Workshops

Microgreens are mini versions of regular vegetables. The shoots are harvested at a young age, before they grow into fully matured plants. They have a wonderful flavor and are richer in nutrition than their larger counterparts. Best of all, microgreens are fun and easy to grow!

Caring for your Microgreens

• Take your microgreen container and place it indoors in a sunny location. Keep the plastic bag over it to create a mini-greenhouse for your mini-vegetables.

• Water the soil enough so that it’s a little moist. It won’t take a lot. You want it moist, but not soaked. Because of your mini-greenhouse, you won’t have to water the plant again for a few days.

• Watch it grow. Have a good time. You’re making food!

• Once the plant begins to sprout, unseal the bottom a little bit for added ventilation. Close it around the bottom of the planter. • Every few days, feel the soil to check if it’s moist. If it’s dry, add a little water.

• Growing microgreens usually takes 1 to 3 weeks. When your greens have reached a height of 3-5 inches, harvest them by cutting at the bottom, just above the soil line.

• Rinse and enjoy! Your greens can be eaten fresh as they are (the leaves and the whole stem can be eaten), or used in a salad, on a sandwich, or as a garnish.

Storing your Microgreens

• store them between damp pieces of paper towels and then seal in a plastic bag or container

Microgreen Recipes

• GroCycle - 30 good recipe ideas!

• Brit.Co - 12 creative summer recipes

Seeds for Microgreens

• Easy for beginners!

  • Radish, Sunflower, Broccoli, Kale, Snap peas

• Other fun Plants

  • beets, arugula, Salad Mix, buckwheat, mustard, sorrel

Books

• Microgreens: A Guide to Growing Nutrient-Packed Greens by Eric Franks & Jasmine Richardson

• Microgreens: How to Grow Nature’s Own Superfood by Fionna Hill

Our Rabbis of Blessed Memory have stated that almost all foods are beneficial to one and detrimental to another except for ginger and several other victuals that are of benefit to the entire body. (Pesachim 42b)

Here is my favorite ginger beer recipe:

• Ginger - about the size of my hand 6" covering palm surface, 3/4lb

• 1/2 lemon juice

• 2 cups of honey

• 1/4 teaspoon ale or champagne yeast

• 1 gallon of water

1. Peel and chop ginger and add to 1/2 gallon of boiling water. Boil for 10-15 minutes

2. Cool till ~100F (it’s ok to add ice to speed this part up)

3. Add honey, lime juice.

4. Strain and pour entire mixture into 1 gallon bottle (add more water if necessary)

5. Cover with airlock and ferment for 5-7 days

6. You can doctor the ginger beer at this point with more honey or lemon juice

If you just can’t wait…

Follow the above recipe use 2 quarts instead of a gallon.  Cool the mixture, add 2 quarts of seltzer and dark rum. And serve.

Making Ginger Candy with Spent Ginger 

You can use the "spent" ginger to make ginger candy. It's quite easy! Strain the ginger out  and boil it for another 15-30 minutes or so until its tender with a an equal weight of sugar (3/4lb) and a half cup of water. Boil on medium heat until the ginger is translucent. Spread the ginger out on a drying rack and allow to cool for a few hours. Toss ginger pieces in some dry sugar and store in a jar.

Our ancestors preserved many foods with fermentation. We will learn how to make pickles the traditional way and learn how to make other fermented foods too!

Pickling is one of the more common and varied forms of food preservation. There are many options to preserve each season’s harvest, including canning, vinegar pickling, drying, blanching and freezing. This particular activity teaches lacto-fermentation pickling – an easy, fun and extremely health-friendly method of food preservation.

Lactobacilli are lactic-acid producing bacteria that live naturally on the skins of most vegetables. They have the unique ability to convert the sugars found in these vegetables into lactic acid – a natural preservative that prevents the growth of harmful bacteria. Fermented foods promote the growth of friendly intestinal bacteria that aid digestion and support immune system strength. We lacto-ferment by creating just the right conditions for our allies. Our friends the lacto bacilli like to hang out in an anaerobic environment – so we have to keep the air out. Then we use the tools of salt, temperature and time to create the perfect habitat for them to proliferate.

Caring for your fermented veggies!

1. Leave the jar on your counter, ideally at room temperature. You will need to submerge the veggies under the salt brine. You can either put a cup in the top of the jar to lower the veggies and raise the brine level or you can screw it on partway and open it to “burp” the jars and release the air pressure once a day. If the water level goes down, just add more brine.

2. After 3 days your veggies will be pickled (aka have successfully achieved the nutritional benefits of lacto-fermentation) and you can try them. If you want the flavor to be more intense, continue letting them ferment for another 5 – 10 days, and continue to “burp” them.

3. When you like the flavor, transfer the jar to the fridge to stop the fermenting process. Enjoy! Or… 10. If you’ve made a large batch, you can put some in a jar in the fridge and eat it, while the rest continues to ferment on the counter.

4. Refill your fridge jar as necessary and make a new batch before the old one runs out. You’ll really get a sense of how the flavor changes and at what point you like it best

Books

• Wild Fermentation by Sandor Katz

• Fermented Vegetables by Christopher and Kirsten Shockey

• Ferment your Vegetables by Amanda Feifer

“He brought us to this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey.” - Deuteronomy 26:8-9

Homemade Dairy

Before the age of mass distribution and consumerism, dairy farmers started making cheese to preserve excess milk. Farmer’s cheese was one of the first, and arguably the easiest, they likely made, which is probably why this type of cheese has a wide-ranging culture and long history around the world.

For the Jewish people, what we eat has long been a way of celebrating the gifts of the earth and expressing our gratitude with God. In Genesis, God instructs Adam that the we are here to be Shomrei Adamah (Guardians of the Earth). It is up to us to nurture this moral compass by caring for the earth and what grows upon it. 

Farmer’s Cheese Recipe

Farmer’s cheese typically refers to any un-ripened, un-aged, soft or semi-soft, white cheese. Farmer’s cheese can be made from the milk of goats, cows, sheep and even yaks.

This recipe can be used right away, incorporated into a blintz recipe or can be dried overnight to make a harder cheese that’s great for frying up!

Materials

• 1/2 gallon fresh whole milk

• 1/4 cup white vinegar

• Salt and herb seasonings

Instructions

1. In a large stainless steel pot, whisk and heat the milk until it steams (around 185F).

2. Add the vinegar, and stir gently as the curds begin to form. You should see the milk separate into curds and whey. If it does not separate, add a bit more vinegar or some more heat, until you see the milk solids coagulate into curds.

3. Drain the curds into a cheesecloth or handkerchief to get rid of the whey.

4. You can use the cheese immediately as spreadable cheese. For a more solid cheese, hang the curds and allow to dry 8 hours to overnight.

5. Seasoned with salt and any other herb you may like. Salt, garlic powder, and chives makes a delicious topping.

Simple Butter Recipe

Nothing is simpler or more delicious than fresh butter. Spruce yours up with some fresh herbs or even honey!

Materials

• 1/4 cup heavy cream

• Salt

• Herbs (optional)

Instructions

1. Pour heavy cream into mason jar, ensuring that the lid is tightened fully          

2. Shake, shake, and keep shaking.

3. When the whey (liquid) has separated inside your mason jar drain it off and remove the hardened butter.

4. Salt & add herbs to your butter! 

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