Whether your unique mane coils into bouncy ringlets, twists into wild waves, or cascades down as straight as a pin, you’ve undoubtably experienced bad hair days. On too many occasions to count in my life, I’ve stumbled out of bed in the morning and glanced into the mirror to find a sight only explainable by a bird crafting a nest out of my frazzled locks overnight. After reaching for every fancy spritz and spray buried in my cabinets, I’d more often than not be left with relatively tamed frizz, greasy roots, and a wafting heavy perfume fragrance that was less than desirable. Inevitably, I would succumb to the classic slicked-back ponytail or throwing my mop of hair under a big hat on days such as these.

Eating sprouted seeds is a relatively recent culinary trend in the U.S., even though they are ridiculously easy to grow and can be an excellent source of potassium, magnesium, folate, beta-carotene, calcium, vitamin C, and vitamin K. These days, bean sprouts, grain sprouts, and salad sprouts are readily available at farmers markets, natural foods stores, and in the produce section of many grocery stores. But I grow my own because it’s easy to do, saves me money, and I like to keep control over the process to ensure that the sprouts I feed my family are safe and at the peak of flavor and nutrition.

Have you heard of "no 'poo" and scratched your head in wonder about what this means? While the term is definitely not my favorite, the philosophy behind it is worth exploring. It refers to moving away from using expensive commercial shampoos and conditioners, which often contain harsh synthetic fragrances, sodium laureth sulfate, propylene glycol, and other creepy ingredients from mystery labs around the world. Because we trust that such products will make our hair gorgeous, we drench ourselves in weird chemicals without knowing how they affect our overall health. Plus, think of the millions of plastic bottles from all the hair care products we use that end up in recycling bins or landfills.

But we HAVE to use shampoo, right?—Wrong!

I am a firm believer in broths for their gut-supporting, extremely tasty, and nourishing qualities. You can pack so much nutrition in each little sip. Adding a myriad of herbs to our broth base is the perfect vehicle for incorporating wellness into our modern lives.

Fermented rice water has a long history of use in Asia as a hair rinse. When we soak or cook rice, we capture the natural inositol from the grain in the water. Inositol is a form of sugar that our bodies naturally produce to provide structure to our cells, and is also found in some foods, including grains and legumes like rice. Inositol-rich rice water, especially when fermented, also carries proteins, vitamins, minerals, and amino acids believed to support a healthy scalp, hair strength, and shine. Want to take it up another notch? Infuse rice water with hair-loving herbs! 

We are big stir-fry and Asian food fans at my house, and I love a really good stir-fry sauce. But I struggle with the high fructose corn syrup and the way-too-many-preservatives-and-ingredients-I-can’t-pronounce problem in most bottled sauces. Also, the presence of seafood and/or gluten are issues for my vegetarian and gluten-free family members. And finally, for many households like mine, it’s hard to get through an entire bottle before the contents spoil. All of this means I refuse to purchase pre-made stir-fry sauces and the oyster or hoisin sauce that is so common (and delicious) in my favorite Asian sauces. I wanted to create an easy-to-use substitute that packs in the umami goodness I love about these sauces.

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When your moontime calls, listen to your body. She’s calling for nourishment and rest. Calling you back to yourself and your wise woman within. Back to the cycle of the moon within you—your womb, your hormonal cycle, your psyche. Give yourself permission to find a little quiet time to yourself. Soak in some extra self-care. Sip herbal infusions.

I like inclusivity in food, and my friends and family group includes omnivores and vegetarians/vegans, as well as people with food allergies, autoimmune diseases, religious restrictions, etc. I love to feed my people, so I’m always experimenting, which is how I found myself going down this agar-agar as a replacement for gelatin rabbit hole, and then one thing led to another, and I got curious to know how much agar is the right amount for the best mouthfeel in vegan gummies (welcome to my brain). I made elderberry juice gummies, which were tasty and a fun way to get an extra boost of vitamins and minerals. Then I discovered apple cider vinegar gummies—I love these little ACV morsels!

Welcome to a new year! What are you calling in and saying yes to? What are you letting go of and saying no to? The beginning of the year is always a great time to take stock of what’s working for you (and not working) individually and collectively. As I look back on 2023, I think about the choices I made throughout the year and the impact that resulted from my actions. I understand that every decision—no matter how small—truly matters, and our actions create a ripple effect in our interconnected world.

There are over 12,000 species of seaweed drifting in synchrony with our ocean currents, but one type of these uniquely diverse sea botanicals has taken wellness communities by storm in recent years. Recipes and advertisements highlighting the nutritional benefits of “sea moss gel” have been buzzing around just about every corner of the wellness world, and for good reason! I first encountered sea moss on a Pinterest blog detailing a vegan “bone broth” recipe, which instantly hooked my attention. As a vegan with over a decade of my life spent experimenting with plant-based foods, replicating a vegan version of such an animal-oriented fare was not something I had considered to be a possibility before. This recipe sparked my interest in uncovering the endless array of creative uses and nutritional benefits the ocean provides for us in the form of aquatic grassy tangles: seaweed!

There is always happy anticipation around Mountain Rose Herbs when we get the opportunity to bring in a new herbal ally. And when that botanical is grown by one of our passionate, conscientious farm partners right here in Oregon, our excitement is tinged with some home-state pride. So, we are pleased to announce that we are now carrying organic bee balm (Monarda fistulosa) grown at Oregon’s own Oshala Farm!