Healthy Summer Spinach, Pea and Feta Salad

If you garden and are eating fresh and seasonal, then you probably know that pea season in the Northeast is just about to end.  We have had an over abundance of peas in our garden this year.  Buddy and I have been outside picking them almost every evening!

Studies have shown that green peas stand out as an environmentally friendly food. Agricultural research has shown that pea crops can provide the soil with important benefits.  Peas are also a low-fat food and are high in protein.  They also contain a unique assortment of health-protective phytonutrients and are high in Vitamin K, maganese and Vitamin C.  They also contain fiber.

Here is one of our favorite pea related recipes that I thought we would share.  It has become a mainstay in our household, particularly during the summer months when we cook outdoors.  It also goes very well with grilled Garam Masala Chicken.  With the addition of some nuts, this salad would also make a very good vegetarian entree.  Or leave out the cheese and just add nuts (and maybe soy cheese) to make it vegan.  You could also add chicken or shrimp to it very easily.  It's really versatile.

Spinach, Pea, Feta Salad is from Jamie Oliver's first cookbook,  "The Naked Chef"  copyright 2000.  A book that I believed not only changed how cookbooks are edited, styled and formatted today, but also helped and encouraged people in the US to eat fresher and healthier in a fun, enthusiastic  way! 

        









                    Spinach, Fresh Pea and Feta Salad from Jamie Oliver (paraphrased)

...take 2 large handfuls of baby spinach, wash and add 2 smaller handfuls of baby peas (raw if you get them young and fresh otherwise you'll have to blanch them).  Dress the salad at the last minute with olive oil and lemon juice dressing (below) and then sprinkle it with crumbled feta cheese.

Dressing:  2 Tb lemon juice, 5 Tb your best olive oil, 1 level tsp. salt, 1 level tsp. fresh ground pepper

enjoy!

~ diane fergurson





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Garlic And Honey: Herbal Remedies With A Culinary Twist

Cory Trusty is an herbalist and organic gardener living in Central Florida.  She is also the 
owner of Aquarian Bath, which produces a line of all natural soaps and bath products that are unscented or lightly scented, made only from pure essential oils and are palm-oil free. We thank her for contributing this informative article to the Mind Body Spirit Odyssey.
                                                                                                               ~ diane fergurson



Garlic is a common kitchen herb with many medicinal uses. It can helps resolve colds, coughs, sore throats, and sinus infections. Externally it can be used for skin infections. For chronic concerns, Garlic helps reduce blood sugar and high blood pressure. It is also helpful to treat Malaria and boost immunity for AIDS. It is famous as a de-wormer. I remember my grandpa taking it powdered on everything. The fresh garlic is the most potent to use medicinally, but I am just not one of those people who can handle a raw clove. The first time I tried raw garlic was in Belize. One of the locals was taking it raw and suggested I try it. Too strong for me! I could barely stand it. The last time I tried raw garlic was when I was really sick with a head cold. I chewed, swallowed and abruptly started into a cold sweat, drooling and was about ready to throw up. I given up on raw garlic for myself. Now I use either cooked garlic or garlic in the sweet medicine form: Garlic Honey.

It's very simple to make Garlic honey for medicinal or culinary use. All you do is chop up a whole garlic bulb: peel and chop the cloves. Chopping helps release the most potent chemical ingredient in garlic is Allicin. Allicin is created when Alliin reacts with the enzyme Alliinase, which is activated when garlic is chopped or crushed. After your cloves are ready, put them in a clean pint jar. Cover with honey. I used raw wild flower honey. It takes a long time for the honey to seep through all the chopped cloves. So pour slowly.

You can use a knife or a chop stick to get the air bubbles out from among the chopped cloves. The next step is to cover and label and date your jar and put it up in a cupboard for 2-4 weeks. You can use the honey with or with out the garlic at the end of this time. The shelf life of Garlic honey is 3 months. You can take this honey by the spoonful or add it to tea if you have a cough, cold or sore throat.

I love making coleslaw dressing with garlic honey. You can give it a try:

3 tablespoons of herbal vinegar of your choice
3 tablespoons of Virgin Olive or Coconut oil
2-3 tablespoons of garlic honey
1/4 teaspoon mustard seed
1/4 teaspoon celery seed
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Mix the above together and cover with 4 cups of shredded cabbage and 1 cup of shredded carrot. Toss and chill for 2 hours before serving.

~ Cory Trusty, Aquarian Bath

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