chopping...revisisted

Weelllll.....

 After posting...and then talking with the wonderful and all knowing mackadamian, I remember that he and his uncle had reminisced about his grandparents and his parents making sauerkraut...not as cool as i thought i was....or am i ever....

but, yes, it has been done before, not charting any new ground here....

and family that has those wonderfully huge crocks...feel free to spread the love and share.....(i'll give you yummy homemade sauerkraut in return...and maybe share a few recipes with you from great great grandmothers ledger collection...oh you know the ones..the coveted ones.....that's right....)

most of us will never chart new ground....but we can chart a better life...and that's what i feel like we (i mean my husband and i...cuz man he is all on top of this...he jsut can't get enough of food blogs and reading about what we should  not eat...and my lamenting about needing some land to till...)

now we are adding a healthy and cancer fighting food that we know what has gone into it.....

and there are still nutrients in it. unlike the store bought brands that are vinegared to make it taste like it is fermented....but with none of the optimum health benefits.

With only one minor but rather sharp incident.....this is what it looks like...it was so easy...including the slicing of the finger.....y'all should try it!!! Seriously!

all the cabbage sliced and ready

The onions...

The food safe plastic pail....(um family.....the crock would really look better here....just sayin)

here is the almost end product, with the salt and caraway seeds added.....

it has sat for about an hour, and now I will tamp it....and then place a nice heavy rock aka 2 quart jar filled with water on top of a plate to weight it down and keep it all under the cabbage juice...

you could even do this with one or two heads of cabbage...including purple cabbage (how pretty would that be?!) in a glass jar.....

now this bad boy pail...will be out in my cooler garage...because it will be giving off a STRONG odor.....think kimchi smell......yum, that sounds good!! I can't believe at one time i didn't like the stuff.....

so the question is..how do I get the little mcd's to eat sauerkraut...saying it is good for them...just won't cut it....

do you have any favorite recipes?  will you share them with me? (great...now I have a crazy song running through my head that the mctwins always pull up on my phone...will you sing it with me...picture #1 mctwin yelling this at the top of her voice! over...and over...and over..and...)

here is my favorite recipe..that a few of the mckiddos will eat.....

Bean and Sauerkraut Salad

2 cups sauerkraut

2 cups cut green beans (1 14.5 oz can, drained)

2 cups wax beans ( 15 oz can, drained)

2 cups red, kidney or garbanzo beans, drained

1 cup sliced green pepper

1/2 cup sliced red pepper (this is a good time to use those frozen peppers.....if you don't have fresh!)

Heat 3/4 olive oil, 1/2 cup sugar and 1 cup sliced red onion to a simmer then cool.  Mix with the beans and chill several hours or overnight.  Add fresh ground pepper just before serving.  Serves 8.

come help me chop

hhhmm.......I have a lot to do...and here i sit...

don't we all?

But after a wonderful weekend of reflecting and consideration...and much contemplation

I have some changes to make....and I am going to make changes here too....

{gasp....sigh...}

no it will be fine....really....if i keep saying this....i will believe it....

but before I start........I have to go make sauerkraut.....

mmm........so good.......i love me some good 'kraut...must be some of the german in me!!! 

I have never made sauerkraut before.....but there must be a first for everything, and if I was an old time german farmer...farmer's wife.....i would have done it...

my family will thank me in the end...maybe not in the middle...but in the end.....and maybe not even then...they. may. be. a. little. gassy....um....but it is good for you! (no not the gas)

Those old farmers knew something...Vitamin C....especially in the winter.....among other things.....saurkraut is also a flu fighter!

1. Sauerkraut as immune booster
   One of the not so secret benefits of sauerkraut is the boost it gives to immune systems. Packed with vitamins and minerals, sauerkraut has been used as a lay immune booster for centuries.Sauerkraut contains phytochemicals which are created during the fermentation process. These naturally occurring, beneficial by products of sauerkraut help boost the immune system which leads to a decrease in a number of health problems. The common cold, skin problems, weight gain and tainted blood are all fixed by a healthy functioning immune system.
2. Sauerkraut as cancer fighter
   The most recent evidence of sauerkraut's status as a Superfood is found in numerous studies on the cruciferous wonder's cancer fighting properties. The results of a study published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry concluded that sauerkraut is a cancer inhibitor. The study discovered that the fermentation of cabbage produced a substance called isothiocynates, which prevents cancer growth, particularly in the breast, colon, lung and liver. Although raw cabbage is normally rich in a compound called glucosinolate, the researchers found that during the fermentation process enzymes are released that completely decompose the compound into several breakdown products. The majority of these products are cancer-fighting isothiocyanates. The University of New Mexico published a study linking sauerkraut consumption by adolescent females to a reduced risk for breast cancer earlier studies indicate sauerkraut may reduce the risk for other forms of cancer including lung, colon, prostate, and liver We are finding that fermented cabbage could be healthier than raw or cooked cabbage, especially for fighting cancer, says Eeva-Liisa Ryhanen, Ph.D., research manager of MTT Agrifood Research Finland, located in Jokioinen, Finland. A recent study by the American Center for Cancer Research has found that sauerkraut has a profound effect in preventing and healing breast cancer. Based on reports that breast cancer rates amongst polish women in the United States were much higher than those in Poland researchers set out to find out why. Their answer; the women who still lived in Poland ate significantly larger amounts of sauerkraut especially important while they were in adolescence. The research found that the women who immigrated Americanized' their diets and stopped eating as much of the super food that is sauerkraut thus increasing their rates of breast cancer.
3. Digestive Aid
   Eating sauerkraut is a great way to protect the balance of bacteria in your gastrointestinal tract. Sauerkraut is one of the few foods that contain the bacterium Lactobacilli plantarum. L. planatarum is a very dominant strain of healthful bacteria which helps your digestive system in the following ways: boost the immune system by increasing antibodies that fight infectious disease help inhibit pathogenic organisms including E.coli, salmonella and unhealthy overgrowth of candida (yeast) create antioxidants (glutathione and superoxide dismustase) that scavenge free radicals which are a cancer precursor transforms hard-to-digest lactose from milk to the more easily digested lactic acid. It neutralizes the antinutrients found in many foods including the phytic acid found in all grains and the trypsin-inhibitors in soy generates new nutrients including omega-3 fatty acids, digestive aids and the trace mineral GTF chromium. These various properties are the best scientific reasons given for what has been known by loyal users for millennia, sauerkraut cures an upset stomach and is the best natural physic there is. Many sources say raw fermented foods are beneficial to the digestive system by increasing the healthy flora in the intestinal tract or creating the type of environment for them to flourish. Sauerkraut and its juice are traditional folk remedies for constipation. Fermentation actually increases nutrient values in the cabbage, especially vitamin C. Fermented foods are also said to facilitate the breakdown and assimilation of proteins. They have a soothing effect on the nervous system. The benefits of sauerkraut and sauerkraut juice have been recognized for generations. In some families of southern Germany, the children are fed raw sauerkraut twice weekly to support their intestines. Today it is thought that these benefits may relate to a high proportion of lactic acid in sauerkraut and sauerkraut juice that naturally supports the digestive processes, maintain intestinal flora, and increase the feeling of well-being.
4. Flu Fighter
   With the spread of Avian Flu spreading across the globe, one enterprising Korean scientist, Kang Sa-Ouk of Seoul National University, took 13 chickens infected with avian flu virus and a couple of other diseases, fed them Kim chi extract and found that 11 of the birds recovered. Experts think the vital bacteria are created during the fermenting process and this gives the dish its health-boosting qualities.

did you know this? I didn't....I just liked the taste! but wahoo....I win

AND......now I just wish it was done.....flu is in the air...already...ick....really it is ick times 3....

This is what I will be doing.....kraut in a crock....and reading more of Swamp Creek Farm's blog...and deciding on my blog revamp.....and....

wish me luck....or better yet...come help me chop....

love yer gassy guts!