Daily Morning Breakfast - Kefir / yogurt made from raw milk

Every morning right after I get up, I talk a couple of acidophilus pills. I also give one to each of my older children who will tolerate it. Then after I get kids off to school, I pour me a cup of homemade 24 hour kefir and a cup of homemade 24 hour plain yogurt. I mix them together and I have a fabulous probiotic drink that I love! Others may have their coffee, I have my kefir and yogurt. I don't always have the yogurt in it if I don't have any at the time, but I always have kefir. When they have been cultured for 24 hours, all the lactose (milk sugar) has been eaten away by the beneficial good bacteria.

How to make Kefir

RULE: Do not let the kefir grains touch anything metal or chlorinated water.

1.  In a clean dry quart jar, gently pour in the kefir grains with the resting milk. (If the grains have sat in the resting milk for more than two weeks and smells pretty strong, you can strain out the resting milk and just put the grains in the jar.)

2. Fill the quart jar with fresh raw milk with a 1 inch head space.  Cover the jar with a cotton cloth or a paper towel and hold it down with a rubber band.

3. Set it in a cupboard for 24 hours. Ideally it should be between 65 and 75 degrees.

4. For the first couple of times, use a plastic or wooden spoon to check the milk under the cream and grains to see if it cultured like yoghurt. (If it is not, put it back in the cupboard of another 8-12 hours. Check it again. Only once has it taken mine 48 hours for kefir to culture.) If it is cultured, then put it in a plastic colander that is set in a plastic or glass bowl. (I use plastic.) Strain out the grains. (I lightly pound the strainer down on the bowl to get the milk of the grains.)

5. Put the grains in a small glass jar and cover with ¾ cup of milk. Cover with a plastic lid or plastic wrap and then a metal lid and put it in the fridge until next time. 

6. Pour the freshly made kefir back into the quart jar and cover with a plastic lid or plastic wrap.  Store it in the fridge.

7. My suggestions of how to choke down, I mean, drink down the kefir drink

          A.  1 cup kefir with 1 cup fresh raw milk- blend in a blender and drink

          B.  1 cup kefir with 1 cup orange juice – blend in a blender and drink

          C.  1 cup kefir with 1 cup OJ, 2-3 frozen strawberries and 1 frozen banana,                      blend in a blender and drink.

          D. Just drink 1 cup of it straight, pureed.

Kefir is combination of 20 probiotics including acidophilus. It is high in Calcium and vitamin Bs. I am sure you can Google it and find all sorts of information.

Caution: It is a detoxifier. Start out with only ¼ cup for a couple of days, then ½ cup for a couple of days, and then move up to a whole cup. Drink first thing in the morning on an empty stomach and then let it digest for about an hour. Organic milk can also be used if you can’t get raw milk.

Homemade yogurt from raw cow’s milk

Needed:

7/8ths quart of raw cow’s milk

¼ C plain yogurt 

Digital thermometer

Method of keeping yoghurt warm

1. Fill up a clean quart jar 7/8^th full of fresh raw cow’s milk.

2. Pour it into a pot.

3. Heat the milk stirring frequently until milk is 105-109 degrees.

          Do Not let it get over 110 degrees.

4. Stir in ¼ C plain, full fat yogurt.

          (I like to use Greek Yoghurt because it has 5 strains of beneficial bacteria.)

5. Pour it all back into the quart jar and put a seal and lid on it.

6. Keep this jar in appx. 90-95 degrees F for 24 hours. Never higher.

7. Save ¼ c yogurt for the next batch.

          I make 2-3 quarts at a time, so I will save ½ C to ¾ C of yoghurt.

A. I have a box dehydrator that the screens come out. I place my yogurt in it to keep to temp. Once in a while I will check the air with my digital thermometer for the first hour. Then I put it on my calendar what time I need to take it out. If it's really hot outside, I will just set it in my enclosed garage. It's plenty warm in there.

B. In the winter, I will place the jar by the fireplace in a warm, but not too hot of a place.

I will repeat this about 2 times with the same batch, but then I will buy some new plain yogurt at the store. It just goes funny/yucky by the third batch.

Information on the benefits of Kefir

Kefir, which means 'feel good" in Turkish, is an ancient cultured, enzyme-rich food filled with friendly micro-organisms that help balance your "inner ecosystem" to maintain optimal health and strengthen immunity.

Kefir's tart and refreshing flavor is similar to a drinking-style yogurt, and it contains beneficial yeast as well as the friendly 'probiotic' bacteria found in yogurt. When used regularly, the naturally occurring bacteria and yeast in Kefir combine symbiotically to help balance your intestinal flora and boost your immunity.

Among its many beneficial powers, Kefir:

·         Provides supplemental nourishment for pregnant and nursing women*

·         Contributes to your healthy immune system

·         Promotes a relaxing effect on the nervous system and benefit many who seek a restful night's sleep

·         Helps support your normal intestinal tract function, promote bowel movements and your healthy digestive system -- and is beneficial after the use of antibiotics to restore balance to the digestive tract

·         Curbs unhealthy food cravings by making your body more nourished and balanced

·         While both Kefir and yogurt are cultured milk products, they contain different types of beneficial bacteria. Yogurt contains transient beneficial bacteria that keep your digestive system clean and provide food for the friendly bacteria that already are present. Kefir actually helps to colonize your intestinal tract -- a feat that yogurt cannot match.

·         Additionally, Kefir contains several major strains of friendly bacteria not commonly found in yogurt: Lactobacillus Caucasus, Leuconostoc, Acetobacter species, and Streptococcus species. It also contains beneficial yeasts which help balance the intestinal flora, including promotion of beneficial yeast in the body by penetrating the mucosal lining. They form a virtual SWAT team that housecleans and helps strengthen the intestines.

·         Kefir's active yeast and bacteria may provide more nutritive value than yogurt by helping digest the foods that you eat and by keeping the colon environment clean and healthy. The curd size of Kefir is smaller than yogurt, so it's also easier to digest, making it an ideal food for anyone with digestive health concerns.