Have you been binging on Halloween candy this week?
When I first cleaned up my diet, I made the mistake of being very strict for the first 8 weeks- no dairy, no wheat, no grains, no gluten, no soy, no refined sugar, no starches, and even cut down on my fruit intake to eliminate sugar spikes due to the naturally occurring sugar in fruits…
…and then proceeded to break this strict diet with a healthy dose of Halloween candy.
Bad decision. Terrible decision. Probably the worst decision. I was in literal pain from going from such a squeaky clean diet to probably the opposite in a matter of minutes.
Now, my diet is a bit more lax: I incorporate starches regularly, and have the occasional grain and dairy treats, so such a breach isn’t the end of the world. However, I do quite a bit to support my digestive system these days, and pay close attention to my gut health. I have been meaning to do a supplementation post for quite some time (and maybe I’ll get there eventually), but in short without boring you, I make sure to take a soil-based probiotic, incorporate gelatin into my diet, gain probiotics from potato starch, and make sure to eat plenty of fermented foods like Kombucha.
I first posted my Kombucha recipe here, with many variations, but also posted a Kombucha FAQ post, and have taught Kombucha classes at co-ops and grocery stores. I even have used kombucha as a mixer in cocktails here and here, and these continue to be some of my most popular recipes to date.
I suggest being a bit familiar with the Kombucha process before tackling this recipe, since I won’t be going into the first-step brewing step in this post. However, once you have gotten that down, definitely come back to this recipe…. because it is full of spice and fall and the perfect complement to your maybe-Halloween-candy-overloaded-digestive-system. OR, you could make this just because its super tasty, easy, and tastes like fizzy fall goodness in a cup.
Ginger Apple-Cinnamon Kombucha
Makes 4 servings
- 36 oz. plain, unflavored Kombucha (see note above)
- 1/2 large gala apple, diced into small pieces
- 3 1-inch pieces of peeled, fresh ginger
- 2 tsp. ground cinnamon or 3 whole cinnamon sticks
- 3 tsp. white sugar
- 3 glass bottles with lids of caps
- Divide your Kombucha evenly into your bottles leaving at least 4 inches of air at the top.
- In each bottle, place even amounts of diced apples, cinnamon, white sugar, and ginger.
- Cap each bottle, and shake very gently to incorporate all ingredients.
- Place in a dark place for 2-7 days, depending on your taste preference.
