Monthly Archive

Santa Barbara County Fair - 2009 by puliarf, on Flickr

Cost of food per person per day: $3.50 I haven’t put up as much food as I’d like for the coming months. This total is blessedly low compared to the lean months of grocery shopping ahead. I surely will miss the summer’s bounty!

Relevant books read or re-read: Mindful Eating: A Guide to Rediscovering a Healthy and Joyful Relationship with Food by Jan Chozen Bays, Wild Fermentation: The Flavor, Nutrition, and Craft of Live-Culture Foods by Sandor Ellix Katz and Sally Fallon, Julia and Jacques Cooking at Home by Julia Child and Jacques Pepin

Energy Level: High

Visible health improvements: My knee pain has started up again, but it’s very different than what I have experienced the last 30 years. Instead of the deep ache that would keep me awake at nights and the sharp stabbing that would accompany my every step, I’m experiencing a shallow discomfort that is more like a twinge than anything else; and then only occasionally. From time to time, the joint will “jump out” like it did when I was a child, but unlike those days, it will almost immediately “jump in” again. It hurts, to be sure, but also unlike my younger days, it stops hurting after a few minutes. There is no three day recovery period of limited mobility, pain meds and ice packs. Curiouser and curiouser!

Other notes: My weight held steady again this month. Kate is reading Nourishing Traditions as part of her 9th grade Health and Nutrition class (we homeschool) and has started asking all the right questions. It’s easier for her, not having heard all the misinformation of the past four decades. There’s less un-learning in her learning process than there was for me.

After being on the waiting list for six months at the library, a copy of Wild Fermentation finally became available. I have one or two blog posts planned on what I gleaned from this book, and one or two recipes I’m wanting to try. It is a real leap of faith going from a germphobe—every surface wiped with Clorox wipes, food covered and refrigerated fifteen minutes after dinner is completed—to the idea of leaving honey and water out on the counter for several days to harvest free-floating yeasts from the air and then drink it. *shudders*

Remember my recurring nightmare? It’s stopped. I haven’t had it since May. I suppose that means my subconscious has come to grips with the information I’ve been learning and is comfortable with the transition. Does my conscious still struggle with it? Oh, yes. But it’s a journey.

Bright Leaves by bowena, on Flickr

I saw it yesterday. The first colored leaf of autumn. I stood and stared at it for a while, reveling in the promise that the heat of summer would eventually be over. Suddenly it struck me like a thunderbolt from a spring storm: The huge bounty of summer foods is almost over too! No more peaches, nectarines and plums. No more zucchini, cucumbers and pattypan squash. What will I do without tomatoes?

True, I can make some relishes, chutneys and other ferments to extend the season a little. I’ve done a bit of canning in my day, but for the most part I don’t can foods. There are a lot of nutrients that are destroyed in the heat of the canning process. I might live to regret that decision, especially as I strive to focus on eating only that which is available to me locally and in-season. It could be that in February, a can of chopped tomatoes I put up in August would be just the right touch in my meatloaf. But money is not so abundant right now as to afford a case of tomatoes for putting up anyway, and the tomatoes in my container garden never flowered.

My freezer space is limited as well. The small freezer on my kitchen fridge holds 5 gallons of milk between CSA deliveries, and my once-a-month meat CSA order. I have a few bags of shredded frozen zucchini, a bag or two of collards and kale cut in chiffonade for adding to winter soups, meal-sized leftover portions and several ice packs for aching backs and knees. It’s just as well I never invested in a separate freezer for the garage, the electric bill would not be a pleasant thing.

I have taken to dehydrating some foods. Dried foods are lightweight and don’t take up much storage space. I am comfortable storing them in the plastic I try to avoid for fresh or frozen foods, which avoids the broken jars we get occasionally in storage. I’ve dried some zucchini and summer squash and some of spring’s kale. There is some nutrient loss in dehydrating as well, but my machine keeps the food rather cool, so it’s not as drastic a loss as in canning.

Since I didn’t think to put up any strawberries, blueberries or raspberries, I think I’ll send the girls out for some wild blackberries this week before the birds and deer get them all. I’m beginning to see lots of apples at the farmer’s market and probably should start thinking about drying or canning some of those. A winter without fruit would be long, indeed.

This post is part of the Real Food Wednesdays blog carnival, hosted this week by Kelly the Kitchen Kop.

I saw Julie and Julia last night. I really wanted to wait until Hubby could join me, but we couldn’t get our schedules together. I can’t wait until it is available on Netflix, what a great evening’s entertainment we have ahead of us!

Mind you, we’re no longer a young couple, but early in our marriage we spent ten years in a 900-square-foot apartment, not in New York, but just outside Los Angeles. Hubby is in publishing, an editor and an author. I’m a foodie and blogger and love reading biographies of farmers and cooks. Hubby is wonderfully supportive of me and tolerant of my “interest binges” during which I pursue my passion almost single-mindedly.

I noticed that although Julie had a postage stamp-sized kitchen (and I complain about the size of mine!) she did have the very best tools: I saw Le Creuset cookware, a Calphalon roasting pan and some serious chef’s knives. My tools are not nearly as upscale: a set of poorly cast enamel-on-cast-iron that is chipping and rusting, a Farberware stainless chef’s knife with a torn rubberized handle and two Pyrex baking dishes which are in near constant use. I have a set of stockpots by Cuisinart that also see frequent action with my large family.

Probably the biggest difference between Julia, Julie and me is our approach to food. Julia created masterpieces and honed her craft out of her love for food, eating and her husband. Julie considered cooking a creative outlet that both comforted her after a miserable day of work and worked magic on her husband whose heart was most definitely reached via the stomach. Me? I get food on the table to feed the hungry throng.

Don’t get me wrong. I love to cook. I do run rather low on confidence and prefer having tried and true recipes holding my hand through the process. But I love the way foods you’d never think would go together become a symphony in the mouth. I enjoy tasting each element and comparing it to the finished product. I love the colors, shapes and textures of food, and I do love to eat! My favorite moment of the week is seeing my childrens’ eyes rolled back, and hearing that “mmmmmm” that accompanies a particularly tasty tidbit.

I’m thinking perhaps it’s time to take the next step in my culinary education and discover the art form I’ve been ignoring.

I have no idea how I managed to go so long in life without making pickles. I guess since I’ve never really been a fan of eating them, making them was pretty far down the list. I’m just not thrilled with the super-sour limp vinegar types I’ve had. But, an abundance of small, bumpy cucumbers came my way via my CSA box last week and I just had to give it a shot.

I knew my family probably wouldn’t eat them whole, but in slices they stood the chance of being added to a sandwich at least. Hubby had a couple on his ham sandwich today and agreed they were a nice addition.

Dill seemed a sensible flavoring. The instructions were almost ridiculously easy. The result, stunning. They are savory without being torturously tart, crisp and tasty. Best of all, because they are made with whey, they are a raw and probiotic food. This is just a “baby step” recipe, there’s nothing fancy here, so if you’re tempted to try pickles, here’s a great start:

Mild Dill Pickle Slices

5 pickling cucumbers
3 stems fresh dill
1 tablespoon sea salt
4 tablespoons whey
1 cup water

Wash and slice the cucumbers to your liking. Place in a clean quart-sized wide-mouth jar. Cut the frilly ends off the dill stems and discard the stems. Add the frills, the salt and whey to the jar and shake. Push down on the cucumbers a little (I use a meat hammer for this) and add water until the liquid is higher than the level of the cucumbers. Be sure the liquid is still at least an inch lower than the top of the jar. Label the jar and leave it on the counter for two days, then refrigerate. Larger slices like spears may take three days.

This post is part of Fight Back Fridays, hosted by Food Renegade.