Tag: beetroot

Beetroot Mint Latte

Beetroot Mint Latte

I’ve been craving rosé like mad of late in this hot summer weather! And although I love to treat myself to some clean crafted wine once a week or so, I’m not going to do that every night. So mid craving the other evening I 

Mocha Red Velvet Smoothie ❤️

Mocha Red Velvet Smoothie ❤️

This smoothie is full of medicinal mushrooms, gut healing bone broth protein, probiotics and antioxidants from the root that makes it red: beetroot. I always detested beets or beetroot until I visited Australia where frankly, people know how to prepare it properly. I prefer to 

Truffle & Beetroot Cultured Barbecue Sauce (nightshade-free, keto, paleo, vegan)

Truffle & Beetroot Cultured Barbecue Sauce (nightshade-free, keto, paleo, vegan)

This recipe is an adaptation of my cultured barbecue sauce. As I said in that post, among the first ferments I attempted was barbecue sauce. Since my Hashimoto’s Diagnosis I have been honing what I can and cannot consume… so this barbecue sauce is sans nightshades, soy and refined sugars. The sugars in it are fermented out so the end product still allows me to stay in ketosis. This may not seem important for some but ketones in the body are hugely anti-inflammatory and for me this allows me to continue to function as a human, wife, mother and homemaker. Any time I run into an allergy no matter what my macros are that day I am kicked out of ketosis and in pain. My neck, shoulders and back become so inflamed that sometimes it is difficult to breathe and certainly to move. So there you go. Because of this I avoid allergens at all costs and stay in keto for the better part of the month. I have been experimenting with carb ups weekly and have found it is too much, but monthly my body seems to handle fairly well. I still get to have my sweet potato truffle fries once a month… surrounded by a few days of raspberries without severe consequences. So for today I am posting a gorgeous beetroot based barbecue sauce with truffle salt to initiate the ferment. It is fantastic with those sweet potato truffle fries. 😂

This recipe is still in process, but it is both savory and (keto/paleo) sweet with a subtle umami flavor.

So Happy Labor Day everyone! I hope it is restful, joyful and full of family, spiritual and physical peace.

Give it a go and let me know how you like it!

Ingredients:

Method:

Roast beetroot/beets, onions, garlic and apple at 425° for 45 minutes or until blackened. Set aside to cool.

Sanitize your 1 liter or quart jar and lids if using. I place them in the oven at its lowest temperature for a few minutes. 170° Fahrenheit in an American oven. My British ovens were usually 75° Celsius.

Place all ingredients in a food processor, blender or Vitamix. Chop first if you’re using a normal blender and place wet ingredients first and dry next (wet in the bottom, dry on top) but reserve the olive oil. Puree, then transfer to a 1.5 Liter fermenting jar with air lock or a swing/clip top 1.5 Liter Jar.  Leave 2″ of room at the top. Cover the top with extra virgin olive oil or avocado oil and seal.

Leave to ferment for 2-7 days, depending on taste. The longer you leave it the less sugar you will have in the final ferment so taste it as needed but be mindful to use sterile spoons.

Store in swing top or glass bottles. You may have to dilute with a bit of water, apple cider vinegar or onion brine after fermentation. Enjoy on pizza, barbecue or with my personal favorite: sweet potato fries!

[lt_recipe name=”Truffle Beetroot Cultured Barbecue Sauce” servings=”20″ prep_time=”30M” cook_time=”45M” total_time=”2-4 DAYS” difficulty=”Intermediate” summary=”This lovely sauce is nightshade free so it is perfect for the AIP diet. The sugars have been consumed in the fermentation process so I find it does not kick me out of ketosis when used in moderation.” print=”yes” image=”https://www.brennamay.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/img_8893-1-300×300.jpg” ingredients=”3-4 beetroot (about 1 Kg);1-2 onions ;2-3 garlic cloves;2 apples (I prefer Granny Smith);1 tsp black peppercorns;½-1 tsp smoked or green peppercorns (mild) OR Sechuan or Tasmanian peppercorns (spicy);1/8 tsp coriander seed;¼ cup raw apple cider vinegar;½ cup cultured onion brine;1/2 tsp mustard seeds or 1/8-1/4 tsp powder;1 tsp pink salt or truffle salt;1 tsp coconut aminos;1/3 cup cacao;1/4 tsp allspice;1/4 tsp ground cloves;2-4 Tbsp coconut sugar, date paste, raw honey or maple syrup (most of this will be fermented out as the live cultures will eat up the sugars during reproduction) OR 1 additional green apple roasted ;5-10 drops stevia or monkfruit ;7 sage leaves or 1 tsp sage;3-4 tsp liquid smoke to taste (optional, but I do this if my veggies didn’t blacken to my liking)” ]Place all ingredients in a food processor, blender or Vitamix (chop first if you’re using a normal blender) and puree.;Transfer to a 1.5 Liter fermenting jar with air lock or a swing/clip top 1.5 Liter Jar. ;Leave for 2-4 days on the counter to ferment. [/lt_recipe]

Fermented Red Sauce (Nightshade-Free Ketchup)

Fermented Red Sauce (Nightshade-Free Ketchup)

Since my diagnosis with Hashimoto’s I’ve had to avoid a lot of things I love. I can’t say ketchup is up there at the top but I do like it once in a while with truffle salted sweet potato fries. As nightshades are no longer 

Chocolate Espresso Super Muffins, No Foolin’ (Paleo, No Sugar)

Chocolate Espresso Super Muffins, No Foolin’ (Paleo, No Sugar)

No Sugar, Paleo, Chocolate, Espresso, Nut-free, Keto-Cycling Protein Muffins This is a recipe I have been working on for months, trying to come up with a guilt-free antioxidant and protein rich breakfast muffin.  It came out of the time of year when the greens do 

Green Giant Kale & Broccoli Fermented Hummus (Vegan, Paleo Hacked)

Green Giant Kale & Broccoli Fermented Hummus (Vegan, Paleo Hacked)

Above: the jolly green giant hummus topped with organic hempseed for protein and fancy pants presentation.

Green Giant Kale & Broccoli Fermented Hummus

Sooo…. Thanksgiving happened.  Sandwiched between having a wicked flu myself and dealing with a full night and day of helicopter vomit with my poor dear [the name of child has been removed for his or her emotional protection].  Needless to say with sickness and the marathon that Thanksgiving, I haven’t been posting anything.  Not that I haven’t been fooding… I have.  Just not blogging.  So we may or may not be seeing some of those recipes in the next few days.

I’ve already given my spiel about the benefits of fermenting beans and legumes but it never hurts to re-cap.  Because who doesn’t love a frugal paleo hack.  So!  Beans contain a high level of phytates and lectins, which does some bad stuff (read this post) and is not so paleo.  But! Cooking and then fermenting legumes can reduce these phytates and lectins by up to 85%, essentially “hacking” those beans into a stable veg the likes of other paleo friendly veg.  So… not really paleo but for all intents and purposes just as healthy or more so.  And cheap.  Did I mention dried beans are cheap?  Having home made fermented hummus to snack on takes my family’s grocery budget down nearly $200 a month as opposed to not having it.  Something to consider.

This is sort of like a green goddess hummus but as I was totally unprepared for my husband to love it (which he did) I thought I’d give it a more masculine name.  Enter the jolly green giant.  Not that I buy green giant kale and broccoli but I did grow up on frozen veg to supplement mum’s garden, so hey.

I basically cooked up a vat of dried chickpeas prior to Thanksgiving, in preparation for having near nothing healthy around to get us through all the prep.  I actually made four hummus varieties: Fermented Hummus, Roasted Beetroot Hummus, Pumpkin Pie Hummus (FAIL. But I added more spices and pressed it onto a silicone mat into tiny cookies and then the family inhaled them) and this… the green variety.  The spinach was looking sad so for fear of it ruining the ferment I left it out and went for the heartier winter veg: kale & raw broccoli.

Ingredients

125-150g dried chick peas, soaked overnight and cooked, drained and rinsed (makes about 2 cups) or one can.

2 cups packed kale

2 cups broccoli florets

garlic cloves

½ cup whey from a batch of live yogurt or milk kefir, cultured vegetable juice from a previous ferment (I used the juices from a batch of fermented carrots)

1/4 cup tahini or 3 Tbsp toasted sesame seeds or toasted sunflower seeds

juice of 1 lemon

2 teaspoons smoked paprika

1 teaspoon cumin

handful fresh sage leaves from the garden

1 tablespoon sea salt, celtic sea salt or pink salt

½ teaspoon black pepper

¼ – ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil (poured over top to seal out bacteria)

Method

I like to use dried chickpeas, so I measure out 125 grams (a little over 4oz) and soak them overnight.  Pour into a bowl or container, fill with water and cover.  In the morning, strain and rinse the chickpeas.  Bring a pot of water to boil, pour in the chickpeas and simmer for 1 1/2 hours.  Strain the chickpeas in a colander and rinse.

While your chickpeas are cooking, wash, trim and chop kale & broccoli, 2 cups each

Add the chickpeas and all other ingredients to your food processor (hold out the olive oil) and process until smooth.

If serving immediately, leave out the culturing liquid.  Spoon into a bowl and stir in 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, then drizzle a bit more on the top. Serve with crudite platter or chips.

If fermenting, hold out the olive oil until the very end. Transfer hummus to a 2 litre clip top jar, cover with the olive oil and clamp closed.  Slowly rotate the jar until the olive oil seals the entire empty surface.  Leave to ferment for 2 days.  Once finished, stir the olive oil in and store in a 1 liter glass jar or BPA free container in the fridge.

Pro Tip: Make sure your jar is double the capacity of your hummus so you don’t wake up to the Blob invading your kitchen.  It’ll be tasty but a sad sad waste… unless you’re the type to lick it off the counter.

Green Giant Kale & Broccoli Fermented Hummus

Brenna May
This is sort of like a green goddess hummus but as I was totally unprepared for my husband to love it (which he did) I thought I’d give it a more masculine name. Enter the jolly green giant. It is a lectin-free hummus packed with nutritious greens.
Prep Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Course Dinner, Lunch, Side Dish
Cuisine American

Equipment

  • Pressure Cooker
  • Food Processor
  • 4 quart glass jar with lid

Ingredients
  

  • 125-150 g dried chick peas soaked overnight and cooked, drained and rinsed (makes about 2 cups) or one can.
  • 2 cups packed kale
  • 2 cups broccoli florets
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • ½ cup whey from a batch of live yogurt or milk kefir cultured vegetable juice from a previous ferment (I used the juices from a batch of fermented carrots)
  • 1/4 cup tahini or 3 Tbsp toasted sesame seeds or toasted sunflower seeds
  • juice of 1 lemon
  • 2 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • handful fresh sage leaves from the garden
  • 1 tbsp sea salt celtic sea salt or pink salt
  • ½ tsp black pepper
  • ¼– ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil poured over top to seal out bacteria

Instructions
 

  • I like to use dried chickpeas, so I measure out 125 grams (a little over 4oz) and soak them overnight. Pour into a bowl or container, fill with water and cover. In the morning, strain and rinse the chickpeas. Bring a pot of water to boil, pour in the chickpeas and simmer for 1 1/2 hours. Strain the chickpeas in a colander and rinse.
  • While your chickpeas are cooking, wash, trim and chop kale & broccoli, 2 cups each
  • Add the chickpeas and all other ingredients to your food processor (hold out the olive oil) and process until smooth.
  • If serving immediately, leave out the culturing liquid. Spoon into a bowl and stir in 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, then drizzle a bit more on the top. Serve with crudite platter or chips.
  • If fermenting, hold out the olive oil until the very end. Transfer hummus to a 2 litre clip top jar, cover with the olive oil and clamp closed. Slowly rotate the jar until the olive oil seals the entire empty surface. Leave to ferment for 2 days. Once finished, stir the olive oil in and store in a 1 liter glass jar or BPA free container in the fridge.

Notes

Pro Tip: Make sure your jar is double the capacity of your hummus so you don’t wake up to the Blob invading your kitchen. It’ll be tasty but a sad sad waste… unless you’re the type to lick it off the counter.
Keyword broccoli, green goddess, hummus, kale
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

 

 

 

Cultured Roasted Beetroot Hummus

Cultured Roasted Beetroot Hummus

Above: the gorgeous hot pink hummus topped with organic hempseed for a kick of protein and contrast. Cultured Roasted Beetroot Hummus Okay, so a quick word about fermenting beans and legumes.  Generally beans are not beloved by paleo or keto folks because they contain a 

Cultured Beetroot

Cultured Beetroot

Fermented Beetroot (Beets) for salads, mezza style platters and… fermented beetroot hummus! Okay, so I try not to talk to much about non-food stuff but I promise this is related.  One of the first Aussie food things I learned to do was to make homemade