Milk thistle or donkey flower

According to Rade, the milk thistle or donkey flower (магаре цвет) is
good for stomach problems and high in vitamins. Like mushrooms it is
good in salad.

Milk thistle is a plant native to Europe. It has a long history of use
as a folk remedy for liver and gallbladder disorders. The active
constituent of milk thistle is thought to be silymarin, a flavonoid
found in the seeds.

http://altmedicine.about.com/cs/herbsvitaminsad/a/Milk_Thistle.htm

Medicinal use of mulberry fruit

My friend Rade says the mulberry fruit (черница) not only makes a
good jam, but is also good for stomach problems. It can be white,
black, or red.

Traditionally, in China mulberry fruit has been used as a medicinal
agent to nourish the yin and blood, benefit the kidneys, and treat
weakness, fatigue, anemia, and premature graying of hair. It is also
used utilized to treat urinary incontinence, tinnitus, dizziness, and
constipation in the elderly and the anemic.

In China silk worms feed on the mulberry and often

flies will lay eggs in the mulberry fruit.

http://www.itmonline.org/arts/morus.htm

Avoid farmed salmon

Andrew Weil says to avoid eating farmed fish. He writes in The Healthy Kitchen specifically about salmon. "Farmed salmon has less flavor, less protein, and more fat than wild salmon, and its content of omega-3 fatty acids may not be as high."

Farmed salmon may also have residues of antibiotics and other drugs to control diseases that occur when fish are crowded into to fish pens. It also takes several pounds of feed fish to produce one pound of salmon. Eating farmed fish doesn't really save the fish population.

Weil's recommendation is to choose wild Alaska salmon.

Here is a recipe for BBQ salmon from cooks.com.

4 salmon steaks
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. lemon pepper
1/4 c. Italian salad dressing
1 tsp. minced onion
Chopped parsley

Tear off sheets of heavy duty foil large enough to hold all steaks. Fold sides up to form pan. Grease lightly. Sprinkle steaks with lemon pepper and salt. Place steaks in foil pan and set aside. Combine salad dressing and onion; set aside.

Preheat grill on medium for 10 minutes; turn to low. Brush steaks on both sides with salad dressing mixture; place steaks back in boil pan and place on grill. Close lid and grill 12 minutes. Six on a side or until steaks flake; baste often. Sprinkle with parsley and serve.

Pickle Wrap Dip

Here's a recipe for the Pickle Wrap Dip:

1 large sour cream (16 oz)

1 regular size cream cheese (thawed or at room temp)

1 package dried beef (by the lunch meat at wal mart)

3-4 large dill pickles

about 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce (optional)

Mix the sour cream and cream cheese together. Add the Worcestershire sauce. Cut up the dried beef into little squares. Mix into sour cream mixture. Cut up pickles into little squares and mix into sour cream mixture.

Chill in refrigerator.

Serve with crackers.

ENJOY!

Jaimie Ham

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Kabob recipe

In our house we really love this kabob recipe.  I actually made it
yesterday for dinner and we all loved it.  Jacob ate two kabobs.  I
have used pork but also beef for it.  I used pork steaks for dinner
yesterday.

Pork Kabobs
2 T olive oil
2 tsp Dijon Mustard
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp garlic powder or salt
1 T brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper

(I quadrupled this recipe when I made it the other night.  I like more
sauce on it and I also made 15 kabobs.  I usually make 2 kabobs per
adult and 1 per kid but plan to make even 3 for the boys.)

Cut meat into 1 1/2 inch cubes.  Place meat in a large glass pan or
bowl.  Pour mixed sauce over meat and mix together well.  While meat
is sitting cut vegetables.  I love red peppers, green peppers, onions,
mushrooms and cubed pineapple.  I cut the vegetables in 1 inch cubes
and then I cut the mushrooms in half.

Then start putting the ingredients on the sticks.  If you are worried
about the wooden sticks burning you can soak them in water for a half
hour before.  I don't care about the sticks getting black so I don't
do it.  When I put the meat and vegetables on the skewers I usually
start with meat and end with meat.  Do it how ever you'd like.  You
will get sauce all over your hands when doing this.  Save any left
over sauce in bowl for basting while cooking.  Cook on the grill on
medium heat.  I wait about 10 minutes and then flip them over.  After
I flip them over I will baste on the sauce.  I like the grill marks to
be on my vegetables and meat.

After serve with rice.  I like to add butter and salt to my rice after
it is cooking.  I love butter with my rice and sometimes I will add
almost 1/2 cup when making rice for 2 families.  I know that you
should eat the stuff right off the stick but I like to take it all off
the stick and put it with the rice.  I then add about 1-2 T of BBQ
sauce and mix it all together really well.  The sauce to the kabobs
mixes with the BBQ sauce and rice and it is to die for.  Hmm  I love
this dinner.  Enjoy.

Note:  To make it so your food doesn't stick on the BBQ you can spray
cooking spray on your grill before you heat it up.  No food will stick
and it comes off easily which means no lost food in the grill.

- Angelene

Apricot couscous

This was a great choice because we were able to get mint and chives
fresh from our herb garden.

Apricot Couscous

Ingredients:
2 cups dry whole wheat couscous
2 1/2 cups water
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 cup diced apricots
1/2 cup dried currants, raisins, cranberries or cherries (we used currants)
3/4 cup chopped green onions (or chives fresh from the garden)
1/2 cup chopped, toasted pistachios (we used almond slices and pine nuts)
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 1/2 Tablespoons olive oil
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground cumin

Instructions:
1. In a medium sized pot combine water, salt and 1/2 Tbs. olive oil.
2. Bring to a boil on the stove top. As soon as water comes to a boil,
take off heat and add couscous.
3. Let stand for 5 minutes and fluff with a fork.
4. Transfer couscous to a large mixing bowl
5. Add diced apricots, currants, green onions (or chives), nuts, fresh
mint, lemon juice, remaining olive oil, cinnamon and cumin to bowl.
6. Toss well to combine all ingredients evenly.

Serves approximately 8 - 1 cup servings

Nutrition Facts:
Calories 295
Fat 7 gm
Fiber 5 gm
Cholesterol 0 mg
Sodium 302 mg

How much water is too much

Will soil that gets too much water hurt your plants? Can you start
planting before the winter water dries up?

According to an Oregon State University article, when water fills up
air pockets in the soil, it shuts off the osxygen supply to plant
roots and microorganisms that live in the soil. The soil becomes
anaerobic, meaning it doesn't have any oxygen. After a few days most
of the oxygen is gone. And plants that need lots of oxygen get
stressed and eventually die.

But, it doesn't happen immediately. Most plants can survive temporary
saturation by water. It also depends on how deep the roots are.

Some simple actions can improve chronically wet soil.

First, use lots of organic matter in your garden. Organic matter
opens up the soil and allows water to move freely.

Next, in areas where there is standing water choose plants that handle
the wet well. For example, Ponderosa pine is much better than Douglas
fir in soggy soil.

Fruit trees require dry feet so plant them in berms, raised beds or
planters that keep the roots above the saturated soil.

If your soil stays wet in the spring, delay tilling and planting.
Working wet soil creates hard, impermeable clods, and seeds are more
likely to rot in cold, soggy soil.

Where there is runoff you may want to use structures to prevent
erosion. However, on level soil or where the ground is concave, you
may have to wait for the sun to dry up the soil.

Peg Herring. "Soils take a soaking in winter." Retrieved March 31, 2008 from
http://extension.oregonstate.edu/news/story.php?S_No=337&storyType=garden