Blueberry Kombucha Jellies

We all love Olga’s kombucha, right?

If you don’t know what I’m talking about, you have to try Olga’s kombucha sold through Ferme Reveuse if you’re in the Ottawa / Montreal region.

Either way, this is a really great sweet treat for the holiday season. You can add whatever berries you’d like in the jellies, just don’t start substituting with other fruit such as kiwi. Kiwi and pineapple have a particularly strong enzyme that will dissolve the gelatin and it will never set.

I know gelatin based desserts may remind you of powdery jello packets but you will not get the same result when you make your own! I think it’s time to revive the art of gelatin! Just make sure that when you warm up the kombucha to not bring it to a simmer or a boil. You still want the kombucha to have its beneficial bacteria in tact.

Kombucha Jellies
makes 12

• 2 cups Ferme Reveuse kombucha (my favourite is Raspberry-Bee Balm)

• 1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen

• 2-4 tbsp maple syrup

• 12 sheets gelatin, see notes for using gelatin powder

Step 1. Soak gelatin sheets in plenty of cold water, placing them in the water one sheet at a time. Allow to soak for 5 minutes.

Step 2. Bring maple syrup and kombucha to about 40C - 50C, a little warmer than body temperature. If the kombucha boils, it may adversely affect the setting quality of the gelatin sheets.

Step 3. Add gelatin sheets carefully to the warm kombucha. To do so, remove the soaked sheets and squeeze out water well. Stir the sheets into the kombucha until the sheets dissolve.

Step 4. Grease a 8” x 8” square baking dish with coconut oil or a neutral vegetable oil. Pour in the kombucha mixture, add in blueberries and chill overnight.

Notes. For this recipe use 3 tbsp powdered gelatin. Instead of Step 1 above, sprinkle gelatin overtop of the cold kombucha and whisk. Resume steps above except for adding gelatin sheets into the mixture.

Top 4 Uses for Bone Broth

So, you made it through the the first holiday of the Fall / Winter season, Thanksgiving! That is, if you live in Canada. Maybe some of you had a little bit of extra food but regardless I hope you got in your fall favourites. A classic with a lot of families is is to use up the leftover carcasses of your turkey or chicken to make a bone broth. I love using the leftover meat and vegetables to make a fulfilling soup to eat! And for those wondering about the differences between broth and stock.. well some say broth is for sipping as is and stock is a base for soups and sauces but, honestly, it’s almost always used interchangeably.

But what about other uses for broth? It is such a nourishing warming food that is great to get into your meals wherever you can. But what if you can’t get to making some? Don’t reach for your local grocery store’s boxed bone broth. Honestly, that stuff is not the nutrient dense stuff that your grandma made for you when you were sick. If you’re in Ottawa, make sure you find some local farmers like Ferme Reveuse who infuse their broth with chicken feet and lots of bones. You’ll know the quality is high when the broth is gelatinous when cold. Here’s a great podcast about bone broth if you’re interested in the details of its gut healing and immune boosting properties.

Uses for bone broth:

As is!
Some people have had success cutting out coffee in the morning by replacing it with warm broth. Add a little salt and, for extra flare, I sometimes add some dill and lemon juice.

Soup!
The original smoothie.

This is obvious but you can tell the difference between a soup made with broth and soup made with water. If drinking broth as is isn’t your jam, saute some onion, carrot and celery, add a vegetable of your choice and top up with broth. Simmer until the vegetable is tender and blend!

Rice and other grains!
This was my gateway into including broth into my diet. Don’t use water to cook quinoa, rice or oats! They taste amazing when cooked with broth! Use it one to one instead of water.

Lemon Rice

1 tbsp bacon fat or olive oil
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1 small carrot, peeled and grated thin
1 cup long grain rice
1/2 tsp lemon pepper
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 cup chicken broth
1 tbsp lemon juice

In a saucepan, heat up bacon fat over medium heat and add garlic and carrot. Saute for 30 seconds or until garlic is fragrant and carrot is soft. Add in rice, lemon pepper and salt and saute for 1 more minute. Pour in chicken broth and lemon juice. Stir and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to low and cover with a lid. Simmer for 18 minutes. Do not lift the lid or be tempted to stir during this time! Take off of the heat leaving the lid on and allow to sit for 5 minutes. Take the lid off and fluff with a fork.

Sauces!
Take a note from classic Italian and French cuisine and make your gravy and sauces with bone broth. Its naturally occurring in gelatin so as it cooks down it thickens naturally. Finish a stir fry the same way! The characteristic glaze on a Chinese stir fry is a combination of cold bone broth and tapioca starch that get whisked together and added to a finished stir fry at the end of cooking. The combination of broth and starch adheres to the marinade you’ve added thus far to the vegetables and it all becomes an unctuous sauce.

Here’s a new recipe using broth that I love to use as a dairy-free cheese sauce.

Sweet Potato Sauce
dairy free, paleo cheese sauce substitute

1 cup of cooked sweet potato or pumpkin
1 cup Ferme Reveuse chicken broth
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
2 tbsp chicken fat
1 tsp salt
2 gloves garlic
1/4 tsp citric acid (for that characteristic cheesy tang, optional)
1 1/2 tbsp tapioca starch
1 1/2 tbsp water

Warm up everything in a pan slightly until the broth melts and blend using an immersion blender. In a separate small bowl, whisk together tapioca starch and water. Swirl into potato mixture and turn the pot on over medium heat. Simmer, whisking constantly for 5 minutes or until thickened.