Ashlita's perfect cookies

Seriously Perfect.

And to top it off, I have to mention how amazing maple syrup is.  It not only is the world's best tasting food ever, it is super charged with manganese, zinc, and potassium.   Zinc and manganese are important allies in the immune system. Many types of immune cells appear to depend upon zinc for optimal function. Particularly in children, researchers have studied the effects of zinc deficiency (and zinc supplementation) on their immune response and their number of white blood cells, including specific studies on T lymphocytes, macrophages, and B cells (all types of white blood cells important for immune defenses). In these studies, zinc deficiency has been shown to compromise numbers of white blood cell and immune response, while zinc supplementation has been shown to restore conditions to normal. In addition to the role played by zinc, the manganese in maple syrup is important since, as a component of the antioxidant SOD, it helps lessen inflammation, thus supporting healing. In addition, manganese may also act as an immunostimulant.  So that is enough incentive for me to eat as much as I can afford.  It takes 40 - 50 gallons of sap to make 1 gallon of maple syrup, so if you imagine the work and resources that go into it, you can understand why the real stuff is so expensive, and why it is so worth it.

2 cups ghee

1 cup maple syrup

4 cups flour

1/2 tsp salt

Preheat the oven to 350.  Beat the ghee and maple syrup.  Stir the flour and salt together in a separate bowl.  Mix the flour mixture into the flour mixture.  Drop in little dough balls on a cookie sheet  and bake for 10 - 12 minutes.

ghee

My partner, Lita, makes us ghee in big mason jars.  Ghee is so delicious, I want to weep when I smell it bubbling on the stove.  Ghee is clarified butter, which tastes about a million times better than butter to me (and butter tastes so good!). I can't pretend I make it; Lita does such a good job, that I have never done it on my own, but I'll tell you her process.

She takes 8 sticks of organic unsalted butter - the best quality you can afford.  She puts them in a sauce pan (non Teflon coating is always best) and brings them to a boil over medium heat.  Then she lets it simmer / bubble for about 20 minutes.  This is the water bubbling out.  It will get foamy and then start to get clear and settle down and then it will finally get quiet.  There is a fine line between this clear, perfect, quiet state and the point at which it starts to burn, so take care.  Now it is ready to pour slowly into a mason jar.  You will find that the milk solids have fallen in little pieces to the bottom of the pan.  Don't let these fall into your ghee - this is what you wanted to separate from the ghee.  When the ghee cools it will form a soft solid again and you can keep in in the cupboard (you don't need to refrigerate it).   The milk solids that are left behind in the pan are also dangerously delicious.  I think the most decadent thing is to eat them with a spoon.  But if you don't want to go there, since really this probably isn't good for you, you can give them to your animals, who will appreciate them immensely.

You can use ghee any way that you use butter (it spreads beautifully).  Or you can use it like cooking oil.  Or you can even put a drop into your tea.

So why ghee?  Why alter our butter?

Ayurveda places ghee, or clarified butter, at the top of the oily foods list, as it has the healing benefits of butter without the impurities (saturated fat, milk solids).  It lubricates the connective tissues and promotes flexibility, says Dr. Vasant Lad, director of the Ayurvedic Institute in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Traditionally, the preparation has been used to promote memory, intelligence, quantity and quality of semen, and to enhance digestion. Modern science tells us that ghee also harbors phenolic antioxidants, which bolster the immune system.  (yoga journal)

Ghee is one of the most ancient and sattvic foods known.  It does not burn (like butter) unless heated extensively.  It synergizes with the food nutrients and nourishes the bodily constituents.  It also serves as a base for herbal ointments to treat burns, skin rashes, and other such conditions.

It is important to maintain a clean appearance and calm mind while preparing your ghee.  This is one of the most healing food sadhanas when performed with grace.  (A Life of Balance, Maya Tiwari)

Oh, and it tastes better.