Ferment Update

The ferment from my previous post was ready in three days. I stored it in the frig and began sampling occasionally. Fabulous! Next I was eating it by the bowl full. With about two cups left, I decided to chop it up for salsa. It tasted great. Add some home canned tomatoes. Magic! Taste like those fresh salsas they serve with endless chips and margaritas. (Great recipe for that as well. Later.)

Onion, Zucchini, Garlic, Gypsy and Jalapeno Ferment - chopped

Added home canned tomatoes

Salsa behind. Toasted cheese and fermented veggie sandwich

What have you decided to ferment?

Yum!

Spinach Cheese Casserole

This is an incredibly easy and versatile recipe.
Mix one package of thawed and drained frozen spinach with 16 or so ounces of cottage cheese.
Spinach used to come in 16 ounces as well, but now seems to be cut to 12.

 Add a couple of eggs (2 or 3, purely personal),
a cup of shredded cheese. I used a Mexican blend, but Italian blend works as well. If a single cheese is chosen consider how well it will melt or if that matters. Include fresh onion and garlic, if available and seasonings. I use a seasoning salt that I made but this recipe can adapt to the flavor you choose by shifting cheeses and seasonings.

Turn the lot into a baking dish. I prefer this two quart glass dish with lid. I have also used an oiled square baking pan, uncovered.

Bake until solid. Glassware bakes at 350 degrees. An 8 inch square, at 375. Either dish bakes for 30 minutes. Open and stir, then return to oven. Re-check at 20 minutes. Allow to set before serving.

As you can see, the spinach comes through in the end product. The casserole remains moist and can be served with garlic toast as a side, on a rice bed with garnish, or as it. Of course, low carb and gluten free, if it matters. As for the fat, well, those don't count. Taste great!

This is also a great sandwich topping. I love a panini that includes turkey and artichokes.


YUM!

Ferment Everything

Zucchini Ferment

It finally rained  and rained good. First a slow sprinkle, then a deluge. My yargen will be happy and the weeds have dug in.

I hear the thing with having a large zucchini crop is the harvest, harvest, harvest. We had been just going out and eating them off the vine. Then we kept then on the table for snacks. These are small, about six inches long and round as a thumb. Perfect for salads. As I am not interested in eating more zucchini today, it is a great time to try out a ferment.




Pictured above in the right are the gypsy peppers from earlier this week. They started in a pint jar and this morning I sliced and pressed into a six ounce jar. On the left is the new batch. Zucchini, jalapeno pepper (one), onion, and garlic. They are floating in a mix of whey and salt water. I used the liquid from the batch on the right and added fresh salt water to fill the quart jar. The jar is topped with an onion slice to keep the rest submerged. For the next three days or so, the quart jar will set on a dish to catch the overflow as it ferments. The pickled peppers are in the frig.

YUM!

Want more inspiration and information? Check out kulturedkaraite.blogspot.com.

What will you ferment?

Fermenting Fun

Peppers pickling

I have finally found a plain yogurt. Yes, I was all about making my own, but I hit a snag. I had a long run of "no-gurt" - milk that turned but didn't curd. I found plenty of uses for it, but it was not my love.

So, I have been searching for a PLAIN yogurt, meaning it contains only cultured milk. This yogurt can be strained into to thick creamy love. I added some Blackberry Jelly I found tucked in a cabinet at my FOR. It was dated 7 AUG 00 and tasted great!



The resulting whey (liquid from straining yogurt) is now fermenting my gypsy peppers - grown in pots and a Topsy Turvy planter. In three days I will see how the peppers taste. Here's a look at the label for plain yogurt, which is much thicker by the way.

And on my internet travels I found this wonderful video:

I followed her directions. We'll see...

Yum!