Get Cultured!: An Interview with Jenny McGruther of Nourished Kitchen

Posted on May 15, 2012 by Kendahl

Today I have the privilege of interviewing my longtime followed and now friend, Jenny McGruther of Nourished Kitchen. Everything on Nourished Kitchen is immaculate, rustic, gorgeous, and personally attended to by Jenny. It is that kind of approach that makes it so easy to trust her, both when it comes to interview answers and her e-courses.

Right now Jenny has her class Get Cultured! on sale for $147, which is a $50 savings. However, if you use the coupon code “SAUERKRAUT”, then you can also get an additional $50 off through May 22. So don’t delay: this class is guaranteed to be worth it, and you won’t see this price again! Click here to see the Get Cultured! class information.

But before we get to all that, please enjoy this interview I had with Jenny yesterday. I love what she has to say about the vitality of fermented and cultured foods! Continue reading →

Honey-Sweetened Lemonade (GAPS-friendly)

Posted on April 20, 2012 by Kendahl

Last week I got my hands on 5 pounds of organic lemons, and instead of looking at them on my counter I actually did something with them this time!

The acidity of the bright lemon juice cuts gently through the floral honey, creating a pleasantly refreshing drink as it warms up this time of year. You can even stir up a batch and put your kids to work on a lemonade stand Continue reading →

REAL FOOD 101 E-Book: Traditional Foods, Traditionally Prepared

Posted on April 3, 2012 by Kendahl

The REAL FOOD 101 E-book: Traditional foods, Traditionally Prepared is a set of step by step tutorials in full color pictures to teach you how to implement real food into your kitchen. Come cook with me!

I am very blessed to be supporting my family with the posts I write here at Our Nourishing Roots, writing recipes and sharing my experiences. I am sincerely passionate about what I do. I make real food for my family every day, and I have for several years now. So I have a request: If you love Our Nourishing Roots as much as I do, and if you are able, please support me by purchasing my e-book. Every little bit helps, and you are the reason I am able to be here doing what I love. Thank you for that!

See a sample of the e-book here, then buy REAL FOOD 101: Traditional Foods, Traditionally Prepared for only $14!

Continue reading →

REAL FOOD 101: How to Make Whey (and “Cream Cheese”)

Posted on March 16, 2012 by Kendahl

Pin It

(To buy the REAL FOOD 101 E-book: Traditional Foods, Traditionally Prepared, click here. Full color photos, step by step tutorials, and more. Only $14.)

Whey is incredibly useful when making lacto-fermented drinks (such as beet kvass), condiments (such as mayonnaise), and vegetables (such as these dilly carrot sticks) at home.

I have mentioned in several recipes that I use whey. Have you ever bought yogurt from the store and there is a little liquid on the top before you stir it all together? That’s whey. However, it’s only a teaspoon or so if you pour it off. You will need more than that to make ketchup on a regular basis!

So if you want to make whey, then it’s best to use my method below. Plus, when you make whey my way you get “cream cheese”*, too. (That’s a bonus for those of you taking the Whole Grains E-course and you’re learning to make your own bagels. That’s a match made in heaven.) Continue reading →

REAL FOOD 101: How to Make Yogurt

Posted on March 1, 2012 by Kendahl

Pin It

(To buy the REAL FOOD 101 E-book: Traditional Foods, Traditionally Prepared, click here. Full color photos, step by step tutorials, and more. Only $14.)

Yogurt can be made many different ways: raw milk yogurt, 24-hour yogurt, yogurt made from one of many different culture strains. That’s the great thing about yogurt. It’s very simple, but it’s also variable depending on what you would like to make yogurt for. Some are thick, some are thin, but all have that bright and sour flavor that we all love.

Yogurt is basically milk and cream that has been thickened with beneficial bacteria. We all know that yogurt is “good for you”, but why? Probiotic foods are claimed to be good for our bodies in many ways: gut flora balance, immune system defenses, and general health. Making your own yogurt at home is simple, and yields the freshest probiotic bang for your buck!

Continue reading →

Real Food 101: How to Make a Basic Vinaigrette

Posted on February 6, 2012 by Kendahl

Pin It

Garlic & Herb Vinaigrette

(To buy the REAL FOOD 101 E-book: Traditional Foods, Traditionally Prepared, click here. Full color photos, step by step tutorials, and more. Only $14.)

My lovely Basic Vinaigrette is a simple dressing; an excellent recipe to have on hand. Prepared as written it can go with nearly any green salad, cooked veggie, or anything else that needs a little oil for richness and acid for sharp contrast. I have even tossed it with rice salads and it’s perfect.

However, I have a particular version of this vinaigrette I use almost 100% of the time due to the predictable freak out that everyone has whenever I use it. Yes, it’s that good. Who knew that real food ingredients could make such a difference? (I know, I knew it already too!) I call it my Garlic & Herb Dressing, and it’s based on a dressing recipe from here. Of course I had to double the garlic and mustard, but I think it’s perfect that way. Every time I make this dressing, people rant and rave about it. Continue reading →

REAL FOOD 101: How to Make Buttermilk Ranch Dressing

Posted on December 20, 2011 by Kendahl

Pin It

(To buy the REAL FOOD 101 E-book: Traditional Foods, Traditionally Prepared, click here. Full color photos, step by step tutorials, and more. Only $14.)

I know that ranch dressing is arguably not in the realm of Real Food 101 for everyone reading here. But oh my it certainly does hit the spot for anyone who grew up in my family. We used to put ranch dressing on everything! It wasn’t just for fries, it was also for salads, meats, veggies, and anything else savory. The problem: we were eating bottled salad dressing or dressing from restaurants when we were out.

Growing up, the only less-offensive version of Ranch dressing was when we would buy the ranch flavoring packets and at least make our own from mayonnaise and sour cream at home. But that isn’t much better since the packets contain MSG, the mayonnaise had industrial waste oils in it, and we used to buy fat free sour cream. It is memories like this that make me feel so grateful that I started embracing whole foods. To top it all off, I learned that fats are nourishing and healthy.

Continue reading →

REAL FOOD 101: How to Make Lacto-Fermented Ketchup

Posted on December 13, 2011 by Kendahl

Pin It

(To buy the REAL FOOD 101 E-book: Traditional Foods, Traditionally Prepared, click here. Full color photos, step by step tutorials, and more. Only $14.)

When you start reading labels at the grocery store, you may find yourself considering the idea of just making your own condiments. Fortunately making ketchup is pretty simple, because it sure is tasty on all the grass-fed hamburgers and hot dogs at my house! But ketchup is quite versatile too. We also use it as a base for cocktail sauce and barbaque sauce on a regular basis. I have not tried it, but I am guessing fry sauce would be amazing too. Yummmm…okay, stay focused!

But most of all, I love that this ketchup is lacto-fermented, which means that it has probiotic goodness coursing through it. When you add the whey and let it sit out overnight, the good bacteria grow and make your ketchup good for your gut. Plus, this ketchup isn’t a compromise. There is no need to worry about the price tag or the content: it costs very little, and there are not any ingredients to dread!

Continue reading →

REAL FOOD 101: How to Make Traditional Sauerkraut

Posted on December 2, 2011 by Kendahl

Pin It

(To buy the REAL FOOD 101 E-book: Traditional Foods, Traditionally Prepared, click here. Full color photos, step by step tutorials, and more. Only $14.)

I am not sure there is a simpler ferment to make than sauerkraut. After all, it is only cabbage and salt. And time. You wait, letting the flavors grow and shift and change until you are left with a humble but power-packed probiotic vegetable. Sauerkraut is full of raw enzymes and probiotics, not to mention that it is a very good source of vitamin C after the fermentation process.

I like to eat more sauerkraut and other lacto-fermented vegetables in the wintertime. We can all use more vitamin C during cold and flu season to support our immune systems. I have read that seafaring people would take barrels of sauerkraut out with them to sea, since fresh produce would be scarce, and the vitamin C would protect against scurvy. I hope that it true, because it’s a great story!

Continue reading →