chile-heads call “the hot sauce high.”
Something similar happens when peppers are used medicinally. In an ointment, capsaicin has been shown to reduce arthritis pain and inflammation, ease cluster headaches, prevent herpes flare-ups, treat psoriasis, and alleviate surgical and burn pain. Dr. Roy Altman, of the University of Miami School for Medicine says: “The mystery is that it took us so long to figure out just how to use this stuff.”
The next time you pick a pepper from your garden or bring one home from the market, think of all its mysterious properties and marvel. Nature definitely knew what she was doing when she gave us the chile.
Read more about chiles:
The Chile Pepper Book: A Fiesta of Fiery, Flavorful Recipes , by Carolyn Dille and Susan Belsinger
The Healing Powers of Peppers , by Dave DeWitt, Melissa T. Stock, and Kellye Hunter
MARCH 3
I have eaten nettles, I have slept in nettle sheets, and I have dined off a nettle tablecloth . . . I have heard my mother say that she thought nettle cloth more durable than any other.
—THOMAS CAMPBELL, 1803
The Notorious Nettle
If you’ve been stung by a nettle ( Urtica dioica ), you probably haven’t forgotten the experience, and you may have avoided this notorious weed ever since. But over the centuries, the nettle has been a valuable wild herb.
THE GARDEN NETTLE
As liquid compost, nettles make a great fertilizer. Pick them in spring and pack them into a bucket with a lid, adding one-half gallon of water to each pound of nettles. Let sit for 2-3 weeks, stirring occasionally. Strain out the nettles and put them on the compost heap. Use the liquid as a fertilizer (1 cup nettle liquid to 10 cups water), on container and garden plants. In a stronger mixture (1 cup to 5 cups water), you can use it to spray aphids and black fly. The nettle itself is a food plant for butterflies.
THE MEDICINAL, COSMETIC NETTLE
Nettles have been used for centuries to treat osteoarthritis, eczema, prostate problems, and dandruff. The leaves contain a natural histamine that may be useful in treating allergies. And yes, it’s true that the leaves of the dock, which often grows companionably with nettle, contain chemicals that neutralize nettle sting and cool the skin. “Nettle in, dock out,” as the old saying goes! And nettle is said to make your hair shine and feel thicker and smoother. To make a hair rinse, collect 2-3 cups of nettle leaves (wear gloves!). Cover with water in a nonreactive saucepan and simmer for 15 minutes. Strain and cool for use as a rinse after washing your hair.
THE EDIBLE NETTLE
The nettle is an excellent source of calcium, magnesium, iron, and vitamins. The young plants have been used in soups, stews, and as a spinachlike vegetable. In Scotland, oats and nettles were cooked as a porridge, and nettles were used to flavor and color cheese.
THE FIBER NETTLE
The nettle contains long, pliable fibers that can be spun and woven to make smooth, supple nettle cloth, or cooked and processed as paper. The leaves are used to make a green dye; a yellow dye is made from the roots.
Read more about this valuable herb:
Healing Wise , by Susun S. Weed
Nettles , by Janice Schofield
Cows fed on nettle give much milk and yellow butter. Makes horses smart and frisky. Stimulates fowls to lay many eggs . . .
—CONSTANTINE RAFINESQUE (1830)
MARCH 4
I turned to Ruby. “I’ve got a couple of salmon steaks I was planning to bed down in lemon butter and dill. Want to stay for dinner?”
“Offer I can’t refuse,” Ruby said promptly.
—THYME OF DEATH: A CHINA BAYLES MYSTERY
Better Butters
China Bayles uses herbed butters to replace regular butter in soups and sauces, on vegetables, rice and pasta, and broiled fish and poultry. Herbed butters can be stored in the refrigerator for 2-3 weeks, or frozen. Use unsalted butter to permit the fullest herb flavor, adding salt and pepper later.
CHINA’S LEMON DILL BUTTER
1 cup unsalted butter
2 tablespoons
Something similar happens when peppers are used medicinally. In an ointment, capsaicin has been shown to reduce arthritis pain and inflammation, ease cluster headaches, prevent herpes flare-ups, treat psoriasis, and alleviate surgical and burn pain. Dr. Roy Altman, of the University of Miami School for Medicine says: “The mystery is that it took us so long to figure out just how to use this stuff.”
The next time you pick a pepper from your garden or bring one home from the market, think of all its mysterious properties and marvel. Nature definitely knew what she was doing when she gave us the chile.
Read more about chiles:
The Chile Pepper Book: A Fiesta of Fiery, Flavorful Recipes , by Carolyn Dille and Susan Belsinger
The Healing Powers of Peppers , by Dave DeWitt, Melissa T. Stock, and Kellye Hunter
MARCH 3
I have eaten nettles, I have slept in nettle sheets, and I have dined off a nettle tablecloth . . . I have heard my mother say that she thought nettle cloth more durable than any other.
—THOMAS CAMPBELL, 1803
The Notorious Nettle
If you’ve been stung by a nettle ( Urtica dioica ), you probably haven’t forgotten the experience, and you may have avoided this notorious weed ever since. But over the centuries, the nettle has been a valuable wild herb.
THE GARDEN NETTLE
As liquid compost, nettles make a great fertilizer. Pick them in spring and pack them into a bucket with a lid, adding one-half gallon of water to each pound of nettles. Let sit for 2-3 weeks, stirring occasionally. Strain out the nettles and put them on the compost heap. Use the liquid as a fertilizer (1 cup nettle liquid to 10 cups water), on container and garden plants. In a stronger mixture (1 cup to 5 cups water), you can use it to spray aphids and black fly. The nettle itself is a food plant for butterflies.
THE MEDICINAL, COSMETIC NETTLE
Nettles have been used for centuries to treat osteoarthritis, eczema, prostate problems, and dandruff. The leaves contain a natural histamine that may be useful in treating allergies. And yes, it’s true that the leaves of the dock, which often grows companionably with nettle, contain chemicals that neutralize nettle sting and cool the skin. “Nettle in, dock out,” as the old saying goes! And nettle is said to make your hair shine and feel thicker and smoother. To make a hair rinse, collect 2-3 cups of nettle leaves (wear gloves!). Cover with water in a nonreactive saucepan and simmer for 15 minutes. Strain and cool for use as a rinse after washing your hair.
THE EDIBLE NETTLE
The nettle is an excellent source of calcium, magnesium, iron, and vitamins. The young plants have been used in soups, stews, and as a spinachlike vegetable. In Scotland, oats and nettles were cooked as a porridge, and nettles were used to flavor and color cheese.
THE FIBER NETTLE
The nettle contains long, pliable fibers that can be spun and woven to make smooth, supple nettle cloth, or cooked and processed as paper. The leaves are used to make a green dye; a yellow dye is made from the roots.
Read more about this valuable herb:
Healing Wise , by Susun S. Weed
Nettles , by Janice Schofield
Cows fed on nettle give much milk and yellow butter. Makes horses smart and frisky. Stimulates fowls to lay many eggs . . .
—CONSTANTINE RAFINESQUE (1830)
MARCH 4
I turned to Ruby. “I’ve got a couple of salmon steaks I was planning to bed down in lemon butter and dill. Want to stay for dinner?”
“Offer I can’t refuse,” Ruby said promptly.
—THYME OF DEATH: A CHINA BAYLES MYSTERY
Better Butters
China Bayles uses herbed butters to replace regular butter in soups and sauces, on vegetables, rice and pasta, and broiled fish and poultry. Herbed butters can be stored in the refrigerator for 2-3 weeks, or frozen. Use unsalted butter to permit the fullest herb flavor, adding salt and pepper later.
CHINA’S LEMON DILL BUTTER
1 cup unsalted butter
2 tablespoons
Similar Books
