How to make a SCOBY

SCOBY stands for Symbiotic Culture of friendly Bacteria and Yeast.  I have read different opinions  from different bloggers.  Some say not to bother growing your own SCOBY, while others say "It's so easy."

I went with Raw Dakota Kitchen: How to Grow Your Own SCOBY.  
It really was easy.
From Heather @ Raw Dakota Kitchen

How to grow a SCOBY:

1 bottle of store bought kombucha (GT Original is what I used)

2 organic tea bags (1 green, 1 black)

2 cups hot boiling water

1T organic white cane sugar**

Use really clean hands :)

I used a wide mouth quart jar to do this. Steep tea bags AND dissolve sugar in boiling water, placing all in quart jar.  Allow to steep until water is room temp or overnight, which works best.  Once cool, remove tea bags and add the entire bottle of store bought kombucha.  (Make sure it's cool; the heat can kill the SCOBY and the kombucha) Cover with a thin towel and put someplace where it won't be disturbed for about 2 -4 weeks.  I put mine on top of the fridge.  You want your SCOBY to be about 1/4 in thick before you start brewing your tea.

Heather says: **You really should use old fashion white sugar, organic if possible. White sugar is the most easily digestible for the SCOBY and it gives the highest amount of glucuronic acid, which is your goal.   Don't worry about consuming it; the SCOBY will eat it up!  

 

*I used 2 tablespoons of sugar for good measure*

My SCOBY is almost 2 weeks old at the moment.  Once I have a few free moments (maybe this weekend) I'm going to start brewing my own Kombucha.

What is Kombucha?

From Food Renegade,  "The beverage the ancient Chinese called the “Immortal Health Elixir?” It’s been around for more than 2,000 years and has a rich anecdotal history of health benefits like preventing and fighting cancer, arthritis, and other degenerative diseases. Made from sweetened tea that’s been fermented by a symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast (a SCOBY, a.k.a. “mother” because of its ability to reproduce, or “mushroom” because of its appearance), Kombucha didn’t gain prominence in the West until recently."

The potential health benefits include: Detoxification, Joint Health, Improves digestions, Reduces inflammation and Boosts Immune system.

You can find related articles here:
http://www.fitday.com/fitness-articles/nutrition/healthy-eating/the-health-benefits-of-kombucha-tea.html

http://www.foodrenegade.com/kombucha-health-benefits/

http://www.kombuchacultures.com/kombucha_health_benefits.html

Joyce over at It's Your Life is also brewing her own Kombucha.  

Check out her SCOBY!

REAL Food Friday #21

Hello and Welcome to REAL Food Friday!

I'd like to thank all of the conscious bloggers who followed the guidelines and shared REAL FOOD recipes and posts. Thank you for sharing!
We are looking for co-hosts.  Please comment below with your URL.

We're your hosts
Joyce @ It's Your Life
Lydia @ Lydia's Flexitarian Kitchen 
me...Mary @ Back to the Basics and Mary's Kitchen 
Joining us again this week is Deborah @ Kneaded Creations 
Also, please welcome Janine @ My Lamp is Full 

<a href="http://maryshealthymeals.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="http://i1287.photobucket.com/albums/a627/greenmary_smith/REALFood1_zpsb7242283.jpg"/></a>  
If you're interested in co-hosting let us know! 

You can email me at mari_backtonature@yahoo.com

My Feature this week is:

Heirloom Tomato Salad from Jordan's Onion

Sweet Potato Egg Cups from On the Home Front

In case you missed "What is Real Food" here's a recap...

I know "Real" food may not seem like as much fun as the sugary, chemically, DIY recipes out there on the internet.  This is why REAL Food Friday is so unique.  This is the place to share your unprocessed, gmo-free, locally grown and/or fair trade posts.

We are trying to make a difference 1 recipe at a time!
If your post includes items like *margarine, *granulated sugar, *food dye, packaged baking mixed with ingredients that you cannot pronounce (betty crocker, duncan hines, pillsbury) then it WILL be deleted.  These are garbage ingredients.  Sorry...Not real food.


Here's a great reference from Food Myths:
Do you ever think about how far the food you eat travels?  Who grew it?  Who picked it? How much in processing it's been through before you took a bite?

Real Food is:
-Supports fair farmworker wages
-GMO Free
-Little to no processing/processed ingredients
-Supports local markets/vendors and isn't transported long distances to get to my plate
-Honors fair trade principles when I buy from othr regions
-Meat and dairy should be humanely raised and on real food themselves-Not genetically engineered feed, drugs, hormones and antibiotics.

Link up your Real Food posts!  Processed and "junk food" posts will be deleted.
The party runs from Thursday at 7pm EST through Monday at Noon.

Please follow your hosts and consider adding the Real Food Friday button.

The Not-So-Hidden Affects of Refined Sugar

This is not intended to be judgemental in any way.  I still struggle with my addition to refined sugars.  This is a place to share facts about "REAL Food" versus fake food and/or poisonous additives.

What is Refined Sugar?

From Become Healthy Now, "The completely refined white sugar product is now over 99.9% sucrose and for all practical purposes contains no nutritional elements such as vitamins, minerals, proteins or fibers. This accounts for expressions such as "empty calories" and "junk food"

According to Family Education, "Every year the typical American consumes between 120 and 150 pounds of refined sugar. ² That translates to over one-third of a pound a day, 600-plus calories of teeth-rotting, health-destroying sweetness."

Keep in mind that I'm not referring to ALL sugars.  This does not include honey or the natural sugar in fruits.  This article only pertains to "Refined Sugar."

From Global Healing Center, "Dr. Martin classified refined sugar as a poison because it has been depleted of its life forces, vitamins and minerals. "What is left consists of pure, refined carbohydrates. The body cannot utilize this refined starch and carbohydrate unless the depleted proteins, vitamins and minerals are present. Nature supplies these elements in each plant in quantities sufficient to metabolize the carbohydrate in that particular plant. There is no excess for other added carbohydrates. Incomplete carbohydrate metabolism results in the formation of 'toxic metabolite' such as pyruvic acid and abnormal sugars containing five carbon atoms. Pyruvic acid accumulates in the brain and nervous system and the abnormal sugars in the red blood cells. These toxic metabolites interfere with the respiration of the cells. They cannot get sufficient oxygen to survive and function normally. In time, some of the cells die. This interferes with the function of a part of the body and is the beginning of degenerative disease."2"

Where do you find Refined Sugar?

From barbeque sauce to worsteshire...from deli meats to pretzels...refined sugar is every where.  The obvious offenders are sodas, candies, ice cream and cakes.  Did you know that most store-bought breads contain refined sugar?  Yogurt is another repeat offender loaded with sugar.

According to Mercola.com "And now most infant formula has the sugar equivalent of one can of Coca-Cola, so babies are being metabolically poisoned from day one of taking formula.
No wonder there is an obesity epidemic in this country."

How does Refined Sugar Affect the Body?

You don't have to be a doctor or scientist to see the obesity epidemic in this country. In the US alone, 34% of adults are obese (not just overweight).  Carrying excess weight increases your risk for deadly conditions such as heart disease, kidney disease, and diabetes.
In 1893, there were fewer than three cases of diabetes per 100,000 people in the United States. Today, diabetes strikes almost 8,000 out of every 100,000 people.¹

Gaby Taubes, in a NY Times article Is Sugar Toxic?, wrote about  a lecture from Robert Lustig "Sugar: the Bitter Truth."  You can find the video on YouTube.  Gaby writes, "If Lustig is right, then our excessive consumption of sugar is the primary reason that the numbers of obese and diabetic Americans have skyrocketed in the past 30 years. But his argument implies more than that. If Lustig is right, it would mean that sugar is also the likely dietary cause of several other chronic ailments widely considered to be diseases of Western lifestyles — heart disease, hypertension and many common cancers among them."

So far we have Cancer, Hypertension, Heart Disease, Diabetes, Toxicity and Obesity.  I haven't even begun to research the effects of Refined Sugars and Children.    It drives me absolutely crazy when I hear parents talk about their ADD kids and at the same time give them SODA to wash down their ADD medicine.  Sugar cereal anyone...Ya, I'd like a little red #5, blue #3 with my High Fructose Corn Syrup thank you very much.

All kidding asside, refined sugars are killing us and killing our families.  Have you lost a loved one to diabetes?  Do you struggle with addiction or obesity?  There is way out.  At least, there is hope if you are willing to try.

I recommend the following books:








There is no "magical cure" or "perfect pill" but Where there is a Will, There is a Way.  I'd love to hear from you!

Ladies and Gentleman...It's ALIVE!!!

I am so excited.  I am in the process of making my own Kombucha.  For my first time around, I decided to make my own Scoby...I'll that later.  I'm just sharing my picture today.

Tomorrow I'll share HOW I did this, plus the health benefits of Kombucha!

REAL Food Friday #20 is LIVE!

Hello and Welcome to REAL Food Friday!

I'd like to thank all of the conscious bloggers who followed the guidelines and shared REAL FOOD recipes and posts. Thank you for sharing!
We are looking for co-hosts.  Please comment below with your URL.

We're your hosts
Joyce @ It's Your Life
Lydia @ Lydia's Flexitarian Kitchen 
me...Mary @ Back to the Basics and Mary's Kitchen 
Joining us again this week is Deborah @ Kneaded Creations 
Also, please welcome Janine @ My Lamp is Full 

<a href="http://maryshealthymeals.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="http://i1287.photobucket.com/albums/a627/greenmary_smith/REALFood1_zpsb7242283.jpg"/></a>  
If you're interested in co-hosting let us know! 

You can email me at mari_backtonature@yahoo.com

My Feature this week is:

12 Most Popular Posts of 2013

In case you missed "What is Real Food" here's a recap...

I know "Real" food may not seem like as much fun as the sugary, chemically, DIY recipes out there on the internet.  This is why REAL Food Friday is so unique.  This is the place to share your unprocessed, gmo-free, locally grown and/or fair trade posts.

We are trying to make a difference 1 recipe at a time!
If your post includes items like *margarine, *granulated sugar, *food dye, packaged baking mixed with ingredients that you cannot pronounce (betty crocker, duncan hines, pillsbury) then it WILL be deleted.  These are garbage ingredients.  Sorry...Not real food.


Here's a great reference from Food Myths:
Do you ever think about how far the food you eat travels?  Who grew it?  Who picked it? How much in processing it's been through before you took a bite?

Real Food is:
-Supports fair farmworker wages
-GMO Free
-Little to no processing/processed ingredients
-Supports local markets/vendors and isn't transported long distances to get to my plate
-Honors fair trade principles when I buy from othr regions
-Meat and dairy should be humanely raised and on real food themselves-Not genetically engineered feed, drugs, hormones and antibiotics.

Link up your Real Food posts!  Processed and "junk food" posts will be deleted.
The party runs from Thursday at 7pm EST through Monday at Noon.

Please follow your hosts and consider adding the Real Food Friday button.

Books on HomeBrew

A while back I wrote about making beer.  I shared a bunch of different "HomeBrew Kits" and info.  well, we still haven't had a chance to make beer.  Between the holiday craziness and Mary's Heirloom Seeds we've been a bit busy.

I'm going to check out these books so I thought I'd share a few of the MANY books out there on HomeBrewing.
*these are affiliate links so I make a small commission if you make a purchase*










**BONUS**  This one includes Kombucha!  I just started my scoby yesterday!



All of these books have been rated 4+ stars in reviews out of a possible 5.  I especially like "Beer Making Book" because it is for small-batch brews with seasonal recipe.

AND...I found a book about how to GROW your own ingredients for beer!!!

REAL Food Friday #19 - First of 2014!

Hello and Welcome to REAL Food Friday!
HAPPY NEW YEAR!  Did you enter the giveaway yet?

I'd like to thank all of the conscious bloggers who followed the guidelines and shared REAL FOOD recipes and posts. Thank you for sharing!
We are looking for co-hosts.  Please comment below with your URL.

We're your hosts
Joyce @ It's Your Life
Lydia @ Lydia's Flexitarian Kitchen 
me...Mary @ Back to the Basics and Mary's Kitchen 
Joining us again this week is Deborah @ Kneaded Creations 

<a href="http://maryshealthymeals.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="http://i1287.photobucket.com/albums/a627/greenmary_smith/REALFood1_zpsb7242283.jpg"/></a>  
If you're interested in co-hosting let us know! 

You can email me at mari_backtonature@yahoo.com

My Features this week are:

Mujadara from Raia's Recipes

Sourdough Pancakes from Grace and Gusto

In case you missed "What is Real Food" here's a recap...

I know "Real" food may not seem like as much fun as the sugary, chemically, DIY recipes out there on the internet.  This is why REAL Food Friday is so unique.  This is the place to share your unprocessed, gmo-free, locally grown and/or fair trade posts.

We are trying to make a difference 1 recipe at a time!
If your post includes items like *margarine, *granulated sugar, *food dye, packaged baking mixed with ingredients that you cannot pronounce (betty crocker, duncan hines, pillsbury) then it WILL be deleted.  These are garbage ingredients.  Sorry...Not real food.


Here's a great reference from Food Myths:
Do you ever think about how far the food you eat travels?  Who grew it?  Who picked it? How much in processing it's been through before you took a bite?

Real Food is:
-Supports fair farmworker wages
-GMO Free
-Little to no processing/processed ingredients
-Supports local markets/vendors and isn't transported long distances to get to my plate
-Honors fair trade principles when I buy from othr regions
-Meat and dairy should be humanely raised and on real food themselves-Not genetically engineered feed, drugs, hormones and antibiotics.

Link up your Real Food posts!  Processed and "junk food" posts will be deleted.
The party runs from Thursday at 7pm EST through Monday at Noon.

Please follow your hosts and consider adding the Real Food Friday button.

HAPPY NEW YEAR with a GIVEAWAY!

I'm thrilled to share that 2014 has started out with amazing friends, a healthy family and happy plants!

  I am pleased to co-host and sponsor the very first giveaway for 2014...

Happy New Year & Welcome to Our Giveaway!

This year I'd like to help you Turn Over a New Leaf with this amazing offer for

 a 6 Month Seeds of The Month Club Membership and a 

Variety 4 Pack of Supreme Growers Soil Amendments from

Mary's Heirloom Seeds!

Need more information about this awesome prize?!

The 6 Month Membership includes 4 seed packs the first month and 2 seed packs each month for 6 months. All of Mary's Heirloom seed varieties are open-pollinated, Non-GMO Heirloom Seeds. Your first 4 packs of seeds are mailed right away. Then each month Mary will ship 2 packs of her fantastic heirloom seeds!

That's 14 packets of high quality seeds with a club membership value of $44!

Soil Amendments Variety Pack:

An Awesome 4 Pack of All Natural, Non-GMO Soil Amendments 

with a retail value of $11.50

Soil Blast benefits: • Nourish soil and plants • Continuously improve soil fertility • Increase soil vitality and texture • Guaranteed non-toxic, non-GMO

Kelp Blast benefits: • Promotes plant growth • Specially formulated to encourage higher yields • 100% water soluble • Sustainably harvested • Guaranteed non-toxin, non-GMO

Myco Blast benefits: • Protect seeds and young plants • Expand roots for maximum nutrient and water absorption • Enhances the plant's resistance to drought 

Sweet Myco Tea benefits: • Fortified with Mycorrhizae • Easy, ready-to-use formula • Helps prevent fertilizer leeching through soil • Enhance color and aroma • Safeguard against over-fertilization • Guaranteed non-toxic, non-GMO  

 

How Do I Win?

Use the handy dandy entry form below to enter for your chance to win this great Prize Package! One winner will be chosen at random on January 8th, 2014. We'll contact the winner right away, so watch for our email! If we don't receive a confirmation email within 24 hours, a new winner will be selected. All Prizes will be awarded to one person and you must complete the entry for your chance to win.

Entry-Form