Have you ever gone out to eat, ordered something healthy off the menu, but then just felt significantly off after your meal? Maybe bloating, gas or just perplexingly lousy? The truth is, even if a restaurant claims they use all organic or wholesome ingredients, we never really know what is going on behind the kitchen doors. Recently, our team went out to eat and discovered a local Los Angeles hot spot was secretly dosing their meals with refined and parlous Canola Oil. And, sure enough, we felt the effects almost immediately. But, this event inspired a luminous idea. Many people claim that restaurant style Mexican food, negating the deletable Gracias Madre, isn’t healthy, and with our recent discovery, we were afraid to investigate further. But, we have proven that you can make flavorful and nutritious Mexican food that will enliven your senses. We have created the perfect, grain-free, gluten-free, sugar-free and guilt-free Cinco De Mayo meal recipe that is sure to impress even the pickiest eater at the table. So celebrate in style, invite friends and give your stomaches the love they deserve with truly finger-licking goodness!

Yam and Black Bean Tacos (Serves 2)

1 large yam
1 organic avocado
1 oz. organic mango
1 oz. microgreens
1-2 teaspoons Better Bean Uncanny Refried Black Beans
1-2 tablespoons Burn Fermented Serrano Hot Sauce
1 tablespoon Leaf Cuisine Vegan Peppery Jack Cheese
3-4 Siete Cassava and Chia Tortillas
Pinch of Celtic Light Grey Sea Salt
Dollop of Garden of Life Extra Raw Virgin Coconut Oil

First, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cut the yam into rounds and brush with coconut oil. Then, roast or bake for 15 minutes. When finished, either slice or mash your yams for desired result. Sprinkle on black pepper and sea salt. Next, place your tortillas in the oven or on a stovetop pan for 1 minute to slightly heat up. Once warm, spread the yams in the middle of the tortilla and add the black beans alongside. Add a few slices of mango and avocado to the middle and sprinkle the microgreens on top. Then, crumble a small amount of your vegan cheese of choice. Last and certainly not least, add the fermented hot sauce to top it off.

Cauliflower Rice and Cuban Black Beans (Serves 2-3)

*Optional: 2 garlic cloves and 1/2 cup onion

You may use frozen cauliflower rice or use a food processor to chop fresh, organic cauliflower. Add your cauliflower rice to the stove top with a touch of coconut oil. Heat on medium for 5 minutes. Then, add your black beans to the cauliflower. Sauté in garlic and onion if needed. Leave on stove top and add your desired amount of salt to taste.

Nourishing Nachos (Serves 3 - 4)

1/2 bag of Siete Sea Salt Grain Free Tortilla Chips
1/2 cup Better Bean Cuban Black Beans or Better Bean Uncanny Refried Black Beans
1 organic avocado
1 oz. microgreens

Add your tortilla chips to your plate. Next, dice up avocado into small cubes and sprinkle on the chips. Pour on your black beans of choice and scatter the micro greens. (We love using our Nourishing Nachos as a spoon to scoop up our delicious Cauliflower Rice and Cuban Black Bean dish!)

Sima Morrison, founder of House of Citrine, is a vibrant soul with a potent zest for life and the beauty in its simple pleasures. As a holistic nutritionist, Sima has made it her life's journey to experience, to empower, and to explore the synergy between the mind and the body. She manifests her vision through her online journal, designing recipes and cultivating conversation in the sharing of health, wellness, and inspiration. Sima lives with an open heart and views being in service to others as her most important calling, practicing compassion and helping people to heal past trauma. She is a certified Kundalini yoga instructor and meditation facilitator.

The holidays are a time to come together with those we love and celebrate community and family. For many, however, the holidays can serve as a trigger for those we have lost, what we feel we lack, not to mention a flurry of obligations that bring more stress than pleasure. Now more than ever it is crucial for us to invest in sacred-selfishness; to embrace self care that nourishes our spirit and elevates our overall experience. Let’s explore what you can do to invite stress-free, soulfulness to your holiday season that heals as much as it nurtures.

Embrace what feels good

This time of year can leave us with a high paced energy that is pushing us beyond our limits. There is so much to do on top of our normal, day to day activities that we can feel depleted and exhausted of our vitality. I encourage each of us to check in with how we are feeling. Are we spending too much time doing things that drain us or leave us feeling poorly and not enough time doing those things that replenish our energy and revitalize us? This is a time when we must be willing to ask ourselves what would feel good for us. Invite in all the senses. Perhaps we need a hot bath with some lavender and rosemary essential oils. We could spend extra time to sit in meditation and simply appreciate stillness. Perhaps this month we increase the time we spend at the gym or in the yoga studio so that we can provide our bodies an additional outlet for the stress. Allow yourself to find several ways to engage your senses in such a way that it feels nourishing and releasing.

Give yourself permission

When we begin to spend extra time on ourselves, especially in a holiday so consumed with buying and doing for others (which can feel good for some of us, too!), there is a tendency for guilt consciousness to rise to the surface. Know that we when take time to replenish our energy, to cultivate centeredness for ourselves we can show up in a richer, deeper way for those around us. Boundaries that safely allow us to tend to our own needs are an essential part of our self care. Should guilt arise take a moment to honor this quality within you and lovingly release guilt affirming that there is no greater spiritual act than to show up for ourselves in a powerful and meaningful way.

Learn to say no

Along with embracing what feels good and giving ourselves permission to take care of ourselves we must also get comfortable saying no. For many of us this is a difficult task-a trigger all on its own, but it’s equally a powerful boundary that protects our energetic, emotional and even physical well-being. If you know that a certain family member that you have a deep wound with is attending a family function, assess whether you are honoring yourself by saying yes to something which may prove very difficult for you and for those around you. If you are feeling drained after a long week of work and cannot fathom attending the work holiday party it's ok to say no. Part of our reluctance to saying no is a fear of letting others down but when we say yes even when we want to say no we let ourselves down. Honor how you feel and if you are not feeling it, say no.

Be of service

For many who live away from family or simply chose to not attend family functions there can be a void when you see commercials and hear co-workers and friends regaling tales of their holiday traditions. A great way to nourish our spirit and to fill a void left when we lack the support we desire during the holidays is to spend time being of service to our communities. Get in touch with local women’s shelters, retirement centers or animal shelters. Sometimes one of the most enriching and soul-lifting experiences can come when we see another shining bright simply by our presence.

While there may be many things about this holiday season we cannot change, or avoid we always control how we react and what we hand our power over to. Hold your power close this season and know that there are many ways to tend to our spirit and find peace during the holiday season. The more that we honor ourselves, chose to act with authenticity, and tend to our internal well the more we can stay above the stress of the season. We can heal and release wounds that have often sullied this holiday for us and we can make new memories and traditions of our own choosing that lift ourselves, and those around us to new heights.

Have a wonderful holiday season, no matter how you chose to spend it. I wish you many blessings as we enter a most bountiful 2017

Laura Brown is a Seeress, Intuitive Coach and Medicine Woman. She is the Goddess and Creatrix at Intuitive Alchemy, a sacred sanctuary for Intuitive Readings & Coaching, Spiritual Development as well as online Apothecary. Ever a sacred Alchemist, Laura blends her skills as a Channeler, Clairvoyant, Reiki Healer, Tarotist and Metaphysician to create sacred offerings for soul seekers. You can stay up to date on her Facebook page and follow her on Instagram for free daily readings.