1 Tablespoon red-wine or cider vinegar

½ teaspoon A.H. of your choice (bay laurel, thyme, tarragon, dill, wild ginger are good options)

½ teaspoon Dijon mustard

4 To 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, the finer the better

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

pinch of sugar

1 Garlic clove, peeled

Place all ingredients except garlic in a bottle, put the lid on, and shake like crazy or use a blender. Taste and adjust flavors. Put the peeled garlic clove in the bottle and refrigerate for several hours. You may then remove the garlic if you wish.

Main Dishes

Essential oils and hydrosols are delicious added to meat recipes, either during cooking or in the gravy or sauce.

ROAST CHICKEN

1 whole organic chicken

2 organic carrots, scrubbed and chopped

1 small onion, unpeeled and chopped

1 leek, washed, trimmed, and chopped

A.H. marjoram or thyme CT linalol

A.H. sage

1 lemon, halved, juice squeezed and saved

sea salt

freshly ground pepper or E.O. black pepper

2 garlic cloves, crushed

butter

Wash and dry the chicken inside and out. Place carrots, onion, and leek in the bottom of your roasting pan and pour 2 tablespoons of each hydrosol over them. Pour lemon juice over chicken, covering all the surfaces, and place lemon pieces inside the bird. Rub salt, pepper, and the garlic into the skin and place breast side up on top of vegetables in the pan. Dot surface with butter and place in 350°F oven. After 20 minutes baste chicken with pan juices or extra hydrosol; repeat every 20 minutes and cook until leg juices run clear (approximately 25 minutes per pound at 350°F). When chicken is cooked, remove pan from oven, place on a heated serving platter, and tent lightly with foil, but allow room for steam to escape so the skin stays crisp.

To make gravy, pour off all but 1 tablespoon of fat from the pan, sprinkle in 1 tablespoon wholewheat or spelt flour, and cook, scraping up the brown bits and vegetables. Add 1 glass red wine, 1 tablespoon of each hydrosol, and approximately 250 ml water or stock, stirring continuously over medium heat until desired consistency is reached. Strain gravy into a heated jug and serve with the chicken.

MOCK VENISON MEATBALLS

500 gm extra-lean ground organic beef or buffalo meat

1 garlic clove, minced

1 egg

1 tablespoon wheat germ

3 drops E.O bay laurel

3 drops E.O juniper

1 drop E.O. rosemary CT cineole

sea salt

freshly ground pepper or E.O. black pepper

sesame or sunflower oil, organic

1 large red onion, cut in half and then into thick slices

2 tablespoons A.H. juniper berry

1 tablespoon A.H. bay laurel

3 tablespoons A.H. wild ginger

3 tablespoons dry red wine

Combine the meat, garlic, egg, wheat germ, and essential oils, adding just a pinch of salt but a generous amount of pepper. Form into small meatballs no larger than a walnut. Heat a heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat and add 1 tablespoon organic sesame or sunflower oil. Fry the meatballs in small batches, shaking the pan to keep them round. Add oil as necessary between batches. When all the meatballs are cooked, pour off any extra oil and add 1 tablespoon fresh oil and the onion; cover with a lid and allow the onion to steam and sauté for 5 minutes. Remove lid and stir, scraping up any brown bits on the bottom of the pan; cook until onions are translucent. Add the hydrosols and the dry red wine, making sure the bottom of the pan is scraped clean. Bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes, or until reduced by half. Add meatballs and immediately reduce heat to low; simmer for 15 minutes, covered. Serve over fat egg noodles and garnish with a spoon of sour cream and plenty of finely chopped fresh parsley.

This is my favorite meal when it’s twenty below zero outside. By changing the hydrosols and essential oils and using virgin coco-crème as your oil, you can turn this into an equally delicious Asian or curry dish.

STEAMED SALMON

½ cup A.H. blend (melissa, dill or tarragon or both, and petitgrain)

½ cup water