Back to Eden

I just visited Amazon, and was delighted to see this book as a recommendation for me.



Jethro Kloss's legendary work on vegan eating and herbal remedies was one of the main catalysts for my love of herbs down through the years. I had a copy of it while I was still in high school (early 1970s.) I had forgotten.

I remember a really great recipe idea I got from this book. I used to cook soybeans in the pressure cooker and freeze them in 1 cup amounts to use in a casserole or loaf. Basically I added a starch, such as bread crumbs or cooked brown rice. It had to be seasoned with sage and onion, and I would always include a tomato product, such as sauce or canned tomatoes. I loved the combination of flavors. I am not vegetarian now, but I used to make this dish years ago during a time when I had given up meat. I like the idea of being vegetarian, but the plain truth of it is that I feel better when I have some meat in my diet. Without meat, it's like my brain is kind of foggy or fuzzy.

Anyway, Back to Eden is a great book to peruse for information about herbal remedies of the past, although some of his suggestions might not be backed up by modern herbalists. (For instance, I remember he recommended lobelia for a lot of ailments, but as I understand it, lobelia is no longer considered a safe herb to use.)

Whatever... I don't claim to be any kind of authority on any of this - just someone who loves wild plants and likes to read about them. My advice is to be really cautious about using them medicinally, and getting advice from knowledgeable people along the way.