Seven Winter Self Care Tips & Rituals to Support a Healthy, Happy Winter!

Read more

...and all the feels that go along with it. (CC: Stevie Nicks, The War on Drugs, Etc.)

I'm a busy, busy witch-elf in my Apothecary gearing up for the busiest season of the year, and this compilation of songs accompanies me lately. I hope you enjoy it... 

I'm going to try putting out a playlist each month, directly reflecting the tunes that are carrying me through my work days in the apothecary. During my teens and most of my 20's, my entire life revolved around music and all my friends were musicians, so my taste is rather eclectic and I have no shame in mixing some classics in with some newer stuff. I hope you enjoy listening to this list! But more importantly, I hope you find some artists to love, or kick up some old memories from songs filed away. 

Special shoutout to my friends Allie Moss, Elizabeth (& the Catapult), & Lisa Hannigan for making an appearance on this list...

Since I grew up in an ultra-Orthodox Jewish household, this autumnal part of the year has always been full of meaning. There's a chill in the air, the leaves are changing colors, and along with the fresh-ness of new school supplies and a new school year, also arrived the Jewish high holidays. Rosh Hashana is the Jewish New Year, and it's a couple of days full of prayer, blessings, and meals inundated with symbolism and ritual. Now that I have my own beautiful home and I'm cultivating my own beautiful community, it makes me so excited to host a meal to share in culture- to gather and enjoy food. 

The rituals of the Rosh Hashana meal include eating apples dipped in honey (for a sweet new year), carrots (because the Hebrew word for carrot shares the root for the word "decree" and we want positive decrees for our lives in the upcoming year), eating the head of a fish/lamb/cabbage (because we want to be moving forward, and forward thinking instead of trailing behind- sidenote, we ate jelly fish for this part :)), any of the 7 species of Israel (which includes wheat, barley, grapes, figs, pomegranate, olives, and dates), and round challah (to signify the cycle of the year and our lives). 

I love that Rosh Hashana always falls out on a new moon, as well. It seems to double the power of setting new intentions and being introspective in this powerful way. I want to send out extra gratitude to our friends who joined us for this ritual. It was extremely meaningful to light candles, eat a delicious meal, and share this evening together. 

Below are some of the recipes I used to make this Rosh Hashana special. 

          Apples are part of the Rosh Hashana meal ritual, and we were lucky enough to                                     go apple picking at a local farm on Rosh Hashana eve! 

Our beautiful Rosh Hashana Table! 

  
Hummus                                 7 Species of Israel                 Spicy Moroccan Carrots

              Table Setting 

               Pomegranate Meyer Lemon Martini 

Spicy Moroccan Carrot Salad (taken from my dear friend Rosi Golan's recipe

2 lbs carrots
3 lemons
3 teaspoons finely chopped parsley
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
3 cloves garlic
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Peel all your carrots. Bring large pot of water to a boil. Cook carrots whole for 15 min. or until al dente or semi-cooked. You don't want them to be mushy. You should be able to pick them up with a fork but they should still be firm.

While carrots are cooking prepare marinade. In a medium bowl add the juice from 3 lemons, 4 tablespoons olive oil, 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard, 3 cloves garlic minced (you may use a microplane, Rosi’s favorite kitchen utensil), 1 teaspoon cumin and ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper. Mix well then add a bit of salt and pepper to taste and 3 teaspoons finely chopped parsley.

When carrots are cooked blanche in cold water to stop cooking. Slice all carrots  into ¼ inch pieces and place into a medium sized baking dish. Pour marinade over carrots and mix well, covering carrots thoroughly. Cover and place into refrigerator over night. You can make this dish up to 2 days ahead of time.

Easy Delicious Slow Cooked Moroccan Lamb Stew (adapted from Epicurious, but did the easy fast version without all the steps)

1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons ground coriander
11/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 lbs chopped lamb 
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 can garbanzo beans, drained
2 cinnamon sticks
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger 

Instead of going through the whole true recipe preparation process, I decided to just pop all of this into a crock pot on low for 7 hours, and it came out SO good. You can really serve it over rice, or any other cooked grain. 

Perfect Hummus- directly from the Jerusalem cookbook. If you don't own this cookbook, I highly recommend it. It not only is filled with sublime recipes, photos, and rich cultural anecdotes- it's also a work of collaboration in an area so wrought with conflict. Which I appreciate immensely. 

1 1/2 cups/250 g dried chickpeas
1 teaspoon baking soda
6 1/2 cups/1.5 liters water
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons/270 g light tahini paste
4 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
4 cloves garlic, crushed
6 1/2 tablespoons/100 ml ice-cold water
salt

The night before, put the chickpeas in a large bowl and cover them with cold water at least twice their volume. Leave to soak overnight.

The next day, drain the chickpeas. Place a medium saucepan over high heat and add the drained chickpeas and baking soda. Cook for about 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the water and bring to a boil. Cook, skimming off any foam and any skins that float to the surface. The chickpeas will need to cook between 20 and 40 minutes, depending on the type and freshness, sometimes even longer. Once done, they should be very tender, breaking up easily when pressed between your thumb and finger, almost but not quite mushy.

Drain the chickpeas. You should have roughly 3 2/3 cups/600 g now. Place the chickpeas in a food processor and process until you get a stiff paste. Then, with the machine still running, add the tahini paste, lemon juice, garlic, and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt. Finally, slowly drizzle in the iced water and allow it to mix for about 5 minutes, until you get a very smooth and creamy paste.

Transfer the hummus to a bowl, cover the surface with plastic wrap, and let it rest for at least 30 minutes. If not using straightaway, refrigerate until needed. Make sure to take it out of the fridge at least 30 minutes before serving.

Meyer Lemon Pomegranate Martini

Meyer Lemon Simple Syrup:

1.5 cups of fresh squeezed juice of Meyer Lemons (about 11 lemons in my experience)
Peel of 3 Meyer Lemons 
1.5 cups sugar

Combine all ingredients in small saucepan. Heat over a medium flame, stirring regularly until it comes to a light boil. Make sure all sugar is dissolved, remove from flame. Allow to steep for at least 10 minutes, but the longer the better. (I let mine steep for about 3 hours). Strain. 

Cocktail: 

1.5 oz. vodka
3/4 oz. Meyer lemon simple syrup
1.5 oz. 100% pure pomegranate juice
Sparkling Water
In Joy Tincture

Add vodka, simple syrup, juice to a shaker, shake well with ice, strain into a glass with a large ice cube. Top with sparkling water and 1 dropperful of In Joy tincture! 

Bonus: if you choose to garnish the glass with this colorful flake salt like I did, add some honey to the area you want painted with salt, and then roll it in salt! Makes it look pretty and adds a nice contrasting salty flavor to the sweet and sour of the cocktail! 

Lighting candles to bring in the holiday, and send light out to the rest of the world...

 

 

Dear 15-year-old-who-I-hope-just-wasn’t-thinking,

I want to tell you about a place that I visited one December afternoon in 2012. You were only ten-years-old then, but I was about to turn twenty-six and pretty much in the middle of a quarter-life crisis. I was trying to figure out where in this vast country I would finally settle down and plant some roots. It was cold and rainy in the forest, but I barely noticed. I was fixated on the ancient moss-covered trees that went up as far as the eye could see toward the sky. They seemed to hug me with their colossal presence. I swear it was those few hours that sealed the decision in my mind to move clear across the country from New York.

I want to tell you about my first year of living in Portland. When I swore I’d only ride a bike, and therefore LIVED for the days when a friend would offer me to ride to the Gorge for a hike. I wish you could witness the one day that a friend lent me their pickup truck so I could go off on my own wild adventure. I felt free driving with the windows down and a grin plastered to my face as I winded down the historic scenic highway. The ability to go to the Gorge was nothing short of liberating.

I want to tell you about the ancient forests that contained hundreds of plants- plants that are actually medicine. I want to tell you about how exciting it was for me to wander the woods for hours and come across Wild Rose, Western Red Cedar, Oregon Grape, Cleavers, Nettles, Chickweed, Elderflower, Doug Fir Tips, Horsetail, Goldenrod, St. John’s Wort, and so many others. I wish I could properly describe how the seasons of each year turned into a cycle of visitation privileges for me, and show you the hilarity of the day that I got a permit from a park ranger to harvest Devil’s Club- a plant covered in thorns. I had my spots for different plants, and they were always there. Like consistent support and friendship.

I want to tell you about a hike at Horsetail Falls that allowed me to talk to the one I was crushing on for 2 hours one morning. I was mostly giddy and partially nervous, but generally happy to be walking through such a beautiful place with my heart beating fast. We discussed some ideas for one of the first herbal products I was making, and I remember marveling at how maybe, just maybe, the forests that drew me out here secretly knew that there would be a lot more for me here than just a place to possibly call home.

Dear 15-year-old-who-I-hope-just-wasn’t-thinking,

I want to tell you about the most difficult time of my life. A friend of mine took her own life right here in Portland, just a few weeks before her 28th birthday. It was December again, in 2014. I want to tell you about the countless times I drove, heartbroken down that beautiful highway, weeping with grief, seeking refuge in those ancient forests. I want to tell you about how in the middle of the Eagle Creek Trail, and down at Punchbowl Falls, I’d cry and let rain fall on my face. I want to tell you how I would feel broken and in the deepest despair, and how I would observe in the most grief-stricken, messy moments, that life went on around me in that sacred, sacred place. 

And I want to tell you about the day on which that first horrible year after her death, finally passed. About how myself and three of my dearest friends drove out to Wahclella Falls in the rain. It was December of 2015 and raining hard, but we knew that a good way to honor our friend, would be to hike the wet beautiful mile in silence, and write words to her while we faced that powerful waterfall. It was a way of bringing some peace to our spirits as we sent some to her's. We burned our words there, though it was challenging to even ignite our drenched letters. Fire sure is healing when it is used in a respectful way.  

And, 15-year-old-who-I-hope-just-wasn’t-thinking,

I’ve actually gone to Wahclella Falls and all the surrounding area many times. It’s where we took my sweetheart’s mother so she could witness the glory of the Pacific Northwest landscape through a relatively easy walk. It’s where I took my mother on her first (and only) trip out here to visit me, a year after I bought my house. By the way, I bought my house in an area that was further out in Portland because of how much I love the Gorge, and figured it was nice to be closer to it.

Anyway, 15-year-old-who-I-hope-just-wasn’t-thinking, I wish I could show you the look on my mother’s face as we turned the bend and saw the falls. I wish I could show you the look on my mother’s face when we stood below Multnomah Falls and the sun glares were too pretty for us to mind that they also ruined our photos. I wish I could show you the look on my mother’s face when we went to the windy, windy Vista House and looked out at the other-worldly magnificent view of the whole area to the east. Those moments mean everything to me, and I’m grateful that they have already happened.

I want to tell you about the joy I’d feel while I drove visiting friends to see the Gorge and all its falls covered in snow- a Narnia-Wonderland combined into something even more magnificent. I want to show you the hundreds of photographs, and replay all gasps and “wow!”’s that I witnessed while sharing the Gorge with them.

I also want you to know that throughout the past 4.5 years of living here, I’ve certainly felt my share of annoyance at the growing number of tourists- particularly at exit 31 off the I-84. I’ve certainly said my share of “ugh”’s at the sight of so many cars parked at the Eagle Creek Trailhead. But right now I’d take all those moments of annoyance back and greet them with gratitude that so many shared the desire of experiencing the beauty of our natural world the way it was.

Because, 15-year-old-who-I-hope-just-wasn’t-thinking,

What will be left for us now?

Dear 15-year-old-who-I-hope-just-wasn’t-thinking,

I wish you had told me about your plan to play with fireworks, because the last time I drove out to the Gorge was this past Friday. I got off of work early, and I was on a mission to visit 'my spot' that's full of Goldenrod at this time of year. As I drove down the historic scenic highway, I noticed how many cars there were, and figured that since it was Labor Day Weekend, I’d just go on a quick jaunt. I came home refreshed from my short visit with just one stem of Goldenrod and one tiny bunch of Elderberries. I’d return to the Gorge for a longer drive on Tuesday when most of the crowds would be home, and back at school.

But instead I spent Tuesday (yesterday) crying, eyes burning from both tears and ash-filled smoky air, obsessively checking the fire updates. 30,000 acres as of right now. I feel like a close friend has died. And I don’t know how to process the magnitude of this loss.

Dear 15-year-old-who-I-hope-just-wasn’t-thinking,

I’m writing this out mostly to process my grief, and not really to further whatever guilt you are already feeling. But also, because as I write, I realize if you had experienced even one of these meaningful memories in those forests and on that landscape, you would have never done what you did. And now you may never get another chance to experience such meaningful moments in the beautiful Columbia River Gorge as it was.

For that, and so much else, I am sorry.

**Addendum on 9/8/2017**
After a few days of processing and accepting the reality of these fires, I want to make it clear that this isn't at all an attack on an individual. It's a reflection on how we as a society have failed to nurture proper respect for the Earth, and how these sort of disasters are direct results from a larger over-consumption, and a larger forgetting. May we come together in a great remembering, and may we do our part to heal our relationship to this precious planet. 

The following images are all photographs I've taken in the Columbia River Gorge between June 2013 and August 2017. Please enjoy them, but if you want to use them, please ask first. 

   

Our friends recently brought over a tray of freshly picked peaches. They said they were the kind of peaches their mom approved of (she grew up on a peach farm)- the kind that peels right off the pit and is juicy, perfect goodness. I had high hopes for these peaches in the creative cuisine way, and they sure delivered. And while some friends suggested things like ceviche and salsa, I needed to use these like yesterday (literally), so this is what I came up with! 

Peach Lassi

This recipe is for 1 lassi:
2 fresh peaches, pitted
8 oz. full fat greek yogurt (you can substitute for milk-free yogurt)
1 tbs. simple syrup or honey
1/4 cup coconut milk

Blend all of the ingredients on high in the vitamix (or any blender), and decant into your favorite tall glass. I garnished mine with extra peaches and a sprig of rosemary which is what ended up inspiring the Rosemary Roasted Peach cocktail later on. 

Grilled Peaches + Grilled Chicken Breast Salad

This recipe is for 2 large servings:
2 medium sized chicken breasts
4 fresh peaches
6 cups arugula 
(for dressing/marinade):
6 tbs. olive oil
1.5 tbs. balsamic vinegar 
2 tsp. dijon mustard
1 tsp. salt
1 shallot, chopped

Heat up the grill. I used the stove top griddle/grill and while this probably takes longer for cooking time, it worked well! Slice the peaches in half, remove the pit. Whisk up the marinade ingredients and coat the peaches and chicken breasts with it. Grill the peaches flat side down until they seem warm too the touch. Remove the peaches, set aside. Next reinforce the marinade on the chicken, and grill the chicken until it's cooked through. Grab your two favorite bowls, fill them with arugula, add the rest of the dressing to each of the bowls. Slice the chicken breasts and peaches, add them to the salad. Enjoy! 

Rosemary Roasted Peach Bourbon Fizz

This recipe is for 2 cocktails:
1 medium sized fresh peach
1 tbs. honey
3 sprigs of rosemary
1 oz. simple syrup
4 oz. bourbon (I used Knob Creek)
Blues Away Bitters
fizzy water
ice
peach slices for garnish

You will also need:
small oven-safe glass tray
cocktail shaker
wooden spoon/muddler
tight-mesh sieve 

Preheat oven to 375. Halve the peach, remove the pit, place in a small oven-safe glass tray. Add half the honey on each peach half, and sprinkle rosemary over both halves. Cover with tin-foil and roast for 30 minutes. Remove, and allow to cool. (I did this before I cooked dinner so it was ready to go by the time we were about to sit down). When cooled, add peaches (and whatever liquid formed in the tray) to the cocktail shaker with the simple syrup, bourbon, and a few leaves of rosemary. Muddle ingredients, then add ice and shake well. Use the tight-mesh sieve to strain the cocktail into two tall glasses. Add ice, top with fizzy water, 1 dropperful of Blues Away Bitters. Garnish with a wedge of peach and sprig of rosemary. Enjoy! 

Peach Cobbler

5 large peaches, pitted
1 cup flour (using GF flour is fine!)
3/4 cup raw cane sugar (you can use even less)
1/2 cup butter
1/4 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 375. Slice peaches and lay them in a square or rectangle shaped baking tray that's somewhere around 9 inches. The peaches will fill most of the tray. Mix all the rest of the ingredients in a separate bowl until the texture feels gritty/crumby. Top the peaches with the crumble, and bake for about 30 minutes or until you see it sizzling, with the top starting to turn brown. I highly, highly recommend serving this fresh out of the oven with vanilla ice cream. 

I've been falling down a rabbit hole lately. Partially because, like most of you, I'm living in a state of constant gall and horror, due to the political climate plaguing our world. And partially because, despite all of it, my creative energy keeps going. I debated whether or not this latest brainstorm of food & drink play, co-ordinating with the total solar eclipse, was too frivolous for such a somber time. But then I considered the following, and realized that now more than ever, if we find glimpses of joy and playfulness, we need to follow it. Living fully with enjoyment is just as much an act of resistance, as attending protests and calling sh*t out:

The sun is commonly used as a metaphor for the masculine, & the moon is commonly used as a metaphor for the feminine. I'm not into tripping about gender roles, but I'm noticing the stark symbolism of the sun getting totally eclipsed by the moon. If I consider all the ills of living in a patriarchal, white-male-dominated society, I celebrate that in celestial terms, there are big shifts at work here. Solar eclipses occur during new moons, and new moons are times for setting intentions, and embracing new cycles. Solar eclipses are known to amplify the new moon's power, making it even more of a special time to be intentional about what we're bringing into our lives. 

Some insight from astrologers: 

“At the solar eclipse, our ego light (Sun) withdraws so that we can see the mystery behind it – the universal Mind." (Cathy Pagano)

"May we shift to a new understanding of power and feel the power of love to transform, heal, unify, and create ripples of change." (Mystic Mamma)

I decided to really go for it, and plan a party with the theme of dark & light, black & white, to illustrate the theme of luminaries in motion.

May we all shine our light. It's the only way to transform darkness. 

ECLIPSE RICE BALLS

Black:

2 Cups Forbidden Rice
3 Cups Vegetable Broth
Goat Cheese 
Bowl & plastic wrap for molding 
Queen Anne's Lace Flowers & White Sesame Seeds for Garnish

Bring rice & vegetable broth to a boil over a high heat. Cover, and simmer on low for 30 minutes. Allow to cool off until it's comfortable to touch. Spread a piece of plastic wrap over a small bowl. Pat down about 1/4-1/2 cup of cooked rice down in the covered bowl. Add a quarter-sized ball of goat cheese to the center of the rice. Gather all edges of plastic wrap to form the rice into a ball around the goat cheese. Squeeze it all in tightly so that the rice sticks nicely together. Form as many rice balls as you wish, and lay them out on a tray. Garnish with edible white flowers and/or white sesame seeds.

White:

2 Cups Sushi Rice
3 Cups Water
Small bowl & plastic wrap for molding
1-2 Nori Sheets
Black Salt (Mix some Food Grade Activated Charcoal w/ Flake Salt)

Rinse rice in a colander until the water runs clear. Bring rice and water to a boil over a high heat. Cover and simmer on low for 20 minutes or until all the water is absorbed. Allow to cool off until it's comfortable to touch. Spread a piece of plastic wrap over a small bowl. Pat down about 1/4-1/2 cup of cooked rice down in the covered bowl. Gather all edges of plastic wrap to form the rice into a ball. Squeeze it all in tightly so that the rice sticks nicely together. Form as many rice balls as you wish, and lay them out on a tray. Garnish with thin strips of nori wrapped around the top of the balls, and a dusting of black salt. 

 

CELESTIAL SWIRL YOGURT POPS

2-3 Cups Full Fat Greek Yogurt
1/2 Cup Simple Syrup (if you want it sweetened)
2 Tablespoons of Food Grade Activated Charcoal
Ice Pop Molds 

Mix the yogurt with the simple syrup. In one bowl, mix 1 tbs. of charcoal with 1 cup of yogurt. This will be your fully black yogurt base. Play around with mixing some dark with the white in each popsicle mold. For mostly white with just a little black, add yogurt to a mold, and lightly dust with some charcoal. Then use a spoon to spiral it downward. It's fun to do all different variations!

LUNARIA ICE BLOCKS

2 Cups Water
2 Tbs. Food Grade Activated Charcoal
Mason Jar w/ Lid
Handful of White Sugar Snap Pea Flowers 
Handful of Dried Lunaria
Silicone Ice Block Molds (I use these) 

Mix the water and charcoal together in a jar. Cover tightly and shake well. Pour the mixture into a measuring cup or a spouted vessel. Carefully fill each mold with the dark water, and top with flowers. Freeze overnight. 

TWILIGHT MARGARITA

3 oz. Tequila Blanco
2 oz. Fresh Lime Juice
1 oz. Simple Syrup
1 tsp. Orange Liquor/Triple Sec
1/2 tbs. Food Grade Activated Charcoal
Black Salt & Blackberries for Garnish 

Mix tequila, lime, simple syrup, orange liquor, charcoal together in a shaker with ice. Shake well. Strain into a salted glass over a Lunaria Ice Block. Garnish with blackberries! Cheers! 

Other black drink recipe ideas:
Make fresh lemonade, and mix with food grade activated charcoal (1 tbs. per 8 oz. of lemonade). Also, try a black mimosa! We will have these on eclipse morning, but didn't photograph them just yet. 

GALAXY POPCORN 

1 Cup Popcorn Kernels 
3 Tbs. Coconut Oil
1 Tsp. Food Grade Activated Charcoal
Black Salt* to taste 

Heat coconut oil and 2 popcorn kernels in a pot with a lid. When all 3 kernels have popped, add the rest of the kernels. When the popping stops, remove from stove and allow to cool for a few minutes before adding salt and charcoal. 

 BLACK BEAN HUMMUS DIP

1 Can Garbanzo Beans, drained
1 Can Black Beans, drained
2 Tbs. Olive Oil 
3 Cloves Garlic
3 Tbs. Tahini Paste
Juice of 1 Lemon
1 Cup Water
Cayenne Pepper to Taste
2 Tsp. Cumin 
2 Tsp. Salt
1 Tsp. Black Pepper
1 Tbs. Food Grade Activated Charcoal
Queen Anne's Lace Flowers
Cauliflower to dip

Mix everything together in the Vitamix. Pulse until it's all blended well. Serve in a bowl garnished with Queen Anne's Lace Flowers, with Cauliflower to dip for nice contrast!

 

MIDNIGHT SORBET

32 oz. Fresh Lemonade
1 Cup Fresh Lime Juice
1/4 Cup Simple Syrup
2 Tbs. Food Grade Activated Charcoal
White Sugar Snap Peas, Lunaria for Garnish 

Mix all together and add to pre-frozen ice cream maker bowl. Use your ice cream maker according to its instructions, until the sorbet is ready. Garnish with edible white flowers, serve immediately, and enjoy!

Special thanks to Kale Chesney for taking all of these beautiful photographs! 
Thanks to Beam & Anchor for carrying these perfect Felt & Fat plate wear that works so well for this color theme! 

It's no secret to anyone following me on Instagram, that I'm a lover of flowers. But of all flowers, Rose is queen! I'm grateful to live in Portland- the Rose City. And I'm even more grateful to live in a house that bursts with the most fragrant antique roses I've ever seen. Roses have a lot of medicinal uses- both energetically and for the skin. So, many of my products are made with Rose. From cradle to grave, Rose brings hope, trust, self-love, self acceptance, and is downright stress-relieving and magical. I'm sure anyone knows this intuitively when catching a whiff of a fresh rose bloom. Last summer I experimented with using roses in my kitchen, and this year since I have a blog, I'm sharing some of the recipes that I've enjoyed, with you. 

Rose Water 

Can be used as a base for Rose Lemonade, cocktails, or even the base for a smoothie! 

• 5-7 Fresh Fragrant Roses (best harvested in the early morning and processed right away)
• Distilled Water 
• Big Pot

This is pretty simple and basic. Just remove all the fresh petals, add them to the pot, and then cover the petals with distilled water. Cover the pot, and heat over a medium heat until it simmers lightly (don't bring to a full boil, and let it simmer lightly on low for 30 min. Cool, strain water into a jar. 

Rose Cashew Ice Cream

I enjoyed this- it's pretty rich, but definitely yummy and floral. It's nice to know that a dairy free ice cream can turn out so well. 

• 1.5 cups Raw Cashews
• 3 cups Water
• 1 cup Organic Cane Sugar
• 3 tablespoons of Rose Water (recipe above)
• Petals of 2 large fragrant roses, and some extra for garnish

First make the cashew mylk by soaking the cashews for 4-8 hours. Strain out the cashews and them to your high speed blender with 3 cups of water, blend on high for a couple of minutes. Strain the mylk in a nut mylk bag, and massage all the mylk/cream into a jar. You'll notice that the cashew mylk is more creamy than other nut mylks, but squeeze as much of it out as you can. I think this is why the ice cream comes out as good as it does! 

Now add the cashew mylk/cream back to the blender along with the sugar, rose water, and rose petals, blend it all together, and move the concoction to a small pot. Heat over a medium flame, stirring the whole time until you notice it thickening and heated. Again, don't boil! Remove the pot, let the mixture cool, cover, and chill in the refrigerator for a few hours to a day. When thoroughly chilled, process in your ice cream maker! Scoop and serve right away. Garnish with some fresh rose petals if you'd like, and enjoy!

Leftovers can be added to your morning smoothie. I really liked layering blended Rose Cashew Mylk Ice Cream on top of a coffee/cacao/maca/ashwagandha smoothie. 

Rose Petal Sorbet

This is my favorite recipe so far!

• 5 large fragrant Roses
• 1 cup of Simple Syrup
• 1/2 cup of Rosé (I haven't tried it, but I bet it would be fine with Rose Water instead)
• Juice of 1 Lemon
• 1 Egg White

You can make simple syrup by heating 1 cup of sugar with 1 cup of water until all sugar is dissolved. Cool this syrup before use. Gather the petals from the roses, add to blender along with the rosé and lemon juice.

Blend on high till petals are blended up, strain into a jar with the cooled simple syrup. Shake together and chill in the refrigerator for an hour or more. Now's the fun part! Beat the egg white until it's "stiff." It took quite a lot of whisking to get the egg white to that point, but it was kinda cool.

  

Fold the stiff egg white into the chilled mixture. Add the mixture to the ice cream maker! If you don't have an ice cream maker you can use a shallow container that goes in the freezer, and just turn the frozen sides in a few times during the freezing process. (I've only done it with an ice cream maker, and it turned out a perfect consistency!). 

Douglas Fir is one of the most ubiquitous trees in our region here in the Pacific Northwest. They're everywhere, tall and stately, decorating our landscape with sheltering, aromatic, silhouettes. Traditionally, the Doug Fir tree was used in communities of Cascadia for many things including building structures & canoes, using the pitch as skin medicine, and even drinking tonics made from the leaves and bark for colds, coughs, and kidney/bladder ailments. But the way I came to learn about Doug Fir was via its bright green spring tips. I was taught that these tips were like nature's gatorade, and if you're ever lost in the woods, you can chew on these tips for for hydration and energy. They quench thirst and hunger, and have a pleasant lemony-piney sweet flavor. You can make Sun Tea with the tips to make a truly delicious, hydrating treat. 

This year, I decided to play with Doug Fir more than I have in the past, and see what kind of treats I could come up with! I made Doug Fir infused vodka to use in cocktails, a Doug Fir simple syrup that I turned into sorbet, and am drying lots of tips to save for tea! 

  

Harvesting Doug Fir Tips: while there is a bounty of tips to be found in this region, always make sure you don't take too many from one tree, because these tips are the tree's spring growth, so when we forage the tips, we're pruning the tree! So take your time gathering from a bunch of different trees so as no to leave one too bare. 

Infusions

Anywhere from 1 cup to 3 handfuls of tips work well for each 750 ml. of water or vodka. Some people like to blend up the tips so that there's more surface area, but I have found them just fine without. If you're making Sun Tea, add the tips and water to a clean jar and let it do its thing in the sun for a couple of days. If you're infusing vodka, do the same thing, but keep it in a darker cooler place for a few days (I usually do somewhere between 2-4 days). After the infusion time, simply strain out the solid plant material and enjoy it on its own or mixed in drinks. 

Basic Lemonade (to use in Doug Fir Cocktails!): 

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup water
• 1 cup fresh lemon juice
• 3 cups of water to dilute

Method: on the stove top let the sugar and water come to a boil, once the sugar has dissolved, allow this syrup to cool completely. Once cooled, mix the lemon juice, 3/4 cup-1 cup syrup, and 3 cups of water. Stir/shake well. Serve over ice with a slice of lemon, or use the lemonade to make a Doug Fir Cocktail! Or honestly, if you want to take a shortcut, you can totally replace the 3 cups of water with pre-made Doug Fir Sun Tea or Doug Fir Vodka, and not even make the cocktail that I list below. I'm sure Doug Fir Basic Lemonade on its own is great, too!

Doug Fir Cocktail/Mocktail

• 1.5 oz. Doug Fir infused Vodka (or Doug Fir Sun Tea)
• 3 oz. of the basic lemonade as outlined above
• 1 dropper of Roots & Crowns Forest Bitters
• pretty ice cubes and/or Doug Fir tips for garnish

Make this in your shaker with any old ice, pour over pretty ice cubes in your favorite glass, and garnish with either a slice of lemon or a Doug Fir tip! ENJOY! This is seriously such a refreshing treat for warm afternoons. 

Doug Fir Sorbet

• 3 cups fresh Doug Fir tips
• 3 cups water
• 1 cup sugar or honey
• 3 tsp. fresh lime juice
• garnishes like chocolate, flowers, or more tips

Bring the tips, water, & sweetener to a light boil. Turn off the flame, cover, and let steep for about half an hour. Remove solids, add the lime juice, mix well, and pour into your ice cream maker! Sorbets take a little longer to solidify in the machine than ice creams do, but my goodness what a simple process. I'm glad I splurged on an ice cream maker in time for sorbet/ice cream season! I got this one. (Yes, in millennial pink! :)) You can use the sorbet kinda soft right out of the machine or let it harden in the freezer. This recipe makes a good quart+ so you can keep some for later on! I also loved adding a scoop of Doug Fir Sorbet to my champagne. It looks beautiful and tastes divine! 

I hope you enjoyed this post and share it will anyone who would have fun with it, too! Tag @rootsandcrownspdx on any photos you post of your creations that were inspired by this! 

Special thanks to herbalist Elise Krohn for first turning me onto these conifer tips, and for inspiring some of these recipes! 

 

It seems to be a spring thing that we begin doing a lot more events for local businesses. We love that! It's nice to feel the inspiration from what is blooming as we come up with drink ideas, and it's nice to feel the common sense of emerging to socialize within the community. 

Here are two drinks we recently did: one for the new brilliant barbershop, Morehouse Barbershop, and one for Solabee's one year anniversary in their stunning new space. Noteworthy also, is the fact that these are also businesses with whom we've become good friends with. Kale Chesney is now with Morehouse Barbershop, but has been our dear friend for a long time and also is the genius behind all of Roots & Crowns's branding. And Solabee is a group of beautiful women who have embraced Roots & Crowns in community, and is constantly an inspiration for jungle goals in home and heart! 

The Morehouse Buzz

1.5 oz. Dogwood Distilling Gin
.5 oz. Rosemary Simple Syrup
.25 oz. Lemon 
1 dropperful Roots & Crowns Blues Away Bitters

Purple Rain

1.5 oz. Dogwood Distilling Vodka
.5 oz. Violet Simple Syrup**
1/2 dropperful Roots & Crowns Detox Bitters
.5 oz. Lemon
1 dropperful Roots & Crowns Violet Essence 
top with 2 oz. fizzy water 

 

**The Violet Bundle has been totally sold out! So if you're trying to make your own Violet Syrup for this recipe, check out my blog post on Violets!