I love this herb. I first came across it (and the class of herbiage called “quelites”) in a book by Josefina Howard. At this stage of my life I was a qualified chef (although at this time my primary interest was in the spices and cooking of India) and a trained herbalist (I later became qualified in Naturopathy) and I realised as I thumbed through … Continue reading Papalo in my garden. 2024-2025
I briefly look at the masa based drink called atole in a couple of earlier Posts (1)(2) and I recommend you check these out for a little more context (culturally speaking). They’ll introduce you to the core ingredient (and arguably the basis of life in Mexico), the nixtamalised corn dough called masa, and it will introduce you to an archetypal piece of Mexican cooking equipment, … Continue reading A Naturopathic View of the Aztec Diet : Part 2 : Appendix 2 : Chocolate Drinks
“We must repeat it: Mesoamericans do not plant corn, Mesoamericans make cornfields. And they are different things because corn is a plant and the cornfield is a way of life. The cornfield is the matrix (womb) of Mesoamerican civilization. If we really want to preserve and strengthen our deep identity, not only agroecological but also socio-economic, cultural and civilizational, we must move from the corn … Continue reading A Naturopathic View of the Aztec Diet : Part 2 : Diet
Anzuinelli and crew are at it again. Their botanical wanderings of Argentina has bought to light a new species of pore leaf. In July of 2024 Anzuinelli (et al 2024) published an article commenting on the cataloguing of a “new endemic species” of Porophyllum less than 6 months after doing the very same with Porophyllum iruyense. They also had an interesting occurrence with the species … Continue reading New Porophyllum Discovered.
The investigation into this quelite came about as a result of one of my favourite anise scented herbs, Pericón (Tagetes lucida) (1) which also just happens to be in one of my favourite genera (and Families too now that I think on it – family Asteraceae in case you wondered). Sorry, got side-tracked, it happens on occasion. Now, pericón is also colloquially known as “cloud” … Continue reading Tzitziqui(litl)
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) arising from the misuse and overuse of antibiotics is a significant global health concern (Saed etal 2024). Studies have found that approximately 40 % of all registered resistant infections were caused by bacteria resistant to last-line antibiotics, which makes them nearly impossible to treat (Murray etal 2022) (Hofer 2019). It is expected that if the antimicrobial resistance issue remains unsolved, the associated … Continue reading Papalo as Medicine : Study Continues.
This dish resulted from a challenge given me by my friend Juan. I am known amongst my Mexican friends as Jamaica Man because I bring agua de jamaica to all of the FOMEX (1) events held in our city. At our last event (Mexican Independence Day celebration) which we held the day the Tallship Cuauhtemoc departed the Port of Fremantle (2), Juan regaled me of … Continue reading Flor de Jamaica : Tacos dorados con Crema de Aguacate
It is that time of year again. The days are waning, the nights are cooling (well they would be if I was Northern hemispherical) and my feeds are filling up with the autumnal imagery of this season of spirits. The boundaries between the worlds of the living and the dead fluctuate and bleed into each other and we welcome the memories of those who have … Continue reading Cempasúchil and Popocatepetl
Porophyllum is a genus of phanerogamous (1) plants belonging to the family Asteraceae (2) . The pore-leaf family includes 101 described species and of these, only 27 are accepted. They are native subshrubs of the Americas. As their name suggests (4), their leaves often have large glands that produce aromatic oils that give off a strong odour. The large majority of these plants are used … Continue reading Porophyllum iruyense
Lengua de vaca Now, when I speak of lengua de vaca (cows tongue) I am not speaking of the actual tongue of a cow but of a wild herb or “quelite”. The herb is no doubt (as you will see further down) named for its general appearance (shape and size wise in some cases) of a cows tongue. Commonly used and appreciated in México, the … Continue reading Quelite : Lengua de vaca
Masa Americana 