In the spirit of healthier living, I became a little bolder and added two new things to my list of homemade items (in the food world, this time): Kombucha and yogurt.
I love a good challenge, but creating either sounded like a daunting task. In true Kara fashion, I decided to do both at the same time! I dove right in and bought a yogurt maker and a SCOBY (Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast), the starter culture for the Kombucha. After rifling through a myriad online blogs, how-to videos, etc, I dug in and got to work!
I made my first batch of Greek yogurt using my handy dandy counter top yogurt maker. It turned out beautifully! I flavored it with vanilla, Stevia, and cinnamon. It tasted like a cinnamon roll. Yum! The yogurt maker only makes small batches though and since we eat a TON of yogurt here (especially in our daily smoothies), I decided to make a large batch (using a whole gallon of milk)! That time, I used the crock pot method. Another home run!
Nothing has gone to waste in the process; I use the strained whey protein for an extra protein punch in smoothies. I've been researching other ways to use it too.
To be thrifty, I store it in old yogurt tubs. For the cup on the left, I prepared a triple berry coulee and mixed it in. The tub on the right is straight-up plain yogurt. Voila!
My Kombucha-making was easy! Here's how I did it: HOW TO MAKE KOMBUCHA.
After I had brewed my batch of Kombucha and let it ferment for about a week, it was time to bottle it for the second ferment (to make it extra fizzy). I admit, I had a really tough time figuring out how I was going to get my SCOBY out of the glass gallon container; I didn't dare harm it (need to use it again for more batches) and I certainly did NOT want to touch it! It didn't smell great and it's a large disk of bacteria and yeast (ew!!). Finally, I had to do it though.... with my own bare hands. Growing up on a ranch, assisting in delivering baby calves and "cleaning up" after show cattle, I reminded myself that I've touched yucky things too many times to count and never thought twice about it.
After Mr. SCOBY was removed (I'm so brave- haha!), I strained the Kombucha and added some of the triple berry coulee that I had made to flavor the yogurt. Though the newly-flavored tea was warm (room temp), it tasted wonderful! I divvied up the Kombucha into my new Grolsch-style bottles to let them sit and get fizzy. The second round of fermentation took about four days.
To be thrifty, I store it in old yogurt tubs. For the cup on the left, I prepared a triple berry coulee and mixed it in. The tub on the right is straight-up plain yogurt. Voila!
My Kombucha-making was easy! Here's how I did it: HOW TO MAKE KOMBUCHA.
After I had brewed my batch of Kombucha and let it ferment for about a week, it was time to bottle it for the second ferment (to make it extra fizzy). I admit, I had a really tough time figuring out how I was going to get my SCOBY out of the glass gallon container; I didn't dare harm it (need to use it again for more batches) and I certainly did NOT want to touch it! It didn't smell great and it's a large disk of bacteria and yeast (ew!!). Finally, I had to do it though.... with my own bare hands. Growing up on a ranch, assisting in delivering baby calves and "cleaning up" after show cattle, I reminded myself that I've touched yucky things too many times to count and never thought twice about it.
After Mr. SCOBY was removed (I'm so brave- haha!), I strained the Kombucha and added some of the triple berry coulee that I had made to flavor the yogurt. Though the newly-flavored tea was warm (room temp), it tasted wonderful! I divvied up the Kombucha into my new Grolsch-style bottles to let them sit and get fizzy. The second round of fermentation took about four days.
Here's my finished product: Triple Berry Kombucha, packed with tons of health benefits.
The best part: It...tastes... fantastic! I can't wait to try new flavors. I'm thinking a good Chai spice and a ginger grapefruit are next in line. :-)
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.