Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Nettles!



It has been a mild winter here on the West Coast....wet, gray, fogged in day after day, but mild. And that means early nettles!

Here is some info on nettles from Susun S. Weed in her book The Wise Woman Herbal for the Childbearing Year (a book I HIGHLY recommend if you are planning on having babies) :

The common stinging Nettle, Urtica dioica, is one of the finest nourishing tonics known. It is reputed to have more chlorophyll than any other herb. The list of vitamins and minerals in this herb includes nearly every one known to be necessary for human health and growth. Vitamins A, C, D, and K, calcium, potassium, phosphorus, iron, and sulphur are particularly abundant in Nettles.

Benefits of drinking Nettle infusion before and throughout pregnancy include (Katrina's note: I feel that many of these benefits are sure to be true after the birth as well!)

~Aiding the kidneys.

~Increasing fertility in men and women.

~Nourishing mother and fetus.

~Easing leg cramps and other muscle spasms.

~Diminishing pain during and after birth. The high calcium content, which is readily assimilated, helps diminish muscle pains.

~ Increasing the richness and amount of breast milk.

~ Improves the elasticity of the veins. Good help for varicose veins.


Feeling inspired to get out to the nettle patch and do some picking!?

As with any wild food harvesting, make sure you know what you are picking before you eat it! I find a pair of garden gloves and a plastic bag works best for harvesting nettles, but a pair of rubber gloves or even a thicker plastic bag for your picking had will work too (they really do sting!) Picking the top 1-2 inches of the plants in early spring (or late winter on the West Coast this year) gives you the tenderest treat, but I found that picking and using even the tougher late summer leaves was fine.

I did loads of nettle smoothies (and nettle tea, and steamed nettles) while I was pregnant with Sophia last spring and on into the summer. My intuition is that nettles and other green smoothies were part of the reason that my iron levels stayed in good range throughout my pregnancy (I was not taking any iron supplements or eating any meat.)

My favorite nettle smoothie:

1-4 cups nettle tops (they are very strong tasting, so if you have never had raw nettles before, start small!)

2 bananas

3 cups blackberries

1 apple

2 cups water

BLEND! YUM!

I also really love steamed nettles (yes, I am using some cooked food this chilly winter!) with a little bit of coconut oil and tamari. Simply put a huge pile of nettles, stems and all, into a pot with some water on the bottom. Bring water to a boil, and then turn off, leaving the lid on the pot and letting the nettles steam for about 5-10 minutes. Remove steamed nettles from the water and add a little coconut oil and a dash of tamari. After you have eaten the nettles, you can drink the water that they were steamed in!

Nettle tea, or infusion as Susun Weed calls it, is another staple in my kitchen. Here is how Susun recommends making a water based infusion:

Use one ounce of dried leaves (two handfuls of cut-up leaves or three handfuls of whole leaves) in a quart jar. Fill the jar to the top with boiling water, put the lid on and let it steep for four hours at room temperature.

Leaves contain the potent healer chlorophyll. Long steeping extracts all the chlorophyll, as well as the vitamins, minerals, and other medicinal components of the leaves. Steeping in a closed jar keeps the water-soluble vitamins from escaping in the steam.

Having the time to harvest and dry your own nettle leaves for tea is wonderful, but if you don't, you can almost always find dried nettle in the bulk herb section of your local health food store! If not, try out our favorite bulk herb shop on-line, Mountain Rose Herbs.

There you have it, one of my favorite wild foods, the common stinging nettle.

I've never tried it in juice, but I bet some one will! Let me know what you discover with nettle juice, oh potent!

Monday, February 1, 2010

Make a Wish!



Finding some sunshine on a winter day...orange juice!

Hello Juicy Friends!

I hope that winter is finding you enjoying plenty of cozy moments!

We certainly seem to be flying through winter with a baby in the house to light our days with her smile! Sophia is now seven months old and seems to be learning something new every day. I can't believe it is February already, and that March is right around the corner which means that SPRING is right around the corner!

I am writing to let you know about a very special event that is coming up....yet another gift from Tera Warner and Shannon Leone....My diva-licious friends, creators of the Raw Mom Summit, have gathered up yet another beautiful basket of wisdom, all there waiting for you to pick it up and sit down for a cup of tea with it….please be sure to listen in starting March 8th!

http://www.wishsummit.com

From the Divas themselves:


WISH Summit



It sees women have always come together as part of a

community to support one another in their tasks and times of

need. Now, in our electronic world, we can facilitate the

coming together of much larger groups of women and a much

more diverse range of knowledge, wisdom and support.



That's why Tera Warner and Shannon Leone have created

W.I.S.H. Women's International Summit for Health. In

celebration of Women's Day this year, they're extending a

one-time-only invitation to attent an online summit where 40

of the world's leading experts on health and wellness for

women will be coming together at the same time.



http://www.wishsummit.com




For a series of 10 days, women will be given access to a

series of recorded interviews with some incredible people. You

can catch all of the interviews for FR@E!! by registering before March 8.


http://www.wishsummit.com


Whether it’s the kids, the cellulite, the hot flashes or

steamy romances, W.I.S.H. brings women together to find

solutions and recharge their batteries.


W.I.S.H. promises to be the world's biggest empowerment

party for women
and I invite and encourage you to sign up

and be a part of this extraordinary event.


http://www.wishsummit.com


I hope you will join me in listening in and share a cup of virtual tea (or orange juice!) with me while we soak up some inspiration!

With peaceful steps,

Katrina Rainoshek

WISH Summit