Thanksgiving is a favorite holiday of mine for many reasons….spending hours in the kitchen with no apologies and nowhere else to be, roasted root veggies, friends around the table, roasted root veggies, post-meal lounging, did I mention root vegetables yet? This year, I’ve created a few new recipes to share (like the pomegranate, persimmon and pumpkin kale salad above!) and curated a guide of my favorite holiday-inspired dishes from a …

Each season, I share a peek inside my kitchen and what I’m cooking to create balanced health in the Vidya Seasonal Kitchen video series. Sometimes health means slowing down and enjoying the journey. For me, there’s nothing like a road trip and time spent in nature to reconnect with myself and with loved ones. This fall, my friends and I took to the open road and headed east …

It’s officially soup season. Summer held on as long as it could here in Oklahoma (it was 90 degrees last weekend!), but this morning I turned the heater on for the first time since early spring.  It was one of those mornings where you just want to linger in bed as long as you can because it’s far too cozy under the covers and you know that …

I never thought I would say this but…I’m tired of traveling. As a Sagittarius (double that is, sun + rising!), my world doesn’t feel quite right when I’m settled in one place for more than a few weeks. I thrive on change and the excitement of waking up in a new place surrounded by foreign sights  sounds and smells just waiting to be explored. And those synchronistic encounters with strangers …

Last week I was rummaging through a box of old keepsakes and came across a journal I kept while I was living in Paris in 2010.  While I was there, my mom and I took a mother-daughter trip to Morocco, an adventure of memories I still cherish dearly.  We started in Taghazout, a sleepy little fishing town turned surf mecca on the coast about an hour north of …

After the most blissful week of camping in Joshua Tree for Spirit Weaver’s Gathering, I drove back to the coast to quench my dry desert thirst with a few days of LA meandering, filled with juice bar explorations, farmer’s market wanderings and beachside picnics. I finally got the chance to check out my dream of a juice bar, Moon Juice, when I was …

In between long days of teaching and practicing yoga, this recipe has become my go-to for an easy, energizing lunch. The mix of cooked and raw ingredients provides a feeling of grounding nourishment without feeling heavy or weighed down in the afternoon.  It balances flavors of sweet, salty, pungent, astringent and bitter – making this a perfect Ayurvedic meets macrobiotic-friendly meal.  And more importantly, it meets …

Quest Food (n.) ‘kwest-ˈfüd : a dish so spectacularly satisfying to your tastebuds you spend a lifetime searching for the perfect version of this meal wherever you travel; an endless pursuit for perfection of your desired dish.

Green curry is an ultimate quest food around our house. So much so, we decided to have a green curry cook-off for the past two weeks! With fingertips numb from deseeding thai chilies and knuckles grated sore …

I woke up this morning to time frozen still.  A thick layer of ice caressed the trees and blanketed the grass, and even though the sun had risen the world still seemed to sleep. Winter was here.  On its eve, solstice had ushered in its wintry beauty and a deep sense of calm over the city.  This is what I love most about the holidays. That comforting sense of hibernation, …