I had another great opportunity to write a guest post for the Lilith's Apothecary Blog. I chose the topic of raw milk this time. Not drinking conventional milk is something I feel very strongly about. Go on over and take a look!
Real Milk is Raw Milk
Enjoy!
Keep it real!
~Sarah
Showing posts with label raw milk. Show all posts
Showing posts with label raw milk. Show all posts
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Friday, January 7, 2011
How To Make Kefir
Kefir is a traditional probiotic drink made from milk (or other liquids like coconut water) that has been fermented using cultures. These cultures are good bacteria strains that aid in fermenting the milk without it going bad. The key to health, whether it be good or bad is in the gut and probiotics help to heal and restore gut health. Kefir delivers many strains of good bacteria to the intestines to keep harmful bacteria at bay and can be taken daily. It is a bit expensive to buy in stores already made but very easy and inexpensive to make at home.
How to make kefir:
You will need a kefir crock or wide-mouth ball jar, a spatula, strainer, cheesecloth, large bowl with spout, raw milk, starter cultures.
Starter cultures can be obtained from a friend who makes kefir or at a local farm like Your Family Cow. They can also be purchased online at Cultures for Health.
The cultures look a little like cottage cheese. Some of them are larger and look like large tapioca.
Begin by placing starter cultures into kefir crock. I use 1-2 tablespoons.You'll notice the ring of cream inside my crock. I had just strained the previous batch and rinsing between batches is not necessary.
Then add your raw milk. I have a 2 quart crock and I fill it about two-thirds or so.
Cover crock with a cheesecloth or a clean towel and place in a dim place for 24-48 hours. The longer it sits the more "fizzy" it will become.
When the kefir is ready, strain it through a strainer or cheesecloth into a clean, preferably glass container.
Rinse and save the cultures for your next batch. They will multiply with each batch. Give the extras away to friends or store them in a container in the refrigerator for a short amount of time. They tend to go dormant if they are not being fed by the milk so they may take some coaxing to be reconstituted.
The kefir is now ready to serve. It will have a slightly yeasty smell to it which is normal. Store in a glass container in the refrigerator. Drink daily for maximum benefits. It will keep for a long time in the fridge and you can keep adding new kefir to it.
That's it! You now have fresh, organic kefir for just the cost of milk once you get your starters going. It is a wonderful addition to your real food diet.
Enjoy!
Love,
Sarah - Your Real Food Organic Outlaw Mama
How to make kefir:
You will need a kefir crock or wide-mouth ball jar, a spatula, strainer, cheesecloth, large bowl with spout, raw milk, starter cultures.
Starter cultures can be obtained from a friend who makes kefir or at a local farm like Your Family Cow. They can also be purchased online at Cultures for Health.
The cultures look a little like cottage cheese. Some of them are larger and look like large tapioca.
Begin by placing starter cultures into kefir crock. I use 1-2 tablespoons.You'll notice the ring of cream inside my crock. I had just strained the previous batch and rinsing between batches is not necessary.
Then add your raw milk. I have a 2 quart crock and I fill it about two-thirds or so.
Cover crock with a cheesecloth or a clean towel and place in a dim place for 24-48 hours. The longer it sits the more "fizzy" it will become.
When the kefir is ready, strain it through a strainer or cheesecloth into a clean, preferably glass container.
Rinse and save the cultures for your next batch. They will multiply with each batch. Give the extras away to friends or store them in a container in the refrigerator for a short amount of time. They tend to go dormant if they are not being fed by the milk so they may take some coaxing to be reconstituted.
The kefir is now ready to serve. It will have a slightly yeasty smell to it which is normal. Store in a glass container in the refrigerator. Drink daily for maximum benefits. It will keep for a long time in the fridge and you can keep adding new kefir to it.
That's it! You now have fresh, organic kefir for just the cost of milk once you get your starters going. It is a wonderful addition to your real food diet.
Enjoy!
Love,
Sarah - Your Real Food Organic Outlaw Mama
What is Real Food?
There is so much talk about what real food is. I wanted to give an overview of some real food basics. Each topic can be an entire blog post in itself but some general descriptions are a great start. In my home, real food is food that is in its natural state and that has not been processed, altered in an artificial way, or packaged.
Vegetables are an example of real food. They are "nature's candy"! They are full of vitamins and antioxidants that help heal the body and keep it healthy. Vegetables can be fermented, juiced, and preserved to meet every need and last all-year-round. Organic vegetables are grown without the use of pesticides, herbicides, or fungicides. Organic farmers know how to properly rotate crops for pest control and maximum soil replenishment. The result is vegetables that are higher in vitamins and that are more nutritious than conventional vegetables. This is the same with fruit and how it is grown.
Vegetables are an example of real food. They are "nature's candy"! They are full of vitamins and antioxidants that help heal the body and keep it healthy. Vegetables can be fermented, juiced, and preserved to meet every need and last all-year-round. Organic vegetables are grown without the use of pesticides, herbicides, or fungicides. Organic farmers know how to properly rotate crops for pest control and maximum soil replenishment. The result is vegetables that are higher in vitamins and that are more nutritious than conventional vegetables. This is the same with fruit and how it is grown.
photo courtesy of humble seed
Some will stop there and say vegetables are the only true real food. I believe that there is more to it than that. Raw, organic milk from grass-fed cows or goats is an amazing enzyme and probiotic-rich food that nourishes and helps restore the body. All traditional people groups ate off the land and drank milk from their animals. It was how they survived and thrived. Pasteurized, homogenized milk is not really milk anymore without the enzymes and probiotics that are damaged or killed during processing and should not be consumed. Many people with "milk allergies" are not actually allergic to the milk. They are instead allergic to the denatured pasteurized milk. When the enzymes are destroyed it makes it very difficult to digest.
photo courtesy of care2.com
Many environmentalists argue that the consumption of meat is a main contributor to climate change. In reality, while factory farming does increase green-house gas emissions, small family farms raising grass-fed, organic animals for meat do not. The difference between a factory farm and an organic family farm is night and day. Conventional farmers feed their animals grain (which is genetically modified) and keep them confined in large numbers together. They are often ill and require large amounts of antibiotics to keep them "healthy" and their milk and meat "safer" for consumption. In order to ensure maximum production, they are given hormones to make them grow faster and larger. Organic farmers provide large, open, areas for their animals to enjoy eating lush grass and breathe fresh air. They were not meant to eat grain so they do not. Grass-fed meat is higher in Omega-3 fatty acids, vitamins, and minerals.
photo courtesy of your family cow
Next time, we will talk about butter, eggs, lard and a few other real foods that are shunned in modern society but were valued and even considered sacred in traditional cultures.
Stay tuned!
Love,
Sarah - The Real Food Organic Outlaw Mama
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