Spiced Bircher Muesli

A few months ago, I spent five days at my favorite place on earth, other than Nashville: Canyon Ranch in Tucson, Arizona.

During these five days immersed in the handsome, foreign beauty of the desert, I undergo a complete mental, physical and emotional reset. The ranch offers a spectrum of Eastern and Western lectures, activities and bodywork—this year, I attended classes on the role of spirit guides and mindful eating practices. Often as adults, our world becomes so narrow, so centered around the things we already know. But it is crucial to our growth, to our ability to understand each other and the world, to continually expand our knowledge. Immersing myself at Canyon Ranch is a bright, robust reminder of this, of how little I know and of my connection to all living things.

And then, of course, the FOOD. Canyon Ranch sources as much food locally as possible; their beef is 100% grass-fed, their salmon is wild, and the dishes are creative and beautiful. My favorite meal on the ranch (and, always) is breakfast, where their gluten-free mesquite pancakes with almond butter and maple syrup never fail to spring me out of bed. I also adore their housemade chicken sausage patties and plan to re-make them soon. And another favorite is their take on Bircher Muesli. I love this dish so much, I couldn't wait to re-create it at home with an LL Balanced twist—a little less sugar and amped up with chia seeds and coconut milk.

This is an amazingly satisfying breakfast that will last through the greater part of a week, or you can double the recipe. If there's anything that makes a delicious breakfast that much better, it's not having to do any work! I adore the classic combo of apple cinnamon, but feel free to pay around with different fruits and spices to your liking.

An enormous thank you to Canyon Ranch for doing what you do, remembering that health is the sum of many parts, and encouraging us disconnected earthlings to spend time in nature.