Wild Yeast Bread...Yumm!!

Oh. My. God! This is my masterpiece!!! LOL

Well, let me tell you a story….as part of a homeschool experiment, my son and I decided we would try our hand at growing some wild yeast. Apparently you have to capture the little wee beasties….

So here is what we did.

I took a jar of warmish water – to this I added a couple of tablespoons of my own raw honey. Then to create a bit of acid for the yeast to feed off of, I also added some of my own homemade Apple Cider Vinegar (it tastes so good!).

This was all stirred together until the honey was completely diffused throughout the entire water. Lastly I got a piece of rhubarb from the garden, chopped it up and this was also placed into the water (it’s supposed to have some fruit).

The jar was covered with a piece of cheese cloth so it could breathe...

Every day for a week or two – we gently stirred this concoction and watched it carefully. I was checking for any mold growth or something unusual as well. If mold had started to grow, it would kill any wild yeasts….

Finally – there started to form some frothy substance on the top of the jar. I tasted it, and it was wild yeast! This week I was trying to decide what to do with this (it’s not very much) so I poured it into a bowl and made bread with it.

It is quite possibly the best bread I have ever made in my entire life. Seriously. And for the first time in over 2 months, my bread rose as it baked – all from wild yeast I had grown myself in my own kitchen.

Blooming marvelous!

April

Wild Yeast Bread 

The Memory of Water - An Essential Ingredient in Our Food

I just realised I haven't mentioned how my feta cheese turned out...and I wanted to post a photo of it. So far, it was my favourite cheese to make (it is easy!) and after it was in a salty brine for about a week or so, it was gorgeous.

To make any cheese is an art. One foodie area I hope to some day become part of with some fine culinary delights and offerings for my own family. So far our cheeses taste great (at least they do to us!) and I can't say they really compare to shop bought or mass produced cheese.

Just this morning I had some of my chèvre cheese on toast....and once again loved it! Only this time I think I was far less critical of it and just enjoyed the sharpness of the cheese together with the sweetness of the fig jam. 

It was heavenly.

So, back to my feta - this is a cheese that I have always loved. Ever since my youthful days spent roaming the Greek section of Toronto with all the restaurants and great authentic foods. Then having spent quite a bit of time in Greece - enjoying homemade and local foods....it was the exquisite taste of the feta I have long remembered.

And that is the taste I want to reproduce (as much as possible) in my own kitchen, from my own goats. I know the taste of anything has to do with the local environment, the way the animals are fed and treated as well as the technique of the artisan food maker.

BUT....I also know what is discounted here and that is the fundamental element of absolutely everything I do, think, talk about and is essential to all of my work. That is WATER. The water makes the food, starting with the animals and the plant that grows...

Water alters a foods' vibration with whomever is working with it, using it in anyway (even transporting it) and especially in their cooking. Your own personal vibration is transferred to your final cooked product through the specialized memory of water.

A low vibration will give poor food...and even if it tastes great (initially!) the person will feel 'bad' sometime after eating it. However, it will also work to lower your vibration and does us no good whatsoever. 

These things are so important to me and my family and the food we eat - that's why I make everything myself! LOL

By the way...for some great 'vibration' food products check out my growing on-line shop. I am still getting it organized - most of these are 'starter' products (you have to go and make the food yourself LOL) which are based on it's energetic frequency. 

April

Homemade Feta Cheese with Olives, Olive Oil & Oregano

Artisan Foods - Making Your Own

Well, doing lots of cooking here for sure – but not much that is really new or different….however I have had a hankering for some very different kinds of foods over these past few weeks and that is what I have been working on.

One of these is some salted meat or perhaps cured meat is the best term to be used here. Years ago this was a regular staple in my diet (probably not a healthy one) but it is something I would like to know how to make at home.

I am just jumping ahead here to when we have more of our own meats available and need to keep them in some way - of course smoking, salting and what not are very traditional methods of preserving foods and I am all for that. 

So this week I am trying my hand at making a couple of different things – one of them is to cure a piece of venison and the other is to salt some fresh cod fish. Actually I grew up salting cod fish on ‘flakes’ outside in the sunshine during the summer months….

And am well used to salted fish. This time around I will just brine it over night or for a little longer and cook it in a traditional way with some drawn butter, onions and garlic. These days I am not certain we would get a full week of uninterrupted sunshine to dry any fish...and it would take a lot of fish (I'd better get fishing! LOL).

I can’t wait to get back to normal food days and then of course our Easter Feast is fast approaching. It’s hard to believe March is flying by and spring is here (well, some days at least!).

But, first….I am planning on branching out into making some different kinds of bread. I for one really enjoy any kind of breads and have spent many years not eating it only to come back full circle as my gut healed from dysfunction to finally be able to make (and eat) my own baking.

Lots to look forward to as this cleanse winds down later this week – and I for one, can’t wait. 

April

Me doing what I love to do - kitchen duty!