Milady's Tinctures, Tonics & Teas

“What are you doing?” he asked. His hands rested gently on my shoulders.

“Looking for that plant,” I answered, sticking a finger between the pages to mind my place. “The one I saw in the stone circle. See…” I flipped the book open. “It could be in the Campanulaceae, or the Gentianaceae, the Polemoniaceae, the Boraginaceae—that’s most likely, I think, forget-me-nots—but it could even be a variant of this one, the Anemone patens.” I pointed out a full color illustration of a pasqueflower. “I don’t think it was a gentian of any kind; the petals weren’t really rounded, but—”

Excerpt From: Gabaldon, Diana. “Outlander.” Bantam Dell, 1991. iBooks.
This material may be protected by copyright.

Everyone who knows me , knows of my passion for all thing Outlander and especially the character of Claire Beauchamp Randall Fraser...wife, lover , mother, herbalist, Nurse and Doctor. So I've decided to create a page in her honor and once a week address a different medicinal, fragrant or nutritional herb from the vantage point of my favorite question - " What would Claire do with it ?" Stay tuned!

Reaping the Harvest ~ Fried Green Tomatoes!

 

A bumper crop of tomatoes means a lot of things to me. Pasta Sauce,tomato and goat cheese tarts,tomato sandwiches, BLTs AND FRIED GREEN TOMATOES!

If you've never had a fried green tomato then you're missing out on one of lifes greatest treats. This is seasonal food at it finest... FGT's just don't taste right at any other time of the year. I was making a slow cooked garlic chicken for dinner tonight and the dish was just crying for a crunchy fried tomato dipped into a creamy Parmesan Sriracha sauce!

Out into the garden I went and brought in several fine specimens. I sliced them and dipped them into a trio of deliciousness ..first a buttermilk and Sriracha mixture, next a beaten egg and last but not least cornbread mix blended with chili seasoning .

To fry them I filled my cast iron skillet 1/4 of the way full of Canola oil and turned the heat on underneath it. I waited until it was hot enough ( the tomatoes should begin to fry as soon as they hit the oil!) and fried the tomatoes in several batches, flipping them several times until I got the right shad of golden brown. Take them out of the pan and lay them on paper towels to soak up the excess oil .

You could serve them with horseradish sauce but I mixed up a sauce of buttermilk, mayonnaise , garlic, shredded parmesan, cayenne and Sriracha .

Serve these while hot... I promise that there's nothing like the creamy taste of the tomato bursting through underneath the crunchy cornmeal coating. Be sure to make enough... They disappear quickly! A platter of these and a ice cold IPA is a summertime feast!

 

 

Stirring the Senses! ~ It's a fabulous morning after all!

 

Every now and then you find yourself in a  very surreal and discomforting situation. On our way to Las Vegas yesterday we made a detour through Atlanta  only to find that we'd missed our connecting flight. Instead of the luxurious bed that I was expecting last night, Delta armed me with a travel kit, several vouchers  and a shuttle to the Country Inn at midnight, where the only available food was barely that and the bed was as hard as a board!

We slept for 5 hours and jumped up at 5:00 am to catch our flight out. As we stood in the mile long security line I realized that my feet were SCREAMING as I was wearing the same really cute gold heels that I left with yesterday at 4:00 pm! We got through the line and I deposited my husband at the gate and went off in search of a cup of coffee. On my way back I passed a L'occitane store and glory be,  they were open! 

I have to say that I have always loved L'occitane products and used to sell them in my store when they first arrived stateside. I ducked into the store just wanting something wonderful to sniff. What I was met with were two of the most charming sales associates I'd ever met and it was only 7:00 am! "Do you have any foot cream?" I asked. "Yes , of course" said a lovely gentleman and he handed me the tube. I was just starting to rub my feet when an angel said , "Please let me do that for you!"  At first I felt self concious about letting her, but hedonism quickly took over:) I sat down and proceeded to have the loveliest foot rub , so good that I practically fell asleep in the chair!

I walked out of that store in a blissful state of mind armed  with  a beautiful lavender handcream , a lovely rose sachet that is currently banishing all of the stale air on this airplane ( I feel like such a lady:)  and some of their wonderful foot cream. So far this morning I've had a wonderful foot rub and my husband and I have had hand massages on the plane with the lavender cream that I bought. I'm feeling refreshed and completely rejuvenated all because of the kindness of  a couple of complete strangers who had absolutely no clue that I write about fragrance, beauty and fashion on an almost daily basis. That's  the difference between a salesperson and a great sales associate...when someone treats me that well before they find out that I wrote for the industry I'm always smitten!

 

I've got to thank Shannon Chandler for his most excellent service and Cheryl Dibbs for  her sweetness and most  excellent hands! Kudo's to  L' Occitane for having the wisdom to hire such  fabulous people! If you ever get to the Atlanta Airport  you'll find them  in Concourse A.  Don't hesitate...you're in for a treat! I've seen L'Occitane in many an airport and I'm always greeted by a smiling face but these two went way above the call of duty and I thank them...worship them practically! They saved my day and made me a customer for life!

 

 

Stirring the Senses ~ Spring Clean/sing!

 

Finally! I don't know about you but I'm just so grateful to see the sun again! Everywhere I look there are the signs.. Buds poking out on the trees, birds busy building their nests and flowers are popping up everywhere . Here are a few that I saw on my walk last night!

Don't forget that Spring is a great time for a cleanse. It doesn't have to be anything too harsh, just a lightening up of sorts ... A movement towards lighter, fresher foods. Wild greens like ramps, dandelions, violet leaves,chickweed, purslane and nettles are everywhere and they'll make a wonderfully cooling and tonic salad that you can dress simply with a bit of goat cheese, a sprinkle of pink Himalayan salt ,olive oil and lemon. If you want to go for something a little more potent  why don't you try juicing these same greens. Add some parsley, some swiss chard or spinach and for a touch of sweetness an apple or two. This is a cooling and refreshing juice that you can start the morning with that will rev up your system and get it feeling fun and frolicsome for the warm days ahead.

I love to add a tablespoon of pure French green clay to my juice in the morning to really draw the impurites from my system. This ancient secret, that of using edible clays as internal drawing salves is my "go to" remedy to suggest when one of my clients is suffering from from chronic constipation or indigestion. It also helps to cleanse the skin, because beautiful skin does start from within. I've suggested this to many a client who was suffering from chronic acne , eczema and rosacea. The first time that I tried it, I broke out with acne but within a week it subsided and I noticed healing beginning to happen all over my skin.   Of course if you try this yourself and notice a new rash or any burning, itching or anything that would seem like an allergic reaction you should discontinue using it immediately.  

Green teas, iced and sparkling with additions of fresh citrus fruits, berries, cucumber slices and herbs like basil, sage and mint are a wonderful aid for cleansing a system that's just a bit sluggish from the denser foods of winter. Adding a touch of raw honey during the cooling process will give you just enough sweetness and a lovely constant energy. You can use maple syrup too, a flavor which is absolutely delicious blended into tea and is very healthy on it's own , providing huge quantities of polyphenols to calm inflammation  and lots of antixidents to boost the immune system!

Spring is a very good time if you are so inclined to begin a plant based diet. I personally adhere fairly strictly to a diet of fruits, grains and greens and I eat seafood, raw milk cheese and some eggs as much of it from organic traceable sources as possible.  I can't stress enough the difference this makes to my moods, my body  and my worldview. I can't stress enough just how important it is to really  understand where your food is coming from. Corporations like Monsanto and Dow Chemical are doing their very best to keep our food supplies hostage by buying up plant patents and continuing to contaminate our foods, fields and waterways with Round-up and other dangerous herbicides. Factory farmed meat, chicken and fish are full of antibiotics and growth hormones, to say nothing of the absolute cruelty with which they are treated. If you are going to eat flesh foods, please make sure that they come from fully traceable sources. Truthfully? Our planet is depending upon it. 

Eating clean will help you feel lighter and feel better....I promise! Could one conversation change your life?  Drop me a line at [email protected] and lets find out!

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For more information on my 6 month 'Stirring the Sense!" Health & Lifestyle Coaching program please go to www.bethschreibmangehring.com