Connections at the biological level

I think many people take for granted that their food and drink will always just be there for purchase and consumption without ever really understanding the components or the processes that make bread, beer or cheese. Indeed, most may never even consider how each item comes to us in so many delicious forms. Likewise, few of us know the huge part played by the microscopic community: bacteria, yeast, molds and a myriad of chemical compounds.

One of the strangest contributors to this soup may be Kefir Grains. You may have never heard of them; that's okay, it was only a few months ago that I really learned about them. They are not grains in the same sense as wheat, barley or rice are called grains. Actually they look more like cooked cauliflower tops than kernels of grain. They are alive but they don't crawl, make noise, or otherwise resemble 'living organisms'. They are a complex commune inhabited by several different yeast, bacteria, fungi, proteins, fats and others stuff who thrive on lactose - or milk sugar. Kefir is pretty much like yogurt; varying in thickness and tartness depending on how active the grains have been at digesting the milk.

Here's where the synchronicity comes into play. Kefir grains help to culture milk, the first step in cheese making; fluid kefir can be used as a milk or water substitute for many bread recipes; and if the grains really get working overtime, they can create low levels of alcohol, creating a milk-champagne.

I received a small Kefir colony last night from a friend, almost ceremoniously. With an understanding that I would now be responsible for another being not unlike adopting a kitten or something, feeding and housing them. Well, maybe that's a little dramatic, and No I did not make a pledge or swear on a Bible to nurture and care for the grains. But none the less I will be treating them as a 'presence' in the kitchen.

My immediate plans are to try them out in a cheese application; hopefully ending up with a hard cheese. We shall see.

Peace,
Cheesey-boy