The Particularly Powerful Parsnip

Ali Hakala

Popeye had spinach, Bugs Bunny had his Carrot, but the mighty Parsnip outperforms both of those in many Ways.

Today again, we stretch the limits of our topics on Thinking Outside of the Box. We may branch off into another whole category: the culinary gardening category. But that is what Thinking Outside of the Box is all about, — new, different and unusual.

Ali is a delightful lady who has been gardening and playing in the garden her whole life. We are discussing the power of one particular vegetable, the Parsnip. Ali brought to my attention the fact that the Parsnip is right at the top of the list regarding nutrition.

Below, some biographical information about Ali.
Have a listen!

“You know, I grew up in our family garden in Hayden Lake, picking raspberries and strawberries and potato bugs off the potato leaves. My grandparents and great grandmother lived next door, and they were small scale vegetable and fruit farmers. I went off to the university and studied art, and always had a vegetable garden in the back yard of wherever I was living, even worked as a private gardener and at the local plant nursery during the summer. Went on to receive an MFA in sculpture, with a lot of over seas travel in between and after. But I never really thought about how important gardening and working with the soil was to me, until I came back to my hometown and applied to become an apprentice at an amazing off-the-grid organic farm east of Cd’A. That summer changed my life, in so many ways. I worked harder than I ever had before, and found my passion for plants and soil and really, for work itself. And, of course, eating super fresh, incredible food – and how different it is.”

“Just last week I met several people who asked me, What is this vegetable? Can we grow parsnips here? I was shocked that parsnips seemed so elusive or unknown to people, even in our small, rural community. Mind you, this is not a newly cultivated vegetable! Parsnips are actually a rather old-timey root veg, dating back at least to Roman times. They even used to be used as a sweetener in Europe before sugar cane and sugar beets came along…. So, while parsnips may not be mainstream to many folks, they are such a wonderful vegetable – I think they should be!”

Ali Hakala, Sunnyside Mountain Farm & Garden Works, LLC

alihakala@hotmail.com

208-255-8666

find me at Localharvest.org

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Dr Mark William Cochran is a chiropractic doctor and a holistic health expert.  He joins me for a discussion on nutrition and some of the facts regarding the benefits of eating healthy versus the costs, the actual costs of  habitually eating a less than healthy diet.

Most people don’t realize that by saving money at the grocery store and at  fast food restaurants They are actually  incurring costs down the road in regards to increased medical expenses.

Here’s an excerpt from the homepage on his website:

Here’s my story in a nutshell: I have felt the grief and the crushing loss of self worth that come with losing a rewarding career because of my own poor health. For years, I fought crippling arthritis pain, along with the anger, fear and hopelessness that anyone who suffers from chronic disease knows all too well. When finally I decided to stop fighting and start thriving, I was able to transform my health and become a triathlete and marathon runner.

After I spent years fighting my disease, I realized that my disease was me and I was only fighting myself. So I stopped fighting. I decided that if I was going to heal, my healing was only going to come from the inside of me. When I say that I stopped fighting, that doesn’t mean I gave up. I just shifted from an external focus to an inner one. In other words:

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My guest today is Sarah Rustnak, Sarah is a Yoga Teacher,  a Mother and a Self-Care Advocate” –She is passionate about helping people find balance in their day to day living. We talk about how You can develop daily habits that will increase your ability to feel clear and happy regardless of the stormy weather you are navigating through.

 Thinking outside the box for Sarah, is simply, getting back to the basics of how we care for ourselves, our possessions and properties as well as each other in order to really enjoy day-to-day living.  “My goal is simple: to help you feel a deeper sense of well-being so that you can make a bigger difference – and to help you do it in a way that feels wonderful.”

“Yoga is about horizontal transcendence; I seek my own balance so that I can offer more to my family, my community and the world.”

We just scratched the surface on how yoga and nutrition can be a tool for creating new traditions and new habits in our lives. Sarah can teach you how to use yoga as a tool to keep your body, mind and soul evolving in health. She can help you develop daily habits that will increase your ability to feel clear and happy regardless of the stormy weather you are navigating through. If you’re interested in how you might travel from being “too-busy-to-be-healthy” towards creating a supple, strong YOU that lives and ages with grace you can contact Sarah through her Facebook page here:  www.facebook.com/sarahrusnakpage

On the gratitude side, Many thanks to Peter Lucht for composing and playing our theme music, Cheri of  Cheri Calvert Designs for her web design magic,  KRFY North Idaho’s Community Radio Station for technical and moral support, and to you our great listening audience,

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Mark William  Cochran
Holistic Health Expert

Dr. Mark William Cochran speaks from experience. He overcame years of chronic arthritis pain to become a triathlete and marathon runner. On his healing journey, Dr. Mark personally experienced the confusion, frustration and hopelessness that are all-too-common side effects of our complex, ineffective healthcare system.

Mark’s Book, Oby’s Wisdom / A Cave Man’s Simple Guide to Holistic Health and Happiness is available on Amazon

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