This is a delicious relish, great with a cheese board or as a topping for yoghurt!
It’s also fab mixed with some cream cheese or kefir cheese as a dip.

If you have either kombucha or water kefir then add a tablespoon or 2 to bring extra probiotics to the party!
If not then this relish will ferment nicely with just the salt or if you want to eat it straight away then that is also fine, it just won’t have active probiotics benefits!

It’s always good to have options! This is packed with vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and omega 3 fats so it will benefit your health however you decide to make it.


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If you want to join me on some of my  Workshops to learn how to do you own kombucha or Kefir  drinks/cheese to improve your health easily just click here.



Ingredients
Makes a 500ml jar

•  2 cups fresh/frozen cranberries (225g)
• ½ cup pecans lightly toasted (50g)
•  1 large orange, zest and juice
•  ½ cup dried cranberries (55g)
•  1 tsp cinnamon
•  ½ tsp allspice
•  2 cloves
•  4 tablespoons coconut or brown sugar
•  1 tsp sea salt
•  1 tsp freshly grated ginger
•  2 tablespoons kombucha or water kefir (optional)

Method
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1. Add everything to a food processor and pulse to a coarse paste
2. Taste and adjust flavourings
3. Pack tightly into a 500ml jar and cover with a circle of greaseproof paper
4. Leave an inch of headspace in the jar
5. Ferment at room temp for 5 to 7 days
6. Should taste sour with a bit of sweetness in the background
7. Move to the fridge and use within 2 months

                                                                                                                                                                                                             
I have been having the best summer, enjoying all the lovely sunshine, going for lots of adventures with Bruce our old Vw Camper Van and generally fermenting everything!!
To say it has become an obsession is a bit of an understatement! I now dream about fermenting stuff!! 

My fridge is full of all sorts of jars of starters, milk kefir grains, water kefir grains, seasonal ferments and my cupboard is full of various ferments bubbling away!
Now much as I would love to say I grow all my own veggies, that would be far from the truth! However I am a fan of seasonal eating and in the summer we have so much incredible produce to choose from!
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Think juicy tomatoes, crisp green courgettes, shiny peppers, lush green herbs, colourful edible flowers, rosy pink radishes, rainbow coloured salad leaves! I could go on but you get my drift! 
I do however grow lots of herbs and I have courgettes and tomatoes this year but none are ready yet! So I'm experimenting with all sorts of flavoured kombuchas, water kefir and fruit Kvass and making use of all my abundant herbs, mint, basil, lemon balm, lemon verbena, thyme, oregano, fennel, borage and nasturtiums!

I ran a workshop last week with my awesome friend Sonnda Catto, a Cordon bleu trained chef, pattisserie expert, nutritionist with the most developed palate I have ever come across! She creates the most amazing freefrom foods I have ever tasted!  They may be glutenfree, sugarfree, grainfree, dairyfree but they are most definitely not flavour free!
Sonnda has a restricted diet because of her ME but she certainly makes the the most incredible food from the best quality ingredients! We will be collaborating again and running regular workshops so watch this space for details.
And I will be launching a new programme of workshops, covering all things fermented, details coming soon! 

Anyway as usual I digress, I have so much to share with all you lovely people that I simply become overwhelmed and don't know what to share first, so end up sharing nothing!!

So I have decided to focus on tomatoes and give you two new recipes, both fermented, for awesome flavour and health benefits!

These are both really simple and all you need are your ingredients and a glass jar! No cultures or special fermenting equipment required!

Tomatoes are a great source of lycopene, which after fermentation becomes more bioavailable, which means your body can use it more efficiently! All sorts of magical stuff happens when you ferment food and its all good!! Lycopene has been associated with reduced risk of several cancers and it can also protect your skin from sun damage! Tomatoes are also rich in potassium which regulates fluid balance and are an excellent source of vitamin C, which also increases during fermentation!

So there you have it! Tomatoes, like all fruits and veggies, are extremely good for you, but fermenting them takes the health benefits to another level, as well as adding lots of gut healing lactobacillus bacteria, which just support every system in your body!
So no excuses, go and ferment some tomatoes!!
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These are very aptly named and are indeed wee bombs of flavour with a delicate fizz on the tongue, that only fermentation can provide! 

The recipe is so simple, you can hardly call it a recipe!! 


CHERRY TOMATO BOMBS

So gather together some wee organic cherry or wee plum tomatoes, or better still use homegrown ones, about 500g.

Find yourself a large glass jar and give it a wash in hot soapy water then rinse it well. I used a large olive jar from Lidl but any glass jar will do.
Make a wee hole in each tomato using a wooden cocktail stick or skewer, pop them in your jar, add 3 or 4 bashed garlic cloves, a few sprigs of basil, any other herbs you have like flat leaf parsley, rosemary, oregano or thyme. Make a brine by dissolving a tablespoon sea salt in 1 litre filtered water then pour it over the tomatoes. Leave an inch or so headspace to stop the brine overflowing. I covered mine with a big grape leaf from my garden but nasturtium leaves also work well or a large lettuce leaf or cabbage leaf. The idea is to keep the tomatoes submerged in the brine. You can also use a ziplock bag then fill it with water to keep everything weighed down. 

Put the lid on loosely and leave it to ferment for 4 or 5 days, at room temperature and out of direct sunlight. You should see bubbles after a few days indicating that fermentation is proceeding normally.
After 4 or 5 days you should have delicious probiotic flavoursome tomatoes with a gentle fizz when you eat them. 
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Transfer to the fridge and enjoy! 
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So at my workshop last week, we sampled all sorts of delicious fermented summer treats and this awesome fermented salsa was a big hit! Although so was everything else, but I'm focusing on tomatoes today, so here is the recipe, adapted from my favourite book The Cultured Club by Dearbhla Reynolds!


Tomato Salsa
(Makes 1 litre jar)

This salsa just tastes alive, so delicious and the fermentation adds a lovely sour tang. This is a great way of using up tomatoes and who doesn’t love salsa with tortilla chips! Or on a slice of sourdough with avocado as a probiotic bruschetta! To be honest this tastes amazing as it is, so if you don’t have time to ferment it then you can still enjoy all the amazing flavours, you just won’t have any probiotics! It’s a fast ferment, only 3 to 5 days so not that long to wait!! Alternatively, just add a clove of fermented garlic, job done!

Oh and keep any remaining brine in a wee jar in the fridge, you can add a tablespoon to some mashed avocado for fermented guacamole or pour it over your salad with some of your favourite oil! My current favourite is avocado and walnut oil!!

Ingredients

• 500g tomatoes, any kind, roughly chopped
• 1 red or green pepper, roughly chopped
• 1 medium to large red onion, roughly chopped
• 1 or 2 garlic cloves, minced
• Juice of 1 lime (about 2 tablespoons)
• Handful of fresh coriander, chopped or 1/2 tsp coriander seeds
• 2 tsp sea salt
• ½ tsp cumin seeds or ground cumin
• ½ tsp smoked paprika
• ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
• pinch of dried chilli flakes or 1 small red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped

Method
This is so easy.  Simply mix all ingredients together in a large bowl, then pack into a clean 1 litre jar, leaving 2.5cm headspace at the top. Pack it in tightly to expel any air and bring juices to the surface. You can omit the chilli or add more depending on how hot you like it! I'm a chilli wimp so only add a wee pinch of chilli flakes.
Close the lid and allow to ferment at room temp for 3 to 5 days.  Taste it after 3 days, it should have a wee fermenty fizz and zing. You can leave it for another day or so, if the flavour isn't to your liking, but don't leave it much longer or you can end up with an alcoholic tasting salsa, which isn't very nice!!
Put a bowl underneath it to catch any escaping juices. Transfer to the fridge, it will keep for around 6 months but it will be long gone by then! 

 So I've been  busy replenishing all my fermented veggies. All I had left was a sad looking grey kimchi and an equally sad lemon and dill kraut!
I had forgotten how much I enjoy fermented veggies, just a tablespoon per day can boost your gut bacteria and give you a whole host of health benefits.
I used to only make plain boring old sauerkraut with cabbage and salt but since I've discovered how versatile and delicious kraut can be I've been experimenting with lots of different flavour additions! 

I currently have 3 batches on the go but this pineapple turmeric ginger kraut is my absolute favourite. I love all the ingredients individually but put them together and ferment them for a few days and you have the most delicious zingy, earthy, sweet, salty and sour flavour explosion that looks like summer days, its such a vibrant bright sunshiny yellow colour!

Apart from the amazing taste, each of the ingredients have a  myriad of health benefits so go figure, if you add them all together and ferment them, you add even more benefits and a load of gut healing healthy probiotics! I love the fact that whole foods work in synergy and enhance each others effects. Nutrition can't be broken down to individual components, its not a reductionist thing! Foods are more than the sum of their parts! Thats why extracting and concentrating individual minerals, vitamins or antioxidants don't work as well as the whole foods they are extracted from. There is a whole world of interactions between fibre, protein, simple sugars, minerals, vitamins, enzymes, trace elements and co enzymes, which we will never know. It's just too complex! 

In my opinion, you can't improve on nature. Eat foods as close to their natural state as possible, as fresh as possible, and be aware of how to enhance their health benefits. 

Anyway I digress, 
The brilliant thing about fermented veggies is you are providing your body with a whole host of probiotic good gut bacteria and the veggies are a food source for them! They thrive on fibre so it makes sense to eat the bacteria and the food at the same time!
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Cabbage is a member of the cruciferous family, along with broccoli, cauliflower, brussel sprouts and kale, and has amazing gut healing and cancer fighting properties, due to the glucosinolate compounds it contains along with sulphur compounds and lots of vitamins and minerals.

Pineapple contains an enzyme called bromelain which helps to digest protein, and is especially useful for clearing mucous and sinus problems. It is also a great cough suppressant and works just as well as over the counter cough remedies! It's also a powerful anti inflammatory.

Ginger is great for soothing the digestion, relieving nausea and fighting inflammation in the body.

Turmeric is a superstar in the health stakes, it is a powerful anti inflammatory, relieves pain, kills cancer cells and just works on so many levels, you would be missing out on a whole lot of healing power if you didn't include turmeric in your diet! Black pepper enhances the action of turmeric and good quality fat enhancers its absorption even further. 

So as I said earlier, if you put all these amazing ingredients together and ferment them with some sea salt, then you have an awesome inflammation fighting superfood, which just happens to taste amazing too!! Bearing in mind that every chronic disease involves inflammation on some level and pretty much all of us will have some low grade inflammation going on somewhere in our body, so we can all  benefit from this amazing food. And fighting inflammation is only one of the health benefits of these powerful ingredients, there are many  more......

​So do yourself a favour and give this amazing sauerkraut a go!!

All you need is a white cabbage, preferably organic but at least locally sourced, 1/2 pineapple, some fresh ginger and some fresh or powdered turmeric, some sea salt and a large glass jar with a lid.
I don't sterilise my jars, just wash them in hot soapy water then rinse them really well to remove any traces of soap.
You can buy large glass Mason jars or Kilner jars with clip top lids in most supermarkets. Ikea and Home Bargains are particularly good value!
The most important thing to remember when fermenting veggies of any kind, is to keep the veggies submerged in the brine. In order to do this, you need what is called a follower, meaning something to place on top of the veggies, followed by a weight of some sort to hold it all down. A large cabbage leaf works well, with a glass gu pot to weight it down, which fits perfectly in a glass mason jar.
Alternatively you can use a ziplock bag, press it down firmly on top of your veggies and fill it with brine solution or water to act as a follower and weight in one! 
The idea is to keep any small bits of veggies from floating above the brine, which can cause mould or kahm yeast, neither of which you want it your lovely ferment!
This is a fast ferment and only takes 4 to 7 days. Fermentation is affected by the temperature, if its too cold your ferment will take longer. 15 to 22 degrees C is the temperature range that the bacteria we are trying to cultivate, function best at, which is essentially room temperature.  Keep your jar away from direct sunlight. Your kitchen worktop or a kitchen cupboard is ideal and allows you to keep an eye on it. If any bits of cabbage float to the top then remove them or push them back under the brine. You will see bubbles as the fermentation progresses which is a good sign that all is progressing normally! 
This is truly delicious and a great accompaniment to any sandwich, wrap, snack, toast, eggs, savoury dish, buffet spread or just eaten as it is. You only need a tablespoon a day to boost your gut bacteria and reap the health benefits!
Wee point to remember, please use a clean spoon or fork when taking any of your kraut from the jar. You don't want to introduce any bacteria or  moulds and ruin your lovely kraut!
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So here is the simple recipe...

Pineapple Turmeric Ginger Kraut
Ingredients

• I firm white organic cabbage (around 2lbs)
• 1/2 fresh pineapple, peeled, cored and chopped small
• 2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
• 1 tablespoon grated fresh turmeric or 1 or 2 teaspoons  turmeric powder
• 1 tablespoon sea salt (without additives)
• pinch black pepper

Method

1. Rinse the cabbage and remove one of the outer leaves to use later. Weigh your cabbage before you slice it. It's important to use the correct amount of salt which is 1 tablespoon for 2 lbs /0.9kg veggies, so if you have more than that then add a wee bit more.
2. Quarter and core the cabbage, discard the core, then slice the cabbage finely. I use my food processor with my fine  slicing attachment to save some time!
3. Transfer the cabbage to a large bowl or a plastic basin and sprinkle it with the sea salt. Start to massage and squeeze it with your hands until it starts to soften and liquid is released. Cover it with a tea towel and leave it for half an hour or so until more liquid is released.
4. Add the chopped pineapple and grated ginger and mix and squeeze again.
5. Add the turmeric last, with some freshly ground black pepper and this time use a wooden spoon to give it a good mix. Turmeric stains everything and unless you want stained yellow fingers then either wear disposable gloves, in which case you can give it all a final mix and squeeze with your hands to get the maximum amount of brine.
6. Start to fill your clean glass jar with the kraut, pressing it down with a wooden spoon or I use the pestle from my mortar and pestle set to give it a good bash. Keep adding the kraut and pressing it firmly as you go to release maximum amount of brine. You want the brine to come above the level of the veggies.
7. Leave at least an inch of headspace in your jar, add your follower, large cabbage leaf trimmed to fit or a ziplock bag. Tuck it in well and add your weight or add some water to the ziplock bag. Place a bowl or plate underneath it as the active fermentation  releases CO2 which can displace some of the liquid, which doesn't smell great!!
8. If you are using a clip top jar then just seal it and any gas will escape via the rubber seal. If you are using a non clip top jar then open it every day to release any gas build up! You don't want an exploding jar and kraut juice all over the kitchen!!
9. Taste your kraut after 4 or 5 days and if you are happy with the taste, then transfer it to the fridge where it will keep happily for months, if it lasts that long! You can leave it up to 7 days but keep trying it every day! If left too long the sugar from the pineapple can start to taste a bit funky! 
10. Its a good idea to transfer your finished kraut to smaller glass jars. The less air space in your jar, the less chance of your kraut going mouldy. I normally transfer mine to smaller jars as I use it up!

                              ....your health in your hands....
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