Weeds, To Eat or Not To Eat!

www.HandsOnHealthHH.com

Holistic Hugs & Peaceful Blessings!

Paula M. Youmell, RN, MS, CHC

Holistic Health, Nutrition & Fitness Counselor      

(315) 265-0961

"Just lift the corner of the clouds and the sun is 

ALWAYS shining!"          Eli Schechter

Spring Nettles poking out of my home garden plot,  Spring 2014

Weeds to one person are another person's medicine!

I love spring for the wonderful green plants shooting out of the earth around my home, in the woods and fields.  These plants remind me of the ever changing and newness of life, the bounty of good food right outside our doors, and the nutritional value and healing properties of what many people consider weeds.  I personally await the spring's wild leeks, dandelion greens, first nettle shoots, plantain leaves, rhubarb shoots, and so many more spring edibles.

These spring edibles awaken our taste buds, livers, digestive tracts, and each and every body cell.  The incredible amount of nutrients in the plants adds to our nutritional stores and cleans our winter blood, liver, and digestive tracts.

What a relief to move away from my beloved winter root veggies (beets!) and begin incorporating our natural spring foods.

For more thoughts on the whole food-ness of herbs (weeds) click here.

  Dandelion greens and flowers; good for liver health!

Fun Food Focus

Spring Greens Soup

I gather several kinds of spring greens: dandelion, plantain, lambs quarters, nettles, mustard greens, sorrel, violets... the list goes on.  (Learn to identify them, pick and enjoy!)

I gently wash them, throw them in my blender with some raw goat's milk and wild leek shoots and leaves.  Blend into a puree and warm gently.

You can also saute' the wild leek, ever so gently, then toss in the green and saute' for 1-2 minutes before blending.

Easy greens to start with are dandelion, plantain, nettles and violets.

Another idea:  mix them in a salad with local, mixed baby greens - they should be available soon!  Dress with raw - apple cider vinegar, organic - extra virgin olive oil and a few dried spices.  Yummy!

This picture taken today, 5-16-14.  The nettles are getting larger!

Bonus information:  Check out Martin's Farm Stand website, you can pre-order your fresh, local, seasonal produce, on-line!  Cutting edge - local food access!

http://martinsfarmstand.locallygrown.net/welcome

My Holistic Momma's Dilemma

You might remember my earlier blog post on healthy kid's b-day parties and WHY have healthy kid's b-day parties. So my latest dilemma... my soon to be 12 year old kid wanted an Oreo cookie birthday cake.  First of all I asked: "Why Eli? I have never purchased Oreo cookies for you!"

Bottom line is he wanted what he wanted.

Truth of the matter is there is not one ingredient in an Oreo cookie that was ever meant to be:

• in your digestive tract being digested and
• sent out into your blood stream being delivered to
• every cell in your body to do
• all the processes to nourish your cells so you have a
• healthy body!

Nature did not mean for our body cells to be poisoned by packaged food's synthetic ingredients.  Ouch, Paula, really?  My healing advice comes into question on occasion:  "She is so strange, too harsh, very severe, too tough..." But really, the truth is the truth, our bodies were not meant to be poisoned.

I am all about moderation; moderation in foods that were meant to be part of our cellular metabolism. There is no way, in my mind, to be moderate about that which was never meant to be a part of our cellular being.

For just 2 weeks, try feeding your body with 100% whole food, every snack and meal.  I guarantee you will feel like a whole new person: alive, vibrant, clear headed, sleep well, etc. Then, after 2 weeks of whole food eating, go back to your regular diet, 100%, for a day or two.  You will be aghast at how lousy processed food leaves your body feeling.

Whole food eating is not about what you are removing from your life, junk food, but what you are inviting into your life, vibrant health.  Let me know how it goes.

So, back to that Oreo cookie cake. I started off with the basics.  I do not measure ingredients, just throw in the bowl, so I am giving my eyeballed estimates. Thank my Mom, that is how she cooks. I learned through observation.

• real butter, from grass fed cows grazing in the Finger Lakes of NY - about 3/4 cup
• 3 pasture eggs from Maria of Deep Root Farm, wicked orange yolks. Lots of good nutrients.  Use the whole eggs.
• local milk from some sweet, grazing, local goats - 1 cup
• *oat flour I ground from gluten-free oats - about 1 1/2 cups
• Sucanat unrefined, real brown sugar (Available at the Potsdam Food Coop & Nature's Storehouse, Canton) - 1/2 cup
• organic vanilla - 1 Tbsp.
• baking soda - 1/2 tsp or less
• baking powder - 2 to 3 tsp.

*gluten free flours will make a shorter, denser cake.  If gluten is Ok in your diet, use whole spelt flour or whole wheat pastry flour.  Whole food cakes, made with 100% whole grain flours, will be heavier, denser, and shorter cakes.  When you get used to this denser, more flavorful, manner of creating in the kitchen... the "fluffy" refined food versions will be tasteless and boring.

The below Newman cookies are made with wheat flour and therefor contain gluten.

I caved (What else is a Mom to do? He is so damned cute.) and bought Newman's Own Organics Newman-O's Creme Filled Chocolate Cookies.

Original Ingredients:

Organic Unbleached Wheat Flour, Organic Powdered Sugar (Organic Sugar, Organic Corn Starch), Organic Sugar, Organic Palm Fruit Oil, Canola Oil (Expeller Pressed), Cocoa (Processed with Alkali), Unsweetened Chocolate, Salt, Natural Flavor, Sodium Bicarbonate (leavening), Soy Lecithin (an emulsifier)

I took one row of the cookies, scraped the creme filling out, crushed the wafers, and added the crushed mess to the batter.

The "Oreo" cake after baking:

Tomorrow I shall slice it in half to make 2 layers and fill the center with frosting. Then I will slather the whole thing with the rest of the frosting.

Frosting:

• 2 eight oz. packages of Organic Valley Pasture Raised whipping cream
• 1 eight oz. package of Organic Valley Pasture Raised Neufchatel cheese
• 2 Tbsp. local, dark maple syrup
• 1 Tbsp. organic vanilla
• the second row of Newman-O's, scraped and crushed, added to the finished frosting

The final, third row, of Newman-O's will be cut into 1/2 rounds and placed on top of the cake.

Happy Birthday Eli!  Much LOVE, Mom

Or, as my boys call me...

Teaching whole food eating, cooking, and baking classes:  I volunteer teach cooking classes through the Sustainable Living Project, Local Living Venture. Sign up for their emails to be notified of upcoming classes.  I also do small groups at my home, just ask.  pyoumell@gmail.com

Breakfast of Champions

No - No you people of the 70's and 80's (myself included), it is not Wheaties!

So what is this concoction on the plate and in the bowl?

• Local, pasture raised eggs fried to the perfect, "still liquid" yolk state,
• Wild leeks chopped and placed on top, and
• Local, pasture-raised, goat milk cheese, slightly melted, on top...  and in the bowl?
• Kraut made from Kent Family Farm's root veggies, cabbage, and burdock with added: fresh wild leeks from around the corner and up the hill; then I added dandelion greens, nettle tops*, and chives from the front yard.

Yummy, cell nourishing way to start the day!

*The nettle tops were raw, chopped very finely.  Yes, nettles will leave the characteristic "sting" on the tongue and back of the throat... but it is very mild, barely noticeable!

Stinging nettles have been used for urtication. Urtication means flailing the affected joints with nettles for the relief of arthritis and like conditions.  So eating raw is a 'lil self tongue and throat therapy!  Who would want arthritis of throat and tongue?

Sustainable Harvesting & Preserving Wild Leeks

Wow, many questions about the wild leeks.

When digging, never take more than 5% of the patch.  This ensures the patch will survive and spread for many decades to come.  If the patch is where others harvest as well, take much less than 5% of the patch.

Wild leeks are becoming over harvested and now are hard to find in many areas.

Here is a recipe for pickled leek bulbs.  This recipe had the least amount of sugar.  I would use maple syrup, not honey.

If maple syrup is not available in your area, use the honey or unrefined sucanat sugar.  2 tablespoons of honey or maple syrup = 4 tablespoons of unrefined sugar.

http://foodpreservation.about.com/od/Pickles/r/Pickled-Ramps-Recipe.htm

Thanks to Leda Meredith for this recipe.   http://ledameredith.net/wordpress/

I would skip the boiling water bath and just store them in the fridge.  I bet they will keep much longer than 3 months.  Put the jars to the very back of the fridge, where it is the coldest, BUT do not forget them there. 

Definitely let them sit for 1 week to meld flavors.

Wild Leeks

4/25/14    The Leeks are Back!  YAY!

Seeing them in the woods, after a long winter, nourishes my soul!

Digging them, with the prospect of taking home for dinner, nourishes my body.

Knowing that peas, asparagus, dandelion greens, stinging nettles, spinach, and strawberries are just around the corner nourishes my mind.

No more snow, correct?

More leeks dug 4/26...

Fine chopped for my last batch of sauerkraut for the season...

Packed down into the kraut crock... 14 days and voila' wild leek infused sauerkraut!  Want to sample?  I will dig it out of the crock around the 12 of May.

Winter Food Blues, Take 2

Springy Kraut

To make my homemade root veggie kraut lighter and more spring like, I do this:

• On plate, place a pile of kraut to please your appetite.
• Add tiny chunks of 1/2 apple or grate 1/2 apple.
• Add 1 stalk of celery, chopped into bite sized pieces.
• Walnuts to please...
• Sheep milk feta

This is it, before I piled it onto plates and added the feta and walnuts.  I also grated a carrot and a hunk of my beloved celeriac into the root veggie kraut.

This is a fun way, for me, to change my regular food as I work through my impatience around the spouting up and availability of local spring produce.

Peas.... how long must I wait for peas?