New Year, New Resolutions

Today marks the beginning of the year 2013! It's hard to think that another year has gone by...  Looking back on 2012, I feel like I accomplished so much. I ran two half marathons (plus several other small races and my first ever trail race!), started writing this blog, got a new job, learned how to deal roulette and soo much more!  I am so thankful for my friends and family being there with me through everything. This year is going to have to top that one...

To start off, I've decided that this is the year to run my first full marathon. Yup, that's right... 26.2 miles. It'll be difficult, but well worth the effort.

Secondly, I'm kicking off this new year with a little change to my diet. I decided to join the largest ever group completing the 21 Day Sugar Detox hosted by Diane Sanfilippo. I used to have the biggest sweet tooth ever, but have slowly been trying to cut back. I was doing really well too; however, I went a little overboard this past holiday season with eating some ice cream on the weekends, eggnog and paleo friendly baked goods. I desperately need revamp the sugar situation! Especially since I just found out that I have PCOS (Aka - Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. Essentially, my lady hormones are all out 'a whack). I've discovered that one of the ways to keep this in check is to regulate my insulin levels... Hence an even bigger reason for me to kick my sweet cravings to the curb.

To go along with this new dietary change, I am determined to conquer one of my new favorite beverages (one I can keep in the detox program): Kombucha!

For anyone who's never heard of Kombucha, it's basically a fermented tea. A little sweet, with a slight taste of vinegar. It's not for the faint of heart, but it's totally addicting! I used to buy this stuff all the time from Wegman's... The only downside is that it's fairly expensive (we're talkin' $3.69 a bottle!) I decided that in order to keep on drinking it, I was going to have to make it myself.

(Tea with mother SCOBY.  A little gross looking, but it'll turn into something great!)

Ingredients:

• mother SCOBY with 1 cup starter liquid
• 6 bags of tea (I used Darjeeling)
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 qts cold filtered water
• 1 large clean glass jar
• clean cloth
• rubber band (or string)

Method:

• Boil 1 qt water in a pot. Pour the water into your fermenting jar and add the bags of tea. Let steep for 5-7 minutes.
• Remove the teabags and pour in the sugar. Give a quick stir.
• Pour in the remaining 2 qts cold water, being sure to leave 2-3 inches of space at the top of your vessel (the SCOBY will expand as it ferments). If your tea feels like it's at room temperature, you can proceed to the next step. If not, wait until it cools completely.
• Pour in the starter liquid and gently place the mother SCOBY into the jar. Cover it with a clean cloth and secure with a rubber band (or string, in my case).
• Set your jar in a warm, dry place to ferment for the next 7-10 days.
• Check your kombucha after 7 days... IE, taste it. If it still tastes a little sweet, let it sit for another couple of days.
• Once the desired tartness is reached, remove the SCOBY and a cup of the new brewed tea and place it in a clean glass container (this can be used to brew more kombucha!). Feel free to strain the liquid and pour it into glass bottles for flavoring/consumption!

I've just started on my kombucha journey, but I know it's going to be great! I think I'm going to save one bottle of plain tea and flavor the rest with some 21 Day Sugar Detox approved green apple slices. I will give an update in a few days time with my awesomely addicting beverage!