Beet Kvass And A Toast To Health

I don't know how changes work in your family but breaking out of habits sometimes requires going back to old traditions for mine.

My family has been making changes over the past few years in the field of health that covers a broad spectrum in living. We've combatted mold in our house by gutting the entire HVAC system and installing a new, better engineered system. We've tossed all our chemical filled cleaning agents and exchanged them with enviro-friendly products. I buy organic meat and produce and have even started my own garden. It's been a fun, interesting process educating ourselves on the why's and how to's of accomplishing a better lifestyle.

Although the changes have been good, we still run into health dilemmas. It seems a constant battle trying to be healthy in this day and age of modern industrial living. Our bodies take on a lot of stress  through outside stimuli in the form of chemical soup concoctions found in our air, water, food and pharmaceutical systems. Our mechanized culture adds to this onslaught of stress through technological demands that go against our natural make up. Sitting at desks in front of computers, radiation emanating from cell phones etc. are just a few examples.

When you take time to really look at modern life it really seems like a Sci-Fi novel found its way off the page into reality. I've been trying to slough off this toxic lifestyle for over a decade and it has been a challenge that has made me encounter spiritual, relational, political and cultural questions that leave me with answers I don't like especially for our future generations.

Before I go off on another tangent, I'd better get to the point of this post. Breaking out of a mold you've been conditioned to sometimes requires taking a step backwards (or maybe it is really forward's but we've been so conditioned to a way of thought we think it is backwards).

Farmer's Market
By: Crystl
'Beautiful Beets'

Food for thought:

My husband and I owned a restaurant in our not to distant past. During that time you have been trained to handle food with protocols for health safety. God forbid you fail a health inspection, it'll sink your business and fast. This is all important and good, sick people due to food born illness is not a goal in any business venture.

Refrigeration, shelf life and proper cleansing protocols have been the tools of choice to combat the food born illness issue. This is necessary with the way our food system is set-up using processed foods trucked in from far away etc.

I noticed a good paradigm shift recently in my household regarding food and its preparation and storage. With all the reading and educating I've been doing I always seemed to stop myself from trying those old ways of preserving and the process of fermentation just scared the bajeebee's out of my husband, "You're going to leave that out on the counter for how many days," he'd ask. I don't blame him, we ran a restaurant where leaving food out meant waste and money lost.

Yes, there is an art to these old ways. When reading the recipes for sprouting or fermenting, you have to know what you are doing, know the source of your ingredients and it takes fine tuned real food that isn't contaminated. It sometimes feels like a highly intricate chemistry class experiment. If done correctly the process makes some amazing, flavorful, health boosting food you can't find anywhere else.

So, I decided to celebrate the old ways by making a time-tested traditional drink with health benefits galore from a country my ancestors once lived in.  Somehow, I just want to toast to my health when I drink my home-brewed Beet Kvass. Ahh, yes! It is a fitting thing to do. Say it with me!

Будем здоровы! [vashee zda-ró-vye] – Your health


Beet Kvass Recipe: For 2- Enough to toast to and enough to make you want more


2 organic beets (peeled and diced into chunks)

1 TBSP Himalayan Salt

Filtered Water

*1/4 Cup Whey

Glass Jar with lid

Small mixing bowl


Place beet chunks in bottom of glass jar. Mix salt, whey and 1-2 cups filtered water in small mixing bowl. Pour over the beets. Fill the glass jar with filtered water to within an inch of the top. Seal tightly with a lid and place on your counter, out of direct sunlight for 2-3 days to ferment. After fermentation place in the fridge. You can use the beets again for another fermentation process or chop up in a salad or use as a garnish.

Beet Kvass on the Counter
Photo by: Chandra Brown

* I took 1/2 a pint of Organic, Plain Yogurt and placed it in a thin, clean dish cloth (washed with no perfumes, chemicals or dyes) and cinched the top of the dishcloth with a rubber band, hung it from my cabinet knob with a stainless steel bowl beneath the 'yogurt bag' and let gravity do the work of pulling the whey from the yogurt. 
Yes, I let it sit on my counter for 1 full day in order to render as much whey as I could. 

Making Whey
Photo by: Chandra Brown

Note: If you do not have whey or want to make whey, double the salt to help in the fermentation process. Allow longer time sitting on the counter for best results.

Note: Don't throw away the left over yogurt, it has now become cream cheese. It was extremely tasty. My daughter used some of it to make a desert topping.

Fun Beet Kvass Articles:
The Miracle of Russia
Beet Kvass by Hidden Pond

What fermented foods have you made?

The Wicked Deviled Egg

'Wicked in Waiting'
Photo by: stephendepolo

You started off as the epitome of a good egg; hard boiled, firm and strong. Then you split in two showing your true inner self. You mixed company with your crumbled yellow yolk and it was not good company. You let the red onion overly influence you with its feisty, mean ways and the garlic permeated you through and through. On the outside you looked creamy, delicious; dare I say, even angelic. You sat there with your smooth texture tempting me to come and taste. I gave in, sinking my teeth into the soft, supple, slick white and my teeth felt like they were gently being set on a cloud as they sunk in the whipped, creamy, yellow middle. My tongue swirled your tasty goodness in my mouth savoring every last ingredient before giving heed to the throat begging for its turn, then I swallowed.

Yes, you satisfied my taste buds, then your wickedness, your duality presented itself deep within me. I could hear your evil cackling laughter down in my gut at your success into duping another fool into your vehement torture. You were no ordinary deviled egg, you were wicked in waiting and you unleashed your true inner self on my digestive system.

I will never trust again.


NOTE: Here's hoping you have better luck with Easter Dinner appetizers than I do. I love deviled eggs but this past experience has caused me to question every one I see; somehow I find my forgiveness for food is blind and I will try these tantalizing amuse-gueules again and again. I just can't seem to stay away, that past batch was bad but I'm not going to let it spoil deviled eggs for me.

What are some of your favorite deviled egg recipes?

Conk Fruit Exploration

Mushrooms on the Trail
Photos by: Chandra Brown

It's always interesting walking the 360 Trail. The terrain always gives up its secrets but you have to go at different times of the year to see all that it has to offer.  These glorious mushroom varieties were all taken at different times of the year.  It's said that one sign of a healthy forest is by the mushroom population.

We noticed many polypore mushrooms growing on the fallen trees. Their job is to help in the decay process, balancing the carbon cycle in the ecology of the forest.  Mushrooms are fascinating subject matter. I could spend hours studying their ornate growing patterns. Their dual function of helping in the death process for trees and their life giving properties for human ailments adds to their interesting complex nature. They bring balance to the forest and human ecosystem.

Look at this wonderful list of nutrients mushrooms provide: "Mushrooms are rich in B vitamins such as riboflavin, folate, thiamine, pantothenic acid, and niacin. They are also the only vegan, non-fortified dietary source of vitamin D. Mushrooms also provide several minerals that may be difficult to obtain in the diet, such as selenium, potassium, copper, iron, and phosphorus."


They taste great too! 

I have always loved sautéd mushrooms on my cheeseburger, and tell my daughter and husband to save their mushrooms for me when we eat a meal that adds them as an ingredient.

I'm not confident enough to forage in the wild for mushrooms just yet, picking a poisonous one scares the bajeebees out of me. For now I'll admire them from afar while in the wild and stick to buying them at the store for consumption. I may try to grow some from a kit, as a fun solution to my mushroom habit.

Natures' Instrument

Mom: " What did you think of our adventure on the 360 trail this year Alex?"

Alex: "It was pretty good, I saw some cool stuff, things got real when we got to the water."

Mom: "Yes, I heard the rushing water and the sound made me want to find where it was coming from so I could see what was making that loud noise. I knew in the back of my head large rocks had to be ahead in order to make that sound. Amazing how the terrain is like an instrument and the water plays off of it making a distinct sound. What name would you give Natures' Instrument or what instrument you know of would be the closest to a river bed and water?"

Alex: "Hmmm… (thinking)…. it sounds like the Spacedrum.

Mom: "Most people haven't heard of the Spacedrum, but you are right. I do think the space drum sounds like small water droplets running over rocks but also sounds like those small water droplets collect into a bigger cohesive sound like water rushing down a river filled with many rocks. How would you describe the space drums sound?"

Alex: "Well it sounds natural, it reminds me of caves, crystals and waterfalls."

Mom: " Yes, when you hear one played the high timbre gives a glass clinking sounds that would remind you of crystal and the water reflecting light also gives definition to the look of water. Can a look  be defined by sound?"

Alex: "Yes, this happens to me all the time. When I draw, sometimes the sound in the music inspires me to draw a certain picture."

Mom: "Interesting! Art, nature and music all have a certain relational aspect. I would love to see more of your drawing inspired by music. Sometimes nature inspires me to write and the sound of certain music calms or excites me. I think creativity has inner and outer levels, wavelengths and stimuli that can be individually interpreted, yet have meaning others can imprint their creativity on as well. Any thoughts on this?"

Alex: "Yes, We both see the river with scientific eyes that make us think of natural laws but we also see the river with artistic eyes that makes us think of beauty. One thing I noticed was the deception water conveys with depth. When we walk the river bed when it's dry, we are on solid, flat ground, once it fills with rain it shows that certain parts of the bed are deep and can cover your head even though you can see the bottom clearly. Adding the element of water changed the entire river bed canvas."

Mom: "I love being in nature, one thing I like about hiking a flowing river path is I tend to lose track of time and don't feel the need to be anywhere else but where I am at. Noticing all the different aspects of the terrain and how it interplays with you in the mix tends to make me think of God, who created it all for our good and pleasure.  I love that we noticed the sound nature makes this time on our adventure."

Enjoy this 'Spacedrum' Solo (technically called a Hang, pronounced Hung) by Yuki Koshimoto

Can you hear the 'water droplets' converge into a river in this song?
I can!

When Life Needs Spice: Add Indian Food

I will let you in on a secret. I hate cooking. Yes, my husband and I used to own a restaurant. Yes, I can apply myself in the kitchen and come up with some interesting dishes. Yes, I enjoy talking about foreign, exotic dishes but I just have to get that little secret off my chest. My husband always finds it odd I never taste what I'm cooking and always serve the meal with a disclaimer, "I don't know if it turned out or not so try it at your own risk." Definitely not a good cook's habit. Alas, I do not let my disdain for cooking stop me from actually doing it.

I've posted about my love for Tiki Masala a few years ago on this blog. I came up with a flotsam and jetsam crockpot recipe I was proud of at the time. I was desperate. I needed the flavors of home, I needed that comfort food to help transport me to a place of great aromas, mixed with family, friends and  familiarity. I still need it, so I decided to fine tune my minuscule Indian cooking skills over the weekend and try to be authentic to some of my favorite Indian food dishes and see if I could get close to the tastes I remember.

Masala, Saag, Somosa, Naan
Made by: Chandra Brown

I have been working on Tiki Masala (without the crockpot this time) and finally have this one down to memory.  I even make my own garlic, ginger paste from scratch. I love Saag and found an authentic recipe online. The ingredients made me venture to our local Indian Grocer, Man Pasand. I found the paneer, and fresh spinach I needed and even brought home Somosas for an appetizer.

I used every pot and pan I own, my food processor did double duty, my grill was fired up in the wet, cold outdoors and my oven was cranked to 400. This meal was firing on all cylinders, my spice cabinet was half emptied onto the countertop  and I just dove in and did it, not tasting as I went but waiting until I sat down at the table to share with my family.

I must say, the Saag Paneer was the real deal. My husband even replied, "You made this!" Ha, his surprised comment was a compliment, if it made him think of authentic Jewel of India's recipe, then I was successful.

I have to thank my parents for the success of this cooking ordeal. They recommended I watch, The Hundred Foot Journey, a delightful, clean, culinary movie about an Indian families' restaurant venture across from a successful, snooty French restaurant. There are hints of Romeo and Juliet and the Father's attitude in the film will make you giggle. I loved the son's passion for food and thought if I could just mimic that, I may come up with something enjoyable.

What foreign food do you want to try to learn to make?

I recently just tried making my own fermented kimchi (Korean). I made some pulled pork to go with it, added BBQ sauce and placed it all in a Romaine Lettuce leaf from our Winter Garden. It was wonderful!

Song of Solomon 5:6

I like writing about the Bible every now and then, as it is my favorite book of all time. There are treasures in that wonderful book written by Holy Spirit inspired men who followed and knew God. The truths are timeless, the themes are countless, earth history is established, plans and plots are revealed. I could go on in the endless details this book has in it but I want to focus on a lesser known, or talked about feature. The fact the Bible is a romance.

God romances your soul through true intimacy. It is a pure, luring of your heart wherein He makes you what you were meant to be. It's true love in action. Having relationship with God is sometimes painful, other times emotionally charged; it isn't a stretch to say passion can be defined in allowing God to change you.

God romances our souls and shows us a better way, the Bible also talks about human romance too. God did give us the institution of marriage, love and yes, sex as something to enjoy. The world has taken these God-given gifts and twisted them but that's for another post. For now, I want to focus on the gift of romance.

Sexual love, desire and passion are dominant themes in the book called The Song of Solomon. Yes, there are double meanings to many passages in this book. Many scholarly commentaries discuss the allegory of Christ's love for His people. I'd like to point out the Song of Songs is also what it seems, a poetic literary romance.

Maybe you're blushing at this point in the post, but stop for a minute and think about this book of the Bible that so many read in secret or don't even bother to try and understand because of it's content and the author. Oh my, Solomon certainly had major issues where all this is concerned but that is for another post. I want to focus on the purity of the message found in this guide to romance.

If your committed in marriage to your spouse, there is no reason not to enjoy romancing them and share your passion in an intimate nature. If couples would inwardly focus their desires on each other, there would be a lot less infidelity in this world. Couples should create a secret love world all their own, a safe haven where the outside world can't shake its foundation. This is one lesson I glean from reading Solomon's love poetry.

I have taken chapter five, verse six of the Song of Songs and in my own way described the scene (It's her dream). Abishag was uncertain of partaking of her spouses desires and rejects his advances. She is restless and regrets her cold indifference, after realizing her mistake she searches for him in the dark streets, where shadows and fear lurk, only when she finds her love is she safe again.

Watercolor on Tile by: Nathan Brown

Song of Solomon 5:6

In her bed lay a maiden bare

with flowing spun adumbral hair

Her beloved did come at twilight hour

Allured be her loves' strong power

He knocked and beckoned so he could see her.

She neglected to let him enter.

Toppling here and there, her heart did rise

thus running to the door she did realize

her absence of action created a demise,

She thrust the door open and looked around

to find her lover was not there and

could not be found.

Her ear was strained for the calm of his voice,

the fall of his footsteps to make her heart rejoice.

Deep within her soul did hoist

a cry to the empty darkness, her eyes went moist.

Her brow did strain the shadows while standing upon the threshold,

her fleshly arms crawled from shivers cold

but in her depths roaring passions glowed,

Wrapping her shoulders with finest linen

she set afoot to find her given.

Treading along cobble and lane

she came upon the watchmen

who treated her in vain.

She pleaded and asked if they had seen her Lover,

then they struck and took her linen cover.

She escaped their taunts and stole away

Just as dawn beckoned the day.

Her eyes she lifted from road to yonder

and discovered her beloved,

she need no more wander.

Her hands did ache to be filled with his cloak

And her legs rushed swiftly.

They barely spoke.

She held him and would not let him go

walking arm and waist,

until safely they had sheltered at her families' abode.

Her bosom heaved from raging currents

as she unraveled separations torrents.

His strong arms enveloped her storm

and calmly her heart settled,

Safe,

No more forlorn.

Chandra Debee 1998

Now go read Song of Solomon and apply the lessons to the one God gave you to love. Ahh, romance!
Happy Valentines Day!

WOW, just read an article where mysticism has infiltrated the church and people are equating their intimacy with God as a 'sexual' experience... I do not intend this at all in my writing. God does show you how to love and does change you in a very intimate way, but to connotate a relationship with 'sexual' intimacy is wrong! It is NEW AGE deception!

Here is some awesome teaching on this passage... Come Lord Jesus... In full context... Are you ready for Jesus?

Why A Man Should Give Their Wife Fresh Cut Flowers

The month of February is upon us, Valentines Day is around the corner and once again I hear radio spots and television ads marketing love and romance. I get kind of grumpy when I see the grocery displays eagerly calling out for that purchase. I think my feathers get ruffled from the chintzy feel of this packaged Holiday and the pleading, cojoling and manipulation of the great institution of love.

Although I think about the fixed date 'Love Day' on the calendar with a bit of antagonism; most likely due to my whimsical side chattering to my practical side about the discrepancies of surface gestures, I do love when someone truly digs down deep into their heart and shows their significant other what they mean to them. Especially when a date doesn't dictate they do it.

My husband created three water color on tile art pieces depicting our love when we first met. His creative, giving of himself through his perspective of us melted my heart. Through sixteen years of marriage I have seen our story in those paintings and they have become one of the most precious material possessions I own. This particular gift was spontaneous, it was given of self, it said it all without speaking. If the house was burning and I had to pick the material items that meant the most to me, it would be those art pieces.

Peonies
Photo By: julierocks

Now, I know spouses can't give gifts of that caliber to each other all the time and sometimes trinket gifts make you smile and have their purpose in the spectrum of love story-telling. This is why I want to discuss the age-old romantic gesture of why a man should give their wife fresh cut flowers.

I must admit, I shot myself in the foot on this one. I've let the practical side of myself take a little too much of my personality. I'm happy to say, the whimsical side gained some power and finally won the argument over fresh cut flowers.

My stodgy practical self used to say, "Don't bother buying me fresh cut flowers, they die." Now, if I was thinking clearly, the complete thought to this statement would have jumped in behind the absurd comment with, "Yes, of course, flowers die whether they are fresh cut or attached to the plant. So why not enjoy them both ways."

With my newfound, complete thought I have taken a few moments to slow down when I see those annoying grocery store displays of packaged flowers intended to arouse pleasure from the senses and I smell the roses, so to speak. They are scrumptiously beautiful, artfully arranged, breath taking to say the least. I have even taken a few of them home recently just for the celebration of seeing these gorgeous creatures grace my dining table or maybe the sideboard, or no, I like it on the bathtub ledge. I move the well arranged bunch around the house to see how the sunlight hits the water in the glass vase or how the colors of the flowers graces a window pane or how a wall is used as a backdrop to the ever changing art medium of flowers.



Yes, I have changed my thinking about fresh cut flowers. They subtly say, "I'm only here for a brief moment, make me last as long as you can and enjoy me in every way possible." An aphorism that mimics life.

So, if you're a man that has a wife take a little extra time to find a winsome bouquet of fresh cut flowers that speaks to who she is this Valentines Day. They will keep adding to those little things you do that make her proud she chose you.