Fermentation
Again, this blog is double dipping. Sorry for the lack of blogs but my computer broke and that makes it very challenging to find opportunities to post. So check out this blog here or next week at alleghenymountaininstitute.org. I used to think fermentation meant turning something into alcohol, like wine or beer. Now, after months of cooking whole foods, learning nutrition, and our wonderful fermentation lesson, I have a whole new perspective. Fermentation is formally defined as the chemical breakdown of a substance by bacteria, yeasts, or other microorganisms. And this occurs with more than just beer and wine. It occurs in chocolate, coffee, sourdough, sprouted beans, yogurt, sauerkraut, ginger beer and pickled fruits and vegetables. There are also some foods that I never even heard of until AMI, like kimchi, kombucha, ginger soda, and kefir. So why do all of my favorite foods have this in common? What is the purpose of putting live microorganisms in our food? Rose (fermen