LookSmart: Cooking With Essential Oils & Recipes

[Guest guest]

Again, please do your own research on essential oils before taking

them internally.. Hopefully though this will give you inspiration

and serve as a first step on a longer journey...

Other comments?

Misty L. Trepke

http://health.

 

 

Cooking with Essential Oils

Healthy & Natural Journal, Dec, 2000 by Menkit Prince

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0HKL/is_6_7/ai_76471210/pg_1

 

The art of distilling essential oils from plants began 6,000 years

ago with the ancient Egyptians. If you're not familiar with

essential oils and their benefits, read on!

 

More potent than herbs

 

Essential oils are the chemical constituents found in aromatic

plants (plants are chemical factories) that exist to protect the

plant from invading organisms and microbes, to help it heal from

wounds, to carry nutrients to the plant cells (as the blood of

humans does) and to attract certain insects and repel others. When

plants are distilled (or coldpressed, such as citrus oils), the

resulting essential oils are far more potent than when they are

dried as herbs.

 

Many physicians, especially in France, are treating patients with

essential oils and getting excellent results without the side

effects of orthodox medicine. One such doctor and author is Daniel

Penoel, M.D. Dr. Penoel also recommends using therapeutic-grade

essential oils in food preparations as they purify the body, enhance

the immune system and generate endorphins (mood-elevators). In the

United States, Dr. Phillip Minton claims that eating pure essential

oils can improve circulation and oxygenation and protect against

heart disease, dementia and cancer. And they taste fantastic!

 

Essential oils can come from many different parts of the plant:

flowers, blossoms, fruit (skins), seeds, stems, leaves, roots and

bark. Their tastes encompass tangy (lemon, orange, tangerine,

grapefruit, mandarin, lime), spicy (cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, ginger,

black pepper, cardamom, cumin), floral (geranium, rose, lavender),

herbaceous (oregano, basil, dill, rosemary, sage, tarragon, savory),

and mint (peppermint, spearmint), to name just a few. Because they

are so concentrated, only tiny amounts (a drop or two) are required.

 

Unlike fatty oils, such as olive, flax, sesame, avocado and soybean

oils, essential oils contain no glycerol molecules that give a

characteristic slippery texture and leave a greasy residue.

Distilled essential oils contain no fat, whereas fatty oils are 100

percent fat. Essential oils are composed of hundreds of different

molecules that are antiviral, antibacterial, antifungal, antiseptic

and immune stimulating.

 

Safe to consume

 

Since this is such a new field, many readers may be wondering

whether ingesting essential oils is safe. Some oils have toxic

components; for example, nutmeg oil contains myristicin and

elemicin, which are psychotropic. However, when taken in moderate

amounts (a few drops per person), there is no toxic effect. In fact,

the LD5O (lethal dose for half the population) for an average adult

would be 1 100mL. of nutmeg oil. In addition, nutmeg oil is safer

than whole nutmeg because the most toxic components in nutmeg are

non-volatile. In the process of distillation, most of these

components evaporate.

 

Although there have been cases of narcosis and collapse with just

one whole nutmeg, people universally use nutmeg as a food seasoning.

Other oils contain toxic compounds (e.g., parsley, cinnamon, clove,

basil, anise, fennel and tarragon oils) but are safe when used in

moderation. Even commonly used cooking ingredients such as table

salt hold potential for harm when administered in high dosages.

However, it would be an overreaction to say that salt should not be

used in food.

 

Can these toxic compounds accumulate in the body? The majority of

oil molecules are terpines and terpenoids that are multiples of five

carbon fragments. Since the body can only use food that can be

broken down into two-carbon fragments, oils must be excreted by the

body. Since essential oils are not water-soluble, they are made

water-soluble by various enzymes found in the liver. From there,

they are excreted by the kidney via urine. However, if an essential

oil component is introduced to the body at a faster rate than the

liver can convert it into a water-soluble form, liver toxicity can

result. This could happen even if the mode of entry was not

ingestion. (There have been reported cases of serious liver damage

resulting from excessive skin application of eucalyptus oil.) Again,

moderation is the key.

 

Usage tips

 

Some oils can be irritating if used directly on mucous membranes

(cinnamon, lemongrass) but will pose no problem when mixed evenly

with food.

 

Using cheap, adulterated oils is not recommended. I cannot

overstress the importance of procuring only the highest-grade

essential oil with no toxic, synthetic chemicals, SD-40 alcohol, and

propylene glycol (carcinogenic). How can you be sure? Contact the

company and ask for a GCMS (gas chromatography mass spectrometry)

analysis. Avoid oils extracted with carbon dioxide, solvents or

fabricated in a lab ( " nature identical " oils). If possible, oils

should be organic (especially citrus oils because of pesticide

spraying) and distilled at low temperatures with low pressure so

that the oil is not fractured or burned. This ensures that all the

chemical constituents are extracted, giving a full-bodied, authentic

taste.

 

When using essential oils in food preparation, it is better to stir

them in last or when food has cooled because heat evaporates oils.

Some oils, such as oregano, rosemary and basil, are very strong, so

it is better to simmer them a little.

 

Another interesting consideration is that using essential oils in

your kitchen can actually save money. Instead of buying a whole

lemon, orange or bouquet of fresh herbs, a single drop of essential

oil will yield as much flavor. Kept in a cool, dark place, essential

oils should last many years. (The oils found in the tomb of King

Tutankhamen were in immaculate condition even after thousands of

years.)

 

You already encounter essential oils in your diet. Each time you

chew gum, eat confectionery or chocolates, or even brush your teeth,

essential oils are the flavoring agent. Every time you eat dishes

simmered with herbs such as dried or fresh oregano, basil, etc., the

characteristic flavor from the essential oil contained in the plant

lingers on. So don't be afraid--jump in with abandon. A whole new

gustatory experience awaits you.

 

The recipes on pages 32-35 are excerpted from The Essential Oil

Cookbook, a vegan recipe book based on the Hunza diet. The Hunzas,

who live in the Kashmir Valley of India, are reported to be living

up to 120 and 140 years of age, free of degenerative disease. There

are no nursing homes. Their diet primarily consists of whole,

unprocessed grains, fruits and vegetables (mostly raw), beans, nuts

and seeds. Only 1 percent of their calories comes from animal

products.

 

ZANZIBAR CINNAMON MILK

 

(Serves 4)

 

2/3 cup raw almonds

 

4 soft dates

 

4 cups water

 

1 drop cinnamon oil

 

4 drops orange oil

 

Remove pits from dates. Soak almonds and dates in 2 cups water

overnight. Blend with remaining water until homogenized. Add

cinnamon and orange oils; then sieve in a mesh strainer. Serve

chilled.

 

NUTMEG VITALITY JUICE

 

(Serves 2)

 

2 cups fresh carrot juice

 

1/4 cup ground flaxseeds

 

2 drops nutmeg oil

 

Grind flaxseeds in a coffee grinder. Stir into carrot juice. Add

nutmeg oil and mix thoroughly.

 

CENTENARIAN LEMON PEPPER CUTLETS

 

(Serves 2)

 

8 ounces firm, organic tofu

 

1 tablespoon reduced-salt soy sauce or Braggs

 

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

 

2 drops black pepper oil

 

4 drops lemon oil

 

Freeze tofu overnight. Thaw for 3 hours. Using your hands, gently

squeeze out as much liquid as possible without breaking tofu. Slice

into four 1/2 inch-thick pieces. Stir together soy sauce, garlic

powder and black pepper oil. Spoon half this marinade over tofu

pieces. Broil (or barbeque) 5 minutes, turn and spoon the remaining

marinade over the other sides. Broil another 5 minutes until crispy.

Before serving, smear I drop lemon oil over each cutlet.

 

Menkit Prince is a pioneer in the art of combining essential oils

with food. Her research into alternative healing methods convinced

her that diet is the most important factor in creating vibrant

health and longevity. After years of experimentation, she now

embraces the diet of the world's longest-lived cultures,

specifically the Hunzas, on which her book, The Essential Oil

Cookbook, is based.

 

Discovering essential oils for cooking was a true treat for us.

Menkit Prince, author of the Essential Oil Cookbook, offers some

sage advice and delicious recipes in this month's Menu du Jour

column.

 

HIGH PRIESTESS DRESSING

 

(Serves 4)

 

1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice

 

6 Tablespoons tahini sesame paste

 

3/4 teaspoon reduced-salt soy sauce

 

2-3 drops dill oil

 

Blend first three ingredients. Stir in dill oil. Fabulous on salads

and vegetables.

 

RUBY APPLE DRESSING (Serves 3)

 

1/2 cup cashew butter

 

4 apples

 

1 beet (half the size of an apple)

 

3-4 drops mandarin oil

 

 

Juice the apples and beet together. Blend juice and cashew butter

until creamy. Stir in Mandarin oil. Its intense hot pink color looks

gorgeous on green leaf salads.

 

INDONESIAN GINGER SMOOTHIE

 

2 apples

 

(Serves 2)

 

1 cup apple juice

 

1 cup water

 

2 tablespoons cashew butter

 

2 drops ginger oil

 

4 drops lemon oil

 

6 drops stevia concentrate

 

Chop apples. Blend apples with apple juice, water and cashew butter

until smooth. Stir in ginger oil, lemon oil and stevia. Chill for

several hours (or overnight) before serving to bring out this

interesting array of tastes.

 

COPYRIGHT 2000 Measurement & Data Corporation

COPYRIGHT 2001 Gale Group