Posts Tagged With: health eating

The Wonders of Honeygar and the Alkaline Body

Posted on July 28, 2012 by leroy watson

Hagar (Honey and Cider Vinegar)

Honey and cider vinegar combined with just boiled water is normally called ‘Honeygar’ and a mighty fine thing it is. This potion is not only a lovely brew (an acquired taste) it also has great health properties and cures many ailments. Both Hippocrates and the ancient Egyptians are said to have appreciated the healing properties of cider vinegar. It has also been used as an anti-aging elixir, which is always popular!

Good cider vinegar is a completely natural product and is normally made by allowing crushed apples to ferment in oak barrels. It has cleansing and disinfecting properties which self detoxify the body and it is a powerful cleansing agent and healing elixir with naturally occurring antibiotic and antiseptic that fights germs and bacteria. Honey (unprocessed) is normally added to make the drink more palatable.

Cider Vinegar also helps to keep the body nicely alkaline. Vinegar is obviously acid but when broken down in the stomach becomes alkaline. An alkaline body fights germs and disease better and helps to ward off ailments such as bladder and kidney conditions, osteoporosis, aching muscles, low energy and chronic fatigue, and slow digestion.

Raw fruits, leafy green vegetables, tea and legumes are examples of alkaline foods. Interestingly a foods actual pH is not a good indicator of a food that has acidic effects on the body, for example, lemons and limes when processed by the body actually have a very alkaline effect. All animal products are acid forming, even if they have a alkaline pH prior to digestion. The ideal ratio of alkaline to acid foods in a diet id 70/30. High stress levels can also effect the amount of acid produced in the body. For more on getting alkaline see here.

Cider vinegar is especially good at treating arthritis and with the British national health service restricting the access to arthritis treatments, many people are looking for alternative methods of treatment. There have been many articles recently in the press verifying these healing effects.

Lillies on the windowsill (nothing to do with Cider Vinegar, but lovely non-the-less)

Sir Ranulph Fiennes, the famous explorer and endurance chap, suffered with arthritis in his hand and hip and turned to drinking honeygar. He says “Without it I wouldn’t be able to have done all the things I have done…it has completely kept my arthritis at bay.”

Honeygar is best drank regularly and can take a while to kick in, so stick with it. It also must be combined with a low acid diet, that means no nasty foods high in sugar, nothing processed (factory food) and alcohol. If you have stiff muscles and joints, try taking regular hot baths with epsom salts.

I have a hip that clicks and a dodgy neck, which are probably old injures from when I was young and used to do terrible things to my body, all in the name of sports. I have started to drink honeygar and will keep you posted on the progress of my dodgy bits.

I think the message is, get off those awful painkillers and other drugs if you can and try something different. There is enough evidence out there to suggest that honeygar and a huge number of other alternative remedies actually work. This is not always backed up by medical tests, but who needs that when it works!

When buying cider vinegar, check that it contains the ‘mother’ and is organic. This ensures that it is completely natural, the good stuff, and has not been distilled. The distillation process kills of the powerful enzymes and minerals like potassium, phosphorus, sodium, magnesium, sulphur, iron copper, fluorine, silicon, pectin and natural malic and tartaric acids, which are important in fighting body toxins and inhibiting bacteria growth.

‘Hagar’ Recipe

Add 2 tbs cider vinegar and top up with freshly boiled water, add honey to taste (1 tbs is normally good for us)

Some of the info for this post came from the great benefits of honey site and an article in the Daily Telegraph

*Since writing is article Lee has gone fully vegan and now uses other sweeteners like maple syrup or date syrup to sweeten this drink. The apple cider vinegar is the main reason for drinking Hagar and can be sweetened with whatever you prefer.

For other nutritious recipes and information/ special offers on upcoming BHK events, holidays and retreats, join our vegan cooking group of Facebook.

Or to keep up with all the Beach House Kitchen cooking and travels, you can follow us via our newsletter, click here to easily join our e-mail list.

Categories: Healing foods, Healthy Living, Infusions, Nutrition | Tags: alkaline foods, arthritis, cider, hagar, healing, health, health eating, healthy living, honey, vinegar | 76 Comments

Vegetarian Shepherds Pie

Posted on May 14, 2012 by leroy watson

Joyce and Keith and some dodgy looking waiter.

This was a staple in my family when I was a young ‘un, the mince and spud variety anyway. I was inspired by many a food blogger to have a play with this classic dish, I have forgotten where exactly, but I hope you know who you are!

I can eat alot of mash, it’s so more-ish, so I have included sweet potato to mix with the normal spuds. This makes for a slightly healthier mash and has vibrant colours with the rich, smooth texture of the sweet orange ones.

I’ve named this a shepherds pie, but it only resembles it in the technique of cooking. The colours and flavours are more vibrant in the veggie variety (I think!).

The occasion was a gardening visit by Jane’s Mum and Dad, Joyce and Keith. We had a full day of house sorting, managing to fix the fire and the strimmer and much more. We needed some rich and hearty grub and this hit the spot. I know that Jane’s Mum and Dad have slightly sweeter tooth, which meant the sweet pots and sweetcorn in this recipe were ideal. I would normally tone down the cheese, it is great without dairy, but I find a good lump of cheese sates those who normally have meat as a rule.

I would always used fresh tomatoes if available, but a good tin of organic toms will suit this dish fine. They are normally sweeter and give a nice red colour to the sauce. Just replace the toms here with one tin.

Most of these ingredients came from our local farm shop Hooton’s Homegrown. Until our garden starts producing some vegetables, we are lucky to have them so close. There carrots are amazing and really made this dish.

Save all stock here and cooking juice for soup making and the stew, you can mix them together to make a great base stock for later. Vegans, you know the drill, replace the butter and cheese with something like olive oil etc, maybe some tofu cream would be nice as a topping.

The Bits

2 sweet potatoes, 3 white potatoes (scrubbed and cut into chunks, gauge quantity of pots by the number of mouths to feed), 2 cups of dried butter beans, 3 cloves garlic (chopped), zest of 1 lemon (finely chopped), 1 teas paprika, 1 big onion (chopped), 4 fat carrots (scrubbed and roughly chopped), 150g (several large handfuls) spinach, 1 can sweetcorn (fresh if you can), several good knobs of butter, glug of cooking oil (you choose which), 3 handfuls of cherry tomatoes and 250g tomato passata (one good tin toms is acceptable), 4 teaspoons of fresh thyme (or dried mixed herb), 3 nice knobs of butter, 3 decent handfuls of mature cheddar cheese, 2 cups of good veg stock, 2 bay leaves.

The sauce in motion.

Do It

Soak butter beans overnight, covered with 1 inch of water. Bring to boil, skim of the white scum and simmer gently with lid on for 45 minutes, or until tender to the bite. Drain and set aside (keeping cooking water).

Get your chopped potatoes in a pan with some cold, slightly salted water and bring to the boil. Lower heat to a gentle boil and cook for 20 mins, or until tender. Drain (saving stock) and put back into warm pan, season and mix in a handful of the cheddar cheese and a knob of butter. Mash it up in the pan (saves on washing up) until creamy and smooth. Set aside.

Whilst all that is going on, you probably have time to start the stew base of the pie. Fry off the onions until soft on medium heat with a knob of butter and a glug of oil, then add the garlic and carrots, thyme/mixed herbs and bay leaves, stir well and cook for 5 minutes. Add paprika, lemon zest, corn and beans, stir in for a few minutes, then add the toms and passata, bring to the boil and add the stock. Stir in and leave on a steady simmer for 30 mins, until cooked down and approaching stickiness. I like to stir in a tablespoon of the mash to make the sauce nice and thick. Don’t overcook the carrots, remember they’ll be cooked further in the oven.

Pre-heat an oven to 200oC.

In a large baking dish, pour out your sauce into the base, sprinkle over a good thick covering of spinach leaves to form a thick layer (remember it’s a serious wilter) then scoop the mash into the centre and using a spatula or big spoon, gently smooth out to the corners, making sure that it meets all edges. Sprinkle on top as much cheddar as you deem necessary and a dusting of mixed herbs/ thyme.

Place on a tray and into the oven on a middle shelf. Cook until a gentle bubbling appears at the edges and cheese is golden brown, should take around 20-30 minutes.

Our Veggie Shepherd’s Pie (Fortunately, our cooking is better than our photography!)

Serve

Place in the middle of your table and spoon out carefully onto plates (unlike we did! See photo). Great served with a crunchy salad, we made a simple salad of sprouting mung beans (we just has a bumper crop, see more of our sprouting antics here) with a lemon vinegar dressing.