Baby Steps

A little about where I come from (food-wise): my background in cooking (which I've always loved since childhood) is grandma & mom's family 'comfort foods to feed a crowd', it's still, to this day, hard for me to make anything in small batches - I mean if you're going to make something, make a ton of it & freeze some for later!). I went to a small local culinary school in 2000, I've done some catering & private chef jobs, I love to do food for other people, but as I get older I find my time to be too valuable for feeding strangers in exchange for money, it simply isn't 'enough' for me anymore....so my focus has shifted over the last couple years to home.
I stumbled across the Nourishing Traditions book while I was doing the Maker's Diet a couple summers ago. An amazing diet that really works - I dropped some serious inches! Anyhoo, I found myself getting more & more curious about Sally Fallon & these old world methods. I bought the book a few months ago & immediately starting making things. I tried Cream Cheese, Kefir, Sourkraut, Kimchee, Sourdough Starter, soaked grain muffins & quick breads...
I found a source for Raw Milk at a discount (Organic Pastures has a HUB Store in San Fernando, CA every Saturday from 10a-2p.), so I have developed a routine of going every other Saturday morning. It actually is only about 15 minutes away & there is a CNG Station in town so I can fill up the Green Bean while I'm there!! Gotta love efficiency & saving $$!
So I since starting that, I have made my own Cream Cheese, Sour Cream & Raw Butter now several times. The Sour Cream is THE BEST - my husband loves it, he's a big sour cream freak anyway, so now he is enjoying the 'real thing'! I find I don't even consider buying these items commercially anymore unless I'm desperate.
I bought a Sprouter, and some seeds - still working on making that part of my routine. But I have tried sprouted Wheat Berries (which I dried in a low oven overnight & am storing until I get my grain mill (Santa Baby?) and can grind into flour & make some yummy super nutritious bread! I know there are tons of other uses & methods for using them, just haven't gotten that far...
I had some money in my pay pal account, so I treated myself to a few new attachments for my kitchen aid mixer: the pasta roller & spaghetti cutter, the meat grinder, the sausage stuffer. I also got a Food Saver, and got a used freezer for my garage so I can store all my yummy creations! I also found some good deals on Pampered Chef Stoneware loaf pans, so my bread will turn out gorgeous & healthy! Other large kitchen gadgets I had already are: Viking Food Processor (not horrible, but I wish I'd gotten the Cuisinart!), Vita Mix Blender (LOVE it, could NOT live with out it!), meat slicer (trying to buy lunch meat whole - Trader Joe's sell small ones) and slice my own for freshness & savings!. I also found another great use for it: I froze a chicken breast, sliced it thinly, and made Tom Kha Gai. I never could get the chicken thin enough & that was perfect. I used some & put the rest, which was still frozen, in a freezer bag & then I had some for next time I made the soup (will Post the recipe later). Of course, now that I have the food saver, I will store in them next time.
Ok, well I'm almost at Stage: Crucial with my Pear Raspberry Jam, so I must end this post with a quick encouragement & be done (for now)....
I know this first post is all over the place, but I am a bit like that myself, so 1. you are getting to know the real me ;) and 2. I will go into greater depth on all these subjects, as they are not the random ramblings of a lunatic! They all work together towards the goal of of finding methods & lifestyle changes that will add up to a healthier, happier home & family.
Bless you for bearing with with me, hope to hear from you soon with input/questions/comments.
~Erin