What is Milk Kefir?

A fermented milk drink made with kefir “grains”. They’re not really grains but a symbiotic culture of yeast and bacteria that you use as a fermentation starter. You can buy kefir grains from a number of reliable sources online or at certain health food stores.

You add the grains to your chosen milk (I tested cow’s milk and coconut milk), leave the mixture to sit at room temperature for 24 hours or longer and the milk goes through a fermentation process resulting in a slightly sour fizzy drink that is like a thin yoghurt.

Why would you make Milk Kefir?

Basically for the Probiotics – we all know yoghurt is a good source but it is estimated that milk kefir contains 3 times as much probiotics as yoghurt so more good bacteria for your tummy.

What can you do with Milk Kefir?

Here’s 3 delicious recipes I created with mine:

Milk Kefir Choc Smoothie

Ingredients:

1 cup milk kefir
2 tablespoons Mayver’s Peanut Cacao Spread
1 teaspoon chia seeds
1 teaspoon The Sugar Breakup Organic Golden Rice Malt Syrup
½ a banana
Handful of ice

Getting Together:

1. Place all ingredients in a blender, blitz until smooth, enjoy!
   Serves 2

Coconut Milk Yoghurt

Coconut milk yoghurt can be expensive. This is a relative cheap way to make milk kefir into a yoghurt and get a bigger hit of probiotics.

Ingredients:

1 x 400ml can coconut milk
¼ teaspoon gelatine powder
2 teaspoons boiling water

Getting Together:

1. Place coconut milk in a glass jar, add kefir grains and leave to ferment at room temperature for 24 to 48 hours.
2. Once fermented dissolve gelatine in boiling water and allow to cool.
3. Add dissolved gelatine to coconut milk kefir, stir through and place in the fridge to set for at least 3 hours or overnight.
4. We’ve turned our yoghurt into a parfait layering fruit and activated seeds and nuts. You could also add a teaspoon of Golden Rice Malt Syrup to the yoghurt to sweeten. Fabulous breakfast!

Coconut Milk Kefir Ice Creams

These were a big hit with the kids. As the milk kefir is slightly carbonated (so has air in it) they were nice and soft to eat straight out of the freezer. This recipe is also another great use of The Sugar Breakup Rice Malt Syrup jam!

Ingredients:

1 x 400ml can coconut milk
½ cup Rice Malt Syrup Jam, find the recipe here (or could use crushed fruit)

Getting Together:

1. Place coconut milk in a glass jar, add kefir grains and leave to ferment at room temperature for 24 to 48 hours.
2. Once fermentation is complete stir through jam (we used a strawberry RMS jam).
3. Pour into moulds or container, place in freezer to set overnight.
4. Makes approx 6 ice creams depending on size of moulds.

So good for the summer months and a sneaky way of getting more probiotics into the kids. If using crushed fruit you may want to add a dash of Golden Rice Malt Syrup for sweetness.

I’ve really come around to Milk Kefir and will continue to experiment with different flavours and recipes.