The Learning Center - Du Jardin Beauty

Herbal Spotlight: Butterfly Pea Flower, About & Uses

2/15/2022

Butterfly Pea Flowers [Clitoria ternatea] provide gorgeous natural color, as well as many benefits for the mind and body. Add some natural Botanical Blue to your routine & brighten things up as we explore these amazing flowers & their benefits, & their uses.

More than just a pretty face, Butterfly Pea flowers are a powerful Herbal Ally! Native to Southeast Asia, these flowers have been used for centuries as a memory enhancer, brain booster, anti-stress & calmative agent; they are staples of Chinese & Ayurvedic medicine. Clitoria ternatea are considered to be adaptogenic. Adaptogens are substances that work to help the body resist stressors of all kinds, whether physical, chemical or biological, & to exert a normalizing effect upon bodily processes. They are packed full of antioxidants, flavonoids,& peptides, as well as anti-inflammatory compounds, particularly anthocyanin, which are believed to support cardiovascular health.

Herbal Spotlight: Ginger, with an easy Ginger Liqueur Recipe

12/12/2021

Warm, spicy ginger is an ideal Herbal Ally for the colder Winter months. It has been used as a spice & medicinally for hundreds of years. In this post we will discuss some its properties & traditional uses, & I will share my recipe for a quick, easy Ginger Liqueur to enjoy on the imminent chilly evenings–
Ginger [zingiber officinale] is a member of the zingiberaceae family; the utilized part of the ginger plant is the rhizome, or the underground stem. It is an important cooking spice used all over the world in widely varied dishes from Indian curries to British gingerbread. Every form it can take, including fresh, dried, pickled, preserved, crystallized, candied, & powdered, has myriad uses in dishes from savory to sweet. Ginger is without a doubt the most versatile of flavors.

photo: K.Menard

Wow Them: Easy Salt-Preserved Lemons

11/29/2021

Give a Moroccan, umami lift to your Holiday cheese & charcutierie boards! These preserved lemons are easy to make & will be ready in just 3 weeks---

Salt-preserved lemons, a popular ingredient in many Middle Eastern & Moroccan recipes, are often found for sale in foody boutiques & are usually quite expensive. If you have ever tasted them, you know what a lovely punch they pack! Their bright & deeply umami notes are quite Heavenly & can be used in myriad ways. Lovely on cheese boards, in dressings & compound butters, & to highlight entrees, preserved lemons are definitely worth exploring! What you may not realize is that they are extremely easy to make at home, for all you really need is lemons, salt, & time. In fact, if you get them started this week, you will have them in plenty of time to enjoy over the Holidays.

Herbal Spotlight: Chokeberries with my Simple Syrup and Candied Berry Recipes.

10/18/2021

Delicious & just as immune-supportive as the Elderberry, Chokeberries are in season now & are fabulous! Join me as we discuss their growing habits, traditional uses, & I make a simple syrup & craft some delicious drinks with their bright, tart flavor---

Chokeberry, or Aronia, are part of the Rose [Rosaceae] family & are native to North America, although they are grown all over the world now. These shrubs are deciduous & are likely to be found growing wild in slightly-wet-to-swampy, wooded areas. There are wild growing red & black chokeberries; I am lucky to have nicely established patches of the black [aronia melanocarpa] growing around me. Aronia are easy to grow & fully mature in 5 years. Due to their amazing health benefits, these shrubs are also making the scene at many nurseries around the country, their popularity growing & now only slightly behind elderberry shrubs. Indeed, our local Food Co-Op, Rising Tide, just announced they are carrying frozen aronia from a local farm now!

Herbal Spotlight: Elderberries with Elderberry Brandy Cordial Recipe

9/20/2021

Delicious & powerful, elderberries are wonderful for colds & flu, & also in times of stress. What better way to enjoy some than in a flavorful Elderberry Brandy Cordial?

Early Fall, with elderberries in season, is the perfect time to make some. It's easy & delicious -- I'll show you how!

Herbal Spotlight: All About Amari & how to make your very own

8/23/2021

Amari have been around for centuries & are the secret stars of more & more cocktails these days, but many people are still unfamiliar with them -- A tragedy I am doing my best to remedy!
Join me as we explore what they are, how to use them, & even how to make your very own at home!

Herbal Spotlight: Chocolate Mint with Recipes

8/9/2021

With her striking purple stems & killer flavor, Chocolate Mint is one to grow. Join me as we discuss this beautiful mint cultivar & a bunch of options for using your harvest!

Chocolate mint [Mentha × piperita f. citrata] is one of many mint varieties easily picked up at your local greenhouse. You may have rubbed its leaves between your fingers there, enjoying that delicious fragrance, & thought “but what would I do with it?” & decided not to buy it. Well, this spotlight post is full of suggestions & recipes for your chocolate mint harvest, so indulge away!
Okay, this plant is in the MINT family [Lamiaceae] so it will spread if not contained! Plant it somewhere with that in mind or in containers. And, expect it to come back with friends yearly, hence the need for an arsenal of use ideas!

Herbal Spotilight: Daylilies with Recipes

7/26/2021

It just wouldn't look like New England without the wild daylilies all along our many crumbling rock walls. Effortlessly growing in field, forest, & yard, they are more than just beautiful -- daylilies are a bountiful food source as well!

Join me as we take a look at these delicious, gorgeous gems-

Herbal Spotlight: Common Milkweed, With Milkweed Blossom Cordial Recipe

7/12/2021

Common Milkweed [Asclepias syriaca] is not only edible, it is delicious! Far from hurting the butterflies by harvesting some ourselves, by caring for & planting it, we help ourselves AND the declining Monarchs!
So often dismissed as a bothersome weed, this plant actually has a long history of interesting uses in addition to delicious, culinary aspects. In this post, we will make some milkweed cordial & learn more about it--

Herbal Spotlight: Hemlock Reishi Mushroom

6/28/2021

The Hemlock Varnished Shelf Reishi is one of the easiest mushrooms to identify & is revered for its potency.
It has many traditional uses from medical to cosmetic. Come with me as we look a bit deeper into this polypore "Mushroom of Immortality" & its uses.

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