Fermented Hot Honey Dills

I know, I know--crazy, right?  Hot and sweet.  In this case--hot peppers and honey.  Yes, they ARE fabulous together.  Especially with dill.  If you don't believe me, try it yourself.

My son keeps eating my pickles.  He doesn't know what I mean when I say "fermented".  All he knows is that they're home made, and more than a little bit spicy.  Which is good enough for me--as soon as I start to talk to my teens about beneficial bacteria and healthy gut flora, they get all grossed-out and think I've finally gone off the deep end into crazy-town.  So we'll keep that little secret to ourselves, ok?

Now, these pickles started out only a little bit spicy.  The taste is a little kick of heat at the tail end.  You could double the hot peppers in this--but be careful--the fermenting really brings out the heat in peppers, and the longer they sit in the  fridge after the initial fermentation  the hotter they become.  You might want to also increase the honey, to keep the flavour balanced.  Or not.  Up to you.

Making fermented pickles is one of the easiest things you can try to ferment.  An old pickle jar, some sea salt, a handful of spices and some cucumbers, and you're good-to-go.  It really is that easy.  I find that kosher pickles and these kinds of fermented pickles are never even close to as crunchy as, say, Bicks Pickles--you can  get SOME crunch in these pickles, but to get that store-bought pickle crunch, you'd need to add a chemical storm of ingredients, so this is the trade-off.  To get the fermented pickles as crunchy as possible, use the freshest cucumbers that you can find, slice off the blossom end of the pickle, soak in ice-water, and pickle them whole.  I don't mind my pickles just a tiny bit soft, so I sliced mine lengthwise before fermenting them.

So, for this recipe I used hot peppers that I'd already fermented several months ago.  I fermented them and then didn't have a clue what to do with them.  I meant to make sriracha sauce with them, eventually, but I didn't.  You don't have to use fermented peppers--any hot peppers  will do.  Using foods like the raw honey and fermented peppers in your pickle ferment will help act as a "starter", getting your pickles going faster, but even if you use regular peppers and regular honey, fermentation will still happen, so don't sweat it.  Pickles are pretty simple that way.  Just be patient and don't forget to taste them along the way.

Ingredients:

(for a 2L jar)

2 pkg pickling cucumbers
4 cups (1L) filtered water
3 Tbs fine sea salt
2 Tbs raw, unpasteurized honey
1 Tbs pickling spice
1/2 Tbs dried dill
3 hot peppers (I used fermented ones, but that's optional)
1/4 cup raw apple cider vinegar + extra for after fermentation (optional)
cabbage leaf or weight to hold down

Method:

Soak cucumbers in ice water for at least an hour.  This helps keep them crunchy after pickling.

Dissolve salt in filtered water.  Cut off both ends of cucumbers.  Slice lengthwise (or leave whole--up to you).  Add spices, hot peppers, honey, and vinegar to jar.  Arrange cucumbers in jar, packing tightly.  Pour water solution over top, making sure it covers everything.  Use cabbage leaf (or weight) to pin everything down under the saltwater solution.

Let sit on counter for 1 - 4 weeks to allow to ferment, tasting after about 5 days, until it reaches desired level of sour for your tastes.  Keep an eye out for mould.   If you are using fermented peppers, and raw honey, fermenting may go faster.  Mine only needed 6 days to reach the desired level of hot and sour that I like.

The longer they sit, the cloudier the water will turn.  They will become more sour, and more soft, the longer you let them sit.  I personally add a bit more vinegar--maybe 2 Tbs, after they're done fermenting and leave them in the fridge for 24 hours before eating.  It just adds a touch of that vinegary taste that I'm accustomed to with pickles.  They will still continue to develop flavour (spiciness and sourness) even after being moved into the fridge.

Refrigerate when done.  They should last 6 months to a year once they're in the fridge.

Fermented Ginger Beer

Home made ginger ale?  Really?  And it's easy?  And if I ferment it long enough, it becomes alcoholic???  Bonus!!  Why didn't I hear about this before??

Of course, ginger is just full of good stuff; it has cancer-fighting properties, settles the stomach, reduces pain and inflammation, reduces heartburn, helps with migraines, menstral cramps, reduces cold and flu symptoms and just about a gazillion other things.  And as an added bonus, fermented ginger ale/beer is chock full of probiotics and beneficial bacteria.

Alrighht, so all that aside, I'm sure what you really want to know is--does it taste good?

At first, I had no idea.  It sounded like it would taste good.  I was still reading Sandor Katz' newest book and loving it, but the problem was... it wasn't a recipe book.  It was a book about fermentation, but more about understanding it than actual recipes, so he gets your taste-buds all watery...and then leaves you hanging.  So I thought, no problem, I can google it.

..Apparently not.  There is an alarming lack of recipes on the internet with really clear instructions on how to a)  make a Ginger Bug, b)  make Ginger Ale from it, and c) how long it takes to become an  alcoholic beverage.  So I had to wing it.  Great science is discovered through the act of "winging" it, let me tell you.

So, how did it turn out?  Freaking awesome.  Spectacularly bubbly and smooth.  But what about alcohol?  Turns out, after 5-6 weeks of secondary fermenting, it still does not have the alcohol content of American beer.

So, feeling like trying it?  THIS is the drink to give to your kids if they don't like kombucha but you want to get fermented foods into them.  Skip the water-kefir-soda and go for this stuff.  Our teens LOVED it.  All you really need is fresh ginger, and some raw, natural sugar.  Seriously?  Yep.

So here's what you do...

STEP 1

First you need to make yourself the 'starter', which in this case, is called a ginger bug.  It's not a bug.  Don't worry.  Even I'm not THAT crazy.  Yet.

Ginger bug on day 2

Ginger Bug:

• fresh ginger root
• raw sugar or white sugar
• filtered water
• starter (optional)*

Cut off about 1" of the ginger root and coarsely grate it or chop it fine.  Do not bother peeling it.  Throw it in a glass jar that holds about 2c water.  Dump in 1 Tbs sugar.  Add 1 Tbs starter of choice.  I used whey* the first time because I had some in my fridge.  Add about 1 c filtered water.  Stir well.  Cover with a cloth and elastic band.  Store on counter out of direct sunlight.

Stir twice a day.  Once each day, add 1 tsp more ginger and 1 tsp more sugar.  Stir it thoroughly each time.  The idea is to keep bringing air into the mixture.

In about 3 days, it should be actively bubbly before you even stir it.  That's when you know it's ready to move onto making ginger-ale/ginger beer.

*use any active ferment liquid you want; whey, home made kombucha, water kefir, liquid from another ferment like a fruit kimchi, etc.  Next time, I'm trying kombucha.

STEP 2

So, 3 days have gone by and your ginger bug is fizzy.  Perfect.  Now you will need:

• 2" fresh ginger root
• 2 litres water
• 1 cup raw sugar or white sugar
• juice of 1 lemon (optional, but good)
• a glass container that will hold at least 2 litres

In a large saucepan, boil water with chopped ginger and sugar for about 5-10 minutes.  Remove from heat and allow to cool.  When cold, add lemon juice and transfer to large glass container.  Add in your ginger bug.  Same as before, cover with cloth and a rubber band.  Let it sit out of sunlight for a couple more days until it is actively bubbling once again.

STEP 3

I know, I know, it takes time!  Patience, you will be rewarded.  

Strain your ginger beer into lock-top bottles (I bought mine at Ikea and they hold 1 litre).  At this point, it is ready to drink, so you can refrigerate them and drink whenever you want to.  But if you want to try to make them even better, and maybe a little tiny bit alcoholic, store in a cool, dark place for at least 5-6 weeks.  For the first 3-5 days, check in on them to make sure they haven't exploded, and please burp them.  They fizzing action will settle down enough to not be dangerous after a few days.  

After that, it's up to you.  If you truly want the alcohol content, you could try adding champagne yeast or brewers yeast before bottling, but if you do, pour it into a carboy and use a water-seal for 7 days before straining and bottling.  Let me know how it goes.  I haven't gone that far yet.  The first bottle was so fantastic, we gobbled it up in one sitting.  The second bottle is coming with me to the next Symposium planning meeting.  I should have made more.  There's no time like the present.  I own ginger.  And raw sugar.  And 'booch to activate it.  Hmm.....

Why Does My Head Still Hurt--Part III

I never thought I'd get around to a part III on this topic, but the truth is, I still get headaches.

I could devote a whole blog to head pain.

I think I have had every kind of headache there is to know.

Shouldn't a Paleo Diet cure everything?  I mean, I read all the blogs out there and all I see over and over is how it "cured" their migraines, their sinusitis, barometric-pressure headaches, and even those frustrating hormone headaches.  So, why didn't it do that for me? Am I just broken??

It is ridiculously frustrating that the switch to a Primal Diet did not cure all of them. Hard-core Paleo did not cure them. Improving my gut health through fermented foods and probiotics did not cure them.  Although, in defence of the Paleo Diet, it DID cure those I'm-so-hungry-I'm going-to-pass-out headaches.  Low-blood-sugar headaches were banished forever with the switch to paleo, thank you very much!

In my prior life, I was the queen of medications.  I have a medicine cabinet full of every type of OTC drug you could ever want or need, and several prescription ones as well.  I was a real pill-popper.  To some degree, I still am.  But at some point, if you get this Paleo thing at all, you know--the pill-popping MUST STOP.  The pills, the painkillers, they are simply masking the underlying problem.  They will not cure the problem.  Only the immediate pain--and taking those pills actually causes a whole host of other issues to crop up, creating a cycle.

So let me explain what my headaches are.  99% of my headaches start in the sinuses in the front of the face.  I think I have the smallest, tightest, driest sinuses ever created.  At the first sign of trouble, I feel that dry, tight, snapping sensation between my eyes.  I feel that when the weather changes.  I feel that when I eat foods that I'm sensitive to.  I feel that when I have a slight cold coming on.  I feel that when I sleep more than 8 hours, or on my side too long (compressing the sinuses), when I'm overtired, when I have eye strain from the computer, when the bedroom air is too dry, and for pretty much every other reason you can think of.  It starts in the sinuses.  Every single time.   And if I don't treat the pain, if I ignore it, every single one of those headaches has the potential to become a full-blown light-and-sound-sensitive, vomiting migraine.  Lets call that sinus pain my "aura".

So, clearly, there is some kind of thing going on with my sinuses.

I'm already following a Paleo diet, which by default should already be an anti-inflammatory diet--so what would cause my body to react by inflaming my sinuses?  Well, for starters, dairy (and simple sugars--but I'm not eating those, am I, now?).  There are a million studies out there suggesting dairy causes congestion.  Fine.  I get it.  But since I don't eat all that much dairy, it must also be other food I've ingested.  Specifically, Paleo-approved food I've ingested.  Inflamed sinuses are a sign of food intolerance or an allergic-type reaction.  So, despite my paleo diet, I MUST still be ingesting something that is causing a reaction, right?

Ok, ok, most of us have now learned that the Paleo diet is not One-Size-Fits-All.  It just isn't.  And when you feel like Paleo didn't cure all of your ailments, that is always the hard answer that we don't want to hear.  Because we give up so many things when we switch to a Primal/Paleo diet already, the thought of giving up even more of them just seems horribly overwhelming and unfair.  To all of you out there on FODMAP-free diets, GAPS, paleo dieters who are allergic to eggs or nuts, or whom can't digest fat due to a gallbladder issue, I feel for you.  I understand.

So lets play a little game...

What do red wine, vinegar, some nuts and citrus fruit have in common? 

Well, first of all, they are known migraine trigger foods. In fact, these foods definitely cause me headaches all the time, every time. And aside from the red wine, all the other foods on the list are paleo.  Lets list a few more things, maybe you'll see the pattern.


Yogurt, aged cheese, cured meats, dried fruit, fermented foods.

Yes, I said it.  Fermented foods.  My science projects, my gut-healing darlings.

Still not seeing the connection?  Chris Kresser recently did a post on these foods.  It read like a laundry list of all the things I know cause problems for me--and yet I did not have ANY of the symptoms listed--except "tissue swelling"--I guess that could mean my sinuses, and a "different type of headache".

Now, I'm no rocket scientist--but I have a sneaking suspicion that fermented foods are actually CAUSING some of them.  I know, crazy, right?  So very, very sad.  Because I LOVE fermented foods.  And good-quality aged cheese.  And gut-healing yogurt.  And wine.  Since we're being honest.  I really , really have to get the heck away from alcohol.  (You have heard my thoughts on alcohol before, so you know how much that hurts me).

The answer to the riddle is histamine.  Or amines in general.  

I know, I know, I was hoping that cutting out red wine in favour of white wine was enough to stop the problem, too.  I really did hope for that.  But it hasn't stopped it.  It has lessened it to some degree, but not stopped every headache occurrence   The cycle goes like this:  Eat/drink something that causes your histamine levels to go haywire, get stuffed up sinuses, after a few days sinus buildup becomes non-infectious sinusitis that is treated with many, many kinds of painkillers.  Which causes constipation.  Feeling low like that makes me crave comfort foods--all the foods that I should have avoided in the first place.  And so the cycle continues.

The good news is that they say that avoiding these foods for a period of time allows the body to settle back down and a lot of people find they can eat SOME of these foods once again.  The trick is to avoid those foods for a while.  This is a trick I have yet to master.  But I'm trying.

In the meantime, lets talk about some more natural ways to deal with sinus pain and avoid those OTC's, shall we?....

• cold cloth over the eyes/face alternated with hot beverage
• cool-air humidifier
• spicy foods like wasabi and horseradish--both "clear" the sinuses
• get out and move around; this makes the sinuses loosen up a bit
• get off the computer!!  Avoid eye strain
• flushing the sinuses with a netti pot and saline solution
• peppermint oil applied to the temples
• acupuncture, acupressure, and massage (face or neck)

And when that fails, a few supplements that can help... (Be mindful that I am not a doctor, this is just what I know and do for my own headaches)

• Magnesium is good for blood circulation and relaxes nerve endings; 200-600 mg, up to 1000mg
• Vitamin C has anti-histamine properties; 250-1000mg--be careful with this one*
• Omega 3's are anti-inflammatory; up to 1000mg/day from mixed EPA/DHA source
• CoQ10 increases blood flow to the brain and is anti-inflammatory; 60-100mg/day
• B2 is great for PREVENTION; take a broad-spectrum B multi- daily on the PMS week
• probiotics (did you know low stomach acid can cause headaches?  It can)
• Vitamin D reduces inflammation (and deficiency can cause headaches--in the northern hemisphere, many of us are deficient), read dosage on bottle, but I personally double the amount recommended

At the first sign of sinus trouble, I take a serving of each of magnesium, Omega 3, Vitamin D and a probiotic, and sometimes Vitamin C, too with a glass of ice-cold water.  Give it an hour to kick in.  Its amazing how much these supplements alone help me.  Often, this is enough.  Unless it's the day after a glass of wine.

If that doesn't give any relief, my favorite homeopathic tincture is something called Euphorbium.  Use the oral drops, not the nasal drops.  That stuff works like a charm.  I have not heard of any known problems, reactions, or rebound-issues with this homeopathic drug, and if YOU HAVE, please let me know about it.  This drug came recommended by Beverley Meyer, a paleo nutritionist who specializes in pain and pain management.

I'm pretty happy that I've been able to deal with pain without as many OTC meds as is usual for me.  This has been a big step for me.  Of course, the bigger step will be to eliminate my headaches altogether.  Is that unreasonable?  Am I being ridiculous thinking that this is something I can FIX?  Its a funny thing about this Paleo Diet.  The more we know, the more we want to know, the more we believe in it's power to heal.  Everything.

So tell me, what do you do for pain management?  Have you tried dosing with supplements?  I'm not saying we all need to take these supplements; the diet alone should be enough for most of us.  But there's a fine print in all of this, isn't there?  That little disclaimer about what to do when Paleo doesn't fix everything.  I wish it did.  In a perfect world, if we were not all already broken, I believe it would prevent everything.  But we don't live in THAT world.

Let me know what you think....

* Chronically excessive doses of Vitamin C can lead to deficiency in copper, which will cause inflammation, funny enough.  Read dosage instructions on side of bottle/package.  Use this high-dose remedy WHEN NECESSARY, and not as an ongoing daily dose.