For my birthday, wanted to keep it simple, celebrate with my family, and give thanks for the abundant support I receive in so many areas. I went to a “pick your own” working farm and kid-exploring paradise.
It was a lovely day spent with my daughters and my dad. We went to Miller Farms and took a hayride around 180 acres of pick your own vegetables. I like getting my hands dirty, getting lots of good produce, and helping my daughters know where their food really comes from.
Now we just have to process or store all the cabbage, carrots, onions, leaks, kale, swiss chard, peppers, and potatoes we brought home. Getting food from the fields doesn’t really help unless you know what to do with it. Luckily, some things are really simple.
Potatoes will keep for months in a cool, dry, dark place.
Kale and swiss chard can easily be frozen. Blanching first will make it last longer.
A bit more involved but still simple is turning cabbage into sauerkraut. The live enzymes of lacto-fermented veggies are good for digestion (which in turn is good for clear thinking and balanced emotions).
Here are the sauerkraut basics with more details available at http://www.wildfermentation.com/making-sauerkraut-2/
- Cut, chop, or shred the cabbage leaving out any moldy, rotten or bruised bits.
- Use a bowl, crock, or canning jar to pack the shredded cabbage.
- Sprinkle a layer of cabbage 1/2 – 1″ thick.
- Sprinkle a salt generously over the top of the cabbage.
- Repeat cabbage, salt, cabbage, salt packing down with your fist or a tamper periodically.
- Fill your container.
- Put a plate or other covering over the top.
- Weight the plate (a jar full of water works) to keep the cabbage below water level (water comes out of the cabbage but if there isn’t enough liquid to submerge the cabbage after a day or so, add some salt water that is about as salty as tears).
- Check the ‘kraut every couple of days.
- Eat it when you like it.
Put it in the fridge to slow down fermentation and make it last longer.
Enjoy!
Kassandra Brown is a coach based in Boulder, CO.
