Have culture, will travel! I did it! Neglected my immunity and now I'm sick. When we travel our packed chuck box looks more like that of a pioneer chuckwagon taking care to bring most comforts of home.
Cultured buttermilk was packed in our picnic cooler, but one thing I forgot was my nutrient dense kefir! Kefir is a wonderful probiotic culture that is eons old (long story of history) (short history). It's similar to yogurt, but much more potent and can keep you 'regular' and build up your immunity. Studies have found that our immunity begins in our gut.
Back to kefir. Here are what kefir grains look like.
Rather like cottage cheese .. and when rinsed little pieces of cauliflower. However, it's a mortal sin to rinse your kefir in my humble opinion. The best place to obtain kefir grains is from a friend that wishes to share. Or online. They multiply and it's perfectly fine to share about a tablespoon in you have double that amount.
Back to the flu! On our recent vacation I tried very hard to eat healthy. It's sometimes difficult when staying at a hotel or when you are a guest. My sleep pattern was disrupted as well. Getting proper sleep is right up there with consuming kefir or other cultured foods in my backwoods' doctoring opinion. I did buy a plain kefir drink at the market, but it was full of unnecessary ingredients, a weak culture and tasted horrible. Dairy free options for kefir are also available, and I went three days without consuming kefir when we returned home.
The last time I endured the flu was in 2009 just prior to changing my family's diet to include organic pastured meats that I buy from local farms, fresh milk .. and soaked grains if we dare consume them. I may have had one or two colds since then as well. This is a pretty good five year track record in my opinion and attests to the need for nutrient dense foods and good sleep.
Next time I'll show you the process for making dairy kefir at home. It's inexpensive once you have your kefir grains and tastes 100% better than store-bought.
So remember, if you're often sick, take the time to nourish yourself and get onto the road of good health .. one bite, sip, nap at a time.
Photo: Great grandparents at their farm in Blandinsville, IL, with five of their six children .. my grandpa was yet a twinkle in grandma's eye. Stable boy and governess also pictured. Hodges farm, circa 1903-4
Showing posts with label kefir. Show all posts
Showing posts with label kefir. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 05, 2014
Friday, January 28, 2011
On Wheat and Kefir Grains
Even though I 'hate' Walmart ... and don't buy much other than a few produce items once in a while in a pinch .. they are now stocking Wheat Montana products .. and beat the health store prices. Hubby and I picked up two 25 pound sacks of wheat berries (Prairie Gold variety) for $12 each .. and their flour products are a good price as well. Attempting to stock our storage pantry is expensive .. so this discount was a good find.
I promised to fill you in on the water kefir experiment. I took half of my milk kefir grains (a nice gift from Mr. & Mrs. H ..last year:) as they had greatly multiplied .. and designated them to make water kefir. It took a few days for the grains to get accustomed to their new environment .. but now they are producing a probiotic drink quite well.
Here's what I noticed this past week: I do think the kefir has a detoxifying property as I noticed a slight headache for several days and a few blemishes on my normally clear facial skin ... after about three days of drinking the water kefir, these symptoms have gone away. I will leave you with a few links touting the health benefits of said drink .. read into them as you wish .. as they were taken from the internet. Also .. there are some links on how to make water kefir. This is a good drink .. especially for people that may not tolerate dairy .. or milk kefir.
Water Kefir Steps
Water Kefir Benefits
Kefir Health Benefits
Health Benefits Of Kefir
How To Videos @ Cultures of Health
Using Milk Kefir Grains to Make Water Kefir
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kefir grains are added to cool water/sugar mixture |
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kefir grains fermenting |
Water Kefir Steps
- Boil some water
- Place 1/2 cup of boiling water in a super clean quart mason jar
- Add 1/4 cup raw sugar, or organic brown sugar, or white cane sugar
- Swirl until the sugar melts completely
- Add enough fresh cool water (chlorine free) leaving about 2 inches space at top of jar
- Make sure the water is no warmer than room temp and add (2-4 tablespoons of kefir grains)
- Place a paper coffee filter over the top of jar and fasten with a rubber band
- Set in a warm spot in your kitchen for 24-48 hours.
- When enough fermentation (to suite your taste) has taken place (much of the sugar will be 'eaten' by the kefir and some will turn into fructose) .. strain the grains .. I pour the fermented kefir into a clean capped bottle. The grains get rinsed and reprocessed with more water/sugar in another clean quart jar.
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finished water kefir before adding juice |
Water Kefir Benefits
Kefir Health Benefits
Health Benefits Of Kefir
How To Videos @ Cultures of Health
Using Milk Kefir Grains to Make Water Kefir
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