Water and Milk Kefir, an introduction

Ever heard of kefir?  Well, I hadn't until a few months ago.  I assumed it's some wacky drink that only crispety-crunchy hippie-types drink.  Truth be told, I'm starting to believe I'm headed that way myself! That's a good thing if it means the road to improved health!  I'm gonna tell you a little bit about it, then in a day or two, I'll post the recipe for both milk and water kefir.  There's so much to tell, it can get a little confusing, so I'll try to make it as simple as I can.  Remember, I'm a newbie, too.

The word 'kefir' (pronounced 'kuh-feer') comes from the Turkish word for 'good feeling' or 'good life'. It is believed that the drink originated in the Caucasus mountains.  These people were living to be over 100 years old and it is believed to be because of kefir!  People have been drinking this fermented/cultured drink for ages, yet interestingly, it only seems to have become popular in the US more recently.  The health benefits of kefir are many. One reason to drink it is the large amount of probiotics it supplies.

Probiotic is a fancy way of saying good/healthy bacteria that consumes bad bacteria in our gut and intestines. If you have problems with regularity, kefir can help.  It's also good for those with acid problems, ulcers, colitis, diarrhea and candida.  I, myself, am going to attempt to wean myself off of my antacid using kefir.  I'll let you know how that goes, but that's a post for another day.

There are two types of kefir.  Water kefir and milk kefir. They both come in 'grain' form and feed on sugars. Water grains feed on regular sugar whereas the milk kefir grains feed on lactose, or milk sugars. The word 'grains' can be a bit misleading because it leads us to believe they're like a grain of wheat. Granuals would be a bit more accurate.  Water kefir grains are whiteish, yellowish, or orange-ish and remind me of those little things you can buy for plants to retain moisture in the soil.  They tend to take on the color of whatever sweetener you use to feed it.  They're somewhat rubbery in texture.  See photo below:

Milk kefir grains are white and more clumped together, like mini heads of cauliflower.  The texture is a bit spongey.  See photo below:

It's important to know that the two types of grains are not interchangeable.  Milk grains are for milk/dairy kefir and water grains are for water kefir.  You can purchase them at Cultures for Health, from eBay, or get some from a friend.

One thing I wished someone had told me back when I purchased my kefir grains was that you HAVE to work your way up as far as consuming it.  You can't just guzzle down a cup and a half of it on day one. Trust me, I tried it. I had the weirdest 'rock in my gut' feeling all day and a terrible headache and acheyness all night and the following day.  

What I didn't realize is that my body was going through what is called 'die off'.  No, my body wasn't dying off, although I AM getting old! But the bad bacteria was!  And when that happens, it tends to dump the ickies into your system.  Those nasty bacteria present themselves by giving you headaches, muscle aches and flu-like symptoms.  Not fun at all!  Some people have no symptoms of die-off.  Lucky ducks!

For adults, it is best to start with something like 1T for a few days, then try 2T for a few days, etc...until you work your way up to the amount you desire to drink every day.  I found this to work well for me.  I also started drinking it at night, just in case it did bother my gut a bit.  Never woke me up, so I'm assuming all is well in bacteria-land.

You might be wondering what kefir tastes like.  Since I have only tasted the water kefir so far, I can tell you it reminds me a tad of kombucha, which reminds me of a very watered down, barely-sweetened vinegar.  Doesn't sound too appealing?  Well, it's not, in all honesty.  But I know it's good for me!  I know this isn't the healthiest thing to do, but in order to get my water kefir in for the day, I have been mixing mine with my homemade sugar-free 'soda pop'.  That way, I can't taste it at all.  People claim they actually start craving this drink.  I'm not there yet.  I haven't tasted the milk kefir yet, but I've heard it tastes like a thin yogurt and is ideal for smoothies. Since the water kefir was bothering my tummy at first, I didn't dare add the milk kefir, too.

So, how do you make the kefir?  That post is coming soon!  I thought I'd just give you some basics before I introduced you to my strange new experiment, lol!

Change is good...

You may notice that my blog started out with the premise of saving money and that's it.  It had little to do with what is healthy for my family; it was focused on what is cheap.  And sometimes, that's the way being on a strict budget works.  You (think you) cannot afford to buy the stuff that is better for your family.  But I've still always strived to buy as high quality ingredients as my budget would allow.  Meaning, we don't eat crap out of a box, package or can every night.  In fact, very seldom.

While I'm still concerned about maintaining a very strict budget, my focus has been shifted over the last few months. You will be able to notice this as you compare new posts to old posts.  Something I've only recently touched on is health.  I don't normally mention 'diet' unless it's referring to a particular aspect of a dish, not me personally.  I have been on more of a journey than a diet.  A journey toward health and wellness for my family.  This is not a blog about dieting nor do I want it to become one.  However, it is soon to convert (somewhat) to a blog about whole health and REAL food with some occasional 'normal' treats thrown in, I'm sure.

What I DON'T know......
As a disclaimer, I am NO expert.  I have only recently begun my whole health journey and have learned a LOT about what is good and bad for me over the last few months.  However, I still  have tons to learn and you may be learning right along with me!  I sometimes may state something I have seen or heard somewhere.  This does not mean that I know every miniscule detail about it.  But I will try to provide handy links for you to do more reading from those who actually DO know more.  I don't want my blog to turn into a scientific blog where I have to back each post up with studies either, lol.  How boring! 

What I DO know.....
Over the last 6 months, my focus has gravitated toward REAL FOOD.  What is real food?  Bacon, eggs, fatty beef, chicken with skin ON, vegetables slathered in butter, homemade yogurt, heavy cream, nuts and fruit, food cooked in lard, bacon fat, butter and most importantly, coconut oil. Hmmmm......sounds kinda like the stuff that we've been brainwashed taught will MAKE us fat, right?  Wrong!  These are the foods that your great Grandma and Grandpa ate when there was no such thing as high blood pressure, heart attacks, high cholesterol, etc...How can that be?  Stay tuned to my blog to find out why, and how you can improve your overall health with eating traditional foods.  Remember, you will be learning right along with me!  My focus will be more on the recipes with a few factoids thrown in here and there.  I've lost a good chunk of weight eating this way.  If I get gutsy, I may even share before and after pictures some day.

Some obvious changes you will see in my recipes:
I will now be using coconut oil in place of any other cooking oils when possible.  Olive oil will be used in dressings or used cold 99% of the time to preserve its nutrients.  "Frankenfood" oils such as canola, vegetable, shortening, etc...are out the window.  More about them in a future post.

I will be experimenting with new flours such as coconut flour and almond flour to bake with.  I've finally learned that grains are not a good fit for me.  I'm not allergic or anything...they just make me gain as if I had eaten a handful of sugar.  More about that later, too.

I am going to attempt to soak some flour and possibly sprout some grains.  Maybe they will have less of a fattening effect on me.

I will be starting sour dough from scratch.  That should be a fun experiment.

I may attempt to make some Kombucha!

As money allows, I will purchase some water kefir grains to make my own.

I am going to try to avoid refined processed white sugar altogether.  Instead, I may use stevia, raw honey, real maple syrup, sucanat or rapadura.

I will be using Full Fat everything.  Not that I used much of anything low fat before, but I won't be using low fat anything ever again.  It's just loaded with sugar.  More on that later.

I will be using REAL Sea Salt, which contains trace minerals that the body needs and is actually good for you!

I will be avoiding processed food as much as possible.  Most things I make don't come from a box, can or package anyway, so this won't be that hard for me.

When possible, I will substitute a natural ingredient over a processed one.

I am going to find a source for grass-fed beef, raw milk, pastured chicken and eggs.  These are probably going to be out of my budget right now, so I will make due until I can afford these.  I will substitute the best foods I can find.

So, these will be the most noticeable changes.  If you have a question as to what anything is, please feel free to ask and I will help as much as I can.  Thanks for listening and I hope to have some fun experiments to post soon.  Thanks!

We're broke! It's time to do something about it!

Welcome to my new blog!  It's a work in progress, so please be patient as I get things looking the way I'd like. I'm launching this blog because we have hit a desperate point in our finances.  We have to do something to cut our costs.

While I wouldn't consider myself to be a 'spendy' person in the first place,  I do have a husband that travels a lot for work.   You can only imagine the amount we spend each month on that.  Between airline tickets (at least 3 round-trip tickets a month), the occasional rental car, hotel fees, dining out while traveling, it's outlandish.   The numbers have grown into a big ball of debt that is weighing us down and threatening to keep us there.  Desperately trying to keep my job as a stay-at-home-mom (my first priority), I am determined to make things work by being more frugal.  My husband has finally decided to jump on board with me, so this should help make things easier.  Not sure what changed his mind (after years of nagging, er, gentle coaxing), but I'm so happy he did.  Thanks, hon!

This blog will list my adventures while attempting to be frugal and save my family money by making a lot of homemade items in place of things we usually buy.  I will also tell you things we are doing to save on money by cutting costs in other areas. I plan on posting several homemade recipes that are new to me.  I will give you my assessment of how the 'experiments' came out and what I would do differently the next time.

So, why the name So NOT Betty?  Because I am sooooo NOT Betty (Crocker)!!   But I'm gonna do the best I can without the store-bought cake mix!  Who needs that when you can make your own for pennies! Pishhhhh!  More to come soon...and WELCOME!