Sounds like a song I have on my iphone. From the 80s. We will learn more about me and the 80s below.
While I have a little downtime from growing and putting up food, I thought I'd share a little of my fermenting experiments.
Last month, a really nice lady, Rima, came into the studio and gave a presentation on how to make kombucha, a fermented, probiotic tea. Kombucha is all the rage right now in the health food stores. Prasinos, one of LaGrange's favorite restaurants, serves kombucha in blends like cocktails. It's a little vinegary, a little effervescent, and a little sweet. And pretty expensive. So when Rima gave us all a skoby and some starter tea to make our own, I rushed home with mine.
So, I rushed home, made some tea, blended it in, and put it in the pantry. And then generally forgot about it for about three weeks. Instead of the 5-7 days Rima recommended before proceeding to step two.
So, after three weeks, this is what my kombucha looked like.
This is actually a fairly flattering photo. The dark on the bottom is the original skoby, or mushroom, that Rima gave me. On the top is a brand new scoby. Yes, I grew it myself. Here is a better shot. Yum:
Now, what I really wanted was a lot more kombcha, so I re-decanted most of it into a larger glass jar, added more tea to both jars, and am on my second fermentation now.
Of course, before putting them back into the pantry for whoever knows how long, I had to taste some. Yes, I did, scout's honor. And, it was delicious! Success!
Now, another fermentation project I have going is more mainstream, and something I've been doing for years...making yogurt. I started manufacturing my own yogurt in the closet in my dorm room in college. Yes, I was a good girl. A few years ago the discovery of ebay led me to purchase a couple yogurt makers suspiciously like the one I had in college. (My farm friend Nancy assured me I can make yogurt in one big jar just as easily, but nostalgia pulled too hard on my heartstrings.) So here is what I do:
First, heat up about 3 1/2 cups of milk to just under boiling. Here I am putting in some local maple syrup. Which brings me to the first reason to make your own yogurt. Organic milk, (and, if you can find local organic milk, it's even more true) can be pricey, so I use it to make products that would be even pricier when purchased. I figure I save money from buying organic yogurt in the store. And, I can sweeten it in a healthier way than store bought. Like maple syrup, which is super yummy.
Now, my yogurt maker came with a sweet little thermometer with the perfect temperature marked to which I should cool the milk. As you can see, I heated the milk just above the mark, That is ok. Some places tell you to boil it, but I suspect all you really need to do is heat it to the mark, unless you are trying to kill something in the milk (like if you suspect some yucky bacteria).
Then, finally, decant (my new favorite word) into your yogurt maker! This one is like the one I had in college. It might even be the same one, sold back to me on ebay. The sharp eye may notice two different style cups. That is because I have another yogurt maker that is a bright lemon yellow, with different cups. I mix and match often.
While I have a little downtime from growing and putting up food, I thought I'd share a little of my fermenting experiments.
Last month, a really nice lady, Rima, came into the studio and gave a presentation on how to make kombucha, a fermented, probiotic tea. Kombucha is all the rage right now in the health food stores. Prasinos, one of LaGrange's favorite restaurants, serves kombucha in blends like cocktails. It's a little vinegary, a little effervescent, and a little sweet. And pretty expensive. So when Rima gave us all a skoby and some starter tea to make our own, I rushed home with mine.
So, I rushed home, made some tea, blended it in, and put it in the pantry. And then generally forgot about it for about three weeks. Instead of the 5-7 days Rima recommended before proceeding to step two.
So, after three weeks, this is what my kombucha looked like.
This is actually a fairly flattering photo. The dark on the bottom is the original skoby, or mushroom, that Rima gave me. On the top is a brand new scoby. Yes, I grew it myself. Here is a better shot. Yum:
Now, what I really wanted was a lot more kombcha, so I re-decanted most of it into a larger glass jar, added more tea to both jars, and am on my second fermentation now.
Of course, before putting them back into the pantry for whoever knows how long, I had to taste some. Yes, I did, scout's honor. And, it was delicious! Success!
Now, another fermentation project I have going is more mainstream, and something I've been doing for years...making yogurt. I started manufacturing my own yogurt in the closet in my dorm room in college. Yes, I was a good girl. A few years ago the discovery of ebay led me to purchase a couple yogurt makers suspiciously like the one I had in college. (My farm friend Nancy assured me I can make yogurt in one big jar just as easily, but nostalgia pulled too hard on my heartstrings.) So here is what I do:
Now, my yogurt maker came with a sweet little thermometer with the perfect temperature marked to which I should cool the milk. As you can see, I heated the milk just above the mark, That is ok. Some places tell you to boil it, but I suspect all you really need to do is heat it to the mark, unless you are trying to kill something in the milk (like if you suspect some yucky bacteria).
Then, once cooled, put in a dollup of your starter yogurt. Mix it in so it is dispersed.
So, by now you can clearly see the second reason for making your own yogurt; so you can also have a cute little yogurt maker cluttering...er...decorating your own all-too-tiny counter space. Ah, I love my gadgets.
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