Fire Honey

 THE remedy for colds and flu, or for when you just feel under the weather for some reason and need a pick me up! Or for daily health - I can feel a definite difference taking it. I just feel better overall. I sleep better and no more nasty headaches when I wake up, in my case I suffer from mild hypertension and this definitely helps me a lot! 

A powerhouse of healing properties - whether its for your immune system; heart health; digestion; blood circulation....this "doepa" works for all of this! There are many ways to take this, in smoothies or your tea or added to a salad dressing etc.

I prefer taking 1 - 2 tsp neat every morning and evening ;-) 

Its a "small" batch recipe, I haven't tried doubling the recipe, but reckon it should work fine. 

We are lucky to have a few bee hives on our farm. Raw, unprocessed unfiltered honey. Tapped straight from the combs. 

INGREDIENTS

1 cup raw honey*

1 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp ground turmeric

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp ground cayenne pepper

1/2 tsp black pepper compound

METHOD

Either add all to a clean glass jar and mix well, or add all to a small bowl and whisk well together and then add to the glass jar. 

It will keep many many months stored in a cool dry place. The longer it stands, the more potent it gets.

Stir well before using. 

NOTES

*It MUST be raw unfiltered honey. Not "pure" honey, which is processed/pasteurized - losing much of its health benefits in the process. 

But if you can't get hold of raw honey, just buy the best you can and use it by all means, just know you are losing out on many benefits. It will still work, just maybe not as good :-) The spices will still do their magic!

Sweet pickled baby cucumbers

 Super easy pickled baby cucumbers! Quick fridge pickles. You can play around with this recipe quite a bit and change the spices to your liking. This recipe is for one jar. 

BASIC RECIPE

300 g baby cucumbers, sliced in lengths (blossom end removed)*

2/3 c white wine vinegar / apple cider vinegar (160 ml)

2/3 c water (160 ml)

2 TBS sugar

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1 bay leaf

1/2 tsp yellow mustard seeds

1/2 tsp fennel seeds

1 cinnamon stick

1/4 tsp turmeric

METHOD

*The blossom end of the cucumber is the rounded part. The part with the stem is the 'vine' part, you don't need to cut that off, but you can if preferred

1. Slice your cucumbers into long strips and pack tightly in a sterilized jar*

2. Bring all your brine ingredients to a boil and let simmer for a few minutes while stirring

3. Pour hot brine over the cucumbers and make sure to include the bay leaf and cinnamon stick in the jar. Cover and let cool

4. Label and put in the fridge

NOTES

*It is helpful to prick the cucumbers with a fork or knife beforehand to make sure the brine really goes into them. The longer you leave it the better, for the flavour to develop. 

*Tip: lie the jar on it's side and stuff the cucumber slices in tightly