On Simple Pleasures
When life handles you lemons, make lemonade right?
Well, that's what happened this week. Lots of lemons, but hey life is such, and instead of lemonade, I turned my sorrow into kombucha!
Kombucha is tasty, good for you and fun to make. Takes a long time, and you need a starter for it. Basically it's a tea fermented by a creature that looks like an embryo in a jar, but in fact, it's just a symbiotic relationship between a yeast and bacteria. This little monster gets to turn your tea into fizzy vinegary good for you yumminess, and while there is no scientific evidence that it is the panacea some people make it out to be, I personally like it quite a lot.
Of course if you listen to mainstream media, unlike diet sodas, kombucha can be quiet dangerous.
(I read an article recently, where pregnant mommies were advised that herbal teas like chamomile have unknown side effects, but artificially sweetened soft drinks are safe. I am sure everyone who developed aspartame poisoning will have a hard time deciding if they want to laugh or cry. Way to go mainstream media!)
I did not get much beading done, still working on the Illuminated by Candle Light Challenge bracelet, and it's slowly but surely coming along. Much slower then normal, but it will be on time, no worries.
If anyone reading this is participating, shoot me an email. kinganicholsatyahoodotcom.
I will post everything by my Bday, the 17th.
Then here is another furry cuddly picture. Too cute not to share.
And a giant stuffed Cinderella pumpkin from a while back. My friend had a bunch of Martha Stewart magazines laying around when I visited her, and in the November issue there was a fantastic recipe for a stuffed pumpkin.I normally don't read her magazine, but I drooled over this recipe, and decided to make it, and it was really good.
It had chestnuts and mushrooms in the stuffing, and many other wonderful things. My only complaint was that since the stuffing had broth, and the pumpkin let out a lot of of juice, it got a bit soggy. So next time I stuff a pumpkin, I will leave the bread cubes dry, and let them soak up the pumpkin juices.
Lesson of the week : simple pleasures in life are priceless, so are good friends, good food, and sometimes everyone just needs to slow down a bit, and be thankful for what they have.
I am certainly very thankful for all the love and support I got recently.
Thank You Guys!
love the picture of your dog and cat ! Such cutie pies!
ReplyDeleteWhat a B.S. :))) I will choose camomile tea over aspartame any minute. We all know why aspartame is "better than camomile or any other tea"
ReplyDeleteTalking about tea. Have you ever tried rooibos tea ? no? simply amazing , try to get a hold on some ,you will love it. There are so many different mix but even the plain vanilla rooibos is very yummi.
Your furry family members are cute :)
Hello dear Kinga,
ReplyDeleteI only know kombucha from the supermarket, I've never drunk. You've brought me through your explanations on the taste. Otherwise, I drink only water and chamomile tea. Yes you read right ,o) Although I don´t like chamomile tea, but it helps very well, when my stomach is going crazy. Chamomile also helps my cats, only in globules form. A good alternative to the artificial sweetener is the natural Stevia plant. I use it sometimes for drinks and certain foods and baked goods.
If you take too much of it, it will be bitter instead of sweet and it´s healthy for the teeth.
But I think, making Kombucha with Stevia, isn´t possible. The stuffed pumpkin looks really yummy!
I can only agree with you. Many people do not realize how good it is, to live a simple live, and notice it only when it´s no longer so. Wish you good luck with your challenge.
Uli
Hi Uli,
ReplyDeleteI love using stevia, and xylitol is a good natural sweetener too,it's made from birch trees, but you got to be careful with it because it's poisonous to dogs. Xylitol is, not stevia. Chamomile is very good for tummy aches and I use it to inhale it when I have a cold. Just put a pot of chamomile in the sink, fresh off the stove, throw a towel over your head, so you create a tent around your poor achy head,and inhale until the tea steam is gone. Kombucha can only be made with sugar, because that's what the yeast-bacteria creature eats, so to speak. You can use agave, but not honey, because honey is a natural antimicrobial and will kill it.Thank You Uli!
Hi Amy,
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean:)))
Rooibos is tasty, I like it too. I think it's supposed to have some crazy amount of antioxidants, right? I got a rooibos vanilla tea latte from Starbucks one time, and it was soooo good.
Aspartame kills. There is too much money in it, while natural herbal medicines are inexpensive. That's why aspartame is still on the market.
Thank You!
So glad to count myself your friend. :o) Enjoy your "lemonade!"
ReplyDeletespeaking as a furry baby mom - almost all of them are just too cute not to share
ReplyDelete