Make Your Own Spicy Stone Ground Mustard

Mustard. An American staple. As a matter-of-fact, mustard is used in the cuisine of India, the Mediterranean, northern and southeastern Europe, Asia, the Americas, and Africa, making it one of the most popular and widely used spices and condiments in the world.1

Made from the simplest ingredients, mustard actually is good for you. Some of the many vitamins and nutrients found in mustard seeds are selenium and omega 3 fatty acid. 2  Mustard has also been used medicinally for generations as well. This is one condiment that is good for you.  However, today's mustards have so many added ingredients that making your own can control what you put into it.  And unlike its ketchup counterpart, mustard can be made very easily, with no cooking and not much fuss.

I found this recipe while watching PBS many years ago.  It was with Mary Ann Esposito and I have loved this mustard ever since.  What can be better than making a condiment that not only tastes amazing but has health benefits as well? This recipe is hands-down the easiest gourmet mustard I've ever made and we think one of the tastiest too!

"Prepared mustard dates back thousands of years to the early Romans, who used to grind mustard seeds and mix them with wine into a paste not much different from the prepared mustards we know today."

This recipe uses two types of mustard...yellow and brown seeds.  You can use all of one or the other, but I really like the color combination of the two varieties.  The brown tends to be a little hotter but they are basically the same. 

For this recipe you'll need one cup of yellow (white) seeds and one cup of brown seeds.  Put them both in a non-corrosive container such as a handy mason jar.  

Add to the jar 2 cups of red wine vinegar. (I also use Bragg's Apple Cider Vinegar to bump up the health benefits of mine.)  

 Now the easiest part.  Cover the jar with plastic if you're using a metal lid.  Otherwise you can top with a plastic lid and let the seeds soak for two days.  You'll be amazed at how much of the vinegar they soak up during this time.  

After two days, put your seed vinegar mix into a food processor and add 1/2 cup of raw honey, 2 tsp of fine sea salt, and 1 tsp of allspice.  Pulse until they form a coarse grainy paste.

Fill approximately six sterilized 1/2 pint jars with the mustard. Cut out wax paper circles larger than the jar opening and place over the tops of each jar before capping them.  

Unopened, the mustard will keep indefinitely, but once opened you'll want to make sure and refrigerate it. 

Need I mention that this mustard makes a great gift as well?  I gave a small bottle to friends one year and they raved about it so much that I ended up making them a quart of it!  

Hope you like this mustard and if you are looking for seeds to buy online, you can try here and
here. You may be able to find yellow mustard seeds any place selling bulk herbs and spices as well. 

Have you made mustard before?  What's your favorite additions?  Blessings!!


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Natural Headache Remedy

Headaches. We all get them and some of us more than others.  I fall into the second category as being a chronic headache sufferer.  Tension headaches and the worst of all...migraines.  

I have been searching for years for a natural remedy or relief from headaches in general. Looking at everything including my diet, exercise, sleep, caffeine usage, herbal remedies including feverfew and homeopathic remedies, etc...I have been pursuing a way to naturally relieve them and prevent their onset.  
 

To be honest; I had just about given up trying until I recently attended a women's conference and the speaker chose to talk about health one evening.  She quickly mentioned about how she would take "a couple of Omega 3's" at the onset of a headache and it would take care of them immediately.  I jotted down what she said and forgot about it later.

 

However, the very next day I was feeling the onset of a headache that was destined to become a migraine.  I remembered what the speaker had said and quickly took two fish oil pills (Omega 3's) and didn't think much about it until later when I realized that I ended up not getting a headache OR a migraine.

Wow...this is pretty amazing stuff!  I was a bit surprised because I was used to trying everything to avoid one and nothing seemed to work.  So, all week I took two fish oils in the morning and two at night before bed because those were the times that I would tend to get them.  I would feel a bit muscle "achy" but I never got a for two weeks.  When I did get a mild one, I would take two fish oils or Omega's and they would keep the headache at bay.  

The Omega 3's seem to have eliminated my constant headaches to the point I am able to work out with weights again. However, I have had two days of migraines since then but I woke up with them in the morning and wasn't able to take anything to prevent them.  I did use fish oil with other remedies including pain reliever and valerian to help relieve the pain.  The fish oil seemed to help but I did need the extra boost of pain relievers to get through the headache.

So they seemed to be the most effective when taken before a headache comes on and it's important to be able to "read your body" on when you think this is happening.

  

How does fish oil or Omega 3 supplements work?  

This is a great question and to be honest, the medical community is not completely sure how it works exactly but they do know that this type of oil does have benefits that may contribute to migraine relief.

You can use fish oil to help and or other supplements that include, evening primrose oil, flaxseed oil, chia seed oil, borage seed oil, extra virgin olive oil.  Food that are rich in Omega's include, walnuts, winter squash, kidney and black beans, and wild rice. 

"According to the American Heart Association the ingredients of fish oil help reduce inflammation, reduces blood clotting, lowers blood pressure and steadies the heart rhythm. These actions, particularly the reduction of inflammation or swelling, may be helpful in reducing the head pain and other migraine symptoms of migraine attacks because it may reduce migraine head inflammation." 1

"Some research suggests that since Fish Oil prevents constriction of blood vessel, it can prevent the actions in the brain that lead to migraine attacks." 2

"A 2002 study of 27 adolescents who took fish oil found that they had fewer migraines, shorter headaches and less severe migraine headaches." 3

"Omega-3 fatty acids do decrease inflammation and relax blood vessels. These may also reduce the tendency of platelets -- blood cell fragments that play an important role in clotting -- to clump together or aggregate. Some studies link platelet clumping to the migraine process, and many standard migraine drugs serve to decrease the tendency of platelets to aggregate." 4

So far, they are taking care of most of my migraines.  I am also learning how to regulate my hormones so I can eliminate the migraines associated with them as well.  

You can use fish oil to help and or other supplements that include, evening primrose oil, flaxseed oil, chia seed oil, borage seed oil, extra virgin olive oil.  Food that are rich in Omega's include, walnuts, winter squash, kidney and black beans, and wild rice.

What to do when you feel like a headache is coming on?  Take a couple of fish oils or Omega 3's and see if you notice a difference.  Our 17 year old son took a couple when he had a mild headache and it went away for him.  If it works then you've just found a great simple, low cost remedy!  If it doesn't, keep trying as it may not work with hormonal headaches the same way it does for tension ones.  

All in all...it's certainly worth trying.  I am so thankful!

Have you found a natural cure that works for you to eliminate headaches?

Be blessed (and headache-free!)

*Here's a link to another great post from an M.D. about eliminating migraines.  He has some more suggestions on symptoms and treatments that are valuable to know.  You can read it here.


References:

1. http://migraine.com/migraine-treatment/natural-remedies/fish-oil-for-migraine-headaches/
2. Ibid.
3. Ibid.
4. http://headaches.about.com/lw/Health-Medicine/Conditions-and-diseases/Dietary-Supplements-and-Botanicals-for-Migraine-Headaches.htm

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