Apple Cider Vinegar - The Doctor Within

I get asked all the time at my fermentation workshops, in my clinic and on the market stall – if I could only do one thing to change my life/diet/habits etc., what would it be? For years I would always say it would be to cut out all NightShades from your diet (white potato, aubergine, peppers, chillies, tomato, gogi berries) because of their toxicity for spiritually awakening bodies. 

Of course, this still holds true and this is the one food family that is not included in my diet. 

When it comes to fermentation and overall gut health, it is vitally important to add in living foods; this is the missing food group we’ve all been hungering for. I would have to say the easiest, best and most effective addition a person can make to their diet is to take Apple Cider Vinegars every single day.

Of course, I am quite biased on several fronts here….I make my own ACVinegars and I happen to think they are the best tasting, most alive and perhaps far more ‘healing’ than anything else out there. One of the reasons I say this is because they are hand made with water from the most natural sources as well as quite a few other factors I have found to be important.

I only ferment in glass, ceramic and natural materials. No plastic here! As well, I am very fussy about the storage and fermentation process – my ferments are interacted with. Well, they are living beings after all and I wouldn’t leave them out of my daily activities – so they are scattered around the place, talked to, moved about and generally included in our lives. 

We also insist on using Co Cork grown apples and local West Cork apples when we can get them. There is nothing like the healing energy here in West Cork! 

Because of my interest in the spiritual connection we have with our food, I have learned to consider every aspect of food creation and fermentation is one of the most alchemical processes I have ever found. Magic happens when we take water, fruit and allow nature to power, direct and enhance the results.   

What we have in the end is a living food with a consciousness. I wouldn’t leave that task to just anyone, so I make them myself. Besides, I wanted my own ancient healing Irish Mother – not someone else’s! 

For Apple cider vinegar to be effective and really work for you it should be taken every single day. Something like the old folk saying – ‘an apple a day, keeps the doctor away’. Perhaps, it’s the apple a day in your apple cider vinegar that is the doctor within. Over the years I have heard lots of stories of how symptoms just went away after taking it for 3 days, 10 days or 60 days. Everyone is quite different and our bodies respond differently to the living ferment. 

And, we all take it for many different reasons. Some people swear by it for arthritis, tummy troubles, indigestion, IBS, hair, skin and nail health while others just ‘feel’ better when they take it. 

I like to take it first thing every morning with my left over herbal tea, a remedy and some clay. However, on days when I am feeling stressed, tired, with a cold or flu or just ‘off’ – I take it several times with my remedies or in fermented drinks and water. It’s one of natures’ magical elixirs….

Apple Cider Vinegars ready for market

West Cork grown Comfrey Cream at Rebel Foods Market Stall

Comfrey Cream

Comfrey cream has got to be my all time favourite cream, lotion, balm, potion or anything else that I make around here. I can’t seem to find an end to all of the ways and means that it gets used.

We use it for everything!

In case you are not that familiar with this herb, it has been noted and used for many centuries for it’s ability to increase cell production, reduce inflammation and soothe irritated tissues. Thus, it can settle things down on the skin and at the same time lessen scarring. 

A few weeks ago I noticed an old scar on my arm from a barbed wire fence that I got years ago trying to help my cat through, away from the neighbours’ dogs. It was just a long thin scratch at the time and healed up right away. 

But it left a long thin, very noticeable scar straight across my arm. Funny how most of the other scars I have tend to fade over time, but not this one. It was still prominent on my arm, at least to me….

So, I started putting some ordinary comfrey cream on it, night after night and low and behold…it has faded to nearly nothing. I love this about comfrey – it is soothing, healing and a skin regenerator all at the same time.

I make my comfrey cream with only the finest comfrey around, ahem…my own West Cork grown comfrey, so I know it is quality, right from the outset. I also use only organic beeswax (my own until it runs out) and organic grade therapeutic oils such as coconut, sweet almond, jojoba and cold pressed olive oil.

For so many years I put nothing on my skin. Only water. And then once I started with my own creams, lotions, ointments, balms and salves – I can’t get enough! My skin is drinking them in.

And not only my skin. 

At least once a week (or maybe more) someone comments on my hair – even when it’s a mess, it’s still shiny or actually, sometimes glossy. Perhaps its’ also because I rub comfrey cream all over my hands and then through my hair once it’s dry or maybe it’s the nettle & rosemary rinse, but then it might also be the fact I am Nightshade free….

Or it’s a combination of all three of the above. But, we do have healthy hair around here – so whatever we are doing, I think I will keep doing it! LOL

Coming back to healing and protecting skin, for far too many years I suffered each winter with dry, chapped hands that would split at the knuckles and around my nails. If you have ever had this happen, you can probably appreciate how painful this is. And how much I would dread getting my hands wet.

But, half of my day is spent with wet hands – cooking, cleaning or making something or other. So steering clear of water is not an option – it is often a key ingredient in the many things I do around here.

Over the years I have used comfrey creams from many different sources (they have far more ingredients then mine do), then finally gave up because they simply didn’t work. That is until I made my own and combined it with body butters or on occasion cocoa butter. 

The bottom line here is that my own creams are so pure and natural they do no harm to delicate and healing skin. I add essential oils to back up the therapeutic effects while boosting their detox and repair properties.

One other area I have been plagued with is cold sores on my lips. For years I have fasted as a discipline and for detox purposes, however, because fasting pushes out whatever toxins, viruses etc. that are hanging around in the body, cold sores would always break out for me.

Until my trusty comfrey cream that is! I kind of don’t want to speak too soon, but this is the longest I have gone without a cold sore in years – all due to using my Fire & Ice Comfrey Cream blend. I think it killed the virus dead the last time it even thought of surfacing. 

Then, my son used comfrey cream to heal up an in-grown toenail, we all put it on minor scrapes, cuts and burns and there is a jar in the barn for the animals which we use when ever someone gets a scratch or sore spot. 

Comfrey is just an all round healing, comforting herb and a must have cream for the medicine cabinet, or next to your bed, or in your purse, on the kitchen window…..

April 

Rebel Foods Market Stall Comfrey Creams

West Cork - the centre of the Food Universe

A few of my favourite things….

I remember not so very long ago when I spent nearly a decade sugar, wheat, dairy, wheat, meat and fish free. My how times have changed since I started the fasting, raising my own food and healing my gut properly.

Now, everything we can raise, make, cook, create, grow and catch ourselves is on the menu and since I love this time of the year so much there are so many goodies to choose from….LOL

This year I wanted to share a few of my favourite things with you, of course, it just goes to show, they all happen to be food! But, good foods are often simple things that become decadent once a little bit of this and a little dash of that, is added.

It’s kind of like magic – kitchen alchemy. Especially this time of year, there are so many wonderful tastes, food memories and seasonal offerings to be had. Perhaps we are quite spoilt living here in West Cork too, because this is kind of like the centre of the food Universe!

So now, where was I? Oh yes, my 3 treats of the season so far this year would have to be – Fig & Port Chutney, Brandy & Vanilla Butter and my Gourmet Seaweed Sea Salt blend (each of these are available at my Rebel Foods market stall in very limited quantities). 

Funny how two of those include a little bit of alcohol, but never mind it’s a seasonal thing!

For the Fig & Port Chutney, I slow cooked (food should be handled very gently) figs, apples, red onions, spices and demerara sugar, then added port at the last hour of cooking. This ensures that richness of flavour – can’t wait to try it on our Christmas goose (and turkey, duck, sandwiches, Gubbeen cheese….LOL).

Next my favourite seasonal delight has to be Brandy and Vanilla Butter. This is really a little bit (ok, a lot) my own take on an ancient Victorian recipe. Of course, I am using my own organic vanilla infused Jim Beam that has been aging, just waiting for this season….

Brandy butter is something special, often reserved for Christmas day pudding, it can be heated and poured over the warm pud like a sauce or better yet, a steaming hot pudding and cold brandy butter melting over top can’t be compared to anything else. 

We also love it with a cheese selection and with smoked salmon or other smoked fish. Come to think of it, smoked cheese sandwiches with brandy butter has a nice sound too….hmmm.

Lastly, I have changed my Seaweed & Sea Salt recipe for the holiday season – adding sesame seeds to this unique medley of gorgeous sea salts from around the world. I love salt, it’s healing properties and ability to turn ordinary food into an art form.

My Gourmet Seaweed Sea Salt blend has West Cork sea salt along with French, Himalayan and other Atlantic sea salts. When combined with the seaweeds and infused with thyme – the flavour is exquisite. 

So much to look forward to this holiday season – it’s all in the food! 

April

Magic of Christmas….comes in a jar! 

Come on, Be a Rebel - Cookery Class with April Danann!!

Again this year I am happy to be offering a few cookery classes for anyone who would like to know a little more about what I am baking, making, cooking and eating. If you are in the West Cork, Cork or surrounding areas - come on out for some fun in the kitchen!

I refer to my style of being off the food grid as Rebel Food - because I make as much as I possibly can from scratch. In fact if I can't make it, we usually don't have it. But, as most things are so easy to make ourselves, this is rarely an issue. 

We eat very well without sugar, processed foods, chemicals, toxins or preservatives while gaining a deeper connection to the energy of the land and our own spiritual selves. Our food is the vital link to sustain us and build that bridge inwards.

Food is a dynamic thing - the seasons change, our tastes change, our physical needs fluctuate throughout the year....and the food we are eating should also shift and change with those requirements. Ours is such a basic approach to a healthy diet and really all about common sense.

When it comes to food in in the winter I like warming soups and stews, for instance. I also love hearty breads with cheese, jams and nut butters. Any of these dishes can be made day in and day out with variety, abundance of flavour and packed full of nutrients.

If you are needing a little boost to your routine, some recipe ideas to try out, wanting more support in the kitchen with your own creations - come on out and cook with me this week on Thursday or Sunday in Leap, West Cork.

Perhaps it's time to find the Rebel in you!

April

24 January 1pm to 5pm Leap, West Cork

27 January 11am to 3pm Leap, West Cork

Herbs for Cooking & Healing

Herbs are one of my favorite foods and of course the only medicine I choose to use for myself and my family. I grow most of my own medicinal as well as kitchen herbs here in my garden in West Cork. Thankfully they are very hardy (basically weeds!) and can take the rain and lack of sunshine better then then the rest of us. 

If you are not yet using an abundance of herbs for your cooking, you don't know what you are missing, they are perhaps the most valuable source of vitamins and minerals from the earth. Herbs contain some of the highest amounts of vitamin C (rose hips), iron (parsley, sea vegetables, raspberry leaf etc) and most other nutrients that we need on a daily basis. There is always a good reason to include herbs in your cooking, tea and salads.

Growing herbs for your food and cooking is also quite easy, especially the more common ones such as thyme, rosemary, basil, sage, coriander, parsley and many others. If you don't have a garden, no problem, they will grow in pots in a sheltered location - ready for use, for a good few months of the year.

This time of year (harvest or Lughnasadh in Ireland) is when I start to gather my herbs and dry them for teas and use in the coming winter months. They are easily dried hanging in small bunches or even spread out on newspaper near a dry warm fire. Often I do both - mostly because it is so wet these days - I hang the herbs to dry for 24 hours and then spread them out to finish drying near the fire or other source of heat.

Herbs drying on a rack

Once dry (make sure they are thoroughly dried) they can be crumbled or placed into jars and paper bags to keep for later use. I have a good few that I would use for colds, coughs and general winter bugs throughout the year to keep us all healthy. However, many of these herbs are also fabulous in the kitchen meals...

Using herbs in cooking, salads and as part of larger meals is something that many of us have forgotten and moved away from, to our own detriment. Herbs adjust, heal, uplift, re-balance and otherwise work with the body intelligence as the best doctor humans will ever know and still manage to taste great!

When adding herbs to your cooking more is often better, the taste and added flavour is outstanding. While there is a herb or two for nearly every dish we tend to skimp when using them fresh from the garden.

The best practice is to use far more then just a taste - for example, 1 tablespoon of chopped fresh parsley is nice, however try adding 1 or 2 cups of this herb right from the garden to any pot of soup or stew - the transformation is magical! The flavours mix and mingle with the other foods leaving you with a meal that is refreshing and alive with sensation.

One of my favorite salads is something that is made up from the garden - fresh picked herbs such as basil, parsley, spring onion, mint, rocket, cress, chives - chopped up into a green salad, tossed with oil and balsamic vinegar then sprinkled with crumbled feta cheese. Imagine the flavour and the goodness in that bowl!!

I will have to get a picture the next time I make it (perhaps tomorrow for the harvest festival)

Back soon,

April

Borage tea and drying borage from the garden - flowers can be used in salads fresh, or leaves in tea for heart health and courage!