Tag Archives: mint

Your favorite herbs

Posted on by

free web site traffic and promotion
herbs

Your favorite herbs

Herbs – Most people can instantly name their favorite wild animal: a giant tiger, a sleek python, a cuddly panda or a playful otter. The reason they state the affinity for the beings are many: a quality that the animal seems to imbibe, the habitat they live in or just the marvel of their physical attributes. After all who wouldn’t want to swim like a dolphin, soar like a condor or live in the rainforest canopy? But if you ask most people what their favorite herb is, the answers are slow to come, or something sarcastic about the one that is smokable. The answer comes slowly to me, too, not because I don’t know, but because I just can’t choose. The herbs in my garden bring me year-round beauty, joy and wonder.

Spring: In the herb garden, the lemon balm is the first to poke its leaves out from under the straw. Dark green and vibrant, it beckoned me to pick a leaf and sniff it. It whispered of bees and new batches of tea. Then came the Baikal skullcap, next the oregano and, finally, new bluish-green leaves at the base of the lavender emerged. Oh, and somewhere in there came the spearmint creeping into areas it shouldn’t. Clary Sage, too, begins popping up all over in sometimes very unusual places, not limiting itself to any garden at all. The patch of calendula, once again reseeded itself so well the young plants, practically form a mat. Once again, the growing season is on and these plants seem to thrive in Flagstaff’s unique growing environment.

Summer: Summer is the time for fresh herbs; calendula petals for salads, spearmint leaves for mojitos, lemon balm leaves for teas, oregano for savory sauces, lavender flowers in lemonade. The calendula I grow came originally from seeds from Thunderfoot Earthworks in the Verde Valley. The flower colors are the most vibrant shades of yellow and orange. So vibrant, they would be garish as clothing (unless you are a Lily Pulitzer fan). I happily get lost gazing at all the color variations: plain yellow, plain orange, orange centers with yellow rays, yellow centers with orange rays. Every year, I try to decide which combo is my favorite as I cut the flower heads for drying.

Somewhere around early to mid summer, I begin harvesting the herbs in earnest. For the oregano, lemon balm and spearmint, I dry the leaves, preferably before they begin flowering. To dry the herbs, cut sprigs of leaves, bundle them together with an elastic band and hang them upside down in a cool, dark room.

Fall: Somewhere after the hubbub of the new school year quiets down, I begin to strip the dried leaves for storage. The aromas of dried plants are pungent. Oregano has a slightly hairy feel and an earthy smell. Spearmint smells so strong it commands attention. Lavender flowers are slow to strip off the stem. It takes a lot of sprigs to get enough flowers. The calendula flowers are somewhat faded when dried but still stunning. Store the herbs in glass containers that are absolutely dry (even a little moisture can create a moldy, unusable mess) in a cool, dark place. Harvest enough for a year’s use.

Winter: Winter time is tea time. Sitting by the fire and drinking in favorite combinations of dried herbs, mixing my herbs with ones bought at Winter Sun. It is a time for making salves, shampoos and facial steam mixes. Outside all signs of the herbs greenery are gone, hidden under snow and frozen in the ground. But soon enough, the tender shoots or new seedlings will emerge starting the whole cycle over again.

I really am hard pressed to pick a favorite, and these are only the ones that I grow. This morning, it is lemon balm — its leaves looking so juicy and sweet. By midsummer it may be the purple blossoms of the dolphins-shaped skullcap or the heady scent of clary sage. Herbs, especially the mint family, grow easily and well in Flagstaff, despite drought, freezing and monsoons. Plant them yourself and find your favorite.

Ann Brown is a Master Gardener who is married with two daughters, a dog, a cat, and eight chickens, and who has a passion for herbs. Dana Prom Smith edits Gardening Etcetera, blogs at http://highcountrygardener.blogspot.com and emails at [email protected].

Bill & Sheila’s A-Z of herbs


If you require a high quality printout of this article, just click on the printer symbol next to ’Share and enjoy’, and we will do the rest.

Get the best website builder available anywhere –SBI! Click here for more information


herbs

Return from herbs to Home Page


If you want to increase your site popularity and gain thousands of visitors – check out these sites THEY ARE FREE. Spanishchef more than doubled its ‘New Visitors’ last month simply by signing up to these sites:
facebook likes google exchange
Likerr.eu
GetLikeHits.com
Ex4Me
Web hosting


Follow spanishchef.net on TWITTER

Recommended Reading

Vitasoy Holly Nog & Mint Chocolate are the Life of the Party!

Posted on by

Vitasoy Holly Nog & Mint Chocolate are the Life of the Party!

AYER, Mass., Dec. 5, 2011 /CNW/ — Just in time for the holidays, Canadians can indulge in Vitasoy Holly Nog, a smooth and creamy seasonal treat back by popular demand, and decadent Mint Chocolate, a mouth-watering favorite now available year-round.

“Smart hosts know the best parties serve foods that are tasty and fun, as well as satisfying. Vitasoy’s Holly Nog and Mint Chocolate offer all three,” said Vitasoy Marketing VP Susan Rolnick. “Their flavors are irresistible, plus they’re packed with the complete proteins we need to feel satisfied and full of energy.”

Both drinks contain all of the essential amino acids that support an active lifestyle. One serving offers a full four to nine grams of protein, compared to almond beverages, which only provide one gram. They’re free from dairy, lactose and gluten, and have no cholesterol. Made in Canada from only non-GMO whole soybeans grown in Canada, they’re certified organic.

Holly Nog features the same velvety smooth taste of traditional egg nog with just a fraction of the fat and calories. Its cinnamon and nutmeg notes strike just the right balance. Luscious Mint Chocolate is tantalizing served either warmed, like hot chocolate, or cold, poured over ice. The combination of cool mint and rich chocolate pleases in every season.

Look for Vitasoy Holly Nog now through January and Mint Chocolate all year round in leading supermarkets and natural foods stores throughout Canada. They’re available for $2.99 per 946 ml container.

For further information about Vitasoy, including recipe ideas for both Holly Nog and Mint Chocolate, visit http://www.vitasoy-usa.com.

About Vitasoy USA, Inc.A pioneer in bringing organic and all-natural tofu and soymilk to North America, Vitasoy USA is committed to producing delicious, innovative foods that promote the health and well being of our consumers and the earth. Look for our premium tofu, Asian noodles and wraps, and soy-based sandwich spreads, soymilk, juices and teas under the brand names Azumaya, San Sui, Vita and Vitasoy. For more information visit www.vitasoy-usa.com.


Chocolate with Bill & Sheila

This site is hosted by (click on the graphic for more information)chocolate

Return from chocolate to Home Page


If you want to increase your site popularity and gain thousands of visitors = check out these sites:
facebook likes google exchange
Ex4Me
Earn Coins Google +1

Recommended Reading

Finally, A Breath Mint That Does What It's Supposed To

Posted on by
Reply

Finally, A Breath Mint That Does What It’s Supposed To

One weekend you get together with friends for dinner at a delectable restaurant that serves cheese fondue, and you have a martini to cap it off. You want to make sure you have fresh breath, so after dinner you pop in an Altoids or other similar breath mint. Although you may now have a cinnamon-like taste in your mouth, what you’ve really done is made your bad breath problem much worse. Let me explain…

All the “breath mint candies” that you’re used to seeing in the stores (Altoids, Tic-Tacs, Certs, Ice Breakers, etc…) all commit some kind of fatal mistake in the documented science of creating fresh breath. You see, by now the academic halitosis community knows the causes of bad breath…and we also know the exact conditions that create an oral environment in your mouth that is more likely to produce bad breath.

A LITTLE BIT ABOUT SITUATIONAL BAD BREATH AND WHAT TRIGGERS IT

A common type of bad breath that occurs in 99.9% of the world population, at one time or another, is situational bad breath. It happens when someone activates what is called a “trigger” which causes the oral environment in their mouth to become more likely for the anaerobic bacteria to begin creating the volatile sulfur compounds (VSC’s) that cause bad breath.

In scientific terms, when your mouth encounters one of these triggers, it creates an oral environment that encourages the anaerobic bacteria to begin extracting sulphur compounds from specific amino acids. One amino acid called Cysteine, turns into Hydrogen Sulphide, which has a rotten-egg smell. Another amino acid, Methionine, becomes Methyl Mercaptan which smells sort of like dirty socks. What are the common bad breath triggers? They include foods that are high in protein, alcohol, medication with dry mouth side effects, smoking, garlic, onions, coffee, citrus juice, and sugar.

WHY DID THE ‘BREATH MINT CANDY’ AFTER DINNER NOT WORK AT REFRESHING YOUR BREATH?

During dinner you introduced two “triggers” to your mouth (protein and alcohol) that weren’t previously there. These triggers make your oral environment very eager to begin creating foul-smelling VSC’s (volatile sulphur compounds). Thus, the process of producing bad breath began.

Wouldn’t you think that a breath mint would contain ingredients that make this oral environment less likely to happen? At the very least, there shouldn’t be anything in a breath mint that would make that oral environment worse right?

SO, WHAT MAKES A BREATH MINT ACTUALLY NEUTRALIZE BAD BREATH PRODUCTION?

First, you need a breath mint that does not contain sugar – your breath mint should NEVER have sugar as an ingredient. Rather, the ingredient xylitol should be used. Xylitol is a NATURAL sweetener and has also been proven to have tremendous anti-decay properties.

Next your breath mint should also contain zinc gluconate. This ingredient literally puts a “straight-jacket” around those bad breath producing anaerobic bacteria. Specifically, it blocks the receptors on the anaerobic bacteria so that they don’t bind with the amino acids thus preventing the production of VSC’s (volatile sulphur compounds), which causes bad breath!

Remember, your breath mint should be free of aspartame, saccharin, and artificial colours or flavours. Do you see where I’m getting at? The top breath mint fresheners on the market ALL contain either sugar, or an artificial flavour that is designed to cover up rather than prevent bad breath and taste.

WHAT’S THE BOTTOM LINE? WHAT BREATH MINTS DO I RECOMMEND?

One such breath mint that contains none of these ineffective ingredients but does contain all of the good ones, are ZOX breath lozenges. With their patented combination of Zinc, Oxygen, and Xylitol they are literally the most effective breath mint available.

author:Dr. Harold Katz

Recommended Reading