Hello, Kristen Davidson here from Laird Woodland Farm, a smallish herb farm on old Kiowa territory in the Southern Great Plains. I won’t spend a lot of time on introductions, but one thing you must know about us is that we are a food-people first. Everything we do is because we love good food and tasty ingredients. We cry watching Chef’s Table.
I worked as a chef for many years, and through that process, I realized that, while I have the ability to make bad food taste alright, it is a far more worthy pursuit to seek out the best ingredients, and get out of the way. Also, I have found that the more I seek out the best ingredients, and the nearer to my home from whence they come, the more they contribute to the health of our family. I call this a win, win, win — flavor, health, and community.
As I said, we are a food-people first, but we are an herb-and-mushroom-people as a close second. As we began learning about the healing properties present within the things we eat every day (sage, oregano, thyme, basil, ginger, turmeric, peppercorns, shiitake, oyster, and lion’s mane mushrooms) we were blown away. I wanted more of these herbs in all my food. I wanted to drink them. I wanted to bathe in them.
Now pause with me for a moment. Can I tell you about an herb I have disliked my whole life? Sage. Cloying, moldy cardboard, I would call it. But I finally figured it out: sage is a distinct herb most associated with the stereotypical Thanksgiving meal, only pulled out once a year, and no one ever seems to notice that it’s six years old.
Thus, the moldy cardboard aspect. Real, fresh garden sage from your fall harvest, on the other hand, is a different story. When brewed as a tea, it is fruity, full-bodied and slightly minty. In recipes, it is out of this world. All this to say: don’t judge an herb by its stale, grocery-store, back-of-the-cupboard reputation.
Before we get into the culinary aspects, let’s clear up a common misconception. Herbs can’t heal your body. They partner with you to help your body heal itself. It is easy to look to herbs when we are feeling under the weather, and then ignore them the rest of the time. The reason herbs are amazing is that they don’t intrinsically function in an acute way (although they can). Often the way they work is much more gentle or gradual, slowly turning the body toward balance.
They nourish, bring rest, calm the nerves, gently stimulate the immune system, reduce inflammation, and bring hormones into balance. This is why herbs are at their best when they are “everyday herbs.” Now, by everyday herbs, I don’t mean that you take all these herbs every day, or that they are the most common kitchen accouterments. Instead, I mean that they are incorporated into your everyday drinks, meals, routines and rituals. Here are a few simple ways:
Marshmallow root can be integrated into your daily routine simply by making a cold brew. Add a tablespoon of marshmallow root to a quart of water and let it sit in your fridge overnight. Strain and drink over the next couple of days. This is especially great when you have a dry cough. It also helps your mucous membranes stay moist.
When your mucous membranes are healthy and moist, they are at their best to protect you from all manner of intruders. We heat our home with a wood stove, so marshmallow root is an excellent way to avoid feeling dried out. Before you get going with marshmallow, note that it can change the way your body absorbs medication, so I am obliged to suggest a chat with your healthcare provider.
For a fantastic liver-supportive beverage, try roasted dandelion root tea. Add a little honey and coconut milk for a Dandy Latte (as my son likes to call it). Feel free to throw in some burdock and astragalus for added immune support. That is, if the children haven’t eaten all the dried burdock out of the jar already.
I love to add astragalus and burdock to my winter broths. Burdock makes a full-bodied and delicious broth, and it is packed full of nutrients. Astragalus is a fantastic companion for winter health support. I also toss in wood ear mushroom for added nutrients and subtle umami — wood ear dried in the sun is a fantastic source of vitamin D, perfect for winter wellness. Reishi is a great add-in for immune system care. And the simplest of kitchen ingredients: peppercorns, thyme and rosemary are amazing herbs in their own right, aiding in digestion and supporting respiratory health.
Ingredients
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 1 large Onion chopped
- 2 Celery stalks chopped
- 2 Carrots chopped
- 4 cloves of Garlic
- 1 Wood ear mushroom
- A bit of Reishi mushroom
- 1 oz dried Oyster or Shiitake mushrooms
- 1 TBS dried Astragalus root
- 1 TBS dried Burdock root
- 1 TBS dried Marshmallow root
- 1 tsp Peppercorns
- 1 tsp dried Thyme
- 1 tsp dried Rosemary
- 4 Quarts of good water
- Salt to taste.
Instructions
- Sauté the onion, celery and carrots in a little oil until they are slightly caramelized (about 10 min). Add the water to the pot, then add all the other ingredients. Simmer on low for 1-2 hours, or just let it roll in the crock pot all day — your choice. Strain the broth into clean jars, and give the solid bits to the chickens. Salt broth to taste. For Winter Support Broth with Chicken, use the same recipe as above and simply add the carcass of a roasted chicken.
- Now after singing the praise of sage I would be remiss not to include a recipe featuring this wonder of an herb. There is nothing as cozy in the winter months as a steamy bowl of risotto. I often have a surplus of butternut squash tucked up in the rafters, and this is a simple, delicious way to use it.
Ingredients
- 1 TBS oil of choice I use olive oil and lard
- 1 large butternut squash peeled and diced
- 1 large onion finely chopped
- 5-6 dried Oyster mushrooms reconstituted in 1/2 cup hot water and thinly sliced add strained soaking water to the broth
- 3 cloves garlic
- 2 cups of short-grain rice
- 1/2 cup dry vermouth or white wine*
- 5 cups Winter Support Broth
- 3 TBS butter**
- 1 cup grated parmesan cheese**
- 1/2 cup heavy cream**
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 10-20 leaves of fresh or dried Sage chopped
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper for the butternut squash. Toss the butternut squash pieces with a drizzle of olive oil and sprinkle lightly with a little salt. Arrange in a single layer on the pan. Roast for 40 min or until tender and caramelized.
- Next, In a pot, bring 5 cups of broth to a low simmer.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of oil or lard in a medium Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion, mushrooms, and a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally until onions have softened and are slightly caramelized, about 5-7 minutes.
- Add the minced garlic and cook until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Add your rice and cook 2-3 min or until slightly translucent. Add 1/2 cup of vermouth and stir thoroughly. Add all but one cup of hot broth to the rice mixture. Cover the Dutch oven and bake on a lower oven rack until rice is tender and cooked through, about 1 hour. Rice should seem a little dry at this point.
- Carefully remove the Dutch oven from the oven. Remove the lid and pour in the remaining cup of broth, parmesan, butter and cream. Stir vigorously for 2 to 3 minutes, until the rice is thick and creamy. Stir in the salt and pepper. Stir in roasted butternut. Taste, and add salt and/or pepper, as needed. Divide risotto into bowls and top each with a generous sprinkle of sage.
Notes
I really love this simple ramen on a day when I am feeling under the weather — the burdock, ginger, roots, vegetables and miso are incredibly nourishing and restorative. This is an intentionally sparse recipe to allow you to add the vegetables that you simply have on hand. I will often add kimchi or some greens I have frozen for the winter.
This soup can bend and flex with what you have available. I have a recipe collection of braised pork shoulder three ways, and this is one of the recipes. You could also sub in chicken or beef for the pork, but the pork makes it extra delicious.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 medium daikon radish root
- 2 small carrots
- 6 slices dried shiitake mushroom reconstituted for 5-10 minutes in hot water
- 1 ounce burdock root* about a 4-inch piece (or you can use 3 TBS of dried root – reconstitute with the mushrooms)
- 1 small onion
- 1-2 tsp grated ginger root
- 1/4 pound braised pork shoulder
- 4 cups Winter Support Broth
- 4 tablespoons chickpea miso
- 2 cakes organic ramen noodles I use a rice-based noodle. You can also skip noodles altogether and just add extra vegetables.
- 1 green onion sliced
- 3 soft-boiled eggs peeled and marinated in tamari
Instructions
- To soft-boil 3 eggs: Put eggs into a pot of room temperature water and bring to a boil. Cover and let sit for 8 minutes. Cool the eggs under cool water. Remove and peel eggs and place them in a container with 1/2 cup tamari for 1 hour or overnight.
- Tip: use older eggs or store-bought eggs, as super-fresh eggs can be hard to peel.
- Cut daikon radish and carrot into 1/8” quarter rounds. Wash burdock and cut thick slices at a diagonal. Cut onion into thin slices.
- Heat sesame oil In a medium pot over medium heat. Add daikon, carrots, burdock, onion and shiitake mushroom. Stir-fry until daikon and onion become semi-translucent. Add ginger and cook for another 1-2 minutes. Add pork and stir-fry 2-3 more minutes. Add Broth and bring to a boil. Turn the heat to low and simmer until the veggies are tender.
- Turn off the heat. Ladle out 3/4 cup broth and combine well with miso, using an immersion blender if you have one. Blend until smooth, and return mixture to pot.
- Bring a large pot of water to a rapid boil. Add noodles, stir, and cook in boiling water until done (time varies by noodle). Drain well.
- Divide noodles between bowls. Pour soup over noodles. Top with green onion, soft-boiled eggs cut in half, and add whatever fresh or fermented veggies you have on hand.
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