(Gluten Free, Vegan, Raw, Refined Sugar Free)

Lemon is the flavor of the season for me - Lately, I am all about my preserved lemons, lemon kefir water and lemon chocolate!

Making raw chocolate is easy and fun.  I make coconut oil chocolate, chocolate with cacao butter and chocolate with cacao paste.  

This recipe uses both coconut oil and cacao butter.  Which give the health benefits of the coconut oil, with texture and flavor from the cacao butter too.  There is a minimal amount of raw cacao powder. The result is a very smooth texture and a subtle flavor - enhanced with lemon oil.  

They look so very pretty 'two toned' - with the sweetener and cacao settling on the bottom and the lighter coconut oil on the top.  

It's a gentle flavor, and absolutely tastes best straight from the freezer.  The thin 'coin' shaped ones are a perfectly cold, crisp, refreshing raw chocolate.



Ingredients

• 1/2 cup of raw cacao butter
• 1 cup of coconut oil
• 4 Tablespoons of raw cacao powder (you can add more if you prefer)
  
• 2-3 Tablespoons of coconut nectar, maple syrup or sweetener of your choice (add to taste)
  
• 10 drops of lemon oil (food grade)

Directions

• Gently melt the cacao butter and coconut oil in a large glass measuring cup with a spout  (I do this in my dehydrator at 115 degrees F, you can also use a double boiler or over low heat in the oven or stove)
• Add the cacao powder, mix well with a fork or whisk (add more if you want it more chocolatey)
  
• Add the coconut nectar to taste - start with a bit, mix it, taste it, add more until you get the right sweetness for you
  
• Mix well
  
• Add 5-10 drops of lemon oil - again, add 5 first, taste, and add more if you want.
  
• Alternatively you could add peppermint or your favorite flavors 
  
• Mix well

Option:  You can also opt to put all the ingredients in a blender and whip it up that way - this does result in an even smoother final product, and I recommend doing this if you use a granular sugar or want less of a two toned result. 

• Pour into chocolate or silicon molds, or on a large piece of parchment paper
• Put in the freezer overnight, until they are totally solid
• Pop them out of the molds, or break up the chocolate on the parchment paper and store in the freezer as a special treat

Please note, these will melt at room temperature due to the high amount of healthy coconut oil, they store best in the freezer.

Related Links
Healthy Chocolate or Carob Bark
50 Wicked Bites - Raw Chocolate

(Gluten Free, Sugar Free, Vegan, Raw)

I love wraps.  Yes, I could just eat my salad with a fork, or just put my avocado and homemade probiotic rich kraut on a cracker... but there is something really satisfying about picking up a wrap with my fingers and biting into it.

When I made this recipe, I made it two ways - as a thin wrap and as 'bread'.  After taste testing with a few friends, the wrap was the winner.  You can see the bread in the photos below for comparison.

These are super easy to make, and come out really great.  

The recipe is flexible, so you can play with the ingredients and flavors - add carrots in place of some zucchini, use more onion, add a clove of garlic, have fun trying some different ideas!

Ingredients

• 1 Cup ground chia or flax seeds seeds 
  
• 4 Tablespoons ground milk thistle or flax seeds or other seeds if you don't have these
  
• 4 zucchinis (medium size)
  
• 1 small onion or 1/2 a large onion (would be awesome with Vidalia or Walla Walla Onions!)
  
• 1/4 Cup tomatoes (I used cherry tomatoes, you can use whatever you have in season)
  
• 1/4 Cup nuts or seeds** (macadamia, cashew, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seed or other)
  
• Herbs and spices to flavor - I used pink Himalayan salt, sesame seeds and ground up seaweed
  

Directions

• Grind the chia seeds and milk thistle and set to the side
  
• In a food processor either grate or pulse the zucchinis, onion and tomatoes 
  
• Once grated add the nuts or seeds and pulse some more
  
• Add the flavors you want - go light as the flavor will intensify as the wraps dehydrates
  
• Now mix everything together in a large bowl - use your hands if you want!
  

• Spread 1/4 inch or thinner on your dehydrator non-stick sheets
  
• Dry at 115 Degrees F / 46 Degrees C
  
• After 6-8 or so hours, see if it is dry enough to flip over onto the mesh sheets
  
• Let dry for another 4-6 hours until it is dry, but still flexible
  
• If you want harder crackers, let it dry for a longer period of time

Store in a sealed glass or plastic container in the fridge - will last 1-2 weeks.

** Soak your nuts and seeds for 4-12 hours before using them

Related Links
Essential Living Food Raw Chia Bread 

(Fermented, Vegan, Raw, Gluten Free, Sugar Free) 

Sometimes a fancy drink is all you need... in my case, that means a fancy probiotic mocktail, and this is one of my favorites!

This specific drink was born of necessity.  I was teaching a water kefir class in Hong Kong, and the coconut water kefir was perfect that morning, then went a tiny bit too fermented right before the class (that happens easily in hot Hong Kong!).  The entire class tasted the 'too fermented' coconut water kefir, then I made it into a Kefir-Colada, and everyone loved the results!

It is really important to understand that there is always something you can do with kefir or kombucha that has gone 'too' fermented or 'too' sour - you can dilute it, put it in a smoothie, make a mocktail and more - be creative!


Ingredients

• 2 cups of sliced pineapple
  
• 2 cups of coconut water kefir (or water kefir)
  
• 15 fresh mint leaves, plus extra for garnish
  
• Optional: add some lychees or raspberries or ginger or anything else you fancy!

Directions

• Put the pineapple and coconut/water kefir in your blender
  
• Blend until smooth
  
• Add the mint
  
• Blend for just a second until specks of mint are showing throughout the drink
  

Pour into your fanciest cocktail glasses and enjoy with your family and friends - perfectly find for the little ones too, since there is no alcohol!

Hints
Coconut or water Kefir 'too' fermented - then this is the perfect way to use it!
Leftovers -  make probiotic ice pops for the kiddies to enjoy on a hot summer day.

Related Links
Kefir Class Notes
Coconut Water Kefir
Probiotic Ice Pops 
LoulaNatural's Alcoholic Kefir Kolada

Kefir is a simple to make drink that has over 35 strains of probiotics.  Most importantly, they live in the right ratios and in harmony to take action in your body right away.

Drinking kefir can help improve your digestion, immunity, reduce inflammation, increase mental clarity and improve your mood to name a few benefits.  It is good for everyone, from babies to the elderly - especially for pregnant and breast feeding mothers!  A healthy gut is the foundation for a healthy you.**

This brief overview tells you what you need, and what you need to know, to make kefir at home.  These notes have been designed for my Kefir - The Probiotic Elixir class in Hong Kong, but can also be used as stand alone information for anyone interested in learning more about kefir.  

There is also a slideshow at the bottom of this page with more kefir related photos.

What is kefir?
Kefir grains are a living combination of bacteria and yeast which live in a symbiotic relationship.  The grains can be used in sugar water, coconut water, juice, nut milks or dairy milk to make a natural healthy probiotic drink.  Kefir is alkalizing to your body.  The grains are not actually a 'grain', and the drinks, although made with sugar are not sweet.  The grains metabolize (eat) the sugar and produce beneficial probiotics, often along with some natural fizz!  The end result is not sweet, but can have an alcohol content of up to 1%, but often only 0.5%.

Why drink kefir?
Please refer to:
http://www.lantaumama.com/2/post/2013/12/kefir-and-kombucha-and-fermenting-why-why-why.html

How to make kefir?
Fermenting the kefir - this involves putting the grains in a 1-2 liter glass jar, feeding them with some sugar, and letting them sit for 8-24 hours.
Straining the kefir - to remove the grains and prepare the kefir for drinking.
At this point you can use the kefir, or decide to do a second ferment to give it some different flavors and some more fizz.
Second ferments involve letting the kefir soak with fruit, herbs or roots to flavor it naturally, for a very enjoyable probiotic drink.

Materials needed
1-2 liter glass jar with a wide mouth (good for air circulation and easy to clean)
1 plastic sieve (the grains don't like metal)
1 plastic funnel
1 liter glass jar with a stopper (see photo below right for two options)
kefir grains 
coconut sugar or maple syrup or other high mineral sugar (not honey)
filtered, non chlorinated water

Note on Sugar
There are two great coconut sugars available in Hong Kong - Cocobono and Stephen James Organics. Cocobono also has a ginger coconut sugar!  I use this organic grade B maple syrup from iHerb.  Both coconut sugar and maple syrup have lots of minerals in them that the kefir grains love, and are good for you too!  

Please remember, although we use sugar to make kefir, kefir is NOT sweet and does not have much sugar after - the kefir grains 'eat' the sugar and produce the probiotics.  Kefir is perfectly fine for those on a sugar free diet!

If you use coconut water, nut milk, fruit juice or dairy milk, you do not need to add sugar.  You only add sugar when you use plain water.

Detailed Instructions
Making kefir takes 8-24 hours in HK, depending upon the weather.  In summer it is often as fast as 8 hours, while winter can be 24 or more hours.  
Kefir grains are living, they change, they have moods, they have different needs at different times - what follows is a basic recipe, but as you ferment more and more you will find you need to adjust the amounts of sugar and the time based on how your grains and drink are coming out.  So this is more a 'starting guide' than an exact recipe that must be followed.

Part 1 - Starting the Kefir Ferment - this takes about 5 minutes

• Add 1-2 Tablespoons of kefir grains
  
• Add 2 Tablespoons of either coconut sugar or maple syrup
• Add 1 liter of filtered water
  
• Stir until the sugar is dissolved
  
• Add half a fresh lemon or some dried pineapple (optional, the grains like the acidity and it adds a nice taste) 
  
• Cover with a cotton cloth secured on with a rubber band
  
• Place in a warm place - the top of your fridge for example

Kefir loves to be agitated - move it, shake it, stir it, bump it when you walk by.  This is one reason the top of the fridge is a great spot as the fridge will move every time it is open and closed.

Taste after 8 hours, after 12 hours, after 18 hours, after 24 hours.  When it stops tasting sweet, and tastes somewhere between 'like nothing' and 'a bit sour' it is done!

OPTIONS:  Instead of using water and sugar, you can use coconut water, fruit juice or nut milk.  When you use coconut water, fruit juice or nut milk do not add any sugar, also do not add the lemon.  Please note that all of these will ferment much faster than water and sugar - so the times will be greatly reduced.

Part 2 - Straining the Kefir Grains this takes about 5 minutes

• Use your strainer, and place it over a 1 liter pitcher or jar - use the plastic funnel under the strainer if you need to
  
• Strain the kefir water into the bottle, the plastic strainer will catch the grains for you to use them again
  
• You can use the lemon in your smoothie or your second ferment - no need to throw it away!
  
• Start your next batch right away, or store the grains in a glass jar in the fridge.
  

You can opt to drink it now - it will have a very mild taste.  It is great in your green smoothie or just straight up

Part 3 - Optional Second Ferment (Adding Flavors) - this takes about 5 minutes

• Choose a second ferment jar - it can be closed or open.  
• If you choose a closed jar - be sure to 'burp' it to let the gas out and minimize potential explosions.
• In very hot weather, I prefer an open jar covered with a loose lid or cloth (keeps bugs out, and lets gas out, so no risk of explosions)  
• Add your desired flavor to the jar, with the kefir water.  There is NO need to add more sugar
  
• Let it sit on the counter for 12-24 hours, then taste it
  
• Put in the fridge and enjoy!
  

Second Ferment Flavors for Water and Coconut Water Kefir

• Ginger - hands down the favorite for my husband, he says it tastes like a really good 'ginger beer'
  
• Ginger - use Cocobono Ginger Coconut Sugar for the first ferment, and fresh ginger in the second
  
• Lemon - very refreshing
  
• Ginger and Lemon - one of my favorites
  
• Ginger, Lemon and Berries - another of my favorites 
  
• Ginger and Turmeric Root - I keep this for when I am feeling run down and need a boost
  
• Raspberry and Chia Seeds - fun for the kids and adults
  
• Strawberry and Grated Ginger - one of my first students, Susan, made this and it was divine
  
• Cranberry and Raw Cacao Nibs - gentle taste
  
• Passion Fruit - when they are in season I love this
  
• Pomegranate - either the seeds or juiced
  
• Orange and Cinnamon - sliced orange and cinnamon sticks, serve with a cinnamon stick
  
• Mango - my son insists on this one, you can make it with fresh or dried mangoes
  
• Coconut Water Kefir and Lychees - like a probiotic lychee martini
  
• Coconut Water Kefir and Ginger - very refreshing

Caring for your Kefir Grains

• After you ferment a few times, you might find your kefir grains multiply - this is very common.  
  
• To store your extra grains, keep them in a glass jar in the fridge.  
• Rinse them with a bit of fresh water, then shake them dry in the plastic sieve.  The rinsing is optional and not a full 'shower' just a quick rinse.
• You can also freeze grains for future use.  
  
• The one time my grains went really really slimy and smelly, I gave then a baking soda cleanse.  This should not really be necessary, it was an exceptional case.  
  
• I keep my water, nut milk and dairy milk kefir grains separate - because I teach classes and share grains, I want to be clear which grains are 'vegan' and which are 'nut free'.
  
• If you start making dairy milk kefir, you will often find your grains 'disappear', don't worry!  This is very normal, just save some of the 'curd' from your milk kefir as your starter for the next batch.  If you want, you can add more water kefir grains to give it a boost too.
  

What next?

• Go home, feed your kefir grains, and feed your gut!
  
• Play with second ferment flavors.
  
• Make coconut water kefir.
  
• Make homemade almond milk kefir or hemp milk.
  
• Make frozen probiotic ice pops.
  
• Make coconut yogurt kefir.
  
• Start some dairy kefir with cows milk - strain it after to make a lovely dairy kefir cheese.
  
• Use your extra water kefir grains to make fermented nut cheese - super yummy.
  
• Buy Culture Your Life by Naturopath and Nutritionist Louise Kane Buckley who writes at Loulanatural.  This book has many recipes with kefir for the kitchen, homemade shampoo and face wash, house cleaners and more!  
  

Resources for further learning
Articles and Recipes
Kefir and Kombucha and Fermenting - Why Why Why
Coconut Water Kefir
Almond Milk Kefir
Kefir-Colada a Probiotic Mocktail
Probiotic Ice Pops
Kefir and Kombucha - The Importance of Burping (your bottles!)
Coconut Yogurt Kefir 
How to Open a Coconut
Kefir Grains - Cleaning with Baking Soda
5 Ways to Heal your Digestive System
Kefir FAQ
What is Dysbiosis?
**Live Science - 5 Ways Gut Bacteria Affect Your Health
**The Economist - Gut Instinct 
NYT - Some of My Best Friends are Germs
HuffPost - What Your Gut Bacteria Says About You
Daily Mail - The Unlikely New Medicine... Pickled Cabbage

Videos
NPR - Gut Bacteria Cartoon 

Books
Culture Your Life
Wild Fermentation
The Art of Fermentation

( Fermented, Vegan, Raw, Gluten Free, Sugar Free) 

What kids don't love ice pops?  Especially on a hot summer day in Hong Kong, these are a go-to snack!

I have always made homemade ice pops for my kids, usually with fruit. Watermelon and chia seeds is the all time favorite, with coconut water and mango coming in a close second.

Now our ice pops have an extra probiotic boost from kefir!

Ingredients

• 2 cups of cut watermelon and strawberries or other fruit
  
• 1 cup of water kefir or milk kefir
  
• a handful of blueberries
  

Directions

• Put the fruit and water kefir or milk kefir in your blender
  
• Blend for 1 minute or until all the fruit is blended
  
• Pour into your ice pop molds
  
• Add a few blueberries to 'float' in the ice pops - my kids love the 'blueberry surprise' when they eat them!
  

Flavor ideas

• Water kefir + watermelon + chia seeds
  
• Water kefir + watermelon + strawberries + chia seeds
• Water kefir + berries + chia seeds
  
• Milk kefir + mango
  
• Milk kefir + strawberry 
  
• Coconut water kefir + mango
• Lemon water kefir + pineapple
• Coconut yogurt + mango
• Kefir Colada Pops

How to make Kefir - http://www.lantaumama.com/blog/kefir-the-probiotic-elixir-class-notes

Below are the exact ice pop molds we use.  We even bring them on holiday with us so we can have ice pops everywhere we go!

Silicon Ice Pop Molds - these fit great in the freezer, and are good for ages 7 and up
Rocket Ice Pop Molds - these are easy to fill, and are larger so good for ages 5 and up
Star/Flower Ice Pop Molds - these are easy to fill, and are larger so good for ages 5 and up
Ring Pop Molds - perfect size for younger kids - or bigger kids whom are not so hungry

Click on the photo below to be brought to the appropriate Amazon page.  If you buy from that link, I get a tiny tiny commission (pennies), and it doesn't cost you anything extra :)

( Fermented, Vegan, Raw, Gluten Free, Sugar Free) 

So easy, so yummy, so good for you!  In Hong Kong, fresh young coconuts are easily available at the local supermarkets.  They provide lovely fresh coconut water to drink, and soft creamy coconut meat to eat.  Making coconut yogurt kefir is a great way to add even more probiotics to your daily diet.

The coconut water, you can drink straight, or ferment into coconut water kefir.




Ingredients
3-4 young coconuts
1/2 Cup of water kefir (more or less depending how much 'meat' your coconuts had)
1 Tablespoon of water kefir grains (optional)

Directions
Scoop the meat out of the young coconuts
Put it in your high speed blender (I use a Vitamix)**
Start to blend to see how thick/thin it is
Add enough water kefir to blend it smooth and creamy - to the consistency you want

Optional - if you have extra kefir grains you can add them too, this will make the coconut yogurt ferment more, but might get too sour for some people. This is completely optional, I only do it when I have a load of extra grains and know I will eat the coconut yogurt within 1-2 days.

You can eat it fresh at this point - my daughter loves it!
Alternatively, you can put it in a bowl on the counter to ferment for a few hours.  It goes fluffy and more sour this way, but I still love it (daughter does not).

Coconut yogurt can be eaten plain, added to a bowl of cut fruit, eaten with cereal, enjoyed as a creamy topping to any raw dessert and more.  It will last in the fridge up to 3 days so no need to finish it all at once.  After 3 days I find the taste is a bit too sour for most people.  
I also like to dehydrate coconut yogurt into coconut wraps - just spread thick on your non-stick dehydrator sheets!  For more on dehydrating click here.

WARNING!  Even in the fridge it expands, so please make sure your jar has room for the ever growing coconut yogurt.

** Note on blenders - you really do need a high speed blender to get coconut yogurt to the right consistency, regular power blenders just don't get it 'creamy' enough.

To learn how to open a coconut check out many videos on youtube or see this step by step photo instructions from Loulanatural:
How to Open a Coconut, step by step with photos

Related Links
Coconut Water Kefir
Loulanatural - Coconut Yogurt

( Fermented, Vegan, Raw, Gluten Free, Sugar Free) 

Coconut water kefir is so easy to make, in fact it was the first fermented drink I ever made at home.

The benefits of this is that it is the easiest of all the drinks, and you can choose between using fresh coconut or boxed coconut water.

I use both boxed coconut water (be sure it is 100% coconut water, with nothing added) and fresh coconut water.  Both work just fine!

Instructions

• Put one liter of coconut water into a wide mouth jar
  
• Add 1 tablespoon of water kefir grains
  
• Stir
  
• Cover with a cotton cloth secured on with a rubber band
  
• Place in a warm place - the top of your fridge for example
  

• Let it sit for 4-24 hours, depending upon the weather - taste at 4, 6, 8, 12, 16 hours to see how it tastes.  When it is less sweet and every so slightly sour (and possibly a bit fizzy) it is done.  In HK this is usually 4-8 hours.  
• COCONUT WATER KEFIR FERMENTS MUCH FASTER THAN WATER KEFIR.

• Use your strainer, and place it over a 1 liter pitcher or jar - use the plastic funnel under the strainer if you need to (see photo below)
  
• Strain the coconut kefir water into the bottle, the plastic strainer will catch the grains for you to use them again

You can opt to drink it now, or add some ginger or berries or lychees or other flavor to the bottle for a second ferment to add more taste.   I find that the coconut water kefir ferments much faster than water kefir, and that the second ferments also are super fast - so do be sure to test them every few hours!

I often put this straight into my green smoothie in the morning.

For some reason, I often find that the grains I use in coconut water tend to get smaller in size and often get a bit slimy.  To help prevent this, mix up your grains - use them for coconut water, then with water and maple syrup, then with water and coconut sugar.  Or just add some fresh water kefir grains if you feel it is needed.  

Related Links
Kefir and Kombucha and Fermenting - Why Why Why
Coconut Kefir Yogurt 
How to Open a Coconut, step by step with photos

With second ferments of kefir and kombucha, it is common to do them in a sealed bottle to encourage some natural carbonation to make a healthy probiotic fizzy drink.

Of course, the danger is 'explosions'.

I make sure I 'burp' my bottles as shown in the below videos.

In summer, I often forgo the sealed bottle, and do the second ferment in a more open bottle.  You can see two of my 'closed' ferments on the left, and a more 'open' bottle on the right.  I still get a slight fizz in the open bottle.  Another option is a bottle with a cloth on the top (to keep out bugs, but let the gas out).

If you feel your bottles are too carbonated to burp, then put them in the fridge to slow down the fermenting, if you are still worried after that - open them outside!

When I travel across town to teach kefir classes, I bring my kefir bottles in a cooler bag with lots of ice blocks - nobody wants a class that starts with a bang.

The below videos show 'how to burp' your bottles. 

(Fermented, Raw, Gluten Free, Sugar Free, Vegan)

SCOBY, that Symbiotic Colony Of Bacteria and Yeast used to make Kombucha. I find stunningly beautiful - here are some photos of mine - including the one time I had mold... can you spot it in these Martian like landscapes? 
These photos include the development of a SCOBY as well as random photos of my beloved bacteria and yeast colony.