Organico Bantry

Organic food has traditionally had a reputation for being “good for you” but a bit boring! Organico Café (Bantry, West Cork, Ireland) turns this on its head offering food that is both exciting and delicious. Rachel Dare, who trained with Darina Allen at Ballymaloe, supplies the inspiration behind the menu in Organico Café. Rachel has a distinctive style, fusing a combination of ingredients that are primarily organic and locally grown to create menus that are both lifestyle conscious and tasty. To take full advantage of what’s fresh and in season, the menu changes daily – but it’s always creative and interesting.

The café is surprisingly large, light and spacious, and is located next door to the shop but upstairs. It has a lively buzz at lunchtime, when you can enjoy a salad plate from the extensive salad bar, a summer courgette and rice noodle soup or one of the specials such as Gubbeen and leek frittata. So if you’re looking for an alternative place to have lunch that’s new and exciting or simply want a quite cup of Bantry’s best coffee (or green tea!) just pop up to Organico Café and treat yourself. Go on! You’re worth it!

Rachel’s Summer Salad
Throughout the summer we are all looking for lunch ideas that are light, fresh and tasty. We are lucky in our shop to have people from all walks of life bringing us their own lovingly grown fruit and vegetables, so we have the best of local produce to choose from. I am using Quinoa (pronounced kee-no-wah) as the base for this salad, because it can be used as a substitute for couscous as it is wheat-free. Quinoa is often called a ‘supergrain’ as it is also a very good source of vitamins, minerals and protein, and has a light delicate flavour which appeals to all.

Two cups of quinoa grain, cooked as shown below.
1/3 cucumber (can be replaced with baby courguettes, diced)
10 cherry tomatoes, diced
A handful of finely chopped fresh mint, fresh basil, and fresh parsley
100 g fetta cheese, crumbled
One small red onion or a bunch of scallions, chopped finely
1 ripe avocado, peeled and diced (a little lemon juice stops it discolouring)

Dressing
3 tablespoons of olive oil
1 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon salt and fresh ground pepper
1 teaspoon of honey or concentrated apple juice

Rinse the Quinoa grain well under cold water in a sieve, To cook, place two cups cold water to one cup quinoa in a sauce pan and bring to the boil, reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook until the grains are translucent and the sprout has spireled out of the grain (about 15 minutes). While this is cooking, prepare the rest of the ingredients. When the Quinoa is ready allow to cool slightly, add to the other ingredients and dress to taste. Serve on its own as a light lunch or with chicken or fish as a more substantial meal.
If you want to buy Quinoa grain or the other fresh salad ingredients, we stock them in Organico!

Organico Cafe, Glengarriff Road, Bantry, Co. Cork Ireland. Tel 00 353 (27) 55905.

1 cup quinoa grain
2 cups water

100 g parsley and mint
100g cherry tomatoes

dressing

100 mls olive oil
300 mls water
50 mls balsamic vinegar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 dessertspoon apple concentrate

Rinse the Quinoa grain well under running water (this is beacuse there is a bitter coating on the grains) Bring to the boil then simmer checking after twenty minutes quarter tomatoes, chop mint and parsley add the dressing ingredients and let stand for 30 minutes.
This is a lovely simple salad that works really well with a combination of different herbs so have fun with it, adding sundried tomatoes, olives, fetta cheese, toasted seeds, the list is endless…

1kg dried chickpeas
400 mls olive oil
2 lemons
5 cloves of garlic minced
1 inch piece of ginger minced
200 mls red wine vinegar
2 lrg red onions
3 teaspoon salt
2 tsp pepper

Soak dried chickpeas over night then cook for about 1 to 2 hours(you know when its done as you will be able to crush one easily). Take out about a quarter and mash then zest both lemons and juice, add the cloves of garlic, minced ginger and finely diced red onions combine all the dressin ingredients then mix well with chickpres and allow rest for at least an hour. This is really necessary to develop the flavor and it can last for anything up 3-4 days if refridgerated. When serving garnish with a handful of chopped parsley. This is large quantity as it was being made up for the cafe however it works just as well done in half quantities.

MIXED BEAN SALAD

500 g kindey beans
500 g cannolinni beans
½ cucumber
1 pkt parsley
1 pkt coriander
300 g red onion

dressing
125 mls sweet chili sauce
100 mls vinegar
200 mls olive oil
1 lemon zest and juice
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper

Soak the kidney and cannolinni beans for over night or at least 12 hours in separate pans this is because the color of the kidney beans will stain the others) with lots of water then cook them both at a slow simmer for 1 to 2 hours checking after 1 hour every 10 minutes, drain and allow to cool slightly. Mix up the dressing and add to the warm beans and allow to soak in for 30 mins. Dice the cucumber, celery and onion finely and add to the beans. This is another recipe that works well if left for a day and will keep for up the 3-4 days in the fridge.

If you use a good quality olive oil and organic red cabbage, carrots and seeds, this salad is very nutritious and high in fiber as well as healthy fats. Eat with some fresh poached or oven roasted fish or tofu and a small amount of Quinoa or brown rice for a light lunch or evening meal.

500 g red cabbage
250g grated carrot
50 g sesame seeds
100 g sunflower seeds
small bunch parsley

Dressing
2 tblsp Apple juice concentrate
2 tblsp Olive Oil
1 tblsp Lemon juice
pinch salt and pepper

• Cut red cabbage thinly taking out the tough stalks, peel carrots and grate,
• Toast seeds in a hot dry frying pan until lightly brown, Chop parsley.
• Combine all ingredients in a bowl, mix dressing in a small jam jar and pour over, mix well. Will keep well for a few hours, but best fresh.

750 g white cabbage
500 g carrot
250 g apple
200 g onion

make dressing in measuring jug
200 g mayonaise
250 g yoghurt
50 g olive oil
50 g white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper

Thinly slice white cabbage cutting out any tough stalks out first, peel or scrape carrots (if using non organic or making it ahead of time) and grate, thinly slice onion, quarter apples and grate with skins unless they are tough and put all ingredients into a wide mixing bowl, combine everything then add half the dressing at first then add more to taste.

Flaxseed Oil and general HealthMany people think that avoiding all fat is the best way of staying healthy, but actually there are some substances found in ‘good’ fats that are essential to our heatlth. Scientists have designated Omega 3 and 6 ‘essential’ fats, as our bodies cannot manufacture them – rather we need to have them as part of our daily diet. Unfortunately, many of us rely on processed foods and we rarely eat the amount of seeds, nuts or oily fish that we should, and hence we are chronically shory of these fats. What often hapens in the west is that our diets become too high in omega 6 and dangerously low in omega 3, when the real key to health from fats lies in ingesting the essential ones in the proper ratio. One way to do this is to use a product like Udo’s 3•6•9 Oil Blend made by Flora in Canada.

Cancer Therapy
Flaxseeds and their oil have been shown to halp conditions that range from cancer to arthritis and heart disease. For over 30 years, German researcher Joanna Budwig has been promoting the use of flaxseed oil in cancer therapy. She now has over a thousand cases documented where flaxseed oil has been the main treatment used to ‘cure’ cancer (for information on Dr Budwig’s protocol, click here). Recent research shows that alpha linoleic acids (found in flaxseed oil) kill cancer cells without harming the normal cells. For anyone diagnosed with cancer, whether they are using conventional or alternative treatment, flaxseeds and flaxseed oil should be seriously considered. Flax oil is also important for those of us without a serious diagnosis, omega fats are not called ‘essesntial’ for nothing! They are implicated in energy production, repair and maintenance of skin cells, hormonal balance and emotional balance amony many other things. In Organico we sell a lot of products containing essential fats to people with menopausal issues, arthritis or joint pain, or chronic skin problems such as psoriasis.

Dr.Johanna Budwig Blend:

Ingredients:

1 cup Organic cottage cheese or yoghurt
2-5 Tbsp. of flaxseed oil-
1-3 Tbsp. of freshly ground up flaxseed (electric coffee grinder ($15) works fine)
enough water to make it soft
little cayenne (red hot chilly pepper)

little red pepper

Blend and use as a spread!

Always consult a qualified medical practitioner!

Organico Shop, Glengarriff Rd., Bantry, Co. Cork, Ireland. Phone +353 (0)27 51391

In Organico we try to practice what we preach. Many people say they use ‘organic products wherever possible’, but when you ask them the might use organic lettuce, in the summer. We are trying to use all organic products unless they are not available.
All our soups, salads and bakes are made using organic fruit & vegetables (locally grown whenever possible), organic lentils, chickpeas, beans etc. Our breads are organic (of course – they are fresh from our bakery), so is our coffee, and tea. The milk in our lattes is organic too! Our cakes are made with organic Spelt flour and any sugar used is both raw cane and organic.

We use local Irish cheeses, real local free range eggs, extra virgin low acidity olive oils, and local Irish butter.

Because we use so much organic fruit and veg in our food, we are very aware of what grows well in which seasons and where. For example right now (the middle of summer)we are using a lot of spinach, beetroot, mange tout peas, broad beans, chard, courgettes, salad veg and herbs as they are all in season in Ireland. We do use imported fruit and veg, because otherwise things would get very plain in the winter, but we always try to use only what grows in Europe. At the moment there are loads of great tomatoes, peppers and aubergines, fresh garlic and lovely cherries and apricots coming from France.

For more information on Organic fruit and veg, you can look up IOFGA, and organicmattersmag.com.

Organico Cafe, Glengarriff Road, Bantry, Co. Cork Ireland. Tel 00 353 (27) 55905.

Belonging to the same family as the buttercup, goldenesal Hydrasis canadensis is a perennial herb native to north America. It gets its name from the rich yellow colour of its root and the small cup like scars found there, which resemble the wax seals used in the 19th century to close envelopes. It is a difficult plant to grow in cultivation, especially in the UK – most of the goldeneseal sold in Europe is imported dried or powderded from the US.

Ancient Origins

The dried root of Goldenseal has long been used to sooth inflamed or infected mucus membranes. The Cherokee, Iroquis and other native American tribes valued it as a remedy for anything from insect bites to bloating to eye infections and stomach aches. Numerous references to goldenseal as a strong tea for indigestion began to appear in medical writings as far back as the 1800′s. These days it is considered by medical herbalists in Europe to be an inportant herb in the fight against infection, as it has immune boosting, anti-viral, anti-bacterial, and anti-inflamatory properties. It is good for colds, flus, dijestive disorders, urinary tract infections, eye infections, cold sores and gum disease.

Oganico stocks a powdered goldenseal from Munster Wholefoods, a tincture of goldenseal from Naturalife, and capsules by Lifeplan.

Medicinal Benefits

The active ingredients in goldenseal are the alkaloids berberine and hydrastine. These can be used to build up the immune system and to destroy many types of bacterial and viral infections. A daily dose of goldenseal at the first sign of cold symptoms can help it turning into a full blown cold by enhancing the activity of virus fighting white blood cells. Goldenseal is often used in conjunction with echinacea, as one seems to enhance the potenct of the other. It is often used in cases of mild urinary tract infections, and other mild bacterial infections such as cold sores.

Goldenseal is also used to sooth the dijestive tract in cases of vomiting and nausea, as it is thought to stimulate the dijestive sectretions and help to destroy bacteria that are causing the symptoms. Used as an eyewash, it can sooth conjunctivitis, and as a mouthwash it helps to sooth gum disease. In addition, goldenseal can be used to help a range of menopausal and menstrual problems. it combines well with chaste tree and is especially good for cooling hot flushes and night sweats.

Methods

To infuse goldenseal, use one teaspoon of the dried herd to 600 mls of water. Steep, then strain through muslin and leave to cool. The infusion can be used as an eye of mouth wash three times a day. Alternatively, use 2-3 mls of goldenseal tincture in a tumbler of warm water for mouth ulsers and gum disease.

Watch Point

Goldenseal should be taken only for the duration of an illness or complaint, and is best taken with meals. It is a uterine stimulant and should not be used during pregnancy, or by people with high blood pressure or glaucoma. It should not be given to children under the age of two.

Naturally you should always consult a qualified medical practitioner for any chronic health conditions.

Organico Shop, Glengarriff Rd., Bantry, Co. Cork, Ireland. Phone +353 (0)27 51391