How To Make Coconut Kefir

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So far I've used the coconut kefir for ice cream and curries. It is so thick and creamy. The flavor is wonderful... tangy, but with a slight sweetness that you find with coconut milk.

I had several people ask me to share how I make coconut kefir after I posted my Creamy Coconut Lime Sorbet. I am happy to tell you it is EASY! I have seen other recipes for coconut kefir, but most call for coconut water to thin down the milk. I prefer to just use straight coconut milk. It will be very thick after it is cultured & refrigerated, but I like that because it is great for recipes that call for thick cream...ice creams, curries & smoothies... or just simply topped over a fruit salad.

FIrst you will need kefir grains. Either water kefir or milk kefir grains can be used to culture the coconut milk. You can buy grains from Cultures for Health:

OR you can look here to find someone, locally, who has grains that they can share with you. After you've purchase or found some kefir grains... follow this simple recipe and enjoy!

Coconut Kefir

• 2 cans coconut milk
• 2-3 Tbsp. kefir grains
• glass mason jar with lid

Pour coconut milk into mason jar and stir in kefir grains. Cover the top with a cloth, securing it with a rubber band, and let it culture for 24 hours (or longer if needed).

The kefir grains will rise up to the top (you'll see lumps) when they are done culturing. It should smell tangy when you open it and taste somewhat like coconut flavored yogurt when done. Drain with a plastic colander or sieve.

That's it! Yep, it's that easy :o) If you run into problems or have more questions or would like to share your experience... please feel free to leave a message below!

Chicks: 3 weeks old

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I am so happy to report that our chicks are doing great! They are starting to grow their feathers and getting bigger. We are pretty sure we have one rooster and the others are hens.

How do we know that?!

Well, a good friend of mine (who has a friend that raises chickens) says that the hens produce their tail feathers first... roosters don't. So, you'll see from my pictures and videos that we have 6 chicks with tail feathers growing and one without. He also looks more like a rooster the way he's build and how he acts. So exciting!!

We've been keeping them in a movable chicken wire cage that my dad build for the first two-three weeks. We were going to keep them in there for another week, but they all got out yesterday and were happily roaming around. Obviously they changed that plan :o) They doing wonderful. Now I just need to be patience because I want fresh eggs NOW! LOL!

We've been feeding them huge juicy grubs and earthworms. They LOVE the grubs and we never fail to find a goldmine of them around the property. Today Naomi shared her banana with Molly, basically Molly would peck at it and then Naomi would have a bite... then she would let Molly peck at it some more and so on. It was pretty funny. All of them love the kefir, kraut, oatmeal and fruits we give them. Oh yeah, these guys get good food :o)

Enjoy the pictures (click on them for larger pictures) and video!!

Sweet Wholesome Wednesday: Flourless Chocolate Almond Cookies

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Today is Sweet Wholesome Wednesday! I'm sorry I miss the last two, but my family comes first and it was vacation time! So, now that I am back home and life is returning to normal... I can start back up the SweetWW again.

I have these wonderful cookies to share with you all. I really wish there was some way to program the smell of these cookies into the post so you all can smell and drool over these rich little guys, but pictures will have to do :o)

These cookies were a breeze to make! They are also wheat-free, egg-free and can be made dairy-free by using coconut oil instead of butter (I used half and half). I topped these guys with fresh homemade shredded coconut & chocolate chips. So rich, crumbly and SO YUMMY! I also love the fact that these guys are so healthy and nutritious. A great sweet snack in the afternoon with a glass of fresh, raw milk!

I just realized that these cookies can also be vegan simply using coconut oil instead of butter. Didn't try to do that on purpose :o)

Anyway, arrowroot powder is one of the main ingredients in these cookies. It is a white powder used as a thickener and actually a nutritious food (more so than potato starch or cornstarch). Let me share with you what I learned about this wonderful, yet uncommon, powder.

Arrowroot Powder

Arrowroot flour (powder), the only starch with a calcium ash, is a nutritious food, obtained from the fleshly root stock of a tropical American plant. It is an easily digested food well fitted for infants and the convalescent.

It resembles cornstarch in being white, fine and powdery. When heated in water in certain portions, it thickens to form a jelly, an excellent thickening agent. It is also considered more desirable for gravies, sauces and pastries than some of the more common starches and flours. It is used primarily for food in dietetic use, where it enjoys a reputation for smoothness and palatability.

Arrowroot was once widely used in baby formula as a superior carbohydrate, experience having shown it agreed with babies better than any other starch or sugar. We now find the reason. It is the only starch product with a calcium ash. In this regard, the calcium chloride, in the form of calcium found in arrowroot starch, is very important for the maintenance of proper acid and alkali balances in the human body.

Arrowroot only thrives on tidal flats where the sea minerals are available. Its known health-building properties may be due to trace minerals from the sea, as well as from the calcium it gets from the sea water. If it is used in ice cream formulas in place of cornstarch, arrowroot imparts a vanilla-like flavor, a smooth texture. Arrowroot as it comes to you is not a refined product; it is simply the dried and powdered root. -Royal Lee, DDS Journal of the National Academy of Research Biochemists

I use this stuff in my ice cream all the time and love it. I am planning to make more cookies and snacks using arrowroot powder. I will share them with you as I go along, of course. You can purchase Arrowroot Powder on Amazon. They have good prices and different brands.

Flourless Chocolate Almond Cookies

makes about 20

• 1 1/2 cups dehydrated almonds
• 1/2 plus 1/8 cups butter and/or coconut oil, softened
• 1 cup arrowroot
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup raw sugar (rapadura, etc..)
• 1/2 tsp. sea salt
• 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 tsp. almond extract
• extra almonds
• coconut flakes (optional)
• chocolate chips (optional)

Place almonds in food processor and process to a fine meal.

Add remaining ingredients, except extra almonds, and process until well blended.

Form dough into walnut-sized balls and place on buttered cookie sheets.

Press an almond into each ball and top with coconut flakes. Bake at 300 degrees for about 20 minutes.

After 5 minutes in the oven, press cookies down lightly with a fork and top with chocolate chips. Let it bake for the remaining 15 minutes. Let them cool completely before to an airtight container. Store in refrigerator.

NOTE: I left them out for 3 days (that's how long they lasted) and they tasted great. If you are not using coconut oil, then put them in the fridge right away. Coconut oil naturally preserves the cookies.

Please let me know what you think when you whip up a batch!

Four Herb Fritatas: Thin Egg Pancakes

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These mouth-watering "egg pancakes" is becoming our favorite way of preparing our eggs. So full of flavor and delicious as it is or as a open-face sandwich anytime of the day! All the herbs came from my potted herb garden... they are doing great! Especially the basil.

I found this recipe in my Nourishing Traditions cookbook. I didn't follow the recipe exactly, but close enough. I used kefir instead of piima cream... it gives a wonderful creamy texture. Any of your favorite herbs will be great in this and top with fresh tomato brings it all together. I toasted our bread and spread homemade mayo on, then I topped it with fresh tomato, fresh goat cheese, raw EV olive oil and fresh herbs. I love it! It has such a garden brunch feel to it. I even made these as sandwiches for our flights to and from Costa Rica...yeah its that good :o)

Four Herb Fritatas

makes about 6

• 3 eggs
• 1 Tbsp. each fresh chives, basil and thyme, chopped
• 1 tsp. parsley, finely chopped
• 2-3 Tbsp. freshly grated Parmesan or Goat cheese
• 2 Tbsp. kefir
• sea salt & pepper
• Olive oil or coconut oil

Mix eggs with herbs, optional cheese, kefir and seasonings. Heat a small, cast-iron skillet coated with oil. Pour 1/4 cup egg mixture into the pan and tilt it to spread the mixture. When the fritata is set, flip over to lightly brown the other side. Transfer to a plate. Keep it warm by putting a cotton towel over it or in a warm oven while preparing the rest of the fritatas.

Remember, all my recipes are now printer friendly. Just click on the green button below and enjoy them in your kitchen!

My First Blog Award!

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While I was having a wonderful vacation with my family this past two weeks... My good friend, Diana, nominated me for a Kreativ Blogger Award! I haven't had the opportunity share this with all of you and to go through rules for this award, but now I do...

Here's the list of rules:

1. Thank the person who has given you the award
2. Copy the logo and place it on your blog
3. Link to the person who has nominated you for the award
4. Name 7 things about yourself that people might find interesting
5. Nominate 7 Kreativ Bloggers
6. Post links to the 7 blogs you nominate
7. Leave a comment on each of the blogs to let them know they have been nominated

About Me:

1. I was born deaf. I grew up doing speech therapy and learned sign language later.
2. Married at 18 to my wonderful hubby, Jon. We've been married 6 years and have two wonderful, noisy girls :o)
3. Lived in Baja California, Mexico for two years at a free deaf school with Jon and now live in Costa Rica.
4. I am part Swedish, Norwegian and German.
5. Rode and showed hunter/jumper horses for several years (professionally in the last few years). Still love and ride horses.
6. I learned to love cooking and baking by being in the kitchen alone. I didn't really have anybody to show me the ropes, but it came so naturally to me.
7. Love Jesus with all my heart, soul and mind.

Drumroll, please............

And the nominations are:

1. Happy Foody
2. My Diverse Kitchen
3. PC Cuisine
4. Playful Noshings
5. Foodo' del Mundo
6. Taste Memory
7. Simply... Gluten-free

My nominations were based on a mix of delicious photography (because I'm a photographer), unique recipes (because I like the unusual) and overall creativity (because that's what the award is about). Check these guys out and enjoy their stuff!!

Also, my posts are now "printer friendly"!! Click on the green button below on any of the posts and print my recipes. Woohoo! Enjoy! Again,thanks Diana for the nomination!!

Creamy Coconut Lime Sorbet

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Well, we are in Bloomingdale, IL! The past week we visit friends, family and churches to share about our past year in Costa Rica. It has been a great trip so far. Both girls were great on the plane from Costa Rica to Chicago and the long drive from Chicago to DSM. We did more driving through Iowa to Wisconsin and now we are back to Chicago to hang with my in-laws for the rest of the week.

I miss my kitchen and posting my recipes! BUT the time that I had with my family this past week has been a breath of fresh air... wonderful!

So, now I want to take some time to post this wonderful creamy sorbet that I made before our trip to the states. I ran out of time to post this before we left and I wanted to post this for my Sweet Wholesome Wednesday, but that didn't work out... oh well... Then I wanted to enter this in the Clean Your Plate Recipe Challenge at The Nourished Kitchen, but I was too late...again, OH WELL!

Coconut Kefir

Naomi washing the limes freshly picked off the tree

Are these limes just beautiful?!

So let me start in the beginning. We have a tree that is producing beautiful organic limes in our backyard, but we are reaping more than we can use! I've been trying to up with different recipes to use all those limes. One night everybody was begging for some ice cream (including myself!). I didn't have any fresh milk, but had lots of coconut kefir and limes...sorbet! So I whipped everything together and poured it into our ice cream maker... it was done in less than an hour. The first taste was tangy, tart, sweet and refreshing. The coconut kefir made it tangy (and SO creamy!), the limes made it tart, the honey made it sweet and putting it all together made it so refreshing! Awesome combination! If you don't have coconut kefir... no worries! Just use regular coconut milk. This sorbet is a great dessert/snack for cooling off on a hot afternoon. I just love the green specks of lime zest swirled into the creamy coconut ice cream... looks simply delicious!

It is totally diary-free (that is what a sorbet is!). It can be made vegan by using a different sweetener and taking out the egg yolk. It is also totally RAW. I am wanting to make more raw dishes and my sister gave me an awesome raw cookbook... that's another post for later! Now, enjoy my photos and recipe!

Coconut Lime Sorbet

• Grated rind of 2 large limes
• Juice of 2 large limes
• 1 egg yolk
• 3 cups coconut kefir or milk
• 1/2-1 cup raw honey

Grate and juice the limes. Mix it with egg yolk, kefir/milk and honey (I used 1/2 cup) in blender for a minute. Pour into ice cream maker and follow maker's instruction. When done...scoop it out and enjoy! Store leftovers in a plastic bowl and keep in freezer (won't last more than a day...too yummy!).

Don't have a ice cream maker? No problem! Pour mixture into a plastic bowl and put into freezer till frozen. Put it out till slightly soft, chopped it up and put it back into your blender. Blend till creamy (not too long or will melt!)