Good Riddance Eunice, Four Candles, Food is Medicine & A-peeling Veg

Taken from Lynne’s weekly column ‘Green Scene’ for the Western Mail
26^th February 2022

Good Riddance Eunice

I hope this weekend is less problematic than last weekend. I was so glad to see the back of Eunice – nothing ‘nice’ about her! I have been lucky through the last few storms (even when my brother had his chimney pot blown off his roof) but Eunice levelled the scores this time.  I had various bits of damage, including the roof being blown off the greenhouse, a wall down, a crushed oil pipe (so no boiler), electricity off for 15 hours and a dead chicken.  I’ve definitely had better weekends.

Thankfully my lifestyle means I had a Jetboil to cook on, numerous head torches to choose from, a good book to read (with head torch), great company (Yogi), a woodburner, copious amounts of candles and a battery radio (and, thankfully, batteries). It turns out I was better organised than I could have dared hope and Friday evening ‘sans power’ was more of an adventure than a disaster.

Huge thank you to the fabulous Brian Griffiths for fixing the oil pipe (and therefore restoring the boiler) so quickly, and to all the brilliant people who were out working during the night(s) to restore power and open roads.  A reminder that not all heroes wear capes and also that there are two types of people – those that grizzle when the electricity goes off and those who think about the people who are out there fixing it.

Four Candles

Interestingly all the candles I lit (more than four but the Two Ronnie Sketch is a favourite of mine) were scented ones and after a while I had a real headache.  ‘Interesting’ because the book I am reading at the moment (with and without head torch) is called Forever Dog and is all about improving life for, and the life span of, our four-legged friends.  One of the things pointed out by the vet authors is that as dogs have such a far greater sense of smell than us, scented candles, air-fresheners, room diffusers and even strong perfumes can be really stressful for them.

Similarly, bright lights – or being kept in during the day with the blinds drawn – loud music, eating late, stress in the home, hurried walks, plastic toys and food bowls, grass-care products, Rawhide chews and a number of other things are also really stressful or dangerous for your pet.  Yogi doesn’t have Rawhide chews as she insisted on swallowing the last chunk which was always too big too be swallowed – but it turns out that many Rawhide chews contain formaldehyde.  Many plastic food bowls and toys ‘shed’ plastic particles and grass-care products end up on doggy’s paws – even from the Park or agricultural land.

I have always prided myself on being very mindful of Yogi’s health and wellbeing – often more so than my own – but I was shocked to read and realise some of the lesser obvious ways in which she has been exposed to things that put her health at risk, or simply limit her enjoyment.

Food is Medicine

The nutrition side of the book is also a revelation.  As I wrote in last weekends column, I try to make Yogi’s treats and biscuits as often as I can, and she and her predecessor always had extra veggies added to their tea and raw carrots and broccoli as ‘treats’ but I had no idea of the nutritional value of blueberries, strawberries, parsnip, mushrooms and even avocado.  Similarly herbal and black tea is beneficial as is a good bone or mushroom broth.  Apparently most shop-bought treats are about the worst thing to give your dog and a piece of fruit or veg is so much better for them.

It’s all tying in so well with what I am learning at college about our own nutrition.  Food can be the safest and most powerful form of medicine or the slowest form of poison.  Our bodies are the only things that ‘self-repair’ and as such we can literally get away with murder – slowly murdering ourselves, our family or our beloved pets. Harsh but true.

The value of good nutrition is all the more reason to try and grow a bit of your own veg at home if you can.  Even if it is just in pots – and just for your four-legged friend! And if you can’t face that, for whatever reason, then please find a good farm shop or supply of organic, fresh veg.  It is possibly the single best thing you can do for your and your family’s health – and share that food with your four-legged friend.

Just for the record: Dogs should never be fed chocolate or cocoa products, grapes, raisins or anything from the onion family.  And ‘Forever Dog’ is by Karen Shaw Becker and Rodney Habib.

A-peeling Veg

I am also following more and more recipes that use all parts of the veg.  Like most, I was brought up peeling every thing but the outer leaves, leaf tops, peel, seeds and other parts of the vegetable that are usually discarded that provides the most goodness.

If a recipe calls for you to peel the potatoes, you don’t always have to and you’ll be eating more minerals and nutrients. If you decide that you must peel root veg, you can always turn the skins or peelings into chips. Just wash them thoroughly, lay them out on an oven tray, add some olive oil, rosemary and sprinkle with salt and bake in the oven until golden and crispy. You can also swap rosemary for paprika if you want your chips spicy not herby.

You can chop up the outer leaves and stalks of cauliflower and cook as ‘greens’, roast and include the skin of butternut squash in curries and soups (and roast the seeds).

The leafy tops of carrots are great for green smoothies, pesto, salads, stir-fries, sauteed with garlic and chilli, or added to soups.  Fennel fronds and celery leaves can be used in the same way.

Broccoli stalks are often discarded as tough but if you slice them finely they can be added to raw salads, stir-fries, green smoothies, soup or coleslaw.

Radish leaves and turnip greens can used in stews, pies, soups and curries and beetroot stalks and leaves are edible, raw or cooked. They make a great substitute for spinach, swiss chard or kale. The ends of courgettes are usually chopped off and thrown away but are just as edible as the rest of the courgette.

Watermelon rind can be used in an Indian watermelon rind curry, (it’s delicious), Chinese pickle or soup and even as candied watermelon rinds.  Kerala style ‘banana peel Thoran’ is a delicious stir fried dish made with banana peels, spices and coconut.  Or try banana peel bacon.  All these recipes – and more – are on the Internet.

Whilst my Nan and Mum peeled most of our veg, they did keep the peelings to boil up as a delicious stock for stews and soups – even the onion skins would be added.  Onion skins boiled up on their own make a great health drink to help ease sore throats and wheezy chests.

And remember that your dog will benefit from a lot of the peelings (not onions), stalks and homemade stock too.