Mustard Magic

Yellow is the color of fall and means it is time to celebrate the ultimate fall yellow - mustard. Mustard is an herb of long standing. It was used as an example in the bible, "your faith be even the size of a mustard seed…."

Mustard has medical properties, it stimulates appetite and digestion as well as blood circulation. In traditional medicine, a mustard poultice (or mustard plaster) was placed on the chest to ease lung congestion and as a rub on cold hands.

In Northern Europe mothers used to sew mustard into the hem of a wedding dress as it would:

Enflame a groom’s passion
Ensure a bride’s fertility
Secure a bride’s authority in her new home

In India mustard seed is sprinkled on the door step to repel evil spirits. I guess spirits have OCD, as it is said the spirits must pause to pick up every seed.

In Denmark mustard was sown around barns to keep fairies and spirits away from the animals. With all this mustard seed around, I can see why people started to make it into something to eat!

Mustard is one of those condiments we tend to use not only on a hotdog, but also to craft sauces, dressings and many other dishes. Did you know it was easy to make your own mustard?

Simple Homemade Mustard
1 cup whole mustard seed
1 cup water
½ cup vinegar

Combine and soak overnight then blend with stick blender, thinning to your desired consistency with extra water or vinegar.

Add some herbs and you can make this simple version into something that will make you an instant gourmet. Later this month (September 28) I am teaching a cooking class on making mustard, along with ketchup and mayo. Participants will actually go home with 2 jars of amazing condiments and the skill to make more. If you are interested in this class, check out this link to DIY Condiments at District 128 Community Education.

Find more Recipes for Mustard on the Blog

New Products

This fall I participated in an "Herb Swap" with 20 other herbie people through The Essential Herbal magazine Yahoo group. For the swap I experimented with sauce mixes. I crafted a Marinara Sauce blend you can just add to canned tomato sauce and a Sloppy Joe Mix that you can use to make traditional Sloppy Joes and a Vegetarian Sloppy Joe using tofu. Both were so good in sample testing that we decided to make them available to the rest of the year on our websites. If they sell well (and I think they will) we will keep them around.

For the Out Of The Box Samplers in October I have produced a sample size of a Dry Doggy Shampoo we have been making on request for a few years. As a result of sharing it in a Sample, we will make a full size version available on the websites as well. It will come in an 16 ounce container like our Dish Detergent and Natural Laundry Soap.

Order Yours Today »

What's Happening This Fall?

SHOWS
Artisans and Angels (Saturday November 18, 2017 9:00 am to 3:00 PM)
This is the first craft show for the fall season, but there will be more. See a full list in the next Newsletter when we receive all our confirmations. This show is for local Artists and Craftspeople in and around Elmhurst, so you get hand-crafted items and an intimate group with little duplication. The show benefits Hinsdale's Wellness House and will be held at Redeemer Church Center 345 S Kenilworth Ave. Elmhurst, IL on St. Charles, one block east of York Road.

Lectures and Programs
We will be conducting programs at District 128 in the North Suburbs and Morton Arboretum in the west Suburbs. All programs listed are through District 128 Community Education unless noted. Here is the website to register. Dist 128 CommED (You do not have to be a resident of the district to participate, just search under instructor for my name, Marcy Lautanen-Raleigh, and you will find all my classes.)

9/28 - DIY Herbal Condiments
10/4 - The Incredible Edible Flowers
10/7 - Growing Herbs Indoors (Morton Arboretum, Lisle IL -9 am to 11 am)
10/14 - Play and Make Native American Games (Ages 7 - 12)
10/16 - American Indian Plants and Healing Herbs
10/26 – Speak the Language of Flowers and Herbs
11/7 - Holiday Gifts for Friends and Family

Visit the Events page for all the details »