Winter Eating Fresh and In Season

Winter Eating Fresh and In Season
Six ways to eat raw in the winter
—Christy Korrow
(Previously published in LILIPOH magazine)

During winter when our diets turn to cooked foods, it is even more important to partake in fresh living foods with meals. Fresh living foods provide us with dosages of vitamins, nutrients, and enzymes essential to digestion and nutrient assimilation.

1. Sprouts: A variety of sprouting seeds are readily available through the mail or at your local health food store. Favorites are broccoli, radish and clover. A delicious salad can be made from sprouted French lentils, add some parsley, lemon, salt and ginger.

2. Grow your own greens: Most climates support at least some production of fresh cold weather tolerant crops. Here in Kentucky, at zone six, we are able to grow lettuce mix, kale, parsley, carrots and spinach with very little protection, and only occasional additional heat from the wood burning stove in our small green house.

3. Dried fruits: Another form of concentrated nourishment, and a healthy way to curb a sweet tooth. Be sure to select organic and non-sulfured varieties. Apricots are especially high in fiber and beta-carotene.

4. Cabbage: A wonderful winter crop, always readily available at local grocery stores, and has strong detoxifying properties. Get creative with cole slaw, varying away from traditional mayonnaise versions, by creating an Asian version with sesame oil, soy sauce, sesame seeds and a light drizzle of agave for sweetness.

5. Carrots: Another cold weather crop, delicious raw. Grate carrots for textural interest and easier digestibility. Create a salad with carrots, walnuts, a few raisins, a light drizzle of your favorite vinegar and oil, and salt.

6. Potted Parsley: If you don’t have an in-ground garden, keep several large pots of parsley near a suny wondow, or outside if temeratures allow. Sprinkled fresh on almost any dish, the bright green color is cheerful, and parsley is high in vitamins and antioxidents.