"This is my war against infectious disease," says  Dr. Cassandra Quave, a leading medical ethnobotanist. Plants are the basis for an array of medications we all now take for granted. However, in today’s world of synthetic pharmaceuticals, scientists and laypeople alike have lost this connection to the natural world. By ignoring the potential of medicinal plants, we are losing out on the opportunity to discover new life-saving medicines needed in the fight against antibiotic-resistant microbes. In her new book, The Plant Hunter: A Scientist’s Quest for Nature’s Next Medicines, she shows us how important studying plants is while sharing her own incredible journey and working tirelessly to make a difference.​

“People have used plants to manage infectious diseases throughout human history. Of the 374,000 or so plant species already discovered on Earth, about 33,000 are used in medicine today. However, not many of these plants have been scientifically investigated in depth. What do we actually know about the antimicrobial potential of these plants in combating bacterial pathogens?

“Plants are chemically complex, and while this can present a challenge in the lab, it shouldn’t scare us away from studying plant compounds for antibacterial potential  This complexity contributed to the scientific community’s shift away from natural products in its search for new antibiotics in the 1980s. But today we have tools at our disposal that we didn’t have then—for example, analytical chemistry tools to better understand the activities of and relationships between plant compounds. “It seems logical to me that we should investigate sources that have already been used—in some cases for millennia—by humans to treat infections. Instead of being fearful of plants’ complexity, let’s take advantage of it.”
~ Dr. Cassandra Quave

Read all about Dr. Quave and her inspiring, ground-breaking work in our current edition.

Your best bud is going to love this recipe!! It’s super easy to make, only four ingredients, and easy to store.
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If your pup doesn’t like kale, you can switch out the vegetable. Make sure the pieces are small or finely chopped. These are just a few suggestions I have tried with Zu.

• Boiled carrots
• Boiled sweet potatoes, slightly firm
• Cooked broccoli
• Cooked green beans
• Spinach

I used coconut oil to line the baking dish, just enough to keep the meatballs from sticking. It’s an oil that’s part of Zu’s regular diet. You may substitute with olive oil or flaxseed oil but avoid vegetable oils especially corn oil and anything with soybeans. Even though your dog may be fine with peanut butter, avoid peanut oil. The molecular structure changes in the heat and dogs can develop stomachaches...same with heated butter. You may use a non-stick metal baking pan instead.

I’ve read that vegetables need to be cooked and pureed before dogs can digest them. Wolves usually get their greens from the stomachs of their kill. It’s pre-digested. In this recipe, I used frozen uncooked kale. It’s easy to smash into tiny pieces within the bag. Zu has showed no signs of being unable to digest any of the vegetables I give him a few times a week.

Make sure the meatballs are cooked through, especially if you have small children in the house. If your dog eats a semi-raw treat then licks your child’s face, germs can easily be passed on. Always be careful when handling raw meat. Clean and disinfect your counter and utensils once the treats go into the oven.

Zu approved!!

If you’re looking for a wild gift “outside the heart-shaped box” for your special someone this year, look no further than  Sitka Salmon Shares. This is  a unique, thoughtful and delicious gift you can share and feel good about giving the gift of responsibly harvested wild Alaska seafood that supports small-boat fishermen. Their catch is delivered to members across the nation through their seafood box subscription model or one-time boxes. We can tell you their fish is really, really goooood and we are proud to feature them in this issue of Nourish and Flourish

Sitka Salmon Shares delivers the highest quality seafood to home cooks across the lower 48. Over the last decade, they have exceeded their goals to transform community-based fisheries and create a market for responsibly harvested, high-quality fish.

They are a  completely integrated  boat-to-doorstep seafood company. They have a diverse  group of fishermen and partners who use responsible fishing methods to catch a variety of wild Alaska seafood species.. With a small processing plant in Sitka, Alaska, they can custom-process the catch with a laser focus on quality and traceability. 

Shown above; Lance McCutcheon joined Sitka Salmon Shares in 2019. “I love the freedom of fishing and the fact that I can make a living on the ocean. 
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Order your copy of Nourish and Flourish today to read all about them.

Dogs usually get all of the good stuff when it comes to toys and treats. Let's face it, cats are finicky and prefer to lie around dictating their needs. We love their independence!

Fig is super finicky about her food and it's hard to find treats she enjoys. It took a few tries but I finally made something she likes. ​

Use a small cookie cutter when baking and break up the treat when feeding. Cats like smaller bites.

I use oat flour in my pet recipes. Oats are a grain least likely to cause allergies. You can make your own oat flour by purchasing organic oats and blending them 1 cup at a time until they reach desired constancy. 

I store my treats in the freezer and pull a few at a time. Cats can get bored with the same flavors, plus with tuna as an ingredient, it's good to keep them as fresh as possible. The treats will keep for up to 3 months frozen. 

Make sure the treat is room temperature before feeding. Cold food is not good for a cats digestion. 

Brrrr... with the snow, ice, cold winter weather blowing through this weekend, how about a savory beef stew? This easy one skillet meal can be made for a warm and delicious meal for your family or friends. We cooked ours on the Big Green Egg to add that extra flavor. You can make this at home in a traditional oven just as well.. Fresh herbs and butter make all the difference in this recipe. Yummy!

Oklahoma native Woody Guthrie said it first and best. This new anthology of poems and prose, Love Can Be: A Literary Collection About Our Animals, is proof of what love can be, as thirty acclaimed authors join together to champion life in all its forms. This is their gift to the world, not just the artistry of their words, but their vision of an extended community that includes cats, birds, frogs, butterflies, bears, dogs, raccoons, horses—a full-out menagerie of being that enriches us all.
This broad-hearted vision comes with responsibility, and that responsibility speaks to the mission of the Kirkpatrick Foundation, publisher of the book. The Kirkpatrick Foundation will donate all net proceeds of sales of this volume to animal charities in Oklahoma, as well as honoraria donated to the contributors’ selected animal charities.

This is a must-have for any animal lover and makes a wonderful gift for all ages. We are proud to showcase this wonderful book in Nourish and Flourish, Volume 4.