Foods Long Life

Living, probiotic-rich pickles. Follow Foods For Long Life on Facebook and Pinterest. Preview my eBook, Health Begins in the Kitchen ! My New Crock I received a beautiful fermentation crock from Ogusky Ceramics for my birthday (thanks Matthew, Alina and Sammy!) and I couldn't wait to try it. I know I mention this ever chance I get but consuming lots of probiotic-rich fermented foods is one of the most important things you can do for your health. One of the many ways to do that is to make your own pickles. I don't mean the kind that you find on the store shelves pickled in vinegar. Those pickles do not have any probiotic value. I mean the kind that are made from the simple process of fermenting your veggies in brine and spices. You won't believe how easy it is! And you don't need a fancy crock like this to ferment foods. You can use a big glass jar like I did when I shared the Curtido Kraut recipe in June. But I must say, I've been really enjoying this crock. Ferm...

A simple and delicious way to enjoy fresh figs. Follow Foods For Long Life on Facebook and Pinterest . Preview my eBook, Health Begins in the Kitchen . Fresh Figs What's better than a fresh fig? My wonderful neighbors surprised me with a basket of large, juicy, fresh figs for my birthday. I'm in heaven! Of course my favorite way to eat a fig is to just stuff one in my mouth but if you want to serve them as an elegant dessert with a fancy, schmancy name, here's a simple preparation. Fig Carpaccio with Balsamic Reduction Carpaccio is the name of pretty much any raw meat, fish, vegetable or fruit with a drizzle of vinegar, oil, pepper, and/or other seasonings. Sweet figs go very well with the complex flavor of balsamic vinegar, especially when it's reduced. Pretty Simple Preparation Start with some big, juicy figs - one large or two small figs per person. This large fig weighed in at nearly 3 ounces. Thinly slice each fig and place on a small plate. Prepare the balsamic ...

I'll share a secret ingredient that cuts the bitterness! Follow Foods For Long Life on Facebook and Pinterest . Preview my eBook, Health Begins in the Kitchen . Just a Few Seeds After I planted one of my raised beds, I had some room between rows of bell peppers and eggplants. Since they tend to grow straight up and not spread out too much, I thought I'd throw a couple of turnip seeds here and there. I noticed that the top of the greens were growing nicely and weren't getting burned like chard usually does or attacked by aphids like my kale. Before I knew it, the turnips were ready to harvest and the greens were enormous. I was really surprised because the last time I planted turnips, I didn't have this kind of success. Do Not Fear the Bitter Greens I rarely go buy turnip greens because I love kale and always have tons of kale growing year-round in my garden. Also, turnip greens can sometimes be a bit too bitter. But with just a little balsamic vinegar, you can cut the ...

Makes a great side dish for the 4th of July! Follow Foods For Long Life on Facebook and Pinterest . Preview my eBook, Health Begins in the Kitchen . Garden Goodies My tomatoes are starting to come in. I'm buried in zucchini. I just harvested and cured more than 40 heads of garlic and I have some lovely fresh basil too. It all ended up in this simple and super tasty casserole. I honestly think it's one of the yummiest things you can do with these ingredients. Like a Lasagna but without the Carbs and Cheese This dish is like making a lasagna but so much easier because you don't precook noodles or have 3 different cheeses to mess with. But the pesto-like sauce gives it so much flavor, it doesn't need anything else.                *                         *                            * Zucchini Tomato Casserole ...