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Kombucha, Kvass and the rest of life’s happenings

Posted by Lacey in Food/recipes | gardening/compost | Health/Nutrition | Pictures - (3 Comments)

Okay,  for some reason I can’t figure out how to seperate these pictures and place them where I want in my post.  So… and they’re out of order.  Anyone with wordpress that can offer some advice  would be greatly appreciated!

Okay, there’s a few pics of Kombucha (The dark tea looking stuff)  a few pics of the Beet Kvass process and some pictures of the gardens and Caleb with a hose…. which was a funny event.

Kombucha…. ahhhhh. It’s my favorite drink. Slightly effervescent, slightly tangy, slightly sweet and just a tad bit alcoholic. It does wonders for the gut. It helps to create balance in the bodies natural bacterias with it’s enzymes and probiotics. It does so many things so wonderfully. So I decided to just make some. I’ve heard it’s easy and cheap, which works well for me because I am also easy and cheap…. hmmmm…. you know what I’m trying to say.

So here’s the formula

Black tea (it must have caffeine)

white sugar

and a scooby (or the culture that eats the sugars and makes it fermented)

you also add a bit of either apple cider vinegar or some previously made kombucha.

1. Brew like 4quarts of tea, let sit to luke warm temp

2. add sugar, about 1 cup

place scooby in mixture, cover with light cloth, like a cheese cloth. Let sit for 7-14 days. It’s delicious.

I plan on bottling it in old Grolsch bottles to let it get more fizzy. However I keep sneaking little tastes so this first batch is just about gone as you can see.

Kvass. Beet Kvass to be exact. Actually I made Beet Ginger Kvass. I like adding ginger. Again, this is a fermented tonic of sorts to aid in digestion, mental clarity and overall health. This one’s a bit more tangy, a little bit salty… but because my tummy likes it, I like it.

To make

Whey (when raw milk seperates it produces cheese and whey)

Filtered water

Salt

2-3 organic beets

Ginger (optional)

I added a few tsp of sugar

1. Chop beets into little cubes

2. place in a 2 quart jar (or in my case several little ones)

add a bit of salt (sea salt is preferable)

3. add whey and water (about 1 part whey to 5 parts water)

4. add minced ginger and the bit of sugar (I haven’t found a recipe that calls for sugar in this, but I’m going to try it)

5. Seal securely and place in moderately warm area for 3-5 days or until bubbles form. You can then refrigerate to allow it to continue to ferment for a more effervescent effect. This is what I plan to do because the fresh stuff tastes too salty. I’ve read of people leaving it to sit in the fridge for over 6 months before they drink it! I’m glad I have beets in my garden, I’ll hopefully be able to make several batches.

Other than those 2 experiments, here’s how my garden’s looking. The beans are finally starting to take off. Yay!

Caleb enjoys helping me water….. as well as watering himself and anyone in his way.

I have to say, for the amount of work an organic garden is… it’s totally worth it!

Props to all you organic gardeners

Posted by Lacey in gardening/compost | Pictures | Sustainability - (2 Comments)

Here are my gardens, as you can see something is eating my poor little beans.   You can get a better look by clicking on the pictures.   I sprayed them down with Dr. Bronners soap diluted in water as well as putting down some sort of earth stuff that starts with a D.  It’s supposed to kill little bugs and slugs, but something is still having a hayday on my beans.  And don’t get me started on my carrots.  Or lack there of.  Organic Gardening is HARD.  Any suggestions??

A lull

Posted by Lacey in gardening/compost | Life - (0 Comments)

Once in awhile, amidst the craziness I call life, there is a lull.  I greet it with open arms, happy for the reprieve.  I know it’s been quite a few weeks since I last wrote, but it’s been a few weeks since I’ve had a clear mind in order to arrange my thoughts here.  For some time now I’ve had a strange feeling that all was not right in my body.  I couldn’t put my finger on it, but I knew something was amiss.  One evening I became quite aware of what that suspicion was.   I felt as though I was having violent and exruciating contractions late one day, which settled into dull cramping.  After seeing a midwife, a doctor and finally a surgeon, my IUD was extracted from my uterus where it had become embedded.  So much for being an un-inevasive form of birth control.  The Paraguard IUD is made of copper which is supposed to  create an unsatisfactory environment for fertilization without the use of hormones.  I should have known, however that my body would be unhappy with a piece of metal in my body.  So now we’re on to the ‘natural’ method, aka counting my cycles…. which probably means I’ll end up pregnant.  Crap.  Oh well, I should enjoy this season of life and embrace it.  My body is at it’s peak health and is a perfect incubator, and I should rejoice in the fact that I am able to have children.  Still, our family situation is precariously balanced as it is, and I’m sure another squishy little body would throw things off.  But, what do you do?  I suppose the best you can.  We can choose to be positive with the circumstances, or we can choose to be pessimistic.

So anyway, I’ve got my garden planted, finally.  I was waiting for a week of consistent weather before getting started.  And by consistent weather, I mean no snow, hail or spastic weather patterns.  Which is exactly what we’ve been expierencing!  The weather seems to match the chaos in our household.  Hopefully with the increasing presence of the sunshine, we will see consistency in balance in the home!  So, in my garden I planted beans, peas, zucchini, squash, tomatoes, carrots, lettuce and spinach and I’m waiting a bit longer before I plant a melon, as it needs warmer temperatures.  I should add that I’m a complete novice.  I read the back of the seed packets, which I ordered from the National Gardening Co., and did my best to follow directions.  I covered the little seeds which need warmer temps with some mulch from yard clippings, hoping the composting grass will keep the seeds warm.  We’ll see.  I’ll post pictures soon.  I’m so excited, I feel like a brooding hen.

In other news, my son figured out the power of the word, NO….. joy.  this is going to be a fun stage.

Divide and Conquer!

Posted by Lacey in DIY | gardening/compost | Health/Nutrition - (1 Comments)

Today was… productive, and refreshing and invigorating!  The crisp air in the morning woke me quickly, as did Caleb.   I was wide awake though, not zombie-ish as usual.  We started our day with our soaked oatmeal.  I think I added extra Kefir because it had a more tangy smell to it than usual.  It was yummy though, and it did wonders for our digestion!  Caleb pooped 4 times today!  I’ll spare you the details of my bathroom-escapades.

The crispy grass looked so fun this morning, I really wanted to go stomp around on it…. but I wasn’t ready to face the cold.  So Caleb and I played with Duplos and his Noah’s ark.  His Noah’s ark is awesome.  It’s hand carved with little wooden animals with hand painted designs.  Pretty cool.  Around noon, we got all bundled up and ventured out for a walk.  Half way down our road, I realized it was really effing cold.  So we hustled back, grabbed scarfs, and we were off again.  Then I decided I wanted my coffee mug so we could stop at Chapters (the coffee shop in town) and I could purchase some of their great Ginger-Peach tea.Got the coffee mug, got out the door and decided I should bring my phone… just in case… and some gloves for myself and Caleb…. and…. forget it, we’re just leaving.

So the walk was nice.  We got home and when Caleb went down for his nap (which he did with out his pacifier !!! yay!)  I went outside to conquer the gardens.  The frozen ground glared at me, but I was resolved.  It was a nice day and I was GOING to do this!  I ripped out half of the weeds/left over produce from last years crop and then set off to conquer the compost bin.  Hmmmm…. I guess I’ll just dump it in there and stir it around a bit.  I’m going to do a bit more research on this tonight.  Compost!  I will OWN you!

This evening, I decided to tackle DIY (do it yourself, I feel like Rachel Ray explaining EVOO every time she says it) household cleaners.  I grabbed the Borax, white vinegar, baking soda, and lemons and went to work on the bathroom.  Caleb helped by hauling everything out of the bathroom and leaving it in piles around the house (I’m still looking for a bottle of shampoo….) The end result was a clean, sparkley non-chemical smelling bathroom.  Perfect.

To finish off this glorious day, I fried up some bananas with rum and cinnamon and served them up with some fresh whipped cream.  Something about them didn’t quite sit right in my stomach, but they were damn good.  And it was a good way to end this day!  Except I think I’ll do some Yoga and have some Tea… that would make this a prefect day.

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