At the 'Kula Yoga Project', a yoga studio located on North 3rd in Williamsburg, you can sweat 'spirit' and literally taste it too at it's very own vegetarian cafe called 'The Shanti Shack.' I serendipitously stumble upon this gem of a yoga studio/cafe, as a suggestion from one of my favorite yoga teachers in Providence. I took my first class, which was a home-brew of 'Ashtanga' and 'Iyenger' with some thai massage assistance, and I immediately fell in love. But I would be lying if I said it was just the yoga that seduced me, it was definitely the aroma from Brownie's cooking that made me never want to leave.Fresh Kaffir limes, lemon grass, ginger, roasted tomatoes finished with sherry vinegar...these are the scents that waft into the yoga studio, and permeate some robust sweetness into this dry and cold winter.
Brownie is the chef and owner of 'Shanti Shack,' former chef at Le Cirque, and graduate of the French Culinary institute (with honors). She is the real deal! It is clear that cooking is her dharma ( path) and she radiates brightness into every bite of her food. I am lucky enough to be her intern twice a week! And I can already feel my cooking spirit ripen with the mix of french vocabulary, and yogic visualizations. It is safe to say I am going to culinary school for free.
Some notes from the kitchen/words of wisdom from Brownie:
1) Tomatoes take on the taste of your fridge. Leave them on the counter.
2) Eggs do three things in baking: they bind, add moisture, and are a leavening agent
3) Ginger. Put it in everything it helps make your food more digestible!
4) The term 'sweating' you will sometimes see in recipes and wonder WTF. No more. Sweating means to sauté and steam at the same time. As Brownie describes it, 'sweating' is basically like Savasana (corpse pose at the end of the yoga class) because you are extracting the flavor from whatever you are 'sweating' just like how in Savasana you are distilling the sweetness of your practice.
How to 'sweat'? Put a pat of butter and 2-4 tbsp of olive oil in a sauce-pan and turn it on relatively high. (The olive oil keeps the butter from burning) then add whatever you want to 'sweat' (traditionally onions, carrots, celery) and hear a sizzle. Next turn the heat low and cover, don't stir... for maybe 7-10 minutes -till the ingredients are cooked from the inside out (onions will become translucent). Brownie says 'sweat' your onions, and it will help prevent indigestion!
Marginally,
Mollie
