Saturday, May 29, 2010

Seaweed is also my friend, my friend

When the Ocean calls me
It's not just the breeze
The smell of the ocean
The call of the seas,

The taste of it's vegetables
Always contents
When spending some time
In the old circumvent

Eat them,
greet them in the mother’s aquarium
Row them, through them
Dry them fast.
Don’t wash them with plain water, they won’t last
Life’s the dulse palmaria
©Allisonians


Some Tasty Kinds;
Bullwhip Kelp (Nereocystis leutkeana):
The World's Tastiest and Easiest Kelp To Eat
This scrumptious easy to eat beautiful green annual kelp grows only in moving cold water of the Northeast Pacific Ocean, from northern California north to southeast Alaska.

It forms dense 'kelp forests' in areas of fast currents usually in channels between the islands. Its long strong stipes grow from attached holdfasts on rocky seafloors at depths of up to 100 feet. Its many 6-12 inch wide thick tender leaves grow out of a large hollow bulb at the top of each solitary stipe; these leaves can grow to 60 feet in length. The bulb is filled with Carbon Monoxide for flotation.

Only the leaves are harvested, very carefully, one at a time by hand; the leaves are not rinsed, but do drain off all of their surface seawater as they dry in full sun hanging from stainless wire for 6-8 hours. Any salt or salty taste on this kelp comes from within the kelp, and, is predominantly Potassium, rather than sodium. The leaves' mineral content is 25-50%; they contain all necessary trace elements.

This kelp can be eaten and enjoyed as is; it can also be added to salads, soups, baked or steamed vegetables, oatmeal, and any cooked dish from cookies to pancakes to scrambled eggs to ice cream.

This particular batch was harvested from a cluster of small uninhabited islands near the US-Canada border.

This kelp is very sensitive to moisture. To keep it from becoming less crunchy or even damp, it MUST BE STORED IN COMPLETELY AIRTIGHT CONTAINERS. because of its very high mineral content it is extremely hygroscopic; it will pull moisture out of seemingly dry air if left out. The plastic bag in which this kelp was shipped is no longer airtight. Many small holes were punched through the plastic bag by the sharp dry kelp pieces.

When this kelp becomes even a trifle moist, it can be easily dried placed in an open pan in a low (110-140 degrees F) heat oven for about 30 minutes. Use or store quickly. ENJOY !! ~~Ryan Drum~~

And one of his amazing insights; {I am no seafaring stranger, wish, wish}

The terms "seaweeds" and "sea vegetables" are used interchangeably herein and refer to the large, visible macroalgae growing attached to each other, rocks, and the seafloor in the intertidal zone and shallow seawater. Microalgae, phytoplankton, cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) and eel grasses are not included. The term "sea herbs" is not used and not recommended since it compromises the true cryptogamic identity and phylogenetic classification of the macroalgae, even though it is used affectionately by herbalists. The term "seaweed" is a bit misleading: with a few notable exceptions, seaweeds are actually saltwater-tolerant, land-dependent plants growing almost exclusively at the narrow interface where land and sea meet. Most must be firmly attached to something to stay in the "photic zone", where they can receive sufficient sunlight.

All seaweeds are photosynthetic. The best-known truly "pelagic" seaweed (pelagic means living and growing at sea, independent of land) is Sargasso weed, a prolific brown seaweed of the genus Sargassum. This lush plant covers an area of 7000 square miles near the Bermuda Triangle, with a floating layer 1-2 feet thick; modest wave action sorts it out into long even rows that resemble a carefully-planted field on land. After several days of slowly chugging through the Sargasso Sea while taking transatlantic transect vertical plankton tows, I experienced a common visual hallucination and urge to jump off the boat and walk around on the Sargasso weed as had many mariners before me. The urge was compelling. I nearly had to be restrained.
~Ryan Drum~
This link redirects you to the rest of the article. (There is some interesting info on bulk harvesting vs. hand harvesting,,,Hmmmm)Anyhow,,, you decided :)
http://www.ryandrum.com/seaxpan1.html

Respectfully yours~Allison


Resources;

Here's one of the experts I've read on the subject
Ryan Drum
http://www.ryandrum.com/
Island Herbs
P O Box 25
Waldron, WA 98297-0025


& another
Susun Weed

& another

John Kallas
http://www.botanicalmedicine.org/Tapes/Bios/Drum.htm

1 comment:

  1. i think you might have lost me here! i love the koreans kim bop, rice and yummies rolled up in seaweed, looking like a huge seaweed cigar but tasting like almost-heaven! i don't know if i'm adventurous enough to try anything else growing in them thar waters :) you???

    ReplyDelete

Banana This; Recycle Old Peels~ fertilizer or silver polish

There are things you can do with that old peel.

1. Do you have a green thumb? House hold plants and outside gardens require fertilization. A great way to give your plants nutrients is with a banana peel. The banana peel is very rich in potassium and phosphorus, which give that added boost to your plants soil, especially so with roses. Here is how to use a banana peel to fertilizer your soil for your plants. Remove the peel from the banana. Place the banana peel on a cookie sheet to let it air dry. Grab a paper bag or envelope. Crumble the dried banana peel and place it in the bag. Let the banana sit at room temperature for about two days. When your caring for your plant, give it a potassium treat of crumbled banana peel. Mix well in the soil to ensure the roots are fed evenly.
2. Have you been thinking about pulling out that old silver? Well there is no time like the present. Bananas peel can also be used to polish silver. Yes, polish silver. Take the old peels and place them in a blender. You want the peels to become smooth and creamy. Once they have, grab a cloth and small amounts of the creamed banana peel and begin polishing your silver. The shine will be breath taking.

SOURDOUGH STARTER with WILD YEAST

SOURDOUGH STARTER with WILD YEAST
Wild yeasts exist in the air around you and to some extent on the wheat berries. There are wild yeasts on grapes (unsulphured) and apples and other fruits. It is those wild yeasts which are 'captured' to make a sourdough starter. The process takes from 3 to 5 days. I wish I had specific amounts for you, but you could start with 1/4 to 1/2 cup of flour and mix in enough warm (not hot) water to make a thin paste. DO NOT make it too soupy. That, in fact, is the trick to a good starter, according to the French bread makers, and I think they should know. And after you've fooled around with the flour and water thing, you might wish to branch out into adding those unsulphured grapes, apples, sour milk, etc as a catalyst in order to capture other strains of yeast. Each of these strains has a slightly different taste. In fact if you move to another area, you might end up with a starter that produces an entirely different flavor. For instance, San Francisco sourdough bread is well known and has a distinct taste due to the wild strains in the air there. On day one you mix the flour and water (and add any catalysts to encourage fermentation) and place in a warm spot. After 3 days, the dough should be moist, inflated, and slightly sour. More flour and water is added (mixed in) and left to sit in a warm spot. After 2 days the process is repeated. Then the next day it is done again. Note the order: 3 days, 2 days, 1 day. At this point you should be able to make a loaf of bread using part of the starter and adding back what you took out in the form of more flour and water. Rule of thumb: Use about 10% starter to size of loaf. In the case of a 2 lb loaf this is a bit over 3 oz of starter (3.2 to be exact). For a 1 lb loaf 1.5 oz would be used. A book that describes this process in great detail is The Village Baker by Joe Ortiz, copyright 1993, published by Ten Speed Press, Berkley CA. If it's not still in print, try the used books stores, that's where I got mine. Or try your local library. If they don't have it, they might be able to get it for you. ©2008 by Ernestina Parziale

Thank You For Visiting!

Thank You For Visiting!
Have a Great Day!