Currently viewing the tag: "herbs"

The Supermarket Gourmet

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by Buck Reed

For me, the best meals are the ones made simple. Yes, I like steak and lobster as much as the next person, and I can appreciate a wonderful sauce on a painstakingly made dish. But, for me, I really enjoy simple, well-made meals. Simple means uncomplicated, and it also means nowhere to hide. If you overcook it, there is no sauce to save it…which brings us to the glorious chicken.

A whole roasted chicken, when prepared and cooked correctly, is a masterpiece to behold. Taking the time to learn how to do it correctly is time well spent.

To start, address your chicken. Look for a whole chicken with no broken bones or holes in the skin. Remove any large deposits of fat from the cavity, as well as the neck and the gizzards.

If you can, brine your whole chicken in about three-quarters cup of salt per gallon of water, for three to eight hours in the refrigerator. If you do not brine the chicken, then there are two schools of thought: wash your bird or not. Both are acceptable; just make sure you have a good reason whichever you decide.

Next, you will need a proper roasting pan. A heavy-duty, high-sided roasting pan is essential for conducting heat evenly. In a pinch, you can use a large saute pan that is oven-safe.

While the chicken is brining, take some time to chop up some vegetables and put them in the bottom of the pan. I like red-skinned potatoes, baby carrots, and sliced turnips or parsnips, seasoned with garlic and just about any herb you want to flavor them with, as well as a bit of salt and pepper.

Season your dried chicken with salt, pepper, and any other spice you would like. Don’t forget to season the cavity as well. I like thyme, Old Bay, and sometimes,  Cajun spice. Place the chicken on top of the vegetables, breast side up, and tuck in the wings.

Roast the chicken at 375° until the juices run clear when a sharp knife is inserted into the joint between the body and the thigh or until an instant-read thermometer registers 165° at the same joint (about 60 minutes).

After you remove the chicken from the oven, give it a rest. Remove the chicken from the pan and cover with aluminum foil. Roasted meat’s internal temperature will rise about 10 degrees while resting. The natural juices will also reincorporate into the meat’s fibers and the skin will dry out slightly.

While the bird is resting, check your vegetables to see if they are done. If they are not, strain out the drippings, reserving for a pan gravy if you want, and cook the vegetables longer. Once the vegetables are cooked, serve as a side dish with your chicken.

This is a nice one-pan dinner that is easy to prepare, inexpensive, and everyone should enjoy. You might not be the King or Queen of England, but I am sure you will be considered a monarch at your dinner table.

Ask Dr. Lo

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Make Vegetables, Fruits,  and Herbs Your Partner in Health

by Dr. Thomas K. Lo, Advanced Chiropractic & Nutritional Healing Center

I just love how delicious and nutritious fresh vegetables from the garden are. Some of my favorites are vine-ripened tomatoes, just-harvested peaches and corn, also fresh herbs and spices.

Growing your own edible plants—whether in a backyard garden or a few pots on your windowsill—can be fun, rewarding, and healthful. You can even share your garden’s bounty with friends and neighbors.

“Gardening has many health benefits. It allows you to get outside, get active, and sit less, which might help to reduce stress,” says Dr. Philip Smith, a life-long gardener who oversees obesity research at NIH. “Gardening can also help to improve your diet if you eat more fruits and vegetables. They have a more intense flavor when ripe and freshly picked.”

The benefits of fruits and vegetables are that they are full of fiber and essential vitamins and minerals. Research has shown that eating fruits and vegetables as part of an overall healthy diet can reduce your risk for long-term diseases, such as heart disease, stroke, and some types of cancer. The fiber in fruits and vegetables can help relieve constipation and normalize your bowel movements.

Fruits and vegetables may also help reduce your calorie intake—especially if they are replacing high-calorie, processed foods—to help you control your weight. Adding herbs and spices to your food gives it rich and interesting flavors without adding calories.

Gardening and growing herbs and spices can enhance your mental health as well. Studies have found that being physically active in natural environments—or even simple exposure to nature—can improve mood, reduce anxiety, and enhance self-esteem.

“Growing your own vegetables and digging into the dirt can increase physical activity and give one a feeling of well-being and a sense of connection to the Earth,” Smith says.

Children can also benefit from growing and caring for edible plants. Studies have found that kids involved with gardening programs tend to make healthier food choices, eat more fruits and vegetables, and have improved social skills.

“Gardening can help little children learn about growing and caring for things. They may find that they enjoy eating the fruits and vegetables they have grown themselves. And they may like eating the foods they know are good for them,” Smith says. “Adults, too, find they appreciate the many delicious tastes of fruits and vegetables that come fresh from the garden.”

Cancer survivors who took up gardening in a small NIH-funded study tended to have increased physical activity and vegetable intake, along with improved strength and endurance.

Another recently launched NIH study is looking at whether American Indian families who engage in community gardening will boost their fruit and vegetable intake and reduce their body weight.

“The researchers are also looking at whether gardening can lower blood pressure, increase hand strength, and lead to better mental and physical health,” says NIH’s Dr. Charlotte Pratt, who oversees research on nutrition, physical activity, and heart health.

“Americans generally don’t eat enough fruits and vegetables; it’s one of the major drawbacks of our diets today,” Pratt said.

The federal Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends that adults who eat about 2,000 calories daily should eat about two-and-a-half cups of vegetables and two cups of fruit a day. However, only a small percentage of adults and children meet both fruit and vegetable recommendations.

When you choose your vegetables, try to eat an assortment of colors and types every day. Broccoli, spinach, collard greens, kale, and other dark leafy greens are good choices. Also, choose red and orange vegetables, such as tomatoes, carrots, sweet potatoes, beets, or red/orange peppers. Other great choices are eggplant and summer/ winter squash. Many of these are easy to grow at home.

“These are all good sources of vitamins, in general, including vitamins A and C, and they tend to be good sources of fiber as well,” Pratt says. “Some vegetables can also provide minerals, like potassium, iron, and calcium.”

The many nutrients in fruits and vegetables are essential to good health. If you are taking medications, though, ask your doctor if there are certain fruits and vegetables you should avoid because some plant-based products can interfere with how certain medicines work. For instance, grapefruit can interact with certain drugs, including some cholesterol, blood pressure, and allergy prescription medications.

“For people who take medications to prevent blood clots, problems might arise from eating dark green vegetables, which are rich in vitamin K,” Pratt said. Vitamin K helps to promote blood clotting, but blood thinners have the opposite effect. Foods rich in vitamin K include kale, spinach, Brussels sprouts, and some types of lettuce.

“Herbs and spices have long been used to flavor foods. And they’ve been used since ancient times for medicinal purposes as well,” said Dr. Craig Hopp, an expert in herbal products research at NIH.

When you grow herbs in your garden or in windowsill containers, you can easily add them to your meals and create a great taste. Plus, you can freeze or dry your herbs to have them all year round. You can also grow them all year round inside in colder climates.

If you think that you do not have space for a backyard garden, think again.

“Some vegetables like tomatoes, carrots, lettuce, potatoes, kale, and peppers don’t require much space,” stated Smith. These vegetables can easily be grown in pots or small gardens. “You can also try growing hanger tomatoes, which can be suspended from your deck or porch.”

Wherever you get your fresh fruit and vegetables, whether from your own back yard, a farmer’s market, or a store, make sure you and your family eat plenty of fruits and vegetables every day.

   Think it is too cold outside to get fruits and vegetables? If industrious, you can freeze or can a lot of them that you grow or purchase when in season. You can also purchase frozen vegetables and fruits from the frozen section at the store where you shop.

Take the colder months to plan a garden, whether it is a small plot in your backyard or in containers, and decide what you would like to start growing in the spring. Also, do not forget about the herbs and spices you can grow all year inside your home.  

If you are struggling with health issues, call the Advanced Chiropractic & Nutritional Healing Center at 240-651-1650 for a free consultation. Dr. Lo uses Nutritional Response Testing® to analyze the body to determine the underlying causes of ill or non-optimum health. The office is located at 7310 Grove Road #107 in Frederick. Check out the website at www.doctorlo.com.

The Gardening Gangster

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“Helping You Find Plants That Work”

by Ana Morlier, The Crazy Plant Lady

Now that we’re all finally past the craziness of the holidays, we can sit back and relax, right? More often than not, our schedules get packed all over again with work and school. It seems like the stress never ends. But there is one way to help you alleviate stress, start your own creativi-tea and have fun!

Note: WARNING. LOTS OF TEA PUNS AHEAD.

Aaahhh…Sereni-tea

Tea has a slew of benefits: it aids in gut health, keeps you (deliciously) hydrated, and can improve oral health. Simply taking a moment to make tea and enjoying it is a great way to practice mindfulness and take a time-out from the business of daily life. 

You don’t need to go to a fancy tea shop for some loose-leaf teas. You can grow and make your own! It’s not impossible to grow plants during January, even though it may frost-tea. Your house keeps you—and your plants—quite toast-tea. So, let’s get to how you can get growing.

Some great tea herbs you can grow include mint, lavender, lemon verbena, fennel, lemon balm, rose hips, chamomile, rosemary, and sage, just to name a few.

There’s No Place Like Home (for your planty friends)

Before you select your plants, make sure you have well-draining soil. About half an inch to one inch of pebbles at the bottom works. Slots or holes at the bottom can also do the trick (you can drill holes at the bottom if necessary). For these, make sure you have a stand that can elevate the pot so there is space underneath, and make sure to place a paper towel underneath. Try for lighter potting soil, but regular soil is sufficient. Herbs don’t really grow too deep, so a container three to five inches deep will suffice. The container can be as wide and long as you’d like.

Most herbs require five to six hours of sunlight (a grow light can be used in place of sunlight). If you grow thyme, make sure your little buddy gets eight hours of sunlight.

Moderate indoor temperatures are required, along the range of 60-70 degrees.

Winter is also the worst time for humidity, as you may have noticed based on extremely dry hands (my family has to constantly lotion their hands. More often than not, the claim of “24-hour moisture” is a lie). You can go and get a fancy humidifier if you want. You can use it for many years for your plants and yourself, but you can also make your own for much cheaper:

Put a sponge in a bowl, let it soak up as much water as possible, and  put it in an empty bowl/plastic bag with holes in it.

If the plants are by some curtains, spray the curtains so they are damp.

Mist from the shower (leave the door open and let the steam out!)

Boiling water.

Setting a glass of hot water out by the plant(s)

Moving Right Oolong…

Mint needs to be kept in its own container. It is one of the most invasive herbs out there. Sure, it wants to give everyone a hug, but it won’t let go. I have it in my outdoor garden, and I try to cut its tendrils away from other plants, but it ALWAYS comes back.

It’s best to keep the herbs separate, but some pair better in the same container than others. Lemon balm and lemon verbena pair together nicely and boost each other for a more citrus-y scent and an enhanced tangy taste.

Thyme, rosemary, and lavender can be put together and won’t affect each individual herb’s taste all that much.

You could try to raise these herbs from seeds, but with the winter temperatures and light, growing times can be pretty unpredictable, and you’ll get only a few leaves by summer. You can wait that long, but I know I have very little patience (not great when you’re a gardener, I know). It’s best to buy a plant that has already sprouted or is further matured.    

Maintaining Quali-tea

Snip leaves regularly (more tea for you that way) to encourage growth. Never take off more than a third of the plant’s extremities. Herbs can produce beautiful flowers if left to their own devices and with time (and can make the leaves you need really bitter, which is great if you like coffee). Regular trimming (or grabbing leaves off) will prevent this.

Make it Dry for Chai

Now it’s time to dry out the herbs. Make sure you wash the leaves (I know eating insects is becoming popular, but you probably don’t want to drink them). The cheapest method of drying herbs is to use free stuff: air! Tie clumps of the herb together, hanging them with stems pointing up in a warm place. You can protect them from dust and whatnot by tying a paper bag around them. With low humidity, they’ll dry your herbs and skin out pretty quickly.  You can also dry herbs in the oven (added bonus: it warms up your house, too!). Set your oven to 135 degrees (if your oven doesn’t go that low, do the lowest setting). You may need to turn herbs over for even drying. When the herbs are dry for both methods, they should easily break away from the stem and in your hands.

Time to Par-tea!

You can grow any combination of herbs you want to make teas—there are tons of recipes out there. Just find the herbs you want for your favorite tea!  Some great herbs for reducing stress include lavender, mint, lemon balm, and rosemary. I hope you give this a chai.

You can do it. I believe in brew!

Growing parsley in a container. While it may not be a tea herb, it’s a great visual of container growing.

Inspiring Local Teenager from Smithsburg Creates Garden to Diminish Hunger in Community

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James Rada, Jr.

Laura Knotts’ garden has produced over 1,100 pounds of squash, zucchini, peppers, tomatoes, and herbs, since this past June. Yet, she hasn’t tasted any of it. All of the produce is donated to New Hope Ministries in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, to be given out to families in need.

“Every load of produce that we’ve had come in is gone the next day,” said Jeanne Troy, New Hope Ministries northern region gift officer. “It is such a premium to have fresh produce.”

New Hope Ministries serves around 2,900 people a month. Because of the availability of the herbs and vegetables from Knotts’ garden, New Hope Ministries is now teaching the families it serves how to cook with fresh vegetables.

Knotts, a seventeen-year-old high school senior from Smithsburg, is a member of the American Heritage Girls. Her troop meets in Dillsburg, Pennslyvania, which is why she located her garden in Pennsylvania. The garden is 40 by 60 feet, and she arranged for the land and equipment. She also made sure that there are volunteers to maintain the garden. The Ames Charitable Foundation donated the tools for the garden work, built the storage shed, and built the fencing.

Knotts got the idea for the garden when she was looking for a project to earn her Stars and Stripes Award, the highest award in the American Heritage Girls. Not only did Knotts have to design the project, but she also had to show leadership in it and have at least one hundred hours of participation.

“I looked around and saw New Hope Ministries and thought it was an organization that I could help out,” Knotts said. “I asked what they needed, and Jeanne told me there was always a need for a fresh source of produce.”

The pantry typically receives only canned or boxed items. Knotts came up with the idea of creating a garden that could provide needed pesticide-free, fresh produce for the pantry. It also tied in with Knotts goal of becoming a nutritionist when she starts college next fall.

The garden is now a permanent part of the West Shore Evangelical Free Church in Mechanicsburg, where the plot is located.

“She set up a plan for keeping it running for the next few years,”Troy said. “Next season, all we have to do is clean up the ground, till it, and plant seeds.”

Knotts said that she would like the see the Mechanicsburg garden enlarged to provide more for New Hope Ministries. She would also like to see other churches duplicate the idea on their properties to give fresh produce to their local food pantries.

 

Seventeen-year-old Laura Knotts of Smithsburg donated 1,100 pounds of fresh produce, from the garden she created and built, to New Hope Ministries for the hungry in need.