Pickles are one of the best items to come out of the garden in my opinion! Years ago, pickling for me was a tedious task that had somewhat unreliable results. Nothing more disappointing than a mushy pickle after you have invested several hours in a hot kitchen and waited weeks to try them! 

So when I stumbled upon fermented pickles I rejoiced! No more hot kitchen, no more hours of labor prepping and canning, and higher nutritional value. Sign me up!

Lately I have been on a fermenting kick. I have fermented everything from chicken feed to pickles and beets, and whatever in between! It's just so much fun to add veggies and salt to a jar and in a week have a totally new flavor, packed with added nutrition. 

I have posted fermented recipes in the past and I explain many of the health benefits to eating fermented foods. Some of these benefits include adding good bacteria to our digestive system, which in turn boosts our immune systems(1) and help us digest food more efficiently. 

Garlic is a well known natural germ buster! It is good to eat garlic in some broth when youre feeling under the weather. It is even better to eat garlic raw and it is best to eat fermented garlic! Researchers have found that fermented garlic contains more antioxidants than its fresh counterpart.(2) Fermented garlic has also showed several other advantages over fresh garlic including its anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer effects.(2)

It wasn't until last year that I first heard about fermented chicken feed. It was a foreign concept but I was intrigued and wanted to learn more. The health of our flock has always been a priority to me. This is why we purchased some of the high-end soy free, organic chicken feed for many years.

But what other benefits would this bring to our homestead??

​

One of the most exciting aspects of raising pigs, in my opinion, would be their ability to turn "trash" into a treasure of bacon! Once I started collecting kitchen scraps for the pigs and goats on our farm I realized how much food goes to waste. Onion skins, egg shells, and potato peels were once sent to the trash, never to reach their full potential. Yes, I realize these items are gold for the compost pile, but I have an ugly confession to make here. 

I am a terrible compost keeper! 

There, I said it! I am determined to master composting but today let's talk about another way to create a (nearly) zero waste kitchen. 

Easter is right around the corner! This happens to be one of my favorite times of year. The Easter bunny will be here soon and watching the kids find eggs always comes with lots of laughs. One thing we don't do on Easter is lots of candy and when the kids already had enough play-doh and matchbox cars I was searching for goodies to put in there!

Last year I tried making egg shaped bath bombs and they were a huge hit with the kids! These bath bombs are infused with essential oils so they come with great calming and immune supporting benefits. The epsom salt helps the body detox and the fizzy citric acid is fun to play with. You can color them with natural dyes by using activated charcoal, pumpkin seed oil or beet powder. They are very easy to customize with what you have on hand.