Spring is flirting and it seems doing a cleanse is at the forefront of everyone’s mind. Well, that and Japan! Have you been part of the prayer wave sending to our brothers and sisters?

Mother Earth is sending us all a message. Now the nuclear reactors at Fukushima are melting down and we do not know exactly what the long term effects of this radiation leaks will be…

Our friend David Wolfe who is a leader in the raw community has written a ‘note’ about this which I have posted on my Earth Empress facebook page (sorry, it won’t hyperlink properly-https://www.facebook.com/notes/earth-empress/wise-woman-slaw/200422489983122) or see below

Taking superfood supplements and eating seaweeds (*kelp, dulse, nori, wakame, etc) and taking herbs such as ginseng and  ashwaganda, plus chlorella (it has been shown to be able to remove heavy metal poisoning from our body), zeolites and fulvic acid and iodine, can help protect us from radiation. Vitamin C, magnesium and coconut butter can greatly boost our immune system.

Its more important than ever to do all you can to eat healthy, have a positive mindset, and detoxify!

As I promised in my last post, I have a little trick that I want to share with you to help reduce cravings, and get you ready for a detox.

I found out about this when I learned about the work of and later interviewed Donna Gates. I’m talking about benificial bacteria for your inner garden- micro flora that is the template for your immune system! Taking probiotics in pill form as a supplement can be very helpful. What I like to do, though, is to eat my probiotics!

I make batches of cultured veggies- saurkraut, beets and pickles- because they are rich in healthy bacteria. Life is all about the ying/yang balance of good and bad, and we need to keep our stores of ‘good guys’ up so they can keep any bad ones in check. And guess what- we are 90% bacterial organisms ourselves, so let’s get cozy with our healthy bacteria!

Fermenting veggies is fun and easy to do. And all long-lived cultures around the globe have one thing in common- fermented foods. Fermented food is the oldest form of food preservation. It is an efficient technology that has stood the test of time, improving digestibility of food and increased enzyme and nutrition making food even medicinal.

Fermenting veggies like cabbage and beets and cauliflower and carrots are a wonderful thing during winter when buying imported lettuce for salads is too heavy footprint, and also helps us digest cooked foods and heavier winter fare.

In the summer, using garden fresh cucumbers and dill to make homemade pickles is a tradition my family loves- my boys don’t eat my other fermented veggies but they do like the pickles! And I love that they are aquiring a taste for sour foods.

Soured, fermented foods help to rebalance our system and can even cut down on cravings. THIS is why I like to enjoy them right before I am planning a Detox! Go to my Earth Empress facebook page and see the other note called Wise Woman Slaw for a complete instructions of how easy it is to make your own cultured veggies that can be ready in 4-5 days.

In light of recent events and my sense that detoxification is a critical tool to have in your toolbelt for health, I am creating a special FREE event that I will be sharing with you in a day or so to help you get started on your detox journey!

With prayers and love,

WISE WOMAN SLAW

Cultured vegetables are available commercially at most natural foods stores but I find them a bit pricey and prefer to make them myself now that I know how. It is fun and easy.

Here is a recipe I have been making every couple weeks:

INGREDIENTS:

1 cabbage, red or white, Nappa or mixture as the base- organic is best1 head cauliflower2 lbs carrots2 lbs daikon2 lbs turnips1 head of garlic 2″ ginger peeled

Many veggies can be cultured with great success for more nutrition and digestibility. You can use beets which are great for the liver, sea veggies like wakame and arame, kale, collards, apple or red pepper, or other radishes besides daikon (but I haven’t tried these yet)

Spices and dried herbs add something special: I like caraway seeds, chili flakes, garlic and ginger.  Celery juice makes a great brine too.  But to just get started, go basic and just try cabbage and water with salt so you get comfy with this first before experimenting.

Clean all vegetables well and then chop or use a food processor to shred everything. Mix vegetables in a bowl. Pack vegetable mix tightly into glass jar(s). When the jars are full with about 1 -2 inches room at the top, use a wooden spoon to pound the mixture down and then add some more. Always leave 1-2 inches at the top of the jar so the fermented veggies have room to expand. I use 2 quart size jars. Then you add liquid or brine which is a mixture of good quality Celtic or Himalayan salt, about 2 T, and water. I also add a few leaves of cabbage that were from the outside that I could have thrown away, instead they help take up the space at the top and still leave room for expansion.

Here are Donna Gates of the amazing Body Ecology Diet and fellow Earth Empress Gina doing a batch in this video series:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTy__5elYp4&feature=player_embedded

Pour brine over the veggies, leaving breathing room for expansion. Cap tightly and leave at room temp for 2-4 days, then move to the refrigerator for storage. I ‘check in’ every day and release the cap to let the built up fermentation gases escape, and re-seal air-tight.

Note: Donna recommends using a ‘starter’ of probiotics- I do this when I have them in the house, but it turns out well without it.

These keep very well and are great to have on hand in the fridge. You can eat them alone as a condiment, or add them to salads, sprouted tortilla wraps, etc. I love them with a little olive oil, some turmeric and dulse sprinkled over tip, with avocado.  I munch happily away with my chopsticks.  In-Joy!

Tagged: exquisite self care, natural health and beauty, raw foods, raw renewal, rejuvenation, sensual beauty