Wholesome Wisdom

New Year, New Recipe!

2011-01-03T11:11:00.000-08:00

Photo Source HAPPY NEW YEAR! Now that celebrations are winding down, and you may have a bit more time to yourself, perhaps it's time to pick up that new book you got for Christmas, sit in a rocking chair, and pull up a side table for a glass of rich, chocolatey... er, "malted chocolate beverage." After pulling out the movie "Heidi" the other night, and being inspired by stone houses in the

109 and Doing Fine: Additional Wholesome Wisdom from Bernando Lapallo

2010-12-22T18:39:00.000-08:00

Photo Source Hello! Hope your Christmas preparations have been and continue to be a source of joy! However, if the stresses of the season are wearing you down, turn on some wonderful Classical Christmas music, find an old fashioned rocking chair, and cradle your cares away! On the blog today, I thought I'd take a break from the hustle and bustle, and focus on something new to help improve

Great Resource for Finding Safe Personal Care Products

2010-12-14T17:39:00.000-08:00

Photo Source As a follow-up to the last post, I thought you might be interested in a great resource for evaluating the safety of your personal care products. I use it all the time to find the least toxic shampoos, soap, hairspray, toothpaste... you name it. It's called "Skin Deep," the Environmental Working Group's cosmetic safety database. But, like I said, it covers a lot more than just

Follies of Festive Fragrances

2010-12-12T16:52:00.000-08:00

Photo Source Christmas just wouldn't be Christmas, it seems, without the scents of the season to fill the air! Around this time of year, our senses are enlivened by fragraces profound and varied: festive perfumes, spicy potpourri, calming scented candles, Glade plug-ins, even Febreze or furniture polish in anticipation of company. As nice as some of those fragrances may be, they do

Greetings From the "Little Cabin in the Wood"

2010-12-11T15:49:00.000-08:00

Christmas is less than two weeks away! Where did the time go? Goodness, it's been a while since I have done any blogging. Autumn seemed to come and go overnight, and we are now quite in the heart of winter, at least here in the north country! Tonight, the temperature is predicted to drop to -18... a good time to do things like listening to "A Prairie Home Companion" as I am now (We Minnesota

Cool as a Cucumber...

2010-09-20T14:25:00.000-07:00

Creamy Cucumber-Mint Salad with Borage Flowers ...and getting cooler! As the nighttime temperatures have been dropping, we have been doing our best to make use of the last of the garden produce and fresh herbs. Off-season cucumbers from the grocery store just aren't the same! So... we have to savor them while we can. I love eating plain, salted cucumbers, as a rule, but once in a while it is

Capture Fall... Make a Terrarium!

2010-09-17T17:50:00.000-07:00

As the leaves turn color, the wind blows colder, and the days grow shorter, it can make a person a little wistful that summer is over, and that we are slowly making our autumn transition into the cold winter ahead. At such a time, one may wish to hold onto anything green and alive before all is covered by a blanket of snow. Well, it is possible! ...with Terrariums! A

Enjoy Fall & Get Healthy: Go Foraging!

2010-09-16T17:44:00.000-07:00

Sumac berries, Blackberries, and Rose hips from a recent forage Ah, Fall... a time when colors change, and everything seems to be dressed in varying shades of red, orange, brown, and gold: the leaves, the garden bounty... nature itself. As beach days and barbeques give way to school days and soup dinners, it is nice to be able to make use of these lingering longer days by gathering treasures

End of Summer, Beginning of Fall

2010-09-11T08:48:00.000-07:00

Canoe trip on the Bigfork River After inadvertently taking an extended summer vacation from blogging, I'm back behind the desk with my apple and books... and a freshened-up look for the blog, which is still in progress as I hit the books to catch up on my technology knowledge... ! The above picture I took during a short canoe trip I took with three of my high school friends in July... a

Dandelion Pesto... the Delicious Result

2010-05-21T13:46:00.000-07:00

Here it is! A couple of weeks ago, I mentioned a recipe for making dandelion pesto, and a few days ago I got around to trying it. I can't say it has an exotic flavor or anything. With the basil in it, it still has the taste of regular pesto, however the dandelion greens do add a bit of bitterness. However, the result was definitely worthwhile, and yet another way to get excellent greens in your

Foraging Fun: Fiddlehead Ferns!

2010-05-13T12:59:00.000-07:00

Getting bored with your green vegetables? Try Fiddlehead ferns! In early spring, when fern heads are still lifting up their shy heads after a long winter's slumber... it is the perfect time to glean! While the fronds are still tightly coiled, they can be plucked and eaten raw on a salad, sauteed with mushrooms as a side dish, cooked in a soup, or tossed with pasta. You can basically use them

Eggplant Bruschetta

2010-05-07T16:59:00.000-07:00

Traditional Italian bruschetta is an appetizer that consists of small toasted bread slices, rubbed with garlic, drizzled with olive oil, and seasoned with salt and pepper. There are many topping variations, such as chopped vegetables, olives, tomatoes, cured meats, puree of legumes, etc. This recipe features eggplant, standing in for the traditional bread. ...Just another way to get more fruits

Homemade Peppermint Patties to Celebrate Spring

2010-05-06T10:20:00.000-07:00

The peppermint is up in our garden, and I have been using it for a number of recipes. However, I'm afraid the poor plants don't have a lot of leaves to spare just yet. So, to still enjoy that fresh burst of flavor, but without stripping the peppermint plants of all their leaves... here's a recipe (or rather, more of a how-to) for making your own peppermint patties with peppermint oil, while still

It's May!

2010-05-04T11:04:00.000-07:00

... And I haven't posted since February! Yikes! Sometimes the chronic fatigue wins over doing things I would enjoy doing... like posting here, of course! The picture above is one I took just today, during a leisurely walk in the woods. These are bleeding hearts, from one of our flower beds. I see the daffodils are up too, plus a lot of wild flowers... and some wild edibles! It's that time of

An Afternoon Tea Featuring Buckwheat Shortbread

2010-02-15T09:10:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone had a wonderful Valentine's Day! And... continuing in the spirit of a holiday whose celebration reached its height in the Victorian age, I thought a post on another Victorian tradition, afternoon tea, would be fun. I started subscribing to Tea Time magazine several month ago, after being introduced to it through my favorite, Victoria magazine. Tea Time has articles on tea

Who Needs Valentines? I Got Bread in the Mail!

2010-02-12T19:00:00.000-08:00

It came! My bread!!! I even walked down the long driveway in sub-zero temperatures just to get it! I had been eagerly anticipating the arrival of my bread order from Grindstone Bakery ever since I placed the order a week and a half ago. (They only ship on Tuesdays to make sure you get it fresh, and I had ordered too late in the day, the Monday before). How exciting to be able to eat bread

"Grapefruit Diet... Might Seem a Little Severe"

2010-02-10T13:22:00.000-08:00

Photo Source Well, I'm definitely not going to discourse upon Weird Al's parody on Zut Suit Riot, but the song does seem to come in mind when discussing the benefits of grapefruit in one's diet. : ) We are nearing the end of grapefruit season, so get some while you can! Grapefruit really do have some wonderful assets to promote wellness... not to mention flavor! Why eat Grapefruit? Great

Disconnect to Recharge

2010-02-05T15:33:00.000-08:00

It's now 6 weeks after Christmas! How goes it? Have you recovered yet, or are you still suffering the effects of weeks and weeks of busyness and very little rest? The winter months are supposed to be a time for us to sleep more (hence the shorter daylight hours), and rest our bodies, so that we'll be ready for the longer, activity-filled days of spring, summer, and fall. There is, after all,

A Breath of Fresh Air

2010-02-02T15:18:00.000-08:00

Did you know that February is National "Care About Your Indoor Air" Month? The picture above is of the lake across the road from our house... last summer. Doesn't it look pristine? It doesn't quite look like that now! Nope-- It's all ice and snow. We've had a lot of sub-zero days this winter, which has unfortunately kept me indoors most of the time. I know, I really ought to brave the cold

New Niches for Familiar Foods: Collards & Cabbage

2010-01-29T08:38:00.000-08:00

Isn't this a colorful January meal? Ever get tired of plain old sandwiches? Try something new! Use collard greens or purple cabbage leaves as wraps! (or green cabbage, red cabbage, leaf lettuce, butter lettuce...etc!) It's a great way to get more green leafy vegetables in your diet without having a salad at every meal. Collard greens work especially well for this, as they are really tough.

Wholesome Wisdom from a 108-Year-Old Man

2010-01-26T13:30:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, as I was researching some health-related topics... I happened across an interview by Paul Nison (a health enthusiast and author known for overcoming his ulcerative colitis & Crohn's disease with a raw-food diet) of a 108-year-old gentleman named Bernando Lapallo. Mr. Lapallo is active and healthy. He has his own blog, a facebook page, and even a book which he wrote in 2009, when he

New Niches for Familiar Foods: Daikon Radish

2010-01-22T21:00:00.000-08:00

Well, maybe daikon radishes aren't that familiar. I ran across them for the first time at a farmer's market a couple of years ago. They caught my attention as they are so big! In fact, the word is Japanese, and means "large root." Daikon radishes look kind of like large white carrots. They are often used in Asian soups with miso. Think you need to eat a ton of oranges this winter to get your

If You Do One Healthy Thing Today...

2010-01-18T09:56:00.000-08:00

...Try a new Fruit Salad! This makes a great healthy, quick & easy breakfast. Besides that, having fruit for breakfast helps continue the cleansing process that your body was doing during the night while you slept. Besides that, it's delicious! Try this instead of your morning cereal. You can even put some diluted coconut milk or banana "milk" (just blend some banana and water) over the top.

18 Ways to Dramatically Improve Your Diet

2010-01-11T09:38:00.000-08:00

Now that the decorations are put away, the cookies are eaten, and our lives are devoid of the hustle and bustle that took place just weeks ago, it seems like a good time to replenish our energies, restore our health, and look forward to the longer days and sunshine ahead. Of course, those of us who live within just a couple of hours' drive from Canada will have to wait just a little longer than

New Year's Health Resolutions

2010-01-07T16:32:00.000-08:00

Did you know... that the vast majority of New Year's resolutions people make are typically health-related? Eat healthier, Lose Weight, Exercise More. How about you? Well, we are now one week into 2010! How are you doing so far? Even though I am already on a rather healthy diet (raw food, organic, vegan) due to a chronic health condition, I still have certain goals for improving my diet,