Last week, my mother took me and Matthew to Byblos, an ancient Phoenician city in Lebanon. According to Wikipedia, it is "believed by many to be the oldest continuously inhabited city in the world." You can read more about Byblos here.
The city has an all-year market where you can buy replicas of Phoenician artifacts, fossilized marine life, and traditional Lebanese clothes. But more importantly, there's a very cool herb and spices store there, called Edde's Herbs. I took some photos to share with you!
Here's a bag full of dried rose petals. I remember making a pistachio/rose water cookie recipe from the Veganomicon many years ago, and thinking that some rose petals in it would be lovely.
And here's a full bag of chamomile. I have been drinking a lot of chamomile tea to help Franklin fall asleep more easily. I really think it works.
The city has an all-year market where you can buy replicas of Phoenician artifacts, fossilized marine life, and traditional Lebanese clothes. But more importantly, there's a very cool herb and spices store there, called Edde's Herbs. I took some photos to share with you!
Here's a bag full of dried rose petals. I remember making a pistachio/rose water cookie recipe from the Veganomicon many years ago, and thinking that some rose petals in it would be lovely.
And here's a full bag of chamomile. I have been drinking a lot of chamomile tea to help Franklin fall asleep more easily. I really think it works.
And check this out! Corn hairs, called Cheveux de Mais in French! I never thought anyone would want to buy corn silk specifically.
All these bags were outside. Inside, there were a lot of other herbs and many spices in bowls. I didn't take a photo of it but there was a big bowl of saffron threads! It was probably worth dozens of thousands of dollars!
You can read more about Edde's Herbs here. Apparently, what they sell is 76% organic, which is pretty nice. The organic movement is growing fast in Lebanon, there is even a national brand of organic produce called Biomass.
I ended up buying some fenugreek seeds to make fenugreek tea. Franklin has been nursing pretty much exclusively, and feeding a 28 lbs toddler on just breast milk is pretty intense. Since fenugreek is a galactogogue, I thought it might be a welcome addition to my diet.
Fenugreek Tea (stimulates milk production)
Ingredients:
1 t fenugreek seeds
1 cup boiled water
Steep until cool enough to drink.
Corn silk is actually a fairly well-liked herb. Supposed to be soothing and tonic, but I think it also helps with some particular skin issues (I'm not remembering precisely right now). I love those middle eastern outdoor herb and spice stores, and was impressed in Israel by how much the organic movement had come on too.
ReplyDeleteInteresting that Franklin is mostly nursing--is he finding it a big challenge to be out of his comfort zone? How's he enjoying all the fuss form the relatives? Are your relatives "cheek-pinchers" like mine are?
love
Ela
Hi Ela! Yea, it was pretty rough at first. He was so over-excited that getting him to sleep at night was tough... although he has been napping better. He's really enjoying my family and the fact they entertain him a lot, and it has been great for me because I get to rest and pack on a little weight! They sure are cheek pinchers :-)
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