Kombucha Tea is Done and Mayonnaise

My kombucha tea finally is done. I need to start a new batch, I guess.

I finally got to make mayonnaise today. I am going to boil some red potatoes so I can make potato salad, and use the mayonnaise. I used the recipe from _Eat Fat, Lose Fat_ and used "Mary's Oil" which is a mixture of equal parts sesame oil, coconut oil, and extra virgin olive oil.

I actually had a burst of energy last night. First time in I don't know how long. I used to be able to count on a maternal type "nesting urge" which basically meant I actually felt a strong compulsion to clean, every single month (a few days before the start of my menses). But for the past few years, it has been sporatic. I thought at first it might be because I am not ovulating, but I take my basal temp, which shows that I am indeed ovulating, so it's not lack of ovulation.

I have met other women who experience this "nesting urge" phenomenon, and some have come to the conclusion that it is a cleansing, as the body is cleaning out the old egg, and preparing for the new egg, so there is the urge to clean the house, etc.

My lack of energy is sometimes frustrating, as by the time I actually feel like I can do something, there is SO much to do that it is overwhelming, and no way physically possible for me to get all of it done in the few hours that I have energy.

The lack of energy is much of my reasoning for trying to make changes to my diet.

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Gardening

I tried to get a watering system set up for our small orchard today. I had to use every spare piece of hosing I could find, and it was barely enough. But one joint broke lose and I wasted a lot of water, at least 100 gallons, maybe more.

Many of my squash plants have germinated, and I saw one bean plant coming up. So far, nothing is eating the baby plants. I had hoped to get another bed planted today, with swiss chard, lettuce, and other cool weather veggies, but did not get to it. I will try again next weekend.

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Smoothie Update

I'm still having my smoothies. I found this way cool stainless steel thermos. Normally $19.99, but on clearance for $4.50! Stainless steel inside and out. Awesome! Holds 24 ounces. So I've been bringing my smoothie to work with me in that. I was drinking the whole thing in the morning, but then I realized that what works better for me is to take a few sips once it is prepared (have to make sure it tastes yummy!) and then I drink a few sips as I feel hungry. Then it lasts me for about six hours, with no light-headedness whatsoever.

I have changed the ingredients slightly. I'm now up to 3 tablespoons of coconut oil for one thing. My kefir was turning out too sour, and I was starting to detest my smoothie, and then a friend talked to me about enjoying my food (which I do know that, but had forgotten in my quest to eat healthy) and so I started adding in some milk with the kefir. I was up to 1.5 cups of kefir a day, but now I'm using 1 cup kefir and 1/2 raw goat's milk, 2-3 raw egg yolks, 1 tsp. vanilla, some type of fruit. I was using blueberries (bought fresh on sale, then put into the freezer) and that was okay, but two days ago I started adding in 3-5 frozen strawberries. Oh boy, what a delicious treat my smoothie has become!

Also, I try to take my supplements in the morning, with my daily dose of cod liver oil. It makes a HUGE difference in my eating for the day. I have no cravings for candy bars, fast food, donuts, cookies, etc. I see them and am easily able to avoid eating them. Compared to days when I don't start out on the right nutritional foot. And believe me, there are still those days.

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Butchering

We had two dairy calves that we purchased a few weeks back. Well, now we only have one calf. The other died on Friday morning. We think due to snakebite. We purchased the two calves for $40. We did what we could for the calf, naturally, because we weighed the situation and decided that a visit from the vet would cost a lot of money, and the calf might not make it with costly intervention anyway. There were two choices for how to dispose of the body. 1) Dig a big hole 2) Practice our butchering skills. We chose the latter. It was a good learning experience. We were taught how by a friend of ours back on Memorial Day.

That only started out the day. Then we went and cleaned four buildings. The last three usually take 6 man hours, but today it took 10. Our butchering teacher works there, and so we had to talk to him for awhile.

I'm really proud of us for being practical and using the opportunity for learning. Not many people will share my opinion.

I had some meltdown this weekend. Probably PMS or perimenopause. At any rate, I can usually take a lot before I'm crying like a sissy. But not this weekend.

I tried some of my kombucha tea yesterday. It has been brewing for 10 days. It was still sweet, with a bit of a fizzy taste. I thought it wasn't that bad. I asked how it should taste, and was told I should let it brew some more and try it again at 14 days.

My olives still are rather "pungent" tasting. Meaning, they still taste pretty yucky. But not as HORRID as they are before any preparation.

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Fall Gardening

It's that time of the year again. Time for cool weather gardening. I have been feeling discouraged about my garden... some type of rodent has been chewing things down right at the base of the plant. Not that there is much left in the garden currently. The ants are skeletonizing the okra to death. The entire garden is fenced in top and sides, with chicken wire. It keeps the birds out, and it USED to keep the ground squirrels, ground chipmunks, cottontails and jackrabbits out, too. But now one has dug its way into the garden, and is wreaking havoc.

Also, my soaker hose isn't working well at all. I talked with a lady at an herb association who suggested I try using a product called "laser line". So I bought some of that, when I could finally find it... and installed that into one bed of my garden today. I also planted a whole bunch of squash. Recommended dates for fall planting of squash is 8-15 to 8-31. I'm a few days late, but it's been unseasonably hot, so maybe it will be okay. I also planted bush green beans, which should have been planted by 8-31. And some broccoli, and lettuce.

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New Kefir Grains

My first kefir grains I bought from a lady last fall, September 2004. I was a bit miffed later on to find that most of the time people share their grains, and only charge for shipping costs. But some people charge you a lot more than just shipping. I decided then and there when I have enough grains to share, I will only charge for shipping, and maybe a little bit more for the cost of accepting PayPal.

In November, I tried to share my grains with someone, (let's call her Amy) but it was a big flop. "Amy" asked me to ship the grains by Express Mail to her friend "Judith" because "Judith" was leaving in two days to visit "Amy" (who lives in another country - the idea being the grains would be cheaper to ship, and would get to "Amy" sooner). Well, when the grains arrived, the box was leaking, so "Judith" threw the whole box away. This was upsetting as I had sent a full tablespoon of my grains, leaving only about half a teaspoon left for myself! I also paid $15 something to ship the grains, only to have them thrown away. And I guess it was really stupid of me, but I told "Amy" not to worry about paying for the shipping, since she didn't get anything.

So a couple weeks ago my kefir went "off". There was some white powdery looking stuff on the top, and the kefir smelled bad, cheesy, and like dirty socks. I tried rinsing the grains, and putting in more milk. After a few days, the kefir was turning into gloopy slime. It was so gross that I was unable to consider using it. I was too busy to figure out what to do, so for a few days the kefir just sat in the cupboard, all gloopy and slimy. Finally I asked on a list I'm on what I could do for my kefir grains. I got some answers, and now I'm trying to cure it. The grains are only about 1/4 teaspoon worth now.

I also got anxious for some more kefir. Not that I love the stuff, but I feel it's doing a lot of good for my body, and I want my family to start drinking it, and my mom asked me if I could give her some more. She doesn't drink much kefir. I gave her a cup about 2 months ago, and she just finished using it. I think she takes like a teaspoon a day or something. Hah. I'm up to 1.5 cups a day. So... being anxious for more, and not sure my grains were going to survive, I saw a post on a list I'm on, and the lady was offering a generous amount of grains for $8. I went ahead and went for it. But again, I'm a little miffed because it cost $1.07 or something really cheap like that. I guess I shouldn't begrudge folks making a couple dollars, but then a day later, someone on another list was sharing grains for the cost of shipping. And it's not just them making a couple bucks, but some people think of kefir like a living entity and it's doing so much good for us that it shouldn't be sold, be shared for free. Cost of shipping is fine, but then people tack on quite a bit more.

But looking on the bright side (which I do try to do most of the time!) she sent a LOT of grains, I weighed them, they weighed 32 grams! It is more than 2 tablespoons.

For my other teeny amount of grains, I sterilized the jar, sterilized the water and am soaking them for 24 hours. Just soaking them in a jar with water did not cure them.

I'm a little bit afraid that the new grains will end up with the same fungus. I am hoping it's not that something is wrong with our goat's milk. I tested the milk for mastitis, and no one has any problems with that.

And we chatted with some neighbors today, and I mentioned kefir and the husband has wanted to try kefir. So if I can get these new grains doing their thing, I promised him that I would bring him some kefir, and if he likes it, then I will give him some of the grains. I am planning to try freezing some grains, but also I will give some to the neighbors. I was really happy to hear that, because there are so many grains I would probably be having to make half a gallon a day. He also said I can use the kefir for our baby calves instead of Probios.

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Water Kefir Grain Soda

Okay, Water Kefir Grain Soda... made the recipe from Eat Fat, Lose Fat for the ginger ale. I guess I used too little water, as we got wine coolers instead of ginger ale. ;-) Since I hate alcohol, that wasn't a good thing for me. I have a second batch brewing. I am also making brine cured olives. I am supposed to be "processing" the milk... bagging it up and freezing it. The wine coolers are okay, probably as with all these fermented foods, an acquired taste. My sauerkraut is finally sour, and halfway decent. Not one of my favorite comfort foods by any means. ;-) Now, the Zucchini Custard Casserole I mentioned in an earlier blog? Oh my gosh. Heavenly stuff. Especially with my homemade kefir bread. Which, btw, I figured out needed more kneading and then it isn't heavy at all. I just needed to knead it for 15 minutes! Worked up a sweat on that one.

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