Snack Mountain Blog

What a busy weekend I had! Yesterday I went to a food swap followed by a sound bath! Yes, I live in Los Angeles! Here are some more pictures of the packaging I designed for my Kombucha and Sauerkraut!

Speaking of sauerkraut, on Friday I helped make sauerkraut at Brassica and Brine! I may also start selling their kraut at the Mar Vista market!

Finally, I am in a somber mood right now because Hurricane Sandy might destroy Fire Island where my family has a house. I will be devastated if we lose the house. Here’s a shot of my beloved bedroom. Fingers crossed!

Would you look at that face? Isn’t that a face you would die for? He’s so photogenic! So I only had time to paint the donkey before my class yesterday. I did another test set up of Donkey and Broccoli together.

I’ve still got to finish painting the other objects. I’ll wait to explain the details for when it’s finished. Before I go, I want to share some beautiful colors from my latest batch of sauerkraut. I gotta look into dyeing fabric with these colors. I’m in love.

So today I started a new batch of kraut to bring to the LA Food Swap I’m going to next weekend! I got these fancy professional metal bowls from my favorite restaurant supply store Surfas! I also ordered a fancy “Kraut Pounder” online to make the process a little less taxing on the hands. And let me say, it was incredibly satisfying to pound the hell out of the cabbage.

I seriously believe that we could solve many of the worlds problems with fermented foods and one of sauerkraut’s contributions would be an outlet for people’s aggression. Yeah! Fucking beat the hell out of that cabbage! Yeah!!! But seriously, I read one of the most amazing articles in this past weeks issue of the New Yorker about bacteria and how many good bacteria have been wiped out by the use of antibiotics. If you want me to email you a copy, let me know!

Which also reminds me that I talked to my BFF in Portland yesterday and she asked me for a sauerkraut recipe. I keep telling everyone I know how easy it is, so why not officially post it here! I’m not going to even consult my fermentation cookbooks cuz its really that easy. Ok, here’s what you do!

Slice 1-2 heads of cabbage (remove core or chop separately). Add 3 cloves of minced garlic and  about 1 tablespoon of salt (or to taste). Then mix vigorously with your hands (or a Kraut Pounder…wink wink) for about 20 minutes or until the cabbage is soft and when you squeeze it lots of liquid comes out (kinda like a sponge). You can also let it sit for awhile after you add the salt which will naturally draw out the liquid. So once the cabbage is soft and there’s lots of liquid, firmly pack it into jars of any size. Make sure that the cabbage is packed tightly and covered with liquid. Then seal the jar tightly. For the first 2-3 days you will need to release some of the pressure that will develop so the jar doesn’t explode or anything. I usually keep my jars on a plate because it tends to leak and the red cabbage can stain the counter top. Then after about 3-4 days start tasting it! I usually let it sit out about a week. Once you like the taste, transfer it to the fridge and enjoy at your leisure! Yes, it’s that easy!!! (Do I sound like an infomercial yet?)

In other artsy news, I made some more salt dough today to re-make the donkey for my illustration class. I’m much happier with how this one turned out!

And I made some other props for installation. I really hope they dry enough by tomorrow night so I can paint them!

Sitting in my studio right now smells like dough central which is kind of annoying considering I am gonna give up wheat! Hahaha. Ok, this has been a long post. Hope it satisfies your fermentation and donkey needs.

I will tell you your future now! Don’t eat wheat! It will make you sluggish, achey, headachey and sinusey! I’m serious! I thought I was fine but since yesterday I have been feelign awful! Geez. I guess no pizza for me. At least not right now. Bummer!

In other news, I destroyed the donkey I made because he was not structurally sound and I felt that he looked more like a cow/rabbit/pig than a donkey anyway. But here’s a nice shot of Broccoli and him together.

Well, I’m off but I have a new idea for a project that I may need YOUR help with.

Man, I’ve been so busy with freelance work lately. So busy that I’ve been slacking on my drawing and fermenting projects! But today I had some spare moments to get some projects going. First, I made a new batch of kombucha and started another round of second ferments.

This batch was the first time I used green/kukicha tea instead of black tea and I was surprised by how strong the green tea flavor was. When I use black tea, it doesn’t really taste like tea but like kombucha. It’s almost a different drink altogether! Maybe I should get some milder green tea for the next batch. Or maybe the 2nd ferment will mellow that flavor out a bit. Or perhaps the kukicha isn’t a good match for the brew. It was just slightly bitter and I didn’t expect that. This time I grated ginger instead of chopping it so I expect the ginger flavor to be much more powerful than last time so maybe that will balance it out.

As we speak I am making a Tuscan style white bean soup so I bought a bunch of fresh oregano at the market this morning. Whenever I buy it, I always dry it because it’s so much better than the store bought dried stuff.

I also finally got to make my Donkey bust for my illustration class. I hope it dries in time to paint it tomorrow!! I got this amazing “garlic press” tool to make hair and other stringy wonders!

Finally, today is the last official day of THE CLEANSE! Tomorrow I start introducing foods back into my diet and then wait 72 hours to see how I react. I’m gonna start with wheat since that’s the one I am most suspicious of for causing belly aches. I have one thing left to say about all this cleanse business. I cannot fucking wait to eat at Pizzeria Mozza once I introduce cheese back into my diet!

Why hello! I’d like to introduce you to Broccoli! He’s alive!!! You may be wondering why “he” has such pretty eyelashes. Well, maybe its because this Broccoli may not actually be a “he” after all. I am in the process of developing an installation portrait thingamabob for my illustration class and I’ve decided to title it: “I’d like to make you dinner. I’ll be Broccoli and you’ll be Donkey.” (The donkey bust is yet to come…) The assignment was to do a portrait and so I’ve chosen my grandfather who died when I was 10 but was a fascinating person who lived almost his whole life in St. Thomas, USVI and was involved with politics. He wrote a book and there’s a story about a Donkey, which is why he will be one in my project. Plus I just love Donkeys! They are definitely my “spirit animal.” Hahaha. More to come on this project later…

In other news, the cleanse is still going strong.  Despite how loudly as I complained about it last week, I’m really glad I am doing it. My stomach feels amazing!

I take back everything I said about the cleanse reducing my appetite! I want PIZZA! I’m so hungry! Dammitt!!! I bet I’m only consuming 1,000 goddamn calories a day cuz I’m eating so freaking healthy! Fuck! Now enjoy this almost done eggy-planty painting I made in class today while I go curse about how hungry I am!