{"id":183,"date":"2015-10-26T23:54:31","date_gmt":"2015-10-26T23:54:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.frot.co.nz\/design\/recipes\/drinks\/"},"modified":"2021-05-18T09:44:35","modified_gmt":"2021-05-17T21:44:35","slug":"drinks","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.frot.co.nz\/design\/recipes\/lessons\/drinks\/","title":{"rendered":"Drinks"},"content":{"rendered":"

Jump straight to the suggested recipes<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Why do we drink? To quench our thirst, to warm ourselves up or cool ourselves down, for adding nutrients to our diet, and last but not least, as a social activity. But how well do our usual drinks perform these functions?33<\/p>\n

The human body is comprised of more than 80% water, and water is essential for all of our bodily processes. But inadequate intake is common and can lead to many diseases and disorders. In some countries it\u2019s due to contamination of the water supply, but in others it\u2019s because of the dazzling array of alternatives available.<\/p>\n

There is some dissension about how much liquid we need to drink, and what form it needs to be in. Some insist on approx 2 litres of clean water per day, whereas others say that we don\u2019t need that much and any type of liquid is as good as another. For another perspective, let\u2019s look at what our ancestors would have done.<\/p>\n

First of all, they didn\u2019t go around with a sipper bottle, trying to force 2 litres of water down themselves at all costs, even if they made themselves feel sick. They drank when they were thirsty. Yes, they would have had a certain amount of clean water. But, from Price\u2019s studies of traditional societies, we know that one thing they had in common was that they drank fermented drinks. These drinks contain a variety of nutrients that were beneficial and it is believed that they also quench thirst and dehydrate better than plain water.<\/p>\n

Sally Fallon believes that this is why soft drinks are so popular \u2013 we have a racial memory of the beneficial drinks our ancestors drank and our bodies are searching for those needed, thirst quenching drinks. Unfortunately, what we\u2019re finding in our search are pale imitations that destroy health rather than bolstering it. This lesson will cover how we can reintroduce those drinks into our diets.<\/p>\n

But before we go onto that, we also need to think about the quality of our water. Most water supplies now contain harmful chemicals such as chlorine, aluminium and fluoride. We can understand that our councils have to ensure that our water isn\u2019t contaminated, but that doesn\u2019t mean we have to like it. Unless you have access to a supply of fresh, clean water that hasn\u2019t come through a town supply, you will probably have to filter your water.<\/p>\n

Avoid distilled water. It\u2019s generally considered that a reverse osmosis filter is the best kind of filter to get. But a problem with their efficiency is that they also remove all the trace minerals from the water. We\u2019re going to look at using filtered water to make lacto fermented soft drinks which have valuable trace minerals in them, and also aid digestion. These types of drinks also rehydrate you better than plain water. But you might also like to check out the range from watersco<\/a>. It includes the Mineral Pot which remineralises the water after filtering, a whole home unit and a shower filter.<\/p>\n

Another problem is that there doesn\u2019t seem to be a safe way to filter out fluoride. And as it doesn\u2019t have a taste, you don\u2019t even know you\u2019re drinking it. If you can get spring water, it\u2019s the best option. If you\u2019re in NZ and live in the Wellington area, you can get pure spring water from a public tap in the main street of Petone.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s now look at some popular beverages, what\u2019s wrong with them and some healthier alternatives.<\/p>\n

Popular drink<\/p>\n

Drawbacks<\/p>\n

Alternatives<\/p>\n

Advantages<\/p>\n

Packeted soups<\/p>\n

No nutrients, made from artificial flavourings<\/p>\n

Homemade soups from stocks and veges<\/p>\n

A warming drink full of nutrients<\/p>\n

Coffee & black tea<\/p>\n

Contain caffeine<\/p>\n

Green tea or herb teas<\/p>\n

Have therapeutic properties<\/p>\n

Hot chocolate<\/p>\n

Most types contain a lot of sugar, and there is caffeine in the cocoa<\/p>\n

Cocoa , made with gently heated raw milk and natural sweeteners<\/p>\n

Should still be considered a treat, but a healthier one<\/p>\n

Milk based drinks in cartons<\/p>\n

Made from pasteurised milk, with sugar and other additives<\/p>\n

Smoothies made from raw milk, yoghurt or kefir<\/p>\n

Raw milk has enzymes to aid digestion, and fermented milks have beneficial bacteria<\/p>\n

Protein drinks<\/p>\n

Most are made from denatured proteins<\/p>\n

Smoothies (as above) with raw egg yolks or good quality whey protein<\/p>\n

Protein that is more bio-available<\/p>\n

Fruit juices<\/p>\n

Some benefits of fresh fruit, but no fibre and high in fructose, which is a particularly dangerous sugar<\/p>\n

1. Green vegetable juices;<\/p>\n

2. Lacto fermented fruit or vegetable juices;<\/p>\n

3. Diluted fresh fruit juices<\/p>\n

1. Lower in sugar & higher in nutrients;<\/p>\n

2. Fermenting converts sugars to beneficial acids;<\/p>\n

3. Reduced sugar, but still fairly high<\/p>\n

Fruit drinks (in cartons)<\/p>\n

They look like fruit juice, but have lots of added sugar<\/p>\n

Cordials and packeted drinks (eg Raro)<\/p>\n

Made from sugar and artificial flavourings<\/p>\n

Soft drinks<\/p>\n

High in sugar, and the phosphorus leaches calcium<\/p>\n

1. Kombucha;<\/p>\n

2. Water kefir;<\/p>\n

3. Homemade ginger beer;<\/p>\n

4. \u201c Phoenix\u201d soft drinks<\/p>\n

1 & 2. Refreshing & contain beneficial acids;<\/p>\n

3. Can be made with natural sweeteners;<\/p>\n

4. Made with honey<\/p>\n

Diet soft drinks<\/p>\n

As above, plus contain dangerous artificial sweeteners<\/p>\n

Red Bull or V<\/p>\n

As above, but also contain stimulants<\/p>\n

Sports drinks<\/p>\n

High in sugar and artificial flavourings<\/p>\n

Filtered water with small amounts of a fermented drink added<\/p>\n

Valuable nutrients to help you rehydrate<\/p>\n

A wine with dinner<\/p>\n

Usually include sulphates<\/p>\n

Kombucha; lacto fermented drinks<\/p>\n

These aid digestion<\/p>\n

Wine, beer or cider at a party<\/p>\n

Usually pasteurised or include sulphates<\/p>\n

Look for organic, traditionally made brands<\/p>\n

More nutrients retained<\/p>\n

\"kombucha\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Kombucha<\/a><\/p>\n

This section is for those are working through the lessons of the cooking course. Otherwise jump straight to the recipes<\/a><\/p>\n

Optional reading<\/h4>\n