clearly witnessing their moment-to-moment experience – in other words, cultivating a sense of awareness.

Psychiatrists, psychologists and clinical social workers acknowledge that mindful practices such as yoga can greatly help people alleviate the symptoms that lead to both reactive behaviors and stress-related disease. Learning an awareness practice in prison is not only important for supporting behavioral rehabilitation, but also critical for physical and emotional well-being. (Healthcare costs alone account for $2.1 billion of the California prison system’s $9 billion annual budget.)

The Prison Yoga Project helps students reclaim sensitivity and consciousness through a practice of self-awareness and self-control that instills non-reactivity and self-acceptance. The classes help to free the mind and body from confusion and distress, allowing one to be at peace and receptive to learning new ways of thinking through postures (asana), breath work (pranayama), and short periods of meditation. Discipline of the mind and body is emphasized, in order to develop positive behavioral habits and impulse control. The ethical code of conduct and behavior that defines a yoga practitioner’s lifestyle is underscored. The program also promotes non-competitiveness and intentionally fosters community building through cooperative group participation.

James developed the Insight Prison Project’s Yoga Program at San Quentin State Prison and has been its coordinator and principal teacher since its inception in September 2002. In addition to directing the Yoga program at San Quentin, James co-facilitates a group process class with prisoners for the Insight Prison Project.

Testimonials from prisoners about the effect of The Prison Yoga Project are pretty remarkable:

I have a strengthened identity with self and a sense of something universal. It has given me the ability to affect my own well being and peace without dependency upon someone else or chemical substance.” – T.W.

”I am grateful to the powers that be for having put a teacher such as yourself in my life. I have reconciled myself to a life of sobriety and plan to seriously pursue my spiritual practices, especially Yoga.” – R.C.

”For those of us sentenced to a life term, time is inexorable. We are challenged to draw vitality and meaning from our circumstances. Yoga has helped me to understand that it is in quietness and stillness that time becomes an ally not a foe. It is in stillness that I realize the things that are important and those things that really do not matter.” – S.L.

Yoga is about creating union between opposing forces, dissolving blockages – both physical and mental – and creating awareness of the present moment without adherence to the past or the future. Learning this fundamental behavioral shift can make the difference between a person committing a crime or not. For more about the Prison Yoga Project, visit their website.
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Special thanks to Elephant Journal, Robert Sturman Photography and James Fox at the Prison Yoga Project. To donate to a great cause, Robert Sturman Photography has created t-shirts to promote prison yoga awareness. For more info and to buy one of these hip tees, check out the link. All photos by Robert Sturman of Robert Sturman Photography.