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Medicinal Gummies

Maca Cinnamon Gummies

During the last few months, when you came for your appointment, you have probably sampled some of my latest nutritive experiments – GUMMIES.  What was my path to making gummies you might be asking yourself? Well, it all started with learning about the benefits of beef gelatin as a recovery and strengthening food. Beef gelatin (collagen) heals gut lining, strengthens bones, protects tissues/muscles, decreases joint pain, improves blood sugar levels, sleep, hair, skin and nails. Those health benefits are just too compelling not to make something of it so when one of my clients gave me a silicon gummy mold after sharing about this rich protein source, I became a gummy maker and connoisseur. There are many other ways to incorporate beef gelatin into diets but gummies are a particularly unique, adorable and stealth way (especially for children) to micro dose nutrients that come in powder form.

As a creative medium, the making of gummies is open for infinite experimentation and variation. Initially, I had some mushroom powders that I bought at Grocery Outlet and was eager incorporate them as a supplement in my diet. That led to other ideas and experiments. For the liquid portion in the recipe using fruit juices as your liquid gives a colorful presentation and medicinal teas can offer complex flavors. Mountain Rose Herb Company has an enticing selection of herb powders which might open your mind to the possibilities.  For example, after doing your research, you can make sleep gummies by adding valerian root powder or digestive gummies by adding aloe vera powder. Also consider converting your daily peppermint tea with added ingredients like greens superfoods into a gummy for a cheerful and stimulating mid-day snack or mini dessert! I don’t feel nearly as giddy when I take my multi-vitamin pill as I do when I pop a gummy in my mouth. There is a large selection of silicon gummy molds that you can find online. I am waiting for more iconic or groovy silicon molds to hit the market but for now I am settling for hearts, cute animals and patterned flowers.

Here is the basic recipe but experiment according to your tastes and ingredients.

1 cup liquid (juice, tea, water, milk – plant based or dairy)

2 tablespoons of sweetener (honey, maple syrup, agave)

4 tablespoons of Beef Gelatin (I use Vital Proteins)

1 tablespoon of supplement powders- medicinal mushroom (reishi, shitake, maitake), maca root, ashwagandha , greens superfoods, seaweeds, turmeric, beet root, hibiscus, magnesium, Vitamin C, etc 

½ – 1 teaspoon spices or flavors – ginger, cinnamon, lemon, lime, cacao, etc.

Here are some of my gummy recipes.

Pomegranate Reishi Ginger Gummy

1 cup Pomegranate juice

2 tablespoons honey

4 tablespoons beef gelatin

1 tablespoon Reishi Mushroom powder

½ teaspoon ginger powder

Maca Cinnamon Gummy

1 cup water

2 tablespoons maple syrup

4 tablespoons beef gelatin

1 tablespoon Maca powder

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Matcha Green Tea Lime Gummy

1 cup water

2 tablespoons honey

4 tablespoons beef gelatin

1 tablespoon Matcha green tea

1 teaspoon lime

Instructions

  1. In saucepan, combine liquid and sweetener and heat over medium heat until steaming hot but not quite boiling.
  2. Lower the heat to the lowest setting and stir in powders, spices or flavors.
  3. Whisk in gelatin one tablespoon at a time until fully dissolved.
  4. Remove from heat and use a dropper to fill gummy molds. A larger dropper makes filling molds quick and easy.
  5. Put molds in refrigerator to firm up – 15 minutes to ½ hour.
  6. When firm, pop gummies out of mold and store in sealed container in refrigerator.
Filling silicon mold

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Sprout Bombing

Lately, at the Acushack, I have been doing a show and tell on sprouting basics because now that it’s spring and new buds are pushing their way through the soil towards the sun, that same rising yang energy is also happening in our own bodies as well. The energy of the liver in Traditional Chinese Medicine is associated with Spring and it regulates the smooth flow of Qi. Sometimes we emerge from winter after consuming a lot of heavier foods, fats and intoxicants with low, blocked or overheated energy. This can manifest as sluggishness and tension in the body (headaches, neck and shoulder pain) or irritability and inflammation, especially allergy symptoms. Acupuncture helps with moving stagnation and clearing heat and seasonal dietary changes, which include eating fresh raw young greens – especially sprouts, can support and cleanse our liver and gallbladder.

Sprouts, with that uprising yang energy, have a lot of life force and nutrition. At this stage of growth, they are highly digestible and have greater concentrations of proteins, vitamins, minerals, enzymes and bio-flavonoids than at any other point in a plants life. 

There are many different sprouting and microgreens growing systems on the market and it is worthwhile to research ease of use, price points and materials that will work for your household. I use the Easy Sprout Sprouter because it is, in fact, easy and quick and inexpensive. When you rinse the sprouts twice a day, the water drains from the bottom of the inside container so the sprouts never mold. In the past, I tried using glass canning jars with stainless steel screens in the jar lid but sprouts tended to mold with that system. I have two sprouters going at one time. I am usually sprouting a salad mix with alfalfa, radish, broccoli and clover in one sprouter and mung beans in the other. I buy my beans for sprouting at bulk bins found at the local food co-op. I keep sprouting until May when harvesting young greens from my outside garden begins. If you don’t have outdoor garden space, sprouting is an ideal way to grow abundant nutritious plants on your kitchen counter. A pound of sprouting seeds, nuts or grains produces A LOT of fresh food.

Nearly every meal is sprout bombed now.  Sprouts are in every sandwich, salad, stir fry and miso soup. I put sprouts on my eggs and then sprinkle nut parmesan on top. I use mung bean sprouts in Okonomiyaki -Japanese Vegetable Pancakes as a primary ingredient. Sprouted bean burgers are a winner: https://sproutpeople.org/sprout-recipes/sprouted-bean-burgers-1. An online search on recipes using sprouts yields enticing results.

As the light increases and days lengthen, it is a seasonal directive to eat less and lighten up. Get on it – start sprouting!

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Bok Choy, Radish & Celery Ferment

A perfect and pretty side dish

Chop. Chop. Time to harvest and preserve the bok choy and radishes coming out of the garden. In this ferment, I use just the stems of bok choy and add celery to keep it crunchy. The red radishes offers a bit of spice and a pretty rosy hue.  Below is my recipe, such as it is. The fermentation process lends itself to experimentation and variation.  I change proportions of ingredients based on what is available from my garden or fresh in the grocery store, usually making quart size containers at a time.  Having a few different ferments bubbling away on the kitchen counter or in the refrigerator allows me to serve several small side dishes (Korean-style) alongside main dishes at dinner.  I also use this ferment in salads, veggie roll-ups or as a garnish on crackers with cheese or spreads too. The variation at the table not only stimulates interest but digestion as well.

In Vegetable Fermentation Further Simplified, Sandor Katz gives the lowdown on how to ferment any vegetable. Trust me – fermentation seems exotic but it is really super easy. If you are looking to get into fermentation, follow his guidelines and you’ll be making very original side dishes and manufacturing your own tasty probiotics in your kitchen in no time.  I’d love to hear about what you are fermenting.

Fermented Bok Choy, Radish & Celery

A few bunches of bok choy (only use white stems)

1 bunch red radishes (thinly sliced)

3 – 5 stocks celery

2-3 tablespoons of salt (amount of salt depends on volume of veggies and taste). Experiment!

(You can add garlic or any spice you please to this ferment as well)

Place chopped bok choy stems, celery and thinly sliced radishes in a flat dish and sprinkle salt over veggies. Let sit for a few hours until fluid is released from veggies. After washing hands, you can also massage veggies to release more fluid if necessary.

This time I used a Japanese pickle press to submerge my veggies but if you don’t have this handy kitchen tool, you can pack vegetables into a wide mouth canning jar or crock. Ideally, veggies are totally covered in salt brine but if not then add water. If you are using a crock, submerge veggies with a weight on top of a plate. If you are using a canning jar, you can use a double plastic baggie filled with water to submerge veggies. 

Use a rubber band to secure cheesecloth or fabric over jar or crock to keep flies out and let sit on counter for 4 -7 days. The speed of ferment will depend on amount of salt and outside temperature. The longer you let it ferment, the tangier the taste will be. I generally let this ferment sit for 4-5 days. Taste your ferment frequently.

Place in refrigerator when you like the taste.

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Shio-Koji

IMG_0618If you are looking to add more fermented foods into your diet this summer, try making shio-koji(salt koji).  It’s uber-easy and extra tasty. Koji, rice inoculated with the Aspergillus oryzae spores, is commonly used in making traditional Japanese fermented foods like miso, sake and soy sauce, but it is also used to make this salt seasoning which is made from just three ingredients: koji, salt and water. Left on the kitchen counter for one to two weeks, and stirred once a day, it will ferment into sweet/salty creaminess.

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Although it can be used  simply as a salt substitute on all foods, one of my favorite ways to use shio-koji is for an overnight ferment on garden vegetables like root vegetables (especially radishes and turnips), or sugar snap peas, peppers and cucumbers.  Immerse vegetables (whole or sliced) into the mixture; the next day serve them as side dishes to meals or add them in salads.

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On raw salads, I enjoy using shio-koji is as a stand alone addition or in a dressing of olive oil and rice wine vinegar.  One tablespoon will give that mystifying savory sweet & salty umami taste which will keep your dinner guests guessing and wanting more.

A common and delicious way to use shio-koji is as a marinade for tofu, beef, pork, chicken or fish.  It tenderizes and brings out natural umami. Just coat your tofu, meat or fish with the shio-koji and put it in the refrigerator overnight, then bake or grill.

I know I sound all ga-ga about shio-koji, just like the nukazuke pickles, but it’s the kind of stuff I love having around my kitchen because it lends itself to experimentation and fermentation is my preferred method to get probiotics into my body.  With lots of fresh garden veggies and summer grilling, shio-koji brings sparkly savory sweet/salty flavors to the table.  If you make shio-koji, let me know all the ways you use it.

You can buy koji at most Asian Markets in the refrigerated section. Cold Mountain sells Koji in a 16 ounze container. I like to double or triple this recipe for a larger batch. This is a 6 ferment which lasts longer than a 3 percent ferment and has a sharp clean flavor.

Shio-koji Recipe

from Miso, Tempeh, Natto and other tasty ferments by Kristen and Christopher Shockey

3 tablespoons salt

1.5 cups dried koji

2-3 cups water, boiled and cooled, to fill quart jar.

Mix salt and koji in a bowl and mix well. Place mixture in quart jar and add water.  Cover with cheesecloth and secure with rubber band.  Ferment for 1-2 weeks.  Outside temperatures will influence how long it takes to ferment.  Stir every day.  It’s ready when the sharply salty taste balances with a sweet taste. Keep in refrigerator in glass container with lid.

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Ritual Grief Shopping

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May 30th was the 49th day after my mother’s death.   I, who still had the urge to do for my mother, followed the Buddhist grief ritual of reciting the Heart Sutra for 49 days after her death. It is believed that by reciting the Heart Sutra, one can help the mind/spirit of the departed by encouraging them to let go of their earthly attachments and move toward their own enlightenment.  Basically, the sutra speaks to the fundamental emptiness of all phenomena.  Because in my grief my days have felt empty and vague, almost vaporous, I could relate to the contemplation.

But when day 49 came along, I wanted to not just recite the Heart Sutra, I wanted to give my mother one more taste of earthly life before sending her off to the next rebirth or whatever.   So, to lighten things up a bit, I invited my mother’s spirit to join me on a four store food-shopping extravaganza.  She, or my mental hologram of her anyways, came along as I bought specialty foods for our upcoming month long hiking expedition on the John Muir Trail.

When she was alive, she had a true hunter-gatherer’s love and fortitude for shopping so I had no doubt she would be up for this adventure.  In my mind’s eye, I could still clearly see her in each store browsing the aisles, studying the deli selections and searching for bargains.  We ended the day at Costco. It was probably not the best choice to end there because my mother might have been tempted to haunt the food sample carts for the rest of her spiritual life.   How can one really let go when there is so much free food being handed to you?

When our domestic duty was completed, and the contents of the grocery bags were put away in the refrigerator or cabinets, I sat down on the couch, and wept while reciting the Heart Sutra.  Letting her go one more time tore open the temporary sutures that were holding together my own broken heart. I realized there was nothing more I could do for my mother.  The doing was over, but just being with her as a spiritual mother was just beginning. How we move through space and time will never be the same; now we move together as free spirits, whirling through each other’s empty heart space, unencumbered.

I can hear her saying, “Enlightenment…..the Buddhist enlightenment is very nice, but you really should try the Jewish version.”

Video by Claudia Groom, Costco parking lot, Tukwila, WA.

 

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Narrative Medicine

IMG_0462I went to my GP, Dr. William Shaul, at Group Health today.  As we sat together discussing my current concerns in the exam room, he, sitting on the black stool in a pink-stripped shirt, was, as I have come to expect, very attentive.  Even though he was trying to get a read on my issues, I couldn’t resist diagnosing him.  You see, he is a heart type in Chinese Medicine, with the classic physical characteristic of a round, bald head and red tinged skin; however, the warmth in his eyes and genuineness in his laughter is what really gives his elemental type away.  Just as I get his type, he gets mine.  I’m the kind of patient who is primarily interested in practicing self-trust when it comes to dealing with my health issues. Respectfully and tactfully, he offers suggestions, tests, and diagnostic scans but doesn’t judge me for not choosing them.  Or when I do, he promptly facilitates their procurement. After he thoroughly and expeditiously handles all the medical business, he usually asks me for the real tell, “So, what books are you reading these days?”  And, that’s when we get down to the business of talking about our real fix: literature.  My husband, Craig, on his medical appointments, also shares his own love of books with Dr. Shaul; they, both voracious readers of the same genre of guy-lit, have a lot to discuss on his infrequent visits too.

When I was my mother’s caregiver, I went to see Dr. Shaul for a routine check up when the weariness and stress was at its highest, most crushing level.  After hearing my story and asking questions, he wrote orders for metabolic and blood panels, but it was his next set of recommendations that set this doctor apart from every other.  He handed me a list of five books on caregiving, most written by caregivers themselves. After reading over the list, I asked, “Is this my prescription?”  He laughed and said compassionately, “Yes.  It might help.”

That prescription of books was narrative medicine at its finest.  I read all the books Dr. Shaul recommended only to find that not one writer really exposed the rigor and risks I experienced as a caregiver.  Understandably, most caregivers either are dead, too exhausted or shut down to their own experience to ever give voice to it. This prompted me to start working on my own manuscript with the goal of shedding light on the interior life of a caregiver.

Dr. Shaul could not have known at the time when he prescribed his book medicine that it would be a springboard into intensive reckoning and reflection, not only about taking responsibility for my mother’s life, but ultimately, my own too.

He belongs in the tradition of healers who treat their patients with a good story.  Now, that’s a remedy I will gladly take.

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A Shot of Nettles

In Eastern medicine, spring is the season of the wood element, the liver meridian and liver organ.  The liver meridian is linked to eye health and the smooth flow of energy through our body. Anger, depression and irritability are the emotions associated with the wood element when it is out of balance.

Many of us start spring cleaning in our homes, gardens and craving more lightness and energy in our physical and emotional bodies.

There are many ways to activate Liver Qi like getting acupuncture, increasing exercise, eating more sour and vinegary foods, and eating lots of greens. During early spring when the garden isn’t yet producing greens there are a few common plants like dandelions and stinging nettles that pop out of the soil just in the nick of time to assist us with a Liver activating spring regimen.

Most people are aware of nettle’s intense sting but few appreciate nettle’s nutrient values, making it a fierce physiologic ally.  In fertile soils, the purple hue on the top surface of its green leaves looks almost iridescent, shimmering with potency.  That’s why I consider stinging nettles to be one of the best shots in the arm, a rich injection of vitamins and minerals.

In Chinese medicine, nettles are categorized as a blood builder, cleanser and kidney tonic. Stinging nettles are known to be high in calcium, magnesium,manganese, iron, chlorophyll, vitamin C, and contain more protein (10%)than another other vegetable. As a blood builder, greater vitality, lustrous hair and stronger nails will result. As an antidote to seasonal allergies, it is thought to reduce the amount of histamines the body produces in response to free floating allergens if one drinks an infusion three weeks before pollens are released into the air. As a kidney tonic, it purifies the blood by eliminating toxins and metabolic wastes through its diuretic properties.

In late February and early March when I still feel some sluggishness from wintering and trees are releasing pollens, I start making nettle infusions to build my energy and clear out the accumulations from heavier winter foods. It’s too early to forage for wild nettles so I rely on dried nettles to make the infusions. You can buy organic nettles at your local natural foods market or online at Amazon, Mountain Rose Herbs. I buy a pound at a time. It seems like a lot but if you are consistent in early spring with making and drinking a quart of infusion a day,  you will use it up.

Nettle Infusion

In quart mason  jar or French Press  add nettles and then pour boiling water over it. Stir.

I cup raw leaves or one ounce dried nettles (an ounce is about a cup of dried nettles)

1 quart  boiling water

Let mason jar sit on kitchen counter for at least 4 hours or overnight for maximum infusion.  Strain and drink infusion throughout the day.