Sauerkraut and Pickles

     Gypsy is our resident fermentation expert for making healthy fermented vegetable, dairy products, and sprouted grain products.  She has pulled a couple of her favorite recipes from " Nourishing Traditions" by Sally Fallon and modified them just a bit to share with you.
Makes 1 Quart Sauerkraut

    I Medium Cabbage Head, cored and shredded
     1 TBS Caraway seeds (optional)
     1 TBS Sea Salt
     4 TBS Whey (if not available, use an additional 1 TBS of salt)
*In a bowl, mix shredded cabbage with caraway seeds, sea salt and whey. Pound with a wooden pounder or meat hammer for about 10 minutes to release juices. Place in a quart sized, wide mouthed mason  jar and press down firmly with a pounder or meat hammer until juices come to the top of the jar. Cover tightly and keep at room temperature for about 3 days before transferring to cold storage. The sauerkraut may be eaten immediately, but improves with age.
*Variations: Add 1 cup of shredded carrots, finely sliced onions and various herbs and spices, such as garlic, oregano, and red pepper flakes.

To make whey (and yogurt cream cheese):
Pour plain, whole milk yogurt into a strainer lined with a clean dish towel set over a bowl. Cover and let stand for several hours at room temperature. The whey will drip into the bowl while the solids will stay in the covered strainer. Then, tie up the towel with the solids inside onto a wooden spoon and let hang over the bowl so that more whey can drip out, but do not squeeze. When the bag stops dripping, the cream cheese inside can be stored in a covered glass container in the refrigerator for up to 1 month. The liquid whey can be stored in a glass mason jar for up to 6 months and used in fermenting to reduce the amount of salt required. The cream cheese is excellent with added herbs as a spread.

Pickled Cucumbers
Taken from the "Nourishing Traditions"
cookbook by Sally Fallon

Makes 1 Quart
  4-5 Pickling Cucumbers or
     15-20 Gherkins
  1 TBS Mustard Seeds

  2 TBS Fresh Dill, snipped
  1 TBS Sea Salt
  4 TBS Whey (if not available, use an additional 1 TBS of salt)
1 Cup Filtered Water
*Wash cucumbers well and place in a quart-sized, wide-mouthed mason jar. Combine remaining ingredients and pour over cucumbers, adding more water if necessary to cover cucumbers. The top of the liquid should be at least 1 inch below the top of the jar. Cover tightly and keep at room temperature for about 3 days before transferring to cold storage.

"When we buy vegetables, we are often deceived by their color and appearance whereas their aroma, taste and consistency tell us more about their quality. And quality is of paramount importance if we want to preserve these vegetables through lacto-fermentation; lactic-acid-producing bacteria need a great many vitamins and minerals that only vegetables rich in these elements can supply. This is why when foods are successfully lacto-fermented, we can be assured of their inherent nutritional quality.
*-Annelies Schoneck Des Crudites Toute L'Annee'