Let’s eat autumn seasonal foods

There are some tasty healing seasonal vegetables and fruits to ease your digestive health,  maintain healthy gut ecology and support your hormone health.  Beetroot, mint, parsley, nettle, artichoke, dandelion, fennel, garlic, celery, apples, pears and leafy greens such as kale are all available. Today I am sharing a few recipes  with these delicious foods so

Let’s Eat

Fruit: apples, pears, clementines, cranberries, blackberries, figs, medlar, quince

Nuts: chestnuts, brazils, walnuts, almonds

Vegetables: artichoke, beetroot, broccoli, fennel, garlic, leeks, salsify, rocket, radishes, chicory, celery, kohlrabi, celeriac, wild mushrooms,  kale, watercress, spinach, squash, pumpkins,  kohlrabi, wild mushrooms,onions

herbs: mint, parsley, nettles

protein based meat, poultry and sea foods: beef, lamb, venison, organic free range turkey,  clams, cod, coley, dover sole, grey mullet, gurnard, haddock, halibut, hake, herring, lemon sole, mackerel, mussels, oysters, pilchard,  pollack, red mullet, sea bass (wild), sea bream,

Let’s eat  rhubarb, stewed apples, juices and pickled kohlrabi daily

Autumn Juices: Try any one of these or make up your own! Include one a day 

1 bulb of Fennel, half a courgette or cucumber  and 2.5 cm of ginger (skinned and grated)

1 beetroot, handful of fresh watercress, 1  grapefruit , 1 thumb of turmeric and squeeze of lime

Handful blackberries, an apple and a beetroot

3 stalks rhubarb, handful of raspberries and some ginger or turmeric (this also makes a great super laxative tea  over the full or new moon when you add hot water to it).  Delicious in the evening.

Pickled Kohlrabi – ( in season  July – November)

A great fermented veggie which is full or prebiotics  for your digestive health! Kohlrabi is a member of the cabbage/brassica family  and its benefits include  its  fabulous fibre  content  which  helps  maintain bowel transit  and reduce constipation , cramping, bloating, and generally improve the complete  gastrointestinal system, while also maximizing your nutrient uptake efficiency.  It also helps you lose weight,  boost the immune system, increase circulation, strengthen bones, improve vision health, and assists in protecting muscle and nerve function.  It contains copper, potassium, manganese iron, calcium, vitamin A, C, B’s, K. By pickling it and using organic mother apple cyder vinegar we are fermenting it and super charging the lunar digestion programme.  Try to include this amazing fermented dish regularly throughout the lunar digestive wellbeing programme.

1 large kohlrabi

250ml “mother” organic apple cyder  vinegar

1 tbsp himalyan rock salt

1 tbsp honey

1 garlic clove grated

1 tsp black peppercorns

1 fresh chilli or half a dried chilli (flaked)

1 tbsp fresh ginger – grated

2 bay leaves

Peel the kohlrabi, slice thinly and cut the slices into fine matchsticks (maybe use a mandolin if you have one).  Put the vinegar, salt and honey in a pan with 250 ml water and bring to the boil.  Mix the kohlrabi with the remaining ingredients and pack into a sterilised preserving jar. Tip the hot liquid over it  until it covers everything.  Close the lid and allow to cool.   Leave for 3 days before eating.  Remember to keep it in the fridge.  (this is a form of kraut really so eat a large spoonful for   7 days  over each  new moon and full moon to support digestive wellbeing.

Let’s eat rhubarb:  An amazing plant which is taking over my veggie patch this year.  Here is a great morning compote to add to your breakfasts, smoothies, pancakes, juices  or make tea with it (recipe below) or eat whenever you fancy!

4-5-stalks of rhubarb (ask for some when you come to see me).  Wash and peel skin if too thick.  Cut into 3 cm pieces.

Thumb of ginger,  peeled and grated  (2 teaspoons of cinnamon is a good alternative)

Small amount of water – enough to cover rhubarb.  Either tablespoon of  honey or sugar alternative.

Add everything in a pot and simmer until the rhubarb is soft.  Eat hot or cold.  Add ground flaxseeds or chia seeds, yoghurt or add to your pancakes.

Rhubarb Tea:  Juice raw rhubarb and then add boiling water and some honey for a delicious warm tea

Let’s eat these Autumn lunches

Beetroot Hummus

1 tablespoon cumin seeds

200-300 g cooked beetroot

1-2 large clove garlic, peeled and crushed

1 heaped tablespoon tahini; Juice of a lemon; alt and black pepper; (optional) add some breadcrumbs (obviously I mean gluten free!).

Toast the cumin seeds in a dry frying pan over a medium heat, shaking the pan constantly until the darken and smell delicious. This will only take a minute.  Then crush the seeds in a pestle and mortar or whizz in your blender for a few seconds.  Add the rest of the ingredients to the blender and blend to a thick paste. An amazing lunch dish with crudités or added to millet salad  or  a wrap. To super charge your energy, digestion and  health add a  serving of broth to your lunchtime meal,  add a dollop of pickled kohlrabi to your beetroot hummus and voila you will be super charged!

Basia’s Baked Pumpkin Soup

1 small pumpkin – peeled and cut into equal sized chunks

2 carrots or root vegetables such as parsnips

1 red onion

2 large garlic cloves

Olive oil

250ml bone broth

Herbs of your choice (fresh now are thyme/sage/some parsley)

Heat oven to 180°c. Cut pumpkin  into equal size chunks, together with onion, carrots or parsnips and garlic.  Drizzle with oil and roast in oven   for  about 35 – 40 min until soft. When cooked, liquidise with the  stock until smooth – adding more stock to suit your soup choice consistency. Add herbs of your choice.  For those who aren’t dairy intolerant, swirl some organic double cream/crème fraiche in . Enjoy!

Try Millet.  This ancient grain, is considered in Chinese medicine to  support the spleen and immune health.  Nutritionally, millet is high in fibre, supports  detoxification,  rich in B vitamins, folic acid, calcium, iron, potassium and zinc.  It is also very economical and easy to cook! You can eat it cold or hot and it can also be frozen – but please make sure you re-heat well. it’s a great lunchtime dish if you add a handful of green leaves or cooked vegetables, a serving of  cooked  chicken or hummus and a sprinkling of organic apple cyder vinegar

Recipes for Autumn

Easy peasy recipe: Use one cup of millet to two cups of water and simmer for 30 minutes until soft.

Alternative recipe:  250g millet, 500ml vegetable  stock, Toasted fennel or cumin seeds

Toast fennel/cumin seeds and add to the millet grains.  Heat the stock to boiling point, pour over the millet, cover and simmer for 5 minutes then turn the hob off and leave for 10 –15 minutes until the millet has fluffed and softened.  Serve as an alternative to rice.

Let’s eat fish and pancakes!

Baked Cod or Pollack with green beans and pesto  (River Cottage recipe)

200 g trimmed green beans

150ml fish stock (see  broth recipe)

2 thick fillets cod of Pollack, skinned and boned

3 heaped teaspoons pesto

Black pepper and salt if required

Preheat oven to 200c/gas 6.  Scatter green beans in an ovenproof dish and pour the stock over them.  Lay the fish fillets on top, sprinkle with seasoning and spread the pesto in a thick layer over the fish.  Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes until the fish and beans are cooked and pesto formed a crust.  Serve with pickled kohlrabi and green beans

Chestnut pancakes with birch sap syrup (you could adapt this to be a savoury pancake).  This is a super recipe that I found from one of my River Cottage foraging handbooks.  Autumn is a great time for foraging and chestnuts should be easy to find during September/October

Either forage some chestnuts or buy some chestnut flour

2 eggs; 100g chestnut flour; 250ml milk of your choice; Coconut oil for frying; birch sap syrup

To make chestnut flour:

Gather chestnuts and then place them in a pan of boiling water. Cook for 10 minutes.  Leave to cool.  Now peel the skin (cut into pointed end on flat side and start to peel here).  Cool the skinned chestnuts in the fridge then place in a blender (that’s my nutribullet) until they are fine.   Spread the mixture onto a non stick baking tray and place in a low over (40c) with the door slightly ajar for about an hour until the flour is dry.   Now place all ingredients into your blender and whizz up .  Let the batter stand for an hour in the fridge.  Then heat the frying pan, add oil and cook as you would normal pancakes!

Let’s eat Broth, stewed apples and lunar digestive healing

Recipes for Autumn in easy to print format AND Recipes for gut health

Justine Evans ND is a Hormone Alchemist and Fertility Expert helping  hormonal health using nutritional therapy, traditional remedies and moon energy. Justine  can be contacted by email contact@justineevans.co.uk

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Dry Skin Brushing;

yoni steaming with the moon;

more traditional autumn recipes

Disclaimer:  These musings, considerations and dietary thoughts do not take into account your personal health, allergies or illnesses.  I always recommend you receive professional healthcare  guidance specific to your personal circumstance before making changes to your diet.