I found this article on Mother Earth News' website, and thought I would share. It's got great tips on storing vegetables during the colder months.
http://www.motherearthnews.com/organic-gardening/food-storage-zm0z12aszcom.aspx
I found this article on Mother Earth News' website, and thought I would share. It's got great tips on storing vegetables during the colder months.
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I was invited to a homeopathy training webinar by my wellness director today, and I'm so excited. Can't possibly show up empty handed, so I made a few nibbles - all very easy, and very good for you.
First is a ratatouille, or in laymen's terms, a vegetable stew. About a dozen veggies go in to a pot and cook until they make their own sauce. Then there are raw carrot cake balls, a mixture of shredded organic carrot, candied ginger and dates with coconut, almond meal, flax meal, vanilla and cinnamon. Surprisingly yum. Finally, I took some of the basic carrot cake mix, added macqi berry powder, cacao nibs, coffee extract, almond extract and raw cacao powder for a chocolate truffle. oh. my. god. so freaking good. See below for recipes and variations, and enjoy! Ratatouille In true Lexie style, there is no recipe, just a list of ingredients. Use your imagination and the palates of those you're feeding, and run with it. This is what I used: (note - everything is rough chop, it needs to look rustic) garlic, minced onion carrot celery parsnips red, yellow and orange bell pepper zucchini yellow squash button mushrooms crimini mushrooms fennel bulbs eggplant dandelion greens tomatoes herb mix - chopped fresh parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme, oregano sundried tomatoes - I prefer dry pack, soaked in just enough hot water to cover - add the water to the pot, it's full of flavor! salt and pepper cannelini beans Start with the harder veggies (carrot, celery, onion, garlic, peppers, parsnips) and let them saute in a little olive oil for a bit, then begin adding the rest of the veg. Cook until everything is tender. Just gets better as it sits, so make tons. Carrot Cake Balls An odd recipe that I came across while planning classes one day. All raw except for the candied ginger, which can be subbed for raw ginger if you're following a raw lifestyle. The surprising part is is that it has a cake like texture without having a bit of flour. Gluten free, dairy free, egg free, casein free... it's good for most everyone. If you need it to be tree nut free, omit the almond meal and coconut, and use ground sunflower seeds and more flax meal, and coat them in a cinnamon and palm sugar mix. The sugar will dissolve a little but it makes a nice crust. Or go with confectioner's sugar. 1 lb. organic carrots, washed 1/4 c. candied ginger (get the all natural stuff, please, or make it yourself) 1/2 lb. pitted dates (i like the flavor of medjool) 1/4 c. ground flax 1/2 c. almond meal pinch sea salt a couple of drops of vanilla (optional) 1 TB. ground cinnamon Unsweetened coconut for rolling In a food processor, chop carrots, ginger and dates together to form a paste. Remove to a bowl, and add flax, almond meal, salt, vanilla (if using) and cinnamon. Mix with your hands, mushing it up, until it is uniformly mixed. Roll 1/2" balls, then roll in coconut to coat. Eat immediately, or chill. They freeze beautifully. Now the cacao version. I took the basic mix, added raw cacao powder, a little almond extract, a touch of coffee extract, (coffee makes chocolate taste chocolate-ier), raw cacao nibs and a bit of macqi berry powder (a superfruit, like goji. I added it because I have it, but it's easily omitted.) Knead this all together, form in to balls and roll in cacao powder. Whether it's self love or love for someone else, you need to open yourself up to it. Believe that it can happen and it will. With the Blue Moon coming up this Friday, now is the time for clearing the energy barriers we put up around ourselves, and get ready for the changes to come. Good times are ahead of us, you just have to let them happen.
Homeopathy. Most people get this glazed look on their faces when I tell them that it's what I'm studying. They really don't know what it is, and neither did I before I started. As I get ready to take my first exam, I was faced with a situation that put what I've learned into practice. I woke up this morning feeling icky. Stuffy head, a little pressure, but overall achy and tired. As the day progressed it got worse. Not bad enough to leave work early, but it certainly didn't make work a whole lot of fun. Then, right after lunch, my ear started to hurt, along with my upper jaw. That means it's my sinuses. Great, just what I need... then I had a thought. Isn't this what I'm learning, how to heal naturally? Why yes, yes it is. So I grabbed my textbook, did a self assessment, and determined the appropriate remedy. Fortunately I work for a health food store that sells single ingredient homeopathic remedies. I found the one I needed, belladonna, in the correct strength, and popped the right dosage. I swear, not 45 minutes later the ache in my ear was gone, my upper jaw was almost pain free, and the stuffiness was easing, all without that drugged zombie feeling I always get. I would NEVER have taken cold medicine in the middle of my work day, or before my 35 minute drive home. But this, my friends, is like a miracle. If it didn't work, it wouldn't have hurt me or made me sicker. Homeopathy follows the Hippocratic Oath of "First do no harm" much closer than pharmaceuticals do, yet people put far more faith in those chemicals than in natural cures. Think of it this way - would people all over the world be doing this for thousands of years if it didn't work? Nope, I don't think so either.
My quickie Pesto Chicken Skillet, another of my refrigerator surprise recipes.
Start with potatoes and onions in a pan with olive oil. You want to get the potatoes tender and everything starting to caramelize, so don't play with it much. Just give it a toss every once in a while to make sure it's not sticking. (photo 1) Add a diced chicken breast, season with salt and pepper, and get it all well browned. If you need to, add a little extra oil. (photo 2) Now comes the good part - a dollop of sundried tomato pesto, and a dollop of dandelion green and basil pesto. Yum and yum! Toss this all together and let it gently heat through so the pesto doesn't separate, but you get a touch of caramelization on the tomato. (photo 3) The finished product is garnished with torn basil leaves and crumbled goat cheese. Fresh or smoked mozzarella would also be wonderful. (photo 4) Check out the Recipes and Tips tab of my site to see other easy supper ideas! Oh, and you can now subscribe to an email version of my blog. Just type in your addy in the box to the right, and start following me! Love my Christ(y) - she's the pretty one with the bindi. So much fun watching her teach my cooking class last night, and such amazing food. Who ever thought that raw tiramisu could be so freaking addictive! She has an incredible blog that you must look at - http://cprojectpatton.wordpress.com/
This is it, the culmination of a dream I've had for a long time. I am a college graduate. Some smart person has decided that because of my understanding of a really amazing subject that I deserve to have a piece of paper that says that I'm a smart person, too. I am finally certified to do what I've always loved to do - teach people how to cook and eat in a more healthful way. Its been a bit surreal since I took that last exam a couple of weeks ago. I can't wait to get started on changing the culinary face of Knoxville!
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