If you’re excited because you found a vendor who’s willing to work for dollar-store prices while claiming they’ll deliver designer results, well then, buyer beware. For example, in my experience as a caterer, I’ve seen catering companies undercut someone else’s quote to get the job. This “competitive” pricing might have you feeling like a winner but too often I see cheers turn to tears as it becomes clear that you made the wrong choice.
Garlic, the Defender of Vampires, the Champion of Herbs
Those of you that are Italian I’m sure your mother or grandmother has
already thoroughly ingrained in you the mythical powers of garlic.
You may have previously cast-off these fanciful stories of healing,
cleaning, pregnancy-inducing, age preventing, etc, etc powers as just
that, stories of fancy. However, your grandmother may not have been
as far off as you thought. Now, I’m not saying that garlic is some
kind of “magic” herb, but research supports that garlic does indeed
have some pretty phenomenal powers.
So what are some of these amazing powers you might wonder? Well,we
can always start with the well-known fact (even if it’s completely
undocumented) that it is an excellent vampire repellent. Further, as
it turns out, vampires aren’t the only thing repulsed by garlic.
Studies have shown that the daily consumption of refined doses of garlic can
reduce the number of colds per year by 63%. Garlic is also a great
antiseptic. It turns out bacteria, like vampires and viruses,
notttttttt a huge fan of garlic. It’s so effective at cleaning it can
actually be used to treat acne! So go on and ask your esthetician for a
garlic scrub today! You may just want to avoid friends and family for
a couple hours until the smell subsides.
But where’s the love!? I know, you’re starting to feel like the world
just hates garlic and will do anything to avoid its potent aroma.
Fear not, because there are garlic lovers out there. For example, you
know who lovessss garlic? Your heart, that’s who! One study found
that garlic has the ability to lower cholesterol levels by
diminishing the activity of main cholesterol-producing enzymes in the
liver. Further, garlic supplements can enhance the body’s ability to
dissolve blood clots that would otherwise increase the risk of heart
attacks by closing the arteries. So go on and pop a nice roasted
garlic clove in your mouth, your heart will thank you for it.
Oh but wait, there’s more! Turns out your bones are also huge garlic
fans as well. Garlic happens to be filled with nutrients such as zinc,
manganese, vitamin B6, and vitamin C. All these essentials are key
nutrients in maintaining bone and ligament health. Additional studies
have also found that garlic’s ability to increase the production of
estrogen in women is helpful in supporting increased bone density
later in life. That’s right, all these years your mom told you to
drink your milk to grow healthy and strong turns out you should have
just eaten some garlic pizza.
Feeling fatigued? Muscles aching the day after a workout? Try
garlic! Historically garlic has been used for centuries to minimize
fatigue in labors. More recently, actual scientific evidence has
supported garlic’s ability to increase performance and decrease the
severity of post-workout fatigue. So put down the fancy body-builder
powders and exchange them for some garlic powder instead.
So, what have we learned about garlic? Well, despite grandma’s
insistence of “magical” properties, garlic is far from magic.
Grandma, however, was right in her overall love for this little herb.
Although it’s not magic the science supporting the numerous benefits
of garlic are pretty outstanding. So stop avoiding it because you’re
scared of bad breath and embrace garlic, the defender of vampires, the champion of herbs!
There Is Something Delicious Growing…
There is a delicious treat growing in the backyards of Dutchess County. They are better known as fiddleheads, but regardless of the subspecies, all fiddleheads are a part of the fern family. The first sprouts of a young fern push through the loose soil in early April and emerge as tightly curled, pinwheel-stems that resemble the top of a handle of a fiddle. As the plant matures the stems slowing unravel to reveal the familiar wide and delicate fern-leaf spread. Though some local farms grow them for sale wild ferns can be found all over New York in shaded, wet area. If you want to wander about and harvest your own they are easy to locate as they are an extremely predominant plant species along creeks and on the borders of marshy areas.
Although there are several edible varieties the Ostrich fern is typically the variety harvested for human consumption. Should you decide to gather your own please be sure to research the varieties of edible species and be able to distinguish them clearly from non-edible. It is important you only harvest ferns listed as edible as there are several varieties are poisonous. It should be also noted that the growing season for the heads is very short. They typically emerge in mid-April and can be found with some effort as late as mid-June.
So what do fiddleheads taste like? Some people have noted a taste that is reminiscent of a cross between asparagus and broccoli. Others have said they have a flavor combination more closely related to roughage like spinach and broccoli rabe. But regardless of flavor or whether you get them from a farmers market or pick your own, fiddleheads should always be cooked!
There are several means of preparing them, the most common being steaming, sauteing and baking. The method, however, is less important than the preparation. Fiddleheads often have a rough skin (somewhat like an onion) that may still be encasing them. It is important to clean the heads thoroughly and remove all traces of the skin prior to cooking. Generally, the skin will easily slide off by simply running the heads under water.
Once clean and a method of cooking decided the next step is to monitor them. Fiddleheads do not take long to cook but should be cooked thoroughly. Ideally, a fiddlehead should be very tender and maintain a bright green color and overcook should be avoided as they will become dry and wilted.
Now that you know all about this little, hidden, treat all that is left is to give them a try! Check out my tasty, no-hassle, fiddleheads sauteing recipe. Throw them over just about anything, chicken, eggs, fish or even a salad and give your meal an extra pop of excitement.