Cooking With Ancient Grains
I grew up in a middle class home in a family of six in the small, historic, town of Benicia, California.  My father was health conscience before it became popular to be health conscience!  He always insisted that we eat plenty of whole, natural foods and very few processed foods.  And, my mom contributed homemade breads, cookies and desserts using healthy ingredients.  When I had my own family, with four boys, I continued those traditions and added a few of my own.  We built a log home in the Sierra foothills on a small piece of property where I was able to plant a few fruit trees and grow an organic, heirloom garden.  I also canned, dehydrated or froze any excess to keep us supplied with wholesome food year round.  Eventually, I added to that a dozen chickens - who were free to roam the backyard, eat grass and pick for bugs - that supplied us with fresh eggs.  And, not long after that I began raising alpine dairy goats that kept us supplied with enough fresh, sweet milk for drinking as well as cooking. I often used the milk to make ice cream, cheese cake and cheese for family and friends.  Along with that, I ordered all of our organic, whole grains in bulk from a natural-food co-op, Azure Standard, who delivered the food to our doorstep each month.  By ordering through Azure Standard, I was able to save money and grind my own grains fresh daily to make homemade breads, muffins, pies, cookies, etc.  After my sons had grown and started families of their own, I continued my pursuit of eating healthy and began experimenting by using traditional methods of preparing grains such as sprouting, soaking and fermenting.  I also began switching from wheat to low-gluten and gluten-free ancient grains.  At one point, my husband and I opened a cafe where we made all of our pancakes, cookies and desserts from scratch using freshly ground, organic grains, sucanat and real butter.  Eventually, I decided that I wanted to pass all of my information, recipes and methods onto my sons and grand-children.  So, I began compiling them into a cookbook.  Over the years, as that cookbook continued to expand and grow, this cookbook was born!  Now, I hope that you will benefit from my journey in preparing nutritious foods as much as we have!