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Kefir Culture
(pronounced: keff é-er):
So What is Kefir? A fermented milk drink. Where available, kefir is made with camel milk. The word "kefir" is derived from the Turkish word keif, which loosely translates to; good-feeling, feeling of well-being or feeling-good.
Kefir is a refreshing probiotic cultured-milk beverage, which is believed to originate in the Northern Caucasus Mountains many centuries ago. Kefir has a uniform thick creamy consistency, a slightly sour refreshing taste, with a mild aroma of fresh yeast. Kefir also has a slight naturally carbonated effervescent "zest".
Kefir's tart and refreshing flavor is similar to a drinking-style yogurt, but it contains beneficial yeast as well as friendly 'probiotic' bacteria found in yogurt. The naturally occurring bacteria and yeast in kefir combine symbiotically to give superior health benefits when consumed regularly. It is loaded with valuable vitamins and minerals and contains easily digestible complete proteins.
Kefir can
be made from any type of milk, cow, goat or sheep. Non-dairy beverages can
also be cultured with the grains. We have cultured coconut nectar,
homemade juice from the berries in our yard-one of my favorites is
cultured currant juice as well as lemonade and fresh fruit.
Kefir is made from gelatinous white or
yellow particles called "grains." These grains contain the
bacteria/yeast mixture clumped together with casein (milk proteins) and
complex sugars. They look like pieces of coral or small clumps of
cauliflower and range from the size of a grain of wheat to that of a hazelnut. The
grains ferment the milk, incorporating their friendly
organisms to create the cultured product. The grains are then removed with
a strainer before consumption of the kefir and added to a new batch of
milk. The grains we offer are the most active
ones we have seen. If fed regularly, like a good sourdough
starter they will last for generations to come. We have had great success
culturing milk as well as juice and fruits with this culture!! Our
milk culture is fed organic raw, farm fresh milk on a regular basis. 1 TBS of grains (plenty
to get started) You will receive live active grains with instructions and
some of our favorite recipes!! $18.00 (plus shipping)
Piima Culture
(pronounced
Pee’ma) Fermentation
and culturing were among the early methods used to preserve and make more
digestible the available foodstuffs. These methods were particularly used
by nomadic peoples to transport their foods long distances without modern
preservation and additive techniques. We
make cultured cream, butter and buttermilk as well as a feta style cheese
using this culture. We love the flavor and the resiliency of this culture!!
Our Piima is fed organic raw cream from a local farm. We
will send you fresh cultured cream for a starter and instructions and
recipes. You will receive a jar that is not entirely full, the reason is
to allow for any expansion of the culture, which can happen if the
temperatures become too warm. This culture can last for years if properly cared for!!! *we
do our best to package this item and mail it so that it has the best
chance of arriving in tact, and just know that shipping fermented food
cultures can sometimes result in changes that are unpredictable. We will
happily send you another batch if something unusual happens, but are not
willing to provide a full refund. We offer this as a service and are not
interested in this costing us money to send. If the weather is unusually
warm we may wait to send this item until temperatures cool down (you will
be informed if this is the case). Please inform us if your area is
experiencing unusually warm temperatures. For an additional charge we can
ship priority with ice packs. Do note that we have sent this culture all
over the United States and have had a lot of success having it reach people in
tact. The time or two that it has not we have been more than happy to send
more!! Please note that we may be willing to ship overseas, you will need
to contact us for a shipping quote as it will inevitably more than
shipping within the United States. For information email rosemarygoddess@moonwiseherbs.com $12.00
(plus shipping)
_________________________________ This is our own starter, which we inoculated with
the wild yeast from our very own grapes. Our experience is that
capturing the yeast from a yeasty fruit such as grapes, offers a stable
predictable culture. This is a very active and flavorful starter. We
prefer to make sourdough bread, pancakes etc from our own starter rather
than commercial leavening agents. We are providing our starter for folks
who would like to have a foundation to work with. If fed on a regular
basis this starter will last your lifetime and can be passed on from
friend to friend and generation to generation. After you feed it for a
while it will become your own. Our starter is shipped with instructions as
well as recipes to inspire your journey! "Thank you so much! I love your stuff.
I use your quick sourdough bread recipe and we love it!." $9.99 (plus shipping)
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Beeswax and Honey
We now have available really raw honey and top quality beeswax. We get these
from a local beekeeper in our area. The honey has not been heated and the
beeswax is rich and aromatic. This is what we use in our products as well as our
daily life.
Honey is packed in mason jars and is crystalized, as real raw honey
should be.
Honey and beeswax can
be shipped all year long!
Beeswax
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Sourdough Starter
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