Garlic

Rustic, simple, wonderful, flavorful,  delicious, little bulb of goodness.

It helps prevent cancer, heart disease, and all kinds of sickness. It is an antioxidant, anti-viral, anti-bacterial, has been proven to reduce cholesterol, high blood pressure, inflammation and more.

At our house, we take it in pill form and eat it often.

One of the best ways to get the full benefits of it, is to chop it and eat it fresh with a little olive oil.

If you crush or chop the garlic and allow it to sit 15 minutes before you  eat it or cook it,

the waiting period allows the Allicin time to develop... so what is the Allicin you might ask.  The Allicin is a sulfur compound that gives you all those wonderful health properties. If you have given the Allicin time to develop,  much of it will remain while cooking or warming.

I have read that one clove of garlic a day can cut your risk of cancer in half.   Since I love to eat it... why not.

My son Luke and I got our garlic planted last fall.  I feel so happy that it is sprouting already.  It is "a first" that I have gotten it planted in the fall.  I am looking forward to a nice harvest of it this year.

It tastes wonderful chopped and mixed with fresh olive oil;

 

So good spooned on bread...

Yum.

Fresh chopped and mixed with  olive oil is something we  do frequently.  We eat it fresh  with bread, or tossed into pasta,  or sautéed  for spaghetti sauce, or  over rice,  lasagna,  pizza, soups, its almost endless what you could drizzle it on, or mix it with.

It is also a wonderful Home Remedy.

Have you ever heard of Goot?

I hadn't heard of it until my friend on "Knights and Maiden's Gathering" talked about it.

So I looked into it a little more.  Goot means "Garlic Oil Ointment"

It is used as an antibacterial ointment, and also as a poultice, that helps put anti-biotic properties into your blood stream when you are sick.  I have put it on my lips when I have felt a cold sore coming on, and guess what?   "no cold sore".... its great... and makes me smell like an appetizer to my Hubby... hahaha.

You can put a little on a bandaid and put it on your feet so that it will soak into your blood stream,

or onto a  cut to act as an anti bacterial ointment... the coconut oil in it also has anti-bacterial properties.  It is soothing and healing.  I don't like it on my hands, because the raw garlic inflames my hands ( I have sensitive skin... eczema, and any raw vegetables on my hands makes them react pretty badly;   but I don't think most people have that problem).

Goot

3 Tablespoons Olive oil

3 Tablespoons Coconut oil

3 Tablespoons chopped Garlic (you can do this by hand or with blender)

Mix together, and store in the fridge in a little jar up to a week*

When  you are sick, slather it on the bottom of your feet and put a sock over it; or put it on a bandaid for the little ones and put it on their feet and then a sock over it.  You can also put it on their chest for a cough.  Put it onto cuts, or bites and cover with a band aide, put it on your lips to heal a cold sore  or when you feel one coming on to prevent it; I can tell you from experience that it worked well.  I think there are probably a few applications you could think up yourself, when you realize that garlic and coconut oil are anti-viral and antiseptic, and coconut oil is
also anti-fungal.   Give it a try.

.   If some one has skin sensitivities, try a little in a small place first to see if it works with no reaction... I only say this because of my own skin sensitivities... the rest of the family doesn't have them, so no problem for them.

* Note:  This should be stored in the refrigerator for no more than a week.  The same goes for garlic in oil for eating.  When I first read about that, I thought why is that?  Here is the reason:  All vegetables that grow in the ground have the possibility of being exposed to the Botulism spore.  This is not a problem for the eating of these vegetables fresh, because once rinsed, there is not enough to ever cause a problem.  The problem can occur when that vegetable is stored in an airless situation such as what happens when you store something in oil.  In that environment, if there are Botulism spores, they will begin to multiply... especially when left at room temperature.  It is the multiplying of the Botulism spore that can be the problem.  An acid environment can kill this spore... thus when something is pickled in vinegar, or is a high acid vegetable, it is safe when water bath canned, but alkaline vegetables are not safe when water bath canned, because the spore can remain alive when processed in the lower temperature processing of water bath canning.  A week is a safe period of time for the garlic in oil to remain in the refrigerator without worrying about the spores being able to multiply very fast. I also read that you could soak and rinse garlic cloves in vinegar, and this will help kill the spores...   So there are some handy tips; hope they help.

Give this a try... It is an easy natural remedy that works.  I think you will like it.

Have a great week!