Tea From Trees

The best tea shop is in you yard or nearby forest. Surprisingly you don't need traditional tea leaves to brew a soothing cup. Your backyard maple or cherry can give you a tasty as well as healthy brew. Brewing from tree back is nothing new, It has been done for centuries mostly by indigenous American tribes. Their teas were not  only for soothing  and warming up a troubledsoul butalso for healing one too.
Any tree will give you tea. However some trees need to be avoided like poison sumac, yew and of course, hemlock. Any other is OKand can produce some flavorful brewing. For some trees like the wild cherry and maple, go for the inner bark which is more tender and flavorful.Cherry tree bark tea is good for sore throats and just for keeping the vocal chords lubed.It's also good for lowering blood pressure as well. Even the white pine, usually known for ornamentation has an inner bark that makes a sweet , sugary tea. It's also easy to peel which makes it excellent for preparing.Even a tree's needles such as the pine and spruce also make excellent teas as well. These are even rich in Vitamin C and can be subbed in for citrus of need be.

How do you get the bark and then brew the tea? First take a knife or sharp bladed scissor (this last is for the smaller, younger branches) and cut as much as you think you'll need to brew tea. DON"T take any branches laying on the ground ,These are probably the older ones and have no flavor.  One branch, half an inch wide and six feet long will yield one cup worth of bark.Back at the kitchen  it's time to start brewing. Use one quart of water for one cup of bark.Boil for twenty minutes and leave to steep until the brew gets dark. You can sweeten  your cup with honey or raw sugar along with lemon if you want.

It's amazing what your tree can give you. Shade , fruit and even tea. Brew some freshly cut bark tree today . You'll be surprised at how tasty it is.

Mother's Day Treats For Mom

Tomorrow is Mother's Day the day tocelebate the lady who used to bake your favorite cookies and make you endless casseroles of baked mac and cheese.It's time to celebrate her with some gourmet goodies or just plain homemade ones, Even  simple pancakes spelling out MOM can be a treasured gift.

For foodie moms nothing beats really good chocolate. You can always get her a box of Godiva which has all sorts of sweet indulgent treats. The company sells some wonderful truffles, full of tasty creams and ganaches.You can also buy bars from them to to be scraped over Mom's favorite ice creams or cake.Hannah Krause is another good chocolatier  and a throwback to a more simpler time. They sells boxes of classics such as coconut cremes and caramels. Another treat are flavored coffees and teas. Wrap these with a few good romances or mysteries for some comfy reading.

What about homemade gifts? Nothing beats breakfast in bed. Make it healthy with buckwheat  pancakes and pure Vermont maple syrup (none of this artificial stuff with corn  syrup in it). You can have the pancakesspellout mom or makethem into flower shapes with banana centers. A rich decadent treat is Eggs Benedict and the best part is that they can be eaten any time of day.You could vary them by having spinach or crab meat instead of the usual Canadian bacon. Also  the base doesn't have to be an English muffin.Try a croissant, brioche potaot brioche brioche of a nest of olive oil fried shredded potatoes instead.

Treat Mom with some good foodie tastes. They can be store bought all tied with a fancy ribbon. They can be homemade , straight from the kitchen, Whatever she gets your mom will know they're with love from you,

Healthy Foraging

Your nearby woods or park is really nothing more than a big health food store. The produce there not only is loaded with healthy greens and fungi but it yours free for the  picking. You can pick up everything  form omelet ingredients to sides for lunch or dinner . Your local woods are amazing foodwise .

Before you go, pick up a book on foraging. Even though there are plenty of healthy plants out there, there are a few poisonous ones. Once you get acquainted with the fauna then you can start picking,.Ramps and stinging nettles are some of the healthy greens readily available Ramps are a sort of wild leek and are high in Vitamins A and C along with the mineral selenium. Since they have a taste between a garlic and an onion you can use them in a fresh made tomato sauce. You can also make a good side with them,with olive oil and hot pepper. Stinging nettles are wonderful in reducing calcifications and long with relieving joint pain. A recent recipe in the New York Times Dining (Melissa Clark's Good Appetite column)made it as part of a pasta sauce.Stinging nettles lose their sting when they're boiled.

What about mushrooms? Most people freak out when they hear about eating wild mushrooms because so many have died from eating the wrong ones. One consult a foraging book and if you;re still not sure then join a mushroom club. Experts there can guide you to the right ones. Wild mushrooms such as morelles and porcinis along with chanterelles are truly excellent in any kind of risotto and pasta. You can even make ravioli  stuffing with them. The mushrooms are known for their proteins and can easily be subbed in for animal ones.They also have glutamic acid which is essential for strengthening the immune system. Mushrooms have estrogen blockers which can prevent both breast and prostrate cancer.

The forest is truly a health food store bursting with good and tasty foods. Go out there and enjoy not only the fresh air and sunshine but freshly picked treats. It's a great way of communing with nature and keeping yourself healthy!

Healthy Food , Tasty Food

As I've been almost everyone from reader to friends to family healthy eating doesn't have to be blah.In fact it can be downright delicious. It's just a matter of knowing what to eat. Good for you food can be just as yummy as the bad for you kind. The best part is that it comes with some very good benefits.

This is what the author Peter Kaminsky is trying to stress in his latest book"Culinary Intelligence" published by Knopf.  He was featured in yesterday's New York Times Dining section yesterday in an article by the section's regular contributor, Jeff Gordenier. Mr. Kaminsky was a former food critic writing for New York magazine's Underground Gourmet. unfortunately gourmand dining took its'toll on his health He had  blimped up to 205 pounds and was borderline diabetic . A change in habits and a serious drive to eat better changed him around. he still indulges in foods such as bacon and sausages but in very small quantities.

He out his theories into practice during a trip to Manhattan's famed Eataly food emporium , He tells readers as well as Mr Gordinier who trailed along to avoid processed ingredients. he nixes white flour, sugar and potatoes as most nutritionists suggest. However he does not ban dark chocolate , bacon butter and Italian sausage. Mr. Kaminsky recommends eat them sparingly and in small quantities. Eataly provided him with some other choices he thoroughly endorsed such as anchovies chickpeas , capers, plain yogurt olive oil and roasted almonds. These are perfect ingredients and some such as the chickpeas and almonds are just good as snacks,. He also recommends porcini mushrooms, olives and spelt pasta.. The best bet is looking for brown - whole wheat , more naturally made foods.

Eating right  and eating tasty is what we all want for ourselves Mr. Kaminksy's book makes it easy. Healthy foods don't have to be bland tasting .They  can be just as flavorful and fun as the bad for you goodies.

A Salute To Craig Claiborne

Craig Claiborne changed the way people ate and cooked. He introduced New Yorkers to good food and interesting restaurants Thanks to him millions of people discovered the lure of ethnic cuisines and got away from their bland American diets. It was only fifty years ago that Mr. Claiborne changed American tastes and palates,but it could have been the dark ages of American cooking.

The Dining section of The New York Times celebrated this amazing powerhouse today. The famed Pete Wells along with the even more famous chef Jacques Pepin contributed pieces as well as a humorous one by Bryan Miller. These are fond reminiscences of a larger than life man. Surprisingly Mr.Claiborne was not born in New York (although one might think so. ) He was raised in Sunflower , Mississippi a  town known more for its' jazz and blues than for gourmet cooking, Using the GI Bill, he was able to go to a hotel school in Lausanne , Switzerland . He then landed in New York City and was inspired by the famed food critic MFK Fisher. His contributions led to the birth of The Times Food section.

He was the first man to write extensive food reviews for The Times. thanks to him, multitudes of newspapers across the country started adding their own food critics and recipe sections. Mr . Claiborne may be credited with giving birth to the cult of celebrity chef. Mr Pepin was one of these early ones and also developed a long friendship with Mr. Claiborne. Not only that, the French chef had his recipes featured in the Times  , introducing readers to the joys of Gallic flavor. Mr. Claiborne also was responsible for the careers of the great Marcella Hazan for Italian cooking,Diana Kennedy for Mexican and Virginia Lee for Chinese. However he also extolled the virtue of the home chef, probably influenced by the great Southern dishes he grew up on in his mother's boarding house.

Craig Claiborne was definitely one of the pillars of today's Times Dining section. He brought real and exotic cooking first to New Yorkers and then to the world. He is up there with Escoffier when it comes to food.

A Rare Find A Healthy Potato Chip!

Is there such a thing as a healthy potato chip? Surprisingly yes! It seems like a health nut
s dream come and it is! There is a company out there that makes yummy yet good for you munchies.

Who is this miracle company? It is Good Health Natural Foods and they make a variety of tasty all natural snacks. They're also responsible for making all natural soaps and body washes - totally unusual for a food company. The company is dedicated to creating healthy treats from their base in Greensboro, North Carolina They started with Veggie Stix which are like French fries  and progressed to olive oil potato chips and polenta corn chips.They also have a baked hummus chip Humbles which is one of the first around. All of their products are low in saturated fat and have no artificial ingredients.I found the chips at my local Walgreens but they can also be bought at Drugstore.com.

How do those healthy chips taste? I bought the rosemary ones  and they are amazing! It's like eating new potatoes fresh from the oven! They are crispy and flavorful without that usual potato chip oiliness, The rosemary and sea salt are nice additions, because herbs are rarely used in making chips and the usual one is laden with just regular salt. I can't wait to try their polenta corn chips as well as their half naked organic popcorn and pizza flavored Veggie Stix Good Health Natural Foods also have apple chips for those with a sweet tooth as well as peanut butter stuffed pretzels , Humbles and whole grained crackers.

For those health addict lusting for a good snack, try Good Health Natural  Foods olive oil potato chips. These are just right for watching a  movie or a nice accompaniment with juice on a hike. Either way they are a refreshing change from the usual salt and oil laden ones!

Winging It

What do you do when there's a mish mosh of ingredients in the house? Improvise? Sometimes the wildest mixes lend them selves in creating the tastiest dishes.A box of rice and some sliced veggies along with leftover meat can create a satisfying lunch or dinner.

When you're foraging for stuff to make for a meal start at the base. This is usually any kind of pasta rice or even bread. You can always make a yummy dish just by using spaghetti. or even Rice Roni . Bread can serve as a base for hot sandwiches such as  grilled cheese or even a savory bread pudding.It have a box of whole wheat pasta along with brown rice an brown bread available.The next is have some fresh veggies for impromptu sauces  Sliced peppers and tomatoes along with cauliflower and broccoli make for some nice sauces or add ins. Try thinking outside the salad bowl when whipping up salads. Use potatoes for texture and flavor or . try a hot broccoli rabe salad with orzo.

Any kind of meats will do for winging it in the kitchen. You can use a wide variety from hot dogs to meat balls to leftovers. Hot dogs can be cut up and added as a tasty addition to baked mac and cheese. Meatballs make a good hot sub even better.Leftover roast beef and chicken can be sliced up for anything from pizza toppings to hot and cold sandwiches. Even canned meats like Spam or tuna can be added into everything . Try a croque Monsieur with Spam or use the tuna for melts or the more elegant Nicoise salad.You can get very creative with any meat  and use it in a variety of tasty ways.

Winging it with whatever you find can be fun .It brings out  your creative side as a cook while testing your cooking skills. If you find yourself with odd ingredients, don't despair. There 's bound to be a good dish waiting to be made.