Easy Probiotic Rich Beverage

Yes, I know I failed.  After finally successfully accessing my blog, I then failed to continue writing in it.  I had just gotten out of the habit. Something I have set my mind to change!

In my defense though, a catastrophic event had occurred around the same time; a true 'The End Of The World As I Knew It" kind of event.  I had learned that I have FOOD ALLERGIES!  ...and not just a few!  For someone who loves to cook, this was devastating news.  I had learned that I am allergic to 16 very common foods. (These range from moderate to severe "sensitivities", not the kind that cause anaphylactic shock.)   Since that fateful day, several more have been added to the list.  In striving to not starve, I have had to re-invent all my favorite recipes, learn how to heal my gut microbes, learn the dos and don'ts of eating out, and basically deal with the panic of it all.

I would like to share with you a recipe for a wonderful probiotic drink that I have fallen in love with. It is a fermented beverage that is very nourishing to the gut microbes, which you need to live a healthy life!  The following is my own variation, however a quick google search will reveal many others to try.

BEET and APPLE KVASS:

1/2 Cup fresh organic Beets, cut into 1"cubes
1/2 Cup fresh organic Apple (of your favorite variety), cut into 1/2" cubes
1" slice of fresh organic Ginger
1 Tblsp Sea Salt or Himalayan Salt
1/4 Cup liquid culture (juice from live sauerkraut or whey)
Filtered Water
1/2 Gallon glass jar

Place all ingredients into the jar and fill to near the top with the water, leaving 1-2" space at the top.
Cover with a towel, cheesecloth, or coffee filter, using a rubber band to secure it.
Leave on the counter at room temperature for 2 days to ferment.
Strain and transfer the liquid to another glass container to keep in the fridge.
Consume the liquid as desired. (start slowly, such as 1/4 to 1/2 Cup daily).

The beets and apple and ginger may be consumed now also, however, you may add these back to the jar along with 1/4 Cup of the strained liquid and refill the jar with fresh filtered water for a second ferment.  The culture may be left on the counter for another 2 days.  The second ferment will be much more mild with less probiotic activity, but still good.  After the second ferment, discard the fruits and veggies and ginger (or consume, but do not reuse for culture).

Here's another variation and info found at "Nourished Kitchen":   http://nourishedkitchen.com/beet-kvass-recipe/

SUCCESS!!!!!

Whoo-Hooooooo!

After at least 4 months of frustration, not being able to access my blog account, I've finally made the connection!

I'll post a blog update soon.   Many, many changes.  Yay!

Busy, Busy, Busy...

What can I say?
I knew I was going to have amazing adventures here.
I dreamed about it, planned it, prepared for it.
I want to share my adventures with you.
Little did I know that these amazing adventures would keep me so busy that I have not found time to write.

My garden is growing great!  However it has taken quite a while before I was able to say that. For two months, it has been growing at a snail's pace.  Not all of the plants have been successful.  This first year is a learning experience for me, mostly by trial and error.  I have learned better how to NOT FREEZE everything in the mini-greenhouse, that weeds grow like weeds- but only when I'm not looking, ALL the outdoor critters like to eat my garden too, and to be really really patient.  The surviving plants that remain in the garden are:  (10) Tomatoes, (3) Patty-Pan Squash, (2) Chard, (1) Zucchini, many Lentils, (+/- 40) Sugar Peas, (6) Cilantro, (2) Beets, (20 +) Carrots, (3) Eggplants, (3 Sq Ft) Romaine Lettuce, (26) Bush Beans, and about 30 Potatoes.  In my herb bed, I have Thyme, Sage, Mint, and Chammomile, all growing very well.


As I said, everything grew at a snail's pace.  Only just a couple weeks ago I was able to start harvesting the snow peas and the lettuce, and a couple leaves of chard.  The first Fall frost is expected by the end of this month, so I may not get much more.  The lettuce, however, is exploding with growth- much more than I can eat or juice.  I have supplemented much of my diet with wild edibles- Nettles, Wild Chammomile, Dandelion leaves, Plantain, and Bedstraw.

Like lemonade?  Try steeping 1 cup of Sweet Clover blossoms in 1/2 gallon hot water.  Then use that Sweet Clover tea as the water for your lemonade!  Wonderful!!!

Saskatoon Berries

Saskatoon berries, Blueberries, Gooseberries (Currants), Cranberries, Strawberries, and Raspberries!
They all grow here in abundance.  There's some other berry here also that I haven't identified yet.

Blueberries

Cranberries

      
This is a very busy month for us.  I just returned from a camping trip with friends, and their friends.  There was about 80 persons total, mostly of off-the-grid families.  A fantastic trip meeting interesting people.  Tom did not get to join us, as he had a lot of work to get caught up on at home.  However, this coming weekend,we will be away together, revisiting a resort we went to when we first met.

Grizz with Summer coat

Grizz???  He's still a most handsome pup, perhaps except when he goes for a swim in our lagoon (Canada's version of a septic system).  Strangely, he has not grown as we expected.  He had reached 70 lbs by 9 months old, then he just stopped growing.  He recently turned 1 year old. He's a crazy nut, but we love him.

The Zombie Apocalypse Day

*Sorry about the highlight -There was an error and I couldn't figure out how to remove it*

It was a terrible event yesterday.  I was caught tragically unprepared.
Several times I had planned to make an emergency preparedness kit to keep outside, but "never got around to it."
Ok, so maybe there weren't really any zombies, but it was still a really tough day.
Just shortly after 10:00 am, while heading out to water the seedlings in my mini-greenhouse, I accidentally locked myself out of the house.  My husband and I had been out of town for the weekend, so Tom had put our spare key inside the house.  My heart sank. My bare feet immediately cried out for comfort.  I had also been wearing thin clothes for lounging around the house and I had only had a small breakfast, not the kind to last all day.
So, it was quickly decided that it was going to be a day to get all my "outside chores" done.   ...but barefoot???
I went to work first braiding some old grass to make shoe soles that I could tie on my feet. Although I often go barefoot around the yard, I did not feel they were tough enough to last all day. Then I remembered some holy socks my husband kept in the generator shed to use as rags.  I decided to use two socks per foot, and wrap them with tape. Later, I found duct tape in the tool shed and replaced the "tuck tape" with "duct tape."  Much much better!  My feet stayed comfy and dry and warm all day.

My "duct tape" shoes

I watered some plants, picked up rocks out of the garden, scraped old chicken poop off the  roosts to get it ready for new chickens, raked rocks off the lawn area, and started forming the garden beds.  (Recently, the garden was prepared by adding 5 truckloads of cattle manure, plowing it, then discing it, then running a cultivator over it to break up more clumps).
It wasn't a day without food.  There are wild edibles that are already growing. Occasionally, I grabbed a handful of dandelion greens or cow parsnip greens to munch.  It was only for 1 day, so that was fine.
By about Noon, I realized that it was getting really cold and was going to rain, so I returned to the tool shed to find 2 tarps. I grabbed the hatchet and set out for the woods where I found a fallen birch tree.  I removed all the limbs and dragged it to our clothes line pole where I propped up one end at a decent height for a tent.  Then I folded one tarp over and stuffed it with grass mulch that had been covering my Rhubarb and Chives bed.  It made a nice comfy place to rest.  Then I tied the second tarp over using twine I had found in the chicken coop.  Really, it was a very nice tent.  Using more rags in a plastic grocery bag, I had a pillow.
Thankfully, I had my garden pitcher, and a faucet for drinkable water.  Throughout the day, I drank 3 1/2 quarts of water.  It was only around 50 to 55 degrees most of the day until evening.  When it got cold, and rained, I simply retreated to the tent and took a nap.
It was a very long day, until Tom returned from work (a long day for him) at 7:15 pm.
In reality, if it had been more of an emergency, I could have broken a window and gone inside, but I decided to tough it out and learn from the experience.  Alternatively, if it were much colder, I could have hung out in the generator shed where it stays warmer, but it is really loud in there.

All this got me thinking. I needed to be better prepared.  I needed to have an emergency kit to keep outside.  I started filling one this morning with items already around the house.

So far, it contains:
1 pair warm gloves, 1 pair work gloves, 1 warm hat, matches, a flint fire starter, 2 washcloths, a notebook and pencil, paracord, Ibuprofen and Excedrin, canned salmon and canned tuna, 1 cup quinoa, a leatherman knife/tool set, cotton balls smeared with petroleum jelly, an emergency blanket, a warm fleece, 100 yds dental floss (can be used for cordage), a roll of duct tape, band-aids, and electrolyte powder (enough for 30 quarts of water).
There's much that can be added, but its a good start. (need to get a can opener soon).

So, ask yourself, ...are you prepared for a zombie apocalypse?

Stinging Nettles, young

Rhubarb

A plentiful supply of wild Nettles

The daylight hours are growing longer.  It seems to be getting light by 5 am, and remains light until about 10:30 pm.  I'm sure this is a great help for the seedlings.  They were doing great in the mini-greenhouse most nights, but there was one early morning that the frost dipped a bit too low.  It killed most of my seedlings, but I think that was also because I had not watered them that day. They had seemed to be doing better with watering only every other day, except when the severe cold came unexpectedly.

The bears have arrived out of hibernation.  We have seen several Black Bears nearby, with one that came into our front yard.  That was the evening that we learned the sound of Grizz's very serious bark.  It was quite alarming.  We have also continued to see many Elk on our back hills on a regular basis.

Grizz, half growed up.  *sniff*

 Have a great week!

DIY Paper Seedling Pots, and Chaga!

Hello Friends!
These past 2 months have been crazy busy.  I am sorry that I have not been able to update this blog recently.  Hunters began arriving mid February and the last of them left mid March.  During that time, I have been busy cleaning and cooking and trying to keep progressing forward with my home business start-up as well.  The hunters were here to hunt wolves, but Tom was not guiding the hunts this time, as he was kept busy with some special projects at his workplace.  However, we did hire an assistant guide, who stayed here as well.

We have had some very warm weather here, and I have noticed that the populations of chickadees have been steadily increasing.  But then, just when I was getting excited again about the hope of Spring, we suddenly received a load of 12-14" of snowfall overnight.  That was just a few days ago, and it has been quite chilly ever since.

My seeds have been started!!!  The chill in the air has not suppressed my gardening plans.  A week ago, I spent an afternoon rolling recycled newspaper and paper grocery bags to make hand-made pots for starting my seedlings.  Then I filled the little pots and planted the first seedlings, Shasta Daisies, and placed the pots in our boiler room to germinate.  The room stays a nice 85 degree F temperature.  Today, I found that there are a few seedlings that have already begun sprouting.  It is still a little more than 10 weeks before the last expected Spring frost. Tonight I will finish assembling our mini-greenhouse to keep our seedlings warm and happy until they can be transplanted.  This is the first time I have used DIY paper pots, but I already highly recommend them.  The paper is biodegradable, and can be transplanted directly into the garden, without disturbing your seedling's roots. This also avoids senseless cheap plastic waste. One week later, my paper pots are holding up as well as when they were first made.

PAPER SEEDLING POTS:
For you do-it-yourselfers out there, first select a jar or can from your pantry that has the same diameter as you would like to have the completed paper pot.  (Mine are 2.5" pots and 3 3/4" pots).  Just roll the jar up in the recycled paper at the desired height until it is 2-4 thicknesses (depending on strength of the paper used), leaving enough loose end at the bottom to fold over (as you would wrap a present), and tape with masking tape to secure.  Then slide the jar out and fill your new paper pot with moistened seedling starter soil up to 3/4 full.

Chaga!  My great foraging find!
Now, what would this natural living blog be without sharing with you as I learn about wild foraging? A few weeks ago I went foraging for Chaga Mushrooms.  Chaga,  Inonotus obliquus, also known as Birch Fungus, is found here in our surrounding woods.  It was not difficult to find and I was able to quickly collect a suitable amount for my needs.  I never collect more than 10% at most of any herb in a given area when foraging to preserve the herb/plant's productivity.  Also, I only collect plants, including mushrooms, if the specimen can be positively identified.  Chaga Mushroom is quite different than what one would normally think of as a mushroom.  Chaga is a hard crusty parasitical growth found primarily on Birch trees, though I have seen it here also on some Poplar trees. For the greatest healing properties, it should be collected only from Birch trees.   Here is some information to share with you that I found on youtube:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0z4Y8_Nc-0 
This is not the best resource, but it does have some good information.
The first two pictures show it growing on Birch trees, while the last is the specimen I collected.

 

Warmer Days

New adventures have continued here.  Tom and I got out one afternoon for a nice snowshoeing trip.  It was only for just under 3 miles, but neither of us have been out snowshoeing much and this trip seemed to be a small challenge.  Along our way we found an area with many older White Birch trees, whereas many areas here are dominated by Poplars.  We both came back with sore knees, but it was great just to get out together.  Grizz went with us.  The trip began by snowmobile, so we've had to teach Grizz to ride calmly, half way laying in my lap between us.  He quickly gets over the engine noise, but staying balanced sideways on a snowmobile is no small feat for such a large beast.  Teaching him to duck when low branches come our way will be miraculous.

I have been hearing much from everyone about the lack of rain in California.  We've had a fair share of snow, but really it has been much warmer for January than we had anticipated.  The thickly laid snow began melting and then freezing again, leaving a lake of ice covering our yard and drivespace.  The warm temps then brought rain instead of snow which didn't help matters.  It was the lake of ice that kept me trapped inside on some days.  I became afraid to walk out there even with good boot treads as the result of a few falls. One great thing about having such a large pup is being able to teach him to stand still and strong while allowing me to pull myself upright by grasping his face or shoulders and leveraging myself up again after an icy fall.  (He didn't always appreciate this at first, until he realized why I was doing it, then he stood stronger each time I needed him.)  Grizz started missing out on his outdoors ball time because he often fell and slid past his beloved ball with legs spread out in all directions.  Hearing the crack sound of his jaw or head hitting the ice was enough to end our game time. We had a truckload of sand and ice spread around which improved the drivespace greatly.

The unseasonably warm weather has also begun calling some of the Grizzlies out of hibernation early.  I haven't seen any yet, but I'm keeping my eyes open during my hikes, and always taking Grizz with me.

Green grass started peeking out above the melting snow, though I knew it would not stay for long.  It was a great reminder to me that Spring planting season will be upon us eventually!  During a trip to town, we bought many of the veggie seeds I would like to grow.  According to the Farmer's Almanac info I found online for this region, the date of the last Spring frost here is expected to be around June 5th.  June 5th????  That still shocks me as I am used to California where you can grow many vegetables outdoors year round.  June 5th is so far away.  Here there is expected this year to be a growing season of about 84 days, with the first Fall frost being August 29.  I will definitely be starting most of my seeds indoors and then placing them in my mini-greenhouse until I can plant them out in the garden.  Even though the growing season is much shorter here, a bonus is that the daylight hours are longer making everything turn out just right.

Hopefully I can buy some chickens soon and start getting some fresh eggs.  I love farm chicken eggs.  There's a bit of work to do to get their coop ready before their arrival sometime around April or May, I think.

Its snowing a again and I have some work to do outside.  Have a great day!

Yogurt in a Crockpot

Hello all!  Time has been flying by fast for me.  Though I keep planning to write much more often here, I find myself keeping busy starting my business instead.   Not much has been changing around here otherwise.  We have had much snow and Spring is so far away so I will not be getting out to do much foraging for a while.  Soon I will post about some winter foraging that I have been doing.

Grizz has continued growing to be a wonderful dog. Now at 6 months old, he is a big 55 lbs of bouncing puppy joy.  Grizz just had his first snowmobile ride.  It will be good to train him to stay comfortably on a snowmobile or quad for when we take long trail trips.

I love making homemade yogurt, and found a method that uses a crockpot to heat the milk, and then turned off to cool for a bit before adding the yogurt culture.  Then, the crockpot just rests for hours while the yogurt culture works its wonders.

Homemade yogurt is a beneficial probiotic for healthy digestion, though there are many controversies involving its use in the regular diet.  I recommend using only organic, raw, grass-fed milk from local farmers, but its difficult to obtain raw.  There are many varieties available including Greek-style which has a higher protein content.  Yogurt the only dairy product that I regularly consume.  Pasteurized milk irritates my stomach, though raw feels just fine to me.   The yogurt culture I purchase currently is an organic pasteurized Greek-style.   I flavor my yogurt portions (usually with fruit and maple syrup or honey) only just before I eat it, but I also love to include yogurt in a smoothie for breakfast made with apple, oatmeal, honey and yogurt.  I also add it to soups instead of cream, or use it to make a delicious tangy cream cheese!  Do not use any yogurt culture that contains pectin.  I choose unflavored, but I have successfully used a vanilla flavored yogurt as the culture.

There are several methods of making yogurt easily found online, (or your local library), but here is the instructions I use to make it in a crock-pot:

Makes 1/2 gallon yogurt.

1.  Pour 1/2 gallon milk into a crock-pot with ceramic interior.
2.  Heat milk until thermometer reaches 175 degrees F.
3.  Meanwhile, let 1 cup yogurt set out to warm to room temperature.
4.  When crock-pot has heated to 175 degrees, unplug the crock-pot and allow it to cool until 115 degrees.  You may occasionally stir it to prevent a top-skin forming.
5.  Stir in 1 cup organic yogurt culture.
6.  Wrap the unplugged crock-pot with bath-sized towels, and let set undisturbed for 10 hours.  The resulting yogurt should be thick and delicious.

Store in the refrigerator and use as desired, saving 1 cup to use as a culture for your next batch of homemade natural goodness.  Enjoy!

Here's some more interesting and useful info on yogurt:
http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=124