How to make your very own Ginger Bug.

Firstly what is a Ginger bug?

Ginger bug is a fermented mixture of fresh grated ginger root, raw honey and water that produces beneficial bacteria. The combination of the honey, water, and ginger causes lactic acid, beneficial bacteria and yeast in the ginger root to release, infuse and ferment in an anaerobic (no oxygen) environment.

How do you make it?

1. Grate up the ginger about 1 1/2 cups

2. Add it to a Jar with a tight fitting lid
3. Add raw honey, about 1 cup

4. add the same amount of purified water (NOT TAP WATER it has too much chlorine it will kill the bacteria)

5. Mix it up really well and let sit on the counter - it will start to bubble and release pressure from the gasket under the lid. The carbon dioxide from the fermentation produces a bit of fizz or effervescence in the ginger bug

6. Once it has a desirable taste to you (I prefer mine not super sweet) it is done, and you can refrigerate it and use it however you like. It will last a long time refrigerated.

It is really potent, bold, spicy, and strong - and has really great beneficial, healthful, goodness to it.

Where would you use this "Ginger bug"?

Since it is very strong I add about 1/4 cup of just the liquid to a lot of raw recipes so that I can reap the benefits of the probiotics of this elixir. Mostly beverages like JUN, Kombucha, Lemon aid, Tea, my husband likes it in OJ, but I find that to be too sweet for my taste. You can use it in gelatin gummies, salad dressings, marinades, fire cider, sodas, the possibilities are endless, have fun with it, Enjoy!!

Lacto Fermented Pickles, Peppers and Kiwi.

Today I was at the market, I'm always looking to see if there is anything new or weird to try to ferment. I saw baby kiwis - what are those??? Baby cucumbers - got to try those, and lastly baby peppers, which made me remember these little stuffed red peppers I had when I was in Switzerland, last year and thought "maybe I can make them myself."

So, here's what I did:

First - I cut all the placenta and seeds out of some sweet little baby peppers. I sliced and stuck a spicy hot Fresno pepper at the bottom of the jar so that I can tell the difference of the varieties. My hope is to get that sweetness from the honey ferment and the peppers, but also infuse the other peppers with a little spice form the Fresno.

Then, I put the peppers with the holes facing up so the honey can get inside all the cavities.

Lastly, I added honey, covered with an Air lock lid, and let sit on the counter for about a week or two.

The other two containers of ferments are really simple as well. The one on the right is just baby kiwis in honey, and the one on the left is sliced up cucumbers in a salt brine with spices, and about 2 table spoons of Sauer Kraut I made in October, just to get the fermentation started.

Dehydrated JUN SCOBY Gummy Snacks.

How to make Dehydrated Gummy Snacks from the extra SCOBYs from your SCOBY HOTEL.

In doing a little research on eating SCOBY I found a few recipes for SCOBY Gummies which all called for refined white sugar. So, I had this idea to make some Gummies with Maple Syrup, Honey and Coconut Crystals with my extra JUN SCOBYs. I happen to have an abundance of JUN SCOBYs in my SCOBY Hotel.


What is a SCOBY you ask??? the word SCOBY is an Acronym for;

Symbiotic Colony of Bacteria and Yeast

It is the thing that people sometimes refer to as the "Mother" or "Mushroom" - it actually isn't a mushroom at all.

There are actually a few kinds of SCOBY cultures, there is ACV (Apple Cider Vinegar), JUN which is brewed with Green  Tea and Honey only, and then the most popular Kombucha SCOBY which is brewed with Black Tea and conventional Sugar. All of these are fermented cultures that are made with the intention of helping with Gut Flora, and keeping the bacteria in check in your body.

So, I brew/ferment both JUN and Kombucha Tea, and always have extra SCOBYs on hand, some of which I raise in a nursery to sell to other fermenters on Etsy if you want to start your own culture:

Click here to Buy your very own SCOBY from Fermentation101

Back to this post - the Gummy Snacks.


What you need:
2 large thick JUN SCOBYs
1/3 Cup Raw Honey
1/3 Cup Organic Grade "B" Maple Syrup
1/2 tsp of Ground Ginger
1/2 tsp of Ground Nutmeg
1/2 tsp of Ground Cinnamon

a Sharp Stainless Steel or Ceramic knife
a GLASS bowl this is very important because the acid from the SCOBY can have a chemical reaction to certain plastics and some metals.
a Dehydrator
a silicone mat

First Use a really sharp knife to cut your SCOBY into 3/4" cubes, and put them in your GLASS bowl.

                                          
                                              Then add the Honey and the Maple Syrup

                             Add your Cinnamon, Nutmeg, and Ginger and stir it up really well.

    Cover it tightly with Plastic Wrap, sit on the counter at room temperature to marinate overnight. After 24 hours of marinating you can place the sweetened SCOBY cubes on the silicone mat.

 Then put them right in your Dehydrator on the "Living Foods" setting. This is very important because you don't want to kill the beneficial bacteria in the SCOBY. Basically not over 104 degrees. If you don't have a Dehydrator - you can use you oven - but be careful not to over heat them.

                               Dehydrate for about 8 hours - or until these are the consistency you like.

                                                             This was about 10 hours

Some people like them rolled in sugar crystals so they don't stick together, you can also use Coconut crystals for this as well.

                                             Store in an air tight container, and eat em up!!!

Eight EASY Steps to making your own GREAT KOMBUCHA!

"Hi", and Welcome to my Blog, I'm not super Active on this Blog - but every once in a while I like to post something really fun. We had an insanely cold and "harsh on the garden" winter this past season, and I lost about 90% of my herb garden so, I had to replant everything. I am even thinking that maybe my Fig tree died, and that makes me very sad, Scot and I keep checking it every few days, and so far - no buds :-(.

I am however hopeful that the cold killed some of the wood boring insects that have been reeking havoc on my apricot, nectarine, and peach trees, maybe this year I'll actually get a substantial harvest.

Fingers Crossed.

OK - so the reason for today's post..... KOMBUCHA!!!

I was recently introduced to this amazing magical drink, it is kind of like a Beer/Soda that is packed with and wonderful Probiotics that help digestion. Depending on where you live when you make it, the different bacterium grow in it and it will produce a brew that tastes yummy and even better, is beneficial to your GUT!

Here is my motivation for learning how to make it - the stuff is a whopping $3.69 a bottle!!!! There is even a shop close to home that makes it on a smaller "mom and pop" scale and there's is $20 a bottle, granted it is three times the size of the commercial brand, and is amazingly delish, but really???? After doing the math, I figured out that it only costs pennies to make - GOOD MOTIVATION for me.

"I wonder if the companies that make it charge that much because it is "good" for you?"  Who knows.... anyway - I want to post here how I have been making it.

Eight EASY Steps to making your own GREAT KOMBUCHA!

One.

First pick a really good store bought brand that says "RAW ORGANIC KOMBUCHA" on the label. It has to say "RAW" because if it is pasteurized (cooked) the dummies who made it killed all the good bacterial organisms in it by cooking it.  Then you just have soda that has dead bacteria in it. Yuck!!!

Two.

Drink most of it, but be careful to leave the sediment and the floaty stringy/strands in the jar, and stick it back in the fridge. This is called your "Starter". I do this by pouring it off into a white wine glass, not only does it look fancy, but your friends can't tell you aren't "drinking". This is what you are going to use to make your "Baby Scoby" from. It really only looks funny in the wine glass when you to it first thing in the morning. :-)

Three.

Boil about a cup and a half of FILTERED (or bottled with no chlorine) water. This is very important not to use water that has chemicals in it, because it can kill your bacterium. Add 1/3 cup of regular refined sugar (I use powdered sugar, just because that is what I have left in the pantry after my big purge, it seems to really work well) and about a teaspoon of honey to the boil and let it dissolve. Pick a bag of your favorite Organic tea (it must be Black, Red, or Green for this step, because of the acid content - DECAF does not work well because of the chemicals) and let it boil into the water sugar mixture for a few minutes. Turn off the heat, and let it cool to room temp.


Four.

Take out your starter from the fridge, and let that sit on the counter until the Tea mixture has cooled down. When it is cool enough to touch, pour it into a mason jar, with the starter, cover with cheese cloth and tighten the lid on it. This will need to sit in a dark warm place for a few days to a week, depending on the air temp.

Five.

Once you see about an eighth of an inch "Baby Scoby" floating on the top you will need to feed it. Sometimes this "Baby" will not be easy to see so you can carefully lift the jar and tilt a little, you should see a thin film on the surface that may have a couple white spots. IT SHOULD NOT HAVE MOLD!!! if it does toss it and start over. The reason you used FILTERED water, and BLACK, RED OR GREEN tea is why you don't get mold. Anyway, the next step is easy; In a sauce pan pour 2 cups of FILTERED water and bring to a boil. Add 1/3 cup of regular refined sugar and about three teaspoons of honey to the boil and let it dissolve. This time pick TWO bags of your favorite Organic tea (it must be Black, Red, or Green for this step, because of the acid content) and let it boil into the water sugar mixture for a few minutes. Turn off the heat, and let it cool to room temp.

Six.

This is the step where you actually grow your "Mother Scoby"! Add the new batch of super sweet tea to a larger jar cover it tightly with cheese cloth and a rubber band. Place it in a dark warm place for a few days to a week, depending on the air temp. She will show up and form a really beautiful gelatinous mushroom like cap at the top. This is your "Mother".

Seven.

Now you are ready to make your drinkable KOMBUCHA. Heat three quarts of FILTERED water to a boil, add 1 cup sugar, and three tablespoons of honey until it is clear and completely dissolved. Add 4 tea bags of your favorite Organic tea (here it can be a different type of tea like White, or flavored, I add ginger at this point too, but it must be TEA because of the acid content). Turn off the heat, and let it cool to room temperature, remove the tea bags, fruit Ginger etc. and pour it in a larger glass jar.

Float your "Mother Scoby" on top of the newest sugar mixture using a large stainless steel spoon.
It's okay if it sinks, mine usually does.

    

Next, you want to pour in a cup or two of finished liquid from the last batch (to keep the acid high) and Cover it securely with cloth and a rubber band, and place it in a dark warm place for a week to ten days.

After waiting patiently you will see a new "Baby Scoby" on the surface of your KOMBUCHA. When the new "Baby" is about 1/8" thick, taste your KOMBUCHA. If it is too sweet, let it sit a few more days, if it is ready (you be your own judge) you can harvest the liquid by pouring (I use a syphon method)into bottles with removable lids, like the grolsch beer bottles or the GT bottles.

Eight.

Bottle, and add your favorite fruits, put a teensie bit of sugar, about a 1/4 teaspoon in each bottle, make sure the cap is tight and let it sit in a warm dark place for a day or two - but keep an eye on it every day, you may need to burp it, because sometimes the pressure of the bubbles can make the KOMBUCHA explode! OMG!!! what a mess that is to clean up.... When it gets to the desired bubblyness it is time to refrigerate and enjoy.

NOTE: The extra sugar makes it really bubbly, a trick I learned from making beer. Make sure you SAVE some of the stringy bits, and a little of the KOMBUCHA for your  next batch.