Who would have thought that eating rotten food could be so healthy, and incredibly delicious? Fermented foods are one of the best things you can consume on a daily basis that can dramatically improve your gut health and a healthy gut = a healthy you.

How does it work? As you may know, your gut is full of bacteria and you need a healthy amount of the good kind for digestion. Fermented foods are FULL of this kind of bacteria that promote immunity, good digestion, healthy weight and strengthen your gut micro biome (that’s like your bacteria ecosystem).

Unfortunately, when we talk about these amazing fermented foods, we aren’t talking about wine. They are not all created equal and the best kind are the ones that are fermented naturally and contain probiotics. When you think of probiotics, your brain might immediately go to bowel movements (thanks Activia commercials) and while it’s true that probiotics help regulate your bowels, it’s almost impossible to overdose on these tiny bacteria. Probiotics are also great for your immunity and will help a lot if you are taking antibiotics as it will replenish the good bacteria (just don’t take them at the same time of day!). Another cool probiotic fact - a Finnish study found that probiotics help babies avoid tummy issues and certain diseases (think autoimmune or inflammatory diseases) later in life as they are passed through the breast milk.

So, how can you consume probiotics daily? If you’re first thought is yogurt, that’s correct! Yogurt is a great, easy source of probiotics and one of the most popular types of fermented food. But, what if you’re lactose intolerant or want more options? After all, the more you can consume fermented foods on a daily basis, the better for your gut. Some other great options are:

• Kefir

• Kimchi

• Sauerkraut

• Pretty much anything pickled – just watch out for added sugars!

Over here at The Realness Project, you know we aim to better our gut health every day. We wanted to share a great recipe for homemade pickled veggies that was passed down to us from our mom from before fermented foods became a health fad. The family loves it – Lara’s husband is an especially big fan and puts it on everything, without even knowing that he’s improving his gut health with every bite. Try it and comment below to let us know what you think of our recipe!

Homemade Pickled veggies

Ingredients:

5 sliced organic carrots

10 organic jalapeños - you can keep them whole or cut them up for more spice (optional)

1 small head of organic cauliflower, chopped into small pieces

8 organic shallots or green onions, chopped

6-8 organic garlic cloves

2 tbsp olive oil

4 bay leaves

1 tsp ground peppercorn

1 tsp ground pepper

1 ½ tsp marjoram

1 ½ tbsp ground thyme

Salt to taste

2 cups white vinegar

1 cup apple cider vinegar

Directions:

1. Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large saucepan. Add carrots and cook until slightly softened (you want them crunchy).

2. Add the onion the rest of the ingredients excepts for the vinegars and cook for about 7 minutes, until the jalapeños go from a bright green to an olive green

3. Add the white vinegar and ACV and bring to a boil

4. Cover and simmer on low heat for 5 minutes

5. Remove from heat and let cool

6. Transfer to air tight jars

*May be stored in the fridge or room temperature and lasts for about a month.