CHEESESLAVE

Humans all over the world have been fermenting food since ancient times. The earliest evidence of winemaking dates back to eight thousand years ago in the Caucasus area of Georgia.

It’s very recent that fermented foods have begun to disappear from our plate. Modern pickles and sauerkraut are made with vinegar instead of the traditional method of lacto-fermentation using salt. Bread and pasta are made with commercial yeast instead of being naturally leavened with wild yeast (sourdough). Wine, beer and cheeses are being pasteurized — killing off all the good bacteria we so desperately need to maintain health.

But there are many advantages to going back to the traditional ways of our ancestors, and eating more fermented foods.

It’s cold and flu season. If you feel something coming on, it’s best not to run out and buy something that will suppress the symptoms. Getting sick is the body’s way of “housecleaning”. In other words, your body is attempting to rid itself of the accumulated toxins.
What you want to do is support [...]

Kefir is a delicious probiotic cultured milk drink. It’s tangy and sour tasting, kind of like a more liquid version of yogurt. I like to drink it straight but if it’s too sour for you, you can put it in a blender and add a little fruit and maple syrup or stevia to make a [...]

Kate loves kefir. She loves all sour things — sauerkraut, pickles, creme fraiche.
Oh how weird! I’m watching “The French Chef” right now. The moment I was typing the words “creme fraiche”, Julia Child said the words “creme fraiche”. Isn’t that eerie? Must be a good omen.

It’s funny — when you’re single, sitting at home on a Saturday night is the worst thing you can imagine. And then you become a mom. And you’re always doing doing doing for everyone else. And the idea of having some time to yourself is so fabulous, you don’t care what night it is.
Seth announced [...]

I’ve been making a lot of smoothies lately. It’s such an easy and quick way to provide nourishment. I especially like them because they make it so easy to take coconut oil. If you’re not doing dairy, just use coconut milk. I’ve been making these for Seth and he LOVES them!
They also make a great [...]

Just got back from the farmer’s market.
Here are the meals I’m going to make this week (not in any particular order, although I know we are doing ribs tonight and brisket tomorrow night):
BBQ Pork Spare Ribs with Beet Greens sauteed in chicken fat, tomato and cucumber salad — and broth
Brisket with Sauerkraut and some vegetables [...]

Okay, these photos are not from today — they are from Sunday (Kate’s birthday). But I had to share…
Kate LOVES her new sippy cup! She has so much fun playing with it, banging it on her tray, biting it, waving it around. She drank two whole cups of kefir the other day after lunch.

It’s the [...]

Here’s Kate with her “cake”. Shhh — it’s goose liver pate. She LOVED it!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4c81e-yU9-w]
After the cake, Grandpa Ed and Grandma Nancy sang Happy Birthday to her — on the webcam.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aRsnQflHt2Y]
That’s her new sippy cup. She’s getting the hang of it. Drinking kefir!

Sometimes I’m so busy, I don’t even have time to fry eggs or make a smoothie.
Here’s an extremely fast, very healthy breakfast you can make when you are on the run:
1 cup raw milk, kefir or a combination
2 egg yolks
Just mix the egg yolks in with a fork. If it is not sweet enough for [...]