Thursday, December 18, 2008

more from the beach





homemade vinegar



yes, yes. as you may know, i have deep and boundless love and respect for microorganisms (you know, the non-pathogenic kind), especially my two very good friends, the decomposers and the fermenters. really though, they're always working on something, making stuff, helping out, and in the end they come up with some of my favorite things... compost, and in turn nutrients and humus, and in turn delicious veggies. pickles and miso and yogurt and, you know, booze. yep, they're good guys to have in your corner, and once you get to know them, they might even be willing to help out with your xmas gifts.

i admittedly make vinegar (and a good handful of other ferments) all year long, but there's something that just feels right about reaching in the back of the cabinet around "holiday time" and pulling out a bunch of jars of stuff you've been making all year, packing it up and giving it to your loved ones. my fam this year opted for secret santa, but since i don't get to see everyone but twice a year, i bring homemade vinegar and jam, and local (to me) olive oil, butter (have i mentioned that i love butter?), and honey from the farmers market. i love food, and i love making food and sharing food, so why not share the love, right?

anyways, making vinegar is super simple, one of the easiest ferments because it's just not that particular. this year i'm giving out red wine and apple cider(ish) vinegar. to make the red wine vinegar, you just put your leftover slugs of red wine in a jar and put a cloth over it so it can breathe but no bugs or dust get in it. then you let it sit. and smell or taste it every now and again. til it's vinegar. yep. that's it. then you pour some out and bottle it, and save a little to add to, which becomes your vinegar "mother". the cider vinegar happens pretty much the same way. this current batch of mine came from apples that my lovely roomie gregory brought home from the lady he works for. i juiced them (rather than pressed them the way cider happens), left the juice in a cloth covered jar, and let it sit. i like to leave the sediment in the cider vinegar, but you can strain it out if it doesn't suit you. and that's it!

save and reuse some pretty jars, make cute labels, and voila! delicious and homemade gifts!

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

i could get used to this



hello from vacation, friends.

i am currently writing you from my wonderful and brilliant friend kinsley's couch in a delightful little house across the street from the beach in South Carolina. It was 74 degrees here today while i slept in til noon, and while i ate breakfast on the porch, and while i threw the ball into the ocean for the dog and collected shells, and while we decorated the xmas tree. It had probably cooled down to about 65 when kinsley took me on a tour of the island, the crabbin' spot, pink and george's farm stand, the piggly wiggly, and might have even gotten down to 60 while we made gingerbread and mashed potatoes with gravy AND sour cream. yes, vacation, i have missed you.





i'm about to head off to bed now, so i can sleep until i naturally wake up (sans my hateful, psychic clock radio), or until kinsley heads off to work and buddy the dog hops into my bed, gives me three thousand kisses and then rolls over on his back and falls asleep with his legs straight up in the air.