(Misc.) Miscellaneous post

– I tried pear with agave nectar to ferment into a fruit enzyme, and the result was EXCELLENT. I left it out for four days, resulting in an enzyme that is akin to a very subtle white wine with fruity taste and scent. I can’t get enough of it;

– I purchase A LOT of my stuff used to upkeep my health (emotionally and physically) from iHerb, because the products are really reasonably-priced (and even my friends who don’t live in Singapore think so, too), and the shipping is really reasonable as well. So, I’m sharing my referral code with anyone who would like to use it to get USD$10 off first-time orders over $40, or $5 off first-time orders below $40. I don’t like recommending stuff most of the time, but iHerb has made me SO HAPPY in the almost two years I’ve been using their services that I just had to share.

Discount code is: TOH344

(Essential oils) Burner? Humidifier? Diffuser?

The aromatherapy lamp-cum-burner which I used before.

I have to say that in this case, I took the longer route to get to where I want to be than the road most others have taken.

When I first started using essential oils as aromatherapy, I went for the lamp-cum-aromatherapy burner because well…that was the only thing I knew other than the traditional tea-light candle type. Bad move, and I wonder why I didn’t Google before I bought these.

These burners, which use heat, did no favor to the fragrance of essential oils. Even with the oils floating on top of water, as long as the oils react to heat, their properties and subtle nuances of their scent are all but gone, destroyed by the heat. Being especially sensitive in the sense of smell, all I could scent was the warm, humid and almost-sickeningly cloying sweet-thick air from the burner, the water and the oil.

After a very long time of talking about it (because the lamp burners I had cost quite a bit), I made the move to invest in an ultrasonic diffuser.

The Novita NA-90 ultrasonic diffuser I replaced the lamp burner with.

Now, I know that there are humidifiers in the market, but their function is more to introduce moisture into a room. They are usually recommended by doctors (and even vets, according to a friend who bought a humidifier for his dog) to ease dry and scratchy throats, blocked noses, sore throats and coughs. I didn’t really need that.

And so, after Googling for the different types of fragrance-/essential oil-dispensers this time, I decided to invest in a reputable ultrasonic diffuser. According to Abundant Health 4 U, “ultrasonic diffusers also create a fine mist, but the method by which this is accomplished is much different. An ultrasonic diffuser utilizes electronic frequencies to cause a small disk under the surface of a liquid (usually water) to vibrate at a very fast rate. These ultrasonic vibrations break the essential oil into tiny microparticles, dispersing the oil in a fine mist. These tiny particles are more easily absorbed by the lungs for a greater therapeutic effect on the body, mind, and spirit.”

Since using it from the night before, I can say that the oil’s fragrance is now much more defined. Those with a more sensitive nose can probably detect the different notes of the oil as well.

I must say it’s a worthy investment and a much-needed change.

(Misc.) A rant on being too indoctrinated by an idea without questioning it

I recently posted on the/a water kefir group on Facebook about how I added my orange and lemon honey enzyme into my water kefir to drink it after I’d filtered the grains out.

What I was surprised at was seeing how indoctrinated some people (especially those who claim to have been drinking water kefir for more than a decade) are with regards to their ideas, that they cannot even stop to think or ask questions, or even give some scientific proof on websites (few enough as they are) to substantiate their claims.

See? Honey is anti-bacterial. I know that full well. Maybe not everyone does, because when some first started out brewing things like kombucha and water kefir, they asked me why they couldn’t use honey since it’s considered a much healthier alternative than sugar. My answer was that since kombucha and water kefir are actually colonies of bacteria (albeit ones which are good for our bodies), using honey to ferment the drink will create an extremely high chance that the anti-bacterial properties it has will actually kill off the grains instead. After all, nature works the way it does, whether the bacteria is good for us or not.

I had one or two very kind and well-meaning members inform me (they were the first one or two who commented) everything I’d typed out in the paragraph above. So, thinking that I’d not made myself clear, I clarified matters. And then, another few commented (which made it VERY clear that they either didn’t read my comments, couldn’t be bothered to read my comments, or that they really just couldn’t be bothered, period) about the whole honey-killing-kefir-grains matter again, and again, and again.

This struck me as parallel to the old, passed-down idea of NEVER using metal utensils in kombucha- and kefir-brewing when I first started out. Site after site AFTER site claimed that one should STAY AWAY!!!!! from metal utensils, without any of them EVER giving the reason why. Until I came upon Dom’s kefir making website (I think the explanation was given by him), where the site said that because metal utensils hundreds of years ago were made of pure metal which rusted very quickly and easily, they were generally unsuitable to be used for food, and it was much better not to in case any rust or germs got into the brew. However, with the invention of stainless steel which is also used in utensils, this combination of metal is now inert and doesn’t react with food or anything else. So we can use it safely.

See? Now THAT is called an explanation, and a logical one at that.

This whole monkey-do, monkey-pass-down business in making health drinks at home is annoying at the very least, and pisses me off greatly, at the most.

I mean, sure. Honey is anti-bacterial. If I see someone write that without giving me more explanation or proof one more time, I’m going to tell him off. If I mix honey with my kefir drink and consume the whole thing within a few minutes or within less than half-an-hour, how much time does the honey have to really kill the good bacteria in the drink? If someone is going to tell me that the honey can kill everything off in my kefir drink almost-instantly, then hey, what about all those millions of people who’ve been consuming honey for years? Their guts’ microflora will be kaput over and over again thousands of times, isn’t it? And once I drink it down and the whole mixture mixes with my gut’s stuff, is anyone going to tell me that the honey will attack only the kefir bacteria and nothing else to the extent that the kefir I drink has been killed?

Or maybe someone is going to tell me that honey takes some time (how long?) to kill the kefir bacteria. Well, all and good, isn’t it? Once I drink it down before that duration then everything is mixed up in my gut anyway.

So. what. is. the. bloody. problem?

I hope that after this rant, my frustration at the idiocy of some people will be lessened. But I doubt it. There will always be these people in the world – those who heard from “people” and simply do, without asking who exactly those people are (the “he said,” “she said,” “they said” syndrome) and why a method is why it is.

(Fruit enzyme) Apple with maple syrup

Please ignore the rubber bands. I tied them there to ensure ants would avoid my jar. Apparently, ants dislike the chemical scent? (or something) of rubber bands, so it's a useful object to keep them away

After having harvested my orange and lemon honey enzyme, I decided to continue with making another so that I’ll have a more consistent supply of fruit enzymes to consume.

I washed and then blended two apples, and then added some maple syrup to the blended mixture, along with about 1/3 cup of water.

The resulting mix is sitting in my glass jar awaiting a one-week fermentation. I’ll need to stir it everyday to make sure the fermentation becomes even.

I shall update this blog when I get to harvest this fruit enzyme.

(Water kefir) Taste test

I finally harvested my orange and lemon honey enzyme today, and added two tablespoons of it to about half a cup of water kefir, further diluting the whole thing a little bit more to make a full cup.

The result was quite good for me – the drink tasted slightly of vinegar (typical of water kefir fermentation) without the annoying sharp tang; the honey helped to sweeten it just a little, and the orange and lemon gave it some flavor.

All in all, thumbs up.

(Hand scrub) Sea salt with essential oils

I was inspired by another blog to make my own hand scrub, knowing how sanitizers actually dry the hand out quite a bit in the process of killing germs.

For this, I simply bought fine iodized sea salt, used the coconut oil I had on hand instead of the sweet almond oil suggested, and added lemon and tea tree essential oils.

One would have to use a spoon or chopstick to thoroughly mix the coconut oil and essential oils with the salt so that the distribution is even.

I gave it a test run as soon as I was done, and found that the salt helped to exfoliate my hand’s skin (do it gently, or else your hands will feel rather tender after that) while the coconut oil helped to moisturize it. The tea tree oil is mildly antibacterial, so it’d help to keep the hands clean, and the lemon scent is extremely rejuvenating.

I had one problem though – how in the world was I going to go about doing my tasks with oil on my hands? If I used soap or hand wash to wash it off, then what would be the point of making a scrub to keep my hands clean but yet moisturize it?

So, what I did was to rub my hands vigorously under water (don’t use too much water and waste it, though), and then used a paper towel to absorb the excess oil.

Now, my hand smells of coconut oil and lemon. It feels mildly sticky probably because of the oil, but my hands do feel somewhat smoother, although still tender since I’d rubbed too hard.

(Fruit enzyme) Orange and lemon

Orange and lemon slices in honey

After a long while of not having made any fruit enzyme because of mold issue, I decided to give it a try again about three weeks before, when we had an excess of mandarin oranges because of the Chinese Lunar New Year period.

I’d peeled and air-dried four mandarin oranges for 13 hours, laying the slices out on a few places and covered with a food cover so that insects can’t get to them. But I realized one thing: no matter what one does, somehow, the fruits ALWAYS floats when sugar or honey is added, so that a layer of fruits will always be exposed to air within the jar, no matter how clean I make them or how much I sterilize them or how dry they are.

In all the times I’d been making fruit enzyme, I’d used tall glass jars. I got a feeling I should switch to small fat jars, and so I did this time.

Small sauce bowls to weigh the fruits down

I used a clean toothbrush dedicated to cleaning the skin of fruits to clean them during washing, and then sliced the orange and lemon into thin slices, including the skin and the pith. I’d air-dried them for over 10 hours, and was considering an investment in a food dehydrator, but decided to try using the resources I had at home. So, the microwave it was.

I placed the fruit slices on a few pieces of paper towels, and set the microwave on auto-defrost. Each plate required about two defrosting period, but the excess moisture leaked out and was soaked up by the paper towels. So the fruit slices were quite wrinkled and dry, which was excellent for me.

But, just to make sure, I also sterilized two small sauce bowls to weigh the fruits more heavily into the honey.

After a few days, there was still no sign of mold. It’s a week today as I post this, and still no mold.

So, I have to say that it’s better to use small jars instead of tall ones, and also to use something to weigh the fruits down to prevent any part from being exposed to air (even inside the jar) so that mold can grow.

I shall give the fruits another week to ferment and infuse, and then it shall be a taste-test time.

(Ginger beer plant) First and second taste tests

I have to admit, I’m not the best or most punctual person when it comes to decanting my fermented stuff (for both the ginger beer and water kefir alike). Because of this, I’d decanted both my first and second brews of the ginger beer a few days late (where the optimum time to decant the liquid into bottles would be when the brew tastes slightly sweet).

I decided to try adding some molasses sugar to the brew right when I decide to drink the decanted liquid, and it tastes (almost?) exactly like store-bought ginger beer, too.

(GBP) Ginger Beer Plant

When I first heard about this, I almost jumped in joy. A ginger beer PLANT? The gardener in me was ecstatic, eager to get my hands on this plant.

And then I found out that the ‘plant’ is actually grains of symbiotic colonies of bacteria (and yeast?), just like the kombucha, and milk and water kefir.  The GBP grains, however, are used to ‘ferment’ the solution it sits in to brew the traditional ginger beer. My excitement wasn’t any less, since I love all these stuff as well.

Much Googling has provided me with some interesting information:
1. Brews which require the addition of yeast isn’t true ginger beer; nor are the grains used the real GBP;
2. Many websites or companies market different stuff (and even water kefir grains) as GBP grains, so one must be careful to choose a trustworthy site.

I’m sure there are a few more bits of information which I’ve forgotten. Ah well.

The instructions I got from the seller states that I should allow the GBP to recover in a solution of sugar and lemon juice (as in, juice from a lemon and not the store-sold stuff in cartons) for a few days, changing the solution every few days until I see bubbles forming. Then, I may start brewing ginger beer for real.

Since the grains took only about a week to reach me, I don’t expect that they need too long to recover. Or, I hope so, at the very least.

I shall monitor the recovery brew closely and see when it starts to bubble

(Kefir) Another attempt

Water kefir on the left; kombucha on the right

I stopped making both the water and milk kefir months ago because I really couldn’t keep up with all the fermentations going on. With my dad not drinking kombucha now, my consumption frequency has gone down as well, so much so that each batch ferments for two weeks or even more before I start drinking it.

The brews are so strong and sharp that it kind of hurt my throat, sending me into coughing and choking fits every time I take a drink. Yeah, it’s probably my fault for letting the brews sit that long, but ah well.

A friend very kindly gave me quite a bit of water kefir grains yesterday, since hers had multiplied somewhat. The original source was from a Tibetan monk, I believe.

I decided to try making water kefir again, since the taste isn’t as strong, and if I add ginger slices in, it tastes somewhat like ginger beer, which I love. (On a side note, I’ve made a purchase of the real ginger beer plant [read: grains as well], and can’t wait to test that out)

I was advised to use both raw sugar and (blackstrap) molasses sugar. Having both, I happily boiled some water to get rid of the chlorine (although my house’s taps all have chlorine filters attached to them), added in 100 grams of Demerara sugar and about a large tablespoonful of liquid blackstrap molasses from my leftover water kefir making days.

I’ve used a piece of cloth to cover the mouth of the jar because I’m too lazy to let the carbon out periodically, and I don’t really like fizzy drinks either.

Now, let’s see if these grains will grow for me.