wednesday's nourishment: food!

waking up before the light is nourishment.

and a few other nourishing things i can't live without:




1. fresh eggs from our coop. the natural light is growing, it's warmer and our 11 chickens are producing about 2-4 eggs a day. when they don't lay, we go to betsy's farmette down the road (she has more chickens and she puts hers under lights in winter, which we don't). i read in our backyard homesteading book that you should slaughter and eat your chickens after a couple years bc it costs too much to feed them and they don't produce as many eggs. i'm not really into that at the moment. we're getting a new hatch this spring (the landlord does all of this for our property, it's truly amazing).




2. crispy nuts. according to one of my favorite nutrition experts, sally fallon of nourishing traditions, it is important to soak and crisp your nuts before eating because there are many enzymes in raw nuts that if consumed in bigger quantities, put a strain on your digestive system. traditional peoples used to soak their seeds in brine and then dried them in the sun to crisp. i soak 2 c nuts in water w/ a tsp of salt and let sit overnight (unless they are cashews) and then i 'crisp' in the oven at no more than 170 degrees for about 24 hours. Above 170 kills the enzymes you are cultivating; once in a while I'm impatient and don't care about the enzymes --i just want the crispy nuts, so i turn up the heat a little. they taste incredible. really are worth the time. crisped pecans and walnuts are amazing. the recipe itself is effortless other than the annoyance of having to wait 36 hours before you can actually eat one.



3. homemade almond butter. rather than paying 7.99 or more for a good jar of raw almond butter, i make it. with 2 cups of crispy nuts, processed in a food processor, a couple tbl or more of coconut oil, 1 -2 tbl raw honey and a 1/2 tsp salt or so, processed together till creamy, you will have, i promise, the best almond butter you have ever tasted in your life. i'm not lying. tastes like candy but better.



4. fermented almond milk. i don't know if i like this yet. its not yet ready for me to try. but because i was soaking nuts, i had about 2 c extra soaking that i didn't crisp (bc we have a small oven and can't do large quantities) so i decided to make fermented almond milk. the recipe calls for 2 c soaked almonds, 2 quarts water, 2 tsp salt (i did one tsp), 2 tbl raw honey, 1 tsp vanilla extract, 1 tsp almond extract & 1/4 c whey (**which is the byproduct of yoghurt that is produced if you drain your yoghurt to make cream cheese). whey is what helps to ferment vegetables and make sauerkraut the old traditional way, to make fermented beverages and also to soak grains to assist in breaking down the difficult to digest phytic acid that surrounds each grain kernel.

blend nuts in processor. add everything together in jars. let sit out for 2 days. then refrigerate. the longer you let it sit, the more bubbly, fermented-y it becomes.

why ferment a beverage? according to sally fallon, the theory for craving alcohol and soft drinks stems from an ancient collective memory of lacto-fermented beverages still found in traditional societies. these beverages supply mineral ions depleted through perspiration and also contribute to easy and thorough assimilation of our food by supplying lactobacilli, lactic-acid and enzymes. American Indians used to make a drink from crushed pecans and our European ancestors made them from walnuts. if you drink kombucha, that's a different sort of fermented beverage. Russians drink a beverage called kvass, which i loved while living there --fermented sour black bread drink. sounds gross to the uninitiated, but really does make you feel quenched and strong.

nourishing benefits of fermented beverages: relief of intestinal problems and constipation; good for skin; promotes lactation; strengthens the sick and promotes overall well-being and stamina. faster absorption by the body than water because of dilute sugars and electrolytes of minerals. and many valuable minerals in ionized forms.



5. homeade fermented granola. i don't like to buy it bc i think it's dumb. $5.99 for a little container that will be gone in two days or less? I experimented this week w/ a soaked oats recipe. it's a little odd but it tastes really nourishing.
10 c oats soaked in 3 c water and 1/8 c whey overnight
add to another bowl, 3/4 - 1c honey or maple syrup, 2 tsp vanilla extract, 1 c coconut 2 tsp cinammon and 2 eggs, beaten (this clumps the oats when they are baking/drying in the oven). mix all together. it's real sticky. spread on baking trays (not too thin, not to thick) and they say to dehydrate in oven or dehydrator for 12 - 24 hours at 150 degrees. i wasn't feeling patient, so i turned up the heat after 4 hours to 350 and allowed it to turn golden brown. in between, i turned it over to get it brown and golden on all sides. afterwards, i added 1 c chopped crispy nuts and 1 c dried apples chopped. it has a slightly soured taste like ezekiel cereal or bread. turning the heat up past 150 kills the enzymes that would make this 'raw'. oh well. it still tastes heavenly.

fermented porridge! you can also make porridge w/ soaked oats in the morning. w/ a small amount from what you soaked the night before --like a cup or so of soaked oats, add oats and water to a pot--it cooks in minutes and has this delightfully soured flavor. add apple butter or chopped fruit and regular butter and honey or nuts and cinnamon. it's better and easier for your body to digest your grains if they are soaked for numerous reasons, and the taste is really unique. if you are allergic to dairy you can substitute lemon juice for whey.




6. chicken soup stock --my new favorite method
i make a stock with the carcass of a roasted chicken (some meat still left on). it tastes far richer than the stocks i've been making w/ a whole uncooked chicken. i roasted my own chicken the other night w/ vanilla extract, butter, soy & honey. so the carcass & meat had a unique flavor already. and then i cooked the carcass in a pot of water w/ a whole onion and a whole garlic (no need to chop anything, just strain it in the end). i cooked it for about 6 hours on low after bringing to initial boil. made an italian soup w/ it here (added chard, thyme, parsnips, tomato and a few other odds and ends of veggies). i start w/ the stock, strain it (pick out chicken pieces and put back in) and get creative at the end, sauteeing whatever i'm going to add to my soup in butter and oil and then adding it to the strained stock only for the last 15 minutes of cooking.


7. chocolate nourishes me! i made these home made truffles w/ cacao, (raw (process in coffee grinder for finer processing) and processed cocoa) coconut oil, honey, dates, raisins, cayenne, cinnamon. process all in food processor. make into little balls and roll into coconut or whatever else you wish to and then chill.