Kraut

One of these days, I will be able to begin a blog post without feeling guilty and obligated to explain why it has been so long since I last posted. It definitely is not for a lack of cooking. I cook my ass off! It gets to the point that I cannot physically keep up with the amount of dishes that come hand in hand with my delicious hobby, even with a dishwasher! I've been trying to pin down one specific reason for my lack of posts. Truthfully there are a handful of reasons, but if I had to sum it all up: I am TIRED!

I began a new job a few weeks ago. It pays better than my last job, but has me feeling drained. My alarm is set for an hour earlier in the mornings than I am used to, which means I need to get to bed an hour earlier each evening as well. Since I am not a morning person at all and totally a night owl, this basically means I lose an hour in my day. As if I had an hour I could spare! This blog is not the only thing that has suffered due to this job, so don't feel too abandoned. I have not been working out at all! Luckily, by eating fairly healthy, I have managed to stay around the same weight that I reached when I was working out regularly. Unfortunately, it has settled and looks much different. Muscle definitely weighs more than fat!

Sophia started kindergarten this year! Plus, dance classes started the very same week as school. She will be doing two nights of dance this year, which means two nights of being out of the house around dinner time. I really want to avoid the drive thru on those nights as much as possible, which means I need to get into the habit of planning. Now I need to think ahead and make large dinners that will provide leftovers or cook two meals on Mondays and Wednesdays to have a quick heat up meal on dance days. My life looks so different than it did this time last year, when I started this blog. Well, except for the fact that I am completely single. That hasn't changed and doesn't look like it will be anytime soon.

So now that I have caught you up with whats been going on with me (and vented a smidge), it is time for the kraut. With this CSA, I have had more cabbage than I knew what to do with. Not that the farm had an over abundance of a cabbage crop, but I never really cooked with cabbage before so I had some recipe searching to do. Luckily cabbage heads keep well in the refrigerator.

I was interested in making my own sauerkraut, but every recipe I found involved a 5 gallon bucket, a large plate, and months worth of fermentation. It is not unusual to find my house smelling like whatever I've been cooking, but the smell of fermenting kraut sticking around for months could really get old. A new friend of mine shared her recipe for small batches of kraut. Thank goodness! Even if I could handle months of fermentation smells, what would Sophia and I ever do with gallons of kraut?

- 3 to 4 small heads of cabbage or 1 to 2 large heads
-salt

Shred your cabbage. If you are like me, working without one of those fancy Kitchen-Aid do-hickeys, this is a rough process. Watch your knuckles! Once all the cabbage is shredded, begin layering it with the salt in a large bowl. One layer of cabbage, one generous layer of salt. Continue to layer until all cabbage is in the bowl. Let sit for 30 minutes to an hour. The salt will pull moisture out of the cabbage. Once there is a puddle of water collecting at the bottom of your bowl, it is time to transfer to jars. I managed to put all my kraut into one wide mouth mason jar. I recommend a jar with a wide enough opening to fit your hand inside.

Transfer your cabbage and its liquid into your jar, pressing down firmly after every couple scoops. There should be enough liquid to cover the cabbage once the jar is filled. If not, add some water. Shut the jar and place in a dark cabinet for a week to 10 days. Check your jar every few days and rinse any scum that collects on the lid. Be prepared for some fun odors to come rushing out of your jar the first time you open it. Don't say I didn't warn you! The smell was so strong, it chased my sister out of my apartment. Start taste testing your kraut at about 7 days. Once it is to your liking, transfer the jar to the fridge.

Now instead of buying those bags or cans of slop, you have your own kraut to add to pork chops, hot dogs, sausage, or any other dish you see fit. This past week, I baked some with turkey sausage and apple slices. Very delicious!