STRAWBERRY VANILLA KOMBUCHA ICEE

It's strawberries galore, because they are in season.  Not only are they tasty little berries, they are so full of phyto-nutrients, also known as rejuvinating, healing, anti, aging, anti cancer nutrients. Not to mention they are a good source of fiber.  They are a necessary element to our well being.  Now to mix this with green tea kombucha and Voila!  This is now a berry good drink, right?  Not only is if filled with the above goodness, it is full of probiotics.  And it tastes good too.  Your family will love this probiotic drink.  You don't even have to tell them it has kombucha.  My son won't touch kombucha but if I disguise it, he'll drink it all with a smile wanting a refill.  That makes me one happy camper.

Ingredients:

Strawberries 1/2 cup washed and stemmed

Kombucha 8-12 ounces (more or less)

Ice 2 cups (more or less)

Brown sugar (1 tablespoon)

Vanilla 1 teaspoon

Blender that can crush ice.

Put all this in the blender and blend till desired thickness.  If you would like to scoop it out, add more ice.  If you like to drink it add less ice and or more kombucha.  It's your choice. This a great way to cool down on a hot summer's day.  So easy, so good, and so refreshing.  Better than anything store bought.  And it only costs but a few berries, and some green tea to make your Strawberry Vanilla Kombucha if you make it at home.  So did I  hear someone say it costs too much to eat healthy?  Not so if it's homemade.

Till the next time...many blessings to all.

Mary Helen

ROSEMARY GT KOMBUCHA

Rosemary Kombucha

I love the smell of fresh cut rosemary.  It is such a aromatic herb that makes green tea kombucha so tasty.  Not to mention it has so many nutritional benefits like phyto-nutrients.  Cellular nutrition equals cellular rejuvenation in my books.  So i'm all for adding a little rosemary to my kombucha.  It's also called an anti aging herb, and I believe it because I have seen the results with my own eyes on other folks who's skin alone testify to the health benefits of rosemary, by drinking it as a tea daily.  I have also been using it in my body butters as well for the past year, and I love it. So do my friends. Rosemary has natural salicylic acid, similar to other leading anti blemish lotions, but without all the chemicals.  But that's another blog I posted elsewhere.

Anyway, for the Rosemary Kombucha,  I added...

I disturbed my baby SCOBY, now there's another one
growing circumferencing the diameter of the container.

• water  one gallon
• green tea 4 tea bags
• rosemary dried 2- 6 teaspoons or 1 fresh sprig
• sugar 1/2-1 cup
• SCOBY (I used a small one)

I alway put the herbs in the water while it is still cold.  I heat it slowly till it is almost boiling then I turn the stove off at let it sit with the herbs in till it is barely warm.  I strain it and add that to my continous brew.  If this is your first batch you will add your SCOBY, and your 2 cups of kombucha from your previous brew, or a store bought bottle.  If you have no starter you can always use regular vinegar, but you need a SCOBY.  Yes it will culture.  I've done it a few times in my experiments.  Also, if you don't have a SCOBY you need a starter like a bottle of store bought kombucha if you don't have access to freshly brewed kombucha.  It does has enough live culture in it to recreate another baby SCOBY if left undisturbed for a few weeks.

I lifted the baby SCOBY'S and there is
 the mother SCOBY floating underneath.
Yummy rosemary kombucha beneath
 my SCOBY'S)

Note that rosemary has a lot of oil in the herb naturally, so it will take longer for the SCOBY (symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast) and the tea to culture.  Don't worry, just be patient, it will culture.  Mine took at least 7 days before I saw the baby scoby starting to grow on the surface like a thin film.  It took me 2 weeks of brewing before it started to have that kombucha slight vinegary taste.  Yum.  So after 2 weeks my Rosemary gt Kombucha is ready, and i'm a happy camper.

GRAPE WATER KIFER SODA

Grape Juice Water Kifer Soda

Last night about midnight before I went to bed,  I put my water kifer grains  to soak with ...
3 tbsp. Water kifer grains
1 cup of Grape Juice (more or less, depends on your taste)
3 cups of water
1 tbsp sugar (I used brown)
1 quart size jar
12-18 hours.

Note that this is just the first stage.  Had I decided to go for more bubbles I would cap this in a bottle, tightly so that the air bubbles don't escape.  This works great if you like that wine taste.  I don't, so I stop at 12 hours and I will drink this as is.  It is now that I will see if it is too dry, or not sweet enough, then I will add, water, juice, or sweetener. Or you can leave it as is.  Your choice  Hey, I like taste
too:)

Fermented grape juice water kifer

It's still naturally carbonated, but not as much.  However it's still a healthy probiotic drink.  It's not as sweet as it was before the ferment, which makes it a great drink for diabetics who usually have to leave the fruit juices alone because of the natural sugars already there.  Therefore they don't get all the antioxidants and phytonutrients that are in the juices.  It is these healthy chemicals along with the probiotic kifers that are going to help control the diabetes, like it did mine.

Note 2:  Never throw your ferment away, because it over ferments.  This will make a great base for a delicious grape vinaigrette.  Don't you agree?  Yummy!  I can just imagine.

See how easy it is?  So natural, healthy, and cheap.  What a way to go. Now you try it:)  Let me know how it comes out.  Enjoy and...
Many blessings.
Mary Helen

Grape Juice Water Kifer on the rocks

GOAT MILK KIFER

Goat Milk Kifer

goat milk curds and whey, and milk kifer grain

Good day everyone,  Are you ready for another wonderful probiotic food?  It's healthy, tasty, easy, and affordable if made at home.  Besides by now we should know you get more probiotics if it is homemade, as opposed to store bought, right?,  At least I hope so.  Yes, you get so much more, that it would be to your benefit to make it at home if your aiming for optimum benefits of probiotics.  Again, we have control over this situation.  Especially if it is time you have on hand.  You just basically pour, shake, wait, strain and enjoy.  How hard is that?

Goat milk kifer curds and grain

Well, today I just opened up a bottle of overflowing goat's milk kifer that I fermented yesterday. It overflowed because I  left one inch headspace, and I should have left at least two inches for this narrow bottle.

I have eaten goat cheese, but have never tried the milk.  I like it, and if you like the flavor of  buttermilk, or goat cheese, chances are you will like goat milk kifer.

I started with...

• 1 quart goat milk
• 4 tbsp milk kifer grains
• 36 oz wide mouth glass container (squeaky clean)
• 12 hours time at 78 degrees (optional  as time varies depending of warmth)  

Okay, to be honest I was going for goat cheese,, but when you make the curds and whey, don't shake it to get the grains out.  What happened was, I put my grain to ferment in a small mouth jar.  Big mistake if you are going to make cheese.  So I shook the jar hard to get my grains out and ended up mixing my curds and whey, thus goat milk kifer.  haha.  It's all good though.  Now I know make sure I have a wide mouth jar to get my grains out easily and the whey would pour out, and the curds would have stayed in the strainer.  Oh well. Next time.  It's still deliciously refreshing and probiotic.  I think I will add some mint leaves to my next glass of goat milk kifer.  Yummy!!

Mint milk kifer using mint tea bags.

SPICY FERMENTED CABBAGE & KOMBUCHA JUICE

FERMENTED CABBAGE & KOMBUCHA JUICE.  A LIVE PROBIOTIC DRINK

Top of the day to you.  I remember when every morning I would crawl out of bed walked to the kitchen to start my morning brew of coffee.  I guess I felt the need for speed and thought coffee would do it.  It does to an extent.  But my body would always let me know it didn't like it.  Today my morning drink is this coctail I concocted using...

• 36 oz. kombucha green tea vinegar
•  1/2 cup fermented cabbage aka sauerkraut
• 1 tbsp cayenne pepper (totally optional)
• 1 clove garlic (totally optional)

Blend this all together.  You can strain the pulp if you like but I like the fiber too.  Pour in glass jars/bottles, and cap. Store in the refrigerator.  There it will continue to ferment at a much slower rate.

I don't drink this coctail just to wake me up.  My fermented cabbage and kombucha are both  probiotic so I just doubled my probiotic intake right?  Now that's what I'm  talking about.  Also it is not only probiotic, but remember cabbage is high in antioxidants, and phyto-nutrients, as well as fiber.  The Cayenne pepper is also loaded with these ingredients too. 

If you don't know the benefits of probiotics folks, start googling.  It's a wonder food.  Also the benefits of Cayenne Pepper alone has a write up here.  You do the research.  I will continue to test and inform.  By all means test for yourself and see.

By the way this drink is so tangy and tasty.  Better than any V-8 juice. Add some celery, or tomatoes. You will really look forward to it.  Be creative, get involved with your own health and take charge.

Enjoy, and many blessings  

Mary Helen

VANILLA CREAM WATER KIFER SODA

Hi everyone, here is a quick video on how I made a delicious, Vanilla Cream Water Kifer Soda.  Frothy, with carbonation.  This was done in 8 hours.  So easy anyone can make this.  Best of all...it's a healthy LIVE PROBIOTIC CARBONATED SODA.  Hope you enjoy this one:))

All I started with was

• one gallon water (do not use filtered because there are no minerals.)
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 tbsp Black Strap Molasses
• 1 drop vanilla, per glass.
• clean bottle with tight lid.

Many Blessings:))
Mary Helen

APPLE WATER KIFER

Water kifer is one of my favorite probiotic drinks of all the probiotic drinks. I love the fact that it carbonates just like soda, and for the price of sugar and water.  First, you get all the health benefits of  probiotics without having to use any dairy, or calories. Some of the benefits includes, energy, a state of well being, satiated. Detox.  Anyway,  Second, you can actually drink all the kifer water you want right?  After all it's water.  You can drink a gallon of this a day and it is fine. It's a good way to get your probiotics, have a healthy gut, and get to drink lots of liquids.  Last of all, Water Kifer is a very cheap, and a healthy probiotic water. Last time I checked, water was pretty cheap right?

Why did I label this drink as a diabetic drink?  The Kifer Water Grains, again the term SCOBY comes up,  (Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast)  Well, this bacteria and yeast feeds off the sugar.  So the sweet sugar water, that was sweet sugar water, is no more.  The Water Kifer Grains eat all the sugar, and leaves a nice carbonated probiotic drink. Well in place of all sugar and water, I added 100% apple juice.  the ratio is as follows...

• 3 tbsp Water Kifer Grains
• 2 cups 100% apple juice
• 2 cups water
• 1 tsp black strap molasses

I mixed 2 cups warm water with the black strap molasses.  Then cool to room temperature.  Mix the apple juice and sweet water shake and add to grain.  Set in a warm place. Within a few hours, you will start to see your Water Kifer Grain, do what I call the bubble dance.  The grains absolutely love this combination and do flourish.  This wonderful probiotic kifer water should be ready in 12 hours if kept in a warm place.  Longer if set in a cooler place. The drink is barely noticibly sweet, and quite bubbly.  If I bottle this or decant this into another jar, it would only be for another12 hours in a warm place.because  it would continue to carbonate. Quite similar to sparkling apple cider, but better, not a fake carbonation. Do not add more ferment time, or sugar as this will lead to a small alcoholic but probiotic drink that tastes quite like alcohol.  Yuck.  I was bottling this sweet drink till I had an explosion.  I had glass chards flying everywhere.  Quite scary.  Thank God I had just left the kitchen too.  Now again don't dare bottle for more than 12 hours with this combination. 

What you see here is the bubbles from the above ingredients.  It has been combined for about 18 hours.  It looks quite ready.  When I pop open the lid and take a good whiff.  My nose quickly inhales the fermented scent.  I immediately know that smell and know if it could burst or not.  This one looks like it could burst in a glass bottle  So I would enjoy drinking this now as opposed to later.  Actually to be honest, I should have and would have preferred to drink this Apple Kifer Water, after a 12 hours and not 18 hours later.  Smells like and tastes a bit like alcohol.  So then, all you do is strain.  Rinse grains well.  And start another batch of kifer water using just water and sugar.  It is best to alternate, to give your grain a break.

I love my probiotics whatever way I can get them.  This apple water kifer is healthy, delicious and very cheap.  You will never have to buy another soda again.  The health benefits are amazing, as it has helped me lose weight and keep the majority of it off.  It quenches, that sweet tooth cravings I have.  I've learned to really become creative with Water Kifer.  Like Cream soda?  Try adding vanilla to your already brewed water kifer.  Do not add the vanilla to the grains.  Careful cause the grains are delicate.  I have had water kifer grains disintegrate on me.  Try strawberries, bananas, or mango.  Only experiment once your grains have grown and you have a backup supply.  But this recipe is a tried and true, according to my results here in Mary Helen's Test Kitchen, in Hollywood, Ca.  If you have any success stories, by all means, please share.:)

Enjoy, and many blessings:))

Mary Helen

BREW KOMBUCHA WITHOUT THE SCOBY.

SCOBY (SYBIOTIC CULTURE OF BACTERIA AND YEAST, in Kombucha

Who says you need a SCOBY (Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast) to make Kombucha?  I remember when I searched for this wonderful baby (SCOBY) I read I needed to make my own kombucha earlier last year.  I did make a drink similar using a Mother from an apple cider vinegar I brewed earlier last year using green tea.  But I only made green tea vinegar.  haha, It was good and also probiotic, but it was not kombucha.  It was altogether a whole different ball game. Well after months of research and experimenting in my own kitchen.  I found you can make kombucha using a bottle of kombucha itself to innoculate your tea to make the SCOBY and the Kombucha.   However, my quest to get my real SCOBY was accomplished here in my own neighborhood.  Anyway,  here is what you will need...

• one gallon of green or black  tea.  Home brewed is preferred but store bought is also an option.  
• one 16 oz bottle of original raw kombucha
• one large glass, stainless steel, or plastic container, big enough to hold your kombucha tea.  Note, if using a plastic container, it must read #1, or #2 on the bottom of the container.
• 1/2-1 cup sugar.  Not less.  Do not substitute.



WHITE FILM QUITE DEFINED...SCOBY 

• clean cloth to cover

Add sugar to steeped tea, disolving before you add your bottle of kombucha. Stir well and pour in large container.  Cover with a cloth to avoid any unfriendly critters that may be flying around.  Because if you make it, surely they will come.  LOL.  Put in a warm quiet place undisturbed.  I like to keep mine by the warm window.  She loves it there, and within 4-10 days, you will see a thin layer of white film, floating on top.  Do not disturb her.  She will grow into a off white beautiful SCOBY.  And you are on your way to a happy successful kombucha brewing.

Note you can always make more or less of this recipe.  However on the note of making less...  May I suggest you still add the full 16 oz bottle of kombucha anyway.  It will just help speed up the brewing process, by maybe a couple of days. Also note that the more sugar you add, the chances of having an alcoholic beverage is also greater.  Not to the point of drinking real alcohol. but it is noticeble in taste. So just be careful there I particularly do not like the taste of alcohol. So I use less sugar. The taste is not sweet at all, but you can always get creative by adding juice, or any sweetener of your choice.  Next will come the carbonation but that is in  the second ferment, and bottling and capping.  We'll talk about that another day.

So let's get healthy and start brewing.

Happy Live Probiotics Folks:)

Many Blessings:)

Mary Helen

sybiotic culture of bacteria and Yeast