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Life is short, Break the rules, Forgive quickly, Kiss slowly, Love truly, Laugh uncontrollably, And never regret anything that made you smile.

Pickled Daikon Radish

We grew these just to see what they would be like - and were surprised.  They took a long time to come up but then took off. 

There are so many recipes for pickled daikon.  This is just one variation.

1 cup rice vinegar

1 cup water

1 cup sugar or to your preference

1/4 teaspoon tumeric - for color

1 pound daikon radish, sliced thinly or julienned

1/4 cup kosher salt

In a small sauce pan over medium heat, add vinegar, water, sugar and tumeric,  Bring to boil until sugar is dissolved.  Remove from heat and cool.

Thinly slice daikon into rounds or if it is large, half-rounds or strips.  You can use food processor.  Place in colander and sprinkle salt and mix.  Put colander over bowl or sink and let sit for about 1 hour, Rinse off all salt and dry daikon.  Put daikon into clean sterilized jar or container and pour cooled liquid over daikon.  It's best to let it sit overnight to develop flavors if you can wait that long.

Variations - instead of tumeric, add pickled plums or ume to turn slices pink, or grated ginger for flavoring.  Great on a relish tray or in sandwiches. 

Detox Remedy

My friend Darlene (or fondly called Big D) sent me this.

Many of you who have been involved in holistic health may very well already know this recipe as it has been around since Dr. Henry Bieler developed it. He was the author of Food is Your Best Medicine and he was quite controversial in his day, but his ideas agree with the principles of Ancient Chinese Medicine where food was and still is the first and best medicine. I learned this recipe from Eileen Poole, an amazing nutritionist in LA and it has saved me on more than one occasion. It is a wonderful detoxifying concoction composed of 5 simple ingredients: zucchini, celery, green beans, parsley and water. The amounts can vary and it can be made thicker or thinner. It increases alkalinity in the body, restores optimal liver function and balances the adrenal glands. It's also full of potassium and cell salts and helps the pancreas excrete excess sugar. What's not to like about it? It can be used after overindulgence in food or alcohol or when you are feeling run down. I swear by it and so do many of my friends. I forget to make it as often as I need to have it.

Once you start drinking it on a regular basis, you will start to notice how much better your skin looks and how much more energy you have. I hope you make this part of your regular diet. Your body will thank you!

Bieler's Healing Broth

2 - 3 zucchini, ends removed and cut into chunks

3 - 4 stalks of celery, ends removed and cut into chunks

2 handfuls of parsley leaves

2 handfuls of green beans, ends removed and cut into smaller pieces

4 or more cups water

Put the water in a soup pot and add all the vegetables. Water should cover the vegetables (if you push them down by at least one inch). Bring to a boil and cook for 10 minutes or until all the vegetables are soft. Puree with a stick blender or if using a food processor or a blender, put in 1/2 of the vegetables with about a cup of liquid and puree until slightly chunky. Serve immediately and refrigerate the remainder. Reheat to serve.

Five Element Analysis

Both celery and green beans belong to the Wood Element so that element is represented. Zucchini belong to the Earth Element and parsley contributes the Metal Element. The fact that this is a soup brings in the Water Element so only the Fire Element is missing and having some tea some time in the day is enough to create balance.

Turkey, Tofu, Summer Squash Patties - So Many Squash, So Little Time

                                                  Turkey, Tofu, Zucchini Patties

Here's another summer squash recipe

1 1/4 lb. 93% lean ground turkey
2 medium summer squash grated- I used italian zucchinni
1 egg
1/2  cup oat bran
1 onion, diced
1 slice whole wheat bread, crumbled
1 tsp. salt & pepper or to taste
1 tbsp. hot sauce or pepper flakes
1/2 block silken tofu, drained

Mix all ingredients together and form into patties. Mixture a bit messy  Add 1 tbsp. oil to frying pan and fry patties till brown on both sides- approx. 15-20 minutes.

Great for sandwiches, with brown rice,

I'm sure everyone has a recipe like this.  You could use carrots instead of squash, add diced green peppers, mushrooms, etc.  Seasonings like basil, cumin, garlic are great too with this recipe.  It's sort of everything and the kitchen sink type of recipe.

Tofu and Zucchinni Thai Curry

                                                                Green Zucchinni

We went to Basil and Lime on Saturday night with some good friends.  There was a curry with zucchini and tofu on their menu so we ordered it.  It was delicious!   So today,
since we had a few left over squash from the Farmers Market, I decided to make a similar dish.   I got the basic recipe from Allrecipes.com and tweaked it.  Here's my version.

1 tbsp. canola oil
1 12 ounce package extra firm tofu, drained and cubed
1 tbsp. seasoned salt
1 small onion, sliced
2 zucchinni, cut in half lengthwise and sliced  1/2" thick(I removed some of skin with peeler)
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 10 oz. can coconut milk
1 1/2 tsp. green curry paste
2 tbsp. fish sauce
2 stalks lemongrass, white part only, chopped fine
1/4 cup chopped cilantro

Heat oil in large skillet over medium high heat.  Add tofu cubes, sprinkle with seasoned salt and fry till golden on all sides, stirring occassionaly - approx. 15 minutes.  Remove and drain on paper towels.

Add zucchini, onions and minced garlic to same pan and saute until tender.  Add coconut milk, curry paste, lemongrass, cilantro and fish sauce.  Return tofu to pan. Simmer over low heat for 15 minutes.

Serve with white, brown, or jasmine rice.

Variations:  Add mushrooms, carrots, green peppers, water chestnuts, chicken, shrimp.
Adjust seasonings to your taste.  You can also add fresh basil.

Makes approx. 6 servings.