A Little Llama Love

a couple of sweet ones from here

What a Difference 10 Days Make...240 little hours.

With the warm (and blustery) weather we are having, it is hard to believe it looked like this last week.

Many Thanks, Mr. Sun...

You may be far away, but we feel you.

A Parallel Spice Universe

Wow! Seems like we here at Zamu Health (yes, i am using the royal we because my little one made me feel like a queen the other day when we were walking down the stairs and he saw a print similar to this picture and said, "Momma")

So, as i was...as we were saying, it seems that we tapped into a universal spice vibration that is buzzing around the world when we talked about cinnamon here and here and here.

How do we figure? The revelation came about on a little journey to a beautifully put together place called Chai Pilgrimage. We are either psychically, spice-ily connected, or they are checking out my blogs.

Beauty and Grace Personified

These are pics of my beloved friend, Nalini. They were taken in June, 2001. To learn more about Odissi, check out the website of my hands down favorite dancer (he wrote the article, too).

And here is Nalini when she was just a little peanut, right before her very first dance performance!

Man Oh Cinna-man!

Recently, in the other blog o' mine (and please feel free to tell me about any blog o' yours, i would love to check them out) i shared some of our kitchen experimentation. Last Thursday, after some grinding, food processing, measuring, rolling, and cutting we had delightful Raw Cinnamon Rolls!

Here is some of the skinny on the healing properties of the Cinna-Man:

Cinnaman with his friends Aardvark and Flying Lotus.
Known for his wonky, crunky and junkie bass and beats

"There are many different species, between 50 and 250, depending on which
botanist you choose to believe. The two main varieties are Cinnamomum cassia and
Cinnamomum zeylanicum. The first, cassia, we will consider separately in its own
section. C. zeylanicum is also known as Ceylon cinnamon (the source of the its
Latin name, zeylanicum), or ‘true cinnamon’ which is a lighter colour and
possessing a sweeter, more delicate flavour than cassia. A native of Sri Lanka
(formerly Ceylon) the best cinnamon grows along the coastal strip near Colombo." (This info from here.)

According to the folks here, "Cinnamon prevents nervous tension, improves complexion and memory. Cinnamon is an effective remedy for common cold. Coarsely powdered and boiled in a glass of water with a pinch of pepper powder and honey, it can be beneficially used as medicine in cases of influenza, sore throat, and malaria.

"Its regular use during the rainy season prevents attacks of influenza. Cinnamon checks nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. It stimulates digestion. A tablespoon of cinnamon water, prepared as for cold and taken half an hour after meals, relieves flatulence and indigestion.Cinnamon serves as a good mouth freshener.Cinnamon is highly beneficial in the treatment of several other ailments, including spasmodic afflictions, asthma, paralysis, excessive menstruation, uterus disorders and gonorrhea. It is sometimes used as a prophylactic agent, to control German measles."

The folks at the Epicenter report that, "Recent studies have determined that consuming as little as one-half teaspoon of Cinnamon each day may reduce blood sugar, cholesterol, and triglyceride levels by as much as 20% in Type II diabetes patients who are not taking insulin it is mildly carminative and used to treat nausea and flatulence. It is also used alone or in combination to treat diarrhea. Chinese herbalists tell of older people, in their 70s and 80s, developing a cough accompanied by frequent spitting of whitish phlegm. A helpful remedy, they suggest, is chewing and swallowing a very small pinch of powdered cinnamon. This remedy can also help people with cold feet and hands, especially at night. Germany's Commission E approves Cinnamon for appetite loss and indigestion.

"Cinnamon is predominantly used as a carminative addition to herbal prescriptions. It is used in flatulent dyspepsia, dyspepsia with nausea, intestinal colic and digestive atony associated with cold & debilitated conditions. It relieves nausea and vomiting, and, because of its mild astringency, it is particularly useful in infantile diarrhea. The cinnamaldehyde component is hypotensive and spasmolytic, and increases peripheral blood flow.

"The essential oil of this herb is a potent antibacterial, anti-fungal, and uterine stimulant. The various terpenoids found in the volatile oil are believed to account for Cinnamon’s medicinal effects. Test tube studies also show that Cinnamon can augment the action of insulin. However, use of Cinnamon to improve the action of insulin in people with diabetes has yet to be proven in clinical trials."

Cinnamon is chock full of chemical amazing-ness! Check it out: "The oil obtained from the bark contains cinnamaldehyde and smaller amounts of trans-cinnamic acid, o-methoxycinnamaldehyde, eugenol monoterpenoids. The oil from the leaf contains far smaller amounts of cinnamic aldehyde and higher quantities of eugenol, eugenol acetate and benzyl benzoate. Furthermore, it contains procyanidins, diterpenes, phenylpropanoids and polysaccharides."

Cinnamon has been used and valued for centuries. The Ancient Egytians prized it more than gold. It was a critical ingredient in their embalming process (btw, did you see the National Geographic article on Sicily's Crypt Mummies? Don't know if they used Cinnamon, but...interesting none the less.)

Cinnamon's anti-microbial properties are also being employed in extending the shelf life of bread.

It also happens to be one of the main ingredients in the namesake of this blog.

So go ahead, put a little more Cin in you life...no need to be shy.

References from The Epicenter.com
The Book of Spices, F. Rosengarten Jr. (Livingston Publishing Co. , Penn., USA, 1969)
Cooking With Spices, Carolyn Heal & Michael Allsop (David & Charles, Vermont, USA 1983)
Cupboard Love, A Dictionary of Culinary Curiosities, Mark Morton ((Insomniac Press, Toronto, Canada 2004) The Encyclopedia of Herbs and Herbalism, Malcolm Stuart (Macdonald & Company, Turin, Italy, 1987)
The Herb Book, John Lust (Bantam Books, New York, USA, 1984)
New Larousse Encyclopedia of Mythology, Felix Guirand (The Hamlyn Publishing Group Ltd, Middlesex, England, 1968)