HERBS Partners in Life

Good Summer Reading !



HERBAL TEA FOR THE COMMON COLD

GYPSY'S COLD & FLU TEA

Combine equal amounts of yarrow, elderflower and peppermint.

Infuse one teaspoon of the dried herb mixture in one cup of hot water for 10 minutes.

Drink three cups a day.

You will find this a very effective remedy when you begin drinking at the first signs of a cold.

 

GYPSY'S CHICKEN & PEPPERS

1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast cut into 1 inch pieces

1/4 C soy sauce

1/4 C sherry

2 t powdered ginger

Marinate the chicken in the sauce while you're working with the veggies.

2 T olive oil

1 onion cut in chunks

3 cloves garlic

2 peppers cut in chunks

2 zucchini cut in chunks

Heat oil in skillet, cook onions and garlic 3 minutes.

Add peppers, cook 3 minutes.

Add zuchinni, cook 3 minutes.

Add chicken and marinade. Cook til chicken looses it's pink color.

Reduce heat, add 1/2 C water, cover. cook 15 minutes.

A fresh, low cal meal, cooks up quick, and any vegetable combo will work.

AMISH CHILLY DAY STEW

Water

1 large carrot

3 onions

1 quart potatoes, peeled and diced

2 T rice

2 T macaroni

1 t salt

1 pint cream ( or butter & milk)

In a kettle of rapidly boiling water add diced carrot to cook while you are cleaning and chopping the onions. Add onions to the stew kettle, along with potatoes, rice, macaroni, salt and enough water to cover the ingredients. Cook them slowly until they are tender. When ready, add cream, or substitute butter and milk. Let mix thoroughly, do not boil the stew again. Serve with warm bread.

This stew is filling and easy to make with ingredients you most likely always have on hand. The additions you can make are endless and the leftovers can be frozen or carried on to make another soup.

ROSE HIP VINEGAR

 

The late arrival of first frost has allowed me a small window to gather the ripe fruits of the rose. Still red, smooth-skinned and full of healing vitality, I pluck what I'll need to fill a glass jar. Into the kitchen I go to find apple cider vinegar and a clean glass canning jar. Sifting through my harvest I twist off stems and fill my jar with rose hips and then once more with vinegar. Seal with a white plastic lid, date and label contents.

Within 2 weeks I can begin dipping into my jar of tangy vitamin-rich rose hip vinegar to flavor my soups while increasing my resistance to winter flus. For a quick sore-throat tea add a couple spoons of this brew to hot water and sip. Enjoy!

GYPSY'S RICE CUSTARD PUDDING

This recipe has been passed down through family and friends and modified each step of the way, here's my earthy gypsy version:

You will need  a 2 1/2 quart casserole dish and a 9x13 pan

5 eggs beaten
3 C milk
1/2 C honey
2 1/2 - 3 C cooked brown rice
1 t vanilla
1/2 t salt
* raisins, if you like

Mix, put in casserole dish, sprinkle generously with warming cinnamon.
Fill the 9x13 pan with boiling water that will rise 3/4 up the sides of your custard dish.
Put in a 350 degree oven check at one hour and bake 15-20 minutes more if needed.

I'm an early riser and a firm believer in second breakfast, especially in the winter, and a little of this rice custard in the morning hits the spot. Enjoy!

GYPSY'S RUSTIC SALAD

It's that glorious time of year where everyone is sharing the abundance of their gardens. I have a fridge full of precious tomatoes and I need to use them up. I love the taste combination of fresh tomato and  basil so that is how I started my salad .......

Fresh sun ripened tomatoes, diced

fresh basil, chopped

add a little salt, stir, already a great salad just like this. 

Back to the fridge; I see a small lemon cucumber and a  half block of feta -

dice the cucumber

crumble the feta

stir and chill.

when served I offer fire cider vinegar or balsamic

The ingredients are endless and left up to your creativity;

diced zucchini, fresh peppers, red onions, chives, garlic, mozzarella, parsley, spinach, lettuce, olives .....

Simple, healthy, flavorful and using what's available for the season and what's left in your fridge. Enjoy!

GYPSY'S VEGGIE BEEF SOUP

another recipe inspired by "More-with-Less Cookbook"

Combine in a large pot:

2-3 lbs beef soup bones

3 qrts water

1 1/2 t salt

1/4 t pepper

1 bay leaf

Cover and simmer for 2-3 hours. Remove bones, skim fat if nessessary. Cut off, chop and reserve meat. Add:

1/2 C barley

Continue cooking about 30 mins.

Add:

1C diced carrots

1C diced potatoes

1C peas or green beans

1/2C chopped onion

2C shredded cabbage

2C cooked tomatoes

herbs and seasonings to taste

reserved meat

Cook just until vegetables are tender.

I used this recipe for inspiration. 

I "gypsyfied" it to meet my tastes and to work with the ingredients I had on hand.

I found 2 lbs of beef soup bones with meat in the freezer from an earlier purchase. Some in the house are salt sensitive, so I halved the suggested amount. 1 bay leaf didn't seem like enough so next time I'll try 2. I had on hand 3 homegrown carrots for the pot, used two medium potatoes, what was left of a bag of frozen peas, a stalk of celery, half a yellow onion, half a medium cabbage and a 14.5 oz can of oregano and basil  tomatoes. I added red wine to taste and a generous splash of fire cider vinegar. I'm tempted to add a dollop of sour cream (because I have some in the fridge) to each serving bowl and some warm bread to soak up the last bit of soup.

Veggie Beef Soup for this last day of September. Enjoy!

HARVEST MOON CASSEROLE

Gypsy's Harvest Moon Casserole

Brown in skillet :

1 lb bulk sausage

break up large pieces and drain off excess fat.

Arrange in 2 qt. casserole :

2 raw sweet potatoes

peeled and sliced

3 apples

sliced

browned sausage

Combine and pour over :

2 T honey

1 T flour

1/4 t cinnamon pwdr

1/4 t salt

1/2 C water

Cover, bake @ 375 for 50-60 mins.



A traditional recipe that I bake this time of year to share with friends and family.

Original recipe came from :



GYPSY'S ROSEMARY INFUSED OIL

You will need a glass jar, olive oil to fill the glass jar and fresh rosemary.

pack your jar full of rosemary
cut, tear, bend the pieces to expose more surface area

fill your jar again with olive oil

  poke around with a chopstick to get the oil into every nook and cranny and all the air bubbles out

leave a quarter inch of pure oil at the top 

cap, label and in 6 weeks you'll have a very valuable jar of warm green love.

I find Rosemary infused Olive Oil a very good wintertime friend. The oil warms me up when it's cold outside and is great for itchy dry skin. Rub rosemary on painful muscles and use for rheumatism. Dry scalp and hair stand no chance against rosemary oil.

Don't fret if you find a little mold on top of your oil at the end of 6 weeks. Take a spoon and remove the mold, the rest of your oil is good. Strain the rosemary out of your oil, squeeze out all the good stuff left in the branches and compost that sweet rosemary that gave her healing essence to your oil.

Don't have rosemary bushes ? Ask around at your local farmers market.

Now go make some !

GYPSY'S HOMEMADE YOGURT

HOMEMADE YOGURT

1 gallon milk

1 cup of your favorite plain yogurt

easy, simple, affordable and you'll find a thousand recipes online

You'll need a gallon size glass jar, a glass or enamel pan, wooden spoon, measuring cup.

Warm the gallon of milk to 105 degrees, stir to keep from scorching. Put the cup of "starter" yogurt into the gallon size jar and 1 cup of your warmed milk. Stir til blended together. Add the rest of the warm milk to your jar and cap. At this point I wrap a wool blanket around the jar and tuck the whole thing into my wool blanket storage seat, blankets below, around and above. You could use towels and a styrofoam cooler, get the idea ?

Keep the jar warm and don't peek for 24 hours, but don't forget about it either (gypsy cackle).

Keeps refrigerated for four to six weeks.
I've been told you can add some dry milk to thicken, if preferred.

Homemade yogurt cultured for 24 hours before being refrigerated is LACTOSE-FREE.

GYPSY'S FRUIT DRESSING

homemade yogurt

honey

powdered cinnamon

homemade vanilla flavoring

you decide how sweet and cinnamon-y you want it

blend til its creamy and pour onto a big bowl of mixed fruits and berries.

GYPSY'S CUCUMBER DRESSING

skin and seed 1 cucumber

@ 3 cloves of peeled garlic

homemade yogurt

pinch of mineral rich salt

mix all together in blender , adjust taste to your liking.

Great on salads and falafels.

GYPSY'S BERRY BUBBLE

I LOVE BERRIES !!!

I can't stand to waste a one.

The raspberries and strawberries are near their end (with a little help from the deer) the blue berries are just turning and blackberries are close behind. 

Here's a tried and true favorite gypsy recipe that uses up all those stray berries in your fridge.

I use a glass jar with a tight fitting lid.

Fill the jar about half full with berries and mash them around a little. 

Add a little honey (or sugar ) and pour in brandy (or vodka, spiced rum ) just enough to cover berries, cover and refrigerate.

Let the flavors blend, taste each week, add more sweetener if needed. 

I like cinnamon with my berries so I put in a pinch of fresh ground so as not to overpower the berry flavor.

A vanilla bean may be nice also.

This "berry bubble" makes an elegant statement over vanilla ice cream. Also use it in cakes, puddings and pies. I strain out some of the berry liqueur into a shot glass for a real taste treat. This will keep in your fridge indefinitely as long as you keep adding to it and Yes you can mix and mingle all sorts of fruits, sweeteners and alcohols to make it uniquely yours. 

Enjoy ! 

GYPSY'S SASSY MARINADE

Finally BBQ weather has arrived and a good marinade was in order for the 4th of July festivities.
I included the preserved lemons and fire cider  from earlier recipes we've made together and this is what I came up with. As you know when I cook there are no set rules, so add to taste all your favorites.

Gypsy's Sassy Marinade

I minced some onion, garlic, fresh parsley, preserved lemon and mushed them all around in my mortar & pestle to break down the plant cells for nutrients and flavor.
Added pink salt and paprika.
About a 1/2 cup olive oil, fire cider, and red wine.

I was marinating a huge slab of beef, so I left it in this brew for 24 hours.

It was delish !

GYPSY'S FIRE CIDER - a cure for what ails you ....

and darn good tasting too !!!

Gypsy's FIRE Cider

Grate fresh HORSERADISH ROOT, GINGER ROOT, GARLIC and ONION.

You decide how much you want to use of each.

Fill a glass jar 3/4 full with your freshly grated ingredients,

add a pinch, tspn or dollop of CAYENNE powder or fresh peppers to taste.

Fill jar with APPLE CIDER VINEGAR made from real apples. (check the labels)

Cover and let flavors blend.

You can start using at 2 weeks, I find it most potent around 8 weeks.

When it reaches the right flavor complexity for you, Strain.

The strained remains can be used in your cooking if you are one to never waste a thing.
The root and spice infused vinegar is a healthful secret ingredient in all your cooking.
Examples; meat marinade, salad dressings, stir fry, soups, cold salads.

As a tonic I drink a shot glass daily in the winter. Add tomato juice or honey if you like.

Fire Cider is an effective way to treat or stave off colds, flus and to break up congestion.

Horseradish ~ The antibacterial properties of Horseradish have been used to fight bacteria. Horseradish strongly stimulates the digestion, increasing gastric secretions and appetite. It's also a good diuretic that promotes perspiration, making it useful in fevers, colds, and flu. Horseradish is also an expectorant and mildly antibiotic, and can be of use in both respiratory and urinary tract infections.

Ginger ~ is valued for its ability to warm the stomach, to ease vomiting & nausea and to fight off colds, chills and coughs. Ginger is useful for all types of congestion in the body.

Garlic ~ supports the immune function and opens the pores of the skin

to lower a fever. This herb's antibacterial and antimicrobial properties make it useful in treating bladder and kidney infections , yeast infections , strep throats and ear infections.

Cayenne ~ is useful for increasing circulation and to get mucous flowing. This herb is an anti-inflammatory and anti-irritant. It is used as a digestive aid to stimulates gastric juices. Many people report relief from migraines with this herb as well. 

I make recipe up once a year in a gallon jar and never strain the goodies out till I'm ready to use them in my daily cooking. This year I have three horseradish plants growing and I'm excited to have fresh plump home grown roots for my fire cider. Enjoy !

PRESERVED LEMONS - MORROCAN STYLE

I found bags of organic lemons for .99 cents at a local grocer and jumped at the chance to try out a simple preservation technique. YES, I wanted to pour sugar over those lemons instead of salt but these, my friends, will be L'lamd Markad - lemon pickle. 

So incredibly simple to make, here's what you'll need:

organic lemons

sea salt

sterilized wide-mouth canning jar

cut a sliver off the top and bottom of your lemons, cut them in large wedges, halves, whatever works for your jar. In bottom of jar put a layer of sea salt, then a layer of lemons, layer of salt again, layer of lemons - push down on the lemons to release some juices to mingle with the salt. Add more layers. I ended up using a third of my lemons for juice to completely cover the lemon chunks in the jar. I left an air gap at the top of the jar. 

That's it. Simple.

Turn your jar everyday to get the salt and juices mixing and covering the chunks of lemon. At two weeks I pulled out a chunk, rinsed the excess salt, minced the lemon chunk and added it right at the end of a veggie stir fry. It's a good mystery ingredient with a complex lemony flavor. Take a nibble each week, see how the texture and flavor change over time. Add lemon pickle to fish, chicken, veggie dishes, hummus, eggs, lamb, salad dressings, potato salad. Some people move it to their fridge after 2 weeks. Some let it mature 4-6 weeks before using. I keep it on my counter for up to a year and begin using it at two weeks. Enjoy !

GYPSY'S KICHAREE RECIPE

A traditional Indian comfort food, Kicharee is Hindi for "mess" or "mixture". The ancients said that if one eats only kicharee for 10 days, it can cure all diseases. I don't know about that but it is a very old ayurvedic recipe that is highly nutritious cooked with healing spices; cumin, turmeric and coriander. Give it a try.

1/2 C mung beans or split lentils

1/2 C brown rice or basmati

Ghee 

pinch of cumin

1/3 t turmeric

1t ground coriander

Saute beans, rice and spices in ghee for 5 mins.

Add 4C water and simmer for 20-25 mins.

Simple, simple, simple and it tastes so good.

For variation add more spices, vegetables, organic meats, whatever your palette desires.

COLD ENOUGH STILL ... FOR YARN SCRAPS AND CHOWDER

Forever fascinated with patchwork, scrapwork, and making things of beauty out of throwaways ... this week I taught myself the crochet v-stitch and I'm attempting to make a scarf out of yarn scraps. Pics are of my progress. Making hats is my joy, so I'm sure this will morph into my hat making. Yes, I'm fully aware that beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Speaking of using up stuff ....In the icy depths of the freezer lie tilapia and shrimp .... and in me a craving for seafood chowder  ..... so I googled the recipe, combined what I liked about 6 different ones and came up with my own .... I'm a "toss it in by pinches and handfuls"  kind of cook so get creative and include what you like in your chowder to make it uniquely your own. Here's my "guidelines" for the recipe.

Gypsy's Seafood Chowder

1 to 1 1/2 lbs seafood diced

about  1/4 lb bacon diced

1/3 stick unsalted butter

1 medium onion diced

1/2 C celery diced

1 chicken bullion cube

2 C boiling water

3 russet potatoes peeled and diced

1 t salt, 1 t thyme, 3 T fresh chopped parsley, 1 t dill weed, 1 t black pepper, 1 bay leaf

1 can chicken broth

1/2 C flour

2 C water

1 C half & half

Fry bacon til browned. Add onion, celery and butter cook 5 mins. Dissolve bullion in boiling water and pour over bacon, butter, onion, celery. Add potatoes and spices, cover, simmer for 10 mins. Add seafood and simmer another 10 mins. Mix flour and can of chicken broth til no lumps and add to pot. Add 2 C water to pot. Simmer another 5 mins. Lower heat, add cream, heat gently to blend flavor but not too hot to curdle.

At this point I added more herbs & spices to taste and added garlic granules for a punch. It tasted good freshly made with some homey garlic bread and a salad. It tasted even better the next day, after sitting in the fridge overnight and then reheated.  Enjoy !

Sourdough Starter

There is nothing like warm toasted sourdough bread smeared with real butter and shared with friends over an afternoon meal. Everyone has their own version of how to create the starter, here's mine;

1 C warm water

1 C flour

put in glass jar and let sit on the counter over night

every 24 hours feed it

1/2 C water & 1/2 C flour

for 3 or 4 days

It'll be bubbly and have a pleasant yeasty smell when it's ready. 

You can keep it on the counter and feed it everyday or put it in the fridge to slow down the growth and feed it one a week. 

The picture above is a good example of the bubbles and texture, sorry about the dark kitchen shadows, the dough is really make from wheat and is beige in color.

There is no limit on what you can make with sourdough and it's one of those handy, travel with you wherever you go kinds of foods that doesn't require refrigeration. Just be sure to feed it.

SPRITELY SKIN CREAM

Today I find myself digging through my journals searching for an old lotion recipe I've carried with me for years. The search made difficult by the stacks of material possessions surrounding me in my "settled" existence. The recipe copied from a seventies herbal lifestyle book written by Jeanne Rose. Her books are full of amazing recipes, plant lore, kitchen cosmetics, herbal facts and great stories.

 In her book the recipe is titled " Old Man Wrinkle Cream" defining the type of skin this lotion is for. The scent is divine, the oils are easy to purchase and I love the way it makes my skin feel.

Add to 2 oz unscented cream, lotion or carrier oil ; 

(I use Nature's Gate Hemp Lotion as my base)

10 drops Patchouli Essential Oil

10 drops Myrrh Essential Oil

10 drops Rose Geranium Essential Oil

 Being down to the last dregs of lotion, it's time to make a new batch. Hope you also give it a go and enjoy !

WILD FOOD NUTRITION - DANDELION

Dandelion leaves are a nutritious free food.

Dandelion leaves have very high amounts of carotenes expressed as vitamin A, vitamin C complex expressed as ascorbic acid, potassium and calcium. The fresh or cooked leaves have high amounts of iron, phosphorus, and B vitamin complex including  riboflavin, thiamine, niacin and choline. Also manganese, sulpher, magnesium, silica, low sodium, potash and vitamin D.

Forget hard to digest Dietary Supplements and eat your weeds !

Dandelion Greens

per person:

1 C dandelion greens

1/4 C water in pot

Wash greens well.

Chop coarsely without drying. Add to pot with water.

Bring to boil. Reduse heat and cook to taste. 

Firm or mushy.

Variations;

add raw garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper.

add vinegar and salt.

add sour cream and onion.

add bacon.

Info above from Susun Weed's very informative herbal  Healing Wise.













More herbals that cover Dandelion's amazing healing benefits: