Fermented Jalapenos

A couple of months ago, I ordered the book Fermented: A Four Season Approach to Paleo Probiotic Foods. I took a quick look at it and figured I would look back at it again when I had some time.  So a couple of weeks ago, I took it out again and bought some of the ingredients.  I attempted to make some pickles, but they didn't work out.  I am still working on the Kombucha (maybe I will post about it later).  

Anyhow, the hubs and I had "taco night" with some friends last week and I had bought some extra jalapeno peppers to pickle.  I LOVE jalapenos, so I figured if all goes well with my pickling, then I can always have some on hand when I need to spice things up!

I followed the recipe for pickled cucumbers from Fermented. Except, I left out the dill.  I let them ferment for 6 days and pulled them out today to use in our chili.  They are delicious!! And look how cute they are in that little jar!!

Here's the recipe (adapted from Fermented: A Four Season Approach to Paleo Probiotic ):

Ingredients:

5-10 Jalapeno peppers

1 tsp. salt

Water (the amount depends on the size of your jar)

1 large garlic clove

1. Slice your jalapeno peppers (remove the seeds if you don't want all the heat)

2. Fill up your jar that you will be using with water and pour that water (plus a little extra) into a pot of water. Add the salt and heat it just until the salt dissolves. 

3. In the meantime, transfer your jalapenos and your garlic clove to your jar.

4. When all the salt is dissolved, pour the water mixture into the jar.

5. Lightly cover the jar and let it sit for about a week, or until you feel that the peppers are soft enough.

*I used a mason jar and just put the disc lid on top, I did not use the ring, as it makes it too tight.  The photo above is the jar I am using to store the final product.

8.  When they are finished, place them in the refrigerator with a tight lid and enjoy!

Tips:

• Check on your peppers every couple of days.  
• If you see any mold, just scrape it off the top and try to push the jalapenos down farther into the water.
• If your peppers are slimy or have a stinky smell to them, you should probably scrap them and try again.
• It is normal for the water to be somewhat cloudy.

Spaceship popsicles

I love a good sweet treat after I eat, so I decided to make some Popsicles. We had gotten this little Popsicle kit for our wedding shower.  

I blended up some coconut milk with my strawberries that were about to go bad.  

I put a little of the strawberry-milk mixture into the plastic containers and added in some fresh blue berries and kiwis.  

I put them in the freezer overnight and then yum!

Noodle slicer!

So I was pleasanlty surprised one day to come home to a package.  Turns out it was this little gem from my brother-- a housewarming gift!!

It's a slicer that also makes food into noodles.  He came to visit me for the week, so we tried it out and liked it.  We tried to make everything into noodles!! We had curly sweet potato fries this night.  After he sliced the sweet potatoes (it only takes about 2 sweet potatoes to feed 4 people), we placed them in a bowl and drizzled oil on top.  

We shook it up to coat the potatoes with oil and then placed them on the pan.  We tried to make sure to spread them out evenly.

We placed them in the COLD OVEN... yes, we did NOT preheat it!  Then turned the oven on to 425 degrees and baked them for about 12-15 minutes.  When you let sweet potatoes warm up slowly, the natural sugars come out so there is no need for sugar and butter!

We served them up with some grilled veggies and steak cooked on the grill.  Perfect summertime meal!

Meatballs

We LOVE pasta in this house!  Lately we have been making our own sauce so that we know EVERY ingredient that goes into it. We eat brown rice pasta and we cannot even tell the difference! Brown rice pasta is made from rice, which is a grain, so it does not have gluten or flour in it.  Your body process grains slower than gluten or flour and it is low on the glycemic index. 

I made these lean meatballs to go with our sauce and our brown rice pasta.  First, gather all the ingredients.  I like to sneak in extra vegetables for flavor and fiber, so get a big mixing bowl and add in your ingredients. 

Disclaimer: I NEVER measure things!  I will give you an estimate of the measurements, but add as much or as little as you desire.   :)

 1 egg

1/4 c. chopped onions

1/4 c. chopped green peppers

2 tbsp. tomato sauce (homemade)

1/2 c. almond meal (added for extra protein)

and of course, your lean meat-- I used 97% lean ground beef, 

but ground pork, ground chicken, or ground turkey would work as well

Stir it up and form it (even though I hate touching raw meat, I had to use my hands)

I used my cast iron skillet and added some sauce and some oil 

(palm fruit or coconut oil are best, but I only had olive oil, so I used that)

Cover the pan, set it on medium heat and wait until they are AT LEAST half cooked

When they are about half browned, you can turn them over.  Some of mine broke, so be VERY careful! They are done cooking when they are all the way brown and the internal temperature is about 160-165 degrees. 

Serve them with brown rice pasta and LOTS of sauce.. ok, you don't have to have a lot of sauce, but that's what we like!

Full Recipe makes about 6 servings

Ingredients:

1 egg

1/4 c. chopped onions

1/4 c. chopped green peppers

1/4 c. tomato sauce 

1/2 c. almond meal (added for extra protein, but not necessary)

1 lb. lean, ground meat (beef, pork, chicken, turkey)

2 tbsp. oil (palm fruit, coconut are best)

1. In a mixing bowl, combine onions, peppers, egg, 2 tbsp. sauce, almond meal, and ground meat.

2. Mix it all up and form it into small balls of meat.

3. Add oil and desired amount of sauce to a frying pan and place the meatballs in the pan.

4. At medium heat, cook the meatballs until they are fully brown inside and out and the internal temperature is about 160-165 degrees.

5. Serve with brown rice pasta and tomato sauce and enjoy!

Farmer's Market Saturday

Our farmer's market haul 

Sweet potatoes, carrots, lemons, peppers, green beans, zucchini, sweet onions, and strawberries. 

If you live in Myrtle Beach, check out the local Farmer's Markets:

North Myrtle Beach
Tue. & Fri. 10am-3pm
1st Ave South between
NMB Library & City Hall

Conway

Saturdays 8am to 1pm

217 Laurel Street

Historic Downtown Conway

Conway Medical Center

Fridays (Bi-Weekly)

10 am to 2 pm

Conway Medical Center

DeVille Street

Saturdays 10 am - 2pm

Market Commons MB

on Deville St.

Surfside Beach

Tuesdays 10:00 am to 3:00 pm

Opening on May 28th

For more information, visit  http://www.waccamawmarkets.org/home/