How to Make Spicy Pumpkin Chai

SERVINGS: 2

PREP TIME: 5 MINUTES

COOK TIME: 0 MINUTES

MEAL: DRINK

STYLE: AYURVEDIC

PREPARATION: SMOOTHIE, BOILED, PUREE

EAT IN: AUTUMN-WINTER

FOR OCCASION: ON-THE-MEND

How Does This Ayurvedic Recipe Improve Wellness?

CLINICAL AYURVEDIC REVIEW

Like a steaming hot cup of liquid pumpkin pie, spicy pumpkin chai is warm, cozy, and colorful for the fall season and changing leaves. Almond milk adds grounding heartiness. Cooked pumpkins are soft and comforting- perfect to warm and soften a dry, windy fall day.

De-Stress with Pumpkin Chai

Autumn is a season of deficiency and change, provoking higher stress levels. Your body needs help weathering the changes of autumn. Nourishing, seasonal foods like pumpkin and nervines like nutmeg make you feel calm and stable. Pumpkin and nutmeg are both mild sedatives, so they work beautifully together to reduce stress.

Choose an evening in, sipping steaming Pumpkin Chai over constant socialization. Wearing yourself ragged keeping up with October's social calendar can result in compromised immunity for flu season come November. Focusing attention inward frees up energy to help your body prepare for winter. According to Ayurveda, keeping your nervous system stable through fall is your No. 1 tool for maintaining strong immunity and staying healthy.

Protect Yourself from Fall Deficiency

In fall when the temperature starts to drop, your body scrambles to protect itself from heat loss. Nourishing foods are enticing, helping to fortify deficient tissue, thicken your skin, and insulate from the cold. In addition to nourishing tissue, pumpkin chai is also a rasayana (meaning tonic). Pumpkins, ghee, almonds, and sugar all build ojas in time for the coming winter. Ojas is Ayurveda's word for nourishment - offering strength, immunity and a sparkle in your eye. Pumpkin Chai is perfectly nourishing and fortifying, calming your nervous system and strengthening your deepest cells.

Pumpkins are orange because of beta-carotene, a precursor to vitamin A. Beta-carotene is also in carrots and encourages healing through rejuvenation and regeneration of tissue. Orange foods with beta-carotene are generally liver tonics that clear any residue of the heat damage from the weather and intensity of the summer. They also purify the blood and soothe the eyes. The cooling demulcent and laxative properties of pumpkin soothe the GI tract.

Spiced to Taste & Digest

Spices make these heavy ingredients lighter for digestion, and pumpkin a bit less gas-forming. While all spices stimulate circulation, cloves specifically move heat to the surface of the body, warming up cold extremities. For Kapha types reduce ghee to one tsp and substitute one tbsp honey instead of sugar.

WHAT IS SPICY PUMPKIN CHAI?

AYURVEDA'S GUIDE TO VITALITY & WHOLESOME NOURISHMENT

Your Ayurvedic diet is tailored to your individual body and your specific imbalances. With an Ayurvedic diet you feel joy and satisfaction because what you are eating truly nourishes and balances you. Disease results from diets and lifestyles that are incompatible with your nature. By eating a personalized diet matched to your body, you experience optimal health. See How it Works.

See a complete list of all biocharacteristics.

INCREASES Increases These Biocharacteristics (Gunas) Functional Ayurveda helps you assess imbalances through 20 main biocharacteristics (gunas). Aggravating these characteristics weakens your body and causes imbalance. By knowing which characteristics are habitually imbalanced in your body, you will be able to identify and correct imbalances before you get sick. Every characteristic has an opposite which balances it (i.e. hot balances cold). You restore balance by favoring diet and lifestyle choices that increase the opposite characteristic. Learn More	MOBILE ABOUT MOBILE BIOCHARACTERISTIC Mobile refers to anything that stimulates the nervous system, muscles, or activity. LEARN MORE ABOUT MOBILE GOOEY ABOUT GOOEY BIOCHARACTERISTIC Gooey is identified by anything gelatinous (such as oatmeal), or by mucus congestion. LEARN MORE ABOUT GOOEY
TASTES The 6 Tastes Taste is used to sense the most basic properties and effects of food. Each taste has a specific medicinal effect on your body. Cravings for food with certain tastes indicate your body is craving specific medicinal results from food. Taste is experienced on the tongue and represents your body's reaction to foods. Sweet taste causes physical satisfaction and attraction whereas bitter taste causes discomfort and aversion. Kapha should use less sweet taste while Vata and Pitta would benefit from using more sweet taste. One of the first signs of illness is that your taste and appetite for food changes. The six tastes are sweet, sour, salty, pungent, bitter, and astringent. Do you crave foods with any of the tastes below? Learn More	SWEET ABOUT SWEET BIOCHARACTERISTIC Sweet refers to anything builds tissue, including macronutrients such as carbohydrates, proteins and fats. LEARN MORE ABOUT SWEET ASTRINGENT ABOUT ASTRINGENT BIOCHARACTERISTIC Astringency is characterized by constriction, drawing together, or drying. LEARN MORE ABOUT ASTRINGENT
DOSHAS The Three Doshas / Body Types According to the biocharacteristic theory of medicine, people tend to get sick, over and over again, due to habitual causes and imbalances that are unique to the person. Your body type summarizes this tendency, showing you the 'type' of conditions and imbalances that frequently challenge your health & wellness. Using body type, you can also identify remedies likely to improve your strength and resiliency. Your body type identifies physical and mental characteristics as well as your personal strengths and weaknesses. The calculation of your body type is based on your medical history. The 3 functional body types (doshas), are Catabolic (Vata), Metabolic (Pitta), and Anabolic (Kapha). Catabolic individuals tend to break down body mass into energy. They are easily stimulated, hyperactive, underweight and dry. Metabolic individuals tend to burn or use energy. They tend to be rosy-cheeked, easily irritated, focused, driven, and easily inflamed. Anabolic individuals tend to store energy as body mass. If they store too much energy, they could gain weight easily and have congestion. Anabolic people tend to be stable and grounded. Learn More	PACIFIES AGGRAVATES
HAS THE FOLLOWING	Subtaste: Aromatic AROMATIC Herbs or spices with volatile essential oils that present strong aromas. Aromatic oils shock, refresh and numb tissue, with the end result of relaxing, opening and clearing stagnant fluids in tissues. SEE ALL 'AROMATIC' FOODS / HERBS , Bland BLAND Bland means doesn't have much taste. In Chinese medicine, bland taste refers to afood without little macronutrients, such as cabbage, radish or bok choy. SEE ALL 'BLAND' FOODS / HERBS , Acrid ACRID Acrid taste is a combination of bitter and pungent tastes. Example include radish, turnip, and coffee. SEE ALL 'ACRID' FOODS / HERBS
HERBAL ACTIONS (see all)	Medicinal Benefits, Uses & Herbal Actions of Spicy Pumpkin Chai Experiences are Personal Experiences vary according to the person and constitution. Individual results may vary. The list of herbal-actions below has not be approved by the FDA and should not be used to treat a medical condition. Digestion: Warms Abdomen WARMS-ABDOMEN Warms the muscles and organs of the abdomen, stimulating digestion and metabolism. SEE ALL 'WARMS-ABDOMEN' FOODS / HERBS , Digestive DIGESTIVE Herbs that encourage healthy digestion. SEE ALL 'DIGESTIVE' FOODS / HERBS , Carminative CARMINATIVE Stimulates the release of gas. Helpful for bloating or cramping abdominal pain. Propels food downward. Carminatives typically expel gas by relaxing the muscles of the intestines. SEE ALL 'CARMINATIVE' FOODS / HERBS , Appetizer APPETIZER Herbs that cleanse the palate & stimulate hunger or desire to eat. SEE ALL 'APPETIZER' FOODS / HERBS Bowel Health: Relieves Burning RELIEVES-BURNING Herbs that soothe a burn or reduce an internal burning sensation, such as aloe vera. SEE ALL 'RELIEVES-BURNING' FOODS / HERBS Cleanse & Detox: Burns Toxins BURNS-TOXINS An herb that detoxifies by helping your body metabolize toxins, as opposed to eliminating them. SEE ALL 'BURNS-TOXINS' FOODS / HERBS Mind, Stress & Sleep: Makes You Tired MAKES-YOU-TIRED Induces drowsiness and promotes sound sleep. SEE ALL 'MAKES-YOU-TIRED' FOODS / HERBS , Makes Jittery, Wakes You Up WAKES-YOU-UP Invigorates the body and nervous system, increases energy. SEE ALL 'WAKES-YOU-UP' FOODS / HERBS , Nerve Relaxant Grounding NERVE-RELAXANT-GROUNDING Encourages feelings of stability and heaviness. Makes you feel settled, mentally relaxed. Mildly sedates the nervous system to ease stress. Can bring a spacey or anxious person back to earth. Reduces agitation, irritation, stress and racing thoughts. SEE ALL 'NERVE-RELAXANT-GROUNDING' FOODS / HERBS , Numbs Anasthetic NUMBS-ANASTHETIC Inhibits sensation in a particular area. SEE ALL 'NUMBS-ANASTHETIC' FOODS / HERBS , Relaxes Eyes RELAXES-EYES Eases tension in eye muscles, so the eyes feel less strained, often by supporting the liver. SEE ALL 'RELAXES-EYES' FOODS / HERBS , Nerve Stimulant NERVE-STIMULANT Provide short lived stimulation of the nervous system. SEE ALL 'NERVE-STIMULANT' FOODS / HERBS Energy Vitality: Stimulates Energy STIMULATES-ENERGY This category groups thyroid and adrenal stimulating herbs. SEE ALL 'STIMULATES-ENERGY' FOODS / HERBS , Satisfies Stomach SATISFIES-STOMACH Provides a sense of gratification and fullness in the stomach. SEE ALL 'SATISFIES-STOMACH' FOODS / HERBS , Nutritive NUTRITIVE An herb that is strengthening and nourishing. SEE ALL 'NUTRITIVE' FOODS / HERBS Skin Care & Beauty: Diaphoretic DIAPHORETIC An herb that induces sweating, often by dilating blood vessels close to the skin. SEE ALL 'DIAPHORETIC' FOODS / HERBS Respiratory-Health: Warms Chest WARMS-CHEST Warms the chest and lungs, clearing mucus and allowing for clear breathing. Often these herbs are hot, aromatic, and pungent. SEE ALL 'WARMS-CHEST' FOODS / HERBS , Soothes Throat SOOTHES-THROAT Soothes throat discomfort, including from a sore or ticklish throat. SEE ALL 'SOOTHES-THROAT' FOODS / HERBS Heart & Circulation: Cardiac Stimulant CARDIAC-STIMULANT Herbs that increase the heart rate. Useful in cardiovascular health, blood stagnation, and subjective feeling of heaviness in the chest area. SEE ALL 'CARDIAC-STIMULANT' FOODS / HERBS , Warms Ears WARMS-EARS Stimulates peripheral circulation to warm extremities, including the ears. SEE ALL 'WARMS-EARS' FOODS / HERBS , Warms Head WARMS-HEAD An herb that increases sensations of heat and warmth in the head. SEE ALL 'WARMS-HEAD' FOODS / HERBS , Vasodilator VASODILATOR A vasodilator is an herb that widens the blood vessels by the relaxation of smooth muscle cells within the vessel walls, thereby increasing circulation systemically or to a local area. SEE ALL 'VASODILATOR' FOODS / HERBS Strength, Muscle Health: Relieves Tension RELIEVES-TENSION An herb that releases tightness, constriction, and rigidity in a muscle. SEE ALL 'RELIEVES-TENSION' FOODS / HERBS , Muscle Relaxant MUSCLE-RELAXANT Herbs that relax muscles. Helpful for chronic pain or tension as well as healing from physical trauma. SEE ALL 'MUSCLE-RELAXANT' FOODS / HERBS Constituents: Carbohydrate, Fats, Coumarin COUMARIN Moderately toxic, vascular tonic, hypotensive, and anti-inflammatory. SEE ALL 'COUMARIN' FOODS / HERBS , Sodium, Beta Carotene, Iron IRON Iron is necessary for the transport of oxygen in red blood cells. SEE ALL 'IRON' FOODS / HERBS , Vitamin A, Potassium

Foods with a Similar Nature to Spicy Pumpkin Chai

Herb Supplements with a Similar Nature to Spicy Pumpkin Chai

Joyful Belly is a recognized school of biocharacteristics medicine.