© 1994, Excerpted with permission from Ayurvedic Cooking for Self-Healing by Usha and Dr. Vasant Lad

Serves 4

The Qualities of Carrots

Carrots have many qualities—sweet, bitter, pungent, heating, light, sharp. For pitta, go easy on the chili, garlic, mustard seeds, and hing and eat in moderation. Cooked carrots are sweet and heating with a pungent vipaka, so this recipe is particularly balancing for vata and kapha. Medicinal Uses: A good food for hemorrhoids, water retention, and blood building. It is an excellent brain tonic and aids deep thinking. Doshic Notes Vata = Pitta = Kapha =

Ingredients

4 cups carrots 1 small handful fresh cilantro, chopped 1/2small green chili, chopped 1 and 1/2 inch ginger, fresh, finely chopped 2 cloves garlic, chopped 2 Tbs coconut, shredded, unsweetened 1/2 cup water 1 Tbs ghee 1/2 tsp black mustard seeds 1/2 tsp cumin seeds 1 pinch hing 1/4 tsp salt  

Preparation

Wash and grate the carrots medium fine. Put the cilantro, chili, ginger, garlic, coconut, and water in a blender and blend on high until liquid. Heat a pot on medium and add the ghee, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, and hing. When the seeds pop, add the blended mixture and salt, then brown very slightly. Stir in the carrots, cover and cook on medium heat until just tender, about 10 minutes. Stir occasionally.