You read that correctly. Colson and I had a one day
cold. I am giddy about that!
When Colson and I get colds they always last for seven
to ten days. Always. Earlier this week we woke up with colds. The “here we go again”
feeling crept over me. I was disappointed, because we hadn’t been sick in over
six months, which is a record for us.
What to do about our colds? Eat fermented foods. Fermented
foods provide lots and lots of probiotics, which fight colds and other
illnesses. Fortunately, I finally began to ferment foods in the last month. Starting
to ferment has been over a two-year challenge. I have known about the benefits
for years and have had the resources readily available to me for over two
years. It is so easy. I have no idea why it took me so long to do it, but I do
know that you start fermenting or conquering other challenges only when ready. There
is no race or timeline, just when you are ready. (Thank you for the support,
Holistic Moms!)
So, I pulled out the kefir I had fermented the day
before and made Sally Fallon’s smoothie (with a few of my additions), as
provided in her book Nourishing Traditions:
1.25
cups kefir (homemade)
2
raw egg yolks
3
T raw, unfiltered honey
1
handful of blueberries
1 ripe
banana with brown spots
2
oranges
½ cup
soaked raw cashews (you can use almonds too)
Ice
2
T coconut oil (melt it and add it when everything else is blended)
Blend all ingredients except coconut oil. When blended, blend in coconut oil. It is as good tasting
as any shake and will fill you until lunchtime.
Next day, colds were GONE! We continued the breakfast
smoothies for another five days to be on the safe side, and we had no symptoms other
than being slightly tired. Now we are hooked, so a kefir smoothie has become a
staple of our diets.
To
make kefir, add about 1 tsp. of kefir grains to two to three cups
of organic milk (I use raw milk). Leave it on the counter in a glass jar for
about a day or a little more. Do not put the lid on the glass jar, but cover
the glass jar with a thin cloth or paper towel. Stir it up a few times during
the day. It will thicken. The length of time to thicken will depend on the
warmth of the air. The warmer it is the faster it will thicken. Strain the
kefir and reserve the grains in a glass jar for their next use. Store the kefir
in a glass jar and store the grains and the kefir in the refrigerator.
There is no way that I can prove this, but I think
that the kefir smoothies were so strongly effective against our colds because
we had been healing our bodies with food for a couple of years, and especially
since a few months ago we eliminated all sugar except honey, all grain, all
beans (except green, navy and lima) and all dairy except fermented dairy and
certain cheeses. That said, everyone’s health and bodies are different and the successes
will vary.
If you try the kefir smoothie recipe, please share with
me how it works for you. You can learn about kefir from Nourishing Traditions.
The discussion and recipes are clear and easy. Recommendations for purchasing
kefir grains are provided as well. The internet also has plenty of information
about the benefits of kefir and where to purchase grains. If you use store bought
kefir instead of homemade, please share how well that works.
Wishing you a healthy winter season!
That is awesome that your cold was gone in one day! Last year I got a cold in October, November, and December. It was terrible. I haven't been sick since but I'm kind of walking on eggshells wondering if/when I'm going to get a cold this season. I've got some kefir culturing right now and I have your smoothie recipe so I'll be ready this time.
Posted by: Chandi | October 24, 2008 at 01:32 PM