A Balanced Bowl

Today it’s my pleasure to introduce to you the Balanced Bowl. It is a way of proportioning our food that ensures we have the right amount of augmenting and extractive foods in our diet to best support our overall health and vitality.

Augmenting foods usually have the sweet taste and are nourishing and grounding for our bodies and minds. These include most grains and fruits, some vegetables such as beets, carrots, sweet potatoes, zucchini, and others. It also includes some seaweeds and also organic dairy like buttermilk, ghee, and fresh milk and cheeses. Ideally, 60% of each meal would be made up of augmenting foods to keep our bodies strong, nourished, and vital.

The other 40% of our plate would be made up of extractive foods. These foods are cleansing in nature and take a little more energy for the body to digest. This category includes foods such as most beans and legumes, nuts, and certain vegetables like artichoke asparagus, cabbage, cauliflower, greens, and others.

A balanced bowl consists of an augmenting vegetable and an augmenting grain for 60% of the plate and the other 40% is made from an extractive vegetable and a bean or legume. We can also use nuts and seeds to add to the extractive portion or some avocado to add to the augmenting.

When we balance our plates in this way, with 60% augmenting and 40% extractive foods, we will find that it supports our overall health, physical strength, and mental well-being. It doesn’t always have to be a bowl either; it can be a veggie roll, a pizza, taco, or lasagna. As long as it is made with high quality, organic food in these proportions, it will be bringing you towards a balanced diet. I encourage you to give it a try and see how it feels to you!

Below I have included a list of some augmenting and extractive foods so you can come up with your own balanced bowl. Be sure to cook your food with high quality oils such as cold-pressed olive, sunflower, coconut, sesame, or ghee. Including these oils in our diet keeps things running smoothly and nourishes our tissues. It is also a great idea to cook with spices like cumin, coriander, fennel, cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, and others to make your meal even more digestible and flavorful.

The balanced bowl I have made here includes basmati rice with cumin, coriander, and fennel seeds, split mung dal, sautéed kale, and roasted sweet potatoes with a half and avocado and some cilantro chutney.

Have fun and enjoy!