Recipe Share that may help with sleep! Nourishing Yin with honey, sesame walnut treats.
Hi all! I wanted to do a recipe share as a follow up to the three part sleep blog series. If you haven’t read it yet click the link and take a read to part 3 at least. I just wanted to do a quick share of a recipe that I often recommend to my clients who are having difficulty with with sleep. I am going to include two variations because on has walnuts and I recognize that some people are allergic to them. I will often recommend that people have one of these treats with a cup of tea before bed as part of their night time ritual. I also remind them that food therapy is subtle and that consistency is key. So give it a week or two to really notice the changes. Pay attention to your body because they may be subtle.
There are two reasons that I will often recommend that people add these treats to their sleep routines.
These treats (esp the first recipe) nourish the yin. Night time is yin, its cool, is quiet, dark, calm and at times when we have difficulty with sleeping we may not have enough yin, our bodies, minds feel too busy, active, hot. So I recommend supporting the yin with some subtle food therapy.
These treats can help support the blood sugar during the night. For some people waking in the middle of the night can be due to a sudden drop in blood sugar. This dip can sort of jolt the body awake.
I first discovered the original recipe from a book that I have called Ancient Wisdom, Modern Kitchen by Yuan Wang, Warren Sheir, and Miko Ono (which is a wonderful cook book and I would recommend to anyone who likes to cook Asian recipes and using food as therapy). The two variations I am going to share today are from two different resources and I will be sharing their information as well so you can check out their websites and full articles.
Here we go:
This first recipe is a variation from the original in Ancient Wisdom, Modern Kitchen and shared by Tara Gregory from the site is called Stick Out Your Tongue. Check out the site I love the full article she includes with this recipe.
Honey Sesame and Walnut Spice Balls
Ingredients
½ cup black sesame seeds
1/3 to ½ cup chopped walnut pieces
3-4 tablespoons honey
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
1/8- ¼ teaspoon ginger powder
¼ teaspoon cardamom
Directions
Roast the sesame seeds in a cast iron skillet over medium heat for 5 minutes or until the seeds become fragrant. Make sure to shake the skillet occasionally to keep the sesame seeds from burning. Transfer the seeds to a bowl and allow to cool.
In a food processor combine all the ingredients and whir until completely mixed. Adjust spices as desired.
Roll into ½ – ¾ inch balls. If the mixture doesn’t stick together add more honey and whirl until incorporated.
Enjoy!
Variation #2
This one is a little more complicated and does contain more sweetener but it does address a bit more then just yin. This variation is meant to address the “Five Zang” organs, the Heart, Kidney, Liver, Lungs, and Spleen/Pancreas. This recipe is from Laura McKinley of Laura McKinley Acupuncture. She adapted this recipe from Pamela Shaw of Quaternity Holistic. Read the rest of Larua’s blog post here, it is really good.
Recipe: Herbaceous Black Sesame & Honey "Truffles"
Makes 30+ 1-inch balls. Serving size: 1 ball
Ingredients
3 cups black sesame seeds
1/3 cup honey
3/4 cup maple syrup
3 Tbsp dried orange peel pieces
2 Tbsp green cardamom pods
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 pinches salt
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 Tbsp cocoa powder
3 cups dried rose petals
1/2 cup almond flour
Recipe
Toast the black sesame seeds until fragrant and beginning to pop. Set aside to cool.
Combine cooled sesame seeds and honey in a food processor. The result will be a thick, sticky paste.
Powder the orange peels, cardamom pods, and rose petals in a grinder.
Combine the powdered herbs with the cinnamon and cocoa powder. Taste. The flavor should be herbaceous, fragrant, and a bit bitter. Add more spices/cocoa, if needed. Remember, you are mixing with plenty of sugar later, so sweetness will be added.
Combine 3 Tbsp of the powdered herb mixture with the almond flour and set aside.
Sift the remaining powdered herbs into the sesame/honey paste. Re-grind larger bits as needed until you are able to pass all of the herb mixture through a sifter.
Either by hand or using a large food processor, stir the herbs into the sesame/honey mixture until it is the consistency of pea-sized breadcrumbs.
Simmer maple syrup in a small pot for 10 minutes to thicken. Allow to cool for 10 minutes
Stir maple syrup into the sesame "breadcrumbs" until it comes together into one mass of dough.
Taste. This is the main flavor of your "truffle." Add additional spices or honey, if desired.
Roll the dough into 1-inch balls.
Roll each ball in the herb/almond flour mixture and place in a resealable container.
Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours to set.
"Truffles" will keep for up to 2 weeks in a covered container in the fridge.
Laura's Tips
Toast the sesame seeds in batches so as not to overcrowd your pan. Shake the pan often while toasting.
Don't have a grinder? You can also use a mortar and pestle to grind the orange peels, cardamom pods, and rose petals, just be prepared for a forearm workout. If you have a coffee grinder, I recommend thoroughly washing it rather than opting for the mortar and pestle. Your arms will thank you later.
Don't have a sifter? A small mesh sieve works great to sift in the powdered herbs. The goal is to avoid large herbal bits in your "truffles."
As always, prep makes your life easier! When it comes to rolling time, line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Place your rolled balls here to make clean up a breeze.
Looking for ingredients in Denver? Natural Grocers is your one stop shop for everything you need for this recipe. Apothecary Tinctura is also a great option to purchase the orange peel, rose petals, and cardamom.
I hope you give these a try