Hi All





What a lovely Autumn day! I have included a picture of me dispensing herbs so you can have an idea of what is I get up to when I am formulating your remedies.

I have a Autumn soup recipe for you all today rich in beta-carotene and protein. Hope you enjoy!

Ingredients

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 diced onion
1 stick of diced celery stick
2 diced carrots
1 cinnamon stick
Sea salt, preferably gray salt
Freshly ground black pepper
About 4 cups chicken/vegetable stock or canned low-salt chicken broth
1/2 teaspoon ground toasted coriander, optional
1 medium Roasted Winter Squash recipe
1/2 cup red lentils

1. Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat until hot. Add the onion, celery, carrot, and cinnamon stick and saute until soft but not brown, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Add the chicken stock and the coriander, if using, and bring to a boil. Add red lentils. Simmer for several minutes until lentils cooked. Stir in the squash until smooth, then simmer gently to let the flavors meld, about 10 minutes. Discard the cinnamon stick.
3. Puree the soup in a blender until smooth. (The soup can be made ahead to this point, cooled, covered, and refrigerated for several days or frozen for about 1 month. It will thicken as it cools and may need thinning with stock or water when reheating.)
4. Return the soup to the pan and reheat gently. Add the half-and-half, if using. Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper. Keep warm until service.

To serve:
Ladle the soup into serving bowls. Garnish evenly, with pumpkin seeds, if desired.

Roast the squash: Cut into slices remove seeds and toss in olive oil roast in hot oven (gas mark 6) for 20mins or until soft.

Winter remedies No 1:

Fresh ginger tea at the first sign of a cold.

Slice two to three slices of ginger per cup of boiling water and brew for 5-10 mins add slice of lemon and honey. The sesquiterpenes in this medicinal root are anti- viral against the rhinovirus (common cold).

Today I am going to spend the afternoon foraging again, one of my favourite Autumn past times! First on my list is blackberries, second is Burdock root. This is a delicacy in Japan and is cooked like a vegetable. (I shall give you the recipe later). From a herbal perspective it is a great detoxifier and we use it for acne, eczema, psoriasis, chronic infection. I works by aiding the clearance of metabolic toxins into the blood stream and works really well if combines with a diuretic. Anyone for braised burdock with a side serving of dandelion leaves!

Please refer to this link for a photo, happy hunting!
http://www.countrylovers.co.uk/wildfoodjj/burdk100.htm

What I will be eating tonight is dhall and rice and vegetables.

To make Dhall couldn't be easier, I eat it all the time and is great for kids and easy to eat. Serve this with brown rice and a vegetable of your choice. Garlic spinach is always good.

Dhall

Mung beans are one of the most cherished foods in Ayurveda. (traditional Indian medicine). They are tridoshic, which means they can be eaten to balance all three doshas, especially when cooked with spices appropriate for each dosha. They are very nourishing, while being relatively easy to digest, they do not generally create abdominal gas or bloating, the drawbacks of larger beans. I use the hulled beans to make dhall but you can always use red lentils. They are of course a great source of protien when combined with the rice as well as rich in lots of nutrients from magnesium and calcium to iron and b vitamins.

Ingredients:

180 g Moong dhall/ or red lentils
2 small onions, one finely chopped into rings.
Salt 1/2 tsp.
1 clove garlic
Turmeric 1/2 tsp.
Cumin 1/4 tsp.
Nigella 1/4 tsp.
Fenugreek 1/4 tsp.
Mustard seeds 1/4 tsp.
Fresh coriander 3 Tbs.

N.b. If you are a very hot person, e.g. you feel the heat! Just omit the dried spices apart from cumin and add grated coconut before serving with the fresh coriander. Also you don't need all the spices, just be inventive and use what you have, as they say all Indian households have the perfect dhall recipe!

1. Wash split peas/ lentils and discard and that are green.
2. Cover with water, about 9ooml and add turmeric, salt and one onion cut into quarters.
3. Boil until lentils are falling apart, take onion out and mash to pulp with fork and add back it.
4. Heat olive oil and fry second onion that you have chopped finely, until brown. Then add rest of dried spices (roughly ground first) and fry until the mustard seeds pop.
5. Pout on the dhall and stir on the coriander. Keep lid on until serving to stop aromas escaping.

I often stir baby spinach in at the end for added vegetables, or some times 2 ripe chopped tomatoes.

Japanese burdock:

Ingredients:
1/2 lb burdock root
1/4 lb carrot
1 tbsp soysauce
1 tbsp sugar
1 1/2 tbsp mirin
1/2 tbsp sake
1 tsp sesame seeds
2 tsps vegetable oil

1. Peel burdock root and shred it into very thin strips. Soak the burdock strips in water for a while and drain well.
2. Peel the carrot and cut it into short and thin strips.
3. Heat vegetable oil in a frying pan, and fry burdock strips for a couple minutes.
4. Add carrot strips in the pan and stir-fry them.
5. Add all seasonings in the pan and stir-fry well. Turn off the heat.
6. Sprinkle sesame seeds.

This is a delicious dish and is very good for you. As sesame oil is very high in omega six oils it is best to have this dish with oily fish to counter this. Try steamed salmon with fresh ginger and spring onions.

Hi All,

Well this is the first of my blogs, hopefully first of many. My talent unfortunately does not lie as a writer, or speller, so you will have to bear with me! I have over the years been asked for recipes from clients of mine and have endeavoured to provide these but I thought for the less imaginative of you a rolling list of what I cook at home may give you some ideas! I will also try to include seasonal tips as I go along to keep you all healthy!

My dinner tonight will be:

Roast butternut squash multi-grain risotto

Ingredients:
1 butternut squash
1 mug of gallo mixed grain risotto rice (with goodies like spelt and barley in it)
Organic chicken or vegetable stock
1 onion
1 clove of garlic
1 glass of white wine (optional)
Thyme one sprig
pepper and salt
oilve oil

1. First chop the squash into chucks, about 1.5" thick, don't take the skin off (this is my laziness!) and toss in olive oil and a little salt and roast at gas mark 6 for 34-40mins until soft.
2. While you are doing this you can finely chop the onion and garlic and sweat in olive oil on very low heat until translucent and sweet (approx. 15 mins)
3. Add to the onion mix the rice and coat in the oil. Then add the wine and the thyme and enjoy the aromas developing. Keep on low heat and stir regularly.
4. Get a pan of stock going on the neighbouring hob so that it is simmering and add a ladle of this to the rice. Keep on adding as it evaporates. Keep on stiring rice regularly.
5. Check the squash, if ready then take out of oven and scoop out of flesh, I like to keep about half in 1" cube chunks.
6. When the rice is nearly done, i.e. aldente- it should have a slight bight. Add half the squash and let in break down, about 5 mins. Add the remained of the squash just before serving. I serve with pecerino (sheep's cheese like Parmesan) and fresh black pepper. As a side you can try wilted spinach, fresh salad or a vegie of your choice.

ENJOY!

An other thing.....

Elderberry cordial

Elderberries the beautiful dark burgandy berries that hang in chanderliers from elder trees are a real autumn treat, not only for the birds but for us. They are also fantastic anti-virals, even being effective against the flu virus. This cordial therefore makes a fab winter tonic. You will have to be quick though... I made this last weekend and many berry clusters were already over or raded by the local birds. You can of course cheat and buy this in waitrose, but there is nothing like squirling away the autumn bounty to be enjoyed on a dark winters night.

Ingredients:
elderberry 1/2 carrier bag
brown sugar dependant on amount of berries you pick, about 1 1b
Cinnamon one stick
Cloves a few
Slices of lemons

1. Put the ripe elderberries in a large sauce pan with half their volume of water and simmer for 20minutes.
2. Cool then squeeze out juice through metal sieve, jelly bag or fruit press.
3. Measure the juice and for ever 500ml add 250g of unrefined sugar, add one cinnamon stick, a few cloves and slices of lemon and simmer for a further 20 minutes.
4. Strain and bottle while hot in sterilised bottles.

This will will leave your kitchen smelling like mulled wine and cordial does make a nice drink or Christmas gift. However it also if great for coughs, flu and colds. Just take one teaspoon every few hours. Children 2- 10 can take half the dose.