My Best Trees of 2017 - Moringa!

When I look back over the year and think of what trees were my biggest producers the moringa trees win hands down.  Nearly every day moringa is a part of my diet, either the leaves, the pods, or the powder made from dried leaves.  So it seems odd to me when people ask "what do you DO with moringa?".

Moringa Pods - We cut the pods while they are young, if you wait too long they get woody like overgrown okra.  We cut it into 2 inch lengths, boil them in vegetable broth for 15 min or so, til tender, serve them warm sprinkled with nutritional yeast and they taste somewhat like asparagus.  They are very versatile and can be used as substitute in any recipe calling for green bean or asparagus, for a meal with more protein. Again, you MUST pick them when they are young, tender, and skinny.  In India they do eat the larger pods, they call them drumsticks, but it is more of an acquired taste.

Putting Mom to work harvesting moringa leaves.

Moringa Leaves-

They can be added to any recipe calling for fresh greens such as spinach or chard, but use in moderation.  Moringa leaves are potent and can be cleansing, like wheat grass. If you have too much at once you will be running to the john too often to count.  So, if you are cooking the leaves, eat 1/2 to 1 cup per serving, and if you are eating fresh in a salad, eat 1/4 cup or less per serving, (so combine it with other greens).

Pick the leaves when they are young and bright green.  I add them to soups, stir fry's, casseroles, and even smoothies.

You can freeze leaves and pods for later use. We cut and blanch them first before freezing.

Moringa Powder - You can also dry the leaves to use for tea, or save as dry crumbles to reconstitute later in a stir fry or soup, or grind the leaves into powder.

I clean the branches then hang in small bunches to dry.  When dry I crumble some leaves to keep in a jar and sprinkle in to any recipe or dish.  But most of the dried leaves I use to make moringa powder.  We swipe down the dry branches to remove the leaves into a bowl, then grind the leaves in the blender into a fine powder.  You might still have to sift out a few dry twigs before storing in jars.

I try to have a teaspoon a day of moringa powder, usually in the morning added to a smoothie or juice.  The powder is potent too, so ONE TEASPOON is plenty.

Smoothie

1 tsp dry Moringa

1 cup almond milk

1/2 frozen banana

Cardamom

Cinnamon

Turmeric powder

Even the flowers are edible, great to dress up a salad!

Seeds Available locally -  Jake Mace