I used to be a bit of a jerk when I was a teen…a Soda Jerk, that is! Yep, I worked in an old-fashioned soda shop for 4 years.
Hand-dipped shakes, floats, fries, and hand-made burgers were my whole world there. I made al the things, and the recipes are forever etched into my brain. My kids were pretty impressed when I made them a shake for one of their birthdays this year with huckleberries that we had picked ourselves in the woods.
Almost all of these things I used to make, I have been able to recreate on our gluten free lifestyle, and this shake has been on my list for some time to make a recipe for my THM Lifestyle, because it was my absolute favorite from when I worked at the soda shop.
Think of the best vanilla-flavored shake you have ever had, and then add a bit more vanilla, and you have it!
Peel the banana and freeze it the night before. You need this to be frozen solid. Then add it and all other ingredients to the blender, except the protein powder of your choice. Blend until smooth and free of banana or ice chunks. Add your 1/4 Cup of protein powder and blend until fully incorporated.
If you live a sugar free lifestyle, certain traditions become more of a challenge, especially when concentrated fruit juices are at the heart of them.
Specifically communion, biblical feasts and celebrations like Shabbat(Jewish Sabbath from sundown Friday evening to Sundown Saturday evening).
As a Trim Healthy Mama, I don’t drink juice, specifically concentrated fruit juices without the whole fruit included for fiber. So, this is SIPPER, yes I was able to make it a sipper, is going to be my new celebratory grape juice-style drink!
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Put the Butterfly pea flowers or tea bags in 2 cups of hot water, for several hours or overnight to steep. Strain and put into a quart sized vessel. Add all other ingredients, and mix well. Fill to the top of the vessel with ice cubes and use as an all day sipper on the Trim Healthy Plan or a sugar free celebratory drink to replace grape juice and wine as you would like.
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Are you a countertop fermentation newbie, or a veteran?
I have been interested in fermentation for about 10 years now, and I have gone through seasons of consistency, and seasons where I shoved my starters and scobies in the fridge and forgot them for a few months.
It’s all about balance, right?
Is Kombucha right for me?
There are two camps when it comes to countertop fermentation. Those who are renegades and never think about the risk of leaving things out without refrigeration so long, and then the people who think about it all the time.
I’m somewhere in the middle…..
I don’t lose sleep over if I will get sick from my ferments, but I also do a lot of research to know exactly what a ferment gone bad would look and smell like.
I do believe in the process, and frankly God gave us this wisdom so long ago on how to take such simple ingredients and make them work for us long term, that I’m confident in that.
This article was very encouraging to me, and I definitely think you should read it. This one was fantastic too!
Probiotics
Digestion
Antioxidants
Over-all health and vitality
All of these benefits make this lady’s heart happy!
Can I drink it if I am living a low carb lifestyle?
The short answer is YES!
The long answer has a few more steps than normal, and includes longer fermentation and specific ingredients for your second fermentation needs.
This article and this article had some great ideas for how to do it to fit into your low-carb lifestyle.
In my experience fermentation is as complicated as you desire it to be. Me, I like to keep it simple, which can be most of the challenge when you are trying to make enough for 9 humans. So, keep that in mind when you see the multiple gallons of jars on my counters. This does not have to be the amount you make.
Boil your 12 cups of water and add 9 black tea bags
Let this cool as it steeps, and remove the tea bags after a few minutes and then add 1 cup of organic cane sugar and stir to dissolve completely. I do all of this part in the gallon jar that I am going to let my kombucha ferment in to save on dishes and handling of the liquid.
You will need to let this cool as much as possible before you add either your scoby or your reserved 2 Cups (16 ounces) of starter tea.
When the tea is cooled add your starter tea, and one layer of scoby to the jar.
Place a coffee filter or a thin cloth over the top and secure with string or a large rubber band.
Then, you need to let it sit on the counter at room temperature for 14-21 days. We are now keeping ours in our basement pantry because we are doing 6 gallons at one time, and putting an alert on the phone so that we do not forget them down there.
***You may need to pull your scoby apart because it will increase in layers as time goes on and become very thick. It can be a challenge to pull apart, but this is how you increase your ability to make more batches of kombucha at one time or to share the goodness with friends by gifting them a scoby and starter tea***
How to make your Kombucha Lower in Carbs for drinking in the second ferment
In my research, and talking with people who know the Trim Healthy Mama Plan very well, this is how you can make kombucha low-carb compatible or a Fuel Pull on THM.
Do a 14 day counter-top first fermentation
Strain your kombucha that you will drink and put into bottles or jars with lids that fit snugly. We use quart jars or half-gallon
To each jar add 1/4(quart jar) or 1/2(half-gallon) cup of some type of berries, or Lemons. The lowest in carbs are raspberries or lemons according to the article I found.
Put the lid on and let this sit on the counter for 24 hours.
Move this to the refrigerator to slowly ferment for the next 7 days.
Once 7 days have passed go ahead an strain off the fruit and store for drinking.
This slow second ferment with berries makes a very low-carb final product.
1/4 Cup of any fruit in combination….Lemons, limes, pineapples, pears, oranges, whole apples, raisins, fresh or dried cranberries, goji berries, papaya, passion fruit…the combinations and options are endless
Seltzer Water: when serving for a nice bubbly experience. Kombucha can be naturally effervescent from second fermentation alone, but I like this added too.
My very first job was in an Old-Fashioned Soda shop. I worked there for 4 years, and I knew the recipes like the back of my hand.
One that I did not make very often, but had to explain to customers a lot, was the “New York Egg Cream.” My short description was always, “A fizzy chocolate milk.”
I was looking for a way to use some seltzer that was open in my fridge, but I wanted a flavor other than plain water, and the idea that maybe I could make this sugar-laden drink from my first job into something healthy and delicious came into my mind.
I also wanted to make it dairy free and a fuel pull on the Trim Healthy Mama plan, because I’m extra like that!
This is our family’s second observance of this Jewish holiday, but we are not Jewish. If you wan to know more about why we observe biblical feasts you can find that here, and here is a book we find very helpful in explaining the how and why.
Two days ago I was thinking about supplements that I wanted to use more of to support my body, and specifically to help enrich my milk supply while I am exclusively breast feeding our 7th child.
Both have many benefits, and I enjoy the flavors, but could they go together?
It was worth a shot!
My husband, though skeptical of some of the things I ask him to try, actually tried my science experiment and really loved it!
It was a miracle, he drank the equivalent of half a beet and didn’t know it!
If you know anything about Hanukkah, then you know the Maccabees were the people who are the heroes in the story, and the ingredients in this drink…I just couldn’t help myself but to make it a play on words!
1 flat teaspoon whey or egg white protein powder(Dairy free option) powder for froth and creaminess.
Method:
Add all Ingredients to your blender, and blend until slightly frothy. If you want a frothier product, add 1 teaspoon Whey protein or Egg White protein powder while the blender is running as the egg white powder will scramble if added to hot things without it running (ask me how I know).
This drink is a Fuel Pull on the Trim Healthy Mama plan so I can enjoy it more often, dairy free compatible (omitting the whey powder if you are using it for creaminess), and obviously gluten free to make it compatible with our family’s needs.
life in the treehouse 