Tomorrow I will celebrate the equinox with its promise of new beginnings.
In the spirit of the season, I decided to test drive a new product. Living Harvest Hemp Oil is a naturally gluten free oil. I've had some reactions to olive oil that I suspect was cut with soy oil, so I've been using mostly canola oil. Hemp oil is a nutty flavored finishing oil that offers a wealth of healthy Omega 3 and Omega 6. After talking with Living Harvest, I trust that their oil contains no fillers. And the Omegas might help revive my winter skin!
To appreciate its flavor, I decided to drizzle it on some sauteed halibut that my brother caught on a fishing trip to Alaska. And I invited my mom over for dinner. She'd had a heart procedure earlier in the week, and was feeling good enough for a field trip. (*Note: She had a baffling heart attack last Fall. Previous tests failed to illuminate the cause. The problem was found and fixed. We're jubilant!)
I seasoned my saute pan with some spring onions. Then sauteed the halibut with just a little salt and some of Penzey's shallot salt. Topped it with a drizzle of hemp oil and fresh green onions. The hemp oil added a delightful nutty flavor. It was a fine compliment to the fish. I think this oil would work well in a spinach pesto, which would also be great on halibut. And my spinach seedlings will soon offer me some big savoy leaves to work with. I look forward to trying this oil with some of my spring crops.
Springtime is fickle. Warm yesterday. Cold today. Sun and rain and strong winds. It's an entertaining season for weather radar (my favorite show!)
I've been busy laying the framework for my gardens. I've spent a lot of quality time hauling unmentionables to the compost bin. The little sprouts in the basement greenhouse are starting to look like real vegetable plants. And I planted radish, lettuce and snow pea seeds in the garden over my spring break! It was great to get my hands into the dirt again. It's been a long winter!
My flower gardens have started without any help from me. I love that! Here's a taste of Spring beauty at Kay's Leaning Tree Farm:
Hope you enjoy your first tastes of Spring! It starts tomorrow!
i am in love with hemp too! I've been using hemp milk and hemp protein powder, encouraged by my friend Clara to go DF/CF... it's been wonderful and I love the hemp!! ;-)
ReplyDeleteHi Carrie,
ReplyDeleteI've missed our baking discussions! Glad to hear from you! I'm on the DF/CF bandwagon these days. All the rice and nut milks have xanthan gum. So I'm using goat milk and coconut milk. BTW, Trader Joe's coconut milk has NO guar gum.
Kay--Wonderful news on your mom! That halibut looks terrific. I haven't tried hemp oil yet, but I know I love the salmon patties my girlfriend makes with hemp seed. Hemp milk is also on my "to try" list. I just recently tried almond milk and liked it just fine. But, you know I forgot to look to see if it had any gums in it. I am also doing as much dairy free/casein free as possible. (You might not see that reflected totally on my blog yet with catching up on some recipes, but it will happen 100% soon enough.)
ReplyDeleteLove all your flower photos. Your crocuses and snowdrops are especially lovely. :-)
Shirley
I've used hemp seeds and milk, but haven't tried the oil. Thanks for the tips, it does sound wonderful. I love experimenting with different high-quality oils (I just wish they weren't so expensive!).
ReplyDeleteI LOVE your flower and plant photos. It's been nice here lately, but the next few days are supposed to be cold and snowy. In fact I-70, which heads up into the mountains from Denver has been closed off and on the past couple of days because of blizzard conditions. Argh, I'm ready for spring.
Keep us posted on your gardening tips and worm ranching. I'm paying close attention to you, Kay!
My composting is going along fine and I've been getting things ready for my mini gardens.
Stay warm!
Melissa
P.S. Your fish dinner looks amazing! Hope your mom is feeling well.