Search Results for

Breakfast fit for a king (well, my 7 year-old thinks he *is* The King, at least in our house!): Sourdough spelt pancake, local watermelon, ‘waste’ water kefir grains, ground linseed and soaked and dehydrated crunchy almonds.
.
He then gets to be in charge of the olive oil bottle, liberally dousing the goodies.
.
We usually eat a incidentally vegan breakfast. I wholeheartedly believe that any sustainable agricultural process needs animals at its core, but it doesn’t mean we eat their produce with every meal. This plate will be devoured by a little man who eats animal produce (including offal and lots of fat) at other meals and – importantly for me – everything on the dish comes from Italy, most of it from Tuscany.
.
I’d love to hear whether ancestral eating for you means animal produce at every meal and how you feel about the non-animal foods that you have available locally.

… Read More

Spelt sourdough with left-over oat porridge mixed in before the fermentation. This is such an easy way to give a spelt loaf a softer crumb and to make it last longer…let alone the lovely oat tang you get.
.
If you want to try this, there’s a recipe linked in my profile for Spelt Sourdough with a ‘scald’. Just replace the scald bit with the same weight of cold porridge. Works a treat.
.
And if you are a porridge fan, do check out my fermented oats video (also linked in my profile) where I talk you through how to make a breaky that’s super tasty and super-healthy!

… Read More

Gabriel, my 7 year-old son, loves being in the kitchen…but ideally he wants to be there on *his* terms. That means Mum has no say over what the ingredients are and what is done with them, she’s just there to reach/do the things he can’t.
.
Sometimes this produces ‘interesting’ results, but I like to let him do it. Because I want him to feel creatively expressed, because it’s fun and because I actually learn so much from him. (And Dadda can usually be relied on to eat whatever comes of the session!)
.
This morning was a winner. He took some local plums, chopped and cooked them on the hob, adding cinnamon. He then stirred in some of my fermented oat drink, swats. It ended up as a tart, sweet and warm fruit jam. Then he cut up some apple slices and served the dish as part of our lunch.
.
He ate almost all of it. I think that’s well-deserved!
.
Picture of the chef with his creation in my story today.

… Read More

Cooking three meals a day from scratch, fermenting and baking bread – they all require kitchen equipment. But how much of it is actually essential? What’s really useful, and how do you manage it in a small space?
.
Andrea and I tackle this topic in today’s podcast episode. We talk about the equipment we have, how we use it and what we couldn’t live without.
.
I’d love to hear what you use in your home. What are your top 3 kitchen tools?
.
You can find @ancestralkitchenpodcast in all the usual places, or download/stream it from the link in my profile.

… Read More

Cooking three meals a day from scratch, fermenting and baking bread – they all require kitchen equipment. But how much of it is actually essential? What’s really useful, and how do you manage it in a small space? Listen to Alison and Andrea share what equipment is in their kitchens, what they use it for and how they manage it.… Read More

Following on the success of my garden basil fermentation, I decided to do the same with my three abundant chive plants. After giving them all a hair cut, I pounded the stems with 3% salt and pushed them into this jar with a little topping of olive oil.
.
After almost a week on the counter, it’s got that gorgeous ‘roasted onion’ smell. It’s my hubby’s birthday soon and I’m thinking of saving this till then and letting him have the first go at spreading it on some freshly-baked spelt sourdough focaccia.

… Read More

Want to ferment your grains in a simple and easy process? I’ll walk you through it in my series of 3 videos!
.
Check my homepage www.ancestralkitchen.com for the first one, which is all about sourdough porridge. That’ll lead you on to another showing you how to make sourdough polenta out of *any* grain and then a third that’ll walk you through my favourite: sourdough polenta bread!
.
I’m so happy to get this info out there. And feedback is my lifeblood, so let me know what you think and share the vids with anyone who you think will like them. Thank you!

… Read More

The finished carrot root beer! It’s fizzy, thanks to the microbes in the whey I used as a starter and has a really deep flavour (I included molasses and caraway seeds in the mixture).
.
@farmandhearth inspired me to make root beer – she demoed it on the Nourishing Traditions cook-up we did for our podcast patrons earlier in the summer. I had never drunk (let alone made) it before then!
.
If you have the cookbook Nourishing Traditions, do check out the beverages chapter – it’s a goldmine!

… Read More

Ancestral-inspired food can bring so much health, healing and joy. Welcome to my kitchen.  Check out my Sourdough Porridge Video Series: Ferment your porridge and release not only so much more flavour, but also deeper nutrition. It’s easy, let me … Read More

I grew up with breakfast from a box.
.
Now, the breakfasts that I eat at the table with my son look different. This is sourdough millet and sorghum porridge that I made from whole grains. It’s topped with a nice big handful of nuts (soaked and dehydrated) and ground linseed. Then I poured over unpasteurised goat milk kefir.
.
The difference food like this has made to my life is incalculable.
.
And it tastes amazing.
.
We do not have to give up enjoyment to eat for health, community and the planet. Food tastes *better* the more love we put into it.

… Read More