Thanksgiving Sauerkraut

My son and I have very different opinions about shopping.  I enjoy Home Goods and clothing stores, he HATES them.  He begins screaming as soon as we walk in the door.  He certainly knows where he is as soon as he sees good old HG.  I, on the other hand, hate grocery shopping.  Probably not as much as he hates Home goods, but there are times I just feel like screaming.  Give me a relaxing farmers market over a supermarket filled with shopping carts, oblivious people, and no sense of "lanes" (it is just like driving, I don't know why it is so hard!).  :D  Today was the big one.  Thanksgiving shopping at Costco.  Can you hear my internal screams?  I enjoy Costco, as long as I am the ONLY ONE in the store!  Every time I venture back to that haven of chaos I realize why I don't enjoy being there.  It isn't the photo center (I LOVE that), the clothing section (try walking through there and NOT wanting every child's outfit), or the vegetable refrigerator (that's pretty descent).  It is the fact that, as soon as you walk through the door, people have their minds stolen by discount Pyrex, brownie bites, and bulk toilet paper.  I am not totally impervious to Costco's charms, it is an incredible store.  But, since I don't like grocery shopping, I like to get in and get out as fast as possible.  At Costco that IS NOT POSSIBLE.  Oversized carts, food trolleys, and enough people to fill the state of Rhode Island block every possible turn.  That, in and of itself, isn't the worst thing in the world (although, it is a bummer when I can't enjoy any of the samples, that is what makes Costco great, right?).  It is the fact that people pretend they are oblivious.  I find it hard to believe that 95% of people have no idea what they are coming in for and have to study each and every product for five minutes until I can finally get them to move their cart out of the middle of the aisle, especially when they don't say a simple "sorry" when they do move their metal tank full of food.  But, maybe 95% of people have never been to Costco before?  The people who say "excuse me" when trying to squeeze past in an aisle that fits one and a half of the elephant-size carts make me believe there is still hope.  They are what get me through the continent of Antarctica that we call Costco.

Costco trips do yield great rewards.  Once I get in line for the cash register I find most people are really nice.  Maybe they are the 5%, but I don't believe that's true.  It is nice to remember that they aren't targeting me specifically when they can't see my presence.  They are just as overwhelmed as everyone else (except for the people stampeding the samples).  I had a nice conversation with a woman about the benefits of cranberries after she saw my two big packs of cranberries on the conveyor belt.  She said she just learned about the health benefits and the large amount of Vitamin C in the little red morsels (anyone else think they kind of look like M&Ms?) and asked how I cooked them.  We usually boil ours for cranberry sauce, which I explained.  She said she planned to use them in smoothies which sounds amazing.  So, I came home, got the kids down for naps (after James' second bath for explosive peeing) and started on my plans for those cranberries.

My first goal was to make a thanksgiving cranberry sauerkraut.  My last batch of sauerkraut had cabbage, green apples, and oranges and it was delicious, thanks to my wonderful nutritionist.  We are having an early Thanksgiving dinner with my husband's family while they are in town and I wanted a topping for our turkey.  I didn't feel like researching AIP gravies, but I knew sauerkraut wouldn't be hard since I was already familiar with the process.  So, I looked up a couple ideas and came up with the following recipe:

1/2 cabbage (I usually take off the top two leaves, especially if not organic)

1/2 purple beet

1 red apple, peeled and cored

Cranberries - enough to have two layers on the bottom of a 2 quart pot (next time I'll figure out how large a volume that is)

1 tsp salt (I use Real Salt)

3/8 tsp Caldwell ferment starter (culture)

1. Core cabbage and slice into strips of desired width or use food processor (I enjoy mine on the smaller side).

2. Pound cabbage or massage with hands to release the cabbage juice.  Sprinkle a small amount of salt over the top of the cabbage, let sit, and finish pounding or massaging.  The salt helps draw the water out of the cabbage and makes your job easier.  This step is very important because your sauerkraut has to be below the water line in order to ferment properly.

3. Put cranberries and dash of water into pot.  Boil for two minutes.  Don't let them go mushy or pop all the way out of their casing.

4. Slice apple and beet into thin strips using a food processor.

5. Mix all ingredients and add salt.  I like a lot of salt, you can start by adding 1/2 tsp, taste test, and then decide if you want any more.

6. Stuff the suaerkraut into mason jar.  And I mean STUFF!  The sauerkraut should really be packed in to make best use of the water.

7. Add the culture, stir well, and stuff again.  If you have a problem with the water level you can take a leftover cabbage leaf, fold it, and stuff it on top to push the sauerkraut below the water line.

I tasted a sample and it was really good.  I'll let you know if it turns out otherwise. 

My second goal was the aforementioned cranberry sauce.  Cranberry sauce is really easy.  Add the amount of cranberries you want to a pot with enough water to cover the bottom.  Boil for 5-10 minutes, until the cranberries have "popped" and are mushy.  Then, stir in sweetener of choice.  Cranberries are TART so you will probably need more than you think.  I used 1/2 cup for about 2 cups worth of cranberries.  Orange juice can soften the taste a bit if you are allowed that splurge.  :D  If you want a smooth cranberry sauce, stick it in the blender for about 30 seconds.  Then, chill and serve!

Since ours ended up with more sugar than I hoped I am going to use it as a garnish on the salmon in our oven.  The salmon is currently cooking in coconut oil with salt and cinnamon.  I can't wait to eat!

Thank you, Costco.  My afternoon was mind-boggling, but tonight is pretty good!