It became clear after introducing new edibles, herbs, and fruits to clients that a recipe resource which pointed to simplified, vetted recipes was necessary. I wanted easy ways to use plants for food and for their healing capacities, but not in the general Googled sense, but from a sensibility grounded in ecology, holistic vitalism, and do-no-harm. These recipes strive to reflect that agenda.

This Category contains several sections:

Aromatherapy – recipes for diffuser, oil blends, and room spray blends, using high-quality therapeutic grade essential oils.

Food – recipes for eating well: I have requirements for family food. Yummy. Easy. Healthy.

• Yummy – getting to yummy is easy with invigoratingly fresh, nutrient-dense food. I post recipes full of flavorful, balanced, non-rancid fats – many foods are elevated with the same tricks that packaged snack foods use to get us to eat more: crunch and mouth-feel. I highlight nuts and mineral-rich salts to add that yummy factor. Making sure the link between eyes and stomach is attended to with food that *looks* good is another way to keep things yummy, with a rainbow of color and swapped up presentation. How you cut that carrot matters, keeping it fresh for the eyes day-to-day.
• Easy – really trying to use on-hand or local ingredients to keep things simple for busy lives is key to the recipes posted here. I am a big fan of Barbara Kafka’s “continuous kitchen” concept (see quote). Stress-free preparation contributes to ease, which is a good segue to the third requirement, since ‘stress-free’ is a big health factor…
• Healthy – using few, whole food ingredients; incorporating herbs and spices for daily tonic effect; favoring nutrition-packed super-foods; incorporating foods from nearby that are grown in nutrient-dense soils and are treated in a careful, mindful way.

Personal & Home Care – includes lotions, linaments, salves and balms, sunscreen, insect-off and other treats for the body as well as detergent, hand soap, surface cleaners and ways to keep your living space fresh.

Tea, Tincture, Tonic, Tradition – herbalism! Most of these ideas came from studying with the faculty at the Boston School of Herbal Studies, as well as studying with herbalist Guido Masè, Floracopeia’s Medicine Crow site, Matthew Wood, and my own research. See my lists of references here and here.