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Health – Page 17 – Homesteader Depot

Homesteader Depot

Category: Health

  • How to Make Probiotic Cream Soda

    How to Make Probiotic Cream Soda

    I don’t know about you, but I absolutely love a good, old-fashioned cream soda. It’s such a great treat, and hard to find a really well-brewed one these days.

    Earlier this week we wrote about a ginger bug which is the base for many kinds of probiotic sodas, and cream soda is one of the delicious, healthy, probiotic sodas you can make using ginger bug as a result!

    The really great thing about probiotic cream soda is that since you are fermenting it with a culture, the little bacteria in the culture actually eat the sugar, changing its metabolic structure, so it’s actually nothing like store-bought sodas that are full of sugar or high-fructose corn syrup. While it does still contain sugar, it’s a much healthier form.

    So, here is how you make it!

    Ingredients: 

    • 2 quarts filtered water
    • 3 cups white sugar
    • 3 tbs vanilla extract
    • 1 cup active ginger bug

    Directions: 

    1. When you are sure your ginger bug is active, meaning bubbly and fizzy, make this recipe right away.
    2. First boil your water, then remove from heat and stir in 2 cups of sugar. Once it is cooled a bit, so that it’s still warm to the touch but not at all hot, stir in the other cup of sugar until it dissolves.
    3. Then, pour the water into a half-gallon jar and stir in the vanilla, and finally, the ginger bug.
    4. Cover with the lid, and let sit on your counter for several days. Check daily for signs of fermenting, and stir.
    5. When it is bubbly and smells slightly sour and sweet, it’s time for the secondary ferment, which will make it bubbily. You can either keep in the same container and simply tighten the lid, and check every day until the lid no longer indents when you press it, or you can pour into specialized flip-top bottles for fermenting.
    6. Be very careful at this point, because the jar or bottle could explode if fermented too long! You might want to keep in a bucket, if you can, just to be safe. But all you need to do is to crack the lid or bottle top slightly to hear for a “hiss”, then you’re probably good.
    7. Put in the refrigerator to keep and to stop the carbonation process, and enjoy!

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  • How to Detox With Coconut Oil

    How to Detox With Coconut Oil

    Our modern lives are full of toxins. Air pollution, manufacturing chemicals, preservatives in food, you name it. These toxins degrade our health and compromise our immune system.

    Detoxing has become very popular for this reason, and many people report incredible transformation after trying a “cleanse” for a short time. If you’d like to try some detoxing, coconut oil is a really great way to do this.

    Coconut oil is incredibly nutritious, and packed with important fatty acids and have many great health benefits, including:

    • Increased brain activity
    • Digestive support
    • Blood sugar regulation
    • Heart and cardiovascular health
    • Protection against cancer
    • Cholesterol regulation
    • Increased energy
    • Immune system boosting
    • Efficient fat burn
    • Thyroid support
    • Anti-fungal, anti-bacterial, and anti-microbial properties

    To begin a detox with coconut oil, you’ll want to generally cleanse your whole diet too. You don’t have to stop eating all the foods you love, just commit to avoiding processed foods, fast food, and junk food, as well as white sugar for at least one week. You’ll notice a huge difference from this alone!

    Then, take 2 tbs of raw virgin coconut oil mixed with warm water every 2 hours. You can mix this into other drinks, have in bulletproof coffee in the morning, or mix into soups and stews. Do this for 3-7 days for amazing detox results.

    Once you start to detox, you might experience “die-off” or a slight sickness from the toxins leaving your body. You’ll want to make sure to drink lots of water, take Vitamin C, and drink lemon or lime water too. Activated charcoal tablets can also help too. Fresh fruit can really take the edge off too.

    When you’re done, try to stick to healthier foods if you can, and continue to incorporate coconut oil into your diet.

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  • Fermented Probiotic Soda Recipe

    Fermented Probiotic Soda Recipe

    You’ve probably heard of or even made your own probiotic kombucha drink, which has been all the rage among foodies and health-minded folks over the last few years. You can easily find it bottled in many grocery stores and restaurants these days, and you can also pretty easily brew it at home, as an easy, super-healthy, homemade probiotic.

    A lesser-known homemade probiotic drink is those that can be made using a ginger bug, which is a culture grown with ginger and sugar and used as the base for healthy, delicious sodas.

    Back in the day, this is how drinks like ginger ale, cream soda, and root beer were made, and you can make your own at home very easily using this simple recipe.

    How it works is that the ginger and sugar culture together and create a multitude of beneficial, living bacteria that can further ferment the ingredients in whatever soda you choose to make with it. While both the ginger bug and the sodas you can make with it require sugar to be made, the bacteria essentially “eats” the sugar, converting it to beneficial probiotics. So, this is not only a great alternative to the sugar and chemical-packed commercial sodas because it is probiotic, it also has significantly less sugar.

    Note: this is the recipe for the ginger bug, which is similar to the SCOBY of kombucha brewing or sourdough culture to sourdough baking. For the actual sodas, it is a different recipe that simply uses the product of this one. We’ll follow up with some delicious homemade soda recipes using a ginger bug so you can give yours a whirl! 

    How to make a ginger bug: 

    Ingredients:

    • 1-2 fresh ginger roots
    • 1/2 white sugar
    • 2 cups filtered water
    • mason jar
    • paper towel
    • rubber band

    Directions:

    1. Grate or finely chop part of your ginger root until you have about 2-3 tablespoons. Save the rest of the ginger root for upcoming steps.
    2. Put the ginger in your mason jar with an equal amount of sugar (note: using white sugar is crucial).
    3. Cover with 2 cups filtered water.
    4. Stir with a non-metal utensil, and cover with the paper towel and rubber band.
    5. This is where the culturing begins. Let your mixture sit overnight, stirring once or twice, and then the next day, add 1 more tbs of ginger and 1 more tbs of sugar.
    6. The culture is active when bubbles appear on the surface and you hear a distinct “fizz” when you stir it. This might happen the first day and it might happen on the fifth; but once it is ready, use in your soda recipe right away.

    We’ll bring you a recipe for how to use the ginger bug in the next few days, so you can make your own healthy, nutritious, delicious homemade soda.

     

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  • How to Make Almond Milk (and Almond Flour!)

    How to Make Almond Milk (and Almond Flour!)

    I love recipes that kill two birds with one stone (come to think of it, if you know a recipe that does this literally, let me know!), and making almond flour out of the leftovers from almond milk couldn’t be easier, or healthier!

    It’s very simple, and all you need is almonds and clean drinking water.

    Almond milk is a great alternative to dairy whether you are on the paleo or whole 30 diets, are lactose intolerant, or just enjoy a delicious and wholesome nut milk!

    Homemade almond milk is not only cheaper than store bought kinds, it’s actually way healthier. Even the most seemingly healthy almond milk that is organic and non-GMO, still have gross preservatives in them that pretty much cancel out any other health benefit of delicious almond milk, not to mention half the time they’re also packed with flavoring and unnecessary sugar.

    Almonds are sweet enough on their own, so homemade almond milk is both delicious and require very little to make. Here’s how, and how to make almond flour with the discards!

    Ingredients:

    • almonds (2 cups is a good starting point)
    • filtered water
    • salt (optional)
    • vanilla extract (optional)

    Directions: 

    1. Fill a glass container with your almonds and cover with clean filtered water. A 3:5 ratio of almonds to water is fine, but you mostly just need to make sure the almonds are fully submerged.
    2. Let soak overnight.
    3. In the morning, drain off the water and rinse your almonds thoroughly under clean water, until the water runs clear.
    4. Place in a blender with the salt and vanilla extract, if you’re using them, and fill the rest of the blender with clean filtered water.
    5. Blend on high for a minute or two.
    6. Strain the almonds out with cheesecloth or a fine mesh strainer. I do this over a large pitcher so I can pour the fresh almond milk into a bottle easily.
    7. That’s it! Bottle your almond milk and store in the fridge; it will keep for 4-6 days.

    How to make almond flour

    So, you may ask, what do I do with all this crushed up almond I just strained out of my milk? That’s right: this is how we make the flour!

    1. First, try to squeeze out as much moisture as you can from the discarded almonds. Then, spread out on a baking pan or dehydrator tray in a thin layer.
    2. Set your oven to the lowest setting, place your pan in the oven, and crack the door. If you’re using an oven, leave it this way for about 4-6 hours. OR if you’re using a dehydrator, set it on the nut setting, if it has one, or around 115. Leave for 12 hours.
    3. Once your almond meal is crispy and completely dry, take out of the oven or dehydrator.
    4. Run the almond meal through the blender again, until it is like a fine meal. This will vary based on your blender’s strength if you have a grain mill, even better! You can also use a coffee grinder, but this will take awhile if it has a small capacity.
    5. And there’s your super frugal almond flour! Store in an airtight container in a cool, dry place, and use in any recipe that calls for almond flour.

    There you are, two awesome, healthy food products with one batch of almonds. Cool huh?

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  • How to Make Healthy Gummy Candy

    How to Make Healthy Gummy Candy

    Gummy candy is a great treat, but unfortunately, it’s usually loaded with dyes, preservatives and chemicals.

    Like many junk foods, there are healthy versions you can make at home, but DIY gummy candy has a unique quality among healthy alternatives to candy: it’s actually really good for you. 

    The base of homemade gummy candy is gelatin, which is an excellent source of protein, minerals, and vitamins that help improve skin, hair, nail, dental, and bone heath, ease the symptoms of arthritis, relieve tendonitis and other muscle and joint-related health issues.

    It’s amazingly good for you, but make sure you buy gelatin from grass-fed cows. Gelatin from feedlot cows is not anywhere near as healthy, as those animals are often unhealthy themselves and pumped full of antibiotics and hormones.

    Also, make sure you buy a gelatin that says it will dissolve in hot water and clump in cold water. If it says it will dissolve in cold water, it won’t work for gummies. Gummies have gotten very popular, so these days, most brands will probably indicate what you can use the gelatin for on the container.

    There are many different options for flavoring gummy candy, the sky is pretty much the limit! Just do a quick search on Pinterest and you’re bound to be overwhelmed by all the creative combinations foodie bloggers come up with.

    Here’s a very basic recipe to get you started:

    Ingredients and tools:

    • 3/4 cup fruit juice
    • 3 tbs raw honey or maple syrup
    • 3 tbs grassfed gelatin powder
    • Small saucepan
    • Candy molds or shallow glass pan

    Directions: 

    1. Get all your ingredients and your candy molds or glass pan together. If you are using a glass pan, gently grease it. Make sure you have everything measured and ready to go before you get started, as some steps are time-sensitive.
    2. Next, make sure you have room in your refrigerator for the gummies to cool once they’re in the molds or the pan. They will need to sit flat on a surface. I usually line my candy molds up on a baking sheet and make space for them before getting started. If your fridge is too full, you can also use the freezer.
    3. Gently heat the juice over low heat in a small saucepan on the stove.
    4. Stir in the honey or syrup until fully dissolved.
    5. Sprinkle in the gelatin, whisking to combine as you go. Continue to whisk until completely dissolved. You might have a few clumps, try to nudge these or press with a fork until they are broken up and dissolved, as best you can (a few small lumps won’t ruin it, if the rest of the gelatin is fully dissolved.
    6. Once your gelatin is fully dissolved, remove the liquid from heat and pour right away into your candy molds or pan.
    7. Refrigerate for 1-2 hours, or freeze for 10-20 minutes. Once they’re fully solid, either pop out of the candy molds or cut up into squares.
    8. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator, and enjoy!

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  • How to Make Infused Vinegar for Cleaning

    How to Make Infused Vinegar for Cleaning

    If you want to clean using natural, green cleaning products, but miss the fragrant smells of conventional, store-bought cleaners, then this is a great idea for you.

    Scent-infused vinegar is a really great, and cheap way, to make your own fragrant cleaners that actually work. We’re definitely fans of essential oils here, but we understand a lot of people aren’t ready to make the dive into buying them, or aren’t sure how to use them properly.

    This recipe is cheap, easy, involves no essential oils, and cleans amazingly well. You even can most likely make your own custom cleaner with a scent that you love using leftover scraps from your kitchen! Let’s begin.

    How to Make Scent-Infused Cleaners

    The basic formula for these cleaners involves soaking your fruit, herbs, or flowers in in vinegar for a few weeks, then using that vinegar as the base for a simple homemade cleaner. Here are some ideas for infusions you can use:

    • pine needles
    • citrus peels
    • fresh lavender sprigs
    • fresh rosemary sprigs
    • cinnamon sticks
    • eucalyptus leaves
    • rose petals
    • gardenia blossoms

    What you need to get started is one of the above, some other fragrant plant of fruit, (or any creative combo you can come up with!), a jar with a lid, and some regular white distilled vinegar. Keep in mind, the vinegar should be able to fill roughly 1/3 of a spray bottle when you’re done, but it doesn’t have to be perfect.

    For the following cleaner, you will need that spray bottle, some distilled water, and if you want a little extra cleaning oomph, a dash of dish soap. 

     

    Directions: 

    1. Take the scent of your choice, and, if they’re large like sprigs, roughly chop them. You don’t have to worry too much though, you just need to be able to stuff them in a jar.
    2. Put your herbs, leaves, peels, etc. in the jar, and cover with vinegar.
    3. Put the lid on the jar securely.
    4. Place in a cool, dark place, for 2-3 weeks. You can even do 1 if you’re in a hurry, it will still be lightly infused.
    5. When you’re ready to make your cleaner, strain whatever you have been infusing out of the vinegar, and pour your vinegar into your spray bottle.
    6. Fill the rest of the spray bottle with the distilled water (really, you can use tap, but distilled is just more sanitary) and a dash of dish soap if you like.

    And that’s it! Use this as you would your regular cleaner, and you’ll be amazed at how good it cleans and how delightful it smells.

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  • 4 Health Benefits of Frozen Blueberries

    4 Health Benefits of Frozen Blueberries

    Blueberries are well-known as a delicious source of antioxidants and valuable nutrients, and although they’re not as glamorous or trendy as acai berry, they’re actually more nutritious and top many dieticians have named them the #1 superfood out there.

    But did you know that when you freeze them, contrary to what you might think, it actually increases the nutrients?

    Anthocyanins are what gives blueberries their dark, rich color. They are a are a type of flavonoid, which is a phytonutrient found exclusively in plants, and they’re what make blueberries so incredibly healthy.

    What happens when you freeze them is that is that the cold temperatures disrupt the tissue structure of the delicate flesh, which actually makes the anthocyanins more available and easier to be absorbed when consumed.

    Anthocyanins have many great health benefits, such as:

    Improved memory

    By protecting your brain against cell damage, anthocyanins actually improve brain function by allowing our brain’s encoding and retrieval process more fluid. This helps us to remember things quicker and for longer periods of time.

    Heart Health

    Eating blueberries have been shown to drastically reduce one’s risk of heart disease, as the anthocyanins regulate and relax the arteries on our vascular wall, protecting them from damage. As a result, the overall blood flow improves, regulating blood pressure as well!

    Improved Digestion

    These healthy antioxidants also support our digestive system by protecting our digestive tract from damage. Often times, gastrointestinal health can actually be connected to the development of cancer, particularly in the colon, which is yet another reason why antioxidants are so important for a healthy diet.

    Frozen blueberries are not hard to acquire or use! You can buy them in bulk and freeze in Ziplock bags to throw in smoothies, yogurt, or baked goods. If you are looking for a quick and easy way to add lots of essential nutrients and antioxidants to your diet, give frozen blueberries a try!

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  • Dehydrating Food: A Beginner’s Guide

    Dehydrating Food: A Beginner’s Guide

    Dehydrating is a great option for preserving food for the long term, especially for gardeners or homesteaders. But even if you’re just an urban homesteader, it might be an excellent way to get started with food preservation. If you like to shop sales, frequent farmer’s markets, or grow veggies or herbs in your own little urban homestead, dehydrating is a great way to maximize your finds and easily store food for the long term.

    Here are some of the benefits to dehydrating vs. other food preservation methods:

    • it preserves the nutritional content of food
    • it condenses food and also makes it very lightweight, which is great for storage
    • it requires very little work to do
    • you can preserve a wide variety of foods with the same process

    Getting started 

    To get started, you will most likely want to purchase a dehydrator, but you can also dehydrate food using your oven. You simply put your oven on its lowest setting, crack the door, and let your food dehydrate for 6-24 hours, depending on what you are dehydrating.

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    There are many dehydrators on the market, that range in size and efficiency. You will want to consider how much food you want to dehydrate at once, the storage space you have for it in your kitchen, how well-reviewed the model you’re looking at is, etc.

    What to dehydrate

    Once you have purchased a dehydrator, the sky is the limit on what you can dehydrate! You’d be surprised how much you can do with a dehydrator, from making jerky and pemmican to quickly rising dough and, of course, drying fruits, vegetables, and herbs. While there are many foods you can dry, here are some of the most popular and efficient foods to store by dehydration.

    • Apples
    • Oranges
    • Bananas
    • Berries
    • Fruit leather
    • Tomato sauce
    • Herbs
    • Peppers
    • Meat (for jerky)
    • Eggs (for powdered eggs)

    Most dehydrators will have a guide for what temperature to set for which type of food product you are drying, but you might need to adjust accordingly since not every food product will have the same level of moisture. Typically, you will dry stuff for a long period of time, from 6-24 and maybe even 48 hours.

    This long drying time doesn’t require much at all, all you need to do is process what you’re drying and lay it out in an even, thin layer on the trays of your dehydrator. You’ll want to check occasionally to see what kind of progress is being made. Most commonly, people will set their dehydrator up in the evening and dry overnight.

    Dehydrating is an age-old method of drying food that you might find becomes a staple method of food production and food preservation in your home. Just give it a try and see how you like it!

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