While on the subject of seasonal August eating, I will shift my focus to my absolute favorite two things in the whole wide world: corn and tomatoes. It’s probably because they come of age at just the same time- tomatoes reach their sweetest and juiciest potential while corn hits that super sugary, crunchy and thick stage, characteristics […]
August 29, 2012
Earth Time
Late August is a time of abundant harvest, endlessly pale blue skies, yellow flowers, tall grasses, and sultry, humidity. To be entirely honest, I don’t really like it, though not for any of the above in particulars. I love tomatoes and corn, synonymous with the season, but that doesn’t seem to be enough. It could be a fleeting […]
August 15, 2012
Pain Bagnat
This recipe doesn’t really have much to do with Chinese food energetics, but as a New Englander, I often think local and in season trumps any sort of theoretical knowledge, no matter how old it may be. Besides, even according to the acupuncturist’s calender of dos and don’ts, August is “earth time,” damp and plentiful, […]
August 3, 2012
Salad While You Can
For most of the year, I’m not a huge advocate of “the salad.” I see people ordering icy cold plates of lettuce and raw peppers in January and I can’t help but cringe. But, when we finally hit summer’s muggy humid heat, when bare feet become the footwear of choice and gardens offer up endless […]
August 2, 2012
From Scratch: Vietnamese Soy-Grilled Chicken
Due to my own propensity to various food and chemical sensitivities, I try to stay away from things like preservatives in my food. I’ve currently narrowed down the culprits to sulfites and benzoates, both very common additives in prepared sauces, and nearly impossible to avoid when eating out. Both sulfites and benzoates trigger asthma attacks, which can mean […]
July 22, 2012
You, Me, Shoe
For whatever reason, it has become normal to dehusk one’s corn in-store. There are very few things that irk me the way that this does (The song Call Me Maybe being one of them). “But it’s so much easier to just do it there,” you whine, “and I avoid getting those little corn silky things […]
July 19, 2012
Peril By Puncture
Here’s a common question/lingering fear/excuse for berating my profession: CAN ACUPUNCTURE KILL ME? And that’s completely legit. You should be asking that question. After all, we are dealing with the combination of needles and skin. Still, I have seen the “dangers” of acupuncture presented so far out of proportion that there is a common school […]
July 13, 2012
Summer Hangover Soup
It’s mid-summer. Let’s talk heat stroke, shall we? This is the one area you don’t need to have a deep philosophical understanding of Chinese medicine to get. I mean, when you’re hot and feel kind of sick from it, you’d probably love to dump some excess heat. Typical reactions to the malaise, nausea, headache and […]
July 11, 2012
Atkins on Toast
Finally we have a decent study that proves not all calories are created equal. The study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, examined how three popular diets affect metabolism and weight loss. Specifically it put the standard low-fat, high carb diet so beloved by cardiac surgeons, against an Atkins’- like high fat, […]
June 28, 2012
Health and Taxes
Let’s get this straight, shall we. The Supreme Court ruled Obamacare constitutional. But you have to actually read what they deemed constitutional to understand that this doesn’t mean what you probably think it means. The ruling was that the government does, in fact, have the right to tax citizens based on whatever group they do […]
August 29, 2012
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