Category Archives: winter greens

spinach

2016 CSA Spring May 14th Spinach

2016 CSA Spring May 14th

  • Spinach
  • Mixed Field Greens
  • Kale Flowers
  • Poultry Herbs
  • Spring Garlic
  • Spring onion bunch
  • Cilantro
  • Mint
  • Lemon Verbena
  • Thai Basil

Spinach

This green can claim a special place among vegetables in terms of its phytonutrient content. Researchers have identified more than a dozen different flavonoid compounds in spinach that function as anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer agents. (Some of these substances fall into a technical category of flavonoids known as methylenedioxyflavonol glucuronides.) The anticancer properties of these spinach flavonoids have been sufficiently impressive to prompt researchers to create specialized spinach extracts that could be used in controlled laboratory studies. These spinach extracts have been shown to slow down cell division in human stomach cancer cells (gastric adenocarcinomas), and in studies on laboratory animals, to reduce skin cancers (skin papillomas). A study on adult women living in New England in the late 1980s also showed intake of spinach to be inversely related to incidence of breast cancer.

Excessive inflammation, of course, typically emerges as a risk factor for increased cancer risk. (That’s why many anti-inflammatory nutrients can also be shown to have anti-cancer properties.) But even when unrelated to cancer, excessive inflammation has been shown to be less likely following consumption of spinach. Particularly in the digestive tract, reduced inflammation has been associated not only with the flavonoids found in spinach, but also with its carotenoids. Neoxanthin and violaxanthin are two anti-inflammatory epoxyxanthophylls that are found in plentiful amounts in the leaves of spinach. While these unique carotenoids may not be as readily absorbed as carotenoids like beta-carotene or lutein, they still play an important role in regulation of inflammation and are present in unusual amounts in spinach.

Decreased risk of aggressive prostate cancer is one health benefit of spinach consumption that should not be overlooked when talking about the anti-cancer properties of spinach. Interestingly, in a recent study that evaluated possible prostate cancer-prevention benefits from a variety of vegetables including spinach, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, mustard and turnip greens, collards, and kale — only spinach showed evidence of significant protection against the occurrence of aggressive prostate cancer.

-excerpt of spinach profile via nonprofit George Mateljan Foundation

 

Milk Thistle Pesto

2016 CSA Spring April 9 – Milk Thistle

2016 CSA Spring April 9

  • Mixed Field Greens
  • Field Arugula
  • Baby Sorrel
  • Watercress Box
  • Chives
  • Rose Geranium
  • Mint
  • Butternut Squash
  • Basil
  • Milk Thistle Pesto

Milk Thistle

Milk Thistle

Milk Thistle Pesto

Milk Thistle Pesto

Milk Thistle

As spring gears up, so do the greens…and the greenhouses, of things we plant and some we wildcraft, such as Milk Thistle, which is included in your CSA share this week in the form of pesto.  This plant has long been known to have healthy properties, containing silymarin, and “has no equivalent in the pharmaceutical drug world”; for over 2,000 years it has been revered as a protector of the liver. “In fact, in cases of poisoning with Amanita mushrooms, which destroy the liver, milk thistle is the only treatment option. It has been so dramatically effective that the treatment has never been disputed, even by the traditional medical community.” See the website http://www.herbwisdom.com/herb-milk-thistle.html for the quoted material and more information.  In the cyclical pattern that we make the pesto of milk thistle, which is generally in spring and in fall, it is savored as a seasonal tonic.  You will find milk thistle in stores as high priced extracts, or supplement pills and tablets, especially of the seed, to economic dried preparation of the plant for tea.  The same healing properties that the seeds are touted so much about are present throughout the entire plant.  Then add the benefit of being able to include it in the diet as a freshly harvested herb by eating the pesto.  If hiking or would like to nibble from environments that you consider clean to harvest from, the leaf can be folded along its spine, aligning up the thorns on the edges of the leaf and trimmed to be eaten; the leaf can be used as a rolled up treat or as a wrap in a meal. As a pesto, it can be incorporated into your diet in classic fashions such as topping pasta or spreading on pizza or tried as a sandwich spread for a new twist.  Hope you all have a blessed week!

milk Thistle

2015 CSA Fall December 19 Planet Earth Diversified

2015 CSA    Fall    December 19   Planet Earth Diversified

Final CSA for 2015 – 2016 Begins Jan 2

  • milk thistle pesto
  • arugula pesto
  • Mixed Field Greens
  • Rainbow Chard
  • Arugula Greens
  • Red Kale
  • Rosemary
  • Baby Sorrel
  • Poultry Herbs
  • Basil
  • Dill
  • Bay Laurel
  • Flat Parsley
  • Butternut Squash
  • Sweet Potatoes
  • Papaya

2015 CSA    Fall    December 19 Planet Earth Diversified               

Both milk thistle and arugula pesto are included this week with your CSA share and some big Butternut Squash – they are not in the box get them separately!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3an71fzC9-o 11 minutes all about the green papaya and the ginger we have been providing as part of our research with Virginia State University.

milk Thistle

milk Thistle

Milk Thistle, which is included in your CSA share this week in the form of pesto. This plant has long been known to have healthy properties, containing silymarin, and “has no equivalent in the pharmaceutical drug world”; for over 2,000 years it has been revered as a protector of the liver. “In fact, in cases of poisoning with Amanita mushrooms, which destroy the liver, milk thistle is the only treatment option. It has been so dramatically effective that the treatment has never been disputed, even by the traditional medical community.” See the website http://www.herbwisdom.com/herb-milk-thistle.html for the quoted material and more information. In the cyclical pattern that we make the pesto of milk thistle, which is generally in spring and in fall, it is savored as a seasonal tonic. You will find milk thistle in stores as high priced extracts, or supplement pills and tablets, especially of the seed, to economic dried preparation of the plant for tea. The same healing properties that the seeds are touted so much about are present throughout the entire plant. Then add the benefit of being able to include it in the diet as a freshly harvested herb by eating the pesto. If hiking or would like to nibble from environments that you consider clean to harvest from, the leaf can be folded along its spine, aligning up the thorns on the edges of the leaf and trimmed to be eaten; the leaf can be used as a rolled up treat or as a wrap in a meal. As a pesto, it can be incorporated into your diet in classic fashions such as topping pasta or spreading on pizza or tried as a sandwich spread for a new twist. Hope you all have a blessed week!

Green-Papaya-Recipe

Green-Papaya-Recipe

Kale Fruit Salad

Kale Fruit Salad

Green-Papaya-Wanda Johnson

Green-Papaya-Wanda Johnson