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RECIPES

RECIPES

igital communication is not new, but during this last year most of us have downloaded new apps, joined new electronic chat rooms and classes, and had digital family gatherings Our language —or our fracturing of language as some might say—reflects this . I ‘Google’ instead of research a topic, I ‘Zoom’ or ‘Face Time’ friends I don’t yet ‘pin’ many ideas, but I do hit the blog trail when I’m looking for a recipe or recommendation for almost anything

My impression of a blog was a way to publish your personal journal on a social media platform . Not being sure that was a fair concept, I looked for more concrete information For the purposes of The Herbarist research, we do not consider Wikipedia as a primary source But a quick internet search brought up Wikipedia’s eighteen-page article with ninety-three citations, nine suggestions for further reading, three external links addressing legal issues with blogs, and twenty ‘See also’ links (Wikipedia, 2021) . All this made a fine introduction to the world

Of The Weblog

A weblog (blog) represents community journalism Entries, or posts, are often diary-like, supporting my early impression . Some explore particular subjects, and some allow fans of a topic (political to sports to artistic expression to hobby) to interact via responses to a post Expressive writing, such as ‘blogging’, may even offer health benefits (Wapner, 2021) .

The first web publishing tools became available to nontechnical users in the late 1990s At the University of Houston, we offered our first “World Wide Web” classes in the mid-1990s; none contained weblog content Now there are a myriad of blogging support services from which to choose .

The Herb Society of America entered the blog trail in 2013 We are a multi-author blog site with content that is edited before posting . Our blog has covered a wide range of herbal subjects and has garnered accolades along the way The company Feedspot periodically gathers a team of twenty-five reviewers and rates niche websites They review the sites on relevancy, frequency of posts (“freshness”), number of followers on social media, domain authority, and other features . In the review released February 3, 2021, The Herb Society of America blog ranked third of ninety sites reviewed relating to herbs—the Feedspot category label is herbal medicine (blog Feedspot, 2021) quite an accomplishment for a website that began in 2013! By the way, Feedspot offers the online convenience of pulling together “your favorite websites” into one location; one email a day allows you to browse several sites without having to download them one at a time

Over time we have posted HSA announcements; provided book reviews and recommendations for gardens to visit; covered herbs and herbal lore related to various holidays or celebrations; included herbal uses in crafting, food, and beverages; reviewed health and wellness topics; and of course, featured plants and gardening tips professional blogger, Paris Wolfe, who helped us establish and grow the HSA blog HSA welcomed Chrissy Moore (Curator of the National Herb Garden and 2020 – 2022 Honorary HSA President) and Erin Holden (former NHG intern, and now NHG Gardener, horticulturist, and blogger) as the site’s blog masters We encourage members to submit blog content also .

The Society uses a service to deliver the posts to the World Wide Web That service also tracks the number of visits (hits) on HSA’s postings Fellow data buffs will commiserate with me when I share that none of my preconceived ideas of growth in hits and most popular topics were correct! I had thought that when I reviewed the data, I would find a consistent, albeit gradual, increase in hits . That is not the case example, the postings garnering more than one thousand hits occur randomly across five different years (2016 – 2020) . At the same time there are blog posts in the same five years that received less than two hundred hits

I didn’t do much better in my prediction of attractive subject matter I would have predicted that posts about herb gardening, specific herbs, or herbal uses would consistently be among the most visited topics . Looking at the top ten blog posts, six do discuss specific herbs, three relate to celebrations (and mentions of witches), and the last is a mix of

Herb of the Month: Mexican Tarragon

Any Mint, but Peppermint

Mullein: Candles for Witches and the Cowboy,s Friend

Looking to 2019 Herb of the YearTM: Anise Hyssop

A Bewitching Reflection of the Season

Herbs for St. Brigid, s Eve

Safflower: A 4,000-Year-old Herb for Man... and for the Birds

Herbs of the Twelfth Night

Elderberry - Scary and Delicious, part 1

Add Lemongrass to Your Garden Plans

Navigating the HSA website to find these herbal blogs is easy Go to the homepage— the page that appears when you fill the search bar with Herb Society of America . Scroll down and at the very bottom you will find the site directory in succinct lists Chose “Learn” and scroll to HSA Blog . One click will transport you to a page showing current posts and simple search boxes for topics or months . You can print the blog postings if you want to keep the information in a hard copy

If you’re still hesitant, or don’t have your preferred electronic device at hand, The Herbarist provides an introduction of HSA blog postings with these reprints to two of the most popular blogs .

BY THE HERB SOCIETY OF AMERICA

Herb of the Month: Mexican Tarragon

By Rickie Wilson, Guest Blogger

If you like black licorice, consider Mexican tarragon Tagetes lucida. Also known as Mexican marigold, Mexican mint marigold, sweet mace, Texas tarragon, Spanish tarragon, sweet-scented marigold, pericon, yerbaniz, and hierbanis, the herb is native to Central America and Mexico. Some say it officially started in Guatemala. It eventually became popular in North America as a substitute for French tarragon.

The plant grows from 18- to 30-inches tall. Leaves are about three inches and oblong in shape. Unlike the blue-green hue of French tarragon, Artemisia dracunculus var. sativa, Mexican tarragon leaves are shiny and medium green. Small, yellow-golden flower heads, about ½-inch wide each, appear toward the end of summer. The flowers must be pollinated by insects as they are hermaphroditic (containing both female and male organs). This is a much hardier plant than French or regular tarragon.

Medicinal use of the herb is popular in Mexican cultures. The entire plant is used to heal colic, stomachaches, and nausea. It is commonly used today as a tea, made from flower petals, to treat diarrhea, gas, and the common cold.

Mexican tarragon is used as a culinary addition to meat and egg dishes. The Aztecs used this herb for medicine, cooking, and rituals. They rubbed it on the chest, as a talisman, to ensure they would be safe while crossing rivers. The plant was burned as incense by the Aztecs and used as decoration for religious ceremonies. Mexican tarragon is still used today in the corners of corn fields right before the harvest. It is also still used to ward off evil spirits!

This herb is linked to the Aztec rain god Tlaloc. It is said that Mexican tarragon was one of the ingredients used to make a medicinal powder. This powder was blown into the face of victims who were about to be sacrificed. It was believed to have a stupefying or anxiety relieving effect.

It is the policy of The Herb Society of America not to advise or recommend herbs for medicinal or health use. This information is intended for educational purposes only and should not be considered as a recommendation or an endorsement of any particular medical or health treatment.

JANUARY 5, 2019

Herbs of The Twelfth Night

By Beth Schreibman-Gehring, Chairman of Education for The Western Reserve Herb Society Unit of The Herb Society of America

“Wassail! Wassail! All over the town, Our toast it is white and our ale it is brown; Our bowl it is made of the white maple tree; With the wassailing bowl, we’ll drink to thee.”

— Traditional English Carol Author Unknown

Tonight is Twelfth Night, and I have a few friends dropping by for a wassail party! If you’ve never had the pleasure. Wassail is a hot, mulled punch often associated with Winter Solstice and Christmas celebrations The serving of it can continue well into Twelfth Night and beyond. I personally love to drink wassail all winter long, because it is so spicy, slightly bittersweet, satisfying, and warming.

The earliest versions of wassail were warmed mead or ale into which roasted clove-studded crab apples were dropped. After they were heated for a bit, the apples burst into the pot, creating a glorious, delicious, and frothy mixture known as ‘fuzzy lamb’s wool.’

In later years, this drink evolved to become mulled cider, ale, and claret whisked with sugar, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg, and then topped with slices of toasted fruitcake to sop up all the liquid.

On Twelfth Night—known to Christians as the Epiphany—wassailing is a time to engage in bit of revelry and celebration before the Christmas tree comes down. Twelfth Night festivities were usually overseen by a designated “Lord of Misrule.” This appointed Lord presided over what was known as the “feast of fools,” traditionally a night of wanton drunkenness, caroling, and wild partying.

Twelfth Night was also a time to “wassail” the orchards. The purpose of wassailing the orchards was to feed, protect, and honor the fruit trees to help ensure a fine autumn harvest. I wassail our trees almost every year because I love the feeling of continuing to partake in this age-old ritual of joy, magic, and survival.

Historically, the ceremonies used for wassailing varied from village to village but were similar in intent. The wassail was carried from house to house in a traditional bowl carved of white maple. In addition to the Lord of Misrule, a Wassail King and Queen led the revelry from one orchard to the next. The villagers formed a circle around the largest apple tree. They lifted the Wassail Queen up into the boughs of the chosen tree to hang pieces of toast or fruitcake soaked in wassail in the branches as a gift to the trees, the robins, and other sprites that frolicked among them.

My recipe for Wassail begins with a base of hard cider, claret, or mead. Then I add brandy or Madeira. I have no real measurements because this is almost always created with personal tastes in mind. I usually add clove-studded apples, lemons, dried cranberries, oranges, sweet butter, and honey instead of sugar. If I’m in the mood, I’ll use some real maple syrup for sweetening in honor of the traditional maple bowl used to serve the wassail in earlier times.

Once I bring this mixture to a slow simmer in a large copper pot, it will be time to add the fragrant spice blend. (Please note that if you like this can be made easily in a crock pot.)

Note, mulling spices are absolutely delicious AND they are thought to be full of compounds that promote healing and immune support. Every herb and spice in my wassail blend serves the dual purpose of being tasty and immuno-supportive. Rosemary is delicious, but it’s also known for its anti- inflammatory qualities. Cinnamon and clove have been historically used for their warming, soothing, and pain-reducing abilities. Cardamom, coriander, allspice, and star anise are traditionally used in herbal blends to support digestion and ease the pain of inflammation. Orange and lemon peel are thought to help loosen excessive mucus in the lungs and possess anti-microbial qualities.

I’ll generally put about a teaspoon of each of these into an organic muslin bag. Then, straight into the pot they go. After simmering for about 30 minutes the wassail will be ready to serve. The natural accompaniments for this beverage are the hard cheeses like cheddar and gruyere, spicy sausages, jam, gingerbread, fruitcake, buttered toast—and, of course, singing and dancing.

One of the delightful things about the wassailing tradition and the accompanying Twelfth Night celebration is that it gives us one last chance to turn on the Christmas lights, light a fire in the copper cauldron, and sing our favorite seasonal carols in the company of our dearest friends and neighbors.

Does the traditional wassail ritual work its magic? I will say that last year I was not able to wassail my trees because I was out of town on Twelfth Night, and guess what? Only a few pithy apples appeared this year from my two old heirloom trees and my young trees lost their fruit too early.

Can you guess where I’ll be this night?

Literature Cited

Feedspot. 2021. Top 90 herbal blogs, websites & influencers in 2021. Accessed February 5, 2021. Available at https://blog.Feedspot.com/herbal_blogs/ Wikipedia. 2021. Blog. Accessed on January 21, 2021. Available from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blog Wapner, Jessica. 2008. “Blogging – it’s good for you.” Accessed January 21, 2021. Available from https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-healthy-type/

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