Kombucha!

Brew your own kombucha at home!
Kombucha is an amazing, probiotic drink which is pretty expensive when purchased at the store.  But you can make this wonder drink for just pennies at home.  If you can make tea, you can make kombucha!
To begin, you need:
-a big glass jar (I use a big pickle jar, left over from a concession stand, but you can even just use a quart jar, if you don't want to make much)
-Tea (not herb tea, black tea!)
-water
-sweetener (for true kombucha, use white sugar, for Jun, a relative, use honey)
-a kombucha "mother".  These can usually be obtained by asking around (I have a few at the house right now) or can be ordered online.

Bring your water to a boil, with the tea bags in.  For a gallon of water, I use 5 small tea bags.  Once it's boiling, add your sweetener.  For my gallon of water, I use about 1/2 cup of sugar, or 1/4 cup of honey for Jun.  Make sure this gets evenly distributed.  Let cool completely before adding your "mother".  Cover your jar loosely, like in the photo above.  I use a towel and rubber bands.  Let sit on your counter or in a cupboard for several days, up to several weeks.  When the weather is warmer, it doesn't take as long.  Taste your kombucha periodically, and enjoy when it gets to your liking.
If the kombucha develops an odd smell, or a really gross look, throw it out!  When you're ready to make another batch, repeat the process, and add your new "mother" and a little of your homemade kombucha to the new tea mixture.

For more about kombucha, visit http://www.kombuchahome.com/  Happy brewing!

Bubble, bubble, toil and trouble...

Lately, I’ve been reigniting my love for food fermentation.  Several months ago, I managed to kill my kombucha mama.  (If you’ve never tried kombucha, go to Earth Fare or Natural Foods and pick up a bottle.  It might be your new love, too!)  But the wonderful Tammy Ozment shared some of hers.  So, I am waiting, not so patiently, for my first batch of Tammy Kombucha to ferment on my kitchen counter.  Also, I just scheduled with Marc Williams, from botanyeveryday.com, to teach a fermented foods class in March for us.  So the excitement was bubbling…

Then, I discovered that Earth Fare had (has?) the book, Wild Fermentation on sale for only $12.50!  I’ve been wanting that book a long time, so with the ice storm, I read the whole thing in less than a day.  Sandor Katz goes about fermentation in just my style:  few rules, lots of creativity.

Last year, Scott and I made homemade sauerkraut.  It was awesome, and met with rave reviews.  I wanted to start a batch last night, but was not going to brave the icy roads for a couple heads of cabbage!  But I had some turnips.  So, currently, on the kitchen cabinet, sets a quart jar of “sauerruben”, or fermented turnips.  If I get moving later today, I might make the same thing, but with carrots.  I love how Katz encourages you to try stuff.   In a week or so, we’ll find out if we like sauerruben!

For those reading this and worrying about my health, afraid of listeria and other monsters lurking in my crocks, fear not.  I am careful to keep my containers and hands clean, and watch for any signs of yuckiness.  If it smells bad, don’t eat it….or just try a tiny bite….  Also, Katz says that in all his years of home fermentation, he never made anyone sick, or even heard of a case.  In fact, a few years ago, the government did a study and found that most of the cases of milk-borne illnesses came from PASTEURIZED milk products!

I have also made lots of yogurt and plan to make kefir soon.  So, don’t be afraid.  Get the book, take the class, but start fermenting!

Forage & Feast Recipes

Below are my quick adaptations of the recipes Marc gave out at his Forage & Feast.  You haven't tried any of these until you've tried them with wild ingredients!  If you get a chance, check out Marc's work at his website or his facebook page.
From Marc Williams at www.botanyeveryday.com

Basic Pesto
2c Fresh herbs
2 large garlic cloves or similar
1/2 c freshly grated hard cheese
1/4 c nuts or seeds
1/2 c oil
salt & pepper to taste
Combine all ingredients in a food processor, blender or mortar pestle
Save nuts and/or seeds till last to preserve texture

Basic Dressing
2/3 c oil
1/3 c acid (vinegar, lemon juice, orange juice)
1/4 c fresh herbs
1 garlic clove or similar
sea salt to taste
Combine ingredients in blender, adding oil last while blender is running to ensure emulsification

Herbal Tea
1 c fresh herbs per gallon (1/2 c dry)
options: (just a few of Marcs are listed here!)
peppermint, applemint, spearmint, lemon balm, rosemary, holy basil, yarrow, dandelion, echinacia, sassafrass, spice bush, ginger, honeysuckle flower, ginseng, honey, licorice, stevia, maple syrup
Bring water to a boil then turn off heat.  Steep ingredients to desired length of time ( at least 15-20 minutes)
Strain and sweeten if desired to taste

Forage & Feasting!

As expected, Forage & Feast was awesome!  Seventeen people gathered at Linda Bolt's Hatterdale Farm to hear Marc Williams talk about plants.  We wandered in fields & woods, learning about different types of plants that are safe to eat & use as medicine.  Then, we brought our harvest inside & made it into a delicious meal!  This was my 4th walk in the woods with Marc, and each time, I learn so much.  His knowledge about the plants is amazing.  Learning about edible plants has recently become an "obsession" for me, and these walks just make me want to learn more.

We've had so many positive comments about Forage & Feast.  Most of our group wants to do it again.  Hopefully we can have Marc back soon.

In the meantime, I promised to post the recipes from the feast.

Happy Foraging!

Wild Hummus

3 cans of beans

1/4 c. tahini

1/4 c. lemon juice

dandelion

1 1/2 c. chickweed

1 T cumin

1/3 c. olive oil

salt & garlic to taste

Yogurt Fennel Dressing

1 c. yogurt

1/4 c. fennel

1/4 c. honey

1/2 t salt

Honey Mustard Dressing

1 c. mustard

1/2 c. mustard leaves

1/4 c. honey

1/2 c. oil

Quinoa Tabouleh

1/2 c. oil

1/2 c. lemon juice

1 c. mint

1/4 c. wild carrot

1 tomato

2 t salt

Bliss Bites

1 c. pumpkin seeds

1 c. sunflower seeds

1 c. raisins

1/2 c. honey

1/4 c. tahini

1 T spice bush fruit

roll in coconut or rose petals

Butternut Squash Soup

Just in time for Thanksgiving, here's our favorite healthy soup!  For a vegetarian option, substitute in the vegetable stock for chicken stock.

2 Butternut squash, medium sized, cut in half
2 Tbls. Butter
2 Garlic cloves, minced
1 Yellow onion, chopped
2 Granny smith apples, peeled, cored & chopped
1/8 tsp of Thai chili, finely chopped, seeds removed
2 Quarts chicken or vegetable stock
2 Tbls. Salt
1/2 Tsp. Fresh ground pepper
Dash of nutmeg

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Put squash, cut side down onto a cookie sheet, covered in tin foil.  Roast 40-50 minutes, or until flesh is soft.  Remove from oven & let cool.  Scoop out the seeds with a spoon.  Scoop out flesh and reserve.  This can be done ahead.
In a large stockpot, melt butter, then add garlic, onion & apples.  Saute until the onions begin to sweat.  Add chile, salt, pepper & nutmeg.  Stir well & cook for 1-2 minutes, then add squash & stock.  Bring soup to a boil, then reduce heat.  Simmer 20-30 minutes, until the apple is very soft.  Use an immersion blender to cream the soup, or run in batches through a blender.  If preferred, add chicken stock until soup is the preferred consistency.
Happy Thanksgiving!