Cortney Burns,
Chef Author of Nourish Me Home
“Julia has a seamless way of weaving history, recipes, tales together making one feel as if they are being transported to another place in time through smells, facts flavors. Her deep knowledge, and reverence for the craft of preserving food makes my life as a forever student all the more joyful.”
About the Book
From craft beers and sourdough bread to kimchi, coffee, tea, and cheese, fermentation is a popular topic in both food and health circles.
In Our Fermented Lives, food historian and fermenting expert Julia Skinner explores the fascinating roots of a wide range of fermented foods in cultures around the world, with a focus on the many intersections fermented foods have with human history and culture, from the evolution of the microbiome to food preservation techniques, distinctive flavor profiles around the globe, and the building of community.
Fans of fermentation, chefs, and anyone fascinated with the origins of various foods will enjoy this engaging popular history, which is accompanied by 42 recipes adapted from historic sources, including sauerkraut, corn beer, uji (fermented grain porridge), pickles and relishes, vinegars, ketchup, soy sauce, Tepache (fermented pineapple drink), vinegars, beet kvass, and more.
To learn more about the book, check out:
root-kitchens.com/our-fermented-lives.
To purchase the book, click on the image below. Participants are encouraged to obtain and secure the book at least one week before the start of Week 1.
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Meet the Author
Dr. Julia Skinner is a food writer whose work includes the award-winning book Our Fermented Lives. She also runs Root, a food-focused community and consulting organization focused on education and support for creative professionals.
She is currently working on her two next books: The Magic of Fermentation Oracle deck (a follow-up to her first deck, The Hidden Cosmos), and The Essential Preserving Handbook, both for Storey publishing. She regularly contributes to national and international publications, including Food & Wine and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and writes a weekly newsletter on food, history, and the natural world.
She is a fermentation enthusiast who leads engaging community classes and events to help bring the art of fermentation to home cooks and chefs worldwide. She has a PhD in Library & Information Science and uses her background in that space to help others find and document their very own food stories.
In addition to writing and teaching about food, she helps other writers in her capacity as a writing coach. In particular, she works with book authors who are feeling stuck in their work and helps her clients build a writing practice that's sustainable and fun.
She lives between Atlanta, GA, and Cork, Ireland.
To learn more about Julia, visit root-kitchens.com/about
Follower her work through her newsletter
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About the Online Book Club
In this book club, we'll uncover our own fermented lives by exploring the themes within the book, Our Fermented Lives. Each week, you'll embark on a journey through history, connecting your own experiences and perspectives to the millennia-long tradition of fermentation and its many influences on our cultures and communities.
Our discussion questions will help you dive into the different themes of the book, from health to community to flavor, to notice how each theme weaves itself through history and connects to your own past, your ancestors, and your future. In the final week, you'll come together with the author to discuss the future: How everything we've learned can help us move forward in building the world we want to see, in our kitchens and beyond.
The book club also includes additional classes, from free online courses to a compelling culinary newsletter, to help you continue the journey after our time together has ended.
A Fascinating 6-Week Experience
March 11 - April 15, 2024
Embark on an enriching and rare journey with the author and the community to delve into this award-winning book!
Your journey will include the following elements:
Dates: March 11 - April 15, 2024
Mondays @ 6:00 - 7:00 pm (PST) / 9:00 - 10:00 pm (EST)
with the possibility of an extended (90-minute) session during the final week for integration.
Fee: $115
Over the course of the 6-week book club, participants will convene virtually on Zoom for facilitated sessions during Weeks 2 and 4. On Week 6, participants will have the special opportunity to virtually meet the author for a Q&A session and integration discussions.
Please acquire and secure the book at least one week before the commencement of Week 1.