One of the *new* seasonal kitchen Buddy offers to supply for our clients is a half day herbal wellness workshop in learning about edible weed identification and benefits in your local area. This exciting new service is specifically aimed at educating and inspiring clients to learn how to recognise seasonal edible herbs in the wild at home in the garden and transform into a refreshing menu, using a simple step by step, natural recipe formula.
I showed our Local beekeeper Steven Turner a Tour around the garden and area, with a tray, explaining how each plant grows in a unique way. We observed lots of bees attracted to the fuchsia bush and gathered a selection of fresh leaves, flowers, petals, fruit and berries. We took them into the kitchen and after rinsing them well in water, puréed them into a delicious paste with added put lentil sprouts.
Steven spiralised half a courgette or was it a marrow, mixed them together and decorated it with colourful flower petals and buds. For drinks we made a Fresh mint tea (and shared a cool Kombucha). The menu was completed by Turkish olives, artichoke hearts and an organic calzone.
Today our collection of over 10 seasonal plants for our menu includes: forget-me-not leaf, nasturtium, rose, self heal, Melissa, mint, chickweed, basil, thyme, tomatoes, blackberries, victoria plums and a fuchsia berry!
Enjoy the taste and flavours of Summer with a herbal wild food foraging masterclass by Theresa and Efat: book your 3 hr session now.
Leading the way in positive support for metal health awareness is the Third Thursday Time experience coordinated by a local team of wonderfully skilled and empathetic volunteer staff. The social group takes place monthly (on the third Thursday) at Hartley Hall, part of the Holy Cross church and school and is Funded in part by the Catholic Church to provide a fun place for locals to attend and socialise on a monthly basis.
Third Thursday Time
Activities include local gardening opportunities, health and nutrition support, games, nearly-new clothes and gifts section, art & design, sewing & crafts, dancing, Zumba, yoga, positive mood cafe with wholefood snacks and treats, massage, meditation, singing and information of other local events. It provides a much needed break from the normal social scene and offers a chance to wind down, relax and meet new faces in a fun environment yet offers a peaceful place for reflection. I enjoy the socialising element, with an opportunity to take part in inter-generational activities and to share skills. Members of all ages from all walks of life and especially caring for pensioners and those with special mental or physical needs. It’s a nice space to enjoy.
Offers a positive approach to wellbeing. Minus alcohol, vaping/smoking, excessive sugary snacks – it aims to improve our connection and to create a dialogue to promote inclusion and thus prevent loneliness.
The group is Organised by Lesley Allen, Dementia Champion of the local Diamond Club (seniors multi generational events) and is open to anyone. 5.30-8.30p.m. Hartley Hall, Culverley road, Catford London SE6 2LD.
Also taking part in the Festival of Creative Ageing for seniors.
On the 16th August 2018, Theresa Webb hosted a Food and Mood Session where we learnt about healthy eating and even prepared a healthy meal together! Follow the link below for Theresa’s recipes.
Recently it was reported in the news that many women were distressed about the lack of menopause drugs; Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT). However there are other, more sustainable choices.
The HRT hormones in the Premarin brand medication are derived from a pregnant mare’s urine. Up and down the land, women have been told to take hormones from a female horse, orally without much distain.
Fortunately choosing a more natural alternative is viable; a link exists between the our diet and our hormones, specifically the fresher the diet of a menopausal women, the healthier her hormones.
The Change is a part of who we are, accepting the developments and embracing a new inner power is key to experiencing more glory than gory symptoms.
Most menopausal Chinese women don’t experience the symptoms of sweats, flushing or tiredness, so a term doesn’t exist In China, as their consumption of processed meat and dairy is lower and they have a high soya consumption than in western societies. (The oestrogenic affect in soya has prevented the common symptoms.) Similar food method may also be beneficial in the west.
A combination of Raw, living foods specifically living foods (specifically sprouted/germinated seeds) and Asian, African, Caribbean and European natural Herbal remedies has been heralded as useful and case study proven for women to reduce symptoms of the Menopause. These sprouted seeds contain high levels of antioxidants and are lower in saturated fats. Whole grain plant foods as opposed to processed animal ingredients. A vegetarian and vegan lifestyle not only contributes towards a reduction in symptoms but understanding our bodies requirements from within.
During a nutrition clinic consultation we develop natural solutions towards a dietary practice in harmony with your own lifestyle, to balance your hormones naturally through nutrient intake and understanding your activity. Provide a plan for the future weeks and months ahead.
Kitchen Buddy courses focus on how to harness the benefits of natural HRT alternatives, learn how to grow your own therapy, with us.
Our half day Foraging and natural Food session includes:
Hands on plant based cookery and growing techniques in any space.
Foraging (collecting medicinal plants) including wild weeds with healing properties
Learning the food combination methods, to prepare and share your meal together with us.
Corbett WI medicinal wildflowers for the menopause Tour of Beckenham Place Park. Summer in the city; following joining the local Women’s Institute committee this time last year, I realised that I was unable to commit to the regular monthly meetings and whilst enabling the group to set up, I instead offered to teach a herbs for hormones foraging walkshop in Beckenham place park, this year. The whole area has recently undergone quite a makeover transformation with largely a great transformation of the pleasure gardens with new flowers blooming with only a few teething troubles in the swimming lake area (lifeguards need to be present, surely?!)
At 10.30am, armed with copies of the new National Park City community newspaper and map, our group met up at the delightful mansion house and I gave an introduction to the wild herb safety guidelines, then looked around at the humble plants which grew beneath the sign post by the car park. Here we found dead nettle, garlic mustard and yarrow. We began a slow paced walk around the field side on the main side of the house, finding stinging nettles which we carefully chewed and plantain (plantago major). The plantain was useful as an aid to reduce insect bite irritation.
On the left, walking downhill, were several yew trees with the odd red berry, containing their poisonous pip. Followed by a few majestic lime trees which have recently been in blossom but are now dry and forming seeds. cutting across the grass walking barefoot and we follow the path around to the sweet chestnut trees to find an Elder whose berries are just ripening from green to burgundy. This will be a huge crop waiting to support the respiratory tract with vitamin c rich juice. The white clover spreads widely across the lawns and we didn’t spot any redclover to support oestrogen balance on this day.
Thank you to Lotte for organising this activity and all those taking part on the day.
On the way home, I stopped off to speak to a neighbour whose house I’d noticed on the way into Beckenham, as it has a huge plum tree growing next door. Collecting (& eating) Fresh plums is one of the summer treats I look forward to the most, since discovering and harvesting them with my dad, at a woods we found nearby. The suns energy for the day had passed and I took off my hat. We shook the tree; more plums fell off and I gathered them all up together in my straw hat, carefully picking additional blackberries along the way. soaking them all in water is the best way to remove any unwanted wildlife; I washed them carefully removing any grubs which may have nestled into a plum setting them free into the garden. The plums taste divine; reminding us that the sun’s energy is with us, here in the northern hemisphere, now! Fast becoming one of my favourite fresh fruits; what’s not to love? It enriches us with all the goodness of the summer and sets us up for the winter months ahead with rations of vitamins C &D.
Our annual Further Green Road street party was held yesterday afternoon; for 50 residents, with music and laughter filling the air and our stall encouraging all ages ways to be creative with nature. My space involved Making rowan berry bead jewellery and sewing them together, with the expert help of the children; both boys and girls. Helping one another, each child delightfully took the needle, (though we threaded it many times!)and skillfully sewed the berries from tip to bottom through the core, onto the pieces of thread. After counting to 20 ‘beads’ the bracelets were ready and placing the garland around each child’s wrist tied it up at the end. Due to their nature, These ‘beads’ only remain fresh and colourful for a few days after picking until they dry when they can be planted into the garden, to grow their own tree!
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