My daughter has a mouth full of loose teeth and just can’t chew food that well.  And I wanted to keep carrots as a snack option. Check out this recipe from The Nourishing Gourmet for easy to eat fermented carrot sticks full of beneficial probiotic bacteria.  The recipe below is without the whey.  Make sure you keep the carrots submerged in the water to prevent mold from growing – this is what the cabbage leaf is for or you can use a weight of some sort to keep the carrots under the water.

Recipe

1-1 1/2 pound peeled fresh carrots (enough to pack in tightly)

3 garlic cloves – peeled (optional)

1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill or 1 teaspoon dried dill (optional)

2 cups water or more as needed

2 tablespoons sea salt

one large outer cabbage leaf

1 jar (quart size)

1.  Make you brine by dissolving the salt into the water (may need to slightly heat)

2.  Put the garlic cloves (and dill if using it) in the bottom of the jar and carrots packed in tightly but with enough room for the brine to make its way between each carrot.  Make sure to cut the carrot sticks so they are about 2 inches below the top of the jar.

3.  Pour the brine into the jar so that it is about 1 inch below the top of the jar.  You may need to add more water.

4. Place cabbage leaf over carrots and tuck around sides of jar to keep carrots under water.  Make sure cabbage leaf submerged as well.

5.  Cover tightly with lid (burp first 3-4 days by unscrewing lid slightly so carbon dioxide can escape and jar doesn’t explode) and leave room temperature for 7-10 days.

6.  Place in refrigerator and will last about 2 months.  Make sure to keep carrots under water.