Meet Our Authors

Hi. I’m Dr. Rick Picklestein. Not a real doctor, but definitely a real fermenter — and probably banned from several Whole Foods. I’ve blown up three kitchens, accidentally carbonated a cat toy, and once taught a class called Kimchi: Nature’s Spicy Fart. Somewhere along the way, I realized that gut health isn’t just about digestion. It’s about embracing your inner weird, one bubbling jar at a time. Fermentation, to me, is beautiful chaos. It’s comedy, chemistry, and the occasional moldy accident. I'm here to help you make friends with your microbes, laugh at your bloating, and turn every kitchen misadventure into a probiotic win. No fluff. No guru robes. No sacred cows — unless they’ve been cultured. Just real talk, good bugs, and the occasional cartoon diagram of your intestines yelling at you. If you’re into sauerkraut with a side of sarcasm, poop jokes backed by legit science, explosively fizzy kombucha, and feeling better without joining a health cult, you’re in the right place.

Hey, I’m Elio “Dust” Santorini — part poet, part pickle, part spiritual dropout with a gut full of wild bacteria and a brain that never quite shuts up. I write like a monk who found wine and sarcasm, then decided to stay for the fermentation. After years of living in a body that felt like a cosmic prank — chronic illness, mystery rashes, and a gut that acted like a moody jazz drummer — I stopped running and started listening. Turns out, the weirdest healing comes when you stop trying to fix everything and start fermenting what’s already there. These days, I split my time between fermenting vegetables, talking to my kefir grains like they're old friends, and writing about the absurd beauty of healing, pain, mindfulness, and microbes. I believe gut health is spiritual work, that humor is medicine, and that farts are just your bacteria trying to communicate. If any of that makes sense to you, you’re in the right place. Pull up a chair, grab something funky, and let’s dive into the mess together.

Hi, I’m Mags Willoughby (“Mags” short for Magnolia, but don’t call me that unless you’re my grandmother or a jar of pickles.). I write, ferment, overthink, and occasionally spill kefir on my cat. I started this journey looking for better digestion, but I ended up finding something deeper. Somewhere between a jar of beet kvass that exploded in my backpack and a yogurt that smelled like defeat, I realized that healing isn’t just about health. It’s about patience, curiosity, and learning to be okay with not knowing. These days, my kitchen is a laboratory of slow miracles. I make kraut, miso, and all kinds of funky, living foods that remind me to slow down and trust the process. I write about gut health, moods, messy feelings, and the strange comfort of letting things bubble at their own pace. Fermentation taught me how to stop rushing and start listening. To microbes, to my body, and to the quiet little voice that says, “you’re doing okay.” My posts are a mix of recipes, reflections, and honest thoughts about living with imperfection and finding joy in the small, salty moments. If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed, bloated, or like your brain is running on kombucha fumes, you’re not alone. This space is for the tender-hearted, the curious, and anyone who thinks pickles might be magic. Take a deep breath. You’re among friends.