MARSH MALLOW

Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Originally, marsh mallow was made from the root of this herb by boiling slices in sugar water to create a soothing sweet paste, but today’s marsh mallows have only the sugar in common with the original recipe. Mix the marsh mallow root and sugar together. Stir the gum tragacanth into 2 tbsp (30 ml) of the orange flower water. Add the liquid to the powders and stir. Use just enough orange flower water to bind the mixture together to form little balls. Roll into shape and leave these to dry. If you cannot get the tragacanth, try soaking the powdered marsh mallow in the orange flower water overnight to draw out the mucilage from the marsh mallow, then adding sugar and rolling into small balls or, if it is not sticky enough, making into flat cakes, cut into squares and leave to dry. This root contains a sweet starchy substance called insulin. In the middle Ages, apothecaries sold the crystallized root in flat, pink, sugary cakes (colored with cochineal) which were sucked to relieve asthma and indigestion and to sweeten the breath.

SALAD ROOTS

John Evelyn’s Discourse of Sallet reminds us of many salad roots long forgotten. He suggests chervil roots which should be boiled and eastern cold; much commended for Aged Persons. Sweet cicely was sometimes called chervil and as the annual chervil roots are so tiny it is likely he means sweet cicely root. And they are remarkably tasty. He reports that the young roots of daisy are frequently eaten by Spaniards and Italians from spring until June and that French country people eat the root of dandelion. The history lesson continues with and taw’s with this homely Sallet the Good – Wife Hecate entertained Theses. The ‘sallet’s ingredients included garlic, though he adds ‘to be sure, tis not for Ladies Palats, nor those who court them; a light tough is better supplied by the gentle roccombo’. He lists the roots of Goat’s beard (Tragopogon pratensis) and scozonera to be stewed and dressed for salads. Goat’s beard is the same family as salsify (Tragopogon porrifolius) which John Evelyn called viper – grass or salsify and stated it was a very sweet and pleasant sallet; being laid to soak out the bitterness, then peeled may be eaten raw, but best of all stewed with Marrow, spice, and wine. Marsh mallow root was boiled to soften it and then sliced and fried. He adds parsnip boiled, cooled and eaten with oil and vinegar and radish whole or sliced.

Popcorn

Monday, November 28, 2011

Hi! Want to have some crunchy stuff to tingle your taste buds? Your diet plan make you worry? How it would be if the crunchy doesn’t affect your diet plan? Amazing isn’t it? Most of the time we feel much worried about our diet and at the same time could not sacrifice the goodies and crunchy munchies too. Is it possible to have some crunchy stuff with zero calories? Why not? Here is the popped stuff for you to satiate your hunger. Do you know what? That is nothing but the yummy popcorn. We all have tasted the popcorn, which we could not resist most of the time. The perfect outing or a movie does not complete without a tub of popcorn. Seeing the thriller movie with the tub full of popcorn in the hand is a real kind of entertainment. Moreover, kids do not move an inch without having popcorn after seeing the popcorn vendor. The yummy aroma of the roasted pop corn definitely drags the people from all corners. We can also add some yummy flavors to the traditional popcorn by sprinkling some chocolate ships or roasted almonds to add the richness. What about with cashews and raisins! Mouth watering! Isn’t it? Need some tangy flavor? Just sprinkle some lemon juice. Then why not sink in different flavors of yummy, crunchy popcorn. We can have different flavors of popcorn with our unlimited ideas and innovations. Is there any place available to have the best popcorn supplies? Why not? Epopcorn.com is the best online source to get all your popcorn supplies. They provide popcorn machines, home popcorn makers, popcorn boxes, popcorn buckets and lot more popcorn supplies. Make an order for your need and satiate your popcorn hunger. To know more details about popcorn supplies, check out the website Epopcorn.com. Have a nice day.

Wood rasping

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Wood rasping is particularly exciting to work with as some of their scents are quite new and unusual. Choose from shreds or rasping of cedar wood, rosewood, sandalwood, cassia chips and any of the fruit woods like apple, pear or cherry which have a faint but sweet aroma, and look out for new varieties available. If you discover anything unusual it is worth checking from the supplier if the wood has any skin irritating properties. The highly concentrated essential oils of cassia, cinnamon bark, dwarf pine, thug, and wintergreen are toxic and should never be applied to skins though the wood chippings, as far as we know, do not irritate the skin when they are handled. All spices have a strong aroma and should be used sparingly. The ideal quantity is about 1 tbsp (15 ml) to 4 cups of flowers and leaves. Selected spices are usually added in equal proportions. These can give a ‘musky’ or ‘oriental’ quality, or suggest a ‘masculine’ or winter scent. The final ingredient for a pot pourri is a fixative. This is an aromatic plant part which gives up its fragrance very slowly and thereby lasts longer. In perfume blending it is called a base note. As the odoriferous molecules evaporate more slowly, they slow down the evaporation rate of other scents present, hence they all last longer.

SWEET WATERS FOR RINSING AND SCENTING LINEN

Make a strong decoction of aromatic leaves or flowers in a covered pan, strain well and use as the final rinse for hand-washed articles or add to the final rinse cycle of your washing machine. Use leaves of rosemary, lemon verbena, sweet myrtle, bergamot, sweet marjoram, angelica, bay, ale cost and eau-de-cologne mint or powdered root of roseroot or flowers of lavender, violets, pinks and roses. A ½ tsp (2.5 ml) of ores root dissolved in the decoction will fix the scent. The mixture can also be sprinkled on clothes before ironing. Alternatively, drops of an essential oil dissolved in a little pure alcohol (or vodka) can be added to the final rinse. Sweet waters can also be used to sprinkle around rooms or as a hair rinse to give it a subtle perfume.

FACIAL STEAMS

Lemon verbena, dandelion, red clover (leaves and flowers), tansy (leaves and flowers) and elderflowers are used to revive mature or sallow skins. When giving yourself a facial steam, first tie back your hair, remove your makeup and clean your skin as normal. Dab on an infusion of peppermint, sage or yarrow leaves or elderflower to tighten the pores. Avoid dramatic changes of temperature for an hour or two. Do not use a facial steam if you have thread veins, serious skin disorders, asthma or other breathing difficulties, or heart problems.