Gut health is one of the most talked about topics amongst nutrition and wellness experts! So Many are studies that a healthy, well balanced gut flora is one of the key factors in achieving good digestion, and health in general. As well as avoiding stress and toxins that cause an imbalance of good and bad bacteria in our gut in the first place, it’s important to include a variety of fermented foods and probiotics in your diet.
Freshly fermented cabbage, aka sauerkraut, is a wonderful and simple way to add some friendly bacteria to your gut. It’s not always easy to find fresh sauerkraut in stores and people often buy the pasteurised kind you find in the non-refrigerated sections of the supermarket. However, that’s not the sauerkraut you want as all that lively bacteria is destroyed during the pasteurisation process. What you want is fresh sauerkraut in which the bacteria is alive and thriving and which you would keep refrigerated. In this post I show how to make a small batch of fermented sauerkraut in your own kitchen. All you need is a head of cabbage, salt and a jar!

Or if you were like me and bought a Giant size bag of Orangic Coleslaw Mix and didn’t even use 1/4 the bag, you might as well make some sauerkraut! This is so easy and all you need is the cabbage, water and salt! If you want to add some color or other veggies you can throw in some purple cabbage, carrots, garlic, and even onion.  I like to add a few Carraway Seeds and a drop of vitality dill Essential Oil to a few jars for some extra seasoning. Whatever you’re feeling like! 

Ok first things first! Make sure you have a few Mason jars cleaned! I like to boil mine in hot water. Then get all your ingredients and throw them into a big bowl! Add some sea salt and distilled or purified water and start massaging with your hands for a few minutes.  (Salt- add about 1/4 teaspoon to three small fist fulls of ingredients, water-enough to cover the veggies) 

Get your Mason jars ready and start stuffing! I like to stuff until about 1/4 way to the top, you want to try and prevent as many bubbles as possible, then fill the jars up with remaining brine and seal tight! Keep them in the a dark cabinet for 7- 30 days! I like to to take them out at day 7 because I like the crunch of the cabbage. Once you decide on the taste you like throw them in the fridge and can be eaten up to several months! Easy peesy!

I have been having a major sweet tooth lately but if I’m not careful I will just eat a carton of the kids ice cream in the freezer, so instead I made a batch of these and they definitely kick my craving, AND ONLY 3 INGREDIENTS!!

3-Ingredient Paleo Fudge:

Ingredients:

• • 3 Cups of at least 70% Cacao Chocolate Chips
  • 1 cup of full fat coconut milk
  • 1/4 teaspoon of Vanilla Powder
    • optional-I added 1 tablespoon of finely chopped walnuts

    Instructions:

    1. In a medium pot, melt chocolate and coconut milk together over very low heat
    2. Stir in vanilla powder
    3. Transfer mixture to a parchment paper lined 8 x 8 inch baking dish
    4. Refrigerate for 3 hours, until firm
    5. Serve

There are so many benefits to this power juice! 

So how is this Fire Cider health tonic and homeopathic remedy good for you?

Let me count the ways:

✅Fresh horseradish is known to be effective against the flu and common cold, tonsilitis, respiratory disorders, urinary tract infections, and pathenogenic fungus.

✅Ginger is used to treat arthritis, muscle pain, upset stomach (motion and morning sickness and general nausea), gas, upper respiratory tract infections, and cough.

✅Onions are used to boost cardiovascular health, bone and connective tissue benefits, and as an anti-inflammatory agent.

✅Garlic is used to treat high blood pressure, high cholesterol, coronary heart disease, heart attack, atherosclerosis, asthma, building the immune system, help level blood sugar, and is used topically to treat fungal infections.

✅Habanero peppers boost your metabolism, and offer headache, sinus, and arthritis relief as well as releasing endorphins.

✅Oranges are great for heart health, as part of a best-case-scenario-anti-cancer-diet, fighting cholesterol, to help in weight loss, and to break up or prevent kidney stones.

✅Lemons are known to aid in digestion, alleviate Meniere’s Disease, kidney stones, and ringing of the ears, cure scurvy (chronic lack of Vitamin C), treat colds and flu, improve the function of blood vessels, and reduce inflammation and retention of water.

✅Turmeric is pretty much the be-all and end-all of health foods. It’s known to delay liver damage, reduce carcinogenic compounds in other foods, make cancer cells more vulnerable to chemo and radiation, inhibit the growth of malignant melanoma and breast cancer, alleviate arthritis symptoms and skin conditions. Heck, maybe I should let the experts describe what the main compound in turmeric -cucurmin- does. Advanced Experimental Medical Biology in 2007 states that, “Curcumin has been shown to exhibit antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antiviral, antibacterial, antifungal, and anticancer activities and thus has a potential against various malignant diseases, diabetes, allergies, arthritis, Alzheimer’s disease and other chronic illnesses.”

✅Raw apple cider vinegar (not plain old cider vinegar!) is known to be a good source of acetic and ascorbic acid (Vitamin C), mineral salts, amino acids, and other key components of good nutrition, but it is also a well-loved folk remedy thought to ease digestion, fight obesity and diabetes, wash toxins from the body, kill lice, and reverse aging. Does it do all of that? I dunno. But it surely tastes good and it’s nutritional value is undisputed.

✅Raw honey (locally produced) is a fantastic, all-natural fighter of seasonal allergies. Because bees collect pollen from flowers in your area and then convert it to honey to feed their hives, eating raw, local honey is like a tasty allergy shot. It’s also full of vitamins and minerals, anti-fungal, anti-viral, and makes a great, non-narcotic cough suppressant and throat soother.

The beauty of this, beyond its all-star cast of healthy ingredients, is that it just plain tastes wonderful. We drink a tablespoon (or more!) every morning to maintain health. Well, okay, we MAINLY drink it because we like it, but the health benefits are nice.

When you feel ill, take a slightly larger dose of Fire Cider Health Tonic and Homeopathic Remedy to help boost your immune system. Word has it on the street that it’s an extremely effective hangover cure. So, I want to know… are you curious enough to try it? What do you think?

Fire Cider: Health Tonic and Homeopathic Remedy

*1 large horseradish root scrubbed very well, about 7 inches long

*1 large ginger root about 7 inches long

*1 large onion root and stem end removed and peeled

*1 large orange

*1 lemon

*16 cloves of garlic peeled

*2-4 habanero peppers stems removed

*1 tablespoon ground turmeric

*one drop in each container of young Living vitality pepper essential oil to help absorb turmeric 

*raw apple cider vinegar

*raw honey

Instructions
Grate the horseradish and ginger roots. Roughly chop the onions, orange, lemon, garlic, and habanero peppers. Stuff them into a half-gallon glass jar with a tight fitting lid or divide evenly between two quart sized canning jars. Sprinkle the turmeric in on top (dividing evenly between the two jars if using quart jars). Pour the raw apple cider vinegar in over the contents, allowing it to settle in through the crevices and adding more so that the contents are submerged. Lay a piece of parchment paper over the rim of the jar, then screw the lid tightly in place. Let the mixture sit in a dark, cool place, allowing it to marry and infuse for 1-4 weeks, shaking once daily. 

I could only go 1 week because I wanted to try it so bad and it had some HEAT to it! I can’t imagine what 4 weeks would taste like, maybe next batch!
After 1-4 weeks, pour the contents into a muslin or cheesecloth lined colander positioned over a stable pot. Let it drain for 30 minutes, then gather the corners of the cloth, twisting and squeezing until you cannot release any more liquid. When it’s fully strained, add honey to the liquid to taste and pour into a sterilized wine bottle or canning jar. Store in a cool, dark place for up to a year, shaking well before using.

Enjoy! ❤️❤️