The Incredible Ashitaba Plant - It Even Makes its own Ketones
Chalcone-rich Ashitaba Powder can be used as a kind of nutrient-rich green vegetable in smoothies, salads, or in any other recipe that calls for greens. A quarter- or half-teaspoon at a time is usually sufficient. Also, because it’s a dietary source of ketones, Ashitaba Powder can be used to enhance the effect of a ketogenic diet or to provide extra nutrients during intermittent fasting.
Medicinal Gardening: Annual vs Perennial Plants
One of the main components of a medicinal food garden, as well as optimal nutrition, is perennial plants. Annual plants, such as tomatoes, zucchini and lettuce, are the typical garden plants, and they live out their lives in one season. Usually they are started from seed in the spring, produce a mature plant in the summer, then flower and go to seed in late summer or fall.
The True Explanation of a Medicinal Food Garden
As summer draws to a close and the main harvesting is well under way, I thought I would share my ideas on what I call a “medicinal food garden.” This phrase best describes what I am attempting to do with the Napa garden, and, in some ways, it is the underlying philosophy of Dr. Cowan’s Garden.
The Plant That Should Be Part Of Everyone's Diet: Spinach
Spinach is one of the few foods that has had a massive television campaign aimed at convincing the American population to consume it. Everyone in my generation has fond memories of Popeye the Sailor Man. Some of us can probably still sing the little song that accompanied the show. The central point of the show was to convince the American population, which at that time was not used to the regular consumption of garden vegetables, to include more spinach in their diets.
Threefold Blend Spicy - Asian Sense for the Marriage of Heat, Spice and Sweet
By most accounts, I am a fairly experienced cook. I have been the primary food preparer in my household for most of the past 40 years. I have made hundreds of loaves of sourdough bread, starting from whole wheat or rye berries. I have six fermentation crocks, and one is going most of the time. I have made a variety of fermented “soft drinks,” my current favorite being various fruit-based shrubs. One of Lynda’s nieces claims she likes to visit us in San Francisco at least partially to eat my food. Yet, I am only the second best Cowan male chef.
What Sustainability Means To Dr. Cowan's Garden
Sustainability is a frequently used word in today’s world. People talk about sustainable buildings, sustainable agriculture, sustainable economics — even sustainable medicine. I’m not sure a clear definition exists within any of these contexts, but I’d like to share what sustainable means to.
Leaky-Gut: 101
In many ways, our guts are like a grassy meadow. In a healthy meadow, layers of protection prevent toxins from seeping into the valuable groundwater below. The uppermost level is composed largely of grasses and other species of plant life, all with their roots and foliage intermixed into a kind of carpet. Living among the foliage are numerous animal organisms, from rabbits and mice to butterflies and caterpillars. Hundreds if not thousands of species of plant, animal and insect life make up this outer layer.
A Quintessential Spring Food: Wild Ramps!
Wild ramps are the quintessential spring food. Found in moist, shady areas of deciduous forests, they literally pop up out of the ground soon after the first warmth of spring. Sometimes referred to as wild leeks, the entire plant, from the snow- white bulb to the rich green leaf, is full of health-promoting minerals and poly-phenols.
A Tale of Sustainably Harvested Ramps
My Dad, Dr. Cowan, always taught his kids that the key to growing good food is to farm the soil. Over the years and through a number of different experiments from creating a Hügelkultur, to broad-forking entire beds at the Napa Garden we have always paid attention to the soil. In our search for sustainability and it’s derivatives; flavor, smell, freshness, nutrition, and color we have come across some interesting vegetables and farmers. Wild Ramps have some incredible qualities that by virtue of aiding in sustainability and preventing soil erosion, have the added advantage of being highly sought after for culinary purposes.
Are Your Daily Multivitamins Really Beneficial to Your Health?
In the earlier part of the 20th Century, vital substances needed for human nutrition were being discovered and named. Vitamin A, or retinol, was the first vitamin discovered, hence, the name vitamin A. The name retinol came about because it was found that a deficiency of vitamin A caused blindness, connecting the substance to the retina. Soon after came the discoveries of the B vitamins, and then vitamin C.
What You Need To Know About Autoimmune Disease
As I put the finishing touches on my forthcoming book on autoimmune disease, I want to say a few words on the connection between autoimmune disease, diet and vegetable diversity.
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