Traditional fermentation of foods increases enzymes and nutrients and adds beneficial probiotics. When you are ready to take the plunge and try your hand at it, there is no easier food for fermentation newbies to start with than dairy. It is a critical skill to master as most brands of commercial yogurt do not compare to homemade.
They are typically cultured for a very short period of time and may even have milk solids added before the short ferment begins. This defeats the purpose thus keeping carbohydrate content very high even when the fermentation process is complete.
As an encouragement to those who perhaps haven’t tried making yogurt or its cousin kefir yet, I wanted to share with you some pictures of those who have taken the challenge already and are getting awesome results.
Amanda Molnar’s Perfectly Fermented Kefir
Notice the kefir grains are visible in this picture just before Amanda transfers them to a new batch, which will earn her another entry in the challenge!
Lorraine Carlstrom’s Colorful Raw Kefir Smoothie
Lorraine added coconut oil, egg yolks, and fruit to her morning raw kefir smoothie!
Kristin Marlin’s Incubating Raw YogurtÂ
Not one to start slowly, Kristin Marlin entered the challenge with 3 batches of yogurt at once! Â Notice how she has her raw yogurt nestled in with thick towels to keep them warm to allow the culture to firmly establish itself during the fermentation period. Â Love those gorgeous fermentation vessels too!
 
Miranda Meador’s Yogurt Breakfast
Miranda Meador made this lovely bowl of yogurt for breakfast … but it ended up being for lunch instead!
Bailey Keenan’s Supercharged Kefir Smoothie
Bailey’s creation contains kefir, a little water, a banana, an apple, some frozen strawberries and blueberries, a little chlorella powder, some bee pollen and flax seeds, and a couple of big spoonfuls of coconut oil. YUM!
Carey Blinn’s Jars of Fermenting Kefir
For 25 years, Carey battled daily bouts of indigestion, bloating and acid reflux. Â She used to use Tums or Di-Gel constantly to settle her stomach. Â Carey originally started into Traditional Cooking after finding my videos on YouTube and now she is a fermenting queen. Â Raw kefir, in particular, has changed her life and health in amazingly positive ways!
Hopefully, one or more of these pictures from everyday folks just like you will encourage you to take the plunge to try and make either kefir or yogurt yourself for the very first time!
Hi. I made kefir but was wondering if my grains are working.
1. first batch was watery – I expected that and composted it
2. second batch is thick and creamy but the kefir grains are on the bottom.
3. I have been taking the kefir out and starting another batch..and put the done batch in the fridge. It gets kind of grainy there.
I’ve tried kefir several times and I just don’t know if I’m drinking clabbered milk, or kefir!
Just had my kefir smoothie with blueberries and coconut butter – yum!
Yes! But I keep forgetting lately.
I’m with the commenters above me. I have made 6 total batches of yogurt and kefir- but have only been able to enter once.
Made a batch of kefir last night. I usually use it in smoothies.
The widget doesn’t seem to allow for multiple entries. I entered once, but can’t enter again. I made our newest batch of yogurt yesterday.
I entered once and now I am trying to re-enter again and the site isnt allowing me to. I dont know what I am doing wrong.
I’ve just entered another entry and it seems to be testing just fine. I’ve extended the contest by one day so you folks who couldn’t enter additional batches can make sure to get them entered.
I look at that beautiful picture of Amanda Molner’s kefir and wish I had that many grains! I am down to one hardworking grain (by accidental ingestion of the others), but it is a workhorse and gets the job done!
lol…. feeling dumb here since I forgot to ever go enter the contest! But the good news is I have been fermenting up a storm. lol… keep up the good work, Sarah!
Making kefir is my husbands favorite hobby! My son and I are having a kefir smoothie today 🙂