We know that many people are changing the way they eat this New Year to improve their health.  Healthy eating, though, has more to do with eating a balance in your diet than it does shoveling countless bushels of lettuce in your face to (very) temporarily assuage those all-too-quickly-to-return hunger pangs.  So, as a service to our readers, we’d like offer a weekly recipe that adheres to an Ayurveda diet.  Whether you are a strict believer or just want to taste what an Ayurveda meal tastes like, you’ll have a hand-picked recipe week after week to, at the very least, mix things up on your way to a healthier you.

This week’s recipe is a saffron rice with rose petals.  It is delicate, yet aromatic.  It will make you feel luxurious with its romantic butteriness.  This dish is pacifying for pitta and vata constitutions.  The rose petals contribute a cooling effect, physically healing pitta.  Pitta’s are emotional and sensitive by nature.  The rose petals pacify the senses and helps pitta both spiritually and mentally.  The spices (salt, cinnamon and saffron) pacifies the spicy nature inherent in vata.

Ingredients

Preparation

Bring 2.5 cups water to a boil (extra water added to ground vata) and turn off heat. Prepare the saffron according to the instructions “Preparing Saffron”. Roast the chopped almonds on med-high heat for five minutes or until browned. Half way, add the gold raisins.

Roast the rice until slightly browned. Add ghee until rice is covered. Add rice, rose water, saffron water, almonds, and raisins to the boiled water. Cover on low heat and let stand 30 minutes or until rice is soft and somewhat puffy.

Garnish with rose petals.

Check out more great recipes at http://www.joyfulbelly.com/.