I can’t wait to see this beautiful monument as my clients and I visit it during our 2011 Silver Legends Himalayan Tour next month.

Emperor Shah Jehan commissioned the building of the Taj Mahal, a final resting place and mausoleum for his beloved bride and wife Mumtaz Mahal, starting one year after she died. The building started in 1632, took twenty-two years to build and twenty thousand laborers. It is spread over forty-two acres on the banks of the River Yamuna near the city of Agra and was designed in such a way that no further addition or alteration to it would be possible.

Because my wellness boot camps in India are at a 1600-acre tea plantation, my guests and I have the good fortune of seeing how tea is manufactured from the initial picking of the “two leaves and a bud” until the tea is packaged for the open markets, so I thought I would share with you how this process works.

It starts with the harvesting of the tea leaves where as I had mentioned above, only the bud and the two youngest leaves are plucked. My boot camp guests and I are so fortunate to have the pleasure of hiking amongst the many trails and tea bushes of the vast estate and frequently come across the workers who manually do this harvesting, a pretty labor intensive process.

And did you know that an experienced worker can pick up to 60 pounds of tea a day which produces about 15 pounds of the final product.

These freshly picked leaves are spread out on trays and hot air is blown over them for up to twenty four hours to drive out the moisture. This is known as the withering process and during this phase the leaves lose about 40% of their weight. During the drying process the leaves turn a dark shade of green. Leaves that are to be made into black tea are then rolled and broken up with machines to release their enzymes and essential oils, preparing them for the oxidation process.

In my next post (part 2 of 3), I will discuss the oxidation and fermentation process.  Part 3 will be the final section on tea where you will find out how manufacturing is done to create black, green, oolong, and white teas and what makes these teas different from each other.

Every month or so for many years now, a group of my friends and I get together for an evening of laughter, fun and feasting that has included my friend Tiffany’s Vietnamese Spring Rolls (absolutely divine!), Nima’s Turkey Meatball Curry (out of this world delicious!) or most recently Vani’s Sprouted Moong Bean Salad, which was not only refreshing and super healthy, but tasted amazing.

Today I am sharing with you the Sprouted Moong Bean Salad recipe, compliments of Vani. Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 2 cups sprouted moong beans
• 1 medium size pickle style cucumber, cut into cubes
• 2 medium tomatoes cut into cubes
• ½ yellow pepper cut into pieces
• ½ cup shredded carrot
• ½ cup shredded cabbage

Dressing

• 1 table spoon lime juice
• 1 tea spoon ginger juice
• 1 table spoon yogurt
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 1 tsp roasted grounded cumin seeds
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Cilantro to garnish

Whisk all ingredients for dressing together, pour over the beans and let it sit together for about 10 minutes. Add all the vegetables in a bowl and layer the beans on top and gently toss it all together.. Garnish with cilantro.

Picture source: salaambaalaktrust.com

If you are in the New Delhi area of India and would like to participate in an unusual experience – you may want to take an inner city walk with the Salaam Baalak Trust.

This organization works with street children in Delhi, providing them with a caring, secure environment which includes five 24-hour full care shelters for children, while providing them with a means to an education, and ultimately the opportunity to live full, enriched, meaningful lives.

Some of these children such as Shamsul, due to poverty and family problems, boarded a train from his home state at the age of 11 to New Delhi where he spent one a and half years picking rags in and around the railway station before being picked up by one of the trust staff. Shamsul received an education and is now a young man earning a good salary at a media company.

This is not a slum tour, this is a walk through the backstreets of New Delhi led by your young, fully trained guide who was once living and working on the streets, where you will view the world through their eyes as they share with you their life journeys. This tour is also one of the services that we offer as part of our Himalayan Boot Camp vacations.

You can read more on the lives of these children at the Salaam Baalak Trust website and if you are interested in helping the center does have volunteer opportunities.

Picture source: Photobucket (exmanforever)

The Acai berry also contains anthocyanins and flavonoids, powerful in helping the body fight oxidative stress and disease. According to experts, these substances play a significant role in the body’s cell protection system and a diet rich in antioxidants help counteract the aging process by neutralizing the free radicals in our bodies that destroy our cells.

Anthocyanins create the red, purple and deep blue tone in many fruits, flowers and vegetables such as red grapes, blueberries, blackberries and the acai fruit pulp according to some studies, indicate higher antioxidant properties than cranberries, strawberries or even blueberries.

Acai oil is also an antioxidant powerhouse as an ingredient in cosmetics as the processed oil appears to have a longer shelf life and the antioxidant levels continue to remain high.

So why am I writing these posts about these superfruits? Because I am exploring a “vitamin stick” product high in anti-oxidants from these superfruits, including the means to absorb them into our cells effectively so the body can function at its optimum for a longer, healthier life. I certainly don’t believe these superfruits are the cure all for everything and there are a lot of scams out there, however if they contribute to a healthier mind and body then I am definitely interested in finding out the best way to utilize them. After all, research has indicated that living past 100, in fact up to 120 years of age is not pie in the sky any longer, and although some of it can be attributed to out genes, how we live contributes significantly to this longevity. Therefore I am of the opinion that if we take care of ourselves holistically, coupled with advances in technology and medicine, we can become vibrant, active, and healthy super-centenarians.

And why not? What do you think?

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Picture source: patagoniamaqui.com

The first super fruit I am starting with is the Maqui Berry. Did you know that the Maqui berry is one of the most powerful known botanical antioxidants?

Antioxidants are critical in fighting free radicals that contribute to our aging process. Fro example, they help protect our blood vessels from the oxidative damage of these free radicals, they provide anti-inflammatory benefits, help our nervous system and generally help us stay healthy. Although we cannot stop our bodies from growing older we can definitely take steps to improve our health as we age by paying attention to the nutrients we put into our bodies.

There has been some significant research on this purple fruit known as the Maqui berry found in the Patagonian region of South America, with findings that indicate its potential to improve our immune system and protect our bodies from a variety of health conditions.

The maqui berry is packed with anthocyanins and polyphenols, which have the ability to neutralize free radicals and help fight disease in our bodies, according to scientific studies. It also has the highest ORAC value per serving. So what is an orac value? Well, it stands for Oxygen Radical Absorbsion Capacity and it is the scale which measures the amount of antioxidants that food contains and its ability to absorb free radicals.

Keep in mind though that just because a food product has a high amount of antioxidants does not necessarily mean your body will actually use them all as the ORAC ratings do not calculate the actual absorption rates of the body. So you still need a mechanism to ensure that your body maximizes the benefits of these high antioxidant rich foods. I will talk more about this in future posts.

In my next post later this week, I will discuss the Acai berry and how it compares to the Maqui berry.

On March 11, I had the pleasure of meeting Pete Carcione, president of the Golden Gate Produce Terminal and owner of Carcione’s Fresh Produce, and experienced a wonderful visit and glimpse into the busy activities of the wholesale produce warehouses at the Golden Gate Produce Terminal.

Pete’s family has been in the produce business for over 90 years, starting with his grandfather who came to America as a teenager and opened a small produce store in San Francisco.  You may also remember Pete’s father Joe Carcione, who hosted snippets of advice and tips for fruits and vegetables on television in the 1980′s. Joe also wrote a newspaper column, published two books, and was syndicated on about 80 television stations nationwide for his television and radio spots.

The family legacy continues through Pete Carcione, whose wholesale produce business has been supplying fresh, high quality fruits and vegetables for 35 years to over 400 stores and restaurants throughout northern California.

Pete is currently in the process of re-publishing one of his father’s books,  The Greengrocer Cookbook which is currently out of print but appears to still be in popular demand,  and I am so honored that some of the recipes from my book The Deity Diet are going to be featured in the upcoming release of The Greengrocer Cookbook.

As I drove through the gates of the Golden Gate Produce Terminal, I was absolutely amazed at the size of it – multiple wholesale produce distributors in huge warehouses spread out over 17 acres and 200,000 square feet – filled with farm fresh produce of fruits and vegetables, literally from floor to ceiling, spread out into the street – boxes and boxes of delicious, colorful oranges, apples, Swiss chard, rhubarb, crates of beans, avocados, pineapples, and mangoes from local farms and countries as far away as France and Chile.

It was an art just dodging the forklifts beeping and moving about while they load the shipments on trucks destined for local grocery stores and restaurants. By 9:30 AM most of the activity had slowed down as trucks took off for their deliveries.

I tasted succulent, crunchy baby cucumbers, and sampled fragrant, juicy Mandarin oranges that were dripping with sweetness. I learned about the Name,  (pronounced “Nami”) a tuber which looks like an oversized potato but filled with antioxidants and vitamins, and how to pick the best mangoes (but that is another blog post).

I was pleasantly surprised to find out that the produce terminal is not just for business customers but is open to the general public as well. It is located near the San Francisco International airport at  131 Terminal Ct, South San Francisco, CA.

So the next time you are out and about you may want to drop in – maybe you will be lucky enough to pick up a fresh box of sweet, juicy Mandarin oranges for a lot less than what you will pay at your local grocery chain.

Until next time, here’s to your abundant living!

Connie Umbenhower

In addition to wholesome carrots, apples and nuts, one serving of this salad contains nutrient rich Kale and Swiss Chard loaded with minerals and Vitamins A, C and K (one cup of Kale provides over 300% of Vitamin A and 80% of your Vitamin C daily needs, while Swiss Chard provides 374% of your Vitamin K daily needs).

Red, Yellow and Green Bell Peppers are high in antioxidants, phytochemicals and lycopene, and known to fight heart disease, stroke and cancer; while Cilantro is powerful cleansing agent, good for the digestion and full of antibacterial qualities.

Ingredients

• 2 cups Red Swiss Chard, chopped
• 2 cups Kale, chopped
• 2 cups Romaine lettuce, chopped
• 1 cup celery, chopped
• 1 cup red apple, chopped
• 1 cup red pepper, chopped
• 1 cup yellow pepper, chopped
• ½ cup shredded carrots
• ½ cup finely chopped cilantro
• ¼ cup slivered almonds (sprinkle over finished salad)

Directions

1. Wash vegetables and apples thoroughly, prepare and drain using a salad spinner so salad is nice and dry. Mix thoroughly in a large bowl.
2. Sprinkle slivered almonds over the top of the salad and serve with your favourite dressing.

Serves 6-8

I would like to provide my guests the opportunity to interact and give back to the local communities in India they visit during their Himalayan Boot Camp journeys. I truly believe that it can be a rewarding experience if one has brightened the life of someone less fortunate in the community one left behind after the vacation is over.

I am thinking of providing this interaction at a couple of the local schools that cater to the more impoverished children. Here are just a couple of my ideas for my guests:

1. Take 3-4 books and have a storybook session with the children. The local children will love this!
2. An afternoon of crafts with the children using supplies we take from here that those children have never seen and can take home with them (paper dolls, painting etc – the possibilities are endless)
3. Distribute some clothes (T-Shirts?) and have some afternoon refreshments and snacks.

These are just small things but they are a start. I grew up in this area of Meghalaya, India and know exactly how much brightness this will bring to the children. I am not sure where this idea will take me but I just have this gut feeling that both the givers and receivers of this kindness will be so blessed and the memories will be amazing.

Please provide feedback – tell me what you think. I also welcome any additional ideas you may have.

Here’s to a brighter world for children!

Connie

The poor man had never met so many relatives. Nor had he been what I consider so fortunate as to taste so many kinds of authentic home-made curries!

One of the most memorable aspects of that birthday celebration was, of course, the food. This was one of those Indian occasions where a wide variety of cultural delicacies was served. My Uncle Hubert, who was quite talented at making outstanding curries, volunteered to be in charge of the dinner. Uncle Hubert immediately called three of his old army buddies to assist him, along with my nephew Oliver.

They all showed up early on the morning of November 11th, my daughter’s birthday, and set out creating a commotion, banging and clanging pots and pans and utensils and ingredients, as they put together a makeshift kitchen in my grandmother’s backyard.

All day long one delicious smell after another drifted in from the backyard, until the guests began arriving and we transferred the food from the huge pots on the wood fires into serving bowls inside.

Some of the recipes for the food Uncle Hubert and his friends made that day are included in this book: Cumin Chicken, Saffron Flavored Rice Pilaf, Slow-Cooked Marinated Beef (a specialty of my grandfather’s when he was alive), Northeastern Indian Dal, Mint, Tomato and Cucumber Salad, and Daikon Salad. The food was authentic, delicious, and memorable, made from my uncle’s own favorite recipes, adjusted to fit the occasion.

My grandmother performed the ancestor blessings for my daughter’s future – the blessings for good health, peace, joy, prosperity, and abundance. Our culture considers these essential to a child’s future. My Uncle Roosevelt, as the honored Grand Uncle, added his blessings as well. My daughter probably received more blessings that day than most people get in a lifetime.

To this day my husband and I treasure our memories of that visit. We have passed them on to our daughter so she knows all about her First Birthday Indian Feast.