Hello my fermenting friends! While most of you have heard of kombucha, I bet only some of you have heard of Jun. Jun is similar to kombucha, but instead of using black tea and sugar it is brewed with green tea and honey. Sounds better, right? I have been brewing kombucha for years, but have…
Cook
Cooking and preserving traditional food from scratch is one of my passions, and it’s even better if it includes homegrown, foraged, or fermented ingredients. I prefer to use whole foods and many of my recipes use herbs, flowers, and other fresh from the garden ingredients. Sourdough is another passion, and I also have a thing for cooking in cast iron pans!
Learn how to make sourdough tortillas, roasted beets and their greens, and traditional nitrate free corned beef.
No Bake Pumpkin Coconut Cups
These no bake pumpkin coconut cups are an easy to make fall snack or treat. Made with healthy real food ingredients and your favorite fall spices, these pumpkin cups are vegan, gluten free, paleo, dairy free, sugar free, and delicious! Healthy Pumpkin Treats I love pumpkin season! I know, it seems as though there is…
How to Make Balsamic Vinaigrette
Maybe some of you know this, but I actually used to be a cook for a living. Nothing much, just the pantry cook at Tuolumne Meadows Lodge in Yosemite National Park. I worked in Yosemite for almost 10 years with many different positions, but this was by far my favorite. As the pantry cook, I…
How to Make Milk Kefir Cheese
I have an exciting post for you guys today! Have you ever wanted to make cheese but were too intimidated by the complicated process? I have totally been there, and while I fully intend on conquering it someday (you know I will!), in the meantime this has become my saving grace in the homemade cheese…
Fermented Green Tomatoes: preserving the harvest
Green tomatoes are an inevitable part of homegrown tomato plants, as there always seem to be some that haven’t quite ripened before it gets too cold. While you can pick them green and bring them inside to ripen, sometimes there are so many green ones it makes sense to utilize them as they are. Of…
How to Make Elderberry Mead
Mead, or fermented honey wine, is a delicious ancient fermented beverage that is easy to make! This elderberry mead, made with foraged elderberries, is a wonderful version of classic mead and perfect for the holidays. Simple Mead Making Ebook Want to learn more about making mead? I have a Simple Mead Making for Beginners eBook…
Skillet Pear and Blackberry Crisp
Pear season is in full swing and I’m loving it! Southern Oregon is pear country and right now is the time to buy, harvest, or glean them. If you’re lucky you’ll end up with more than you can deal with! I remember one year the pear tree we had in our backyard of the house…
Fermented Dilly Beans
I love all kinds of pickles, always have. I was one of those kids who would eat dill pickles and briny olives straight out of the jar. Dilly beans, however, are somewhat new to me. My Mom has been growing green beans for the past few years in her garden and making dilly beans out…
How to Dehydrate Peppers for Food Storage
We’re at the end of summer when the bounty of the season is in full swing. Time to start preserving the harvest in any and every way. Canning and freezing are the most common ways to do this, but don’t forget about dehydrating! Here’s how to dehydrate peppers for food storage. Why Dehydrate Vegetables? The…
How to Make Herbal Water Kefir Soda
I’m really excited to share this post with you because of how wonderful, and surprisingly easy this is to make! You may or may not have heard of water kefir, but let me tell you, it has changed my world. It is similar to kombucha, but easier to make, in my opinion, as well as…