Sourdough Pancakes

We love sourdough pancakes at our house. Besides just liking the sour taste we also like the fact that fermented foods are easier to digest. First things first.

How to make sourdough starter

All you need is:
-Flour (any kind)
-Water

1.) In a jar mix 2 cups of each water and flour.
2.) Stir vigorously.
3.) Cover the jar with cheesecloth or any porous material.
4.) Store in a warm place (70-80 degrees) and daily stir it.
5.) When you see tiny bubbles releasing at the surface of the batter you know the yeast has activated.
6.) Once the yeast is active add 1 or 2 tablespoons more flour to the mixture everyday for 3 or 4 days and continue stirring.
7.) Add water to it if it gets so thick that it starts to become solid.
8.) Once you have a thick, bubbly batter, your starter is ready to use. When you use it always save some of the mixture in the jar to keep the started going.
9.) To replenish add water and flour roughly equal to the amount you removed. Stir and put back in a warm place.
10.) If you are using it weekly to make things add a little flour everyday and water as needed.
11.) If you use it less frequently you can put it in a cooler place like a refrigerator and feed it once a week. A day or two before you use it again it will need to be removed and put in a warm place.

Sourdough Pancakes! (16 Pancakes) This recipe needs to be started the night before to make for breakfast.

1 cup of starter
2 cups of luke warm water
2 1/2 cups of flour
2 tablespoons of sugar
1 egg
2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of baking soda

1.) In a bowl, mix the sourdough starter, lukewarm water, flour and sugar. Stir until smooth. Cover and leave to ferment in a warm spot 8-12 hours.
2.) After it has sat; beat the egg and add it to the batter along with the oil and salt. Stir until smooth.
3.) Mix the baking soda with 1 tablespoon of warm water and fold into the mix.
4.) Make pancakes! So yum!

Extending the life of your temporary razor

I recently came across how to continue using a temporary/disposable razor for possibly a few years. I've been doing this technique for a few months now and love it! Here's how to do it:

Whenever your razor starts to feel dull, run the blade backwards across your forearm for about 10 strokes. The reason your razor dulls is because of small imperfections in the surface of the blade. WIth the old-time razors people used to run the blade against leather. Our skin is like leather.

Try it for yourself!

How to make and use a Rocket Stove

So Johnny and I have been cooking on this thing for about a year and a half now! We didn't have a stove and wanted to go back to a more primitive way of cooking. FIRE! This is a video I recorded of myself using it last year. Even if you don't want to cook like this all the time it's really nice in the summer out on a front porch or to take camping instead of a propane stove.



Here is a link to the instructions if you want to build one! Johnny built ours so I probably couldn't explain it well enough for anyone to succeed with my instructions.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Rocket-Stove/

-Bailey

Vegan Chocolate Coconut Chia Seed Pudding

So I love dessert! But I am always looking for desserts I can feel good about. This is one of our favorites because it's packed full of healthy goodness and it tastes amazing!



What you'll need:

-1 can of coconut milk
-2-3 spoonfuls of Raw Cacao Powder
-1/2 cup of Chia Seeds
-A natural sweetener such as maple syrup, agave or honey. (maple syrup is my favorite in this)

What to do:

Pour the can of coconut milk into a mason jar or something you can put a lid on. Then add your Chia Seeds, Cacao and sweetener. The Cacao amount and sweetener are up to you depending on how chocolately and sweet you like it. Stir it up, then let it sit for an hour. The Chia seeds will expand and gelatinize. After it's done you can taste it and add more cacao or sweetener if needed. You can also blend it if you don't like the tapioca consistency. (If you have a Vita Mix you can get it to be fully smooth!)


What are the health benefits?

Chia Seeds:

-Chia is very rich in omega-3 fatty acids, even more so than flax seeds.
-Chia seeds also provide fiber (25 grams give you 6.9 grams of fiber) as well as calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, manganese, copper, iron, molybdenum, niacin, and zinc.


Raw Cacao Powder:

-Cacao has more antioxidant flavonoids than any food tested so far, including blueberries, red wine, and black and green teas. In fact, it has up to four times the quantity of antioxidants found in green tea.


Coconut Milk:

-Coconut milk contains many vitamins, minerals and electrolytes, including potassium, calcium and chloride.
-The saturated fat in coconut is made up of short-chain and medium-chain fatty acids the body quickly turns into energy instead of storing as fat.


So there we go. A healthy dessert alternative. You can use this pudding on top of a crust or combine it with fruit. You can also make other flavors. The only other flavor I've experimented with is lemon. Replace the Raw Cacao with real lemon juice and lemon zest! Enjoy!

-Bailey