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This Weeks Goodies  

Pictured, self heal (purple flower), pineapple weed (daisy look a-like) and st. johns wort

It is time to start harvesting these items.  Take a nature walk and start picking.  You can infuse these in oil, make a tincture or dry them for later use.

Never pick anything that has been sprayed

St. Johns Wort is in the far right paper bag

This Weeks Wellness Box: Collard greens, lettuce, spinach,kale, mustard greens, garlic scallions, celery, onions, radish, wild greens mix, tea mixes,  sage, nettle, lemon balm, self heal, pineapple weed, st. johns wort

Self Heal: http://onlineathens.com/stories/071011/liv_854927721.shtml

The common name "self-heal" derives from the use of some species to treat a range of minor disorders. It is reported to have an antiseptic and antibacterial effect, and to be particularly good in cases of food poisoning. Highly revered herbalist Keewaydinoquay used self-heal to pull heavy metals out of the body.  On the physical body it acts as an astringent, anti-inflammatory, antipyretic, mild antiseptic, detoxifier, diuretic, haemostatic and vulnerary (a substance used to help heal external wounds). Its astringent and anti-inflammatory properties help as a gargle for sore throats and as a mouthwash for mouth ulcers and bleeding gums.A tea, diluted tincture or fresh plant poultice is effective topically to stop bleeding from cuts or wounds, reduce swelling from insect bites, and to reduce the swelling from varicose veins, hemorrhoids and eye inflammations (sties, conjunctivitis). Self-heal can be used internally and externally to help dissolve nodules in the neck (such as goiter), lymphomas (fatty tumors).

You can make a tea, tincture or an infused oil.  

Mayweed:  Make a warm cup of tea with this one.   Known as wild chamomile, it is not a true chamomile, but it does have similar properties.

St. Johns Wort:   The unique therapeutic benefits of St. John's wort may not appear for several weeks, and the remedy must be used for at least a few months to produce lasting effects. This medicinal herb is prescribed for mild to moderate depression and anxiety and is also applied externally to heal wounds and reduce inflammation.

In natural medicine, the herb St. John's wort is considered to be the psychological counterpart of arnica, which alleviates physical pain. The benefits can temper emotional discomfort, lift depression and calm the nerves.

St. John's wort is also very similar to some types of antidepressant medications. It's believed to raise the concentration of serotonin in the brain and enhance its activity. This neurotransmitter (or chemical nerve messenger) helps to regulate mood. You can also make a tea from this medicinal herb and is known to relax and soothe the psyche without causing sleepiness or addiction.

St. Johns Wort Infused Oil.  Use for injuries. 

8 oz jar

St. Johns Wort

Olive Oil

Place herbs jar, fill the jar to the top with olive oil.  Place in the sun for 6 weeks.  Shake daily

Strain and enjoy! 

Lemon Balm:  Is the elixir of life, it sweetens the spirit, powerfully chases away melancholy and it strengthen's the brain.  It calms the nervous and digestive systems.  

Culinary:  http://3squaresproduce.com/recipes/item/8-lemonbalmrecipes

Lemon Balm Herbal Butter: 

1/4 cup finely minced lemon balm

2 tablespoons, finely chopped thyme

1 cup of organic butter 

1/4 tsp. pepper

1/2 tsp garlic granules

Cream butter and stir in herbs. Chill for at least 3 hours to allow flavors to blend. Use on roasted meats, rice, vegetables and bread.  

Lemon Balm Sun Tea 

2 tablespoons of fresh leaves for each cup water

Place lemon balm and cool water in covered jar in the sun for a few hours

Strain add honey and, or lemon

Add mint for a refreshing lemony mint tea

Lemon Balm Roasted Chicken: 

Roasted Lemon Balm Chicken

Handful of fresh lemon balm leaves, stems removed 
1/4 cup or so of fresh sage leaves 
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) organic butter softened 
Salt and pepper, to taste 
1 large roasting chicken 
4 minced garlic cloves or 6 garlic scallions
2 tablespoons olive oil

Preheat oven to 350

Trim herb leaves from stems; wash and pat dry. Set sprigs aside. Chop two-thirds of the leaves, and combine with the butter, minced garlic and/or garlic scallions, salt, and pepper.

Rinse chicken and pat dry. Loosen the skin in several places and insert the herbal butter underneath. Rub chicken with salt and pepper.  

Insert the remaining herb sprigs into the cavity of the chicken.

Place breast-side-down in a roasting pan. Bake 30 minutes, then turn chicken over. Bake about 20 minutes longer.

Makes 4 to 6 servings

Lemon Balm Cordial 

From Adele Dawson’s Herbs, Partners in Life:  “A fine home-made liqueur can be made by taking two handfuls of crushed Melissa leaves, putting them in a glass jar or crock, pouring over them a fifth of vodka, three-quarters of a cup of honey, and a grated lemon peel.  Shake well and let stand for a week.  Strain, bottle, and wait an additional three weeks before using.

Lemon Balm Infused Vinegar

 Make sure you use a plastic lid with your vinegar/not metal

I like to use organic raw apple cider vinegar, but you can start with any vinegar you like.

Thoroughly clean about two cups of fresh lemon balm.

Allow them to dry, or gently dry them with a hair dryer set on cool.

Lightly crush the herbs with your hands, and place them in a clean jar.

Cover with vinegar that has been warmed almost to a boil, screw on the lid, and shake. Place the jar in a cool, dark place.

Shake every day, and then turn the jar upside down.

After one to two weeks, strain the vinegar through a coffee filter, and pour into sterilized glass bottles. Place a sprig or two of fresh herbs in the bottle, and screw on the top or insert a tight cork.

As long as herbal vinegar's are protected from light, they will keep for up to a year. 

Lemon Balm Tincture:

To make a tincture, you will need a 1 quart canning jar, lemon balm herb, 2 cups of either vodka, gin or brandy and 1 cup water. The liquid acts as the menstrum and will preserve the tincture for up to 5 years.

Sterilize the jar.

Fill the jar half way with the lemon balm herb.

Pour the 2 cups of alcohol over the herb until it comes up over the top of the herb.

Next, pour the 1 cup of water into the jar.

Shake well.

Leave in a warm place for 4 weeks. Shake it every day or so.

If after a few days, the herb is not still fully immersed, add a touch more water. Herb needs to stay totally submerged under the liquid for the 4 weeks.

After 4 weeks strain out the herb.

Place tincture in a dark bottle, and label with herb and date.

Take 20 drops of tincture in juice, warm water, or tea  3-4  times a day. Do not take it for more than 2 weeks at a time. Give your body a rest, and take it again for 2 weeks if necessary. If the condition persists, contact your health care provider or herbalist.

If you don’t want the alcohol of a tincture, you can use vegetable glycerin or honey to make a glycerite.

The formula for making the glycerite is the same as a tincture. Follow the above steps, and replace the vodka with either the vegetable glycerin or honey. Allow the 6 weeks and then strain. Dosage is 1/4 tsp. 3 – 4 times a day.

Lemon balm should be avoided by those on hypothyroid medication as it is believed that the herb inhibits the absorption of this medicine.

Pictured Lemon Balm

Wild Food Mix: Use as a stir-fry, omelet or a frittata:   Sweet cicely leaves, dandelion leaves, yellow dock leaves and plantain.  

Sweet cicely appears to have been used medicinally since Roman times. Today, it is used exclusively in cooking.  An infusion of the herb was once recommended for flatulence and coughs, and it was an ingredient of wound healing ointments.   The sugary tasting leaves have an anise-like taste, and they are traditionally cooked with tart fruits, such as rhubarb and gooseberries and used to flavor fruit salads and fruit pies.  The fresh leaves impart their own sweetness and are, therefor e helpful for diabetics and those on low-sugar diets.   Sweet cicely has been long appreciated in Europe for the sweet anise flavor of its young shoots, leaves, and fruits, sweet cicely has yet to make many inroads into American cooking. 

Leaves may be harvested from early spring to early fall; they are best used raw, as they lose most of their scent and flavor when dried.   The leaves sweeten salad dressings, omelets, soups, stews, and vegetable dishes.

Wild Food Frittata:  Serves 2/ Double if you need four servings

This recipe is so easy and satisfying. It can be adapted for just about any edible plants growing in your garden. Of course, any veggie, cheese, herb combination can be substituted as well. 

Ingredients

4 local, organic, free-range eggs
1/2 cup grated organic parmesan, feta, or raw cheddar cheese
2 Tbsp plain organic yogurt
1 bunch of wild greens
1/2 organic onion, thinly sliced
2 cloves organic garlic, crushed or 3 garlic scallions 
Sea salt and fresh cracked organic pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Sauté onions in olive oil using a small cast iron or another oven-safe skillet over medium heat until they become nice and caramelized. Add garlic and cook for another minute. Toss in the nettle leaves and dandelion flowers and sauté with onions and garlic for another minute or two.

In a mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, yogurt, and cheese. Add chopped sun-dried tomatoes, capers, and season with salt and pepper.

Spread veggie mixture evenly on bottom of the skillet. Pour egg mixture into the skillet and gently stir together until the veggies are covered, then allow to cook for a few minutes.

When the egg mixture is about half set, put the whole pan in the oven. Bake for 7-10 minutes, until your frittata is puffy and golden around the edges. Remove the pan from the oven using oven mitts and let stand for several minutes.

Nettle Frittata http://mountainroseblog.com/dandelion-frittata/

More options: http://kimwiney.blogspot.com/2013/04/dandelion-frittata-truly-radical-food.html

Wild Tea Of The Week: Mayweed,chamomile,lemon verbena,lemon balm, lemon verbena and valerian flower tea: 

Wild tea mix

2 to 4 cups of water

Bring water to boil and pour wild tea mix in, turn off burner and steep for 2 to 5 minutes.

 If you would like to have the mix stronger for more health benefits make an infusion. 

Lemon Verbena:  http://www.healthyliving-herbs.co.za/index.php/herb-articles/568-lemon-verbena-aloysia-triphylla-lippia-citriodora

More recipes for lemon verbena: http://oldfashionedliving.com/lemonverbena.html  

Sage:  is a superb aid in the digestion of rich, fatty meat.  It also helps lower cholesterol levels and is a bitter tonic for the liver.  It is an excellent herb for rebuilding vitality and strength during long-term illness.  Sage is a well-known cold and flu fighter.  Because of its astringent, antiseptic, and relaxing action on the mucous membranes, sage is the classic remedy for inflammation of the mouth, throat, and tonsils.  It is one of the best remedies for laryngitis, tonsillitis, and sore throat.  Sage has many more healing qualities, for more information on this herb I suggest getting Rosemary Gladstar's book, Medicinal Herbs, a beginners guide.  

Sage Pesto: 

This is a great recipe for a healthy, healing herb paste.  Sage dominates the flavor of this pungent, strong pesto.  You can use less sage fi you find it overpowering.  If you would like to add more healing nutrients try adding fresh wild herbs such as dandelion greens, chickweed, and plantain.  

Recipe from Rosemary Gladstar's book:  Medicinal Herbs, a beginners guide 

1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves and stems

1/2 cup parsely

1/4 to 1/2 cup fresh sage leaves, first time making it try the 1/4 cup version and if you would like it stronger than next time add more

3 cloves garlic

3/4 to 1 cup olive oil

1/4 to 1/2 cup sunflower seeds or walnuts or a mix

1/4 cup raw cheese (optional) 

Freshly ground black pepper and sea salt 

To make: 

Combine the herbs, garlic and olive oil in a blender or food processor and pulse until creamy.  Mix in the nuts or seeds and cheese (if using) and salt and pepper ot taste.  

To use: 

Serve on toast or crackers, pasta, steamed grains, omelets, vegetables or organic meat.

Sage Stress Reliever Tea

Handful of fresh sage leaves

Handful of fresh mint or small amount of fresh rosemary

Handful of fresh lemon balm 

These measurements are the playful way to connect with yourself and make tea.  

Gather your ingredinets and listen to what your body is telling you.  If you body says little more or a little less listen to it.  

I would start with about 4 cups of water, bring to boil add herbs turn the stove off and steep for 2 to 5 minutes. 

Enjoy it outdoors or with a loved one. Make sure all electric gadgets are turned off. 

Pictured, Sage and Lemon Balm

Nettle Garlic Buttermilk Biscuits:  Makes 12 - 15 Biscuits

2 cups organic unbleached flour 

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder, aluminium free! 

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. fine sea salt

5 Tbls. organic butter

1 cup of organic buttermilk, (when I can not find organic butter milk I use yogurt.  I mix 1/2 cup yogurt and 1/2 cup  water and mix)  

4 cloves fresh garlic, crushed or 4 finely minced garlic scallions

1 cup finely chopped fresh Nettle leaves, thick gloves for  chopping the Nettles

Preheat oven 400 degrees

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large mixing bowl and stir thoroughly.  Using two better knives or a pastry cutter, add butter until mixture resembles a crumbly meal.

Ina separate bowl, combine buttermilk with garlic and nettle leaves.  Add this liquid mixture to the dry ingredients and gently fold together to forma soft dough. 

Turn dough onto a floured cutting board, kneed gently until it just comes together, adding a little more flour if needed, and roll the dough out until it's about 1/2 think.  Using the rim of a small glass, cut the dough into 2 1/2 - 3 inch rounds and place on an un-greased baking sheet.

Bake for 18 minutes or until light golden brown.

Remove immediately from baking sheet to avoid over-crisping the biscuit bottoms and serve warm with butter. 

It Is Time To Drop The Potato Chips!!!! Make Kale Chips

Spicy Kale Chips

1/3 tsp ground cumin 
1/3 tsp paprika
1/8 tsp cayenne (add 1/8 tsp for spicier chips)
1/8 tsp salt
2 Tbsp olive oil
½ lb kale (about ¾ a bunch), large stems removed, cut into 2 to 3-inch pieces 

How to make it:
1. Preheat the oven to 275ºF. In a medium bowl, combine the spices, salt, and oil. Stir to dissolve. Add the kale and toss to coat. 
2. Spread leaves in a single layer on two baking sheets. Try to flatten any folded-over pieces for optimum crispness. Bake until the tips of leaves are slightly crispy, about 10 minutes. Use a spatula to turn the leaves over, and continue to roast until the leaves are crisp and slightly golden, 8 to 10 minutes more. Makes 4 servings.

Pizza Kale Chips: http://www.youngandraw.com/pizza-kale-chips-by-chef-amber-shea/

More Recipes For Kale Chips: 

http://blog.womenshealthmag.com/dish/kale-chips/

Gnocchi anyone?  My family loves it!    

I just came across this recipe this morning and I will be making it this weekend.  I have plenty of arugula and spinach growing in the gardens ( a rare breed spinach that I have been growing for the last 4 years and saving it seeds). 

 Making gnocchi sounds complicated, but it's actually fairly easy.  They can be frozen for later use, just add a couple more minutes to the cooking time.  

1 pound yukon gold potatoes, unpeeled

4 ounces fresh arugula

1 cup white flour ( white spelt would work to)

1/2 tsp. sea salt

1 egg

1/4 cup olive oil

3 garlic cloves, minced/or more is you are a garlic lover

1/2 cup julienned sun dried tomatoes

2 Tablespoons white balsamic vinegar

1 cup filtered or spring water

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

6-8 ounces baby spinach and arugula

Shredded raw cheese for garnish

sea salt and pepper

Use organic ingredients

For those of you who eat gluten free, like my daughters, here is a recipe for gluten free gnocchi.  I would follow the recipe and then add your chopped arugula to it.  

http://thedomesticman.com/2012/10/23/gluten-free-potato-gnocchi/

1.  In a large pot, cover potatoes with water.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until soft, 40 minutes.  Meanwhile, add arugula to another pot of boiling water for 10 seconds.  Drain, run under cold water.  Pat dry and chop fine.

2.  Cool cooked potatoes for 5 minutes, then peel and mash smooth.  Combine with chopped arugula, flour, salt, and egg to make a dough ball.  Divide into 5 pieces. Roll each piece on a lightly floured surface into a log about 3/4 thick.  Cut each log into 1 inch pieces.  If you would like a pretty look, you can press a fork along one edge of the gnocchi.

(If freezing, place on a baking sheet and cover tightly with plastic, when froze, transfer to zip-top bags.) 

3.  Bring 3 quarts lightly salted water to a boil.  add gnocchi and cook until they float.  Drain

4.  In a large saute pan, heat olive oil over medium-high.  Add cooked gnocchi,  minced garlic season with sea  salt and pepper.  When browned, turn and cook other side for 2 minutes.  Add tomatoes, garlic, and vinegar, cook 2 minutes.  Add water, cook 3 minutes. Toss in parsley and taste for salt and pepper.

5.  On plates, top spinach and arugula with gnocchi and sauce; garnish with shredded raw cheese.  

My rare spinach that I have been growing

Basil is not the only herb that you can use to make pesto.  

There are so many varieties of pesto that you can make.  Lately we have been making a nettle pesto,a wild greens pesto (the wild greens were dandelion, plantain and yellow dock),    and today I made sage pesto.  The sage pesto was incredibly awesome.  I added the sage pesto to our pasta and eggs.    

For the garlic I used 3 garlic scallions and for the cheese I used raw organic cheddar.   

Anyone up for a challenge?  I would like to challenge you and your taste buds in making this wonderful recipe.  

This is a great recipe for a healthy, healing herb paste.  Sage dominates the flavor of this pungent, strong pesto.  You can use less sage fi you find it overpowering.  If you would like to add more healing nutrients try adding fresh wild herbs such as dandelion greens, chickweed, and plantain.  

Recipe from Rosemary Gladstar's book:  Medicinal Herbs, a beginners guide 

1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves and stems

1/2 cup parsley

1/4 to 1/2 cup fresh sage leaves, first time making it try the 1/4 cup version and if you would like it stronger than next time add more

3 cloves garlic

3/4 to 1 cup olive oil

1/4 to 1/2 cup sunflower seeds or walnuts or a mix

1/4 cup raw cheese (optional) 

Freshly ground black pepper and sea salt 

To make: 

Combine the herbs, garlic and olive oil in a blender or food processor and pulse until creamy.  Mix in the nuts or seeds and cheese (if using) and salt and pepper ot taste.  

To use: 

Serve on toast or crackers, pasta, steamed grains, omelets, vegetables or organic meat.

Thank you to all that participated.  You did a beautiful job and I know you  have motivated others to do the same! 

Thank you, to Sophia, for the great food that she made for Joseph and I.  She took beautiful pictures and helped make a video. If you would like to watch her video, click on the link below:

http://mountainwarrior.ning.com/video/mcminnville-health-defense-so...

First, I want to thank Laz for such a beautiful job on his blog post, of eating green food. His was on a different day.  I think he did this to motivate people to take the green food day challenge on, March 17th 2012 because if you know Laz he eats this way everyday.  If you do not know Laz, he is a 16 year young, who eats incredibly healthy..  Here is an example of what he eats on a daily basis.  I would like to mention that his brother Max eats incredibly too and he bakes homemade bread.  Max is 14 years young.

Before working out and running this morning I had a glass of water with kelp. Then some green tea whilst making breakfast.

Breakfast was Organic eggs with local organic kale, kohlrabi, leeks, cilantro, raw onions and some salsa.After eating I had a little bit of apple cider vinegar, then a few minutes down the road, some oat milk with hemp protein powder... and a pinch of cocoa powder.

After a couple hours, made a salad containing the following: Raw onions (i love onions!), garlic, organic local mustard greens, beets, turnips, swiss chard, olive oil, apple cider vinegar, Apple, and mushrooms.Then for lunch/food for classes, I made Kamut with chard, kohlrabi greens (don't waste food), ginger and onions.Okay, Dinner! Made homemade organic spinach tortillas with cilantro, spinach, avocado, organic cheese, pinto beans, salsa and an Organic Raw Multi-Green Kombucha!

That was my food for January 17th, 2012. How did you fuel you bodies today?!? Everything you see was organic... now it's in my tummy. Be Kung Fu in EVERYTHING!

I also want to thank Victoria for taking the challenge on , her morning started beautiful.  If you need ideas for a morning meal Check out Victoria's morning breakfast: 

Besides organic coffee and organic half and half, I am having some kombucha with cranberry juice. Then I sautéed some homegrown shallot and homegrown garlic and organic ginger in organic butter. Added some cumin and coriander which were ground. Added some homegrown spinach and wilted that. Added seasalt and some cooked blackeyed peas from last night (dinner was blackeyed peas and collards from the garden), also organic. Sprinkled on some hempseed, ground flaxseed, and a pinch of pollen. Pictures later, when I download from phone. Right now I want to eat!

Then we had Joe and Sue's green food day post.  They had a life challenge to work though, to eat super green  food all day while they had a day trip.  All of us know that when traveling, in order to eat good you need to prepare a head of time.  Check out their day.  Again, if you need help with eating healthy while you have a day trip there are some great ideas in their blog post.  

Started out with a cup of Organic coffee. Breakfast was Rice noodles with kale, eggs, pesto and pumpkin seeds.Challenge for us today, we were spending all day at the zoo for  grandson's birthday, so we made some turkey wraps in organic flour tortillas with green hummus and spinach to take with us. Mid way we had a "ReBar", organic fruit & vegie bar containing 8 servings of fruits & vegies. After the zoo we went to Voodoo Donuts for "cake". You can't believe the line of people waiting to get in that place. It took about 20 minutes to get into the building. The amazing array of facinating donuts to choose from! People really had a hard time choosing between deep fried fritters, donuts covered in various colored frosting then topped with sugar laden cereals like Captain Crunch or Cocoa Puffs and even bacon, I guess that's the complete breakfast donut. Jelly or cream filled to choose from also of course. It was definately not difficult for Joe & I to resist. When we got home, Yummy homemade pizza! with spinach, homemade pesto, mushrooms, & Organic Valley cheese.

Cathe had a lot of fun all day posting pics and making food.  I loved watching her post's on Facebook.  What was great about her post's is that her friends were seeing what she was eating.  One can only hope that they would find interest in challenging themselves on a daily basis to eat for green healthy food.  She had some great ideas and came up with some great conclusions.  Here is one of her post's on Facebook, I love the humor she puts into her day: 

Still too full for snack yet and its almost movie time! Tonights snack will be a smoothie and its movie night! I think it will be a very green one. Will post ingredients. I still have enough vegies for two more days! With planning, eating green is very affordable, and with extra thrift, eating Organic is doable! Stay tuned it ain't over till the fluffy lady drinks her smoothie! (I still have 30 pounds of fluff to remove_

Here is Cathe's day:

Prebreakfast  Green Coffee  (half coffee and half stinging nettle tea)

Breakfast       Green and raw Oatmeal (raw zuchini and raw sweet potato in oats)

Snack           Green and Raw Angled Eggs  ( ground raw asparagus tips ground raw red onions)

Main meal     Green Spagetti  (Mango and red bell pepper sauce with grated steamed cabbage)

Snack           Green and Raw Smoothie ( contained RAW spinach liquid) 

Super Green Organic Oatmeal
1 icecream scoop of soaked, barely cooked oat meal
1 cup cup of grated raw zuchini
1/2 cup of grated raw sweet potatoe
fresh lemon juice and honey 
mix all together and eat! 
Ka Chin Super Green Eating Points

hmmmmm! I think I will do organic deviled eggs for my 11:00 snack! I am going to add another personal challenge to my efforts here! All of my foods MUST be original recipes! Like the green coffee and the confetti oatmeal! Stay tuned for Cathes "Angled Eggs" ! They are sooo healthy that we can't give you know who the credit for them!

hmmmm

St Patties Day Angled Eggs 
blenderize cooked eggs with one tablespoon of red onion and two tablespoons of raw asparagus tips. add to blender mayo, mustard, tumeric and lemon juice to taste. Place in boiled egg whites. Enjoy.

TADA! These will help you find that blarney stone!

Apparently I did not add enough batter to this waffle iron, and while it is "thoroughly cooked" we will not be having this green snack tonight. Instead a green smoothie will substitute. Tomorrows post will be on, "How To Easily Clean A Really Messy Waffle Iron".

getting ready to blenderize, (ninja) the following:
1 whole red bell pepper
1 cup of mango
1 clove of garlic
2 tablespoons of oat flour
any spices you use for spagettie sauce

Mango Spagettie Sauce! NO CANS OF TOMATOES! And that means no food dye or BPAs! This sauce is orange. The "noodles" for me are lightly steamed cabbage. The kids had regular GF noodles. Hey it was hard enough to get them to try the weird "Mango Sauce". But in the end, all was declared Yummy!

saute onion and hamburger, dump in Ninjaed stuff. stir till thick, if too thick wisk in hot water. simmer to allow flavors to yumernize.