How To Make Your Own Cough Syrup Avoid Dangerous Over-The-Counter Products

Over-the-counter cold remedies can be dangerous.
So try making your own!

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What's In Your Cough Syrup?
You can tell that it's cold and flu season by the melodious sound of hacking coughs in the supermarket, airplanes, schools, and in the office. A cough can disrupt your sleep and leave you exhausted. 

Most people think that over-the-counter medications are pretty safe and when faced with a never-ending cough, are desperate to try anything. But like many pharmaceutical drugs, the side effects can be more dangerous than the symptoms you are trying to suppress. Especially when you take too much. And when you can't stop coughing, sometimes it's easy to take a bigger slug that what is prescribed.

Many cough syrups contain DMX, or Dextromethorphan. Side effects of taking too much DMX can include:
* Blurred vision
* Confusion
* Drowsiness or dizziness
* nausea or severe vomiting
* difficulty in urination
* shakiness and unsteady walking
* slowed breathing
* unusual excitement, nervousness, restlessness, or severe irritability

In addition, some children do not have the enzyme to metabolize this drug so this becomes an extremely dangerous remedy. Many teens use and abuse cough medicine containing DMX to get high which can be fatal. If you have young children in the house, it's a good idea not to have these types of medicines in the house.

OTC cough medicines may also contain other ingredients such as acetaminophen. Around 80,000 people a year end up in an emergency room for acetaminophen toxicity which can lead to severe liver damage.

Make Your Own
Once again, mother nature comes to the rescue. With a few simple ingredients, you can make your own cough syrup with real health benefits and no dangerous side effects. This syrup has these healthful ingredients:

Onions
Onions are in the allium family. For centuries, they have been used as a medicine. Egyptian physicians recommended the onion for literally thousands of separate ailments.  Rich in the antioxidant quercetin (and other flavonoids), they stimulate the immune system, protect against oxidative stress, and act as a natural decongestant. 

Garlic
Also in the allium family, garlic has been used throughout ancient history for its medicinal properties. Rich in the sulfur compound allicin, it bolsters the immune system and is a potent antibiotic. It has antibacterial, anti fungal, and antiviral properties as well.

My garlic harvest.

Ginger
Although ginger is most notably used for nausea, it is a natural decongestant and antihistamine. It can warms the upper respiratory tract and is useful in treating symptoms of colds and flu.

Honey
Although many vegans avoid the use of honey in daily cuisine, it remains an important medicine due to its strong antimicrobial properties and wound healing abilities. These properties have been documented in the oldest medical literature. With respect to cough suppression, some believe it is as effective as dextromethorphan. It is also used to treat infections of the upper respiratory tract. 

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Here's a simple recipe for the relief of chess congestion and coughing. I make this in very small batches since it is best when fresh. Store in the refrigerator and make a new batch ever two or three days.Take as much as you need to control your cough. No one has ever OD'd on onions and garlic but I wouldn't advise going on a first date. 

Homemade Cough Syrup
[makes ~ 3 to 4 tablespoons]

Allow 8 to 24 hours for extraction. You can use an Instant Pot, yogurt maker, or just a warm spot in your kitchen.

Ingredients
1 organic onion
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated organic garlic
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated organic ginger
1/4 cup raw honey

Directions
Peel the onion and cut in half vertically. Thinly slice the onion in half moons and place in a glass pint jar. 

Combine the garlic and ginger with the honey and pour over the onions. Mix well and push down so the honey is above the onion mixture.

Place the jar in your Instant Pot and hit the YOGURT setting. Cover with a regular lid and let sit until juice forms. If you don't have an Instant pot or yogurt maker, just cover the jar and place it in a warm spot in your kitchen. Either method will take 8 to 12 hours. If it doesn't get juicy enough, let it sit longer. 

Using a fine mesh strainer, strain the mixture into a small jar. Cover and refrigerate until needed. It tastes better than you'd think, even with the garlic and onions! 

I hope this recipe brings you some relief.

P.S. 
I hated to waste the onion mixture, so I rinsed off the honey (not necessary) and tossed it in my Instant Pot with some beans. Pretty yummy.

Zucchini Miso Soup With Mushrooms And KaleLess Than 150 CaloriesMiso - A Good Source Of Microbes

You can add microbe-rich miso to any brothy soup.

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Today is our Anniversary 
Twenty six years ago today my wonderful husband and I went on our first date and 25 years ago today we were married! I am the luckiest woman in the world to find a man who has provided love and kindness to me and the children, gave me endless encouragement in my many ambitious endeavors, and shared my obsession for living a healthy lifestyle. We worked well together as engineers in Silicon Valley and now we work just as well together as organic farmers, bloggers, and wine makers. 

Today is our 25th Wedding Anniversary

So yesterday when I felt like my allergies were getting the best of me and were possibly turning into a cold, it was time to make a pot of soup despite the warm temperature outside. We have big plans for our anniversary dinner and I want to feel my best. 

Goals for this Soup
This soup will hopefully accomplish three important goals.
#1 - Help me feel better for my anniversary.
#2 - Give me a source of more microbes from the fermented, unpasteurized miso.
#3 - Help me use up the zucchini in my garden!

Romanesco zucchini are taking over my yard!

Powerful and Delicious Ingredients
Whenever I feel like a cold is coming on, I rely on garlic, onions, ginger, mushrooms and fermented foods to build up my immune system. This soup has it all. But to get the most out of these ingredients remember two things:
#1 - Let the garlic sit for 10 minutes after mincing it to enhance its health-promoting properties.
#2 - Don't boil the miso or it will kill the live beneficial bacteria. Once it's added to the soup, warm it gently over a low flame.

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Zucchini Miso Soup with Mushrooms and Kale
Vegan, Dairy Free, Gluten Free
[makes 4 first-course servings or 2 meal-size servings]

Ingredients
2 or 3 cloves garlic
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
8 ounces brown clamshell or other mushrooms
1 1/2 pounds small to medium-size zucchini, halved and thinly sliced
4 cups low sodium veggie broth
1 packed cup thinly sliced kale
2 tablespoons (or more) unpasteurized white miso 
Black pepper to taste

For my veggie broth, I like to use a large low sodium vegetable bouillon cube with 4 cups of boiling water. 

Directions
Finely mince the garlic and set aside while you are preparing the remaining ingredients. Let the garlic rest for at least 10 minutes so that it develops its health-promoting properties.

Heat the olive oil in a 5-quart Dutch oven. Cook the onion for 5 minutes on medium-low heat, stirring frequently. Add the garlic and ginger, stirring until fragrant, about one minute. 

Separate the clamshell mushrooms. If you are using shiitake mushrooms, remove their stems and slice. Add the mushrooms to the pot. Cook, stirring frequently, until they release their liquid, about 3 minutes.

Add the zucchini and cook, stirring frequently, until it cooks down a bit and gets a little starchy, about 3 to 5 minutes.

Add the broth and bring to a boil. Lower heat to simmer, cover, and cook until the soup thickens and the zucchini begins to soften. 

Throw in the kale and cook another 5 or so minutes until all the veggies are cooked. I like the zucchini soft in a soup like this but you may prefer them to be a bit firmer.  

Remove a cup of broth from the pot and place in a small bowl. Stir in the miso paste until all the lumps are gone. 

Stir the miso broth mixture back into the pot. Simmer for a few minutes but DO NOT BOIL as excessive heat will kill the beneficial microbes. 

Add freshly ground black pepper to taste and serve immediately.

This soup is less than 150 calories per serving

Nutrition
Per serving (4): 148 calories, 5 g total fat, 1 g saturated fat, 105 mg omega-3 and 661 mg omega-6 fatty acids, 0 mg cholesterol, 8 g protein, 21 carbohydrates, 5 g dietary fiber, and 394 mg sodium. 

Miso And Ginger Glazed Eggplant - Vegan And Gluten Free!

Miso-glazed eggplant makes a wonderful appetizer or side dish

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Miso
When in a Japanese restaurant, I always order miso soup or have something that's been glazed with miso. But to be honest, I haven't cooked a lot with it at home. But this week I've been experimenting quite a bit with miso. Yesterday I failed to recreate a good miso soup but made a pretty good miso-tahini dressing (I'll blog that in the future when I perfect it). Today for lunch I used miso, in combination with grated ginger, to glaze and then broil eggplant, and it came out great! It took less than 30 minutes so it would be a pretty easy appetizer or side dish when entertaining. Although most people sprinkle sesame seeds on this dish, I use raw hemp seeds to get a bit of omega-3 into the recipe.

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Miso-Ginger-Glazed Eggplant     
Vegan, Gluten Free
[makes 4 servings]
Requires large, shallow, roasting pan

Spray organic olive oil
1.5 pounds Japanese eggplant
1/4 cup unpasteurized, organic, mellow white miso
1 packed teaspoon finely grated, peeled, fresh ginger root
2 teaspoons sesame oil 
2 teaspoons gluten-free, low sodium soy sauce
2 teaspoons distilled white vinegar
1 teaspoon organic cane sugar
freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 tablespoon raw hemp seeds
1 scallion, thinly sliced (1 tablespoon)

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Lightly grease roasting pan with olive oil or olive oil spray.

Slice eggplant in half lengthwise and place in the roasting pan. Spray the top of eggplant with olive oil. 

Place eggplant in the oven and roast until they soften, about 15 minutes.

Spray oil is a way of using much less oil on eggplant, a vegetable known for absorbing large amounts of it.
Sesame oil is used for the miso glaze.

While the eggplant is roasting, make the glaze by combining miso, ginger, sesame oil, soy sauce, vinegar, and cane sugar in a small bowl. If it's too thick to spread, add a tablespoon of water. Set aside.

Westbrae white miso is made with cultured organic white rice, organic whole soybeans, water, and sea salt.

Remove the eggplant  from the oven. Spread miso glaze uniformly over the eggplant. Sprinkle with freshly ground black pepper to taste. 

Spread glaze over the eggplant.

Carefully, wearing oven mitts, raise the oven rack to about 5 inches from the broiling element. Place the miso-glazed eggplant under the broiler and broil until brown and bubbly, about 4 to 6 minutes. Watch carefully so it doesn't char.

Remove from the oven, sprinkle the eggplant with hemp seeds and scallions, and serve immediately.

Sprinkle with hemp seeds and scallions.

Per serving: 117 calories, 5 g total fat, 0.6 g saturated fat, 356 mg omega-3 and 2,136 g omega-6 essential fatty acids, 5 g protein, 16 g carbohydrates, 7 g dietary fiber, and 762 mg sodium.

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Thai Cabbage, Daikon And Carrot Salad Topped With Roasted Peanuts - Vegan And Gluten Free

Thai cabbage salad with daikon and carrots.

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Fresh and Crunchy
I love the crunch of the fresh vegetables and roasted peanuts in this salad. They blend so beautifully with the tangy dressing flavored with fresh garlic and ginger, soy sauce, vinegar, and freshly squeezed lime juice. Hemp oil provides the omega-3 rich base for the dressing and crushed red pepper flakes give it a little kick!

For a heartier, main course salad, stir in cooked rice noodles. 

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Thai Cabbage, Daikon and Carrot Salad
Vegan (Mostly Raw), Gluten Free
[makes 8 servings]

For the salad
8 cups thinly sliced raw cabbage (1 small head)
3 large carrots, peeled and grated
2 cups peeled and grated daikon
4 green onions, sliced
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro plus some for garnish
4 ounces thin rice noodles, (optional)
1/2 to 1 cup dry-roasted, salted peanuts, crushed
salt to taste

For the dressing
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
2 tablespoons gluten-free soy sauce
1 packed teaspoon freshly grated ginger
2 cloves pressed garlic
1 packet stevia
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon white vinegar
2 tablespoons cold-pressed hemp oil 
2 teaspoons unrefined sesame oil

Place the cabbage, carrots, daikon, green onions and cilantro in a large bowl. Set aside.


Crush peanuts by placing in a ziplock bag and smashing them with a mallet. Set aside

Crushed peanuts

 Combine all the dressing ingredients in a small bowl or cup. Pour over the cabbage mixture and mix well. Salt to taste but remember that you will be getting additional salt from the peanuts.

I prefer to press rather than mince garlic in this dressing but if you don't have a garlic press, smash and then mince the garlic.

Cook rice noodles (if you are using) according to manufacturers directions. Drain, rinse and stir into cabbage mixture.

Thin rice noodles make a nice addition.

Top the salad with crushed peanuts and additional fresh cilantro and serve. 

Thai salad with optional rice noodles

Orange-Ginger Butternut Squash And Dahl Soup With Black Rice - Featured In Today's High Fiber, Vegan Weight Loss Menu

Black rice adds contrast and antioxidants to this soup.

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Vegan, High Fiber Diet
On Tuesday I introduced our Vegan, High Fiber Diet to help shed some of those holiday pounds. Below is a sample high fiber, weight loss menu featuring a delicious low calorie soup that delivers 8 g of fiber by itself or 11 g of fiber when served with a very interesting black rice that I discovered this week.

Black Rice
I'm usually not an impulse shopper, especially in Costco where they typically sample all kinds of foods that I'd never eat. But this week they were handing out black rice cooked with some cranberries and pine nuts. I was hooked and immediately picked up a 4 pound bag of black rice - probably enough to last me several years!

1/4 cup dry black rice provides:
160 calories
1.5 g total fat, 0 saturated fat
0 mg cholesterol
36 g carbohydrates
5 g protein
3 g dietary fiber
0 mg sodium

 Black rice tastes a bit sweet and is more delicate than brown rice. You can be sure something this rich in color is packed with antioxidant-rich phytochemicals. 

Black rice cooks like brown rice and can be made on the brown rice setting on your rice cooker.

Orange-Ginger Butternut Squash and Dahl Soup with Black Rice
Vegan, Gluten Free
[makes 6 servings]
Requires a blender

1 cup uncooked, black rice (you can use any rice, of course)
2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
2 tablespoons chopped, fresh ginger root
5 cups vegetable broth ( or 5 cups water plus 1 large Rapunzel vegan bouillon cube)
1 orange, zested and juiced (about 2 teaspoons zest and 6 tablespoons juice)
1 bay leaf
3 pound butternut squash, peeled and cubed (about 8 cups)
1 cup red lentil Dahl
1/4 teaspoon salt or to taste
1/4 teaspoon black pepper or to taste

Cook the rice according to manufacturers directions. If you have a rice cooker, prepare it on the brown rice setting.

Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot.  Add the onions and cook until they begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and ginger and cook another 2 minutes.

Add the broth, the zest of 1 orange, the bay leaf, butternut squash and red lentils and bring to a boil on high heat. Reduce the heat, cover and cook on a low boil until the squash and lentils are soft, about 30 minutes.

Add broth, squash and dahl.

Cook until soft, about 30 minutes.

Place the soup in a blender and, in batches, process until smooth. Return soup to the pot.

Blend until smooth.

Stir in the orange juice and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve the soup topped with mini scoops of black (or brown) rice. 

Per serving (without rice): 232 calories, 3 g total fat, 1 g saturated fat, 143 mg omega-3 and 472 mg omega-6 fatty acids, 10 g protein, 45 g carbohydrates, 8 g dietary fiber and 445 mg of sodium. 
 Per serving (with rice): 339 calories, 4 g total fat, 1 g saturated fat, 143 mg omega-3 and 472 mg omega-6 fatty acids*, 15 g protein, 81 g carbohydrates, 11g dietary fiber and 445 mg of sodium.
* essential fatty acids do not include contribution from black rice since that information is not available from the manufacturer.

Today's Vegan, High Fiber, Weight Loss Menu    

Today's menu provides around 1200 calories and 38 grams of fiber. If you are shooting for 1500 calories, you can add a snack in the afternoon of fruit and a handful of walnuts or a container of non-dairy yogurt.

Drink a glass of water upon waking, before each meal and between each meal and aim for 8 glasses a day.

Breakfast
* A hearty bowl of oatmeal with bananas, English walnuts and raisins 
* Green tea or black coffee 

This delicious oatmeal recipe keeps you full all morning!

Lunch
* Hummus sandwich with avocado, roasted red pepper, thinly sliced cucumber and sprouts on whole grain bread

Substitute your favorite veggies if you like such as:
artichoke hearts, kalimata olives, butter lettuce, etc.

Dinner
* Tossed green salad with low fat dressing
* Large bowl of butternut squash and dahl soup with scoops of black rice (see recipe above)

Place mini-scoops of black rice on top of the soup.

Snack
* 3 cups air-popped popcorn

Blackberry Lemon Ginger Muffins - Vegan And Gluten Free

Blackberries blend beautifully with lemon and crystallized ginger.

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Blackberries Everywhere!
If you live anywhere near blackberries, you know that they grow like weeds and around this time of year, they are everywhere! We have some growing all along a trail near our house which we occasionally nibble on but this year Doug discovered blackberries growing through our back fence. How exciting to have these healthful little berries right there for the picking!

Blackberries growing through our backyard fence!

One cup of these little jewels are only 62 calories.

They provide half the RDA of vitamin C and manganese and have 8 grams of fiber!

Blackberries are rich in polyphenols and anthocyanins and are very high on the ORAC scale which measures antioxidant properties.

Gluten Free Baking
After learning a lot about the effects of gluten on the body from Dr. Ritamarie Loscalzo's lecture at the Raw Health Expo, I started to develop more gluten free recipes. Since we love making fresh muffins and other baked goods, I quickly had to find a substitute for wheat flour. It's hard enough to make vegan baked goods without butter or eggs, so I thought this was going to be an even greater challenge. But luckily, I found Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free All Purpose Flour . It works much better when you add Xanthan gum to the recipe. If you don't want to make the muffins gluten free, you can substitute your normal flour in this recipe (I suggest white whole wheat) and eliminate the xanthan gum.

For best results, add xanthan gum to gluten free flour.
For cookies, add 1/4 tsp xanthan gum per cup of GF flour.
For cakes, add 1/2 tsp per cup of GF flour.
For muffins/quick breads, add 3/4 tsp per cup of GF flour.
For breads, add 1 to 1 1/2 tsp per cup of GF flour.
For pizza crust, use 2 tsp per cup of GF flour.

Blackberries, Lemon and Ginger 
I love crystallized ginger. I pop a few pieces in my mouth, from time to time, like they were candy. So I thought they'd match well with the tartness of blackberries. In this recipe, I also add a little lemon zest to bring out the flavors even more.

Penseys is my favorite crystallized ginger.
It's minced into tiny pieces, each delicately coated in sugar.

Blackberry Lemon Ginger Muffins
[Vegan, Gluten Free]
makes 12 muffins
Earth balance for greasing muffin pan
2 cups Bob's Red Mill gluten free all purpose flour *
1 1/2 teaspoons xanthan gum *
2 tablespoons ground flaxseeds
1 tablespoon aluminum free baking powder
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/3 cup organic cane sugar or Sucanat
zest from one lemon
2/3 cup apple sauce
3/4 cup gluten free soy milk
1 teaspoon gluten free vanilla extract
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 cup fresh blackberries
1/4 cup crystallized ginger, minced
* For non-gluten free muffins, substitute either white whole wheat or regular multi-purpose flour for the gluten free flour and eliminate the xanthan gum.


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Generously grease a muffin tin with a vegan buttery spread like Earth Balance and set aside.
In a medium bowl, mix flour, xanthan gum, flaxseeds, baking powder, salt and sugar and stir until combined.
In another bowl, mix lemon zest, apple sauce, soy milk, vanilla extract and olive oil. Blend with a fork, whisk or hand beater until combined.
Add to the flour mixture and stir until well blended.
Gently fold in the blackberries and crystallized ginger until they are uniformly distributed.
Scoop batter into muffin tins with a spoon and bake for 24 minutes at 350 degrees or until a toothpick comes out clean when placing it in the middle of the muffins.
Remove from oven and let cool in pan for 5 minutes.
Take a butter knife and gently go around the edge of each muffin. Remove muffins from pan.
Serve warm or place on rack until cool before storing them.


Per muffin: 163.1 calories, 5.8 g fat, 0.7 g saturated fat, 2.8 g protein, 27.9 g carbohydrates and 3.5 g dietary fiber.

Gently fold blackberries and crystallized ginger into the batter.

Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Serve warm!

Spicy Vegan Quinoa With Asparagus And Shiitake Mushrooms - Low In Calories And Perfect For Weight Loss!

Spicy and delicious but only 250 calories a serving!

The Secret to Good Quinoa
For years I wasn't a big fan of quinoa. Whenever I tried to make it, it came out bitter and I disliked the consistency. I finally found out that to make good quinoa, it must first be soaked and then rinsed really, really well. Evidently there is an outer coating of saponin which gives it the bitter taste. Once I finally prepared it properly, I fell in love with this grain-like edible seed. 

Soaking and rinsing quinoa removes the bitter coating

Shiitake Mushrooms
This is truly a "Food For Long Life" as shiitake mushrooms were used medicinally by the Chinese for thousands of years and were a symbol of longevity! They are also a very good source of iron, an important nutrient for vegans. 
Fresh shiitakes are much easier to find these days and are so much better than the dried ones. Don't be put off by the price, they are pretty light. Also, don't throw away those stems you just paid lots of money for. They make an excellent mushroom or veggie stock. I pop them in a baggie and throw them in the freezer until I'm ready to make stock.

Fresh shiitake mushrooms are better than dried 

Carefully remove the stems and use them to make veggie or mushroom stock

Use your Favorite Veggies Too
This recipe calls for asparagus and red bell peppers but you can also add other veggies too. This weekend I made a double batch for a vegan potluck and besides the mushrooms, asparagus and bell peppers, I also added snow peas. They were a nice addition and gave it some extra crunch.

Sauté vegetables in the order of their required cooking times

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Spicy Vegan Quinoa with Asparagus and Shiitake Mushrooms
[Makes 4 servings]

1 cup quinoa, 
2 cups water
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, finely diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, (or to taste)
1 medium red bell pepper, chopped
½ pound fresh shiitake mushrooms, stems removed, thinly sliced
4 scallions, diagonally sliced in 1/4 inch pieces
1 pound asparagus, bottoms trimmed, diagonally sliced in ½” pieces
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Soak quinoa for 15 minutes. Drain and rinse in cold water for 3 to 4 minutes. Place quinoa in water in a 1½ quart saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce to simmer, cover and cook for 10 to 15 minutes or until all the water is absorbed. Remove from heat and set aside.

In a non-stick Dutch oven, heat oil on medium-low heat and sauté ginger, garlic and red pepper flakes for 1 minute. 

Add peppers and mushrooms and cook for another 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until the peppers and mushrooms begin to soften. 

Add asparagus and cook another 3 minutes until fork tender.

Add soy sauce and lemon juice and mix together well.

Mix in quinoa and serve immediately.

Per serving: 252.9 calories, 6.0 g fat, 0.8 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 13.3 g protein, 46.1 g carbohydrates and 8.7 g dietary fiber.