'JUST FOR ONE'S HEALTH' ... ~ PURPLE CONEFLOWER (Echinacea purpurea) / 'NOT YOUR ORDINARY' BLUEBERRY MUFFINS

"Just for one's health ... it is very necessary to work in the garden and to see the flowers growing."

Vincent Van Gogh

PURPLE CONEFLOWER

(Echinacea purpurea)

'NOT YOUR ORDINARY' BLUEBERRY MUFFINS

~ On the lighter side, these are always a family favorite from ...

PICNIC! Recipes and Menus for Outdoor Enjoyment

1 2/3 cups flour

1/3 cup wheat germ

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 t sp. salt

1 tsp. baking soda

1 1/2 cups MICHIGAN blueberries

(preferably small wild ones)

1 cup buttermilk

2 Tbsp. melted unsalted butter

• Preheat oven to 400-degrees.
• In large bowl, combine flower, wheat germ, sugar, salt, and baking soda. Add blueberries and stir to coat. Add buttermilk and butter. Stir until just mixed.
• Spoon batter into greased muffin pans. Bake 18 minutes or until golden brown. Cool in pans for 2 minutes.

"The purple coneflower isn't really purple at all. The large, eye-catching flowers are bright rose-pink. Each flower has a bristly iridescent orange center cone that provides lively contrast with the reflexed petals and a feeding station for butterflies. Growing on moist prairies and open woods, this American native was collected in southern Michigan more than 150 years ago but typically occurs to the south and west of the Great Lakes state. Native American have long used purple coneflower and its relatives for medicine, and today echinacea is enjoying a renewed popularity in health food stores as a treatment for the common cold ..."

MICHIGAN GARDENER'S GUIDE