365 IN 365 - It’s The Little Things

Jennifer Armstrong is the creator of this series of posts, published bi-monthly, entitled 365 in 365. These posts will help guide us all as we accept the 6D opportunity to diversify our plants in order to nurture and nourish our microbiome and thus improve our health and wellness. You can join us for this year-long event either in our Facebook group or by following along via our blog posts!

They say a journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step - and then those small steps add up to something mighty. So, it is with adding diversity to your plant-based diet, and the journey to 365 can begin with some very, very small things: seeds, spices, and nuts. Generally speaking, these categories consist of very small, often hard or woody plant parts. In most cases we are literally talking about the reproductive bits that go into the ground to germinate and grow into a new plant, but sometimes it Is bark, a pod, the root or rhizome, some kind of fragrant capsule or other plant structure that millennia of trial and error have added to the human diet. 

By definition, seeds and nuts are loaded with nutrients to build a plant from the ground up; and the pungent aromas of spices are literally signaling the diverse and complex organic compounds that helps our gut microbiome flourish. Taking advantage of this vast selection is easier than you might think, because these are foods that are typically eaten in pretty small quantities, sometimes because the flavor is so strong, and sometimes because the calorie density is so high. For that reason, you could easily double the number of plants you’re consuming on a given day by simply shaking on a spice blend, or by adding mere spoonful of mixed edible seeds.  Please note, we are not talking about the seeds of grains or legumes, as the serving sizes for those are much larger.  Probably not many people just eat one chickpea or one teaspoon of wild rice.

Not sure how to start? Bearing in mind that some of these small things are disproportionately expensive, you may want to find a store where you can buy spices in a bulk section.

Do not know if you like cardamom? (I adore it!) Open the big jar and smell it. If you like what you smell, buy a teaspoon of it and add it to something you have cooked or baked  before to see how you like it.  No bulk spice section?  Find a salt-free spice blend and add all the ingredients on the label to your list. Most grocery store spice sections will have an array of premade blends - shawarma, curry, pumpkin pie spice - you name it, you will probably find it. See how many different ways you can flavor a basic preparation of rice and chickpeas and journey around the world as you experiment:  add a Moroccan spice blend on day one; next day add a Szechuan mix; then the third day send your rice and chickpeas to Scandinavia. A little online research or a browse through a good cookbook or culinary reference book will tell you what flavors characterize different cuisines of the world if you cannot find a ready-made blend. 

But let us leave aside flavor for a moment: can you taste the difference between black sesame seeds and white ones? Maybe there is not much (if any) difference in flavor, but since we eat first with our eyes, why not mix up your sesame seed game and try both colors for the visual novelty? The difference in color means they contain different flavonoids, so for our purposes, they are different plants, even if the only difference you can discern is the optics.  Seeds and nuts add texture as well as flavor and nutrients - so what if you may need to check your teeth in the mirror after you’ve eaten those poppy seeds?  They were worth it!

Try making your own blends of seeds, nuts, and spices and tossing them into a salad a tablespoon at a time, or sprinkling them on mashed potatoes, or crusting a plant-based cheese  log.  Once you have a mix or two that you enjoy, you will find yourself reaching for them on the regular.  Find a jar with a shaker top and keep it handy, and when it is empty, put in a whole different assortment.  These are the little things that will help you reach your destination.

About Jennifer Armstrong

Jennifer Armstrong has spent her life making things; she has had a long career of writing books for children, decades of gardening, painting, making music, and cooking. A 2023 graduate of the T. Colin Campbell Center for Nutrition Studies course in Plant- Based Nutrition, she has also combined her interest in sustainability with her love of food by learning how to can and dehydrate, saving as much of the local harvest as possible for use throughout the year.  She lives in upstate New York.

Jennifer is both a blog writer and event moderator at 6D Living. Her blog post series 365 in 365 will explore how we can all diversify and improve our microbiome. Jennifer is also an administrator for our public, world-wide event of the same name. This free event is a year long community activity with one goal only - get more people on the planet a wider variety of plants.

About our 6D Community Activity - 365 in 365

This is a 365 day challenge to try 365 different plants in your nutritional routine over the next 365 days. We will explore new and known plants, share their nutritional benefits as well as recipes so we can all enjoy the splendor of the plant world and improve our health - as a united community.

We know that the diversity of plants we eat determines our microbiome health, which in turn determines our overall health and wellness. Our goal at 365 in 365 is to try to get as many different plants as possible into our bodies over the year - steadily becoming healthier together.

We invite all our members to share recipes, new plants they have 'discovered' for themselves as well as resources where we can all find these wonderful gifts from nature no matter where we live in the world.

This is an international plant-based community for curious minds which want to learn how to be healthier, happier and more balanced in their lives. This is a group of hope and encouragement for all sentient beings on the planet we call home. This activity/event is only taking place on Facebook, apologies to all who are not on that platform.

Be well

Stop.Breathe.Focus.Move.Flow.