Lacto-fermented vegetables are cultured vegetables. You've probably heard of sauerkraut, kim chi, and sour dill pickles, right? These are all forms of lacto-fermentation. Many people use whey as a starter but it is not necessary as long as you use enough salt. Making your own lacto-fermented vegetables is so easy that once you start you'll be hooked!

I have had a number of requests for slow cooker recipes. Thank you! You have inspired me to use my slow cooker more often in the last few weeks! It is so nice to simply add all of the ingredients to the pot, walk away, and come back hours later with a warm, hearty meal in front of you. I have a few new slow cooker recipes to share with you in the coming weeks (both meat and vegetarian).

Happy Winter Solstice, the darkest day of the year here in the northern hemisphere. As we were heading out to the beach today with the kids, my 6 year old said to me, "mama, that's weird, I thought today was supposed to be the darkest day of the year, but it's the sunniest!" Yes indeed, today was a beautiful day to spend at the beach playing on the warm, sunny rocks and exploring the trails. Also a good day to come home and bake gingerbread muffins to warm us up along with mugs full of hot spice tea!

Our children have so much fun cutting out and decorating these lovely gluten-free Christmas cookies! Just look at these photos, what is not to love? This time of year takes me back to baking gingerbread and sugar cookies with my mother. My brothers and I would decorate dozens of cookies with beautiful colored sprinkles and bright white icing. I wanted to share that experience with my own children, only with a healthier, gluten-free version. Thus, this recipe was born! It uses coconut sugar as the main sweetener, along with a powdered coconut sugar icing.

I like to use coconut sugar when making a treat for our family and friends. It has a rich, caramel-like flavor that isn't too sweet. Plus, coconut sugar doesn't have that heart-palpitating effect like cane sugar does. This powdered coconut sugar recipe can be used to make icing for cookies and cakes, or used wherever powdered sugar is called for in a recipe. All you need is a good high-powered blender to do the job!

For many of you Thanksgiving revolved around a turkey, right? You can make good use of the leftover bones and skin and create a nourishing bone broth. Stock made from leftover vegetable scraps and the bones of animals is extremely economical. Think of how much that box of organic chicken broth costs at your local grocery store? And think of the added flavors and strange ingredients in those store-bought stocks.

Okay, this smoothie doesn't look too green now does it? Berries and greens blended up equal brown. Although the color may not look too appetizing, the flavor is amazing! My 4-year old twin boys drink it with a straw. They now race to see who is done first. We hear "done" and then "done" and then "no, I was done first" and then "I'm not playing first game." Just so you all know, drinking your smoothie as fast as you can is not optimal for digestion.

We like to roast a whole, organic chicken on occasion for family meals. In the wintertime I will serve it with sautéed winter greens, such as kale and collards, a few spoonfuls of raw sauerkraut or cultured vegetables, and roasted root vegetables.

I thought you might like a simple gluten-free brownie recipe to share with friends and family this holiday weekend. This recipe is unique in that it contains NO flour at all. Walnuts and cocoa powder make up the bulk of the recipe!

I thought these healthy gluten-free chocolate cupcakes with bright orange frosting looked quite festive for halloween. You could even offer them to your children in exchange for their candy loot! My children normally go trick-or-treating and then come back home and give most of their candy away to the last of the trick-or-treaters. Oh what joy they have in doing this! Then they put whatever remaining candy they have next to their bed and in the middle of the night the hungry candy gnome comes to take it away.

The days are getting shorter, colder, and busier! Having simple, nourishing meals ready to eat when you get home from work or school is so important. Now that the weather has changed, I've been using my slow cooker more often. This chicken curry recipe is so simple that I almost didn't post it! I've made it a number of times in the last few weeks. Too many actually, because now my children are starting to complain!

Making your own gluten-free brown rice flour tortillas is so simple! With just a few ingredients you can make healthier tortillas at home. My recipe is egg-free and xanthan gum-free as well. I use a cast iron tortilla press to quickly press all of the tortillas, and then I cook them in a hot cast iron skillet on my stovetop. My children love to help with the entire process of making homemade tortillas too…otherwise I probably would not make them very often! Use this recipe during Phase 2 and Phase 3 of our Elimination Diet!

Do you ever crave that rich, creamy taste of sour cream but are sensitive to dairy products? I created a very simple replacement for sour cream that can be dolloped over baked potatoes or yams, spooned over beans and rice, added to tacos, used to make a layered taco salad, or used to make no-bake "cheesecakes"!!

Happy New Year! Cheers! This is our favorite green juice recipe, in fact, our children think it's the bomb! They love it. Serve it in a pretty glass with a stainless steel or glass straw. I think you'll find that this green juice is very mild tasting and quite enjoyable to drink.

This recipe creates a beautiful purple-hued sauce, reminiscent of sweet and sour sauce! In the summertime here in the Pacific Northwest we go around town and pick boxes full of fresh Italian plums. I pit and freeze many of them to use for sauces like this throughout the year. Use this sauce to dip nori rolls into or drizzle over sautéed vegetables and rice. We love it over grilled salmon too! If you can tolerate soy products, then replace the sea salt in this recipe with about 2 tablespoons of organic wheat-free tamari.

Serve this cheese-like dip with a platter of crackers and vegetables such as cauliflower florets, raw green beans, celery sticks, cucumber slices, and kohlrabi slices.

This mayo recipe is full of heart-healthy fats and potassium! Use as a spread for your favorite sandwich, or use to make a fish salad with leftover cooked salmon (or another type of cooked or canned fish).

This nourishing gratin recipe contains winter vegetables and a sauce made from raw dairy. Research has shown that raw milk from cow’s grazing on grasses, and dairy products made with it, contains higher levels of essential fatty acids, such as conjugated linoleic acid (CLA). Pasteurization decreases minerals and vitamin C, and makes the vitamin A in milk much harder to absorb because the protein that assists with its absorption in the intestines is destroyed during pasteurization process.

This is one of our favorite ways to enjoy sweet potatoes. Serve with roasted chicken, gravy, and sautéed kale for a balanced meal. You can use any milk of your choice but I prefer to use homemade Raw Almond Milk. I normally use dark orange sweet potatoes but white sweet potatoes work just as well.

Serve this delicious peanut dipping sauce for fish sticks, chicken, or spring rolls. It's also quite tasty as a dressing for cabbage-cilantro slaw!

This dairy-free and vegan mashed potato recipe is just as creamy and flavorful as one made with milk and butter. Although you might think that using six cloves of garlic could be overpowering, the garlic flavor is actually quite subtle. Draining the cooked potatoes and reserving the liquid to help mash the potatoes is a great alternative to using any type of milk.

This is a low-glycemic alternative to mashed potatoes. While I love potatoes, sometimes I can feel a little “weighed down” after eating them. This is diabetic-friendly, so go ahead and enjoy them with roast chicken and gravy! I’ve also made this recipe before into a “cheesy” casserole by adding a few tablespoons of nutritional yeast to the food processor along with the cauliflower.

Serve this light and zesty cabbage slaw on top of a spicy bean or meat stew, or on top of bean or meat tacos.

This frosting has the perfect amount of sweetness with a mild chocolate flavor. It is luscious and fluffy, just perfect for frosting your favorite layered cake or cupcakes! For frosting one dozen cupcakes, make a half batch of this recipe.

Did you know that buckwheat, although we use it much like other grains, is actually a fruit seed and not a true whole grain? I have been using freshly ground, raw buckwheat flour in my gluten-free baking recipes for the last two decades. When a recipe of mine calls for raw or freshly ground buckwheat flour it's very important to purchase raw buckwheat groats and grind the flour yourself.

These gluten-free cookies use medjool dates as the main sweetener. Dates are rich in minerals and B vitamins. I always use sprouted brown rice flour when making these, but regular brown rice flour works as well. Serve cookies with raw almond milk for a healthy treat!

The trick to making this recipe is to chill one can of coconut milk overnight. When you open the can, the cream will have hardened and separated at the top and the watery part is left behind on the bottom of the can. We use this thick, spicy cream to dollop on top of the Spicy Mung Bean Burgers. It is also delicious over cooked quinoa and beans with chopped avocado and cilantro on top.

I like to make this soup in late summer when the Roma tomatoes and fresh fennel are plentiful. I freeze it in quart jars to enjoy when the weather cools. Serve with a grain-free or whole grain flatbread and a garden vegetable salad for a light summer meal.

This easy gluten-free and vegan dessert makes the perfect ending to a summertime meal. You can use this topping with any fruit filling. For Thanksgiving, try sliced apples and fresh cranberries, or use nectarines and freshly picked blackberries at the end of the summer, or, in the Spring, try chopped rhubarb and fresh strawberries!

If you are in the mood for a sweet snack then this recipe can be whipped up within 10 minutes! I like to have a container of some sort of nut-date ball in the refrigerator for my children to pack in their school lunches. One ball serves as a sweet treat and also a good dose of protein and healthy fat.

Practically any starchy vegetable can replace potatoes when making fries. I’ve used parsnips, celery root, and sweet potatoes, but my favorite is the humble rutabaga. You can keep it simple and season them with sea salt, or for more flavor, try adding freshly ground black pepper, curry powder, or dried thyme.

Yam fries are completely addicting, especially with the spice from the chipotle pepper! I’ve made these using Russet potatoes before with equally delicious results. Use garnet yams or sweet potatoes in this recipe.

This is one of my favorite ways to prepare beets. The first roasting slowly cooks the beets to perfection and then the second roasting brings out their flavor while slightly caramelizing them. Roasted beets can be used to top any salad or eaten as a simple side dish. Use any variety of beets you have on hand. Top a plate of baby arugula with these roasted beets and toss with a Champagne Vinaigrette.

For those who aren’t a fan of cauliflower, you’ll probably love it prepared this way. When my twin boys were young toddlers they would literally fight over the serving dish of roasted cauliflower on the dinner table. Sometimes I add a little freshly grated lemon zest to the roasted cauliflower, which adds a nice touch. We like to serve a bowlful of roasted cauliflower and Brussels sprouts on movie night in lieu of popcorn sometimes!

Our family loves these breakfast potatoes though we only make them on the weekends because they are a little more time consuming to prepare. Serve them with poached eggs or cooked black beans and sautéed greens for a balanced meal. You can also add cooked black beans or chopped chicken sausages to the potatoes while they are cooking.

This tasty and nourishing recipe has been a staple breakfast food during many of my pregnancies. It is quick to prepare and can easily be made on a busy weekday morning. I like to serve it with Breakfast Potatoes and a spoonful of raw cultured vegetables to maximize digestion.

This is the bread recipe our children like best. I’ve substituted nearly all of the flours with good results. For example, I often will just use 2 to 2 ½ cups of sprouted brown rice flour in place of the sorghum flour, brown rice flour, and millet flour (keeping the almond and tapioca flours in the mix). The bread will remain moist and ready to eat without needing to toast it. It is great for sandwiches or hot out of the oven!

This super nutritious, dark, whole grain muffin is an absolute favorite at our house. My children devour them as they come out of the oven and then ask to take one in their lunchbox the next day. If you don’t have blueberries on hand try using diced apples and a few teaspoons of cinnamon. Raspberries, blackberries, or diced peaches also work well in this recipe!

If you’ve made turkey burgers before you might know that they can end up a little dry and flavorless. That’s why I like to spice them up a bit with fresh garlic and Thai red chili paste. Cooked in a hot skillet over low heat, and with the addition of some spices, you can create a restaurant-worthy meal in minutes! I like to use napa cabbage leaves in place of buns. This adds more nutrients, eliminates the gluten and grains naturally, and adds fresh flavors! Serve with roasted sweet potato wedges and a few radishes or cucumber slices.

If we make baked potatoes for dinner one night, I like to save one to two so I can make this breakfast hash the next morning. It cooks up very quickly! If you are accustomed to eating a carb-rich breakfast such as bread or cereal in the morning, then this is a great replacement! If you do not tolerate eggs, then add in some leftover cooked salmon or chopped breakfast sausages in place of the eggs.