Your Local Food Network
“Food is a currency of trust” – Richard McCarthy, Slow Food, USA
Its goal: to connect more people to local growers and farmers and encourage active collaboration.
Bulk Buying by Liza
Raw Key Lime Pie
Westgate’s Aubergine, Sprouted Mung Bean & Fennel Salad
Anyone for Salad?
Medicinal Mushrooms, Ancient Healing for the Modern World
The use of medicinal mushrooms for healing and health enhancement goes back millennia in eastern cultures but relatively little is known about their properties and benefits in the west. Until recently that is, as health scientists have taken a serious interest in their uses and beneficial properties. We’ve just taken on a range in the form of dried mushroom powders and, as we’re keen to recommend them where appropriate, have been doing our research. The Company’s called Om Organic Mushroom Nutrition and they’re based in California. Their remit is to organically grow and minimally process (low temperature drying and powdering) the most potent medicinal mushrooms on the planet. They sell them individually and in combinations. Here’s some information I found on the web on just three of them Reishi, Chaga and Cordyceps.
Reishi
Featured Product – BeeActiv Raw Ivy Honey
Ivy honey, a new honey for winter.
“There have been many scientific studies into the healing and curative benefits of ivy. These have mostly centred around the use of ivy as either an anti-inflammatory or to treat respiratory diseases. The latter has gained the most acceptance in modern medicine. The positive response from users of ivy products is due to compounds naturally present in the plant. The plant saponins “Hederacoside-C” and “alpha-hederin” are believed responsible for this cough relieving efficacy. Importantly, new research into ivy honey has shown that the unique compound “Hederacoside C” is present in pure ivy honey from Ireland and the unique benefits of ivy honey are attributed to this.
The honey has been creamed and has a delicious flavour so, apart completely from helping with coughs and chesty conditions, spreading a little Hederacoside C on your toast in the morning makes for a rather tasty treat! A 227 gram jar retails for €12.95.
Raw Milk, the Benefits!
We had been looking for a supplier of raw unpasteurized milk and dairy products for some time and are delighted to have discovered The Fermoy Natural Cheese Co. (check them out on Facebook), who are now supplying us with raw milk and hopefully soon raw cheese, yoghurt and kefir. Anna Skrine who works with us as a naturopath and food intolerance tester is also an advocate of the benefits of raw milk and here’s Anna’s take on just why it’s so much more wholesome and beneficial than the pasteurized version:
Wonderful News – Live Raw Milk is now available in Only Natural!
Live Raw Milk is a wonderful food source, and delicious! It is how nature intended it to be, and is alive because the natural lactic acid bacteria are still in it; and it is they that help you both to digest the milk, and make it easy to assimilate (i.e. absorb) into the body and use the calcium in the milk. Live raw milk has natural probiotics, such as such as lactobacillus acidophilus. The fats in raw milk, which are in their natural form (and so again easy to use in the body), contain all the fat-soluble vitamins – Vitamin A, D, E and K. The milk fat also contains Omega 3, and CLA (Omega 6), which has anti-carcinogenic properties, and incidentally is often used in products used for slimmers. In fact, the fat is the most important part of the milk! Live raw milk also contains Vitamin C and B vitamins.
January Recipe – Raw Tomato Sauce
Our recipe this month has been provided by Diann, our raw food guru! Diann will be running a raw food course – Live Raw, Live Vital – here at Only Natural commencing 7th January 2015 (places are limited so book now) and she has provided us with one of her staple recipes as a taster!
When made this keeps for up to five days in the fridge. It’s a real “go to” to brighten up a courgette salad, or add to raw burgers or as a raw pizza topping (all of which will be covered on the course). Its quick and easy and if you want a little extra kick you can add a pinch of Cayenne pepper to the mix (this will improve your circulation and strengthen and tone all your organs).
Ingredients
2 cups diced organic tomatoes
½ cup sundried tomatoes (soaked for at least four hours, but better overnight)
2tsp hemp oil
1 tbs apple cider vinegar
4-5 Medjool dates soaked for at least two hours (you can use normal pitted organic dates either)
A dash of Braggs Liquid Aminos
A clove of organic minced garlic
Small piece of ginger finely chopped (About ½ to 1 inch to taste)
The aminos will be salty so go easy and adjust to taste.
Using dates as a sweetener is a natural low glycaemic option, it also provides added nutrients and roughage that you won’t find in sugar.
Put all the ingredients in your blender and give it a blitz.
Pour into a clean dry jar or bottle and store in the fridge.
With love, Diann
Live Raw Live Vital – Raw Food course Jan ’15
We’re super excited to be hosting our first Raw Food Programme ‘Live Raw, Live Vital’ in the New Year. The teacher is Diann Fletcher Jones (RPN/HDip AdEd /ED Practitioner /Living Food Instructor ) who recently completed her training to teach Raw/Living Food preparation with the Irish School of Herbal Medicine, and holds a “Living Food Instructors” Certificate. read more →
