We’ve been eating a lot cleaner here and my default setting when I’m tired is now to stay home and forage. I will not turn up my nose at any decent food that doesn’t need a lot of preparation 🙂 I might have bought dinner but I’m trying to embrace a cleaner diet to help all of us improve our gut health and a sense of being rested…nourishing us in more than one sense 🙂
We had a huge play day with friends – water play, trampoline, chasey and music… our 22-month girl Sasha managed to skip her nap, which is great because otherwise she keeps us company most of the evening and it stops us from experiencing any silence, ever. And that makes for terrible parenting!
The gluttonous husband was kind enough to fry me some salmon and I could have had the same sides as the kids but I went for my lacto fermented cauliflower, at least partly because I couldn’t be bothered to go outside for lemon for the sour component of this meal!
I should mention he’s just made me tiramisu I suppose. And I must remember to place another request for candied blood orange dipped in tempered chocolate 😉 (I’m not even kidding!)
My precious lacto fermented cauliflower originally came from Michelle the biodynamic farmer and is just the most beautiful thing ever… pink like a flower and beautiful shapes. With sour, zingy flavours like champagne. For those who like sour tastes, it is just the best!
This is not my image, since I was too busy stuffing my face with food I didn’t have to cook! And feeling pretty virtuous lol…
It is so super duper easy that you’d think that there must be something wrong with this process. But no, absolutely it is cool bananas 😉
Here’s a good detailed process for those who fear food borne diseases lol
http://www.thekitchn.com/recipe-lactofermented-mixed-pickles-recipes-from-the-kitchn-194011
But honestly, bung some salt and perhaps sugar in a very clean jar and add nice clean water (this might have been boiled but it must be cool). Florets of pink cauliflower and some leaves or stems to make it stay down. Spices if you like. Make sure the veggies stay under the water. Wait a day or several to allow the resident bacteria to colonise. Tasting until you like it, then refrigerate. Boom! I suppose the best might be cucumbers, but saurkraut, cauliflower and cucumbers are all pretty awesome and should just about get you through the year. Maybe olives too … technically a fermented food! Yum tapenade! Grapes? Oh, yes, all the good things in life. Camembert. OK, stop… this is making me want a cheese platter with wine. All the best things in life truly.
This type of living is what Frugal Hedonism is all about. Sheer enjoyment of the simple things. Like pink cauliflower zing.
I really really love biodynamic farming, especially since Michelle mentioned they had remarkably high magnesium, which is what we are all a bit low in due to the food supply not using sea weed or guano anymore! Since about the 1970s (we have all gotten fatter as a result, although there are a few variables here). This is the Achilles heel in modern agriculture and biodynamics is freaking nailing it. Even more than organics, but I wouldn’t say no to that either 🙂
I won’t tell you how to obtain Michelle’s veggies or mention that she does killer chorizo because actually, they could sell out and that would not make me a happy pickler 😉 (…OK, they go to City Farm, Stirling, Mt Claremont markets and a few other places).
