lassi alla fragola / strawberry lassi

April 15, 2012 | Simona

[cliccare il link per andare alla versione in italiano]

strawberry lassi made with kefir

Having a steady supply of homemade kefir means being able to experiment with it on the spur of the moment. My husband likes Indian food and when he eats at an Indian restaurant, he always orders a mango lassi, so it was not difficult to choose that fruit flavor for my first try at using kefir to make the beverage. But then, of course, I had to invent something different.

You may remember from last year (and if you don't, I'll remind you right now) that I tried roasting strawberries (fragole) flavored with balsamic vinegar, then explored a couple of ways of using them, namely gelato and frittata. To be totally honest, the first time I prepared strawberry lassi, I used fresh strawberries and the verdict was: not enough strawberry flavor. So then, the idea of using roasted strawberries formed itself.

roasted strawberries

Strawberries are available at the Temescal Farmers' Market, in Oakland, one of the places where I shop, so it was easy to go from thought to action and the result was greeted with warm approval. Hence, this has now become a standard item on the breakfast menu at our house.

it was good!

Print-friendly version of briciole's recipe for Strawberry lassi

Ingredients for two portions (porzioni):

8 oz. [225 g] organic or pesticide-free strawberries
1/4 teaspoon balsamic vinegar (aceto balsamico) of good quality
1/2 teaspoon ultra-fine sugar
2 cups [475 ml] plain kefir, possibly homemade
agave nectar or honey, to taste (the quantity depending on the sweetness of the strawberries and your personal preference)

Wash strawberries and carve out stem. Place in a bowl, sprinkle balsamic vinegar and sugar, and toss gently. Heat the oven to 350 F. Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat that is wider and longer than the sheet, so no juice can escape from any side. Place strawberries on the sheet on a single layer. Put the baking sheet in the oven and bake for 30 minutes. Let strawberries cool completely. They will juice while baking, so when moving them to the blender in the next step, scoop up the juice as well.

Put half the strawberries and juice into the blender, add 1 cup of kefir and a bit of agave nectar. Add a bit more kefir, if you wish, depending on your personal taste in terms of flavor and texture. Blend, taste and adjust sweetener. Pour into a tall glass and serve. Repeat with the rest of the strawberries and the other cup of kefir, or make one portion and store the strawberries for later use.

This is my contribution to edition #329 of Weekend Herb Blogging, an event started by Kalyn of Kalyn's Kitchen, now organized by Haalo of Cook (almost) Anything at Least Once and hosted this week by Simona of briciole (a.k.a., me).

This post contains the roundup of the event.

Click on the button to hear me pronounce the Italian words mentioned in the post:

lassi alla fragola

or launch the lassi alla fragola audio file [mp3].

[Depending on your set-up, the audio file will be played within the browser or by your mp3 player application. Please, contact me if you encounter any problems.]

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kefir, strawberry

lassi alla fragola

lassi alla fragola fatto col kefir

Avere a disposizione kefir fatto in casa vuol dire poter fare esperimenti non pianificati. A mio marito piace la cucina indiana e quando mangia in un ristorante indiano da bere ordina sempre un lassi al mango. Il lassi è una bevanda preparata con yogurt che può essere sia dolce che salata. La prima volta che ho provato a fare il lassi usando il mio kefir sono andata sul sicuro e ho usato del mango. Ma poi, naturalmente, ho voluto inventare qualcosa di diverso.

Forse vi ricorderete (altrimenti ve lo rammento io adesso) che l'anno scorso ho provato a cuocere al forno le fragole aromatizzate con aceto balsamico e poi le ho usate per fare il gelato e la frittata. In tutta onestà, la prima volta che ho provato a fare il lassi alla fragola ho usato fragole fresche e il verdetto è stato: insufficiente sapore di fragola. E allora mi è venuto in mente di provare ad usare le fragole arrosto.

fragole arrosto

Le fragole le trovo al Temescal Farmers' Market, ad Oakland (la stagione delle fragole in California è molto lunga, grazie al clima), quindi mi è stato facile passare ai fatti. Il risultato è stato ben accolto e quindi il lassi alla fragola è entrato a far parte del menu della colazione a casa nostra (mio marito, da buon americano, necessita di una colazione sostanziosa).

che buono che era!

Ingredienti per due porzioni:

225 g fragole bio
1/4 cucchiaino aceto balsamico di buona qualità
1/2 cucchiaino di zucchero finissimo
475 ml kefir bianco, possibilmente fatto in casa
nettare di agave o miele a piacere (la quantità dipende dalla dolcezza delle fragole e dal gusto personale)

Lavare le fragole e privarle del picciolo. Mettere le fragole in una ciotola e spruzzare aceto balsamico e aggiungere zucchero. Mescolare bene con delicatezza. Scaldare il forno a 175 C. Foderare una lastra da forno con un tappetino di silicone per forno che sia più lungo e più largo, in modo che il succo prodotto durante la cottura in forno non finisca sotto il tappetino. Disporre le fragole sulla lastra. Mettere in forno e cuocere per 30 minuti. (La temperatura in gradi Fahrenheit che uso io, 350, è un po' al di sopra di 175 C e un po' al di sotto di 180 C. Ho deciso di specificare la temperatura più bassa poiché preferisco essere cauta. Potete lasciare le fragole in forno qualche minuto in più, ma fate attenzione che il succo non bruci.) Lasciar raffreddare le fragole.

Trasferire metà delle fragole e del succo che producono durante la cottura nel frullatore, aggiungere metà del kefir e un tocco di nettare di agave o miele. Aggiungere un poco di kefir, a seconda del gusto per quanto riguarda sapore e consistenza. Frullare, assaggiare e, se necessario, aggiungere del nettare di agave o miele. Versare la bevanda in un bicchiere e servire. Ripetere il procedimento con l'altra metà delle fragole e del kefir, oppure preparare una porzione sola e conservare le fragole per usarle più avanti.

Questo post è il mio contributo all'edizione numero 329 di Weekend Herb Blogging, un evento creato da Kalyn di Kalyn's Kitchen, organizzato ora da Haalo di Cook (almost) Anything at Least Once, la cui versione italiana è organizzata da Brii di briggishome, e ospitata questa settimana da Simona di briciole (cioè me).

Questo post contiene il raccolto dell'evento.

formaggio fresco di kefir fatto in casa / homemade fresh kefir cheese

April 5, 2012 | Simona

kefir cheese with dukkah and cacao nibs

As I mentioned in the post on homemade kefir, for my first attempt I used kefir culture. The flavor of the kefir was a bit too acidic for our taste, and at that point, I had not yet learned all the ways in which to use kefir that I know now. I decided to see how the kefir would taste once the whey was removed, so I poured the kefir into a cloth-lined colander, then made a bundle and hung it up to drain for 24 hours (at room temperature).

I then chopped up finely a sample of herbs from my little garden: dill (aneto), mint (menta), chives (erba cipollina), parsley (prezzemolo), added a bit of salt and freshly milled pepper and mixed into the drained kefir, then molded it using my favorite heart-shaped mold.

The mold rests on a small grid for draining

I let the kefir cheese drain in the fridge for 3-4 days, then unmolded and tasted it.

kefir cheese with fresh herbs

The flavor was pleasantly tangy and the herbs gave it a nice nuance. It was particularly nice spread over a slightly sweet bread like my homemade challah.

After this success, I obtained kefir grains (grani di kefir), as recounted in the previous post. I made kefir using them and then made kefir cheese again, but this time instead of herbs, I added dukkah and cacao nibs (granella di fave di cacao). If you don’t know what dukkah is, read on.

A few years ago, I attended an evening class on sourdough bread. It was not only the beginning of my sourdough baking adventure, but also of an acquaintance that turned into a friendship with Rhonda, who taught the class. For the bread tasting, Rhonda made some dukkah, something I had never seen before.

my rendition of dukkah

Dukkah (also spelled duqqa or dukka) comes to us from Egypt: it is a mix of toasted and ground spices and nuts.

The word is derived from the Arabic for “to pound” since the mixture of spices and nuts are pounded together after being dry roasted to a texture that is neither powdered nor paste-like. The actual composition of the spice mix can vary from family to family, vendor to vendor though there are common ingredients, such as sesame, coriander, cumin, salt and pepper. [source]

The recipe I use comes from 101 Cookbooks. I halve the quantities, because the full recipe makes quite a bit. And I like it coarsely ground (I use the food processor to do the grinding).

fresh kefir cheese (drained kefir)

Back to the kefir, this time I drained it using a double layer of cheese netting instead of cloth. As I was about to gather some herbs to repeat the process followed before, my eyes encountered the jar where my freshly made dukkah was stored and I interpreted that as a sign. Next to it, there was the container where I keep cacao nibs (which I get from Dick Taylor Chocolate). Having successfully used cacao nibs with hard cheese, it was not difficult to decide to add those as well (after all, they are also toasted and ground, like the spices and nuts in dukkah).

I added a teaspoon each of dukkah and cacao nibs, relying on my sense of balance to make an educated guess. I wanted the flavor to be detectable, but not overpowering, a balance I had previously achieved with the herb mix. I also added a bit more of salt, mixed lightly and then filled the heart-shaped mold. Once again, I let the cheese sit in the fridge and drain further for 3-4 days and then tasted it: I was very happy with the result.

For my second batch of kefir cheese, I increased the amount of both dukkah and cacao nibs to 1 and 1/2 teaspoon each and let the cheese rest in the fridge 5 days. If you try, I recommend you start with the lower quantity and see how you like it. (I suspect that the combination would also work with labneh, but have not tried it.)

Ingredients:

10 oz drained kefir (see Note below)
a generous pinch of sea salt
1 to 1 1/2 teaspoon dukkah (see text above)
1 to 1 1/2 teaspoon cacao nibs (see text above)

Note: How much kefir? I use kefir made with non-fat milk and drain about 7 cups (1.65 l). I don’t make that much kefir all at the same time. I usually make a pint (2 cups, 475 ml) or a quart (4 cups, 950 ml), depending on what my plans for using it are. (According to this site, it is actually better to let kefir ripen for a day or two before using it.) Pour kefir into a cloth-lined colander (I use a cotton napkin with a tight weave or a double layer of cheese netting). Gather the corners and make a bundle. Hang it over a bowl and let drain for 24 hours. (I don’t have a photo of my set up, but this is quite similar: note the colander placed over the pot: if for whatever reason the bundle falls, it doesn’t splash into the whey.) Reserve the whey and use it.

Sanitize a 4 1/4-inch heart-shaped mold (or other mold of choice) in boiling water. Sprinkle salt, dukkah and cacao nibs on the drained kefir and mix in. Place into mold and pack lightly.

Place a small grid at the bottom of a container and put the mold on it. Cover the container and refrigerate. Every day, discard the whey that collects at the bottom of the container.

After 3-5 days, unmold the cheese ahead of time and serve at room temperature. If the cheese is still very wet, put the leftover back into the mold and the draining container. If the cheese is not too wet, store it in cheese paper. Either way, put the cheese in the fridge. Ideally, you should bring to room temperature only the amount of cheese you will consume, so the rest can remain at constant temperature.

curry pumpkin and ginger scones

My favorite combination is kefir cheese spread over curry and pumpkin scones made with kefir instead of buttermilk and brown butter (details in an upcoming post).

Exciting update (May 26, 2012): my kefir cheese story is featured in today’s post on the New England Cheesemaking Supply Company blog.

Click on the button to hear me pronounce the Italian words mentioned in the post:

formaggio fresco di kefir fatto in casa

or launch the formaggio fesco di kefir fatto in casa audio file [mp3].

[Depending on your set-up, the audio file will be played within the browser or by your mp3 player application. Please, contact me if you encounter any problems.]

kefir, cheese, dukkah, cacao nibs

kefir fatto in casa / homemade kefir

March 23, 2012 | Simona

mango lassi made with kefir

A couple of months ago, I made kefir using this culture. The process was straightforward and in about 24 hours, we could taste it. I ended up making fresh cheese with it: I will described that in an upcoming this post.

While my first adventure with kefir was unfolding, Jeri, who writes the blog of the New England Cheesemaking Supply Company, published a three-part summary of information received by readers of their newsletter: 1. ordering kefir grains; 2. growing kefir grains; 3. using kefir grains.

In the first post, I learned more about kefir grains (grani di kefir) and the difference between them and the culture I had used. The cultures have probiotics in them, but "nowhere near as many as in the living grains." Probiotics are defined as living organisms, which upon ingestion in certain numbers, exert health benefits beyond inherent basic nutrition.

Kefir is a unique cultured dairy product due to combined lactic acid and alcoholic fermentation of lactose in milk. Kefir is produced by microbial activity of “kefir grains” which have a relatively stable and specific balance of lactic acid bacteria and yeast. [source]

I decided I needed to get some first-hand experience of the interesting-looking kefir grains. At the same time (and I guess this was all part of a grand scheme), Claudia of Honey from Rock wrote about her adventures with kefir. Shortly afterwards, I spent a few days on the Big Island and visited Claudia

Among the many goodies that Claudia gave us (I already mentioned one in this post), there was a small bag with some kefir grains in a milk bath. They did fine on the trip back and as soon as I got back home, I started my first batch of kefir.

Basically, it does not get easier than this. You still need to be careful about sanitizing the tools you are using, but really, making kefir at home is a breeze: you only need a glass jar, a strainer and a spoon or something similar to move the kefir grains. I sterilize the glass jar in the oven and the lid with boiling water. When the jar has cooled, I strain the kefir grains (from the previous batch of kefir or from the milk in which they were resting in the fridge).

The photo above is from a while ago. Most recently, instead of straining the kefir grains, I spoon them out, taking advantage of the fact that they tend to be at the surface of the jar of ready kefir. I then strain the content of the jar to separate small grains left behind. I have not read this anywhere: I feel like this way I stress the grains less. In any case, when straining kefir grains, be gentle.

Add milk of choice to the jar (I use pasteurized organic milk straight from the bottle) and then the strained kefir grains, cover the jar (leaving the lid just a bit loose to allow the CO₂ produced to escape), then set it aside in a warm, dark place (or wrap it in a kitchen towel). The kefir grains will take it from there and deliver kefir within a certain number of hours. It takes me 24 hours to get kefir, sometimes a bit longer, depending on the temperature. Once strained, I store kefir in the fridge and let it ripen for a day or two before using it.

Rather than go into the details of the set up, which is described in details in a number of places on the web — like this page and also this page, the one most people reference — I have summarized in a diagram the ways in which I have used kefir in its natural or drained state (arrows pointing down from "kefir"). The arrow pointing up from kefir grains means that I reculture milk with the grains strained out of the previous barch. I don't make kefir continuously. When I don't need more kefir than I have, I place the grains in a jar, cover them with milk and put them in the fridge for a few days. Since the grains grow while also making kefir, you may want to find a friend who wants to try and give her/him the extra grains that you get.

I have already shown one of the ways in which I use kefir in this post, where it substitutes sour cream topping for soup. The mango lassi in the top photo was made with

chopped ripe mango
kefir
a bit of agave nectar as sweetener (the quantity depending on the sweetness of the mango and your personal preference).

And the beautiful scones below were made using kefir instead of buttermilk (latticello).

curry pumpkin and ginger scones

If you go to Honey from Rock and enter "kefir" in the Search field, you get the list of posts where Claudia talks about her adventures. The idea is that once you have kefir, you come up with various ways to use it. That is, at least, what happened to me.

Due to the claimed health benefits of kefir which include reduction of lactose intolerance symptoms, stimulation of the immune system, lowering cholesterol, and antimutagenic and anticarcinogenic properties, kefir has become an important functional dairy food and consequently, research on kefir has increased in the past decade. [source]

There are indeed a number of scientific papers describing research that looked more closely at the composition of kefir grains and at various effects of kefir administration to mice and rats. There are studies on specific health effects of kefir consumption in humans. For example, in this one on people with lactose maldigestion, kefir improved lactose digestion and tolerance. In other areas, results have been mixed (as this article summarizes): I hope larger studies will be conducted. In the meantime, I will continue enjoying making and using kefir at home.

Exciting update (May 26, 2012): my kefir story is featured in today's post on the New England Cheesemaking Supply Company blog.

Click on the button to hear me pronounce the Italian words mentioned in the post:

kefir fatto in casa

or launch the kefir fatto in casa audio file [mp3].

[Depending on your set-up, the audio file will be played within the browser or by your mp3 player application. Please, contact me if you encounter any problems.]

kefir