Oats, Peas, Beans 'n Barley Grow
Yesterday, January 27th, was set aside for Holocaust Remembrance, and in truth I did have it in mind all day even more so than it's already always in the back of my heart and mind, the horror of it never far from the surface of my consciousness. I was nine years old in spring 1945 as the concentration camps were liberated and pictures and films revealed the evil that the German people* had committed and were; and into the eighth decade later it's hardly faded, images of indescribable and unspeakable and incomprehensible inhuman cruelty. People sometimes speak of forgiveness with Time, but forgiveness can only come from victims, who are not only those who suffered and died but their future and unborn generations who will stretch into eternity unable ever to Be or to Have Been, much less to forgive. Of the Holocaust, even to speak of a way toward forgiveness is itself evil, obscene; rather, never forgiveness, but forever holding the Holocaust up as an everlasting reminder of what we are capable of, the worst that we can be.
This morning I am taken with an article in Haaretz about Hedwig Richter, a German historian and professor, and, if I can find an English translation, will read her latest book, about democracy, that is stirring interest and widely differing assessments. I can stumble over a few words and phrases, but cannot read a German language book.
Speaking of books, and thinking of education, I'm also taken with this morning's attention on the Tennessee school board banning "Maus" https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/27/opinions/maus-ban-holocaust-teaching-spiegelman-perry/index.html ** and reminded yet one more time again of the, again Tennessee, mindset of self-righteous pious certainty that a century ago brought about the "Scopes Monkey Trial" by forbidding the teaching of Evolution in public schools. Nothing much seems to have changed in Tennessee. Or anywhere else - - indeed, it's spreading, or, more accurately, surfacing, emerging, crawling out from under: I've laid aside this morning's PCNH to pick it up again later and read the article about the Florida Legislature, urged by the Governor, pressing forward to forbid teaching of certain racial issues. Suppression of writing, thought, expression: you may only think right-think, speak right-speak. Poland a current worst case with their laws about the Holocaust in which Poles were complicit. We are headed there.
Someone once said and wrote, "How does God stand us?"
One hopes that what we are and can be is not truly the image and likeness of any Creator.
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Actually, what I set out to blog about today is barley tea. Along with a beautiful Japanese art item, a parishioner gave us a package of barley tea. Don't recall knowing about it before, even during our Japan years, but I took a liking to it and ordered in a supply of the tea bags to make it for chilling a pitcher in the refrigerator. It's different, an aroma and sense of breakfast cereal. Going online to read, I learned that it apparently has health qualities, as indicated by the article copy-and-pasted below.
rsf&ptl anyway
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Health Benefits of Barley Tea
By WebMD Editorial Contributors
Reviewed by Arefa Cassoobhoy, MD, MPH on August 24, 2020
IN THIS ARTICLE
- Health Benefits Nutrients per Serving How to Prepare Barley Tea
Barley tea is an immensely popular drink in Korea, China and Japan. Enthusiasts of the drink enjoy it both hot and cold and tend to drink it on a regular basis. Barley tea is called boricha in Korea, damai cha in China, and mugicha in Japan.
Roasted barley is the primary ingredient in barley tea. Barley's scientific name is Hordeum vulgare. Strictly speaking, the drink isn't a true tea because it isn't brewed from tea leaves, which come from the Camellia sinensis plant.
Because the barley is roasted, barley tea has a woody, nutty flavor. Sometimes it produces a slightly bitter aftertaste. People often drink barley tea without anything else in it, but some add fruit juice or other mild sweeteners to it.
People often rave about the health benefits of barley tea, saying it can do everything from preventing cancer to treating acne. Unfortunately, not all of the health claims have been studied through scientific research.
Still, it's likely that barley tea comes with some of the same health benefits obtained from eating barley. Also, there aren't many risks to drinking barley tea, unless you have celiac disease. Like wheat, barley contains gluten, so those on a gluten-free diet should avoid barley tea.
Health Benefits
Barley tea is rich in antioxidants, which are known to have many health benefits. Antioxidants protect against cancer, heart attacks, and other diseases. Unfortunately, researchers haven't studied barley tea drinking in relation to these health issues.
Barley also contains significant levels of melatonin. Melatonin is a hormone naturally found in the body, and is known for promoting quality sleep. Although researchers have not studied the effect of barley tea on sleep, the presence of melatonin suggests that the tea might be effective as a sleep aid.
The following are research-proven benefits of drinking barley tea:
Oral Health
In one study, regular barley tea drinkers had less plaque on their teeth and lower levels of "bad" bacteria in their saliva than people who do not drink the tea. Specifically, they have lower levels of streptococci and lactobacilli.
Nutrients per Serving
The nutrient content of barley tea varies depending on how much barley is in the tea. A half-cup of cooked barley contains:
- Calories: 97
- Protein: 2 grams
- Fat: Less than 1 gram
- Carbohydrates: 22 grams
- Fiber: 3 grams
- Sugar: 0 grams
Barley is also a source of iron and, to a lesser extent, calcium. Both iron and calcium are essential minerals for overall health.
How to Prepare Barley Tea
There are two ways to brew barley tea: using a tea bag that contains crushed roasted barley, and boiling roasted barley itself. These instructions are for preparing barley tea from roasted barley, since barley tea bags come with their own brewing instructions.
Barley is widely available in most grocery stores, so it shouldn't be difficult to find. Although there are many different forms of barley available {Whole Grains Council: "Types of Barley"}, roasted barley works best in barley tea. Other types of barley will not produce a beverage with the same nutty flavor.
Once you've obtained roasted barley, creating the tea is easy. Follow these simple steps:
- Bring the desired amount of water to a boil.
- Drop roasted barley into the water either directly or inside of a tea strainer. Use a ratio of one tablespoon of barley per four cups of water.
- Reduce heat and allow the water to simmer for 20 minutes.
- Remove from heat, let cool, and enjoy!