Hi everybody! It’s spring.
According to 5 element theory and chinese medicine, spring is the season correlated with the liver-gallbladder system, it’s a time of wind, and it’s associated with the color green! Just the thought of the word green makes me smile. Every single shade of green, from the bright green baby leaves that fill the trees to tulip greens poking through the ground surface is a precious color. Because it’s a time of rapid growth, we start to see local options for all sorts of edible greens.
A pandemic that peaks in spring is not really any surprise, because spring is also a time of rapid change. The chinese would say it will use the wind of the season to spread and stir the pathogen, then we will see it lose some strength. I don’t want to say anything untrue about how this will all end, but I can say I hope it will go away then proceed to stay gone.
So since some of us are not getting our usual dose of the springy green outdoors due to the pandemic crisis, let’s make sure we stay focused on the concept of green even if we aren’t enjoying it every day.
Welcome to the first GoBeyondHealing ‘weekly green’ reminder. Being and eating green is super important. In spring when the earth is growing our yummy northern hemisphere spring bounty, it would be hard to miss seeing the greens overflow the produce department and many more fresh fruits and veggies are available. Green foods are the best friend of the nervous system. Do you remember anyone ever telling you how important greens are in your diet? Well it turns out that’s because the nervous system has a hand in every metabolic system in your body, so without greens your nervous system is left to make do by stealing from your other organ systems. If you know someone who has had brain trauma or suffers from a degenerative nervous system disease, eating greens is key to maintaining your best health.
This week’s green of the week is avocados! I know you were probably expecting me to say kale or mustard greens, but before we get into all the yummy local greens let’s remember that March is a great month for avocados grown by our neighbors in warmer year round climates. One fun fact many people do not know about this versatile little tropical fruit is that unlike bananas, avocados preserve once they are at perfect ripeness, in the refrigerator. I buy the multiple smaller avocados in the mesh bag and when they all ripen on the same day, I store them in the fridge.
My favorite way to eat them is all ways. I have a few traditional favorites such as avocado toast on some delicious Blackbird Bakery sourdough, with butter of course. I also like a simple pineapple gazpacho with 4 simple ingredients which perfectly matches the sweet of the pineapple with the richness of avocado. And of course a chunky fresh guacamole with lemon, garlic, salt and cilantro is impossible to resist if armed with a corn chip.
So that’s this week’s message: Avocados
You might as well put some fresh greens like kale or chard on the list, because if you’re only shopping weekly, buying greens means you’ll be prepared for next week. It really is the season. Google something you’ve never bought before and give something new a try. It’s a great time to indulge extra creativity in the kitchen, since we’re all at home so much more.
Please stay safe and be well. -Jane
Simple Pineapple Gazpacho
2 cups chopped fresh pineapple, sweet but not overripe
2-3 avocados which have to be perfect ripeness
Juice of one lime, hopefully a juicy one
1 t salt (if chunky you may need more) to taste
Crush and mix with a fork. Taste. Make sure you can taste all of fat, acid, sweet, and salt.