More Adventures In Kefir

No, Kefir is not a place or a new age stage of mind. Those who've been around me the last year or so know it's the latest phase of my off beat healthy lifestyle. I learned about kefir from Jordan Ruben (The Maker's Diet) but had no idea what this strange stuff was. Then I learned a friend in NC made it, and closer to home, my sister in Pensacola. It was a blessed day when I got my first kefir grain and I made and used it all last winter.

Warming weather and time constraints forced me to dehydrate my grains for summer storage. It was making far too fast with the rising temps and I wasn't using it fast enough. Plus I suspected my grains had picked up a contaminate. So we retired for the summer.

But now we're back at it. I got a fresh new grain from my niece and with some inspiration from a set of websites she told me about, am kefir crazy again. I've not even had regular kefir so far. I've been doing some crazy stuff with it.

1: Pollen Infused Kefir: Let it ripen 24 hours or so with 1 tbs pollen per pint. Sweeten with honey. This is supposed to make the pollen digest easier providing a powerful protein and providing immune boosting properties.

2. Kefir Cheese. I missed changing my grain out this morning and the curds and whey had separated . So I ran them all through cheesecloth, mixed a little rosemary and salt with the curds and let it hang in the cheesecloth to drain a bit longer. It's odd, but not too bad for a first try.

And the whey - it's in the pumpkin bread that's in the oven as I type. I'm nuts for being up this late, but hey, it's fall and I just felt like baking. I will pay for it though. I will pay.