Sauerkraut-precautions and smaller containers

[Lunar*Fey]

I made a very small batch of sauerkraut (all I had was a mason jar)...it smells like sauerkraut and looks "done" but then again I have never made it before. It has only been four days, could it be ready to eat? I am afraid to eat it in case I messed up or something and wont notice. Any signs I can look for to make sure it is healthy/ready?
I REALLY want to try it but feel soo apprehensive. ahhh help!

thank you!

[carolg]

It could take sometimes a few days to make. I usually let it go for about 6ish, depending on how soft I want it. Make sure it is covered with liquid at all times. I am still eating mine that I made around Oct. I think. It is fabulous. I store it in the refrigerator in glass jars. Off to take a taste now. I ever shared some with strangers and they loved it. Yes, I made kosher dill garlic pickles and wow too. I have to look and see if I have some in my other refrigerator. Enjoy. I don't see a problem tasting it as I tasted all along to see if I had enough flavorings in it.

carolg

[Lunar*Fey]

Thank you Carol :)
I am just afraid that I made it wrong and I'll die or get sick or something. :o ...I know I know...
But really, what if I made it wrong... I am not a great direction follower when it comes to recipes

[carolg]

Luna,
Can you take a small taste and see how it tastes to you? Is it salty? I know you are not going to die.

Did you want me to call you up? If so, email me and let me know when the best time on Sat. to call would be. I would be glad to help you. I will be gone to massage place tomorrow late AM and should be back in mid afternoon. I can drive and talk however. No sweat. Just try to email me in AM if you wish that assistance. We can email too. Whatever works best for you.

We are all here to help with recipe interpretation. Don't be afraid to ask. We all have questions from time to time. Aren't we family here to help each other? I will check email in AM when I am up. MST.

carolg

[RawJules]

Lunar,
Hello. Lets talk about your kraut. Did you use a culture to make a brine? I made my last batch in Sept and I am still eating from it. We store ours in our laundry room, it tends to be a little cooler in there during the winter. However, as long as it is unopened the "good" bacteria continues to grow and become "stronger." I've never had any mold or signs of rotting. The "good" bacteria eats the "bad" bacteria and then multiplies. It is best to pack it into jars (when using mason jars) and use some large leaves to press upon the top to fill it all the way up. The ideas is to leave room for less oxygen. Then let it sit. The longer the stronger. I'd wait about a week minimum. Not that it will hurt you to eat it sooner, just to let the bacteria become more abundant. It is hard! You'll be ok. If you taste it and it doesn't taste "right" then try again. Kraut is such a good healthy food for your digestive system. Eat up!!!!
HTH, Julie in IN

[carolg]

Julie,
I have beern storing mine in the refrigerator for months as I do have the room. It is super tasty. Usually I start each batch without anything from the previous batch. Maybe I too can start it with the "culture" from a previous batch. I got super large cabbages during summer at Farmer's Market, then when ready sliced then into smaller pieces, then sliced super thin in food processor. I started in large stainless steel bowl for one night usually as I had so much cabbage. It was unbelievable. I am so excited I learned to make it and now I can put the "kraut" juice even into my fresh salads and can imagine it going into breads where liquid is called for. The world of saukerkraut is fun.

The more batches I made the better I became and faster too. Same thing with raw pickles. I have crocks around here, but hardly even use them but my small one I may start the kraut in but most of the time it's the way I mentioned then in a day or so transferred to wide mouth glass jars. Yes, I do also put a leaf on top of each batch when making as well as keeping it there till I dig into the jar.

carolg

[RawJules]

Carol,
Yes, it will still ferment in the refrigerator, the cool temperatures only slow the process a bit. Nothing to get to concerned over! I love making and eating cultured veggies! I use my food processor to shred our cabbages too. It is so easy that way~
Happy eating,
Julie~

[carolg]

Julie,
Mine may still be fermenting in the refrigerator months later, but it is just as delicious as ever. I put it in the refrigerator when I felt it was finished--close to a week probably but not more. The flavor is fabulous! Now I have to move onto Kim Chee too. We have recipes here. Dawn posted a few and one of those named is:

Baechu-Poghi Kimchi

http://rawfoodtalk.com/showthread.php?t=23173&highlight=Baechu-Poghi+Kimchi

Thanks for sharing.
carolg

[RawJules]

Julie,
Mine may still be fermenting in the refrigerator months later, but it is just as delicious as ever. I put it in the refrigerator when I felt it was finished--close to a week probably but not more. The flavor is fabulous! Now I have to move onto Kim Chee too. We have recipes here. Dawn posted a few and one of those named is:

Baechu-Poghi Kimchi

http://rawfoodtalk.com/showthread.php?t=23173&highlight=Baechu-Poghi+Kimchi

Thanks for sharing.
carolg


Carolg,

I dont want you to misunderstand what I meant, a longer fermenting time will only increase the bacteria (that is a good thing), more and more will grow. Yes, I find that the jars that are "older" to actually taste better. At most they tend to get a little more "zing" to there flavor. I wasnt insinuating a bad thing, not at all!!!!

Kim Chi is fun too. I had a batch that was made with Arame (a sea vegetable) and red cabbage, carrots, onions, garlic, red and green pepper and maybe cucumber????? I dont remember for sure, I'd have to look up the recipe. This was a favorite!!! not only was it yummy it was very pretty too!

Good luck with your fermented veggies! Sorry for the misunderstanding.
Julie~

[Carmella]

Yay! Sauerkraut talk!

Lunar Fey,
I know what you mean about not being too sure whether it's okay to eat or not. I felt the same when I made my first batch in a mason jar.

In the end, after consulting my good friends here, I decided it was safest to toss it as I hadn't put much salt at all and, from what I understand, it is what helps preventing bad bacteria.

On Veganforlife's advice, I purchased a Sauerkraut and kimchi maker here (http://store.therawdiet.com/pisaandkimch.html) and it is just fabulous (and cheap too!)

I made the sauerkraut with red and green cabbage, salt (roughly 3 tbs per 5lbs of cabbage I think) and a few caps of probiotic to quicken the fermentation process. It turned out the prettiest color!

At first, the sauerkraut would give me an upset stomach but then I learned that it sometimes does that, esp when you're not used to it. You sort of have to work up your tolerance, 1tbs a day for a week or so.

Now I eat lots pretty much every day and just LOVE it! I store it in the fridge and it keeps on getting better and better. So yum!

In fact, I'm close to running out so gotta make some more in the coming days...

Carolg,
I'm curious to know about how you make yours as I'm really just a sauerkraut newbie. Once the cabbage is shredded, do you massage it with your hands to get the juice going (that's what I did last time) or do you put it straight into the jar? Also, do you find that you need to add water at all? I was also wondering whether it is necessary to run everything I use (food processor, utensils, etc.) under boiling water to sort of sterilize them?

[puffysmom]

When i was a teen and younger we used to make it every year. Well mostly my mom did. She would fill the crock with sauerkraut and add salt as she was filling it. Then we would take a wooden pounder and keep on tamping it down. Of course doing this we could get more and more in until no amount of tamping would give us more room. Mom would put a cotton towel around the whole top and put a plate on upside down and a weight on top of that. Usually it was the railroad tie we used for cracking nuts and all kinds of other things.
The thing of it was once it started to turn into kraut we usually had to scrape off the top as it was kind of rotted or had mold on it. It made no dif. We would scrape it to one side and dig down to get the better stuff. I know that we also ate the mold and kraut that did not pass inspection as it was hard to get out once u had a mound of (bad?) unuseable kraut on top. No one got sick. It all tasted delicious. I doubt that kraut can actually make u get real sick or die even if it is not done fermenting. Just my opinion mind u but I know we did not die or get sick. Might have just been lucky. It is salted and that is a preservative so I cannot see how it can hurt u.
Now i have to get a container and make some. Been a long long time since I have had homemade kraut. YUM

[Lunar*Fey]

uh oh...I didn't have salt and therefore didn't put anything in.....I've already eaten half the jar:eek: . It tasted a bit vinegary...quite good! I ate rather a lot of it at once. some yesterday and some today. I did put some dried wakame in it since I didn't have salt....it isn't really salty but it was all i had as a flavoring or whatever..could that have been ok? ahhh

[Carmella]

Hey Lunar Fey,
I think it's probably fine. I've seen recipe call for wakame or miso to replace the salt.

Oh yeah, I remember reading something also about how it should taste vinegry and still have a crunch (as opposed to being totally soft which isn't a good sign...)

Plus, I'd say to go with how you're feeling. If it didn't give you an upset stomach or made you sick or anything, then you got it right!

[Carmella]

Yoo Hoo, Carolg!

Bumping this up, hoping you'll read this!

[Lunar*Fey]

thanks Carmella. It tastes gooood and I haven't gotten sick as far as I can tell. It has the vinegary scent/flavor...but it is wet-like...not really crnuchy...
hmmmm

i guess I'll just have to find out

[carolg]

Carmella,
Gosh I missed your original post of how I make kraut. Super easy and here goes:

Kraut--NOTE: SAVE A FEW LARGE OUTER LEAVES AS IT ACTS AS "COVER" TO SLICED CABBAGE LATER ON!!

Slice green cabbage with thinest blade in food processor but save some outer leaves as you will need them for your stainless steel bowl and also your glass wide mouth that you will be transferring them to on day two.

Day 1
Dump into large stainless steel mixing or salad bowl that has a little water, starting a little, maybe 1/4 cup to just make sure I can mix with my hands the finished product described below for night one.
After you have all kraut grated, mix in some salt. I don't measure, but start always with less than more. If it is a 5-8 pound cabbage, I may add 1 T and let it sit overnight. After salt is added, I do massage it in with my hands for a few minutes to get everything mixed well. Place a large bottle filled with water, then a plate, or anything else that can act as a press to "push" the liquid out of the cabbage. I cover the entire bowl with a large towel overnight. Next day I mix with hands the mixture that now has been uncovered, taste it and if needs a little more salt to my taste, I will add 1 teaspoon to start. I prefer to start with less as I can always add more each day.

Day 2
Transfer using a wide mouth canning jar funnel (should be wide mouth funnel) into large wide mouth glass jars. I make sure there is liquid that is going to come up if I didn't get enough from the Day 1 mixture. You may need to add a jar inside this big jar that is filled with water as a weight to get the "brine" moving up towards the top of the jar. I cover each jar well with the Day 1 cabbage leaves as protection and on top of the thinly sliced kraut but before I do that, you can add a sliver of garlic for flavoring, but you don't have to. Each jar is covered with a smaller towel for that jar or a plate. Each day taste the kraut and if it appears to need more salt, I will now start with a teaspoon at a time per day. Remember adding is always easy, but taking out is now.

Each day I go through the same procedure. Key is to make sure the cabbage is covered with brine.

It takes maybe 4-5 days before I call it quits, store in my refrigerator for later use.

I just noticed I have two more 1 gallon size jars with kraut in them from other refrigerator and also pickles left too. Remember these both were made months ago. I see I have two large heads of green cabbage, when I thoiught they were all gone, to make more kraut. I can't believe it.

I just had some kraut today and taste fabulous. I must brag here. It's really, really great.

I'll keep checking back here if you need me.

Just me on the shoulder, via email, to get back here. I don't know how I missed this one, and glad to share to all. Carmella where was I hiding when you needed me???????????? I'm here now. Sorry.

carolg

[Carmella]

Hey Carolg,

I'm glad you DID find the post after all... Wow! Thank you so much for sharing in such detail your sauerkraut process. I will definitely try it with less salt. Just one clarification though... When you leave the cabbage in the stainless steel overnite, do you use the saved cabbage leaves to cover the bowl before you put the towel over it?

Oh, and do you sterilize your jars and everything?

Yay! Can't wait to get sauerkraut making again! Maybe tomorrow if things lighten up blog-wise, he he...

[Lunar*Fey]

i ate more of the sauerkraut last night and NOW I see what you mean...it isn't crunchy...its soggy like but with a juicy crisp to it. yum yum yum yum

[Morningstar]

Oh Carol I will be trying this.

I hope you're enjoying the Kimchi recipes!!!!!

[carolg]

Remember me posting I found two more LARGE gallon size jars of kraut hiding in my other refrigerator? Well, I just took them from that huge glass jar and put them into small wide mouth jars to store in my house kitchen (other one in garage). It tastes fabulous!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Reminds me growing up in my Jewish household, heating up kraut from the can and then blending in French's yellow mustard. Yum.

Carmella, I never throw any leaves out. Let's go back to Day 1:

After I have the leaves sliced very thin, add the salt, massage, then I take the uncut big outer leaves from the cabbage to make a "cover" for the sliced leaves, put a plate down, then a jar filled with water on top to make the water in the stainless steel rise to the top and cover the entire stainless steel bowl with a large towel overnight only.

I then for day 2 take those "whole" leaves and transfer them to the glass jars and when the sliced cabbage is in the jars, I cover the sliced cabbage with the "whole" leaves to act as a cover or blanket. I then cover the entire jar. I like to use plates to cover the jars while they are in the process if I have one that is large enough or even a wide glass that I can cover the bottle top with but see through it as if it is a hot house, but not really only her as a visual.

These leaves act as "covers" of the sliced kraut. Make more sense?

Ask away and surely here. You can also call me. I'm off and running till late tonight, but surely will look for any kraut messages or posts here. Guaranteed to help as all have helped me to the max. I love you all!!

Hugs,
carolg

[carolg]

Lunar,
Salt is a must, everything else is optional hun.
carolg

[Carmella]

Gotcha carolg,

Thanks!

I was wondering how 2 huge gallon jars could go unnoticed (our fridge is always sooooooo packed!) but then I read it was in fridge #2. he he We had a second fridge running outside on the porch last summer but we got the unexpected visit of a big black bear. I heard some noises so I opened the door, only to find myself just a couple of feets away!:eek: Perhaps not such a great idea after all!

Huh... I know I'm starting to sound like I'm seriously repeating myself but please bear (no pun intended! he he) with me here. Do you find it necessary to rinse everything you use under boiling water?

Oh, and do you boil the water you add to the kraut first as well?

Questions, questions... Sauerkraut land is still so foreign to me, although I absolutely love it!

Thanks in advance

[carolg]

My fault. I'm not home, but using the church computer. No I don't sterilize any jars. I rinse well and that's it. Keep it simple hun. No boiling of any water. Just plain good, healthy water is what I use a pinch of when adding it to the bottom of the stainless steel huge pan. Make more sense now.

I sure wish I could give you a demo but I am clueless on where to begin now that that the kraut is done and not ready to start the next two, last large cabbages that were also waiting in that second refrigerator I hardly ever get in to. It's in the garage, just park my car and get into the house. I even found lentils there so going to continue sprouting more of those as well. Let me see if I missed anything Carmella so you can start now.

Summarizing:
CARMELLA ASKED: Do you find it necessary to rinse everything you use under boiling water?
ANS: NO

CARMELLA ASKED: Oh, and do you boil the water you add to the kraut first as well?
ANS: NO

Got more questions, I'll reply gladly. Just want you to feel comfortable with the procedure.

OT: I'm still into calzones and saw Carmella using what looked like a thin crust, and RAWK telling me I'm making mine too thin, so here I be with questions of my own--why Carmella's calzone's crust are thin and come out super and Carol's are thin and fall apart. Leave this answer in a calzone area and not here.

Saying all this calzone talk to invite more kraut questions. Really, mine is bragging fabulous. Everyone I have had taste it loves it and I am talking non raw folks.

(Oh, still saw some large jars of pickles hidingin refrigerator #2).

Enjoy the process! Got more questions. I'm on stand by--an email away.
carolg

[Carmella]

carolg, you're a sweet heart. Thank you for taking the time to answer my newbie questions and walk me through your sauerkraut making process.

I guess I'm all set to go now! Yay! I have one of those gallon jars with an airlock system so I don't have to worry about the kraut spoiling due to air contact.

I gave some of the kraut from my first batch to my neighbor (who's been buying sauerkraut for years) and just today, he was saying how much he and his wife loved it. "Keep it coming!" he said. LOL

Your calzone troubles are a great mystery to me. As you were pointing out, my crusts were pretty thin (I did half the batch and used it to make 2 crusts) yet never had them cracking or crumbling. Good karma, I guess. he he

The only thing I can think of is that I only soak the buckwheat overnite and use it the next day (no actual sprouting).

[carolg]

Sounds like you had a hit Carmella and was pulling my leg to see how I make kraut. Kidding, but glad the neighbor wants an endless supply. Better find places where you can be supplied all year round.

OT: Thanks for calzone information. Maybe I just need to take a trip to you or Rawk one of these days.

Enjoy the kraut. Glad to share and isn't that what it is all about anyway?

carolg

[Carmella]

Carolg,
I only made sauerkraut once before (actually twice, but I had to throw away my first batch). I sort of winged it in many areas, not too sure how to go about it. So I was more than thrilled that it turned out so yummy that second time.

It was a lot of work, though, as I massaged the cabbage for quite some time, trying to get the juices going. I was hoping there would be an easier way and you have confirmed that for me.

Thank you, once again, for sharing your experience/knowledge. Like you said, it is what makes this board so incredible!

Have a good one!

*off to make sauerkraut* Yay!

[carolg]

Carmella,
Even "massaging" the sliced thin kraut "strips" which it becomes once shaved takes just a minute or so. I don't fuss with it. To me it is a quick, simple process making room for other things. Glad this may be easier route for you now. Remember to save those big outer leaves at they are your "covers" to the sliced cabbage besides the plate, the jar of water, the towel. Next time you make it give us some feedback here. I think I am going to go back to let everyone know to save their large cabage leaves as covers so they don't slice them up.
carolg

[carolg]

Everyone,
Just added in CAPS a NOTE in my kraut steps to make sure you save the "big" outer leaves as they act as "covers" to the sliced kraut. It was the message that I started with Day 1, then Day 2 steps.

carolg

[Carmella]

Yay! The cabbage is all chopped up, lighly massaged, and covered, as instructed, in a stainless steel large pot (didn't have a bowl that was big enough!)

Everything went smooth. I've been pressing down on the water container and bowl every now and then to help with the juices.

Can't wait til tomorrow to transfer into the gallon jar...

BTW, carolg, how much cabbage do you get to fit into one of those big babies? I just sort of eyed it: 2 sm. red cabbages plus 1/2 a big green one (roughly 6 or 7 pounds I think.)

Hopefully, it will be enough to fill it up!:D

[carolg]

Carmella,
Whatever amount can fit into the large wide mouth jars is what goes in there. I am talking about elephant size cabbages so I got lots of quantity so I had to use several jars. No kidding, I didn't just stop at one large cabbage either. I bought several so I tried to do maybe 2-3 large cabbages at the same time as I already had the knife, and food processor dirty.

I have lots of bowls here so there is no shortage on what I can use around here to start the process going including a smaller size crock as well. A large stainless steel pot would work as long as you can massage the cabbage and place a large weight (the water in a glass jar to press down) with a plate on top, with a towel covering the entire pot, you should be A-okay!!!

When you see this message you will have looked at your cabbage. How is it looking? I continue putting a weight of some sort into each jar as I want the liquid to keep rising as best as it can. I try to help it do it's thing. Is this all sounding clear Carmella?

carolg

[Carmella]

OK, back to report on the kraut making.

Everything looked great when I got up yesterday so I massaged it a little and started to transfer the cabbage into the gallon jar...only I didn't have enough to fill it up!:eek:

See, one of the negs about the system I'm using is that you need to fill the jar up to the neck, otherwise the plastic lid that you insert inside in order to keep the kraut submerged in liquid won't be able to do its job.

So I had to get all my gear dirty again and prepare some more cabbage. Good thing I had lots left! I actually ended up having too much so I decided to make some kimchi as well. I mixed in some grated carrot and daikon, a little ginger, garlic, green onion, red pepper flakes, miso and salt and put it in a small quart jar. I was hesitating as to how to proceed next since the recipes I've looked at differed. Some said to put a plate and weight, as for regular sauerkraut) but others said to cover tighly with a lid. I was wondering though about the gases that get created during the fermentation process. In the end, I decided to put a lid but not to screw it on too tighly so that the gases can still come out.

Today, the sauerkraut is bubbling away... Yay!

Can't wait to see how it all turns out.

I'm taking photos as I go here so you'll be able to see all the juicy details! :D

Keep you posted...

[carolg]

HI Carmella,
I'm here.

Saukerkraut revisited:
You don't have to fill the jar up to the top. You can use a smaller glass jar if you have one. I had so much kraut, that the large glass jars were here and could be be filled. I also used smaller glass jars when I saw I had a little remaining that can go into quart or smaller glass jars if need be for storage or even processing (hardly the case in making however). The key for me was to be able to have a weight, whether that is a glass filled with water, or a small bottle filled with water that fits inside the mouth/neck of the "outer" jar. I never screwed on the outer jar, but had a plate over the opening of jar, which can be like screwing it on I assume, or putting the weight (the water filled glass or jar) on top of the kraut and then a towel covering the entire big jar. I never had the kraut exposed to any air. Only when the kraut was done did the lids go on. Does this help? Thanks for kimchee idea. I really want to make it and Morningstar had a goodie posted recently too.

I tried looking for my pictures but couldn't find them yet. I thought I had saukerkraut and pickles but they are hidden from me at the moment. Maybe they are posted from way back here too.

Keep us posted please..................Thanks for updates. Wwe can all learn.

carolg

[carolg]

Carmella,
I forgot to give you the Award of the Hour for never persisting to get your kraut the way you want to and never shy about sharing with us any concerns or experiences too. We're learning so much here. And...the winner of the day is.........

EVERYONE who experiences something new today! Let today count as there may not be a tomorrow. Kidding, but really trying to say, make a difference and trying something new can get you a brighter tomorrow...make sense????????????????? I'm preaching to myself here. Thanks for giving me the platform.

carolg

[Carmella]

Hey carolg,
You're funny. You know, I like to let my recipes and uncooking projects develop into whatever they want to be. I've learned that it saves a lot of energy to go with what's happening (and a lot of frustration too!)

Sauerkraut and kimchi still looking good. Their colors have started to change... I'm so fascinated by the whole process! Nature doing its work...

Oh, and not to tempt you or anything but I'm about to make calzones today. This time I'll make the full recipe so there'll be lots for you too! LOL

Have a good one!

[carolg]

Carmella,
HALT!! Don't go any further on your calzone teaser. Have you started it? If yes, then crying Carol is here; if not Happy Carol has a project for your immediately. If not this time, then perhaps next.

Back to kimchee and kraut: I'm glad you are excited about mother nature....isn't this fabulous...can't wait to hear more on your kimchee..you need to start a thread once it's done...

Back to my proposed project for you:
..... us and everyone else. I will post a separate thread. I was thinking, yes I think often and laugh at myself too, you funny girl to Carmella, about EGGrolls stuffed with great veggies, like the calzone stuff or even enchilada stuff. Why not?

Here's the idea behind the brain storm that I am thinking is my original but maybe someone before me came along and fooled me till I find out differently:

CALZONE dough for Eggrolls....and dehydrate like a calzone that I think I have been doing wrong all along over baking the dough to dead instead of gently for a few hours only to start...(this is where my problem may be falling, but don't tell RAWK who posted all those fabulous pictures for me)...I've learned lots from her too....

After calzone project finished, now called EGGrolls, make a nice dipping to pour on top of calzone for more dehydrating or faster yet, just use it as a dipping sauce....

carolg

[Carmella]

Ooops! Too late!

I got my 4 babies all comfy in the D already. Sounds like a great idea though. You could fill the crust with whatever fillings you want, really. Mmmmmmmm...

What temp have you been dehydrating your crusts at?

I had like a bunch of different projects going on all at once this morning. I must have been a funny sight...

First, I got up at 9:15, only to realize it was now 8:15 ( :eek: ) as the Daylight savings thingie has kicked in earlier this year.

I had to sort out my new harvest of alfalfa sprouts... give them a bath and get them all ready to soak up light. (Yay!)

Then onto savori nori snacks, rich cheddar sauce (I was short cashews and macs so I'll be making one of the calzones with it!), buckwheat crust (I actually almost forgot to put the flax seeds in! :eek: ) with a bit of blogging in between... he he (Have you seen my new post on raw cheesecake?)

I also had to think of our supper (we still gotta eat in spite of this whirlwind!LOL) so I decided to get a couple of pizza crusts out of the freezer and top them up with RCC, left over marinara and marinated peppers and Portobello. Nice and simple.

Let's see, what else? I guess I get to have a little break before Phase 2 of the calzones. Stil have to make the spinach dip, the cheese and the marinated veggies.

Phfew! What a day!

[carolg]

Carmella...Cheesecake at la dessert.....

Wow...signed up for blog notifications but maybe with your system it was lost. Thanks for the update and love all the cheesecakes to the max too. Thanks so much. Yahoo and can I come over to taste each one now? Man alive. You sure know how to make us feel guilty if we are not one now. Keep them coming and love all your updates, writings, etc. Okay I just love you too!!

calzone revisted: I tried different temps. I tried even bringing it up to maybe 140 for a few hours, and then down to 105, tried at 105 and keeping it there. I think it was the length of time I just let it turn dead was the key. I'm not finished trying however, so give me any tips that can make my learning experience fabulous. Thanks for asking.

carolg

[Carmella]

I can always count on you to crack me up, carolg! LOL

About the notification thing, unfortunately, it is a common problem. See, once you enter you're email, you're only half way there. you then need to check your email inbox for a message from Feedblitz about "Confirming your subscription (or your account). Then all you have to do is click on the link in the message and you're set. Have you kept the message? If not, I'd just try to subscribe again by entering your email in the little box, see what happens. It's just so much simpler than you having to check the blog every so often for new posts. Let me know if it works out.

I just finished assembling the calzones. It all went really smooth. Ok, here's what I did:

I put the crust in the D at 115 for a couple of hours. Then, I flipped onto the mesh and let it dehydrate for another hour. Oh yeah, this time I did the whole recipe and split it into 4 half circles, i.e. 2 calzones.

OK, then I got the crusts out. And here's my little trick. Because the edges of the crusts seemed drier than the rest, I took my spray bottle and sprayed a little water all along the edges. By the time I was done putting the goodies on, the crust had absorbed the water, therefore making it more pliable. Alright, then I carefully covered them up with crust #2 and gently squeezed the top and bottom layer together. I finished off by brusing a little olive oil on top. That's it!

Last time I had left the crusts a little too long in the D so it was a bit more difficult. Still, my spray bottle did the trick.

Hang in there, carolg, you're bound to get it right!

Oh, and for my sauerkraut report, both jars are still 'leaking out' juice which means the bubbles are still doing their thing. Yay! I'm figuring that tomorrow, the kimchi will be ready to be moved to the fridge (where it will continue fermenting and be ready to enjoy in a week or two.) BTW, my recipe was based on MorningStar's recipe and another one.

Alright, signing off...

[carolg]

Wow, I think Carmella is on a "rock and roll" saukerkraut / kimchee journey. Keep us posted. I love your updates. Any garlic in kraut or kimchee?

OT: Yes, sooner or later I will get the calzones right. I know it's too much time for D to work on these calzones--it's OVERcooked for sure per your information, now saved, and RAWK's. It has to be me as everyone else seems to be excited.

Are you going to take up my EGGroll challenge?

Again, glad you are enjoying a few laughs as I am a serious poster and didn't see the humor, but glad you are seeing something come forth. Maybe I've got hidden talent coming to the surface via raw food talk?

Your blog...yes I confirmed for sure when I did it last time, but will sign up again tomorrow.

Off soon.
carolg

[Carmella]

Hey carolg,

Yep, I put garlic in the kimchi, but not in the sauerkraut though. We so loved our first batch, eventhough it was simply cabbage and salt, that I decided to repeat the experience. (Although it will almost certainly taste different, no two batches of anything is EVER the same I find.)

The calzones are looking great. We'll be having some for supper tonite.

Oops! Haven't looked at your EGGroll post yet. Will though...

About the 'cracking up', I think it might be a language thing for me. since my mother tongue is French, I sometimes use terms or expressions improperly. What I meant to say is that some of your comments make me smile.

Time to get started on dinner. Yay!

[carolg]

Carmella,
I understand the "smile" word and glad you "cracked up" at my message(s). It gives me joy to give you a smile.

Great you had fabulous luck with the kraut. Isn't it easy. Now try with a sliver of garlic and you will be in heaven sooner than you think would have been before. It's absolutely fabulous that way. I'm even tempted to try it will dill and garlic.

Calzones--thanks for the teaser without an invite to join you and Don.. I'll take a raincheck and if I have calzone questions, guess who I'm going to call--not a ghost, but you since you keep making these. Rawk has helped lots too so now I have to try another try at the calzone.

I thought you were on a roll to trying out new recipes and gave you one that you will find simple to make. You have the calzone dough already down to perfection, so what's next is just the filling: I can help with lots of ideas for that: italian, Jewish maybe, Spanish, etc.

carolg

[Carmella]

Mmmmmmm... We LOVE garlic so I will definitely try it in the sauerkraut next time then.

The calzone with the Rich Cheddar Sauce turned out wonderful. As we were eating, we were brainstorming about your eggroll idea. It got me all excited.

You're right, I do love trying new recipes. Unfortunately, I don't have a great deal of extra energy and time lately to explore new recipes as much as I'd like. Oh well, it's just a phase...

I'm 'sold' on your idea though and will make them next time I have a big 'uncooking' day.

I'll keep you posted!

[carolg]

Carmella,
Keep me posted when your urge comes for EGGrolls. Thanks.
carolg

[carolg]

Kraut finished Carmella? Don loving it? Stick in a sliver of garlic even now.....

I thought you gave us your kimchee version so I will look for that later.

carolg...............