Pine Needle Cough Syrup By Grow Forage Cook Ferment

11/13/2019

Pine Needle Cough Syrup, Picture by Grow Forage Cook Ferment

I wanted to share this cool Recipe for Pine Needle Cough Syrup by Grow Forage Cook Ferment, Enjoy! .... "Pine needles may not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of natural herbal medicine, but they actually do have a lot of benefits! The best part is that conifer needles are easy to forage year round, even in the fall and winter. This pine needle cough syrup is easy to make and is helpful for calming coughs and soothing sore throats.
This recipe is from the book Healing Herbal Infusions, be sure to check it out if you are interested in more herbal remedies like this one! "
By Grow Forage Cook Ferment
Read Full Article Here

Lorne Style Fresh Breakfast Sausage

10/3/2019

Lorne Fresh Sausage 1, Sister Earth Creations, Dianne Keast

Lorne is a fresh uncured, uncased spiced sausage traditionally served as a Scottish breakfast staple. The spice combination is more reminiscent of a French meat pie or a black pudding rather than an American country sausage. Lorne is traditionally served with soft potato flat bread called “Tatties” watch for that recipe in the near future.

Ingredients:
4 Lbs Ground Meat, pork or beef or a combination
¼ Cup Breadcrumbs or oat flour
¼ Cup Cold Water or Broth

1 ¼ Teaspoon Kosher Salt
1 ¼ Teaspoon Pepper
1 ¼ Teaspoon Coriander Powder
½ Teaspoon Nutmeg Powder
1 ½ Tablespoon Brown Sugar (optional)
1 1/2 Teaspoon Onion Powder (optional)
¼ Teaspoon Allspice Powder (optional)

Lorne Fresh Sausage 2, Sister Earth Creations, Dianne Keast

Method :
In a large bowl mix all ingredients thoroughly with your hands.
(Note: wearing food safe gloves is always a good idea.)

Shape 2 or 3 mini-patties, fry on med-low heat, (do not over cook) & taste them, add more salt pepper or spices as your taste desires.

Once you like the taste, there are two options for shaping the sausage:
1. Press the sausage mixture into loaf pans, refrigerated for 2 or three hours & slice into ½ inch slabs. (This is the traditional way.)

2. Shape the sausage into individual patties.

Be sure that you do not allow the mixture in the bowl to become warm, it should be cold to the touch the entire time you are working with it. If it starts to get warm put it into the frig. & shape it in batches.

Lorne Fresh Sausage 3, Sister Earth Creations, Dianne Keast

PictureLorne Fresh Sausage 4, Sister Earth Creations, Dianne Keast

PictureLorne Fresh Sausage 5, Sister Earth Creations, Dianne Keast

If you will be using up all 4lbs of sausage within the next 4 days you can simply store in the fridge, if it will take you longer than 4 days to use up the sausage then you will need to freeze your sausage.

To prepare after freezing: remove desired amount of sausage from freezer in the early evening of the day before cooking & store in the fridge. Your Lorne style sausages will cook best if thawed completely before cooking.
Be sure to cook your sausage on med-low heat to prevent scorching & do not over cook them or they will be dry.
I like to freeze mine over night on a cookie sheet separated with cling film in between layers, then the next day I place the frozen patties into a ziplock for long term freezing.

Lorne Fresh Sausage for freezer 6, Sister Earth Creations, Dianne KeastPicture

Lorne Fresh Sausage Frozen in bag 7, Sister Earth Creations, Dianne Keast

Cinnamon Ginger Rhubarb Cooler

9/9/2019

Cinnamon Ginger Rhubarb Cooler;
a refreshing sweet & sour, cool & spicy beverage.

PictureCinnamon Ginger Rhubarb Cooler 2 Sister Earth Creations Dianne Keast

Ingredients :

Enough rhubarb to fill a pot 2/3 of the way.
Enough fresh clean, non-chlorinated water to cover 1' above contents.
2” inch length of Fresh Ginger peeled & thinly sliced.
10 whole cloves
2 cinnamon sticks , broken into pieces.
Zest from ½ Fresh Lemon (maybe the juice too)
2 teaspoons Vanilla
Sugar or sweetener of choice
(Optional for color red berries or 1 leaf purple cabbage & 1 Cup water)

The Method :
(Note You are making a drink concentrate.)
(Do not use an aluminum pot)

Wash & zest ½ of the lemon, set lemon & zest aside.

Wash & chop rhubarb into about 1” and chunks place in a cooking pot, add enough water to cover about 1” above the rhubarb. Add fresh ginger & cinnamon sticks.

Simmer covered on medium-low heat until the rhubarb starts break into strings. (about 20 to 30 min, it will vary)
Now Add lemon zest & cloves

Note: You can also perk up the color by adding red berries to the pot at this step.

Gently simmer, covered until rhubarb is broken down into strings.

Once the mixture is stringy, add sweetener & stir it in.

(Keep in mind that you want it to be 2x sweeter that your final product.)

Add vanilla, stir & simmer a few moments until sweetener is dissolved.

Allow the mixture to cool enough that it won't burn your tongue & taste it.

Taste to be sure it's sweet enough, remembering that you are making a drink concentrate. Add more sweetener if needed & stir it in.

Taste also for tartness, if you want more squeeze in the lemon & stir.

Cover & allow to cool completely.

PictureCinnamon Ginger Rhubarb Cooler 3 Sister Earth Creations Dianne Keast

Cinnamon Ginger Rhubarb Cooler 4 Sister Earth Creations Dianne Keast

Cinnamon Ginger Rhubarb Cooler 5 Sister Earth Creations Dianne Keast

Pour mixture through a strainer.

Now look at your color, sometimes if rhubarb stalks are mostly green the color of your drink may not be so appealing.

If you want it to be more red you can make a food coloring from a red cabbage leaf.

Wash & chop 1 leaf of red cabbage, cover & simmer in 1 Cup of water for 10 minutes. Allow this to cool completely. Strain & add just enough to your beverage concentrate to get the color you want.

Pour a little in a glass & see how much water you need to add to make the desired strength of flavor. Mine came out to be 2 parts water to 1 part juice when using ice & slightly more water when not using ice, it all depends on what you like. Enjoy!

Cinnamon Ginger Rhubarb Cooler 6 Sister Earth Creations Dianne Keast

Cinnamon Ginger Rhubarb Cooler 8 Sister Earth Creations Dianne KeastPicture

Cinnamon Ginger Rhubarb Cooler 9 Sister Earth Creations Dianne Keast Picture

Lentil Crisps

7/29/2019

Lentil Crisps ....the process: you just cook them like normal & add seasonings & finely chopped onion or carrot etc... but with much less water than for a soup, just enough to cover, adding a little if it gets too dry.
Taste it & add flavors you like.
Wen they are fully cooked & getting thick let them cool & then run through the food processor to grind up the skins (not needed if you use the skinless lentils), then back to the pot on low, stirring often until you have a very thick paste.

Heat oven to 350F, make 1 test ball & flatten on parchment, bake until browned & dry in center. If it cracks that means its too wet & you need to cook it in pot a little longer, stirring often. Once you get a good test ball that makes a dry crisp with no cracking, you can remove the pot from heat & let the paste cool. Then roll & flatten a whole batch & bake.

Cool completely on a rack & store in an airtight container. They should not sit out for more than a day because they will ferment (unless you like that sort of thing), after first day store in frig with some uncooked rice tied in cheesecloth or with a food safe "do not eat packet" to keep them crisp. If they lose their crunch you can warm them in oven to crisp up again.

Herb Marinated Tomatoes

7/28/2019

This one is very easy : Cut up tomatoes, chop fresh herbs, mince garlic & onion, pour on olive oil, red-wine vinegar & salt pepper & sugar to taste. Mixed & enjoy. Mine keeps in the Frig for several weeks. Its great as a side dish or on grilled sour dough bread.
I used fresh thyme, chives & arugula and a bit of rosemary in this batch but you can use any herbs you like.

Author

I am Dianne of Sister Earth Creations, I do a lot of cooking from scratch & here by popular demand I will share with you some of my favorite recipes & cooking methods.

Recipes,Sister Earth Creations, Dianne Keast, Missoula Montana