Spinach is heating but potatoes are astringent and cooling. Turmeric opens up circulation bringing heat to the extremities for kapha dosha.

Buttery carrot soup is simple to digest and fatty. Ayurveda uses simple, easy to digest foods whenever the body is imbalanced. Buttery carrot soups aggravates Kapha because it's oily. Onions and garlic ground the nervous system. Black pepper adds heat.

Most Americans who eat their morning cereal with cold milk would be shocked to discover that milk with grains is generally a bad food combination. The milk curdles almost instantly in the stomach forming a greasy, indigestible coating over the cereal grains. When cooked together, however, the mixture becomes homogeneous and more digestible.

In the winter, thin, deficient vata people have trouble keeping warm. Their naturally high metabolism burns off any stored energy. To replenish, vata people should select a digestible breakfast that 'sticks to the ribs.' In Ayurveda, recipes that stick to the ribs build ojas, which is well-formed, well-nourished tissue.

Proteins are an important part of the alchemy in Oatmeal with Milk and Almonds. They build stamina and ojas. Vata people should start every day with adequate proteins.

Oats are an ideal breakfast grain because it is easier to digest than wheat or corn. Milk is heavy for digestion. Two powerful herbs, cinnamon and cardamom, are combined with the milk to make it lighter and less mucus forming. We chose almonds to supply proteins because they are also sattvic, helping to create a spiritual state of mind.

An ancient Ayurvedic text called 'Ashtanga Hrdayam' recommends hot cereals with milk. Hot cereals with milk 'oleate' the body, making it soft and supple. A mixture of fats and carbohydrates, hot cereals with milk sweeten the blood, making it more dense. Sweet blood helps coat dry membranes with mucus, lubricating the nasal passages, lungs, and digestive tract including the colon.

Beets, grapefruit and dandelion are the three spring cleanse foods. Beets thin and support the flow of bile which decongests the liver. Beets also support the blood and have a laxative cleansing effect. Lemon juice is a powerful cholagogue that also flushes bile and empties the gall bladder. Parsley is a digestive and diuretic.