Lacto-fermented Honey Dill Mustard

My own little jar of honey dill mustard.

I came across this recipe at GNOWFGLINS and it looked so good I went straight away and bought some mustard powder, got some fresh dill from the garden and got out my raw honey to whip up this tasty loooking sauce. And boy was it good!! And super easy to make. I have already made my second batch and it was a perfect amount to put in a little jar that previously had store bought mustard in it.. mine is so much better:) The hardest bit is letting it sit on the counter for 3 days. It smells so tasty and I can't wait to use it so I have to stop myself from constantly opening the lid and smelling it and looking at it.

Lately I've been experimenting in the world of fermenting. Fermenting is a traditional way of preserving foods and boosting their nutrient availability. Fermented foods are more easily digested plus full of healthy bacteria and enzymes for the digestive sysytem. By putting vegetables in salt or whey with some water and letting it sit in room temperature for a few days lets the sugars and starches convert into lactic acid, which is friendly bacteria. Modern store and processed foods lack beneficial bacteria and nutrients due to processing, pasteurization and using vinegar instead. That's why it's time to get back to traditional ways of preparing food like our ancestors did:) So far I've fermented lots of beetroots since they are my favourite. I have also made some pickles once but I didn't like them too much so I still have to work on them..

Making some ginger carrots and beetroot today. About to be put in jars and left to ferment!

Lacto-fermented Honey Dill Mustard
This mustard is nice and spicy and makes sandwiches taste heavenly. It is also great in mayonnaise and in salad dressings especially. If you don't like garlic you can leave it out of the recipe. Check out the link above for the original recipe as there is a apple cider vinegar version that is not lacto fermented.

1/2 cup mustard powder
3 tablespoons whey
2 tablespoons water
5 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
4 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 small garlic clove chopped up finely

Mix everything together in a bowl and then put into a glass jar with a lid. Let it sit on the kitchen counter in room temperature for 3 days then put in the fridge.

Broccoli salad

Time to eat some raw broccoli!

We had this for lunch the other day and with dinner tonight. I love new ways of eating raw veggies. I used mayonnaise that I had made myself (check my last post!) and the apple in the salad makes it really nice. I never used to like fruits in salad but apple is such a good addition in creamy salads like this.

1 head of broccoli
1 apple
1/2 red onion thinly sliced
1 tbls raw apple cider vinegar or lemon juice
1/4 cup of mayonnaise
1 handful of alfalfa sprouts

Chop up broccoli into small pieces. I used the stems and cut them into small pieces as well. Add apples that have been cut into small pieces, thinly sliced onion rings and alfalfa sprouts. Mix together with mayonnaise and apple cider vinegar. Add a little salt and pepper.

Homemade Mayonnaise

One of my sisters is a cook and she would make mayonnaise from scratch to put in potato salads. I thought if she can do it I should give it a try too! There's nothing better than fresh homemade mayonnaise. You don't need to worry about all the sugar, additives and the vegetable oils they use to make it in the store. That's why I love making things myself because I can choose what ingredients to use and make sure they are good quality and healthy. I use extra virgin olive oil in my mayonnaise recipe. It gives it a distinctive taste and more yellow colour and we love it. I usually make double this recipe because then it makes enough to put in one glass jar. Oh yeah, I love glass jars I collect them for all sorts of things as the are great to store things in!

And if you want to be cheeky I've also added how to make your mayonnaise lacto-fermented! Lacto-fermented means that your mayonnaise will last for longer and it contains enzymes good for your digestive system.

Mayonnaise
2 egg yolks
1 tsp dijon mustard
2tbls lemon juice or raw apple cider vinegar
1 tsp raw honey
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
Himalaya salt and pepper

Make sure the eggs and all ingredients are at room temperature when you start. Put the egg yolks and everything else except the oil in a bowl and whisk until mixed together. Start adding the oil one drop at a time and whisk. After a while you can start adding a little bit more oil in each turn while whisking. At the end add a little salt and pepper to taste.

You can do it!

Lacto-fermented mayonnaise
Mix 1tbls of whey in finished mayonnaise and let it sit on kitchen counter in room temperature for 7-12 hours. Then store in fridge.

Whey: Put a coffee filter in a sieve on top of a bowl and put a few tablespoons of yoghurt in the coffee filter. Let it sit for a few hours and the bowl will collect clear white liquid -this is whey!

P.S. the yogurt then becomes a bit like cream cheese as it thickens so you can use it to make spreads and dips or use it like a thicker Greek style yogurt.

Curried cauliflower rice

Cauliflower stole the show at dinner last night. Dinner was super yummy. (And that in the picture was only my first serving haha). Salmon, Asparagus stir fried in butter with garlic, sprout salad and curried cauliflower rice. The cauliflower looks like couscous and tasted awesome. I was so excited with this new creation that I think i'm gonna be making it alot because it was so good. All I did was put cauliflower pieces in the food processor and pulsed it into small pieces. Then I fried it on a pan with some coconut oil, onion, turmeric powder, curry powder, cumin seeds, black pepper and himalaya salt. You have to try it! Oh yeah and squueze a little lemon juice on top, delicious.

Flu fighting

I've been sick with the flu for the last few days and have been resting to the max. Sleep is the best. Today I sat outside in the sun for a while, it's warmth and light just always makes me feel happy.

I also made a smoothie this afternoon, it was a real random one today with everything I could find I put in. Thought I'd try some parsley in there too for the first time since we always have some growing in our garden.

Avocado, coconut oil, parsley, banana, rock melon, orange, hempseeds, flax seeds and some green powder. Was lovely and so was drinking one with hubby who loved it too.

Here are a few of my friends.

-Thieves Essential Oil Blend by Young Living. My lovely aunty in Tasmania got me into these when we were there, I love it. I take a drop onto my tongue. It's antibacterial and supports immune system.

-Amla berries. Contain naturally a lot of vitamin C. It's a wholefood vitamin c source, not synthetic or isolated.

-Awesome green powder, has probiotics and enzymes in it. The digestive system plays a huge role in our immune system so good bacteria is important.

Creamy basil dip

Yesterday one of my beautiful friends came over and she is also real food loving chick. We have lots of basil growing in our garden so I made some of this basil dip to put on our sandwiches. It is seriously yummy and makes any sandwhich delicious:) And its green, I love bright green things. The key is to make it taste just how you like it. Not tangy enough? Add more apple cider vinegar. More sweetness? Add some more honey. Too sweet? Add some more salt.

1/2-1 cup of Cashews or Macadamia nuts

3tbls extra virgin olive oil

2tbls raw apple cider vinegar or lemon juice

1 tsp raw honey

1 garlic clove

Himalaya salt, black pepper, chili powder

Handful of basil leaves

Mix everything in the blender with a tiny bit of water until a smooth paste. If too runny add more nuts and if to thick add a bit more water.

Mineral makeup and mini health conference

Yay, I just got some new mineral makeup in the post from organicbeautyworld.com. I love the Inika mineral makeup, it's 100% mineral makeup with only a few ingredients and that is all you need! It lasts for a long time too, it took me way over a year to use this little container. When I threw out all my makeup the other year in pursuit for something without nasty chemicals I started researching all about real mineral makeup and came across Inika. I'm the type of person that will reasearch the best possbile options and I like to know all my ingredients! I never trust companies who decide on my behalf what is safe. The skin absorbs everything and so I like to be real careful what I feed my skin:)

On Sunday I also spontaneously went to listen to Philip Day speak at the rsl club here in Dee Why. He has written heaps of books on health and is a raw foodie person. I loved it so much!! I had been praying that I would get to go to some health conferences here while in aus and this was my first little touch. I was so inspired and excited just listening to how passionate he is about what he believes and he was real funny too. I admire his boldness in speaking out against the big food companies, health systems, drug companies and basically lots of other things that you know you are picking a fight with if you decide to address what they are up to. I was just reminded once and again how wonderful the human body is! We are error correcting systems with all these amazing, complex cells working in our body. And so that's why I want to feed my body with the right fuel and give it everything it needs as it capable of healing itself. Quality food is so important:)

"I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

your works are wonderful, I know that full well. "

Psalm 139:14