Blueberry Citrus Fruitcake

     Fruitcake. It's the Christmas tradition that nobody wants.  However, this tradition stems from abundance. Historically, fruitcakes were made after a very successful harvest, and stored until Christmas (or even the next harvest), when they were eaten in celebration and for good luck in the next year's harvest. The secret to keeping this cake so long is in it's care. Each week the cake needs to be brushed with alcohol or flavored syrup. This helps to preserve it as well as to keep it moist. The modern dislike of fruitcake probably comes from the lack of care and attention given to them, making them hard bricks of weird fruit and nut bread.

     That being said, this year I decided to put my own spin on this traditional baked good, hopefully reviving the old tradition with a bit of a Bat Lady flair.

     As with all my recipes, there are a number of awesome variations that you can use. I really don't like apricots, so I used pineapple in this recipe, but feel free to use the traditional apricots. Really, you can use any fruit you'd like in place of any of the other fruits (a small amount of elderberries might make for an interesting cake), same goes for the nuts. I prefer cashews and almonds to a few of the more traditional nuts, but you can use whatever nuts you'd like. Have fun with it and make it your own!   
   
     This awesome recipe features Juniper berries and Gin, two of my favorite things! Also, it makes about 12 cups of batter, so you can use a 10-inch bundt pan, a 9X13 inch baking pan, 2 9 inch round cake pans, or it can make 18-24 cupcakes.

Blueberry Citrus Fruitcake

The Fruit Mixture:

1 ½ cups dried Blueberries

½ cup Golden Raisins

½ cup dried Pineapple

¼ cup candied Ginger

½ cup Gin (my favorite gin to use is Magellan, but any gin will work) or St. Germain (an Elderflower liqueur)...or go crazy and use half of each!

The Cake:

5 tbsp ground Chia Seeds

10 tbsp Water

2 cups Gluten Free Flour Mix of your choice (my favorite is by Namaste)

¾ cup milled/ground Flaxseed and/or Chia seed (buy it already ground or grind your own using a coffee grinder)

1 tbsp Baking Powder (gluten free of course)

½ tsp Sea Salt

2 Oranges, remove the peel (not the pith) with a vegetable peeler and reserve it, squeeze the oranges after peeling and reserve the juice

1 Lemon remove the peel (not the pith) with a vegetable peeler and reserve it, squeeze the lemon after peeling and reserve the juice (½ for the cake and ½ for the glaze)

1 Lime remove the peel (not the pith) with a vegetable peeler and reserve it, squeeze the lime after peeling and reserve the juice (½ for the cake and ½ for the glaze)

1 tsp Vanilla Extract

1 tsp ground Juniper Berries (I grind mine using a coffee grinder)

4 cups Honey (or Agave)

1 cup of Coconut Oil (or Ghee)

¼ cup Cashews, chopped

¼ cup slivered Almonds

The Syrup:

½ cup Honey

½ cup Gin

½ the reserved Lemon Juice

½ the reserved Lime Juice

Instructions:
Combine the dried fruits and booze in a non-reactive (I use glass) bowl. Toss well, cover, and allow to soak overnight.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat your pan/pans with olive oil (or ghee) and dust with flour. Combine 5 tbsp ground Chia Seeds and 10 tbsp water, mix well, and chill in the refrigerator for 10 minutes. Combine flour, Flax/Chia Seed mixture, baking powder, and salt. Set aside. Combine ½ of the lemon juice, ½ of the lime juice, and ¾ of a cup of orange juice with vanilla extract and set aside. 

Toss soaked dried fruit with 2 tablespoons of flour mixture, set aside.

In a food processor, process your citrus peels and ground Juniper until the peels are finely ground. Add in honey, chilled chia mixture, and coconut oil. Process until smooth. Pour into a large mixing bowl and set aside.

Using a rubber spatula, fold in half of the flour mixture, add juice mixture to combine. Fold in the rest of the flour mixture, dried fruits, and nuts until just combined.

Scrape batter into the prepared pan(s) and baked until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 50 to 60 minutes.

In a saucepan, over medium-high heat, combine honey and citrus juices. Bring to a boil, while stirring to combine. Remove from heat and add in gin. Stir until well combined.

When the fruitcake is done, remove from the oven and allow to cool on a cooling rack, about 10 minutes.

Using a skewer or toothpick, poke small holes in the top of the cake. Slowly spoon a small amount on top of the cake and allow it to soak in. Let the cake set and absorb the syrup for a few minutes, then repeat the process as many times as it takes to use up all of your prepared syrup.

*Optional. Dusting the cake with powdered sugar helps make it look a little more Christmas-y and the powdered sugar helps preserve the cake as well.

Allow the cake to cool in the pan for at least 2 hours before removing from the pan. Can be served immediately, but this cake tastes better if allowed to sit for at least 24-48 hours before serving. If you want to store it long-term, wrap it up in cheese cloth and foil before placing it in an air-tight container. Each week, using a basting brush, cover the fruitcake with more syrup (one application of syrup at a time). For more detailed instructions on long-term care of fruitcake check out this page.


   
     I know this is a little more complicated than most of my recipes, but I hope you enjoy making (and eating!) this fruitcake!  If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below!

Herbal Bitters: A Brief Introduction

It's the Holiday Season! That means it's time to get together with friends and family. Time to share gifts, drinks, and stories. Time to get fat and lazy after eating amazing meals. All of this can be very exciting and wonderful. However, this can do a serious number on your digestion. I figured that I could let you in on a tip to help keep your digestion going strong even after a day of gorging yourself on food you don't normally eat.

Over the years, “Bitter” has gained a bad reputation. The word is most commonly associated with harsh feelings like anger, resentment, and pain. However, “Bitter” can be a wonderful and healthy tool to use. Bitter herbs help digestion, and a number of them are already in our diets. Coffee, most culinary herbs, and leafy greens are just a few examples. Even though we do continue to enjoy our bitter herbs, we don't have enough of them to really use their true potential. If you aren't tasting the bitter flavor, you aren't getting the benefit. But before I dig to deeply into that, here's a basic introduction to the world of Bitters.

Bitter Herbs and Foods:

In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), there are 5 flavors of food. Sweet, Salty, Pungent (sometimes referred to as Spicy or Acrid), Sour, and Bitter. Each of these flavors is associated with certain actions on your digestive system, as well as your body as a whole.

Bitter herbs and foods help to stimulate digestion by triggering the production and/or release of digestive enzymes, hormones, and various digestive secretions (saliva, bile, etc). This action benefits the gallbladder, stomach, liver, pancreas, and just about your whole body. Bitters help us to properly digest proteins, fats, and starches. They help increase nutrient absorption, improve the integrity of the tissues lining the digestive tract, and help to create a protective barrier against pathogens. Most bitters are also cooling in nature, helping to reduce inflammation and rid the body of excess heat. They also help aid the elimination process.

With such a wide range of bitter options available to us, why do so many health professionals think that the modern American diet is all but devoid of bitter flavors? Because sweetening the bitter flavors destroys most, if not all, of the health benefits. So eating those dark leafy greens in your salad is a great choice, but using a salad dressing packed full of sugar negates most of the healthy benefits. This is one of the reasons that herbal bitters are such a great tool for your health.

Herbal Bitters:

The herbal bitters we usually refer to are mixtures of various herbal extracts designed to help aid digestion. There are an unlimited amount of combinations of bitter herbs out there that can be put into these herbal bitters, and many recipes date back thousands of years. Some of the oldest recipes come from the Mediterranean region and date back over 2,000 years ago. Some of the more famous recipes are still in use today, though mostly as cocktail ingredients. The most famous of these is Angostura Bitters which is used in the traditional Old Fashioned. And for those of you who are fans of Gin and Tonic, tonic water started off as a bitter folk remedy as well.

Who Should Take Bitters?:

EVERYONE!

Bitters are great for everyone to use. Pregnant and nursing women should use caution with certain herbs, but an Herbal Bitter formulated with fennel and other gentle herbs can be a great asset, especially since fennel helps increase breast milk production. Those of you who have had problems with your gallbladder, pancreas, liver, or kidneys can benefit tremendously from taking bitters. People who suffer from anemia, or iron deficiency, should think seriously about adding bitters to their diet. Our bodies need bitters in order to properly absorb and use iron.

How Do You Use Bitters?:

I typically recommend using bitters 15 min before you plan on dining. Bitters most often come in liquid extracts with droppers, but occasionally you will find them in spray bottles. In the case of the droppers, take 1-2 dropperfuls, under your tongue. For the spray, spray into your mouth 2-3 times. When in doubt, follow the instructions on the bottle.

Whatever your digestive concern, there is an Herbal Bitters formula out there for you (or you can make your own). I urge you all to talk to a nutritionist, herbalist, or other health professional about adding bitters to your daily routine.

I hope I have gotten you excited about herbal bitters, and I hope that they help you throughout this holiday season. If you have any questions or comments please leave them below.

Where to Buy Great Bitters:

Urban Moonshine

Mountain Rose Herbs

Leaves and Roots

Check out your local Farmer's Markets

There are also several people who sell their herbal products on Etsy

I have also been known to make bitters occasionally. For more information, please contact me directly at BatLadyHerbals@gmail.com

Resources:

5 Reasons Why You Should Eat Bitter Foods and Herbs: Natures Sunshine: http://blog.naturessunshine.com/en/5-reasons-why-you-should-eat-bitter-foods-and-herbs/

10 Reasons to Use Bitters: Hint it All Starts with Digestive Health : Radiant Life: https://blog.radiantlifecatalog.com/bid/70036/10-Reasons-to-Use-Bitters-hint-it-all-starts-with-digestive-health

Benefits of Bitters: Organic Spa Magazine: https://www.organicspamagazine.com/the-benefits-of-bitters/

Digestive Bitters: Better than Probiotics: Gwen's Nest: http://gwens-nest.com/digestive-bitters/

Herbal Bitters: Invaluable Aid to Fat Digestion: The Healthy Home Economist: https://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com/bitters-invaluable-aid-to-fat-digestion/

Herbal Medicine: Tonics, Bitters, and Digestion: Healthy.net: http://www.healthy.net/Health/Article/Tonics_Bitters_and_Digestion/862

Natural Healing: Befriending the Bitter Herbs: Mother Earth Living: https://www.motherearthliving.com/health-and-wellness/natural-healing-bitter-is-better-befriending-the-bitter-herbs

Properties of Food from a TCM Perspective: Shen Nong: http://www.shen-nong.com/eng/lifestyles/food_property_food_tcm.html

Taste and Action of Chinese Herbs: ITM Online: http://www.itmonline.org/articles/taste_action/taste_action_herbs.htm

Lemon Poppy Seed Loaf

     It's Spring! That means that all the green things are growing, all the animals are frisky, and it's time to savor the sweet tastes that come with all of this excitement. One of the flavor combinations I have always associated with this time of year is Lemon Poppy Seed. So I figured that I'd share my favorite recipe for Lemon Poppy Seed Loaf. It's a bright, cheerful sweetbread and can easily be eaten as breakfast, or a snack. One thing my husband and I enjoy is using this bread to make french toast.

A bit about Lemon and Poppy Seeds:

Lemon is well known for being high in vitamin C. It's also jam packed full of other vitamins and minerals including vitamin B6, niacin, and potassium. Lemon is full of antioxidants to help fight cancer. It also helps prevent diabetes, high blood pressure, and constipation. It improves the skin, teeth, and hair. Lemons are amazing little powerhouses of healthful goodness.

Poppy Seeds are rich in several vitamins and minerals including calcium. They help prevent vomiting, treat asthma and other breathing issues, reduce LDL levels while raising HDL levels, and can help prevent heart disease and/or stroke.

Lemon Poppy Seed Loaf

The Cake:

2 cups Gluten Free, All Purpose Flour (my favorite)

2 tablespoons Poppy Seed

1 tablespoon Lemon Zest

¾ tablespoon Baking Powder

1 tablespoon Baking Soda

¼ teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon Coconut Oil

1 tablespoon Organic Vanilla Extract

½ teaspoon Ground Chia Seed

¾ teaspoon Ground Flax Seed

3 tablespoons Water

¾ cup Raw, Local Honey (or Agave Nectar)

½ cup Plain (or Vanilla) Greek Yogurt (Soy or Coconut Yogurt would work too)

2 tablespoons Fresh Lemon Juice

3 tablespoons Plain or Vanilla Almond Milk

The Honey Glaze:

1 ½ cups Raw, Local Honey

¼ cup Fresh Lemon Juice

½ cup Plain or Vanilla Almond Milk

Instructions:

Mix the ground Chia and Flax seeds with 3 tablespoons of water. Set aside for 10-20 minutes, or until it forms a gel. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees, and lightly coat a 9x5” pan with coconut oil (or cooking spray). Whisk together the flour, poppy seeds, lemon zest, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a different bowl, mix remaining ingredients, including the chia/flax mixture. Mix together both bowls, starting and ending with the dry ingredients (1/3 of the dry, ½ of the wet, etc). Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 40-45 minutes (optional: cover the batter with foil for the first 30 minutes to prevent excessive browning). Let cool for about 10 minutes. While the loaf is cooling, mix together the ingredients for the glaze in a saucepan. Bring the glaze to a boil, over medium heat, continually stirring. Boil until the mixture is reduced by ¼. Let cool and pour over the cake. Enjoy!

I hope you enjoy making this tasty springtime treat! If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below!

Resources:

Home Remedies for You: Poppy Seeds : http://www.home-remedies-for-you.com/herbs/poppy-seeds.html

Organic Facts: 15 Amazing Benefits of Lemon : https://www.organicfacts.net/health-benefits/fruit/health-benefits-of-lemon.html

'Tis the Season

    This is a great time of year.  People are typically more generous to each other, there are many family gatherings and holiday parties, and good spirits are shared all around.  However, there are also other, not so pleasant, things shared.  Welcome to cold and flu season.  The CDC releases information about cold and flu season every year.  Usually it starts in October and can continue on into May.  The worst part of it is February with December being strong in second place.  So now is the time to pump up your immune system in preparation for the hard times. 

     Prevention is the best medicine.  But how do you prevent the cold or flu? 

1.       Proper diet is paramount to health.  Most people should avoid grains, sugars, and other starchy foods, but everyone has different needs.  Good basics include eating organic as much as possible, drinking plenty of water, and “eating the rainbow.”  Eating the rainbow is my number one rule for daily consumption.  If you eat a wide range of fruits and vegetables from each of the colors of the rainbow, you are consuming a good variety of nutrients.  This season, focusing on the yellow and orange fruits and vegetables will also help you boost your immunity because those colors are associated with higher amounts of vitamin C. 

2.       Wash up often.  Wash your hands for 20+ seconds at a time, don’t forget between your fingers and around your nails.  Hand sanitizers can also help prevent the spread of these viruses, I make one at home that works well, if you are using my recipe, add in the optional rubbing alcohol for this time of year.  Also adding in 10+ drops of peppermint essential oil can help target viruses instead of bacteria. 

3.       Regular exercise helps boost the body’s immune function.  All you need is 45 minutes of stretching and/or moderate-intensity exercise a week in order to increase your immunity.

4.       Herbs can also be a huge help in prevention.  Garlic is great to help prevent and fight viruses, it is best raw and crushed because that releases the allicin which is the main compound that fights off viruses and the allicin can be destroyed by excessive heat.  Ginseng and Eleuthero (Siberian ginseng) both can help to boost immune function to prevent viral infections.  Astragalus has also been used in Chinese medicine to prevent viral infections.  Astragalus can be combined with garlic for a great broth, especially if you are making a bone broth which has many health benefits all its own. 

5.       Bone broth helps to boost immunity in addition to its other amazing benefits.  This is why chicken soup is so effective against colds and flu, it’s all in the bone broth. 

     When prevention is not enough we have to look at treatments.

1.       Avoid dairy.  Dairy increases mucus production which can slow healing.  And let’s face it, we’re already producing excess mucus while we’re sick, we really don’t want to produce any more. 

2.       Consume lots of hot liquids.  Warm teas, warm lemon water, soups, these are all beneficial while we are sick.  Our bodies really don’t need to be focusing on digestion much either, so drinking the warm liquids and eating mostly soup will help build up the body’s strength while not burdening it with lots of digestive issues.  Not to mention, bone broth is great at boosting immune function and herbal teas can have benefits all their own. 

3.       Herbs are wonderful remedies as well.  Adding fresh herbs to teas or soups can help speed up the healing process greatly.  Ginger helps with nausea, vomiting, high fever, and headaches.  Ginger goes well in teas and soups alike.  Nettle is a great multivitamin and can also help ease symptoms in upper respiratory infections.  I add it to most foods and it’s great in a tea with red raspberry leaves and peppermint.  Elderberry is so good in treating the flu that you can now find elderberry medicine in your neighborhood drug store.  However it’s easy to make your own, Wellness Mamma has a great elderberry syrup recipe here and elderberry syrup is delicious so you should not have a problem getting your child to take some.  Yarrow is great whenever a fever is involved, and it’s especially good for children.  Unfortunately it is a bit bitter, so adding in peppermint and honey are a good idea, they are both also really good for colds and flu so they can add their own benefits as well.  All the herbs previously listed for prevention are also good to continue while you are ill.

4.       Increasing vitamins C and D intake can also be a great benefit.  These two vitamins help strengthen our immunity and fight off colds and flu. 

5.       Don’t hinder your body’s natural defenses.  We are coughing because our bodies are trying to expel virus-laden mucus from our respiratory track.  Keep coughing and try not to suppress it with over-the-counter medications.  Instead try thinning the mucus out with steam (essential oils can be beneficial here, eucalyptus and peppermint are two good ones) and drinking plenty of fluids.  It may be annoying and, in some cases painful, but as long as your cough is productive (you’re coughing up mucus) it’s beneficial to keep it up.  Same thing goes for your runny nose.  I like to make sure that I don’t sniffle back the mucus in my sinuses.  It can prolong sickness and possibly cause a sinus infection later on.  I just invest in the good tissues (I prefer to use the ones infused with vicks) and blow my nose often. 

6.       Hydration and rest can be the best medicine!  We need several additional hours of rest a day when we are sick, but we also need more liquids to help support immune function. 

     I hope you find this helpful and useful this season.  Enjoy your gatherings, your family, and your friends and stay healthy!

Resources:

Breaking Muscle- Flu-Buster Bone Broth for a stronger immune system: https://breakingmuscle.com/fuel/flu-buster-bone-broth-for-a-stronger-immune-system

Center for Disease Control- Cold and Flu Season: http://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/season/flu-season.htm

Dr. Axe- Healing Power of Bone Broth: https://draxe.com/the-healing-power-of-bone-broth-for-digestion-arthritis-and-cellulite/

Life Hacker- What it means to “eat the rainbow”: http://lifehacker.com/what-it-means-to-eat-the-rainbow-1594799068

Mother Earth News- 19 Ways to prevent and treat cold and flu: http://www.motherearthnews.com/natural-health/herbal-remedies/colds-and-flu-zm0z12djzhir?pageid=1#PageContent1

Mother Earth News- Natural, effective remedies for cold and flu: http://www.motherearthnews.com/natural-health/natural-effective-remedies-for-colds-and-flu-zmaz07djzgoe

Wellness Mamma- 25 Natural remedies to help beat cold & flu: http://wellnessmama.com/1499/natural-remedies-for-illness/

Fermented Lemons

     One of my favorite comfort food snacks has always been pickles.  When I first began learning how to cook, pickles were something I wanted to learn how to make.  Of course I learned the basics of refrigerator pickles, then typical pickles made in a vinegar bath.  It wasn’t until I learned about fermenting a few years ago that I really came across the idea of fermented pickles.  This opened up a HUGE new topic in my search for pickle recipes.  I had known that cucumber pickles were not the only pickles for several years, but it wasn’t until I started experimenting with ferments that I really began to appreciate more of the non-cucumber types out there.  Shortly after taking a class on fermenting (taught by my friend Caitlin), I decided to try fermenting everything in my refrigerator.  This led to some crazy experiments and wonderful discoveries.  One of my favorites is fermented lemons. 

     After I fermented my first batch of lemons, I found out that fermented lemons are a tradition in both Italy and Morocco (all three recipes will be included in this post).  However mine were slightly different.  First, I sliced my lemons into circles before adding the brine.  Secondly, my brine was just simple salt water.  The lemons ended up being absolutely amazing (the rind being particularly buttery and delicious) and they can last up to 2 years in the refrigerator! 

     The method of fermentation that is used for these recipes is lacto-fermentation.  When you first read the name “lacto-fermentation,” you may assume this has something to do with dairy.  Well, good news for all of your lactose intolerant people out there, it doesn’t.  Lacto-fermentation is actually in reference to lactic acid.  All fruits and vegetables have a measure of beneficial bacteria, such as Lactobacillus, on their surface.  When you place these fruits and vegetables in an oxygen free environment (anaerobic), like submerging them in water, the bacteria will begin a process that consumes sugars and produces lactic acid.  Lactic acid prevents the growth of harmful bacteria and preserves the fruits and vegetables.  Since it is an acid, lactic acid is also the source of the characteristic sour flavor found in fermented foods.  This also greatly helps the human digestive system by repopulating the beneficial bacteria that lives in our guts while fighting the harmful bacteria that occasionally gets ingested and attempts to take over.

     Many of you will already be familiar with the health benefits of lemons, or even ferments.  However this dish combines both in a delicious way.  Lemons are high in vitamin C as well as many other vitamins and minerals.  One of the main ones to note is potassium.  In modern America, our diets are sorely lacking in potassium.  This is leading to a great number of health issues that are being attributed in an excess of sodium.  Potassium and sodium work hand-in-hand in our bodies.  For our bodies to function properly, our sodium and potassium levels need to be balanced.  While yes, too much sodium is going to cause issues (too much of anything will cause issues), a lack of potassium will only make matters that much worse.  Lemons can help to combat the growing potassium deficiency problem.  Lemons are also great to help boost the immune system and to cleanse the stomach.  Add in the amazing digestive power of the probiotics you get with any ferment, and this recipe is great powerhouse to help improve your digestive system.  As an added bonus, you can even drink the brine after the lemons are all gone.  It is full of electrolytes to help you recover from the intense summer heat (particularly helpful if you live in Florida like I do).  Just think of it like an all-natural, DIY version of Gatorade! 

Basic Lacto-Fermented Lemons

1 glass quart jar (mason jars work great)

2 cups water

1 ½ tablespoons natural salt (I usually use sea salt)

Sliced lemons (however many you can cram into the jar while leaving ¼ inch space at the top)

Add salt to water and stir until it is dissolved.  Add lemons to jar, leaving a ¼ inch space at the top.  Pour salt water brine over lemons.  If the brine does not completely cover lemons, make another batch to add in.  Make sure the lemons are covered, but don’t let the brine reach the very top, you need that space for the ferment to “breathe” while it is working.  Put the lid on the jar, label it (your label should have the name of your ferment as well as the date) and forget it for at least 2 weeks.  I let mine sit for 3 weeks before opening it, however it may be ready sooner.  The thing you want to look for are bubbles.  If the ferment is still working, it will be making bubbles.  I wait until the bubbles are minimal or gone before opening mine, though being a bit hasty won’t hurt a thing.

     If you really want to get fancy, you can add herbs to your lemons to change the flavor up a bit.  Some of my favorite herbs to add to lemons include garlic, ginger, rosemary, or basil.  Get creative!  Lavender might make for a nice, relaxing treat.  Parsley might be good to add for a refreshing palate cleanser between courses at dinner.  Remember, you can use these lemons slices in any recipe that calls for lemons.  Feel free to play around with flavors to make your recipes more exciting!

The following recipes are ones that I found on the more traditional fermented lemons.

Italian Lacto-Fermented Lemons

7-8 organic lemons

7 lemons freshly juiced

¾ cup sea salt (any grain will be fine, the amount of salt can vary, it is not an exact science)

Wash lemons and trim off the tips, making sure not to cut into the flesh.  Cut lemons into quarters, stopping ¼ inch from the bottom to keep the quarters connected.  Stuff 2 teaspoons of salt into each lemon, gently compacting it into each segment.  Pack lemons into 1 ½ liter container.  Mix remaining salt with lemon juice.  Pour this brine over the lemons.  Lemons should be  ½ inch below the level of the brine, if not add filtered water to raise the level.  Secure the lid onto the jar and sit in a dark corner for 30 days. 

Moroccan Lacto-Fermented Lemons

Use the Italian recipe, but add in the following herbs/spices.

Bay Leaf (4 leaves)

Cinnamon Stick (2-3 inch)

Allspice (1 teaspoon)

Coriander Seed (1 teaspoon)

Resources:

Kitchn: http://www.thekitchn.com/recipe-lactofermented-mixed-pickles-recipes-from-the-kitchn-194011

Nourished Kitchen: http://nourishedkitchen.com/morrocan-preserved-lemons/

Nourishing Meals: http://www.nourishingmeals.com/2012/02/how-to-make-lacto-fermented-vegetables.html

Organic Facts: https://www.organicfacts.net/health-benefits/fruit/health-benefits-of-lemon.html

Pickle It: http://www.pickl-it.com/blog/364/italian-moroccan-spiced-lacto-fermented-lemon/