Apple Cider Vinegar

Apple cider vinegar is said to be a natural remedy for many ailments. In 400 B.C.E Hippocrates (the father of modern medicine) knew about apple cider vinegar’s antibiotic properties and recommended it to his patients for its healing properties. Since then it’s been valued by many cultures right up to modern times.

Apple cider vinegar has anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and anti-viral properties. Among the ailments it’s said to cure are allergies, acne, high cholesterol, joint pain, weight loss, rheumatism, arthritis, gout, dandruff, chronic fatique, candida, sore throat, gum infection, sinus infection, flu, acid reflux, leg cramps and ear infections. It’s also used to help dissolve kidney stones, lower high blood pressure, and it’s also been shown to help with type 2 diabetes by improving insulin sensitivity.

Even though vinegar is acidic, when we take apple cider vinegar it has an alkaline effect in our bodies. The fact that apple cider vinegar causes our pH levels to become more alkaline could play a large part in it’s curative properties. It also reacts to some toxins in our bodies, converting them into less toxic substances. Our bodies need a slightly alkaline pH balance to be healthy. The typical Western diet creates an acidic pH in our bodies, and many health problems are attributed to this. Taking a tonic containing apple cider vinegar can help restore alkalinity, and therefore assist the body in getting rid of some of the health problems listed above.

In researching the health benefits of apple cider vinegar I’ve found a lot of anecdotal evidence – stories from people of the beneficial effects of taking apple cider vinegar. There isn’t scientific evidence to back up all of these claims, but of course unless the studies have been done there won’t be. Lack of scientific evidence doesn’t imply that it doesn’t work.

There was at least one study done on the effects of apple cider vinegar which used acetic acid – the acid component of vinegars. Now, I’d argue that apple cider vinegar is more than just acetic acid. In fact, apple cider vinegar consists of both malic acid and acetic acid. Being made from apples it would also contain pectin, as well as potassium, which promotes cell and tissue growth. Apple cider vinegar also contains almost all the minerals, vitamins and trace elements that our bodies need. Which leads me to suspect that some of the studies that are being done are fairly worthless exercises in determining the value of apple cider vinegar if they aren’t actually using apple cider vinegar in the study.

Because science allows us to break things down into their component parts in order to understand how things work, I think too often scientists only see things as their component parts, missing the whole concept of the synergy found in nature. Everything has the potential to be more than the sum of its parts.

The health benefits of apple cider vinegar will vary depending on the ingredients and process used in making it. Commercial production can use wood shavings, and other vinegars as the base (speeding fermentation), changing the makeup of the end product. You’ll get the greatest health benefits from apple cider vinegar that is made from organic apples, fermented using traditional methods, raw (unpasteurised) and unfiltered. If you can’t find good quality apple cider vinegar you could try making your own. This apple cider vinegar recipe has recipes for two methods of production. The one which uses whole apples will be of better quality for medicinal purposes, the one using scraps is quicker to make. You could make both so that you have something to use sooner while you wait for the whole apple batch to ferment.

Be sure to avoid taking apple cider vinegar neat (undiluted) as it eats away at tooth enamel and can cause burns to the sensitive tissues in your mouth and throat. There have also been reports of apple cider vinegar supplements (in capsule form) causing permanent tissue damage of the esophagus. So use apple cider vinegar in liquid form, diluted with water.

A simple tonic can be made from 1-2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar, 1 teaspoon honey in a cup of warm water.

Apple Cider Vinegar for Weight Loss and Good Health

Related posts:

1. Apple Cider Vinegar Drink Recipe – Basic Tonic Apple cider vinegar is amazing stuff with a myriad of...
2. Apple Cider Vinegar Recipe Like apple juice, the best apple cider vinegars are organic,...

Ingredients:
1-2 teaspoons raw, unpasteurized Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV)
1 glass water

Instructions:

Apple Cider Vinegar Drinks

Mix 1-2 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar in a glass of water. Take 3 times daily, before or during meals.

It’s not hard to make your own apple cider vinegar from either cores and peels or whole apples, check out the homemade cider vinegar recipe to see how easy it is. If you’re using store-bought ACV be sure to get one that’s organic, unfiltered, and unpasteurized in order to get the most benefit from it. Bragg’s make a really good quality cider vinegar.

Related posts:

1. Apple Cider Vinegar Recipe Like apple juice, the best apple cider vinegars are organic,...
2. Benefits of Apple Cider Vinegar Apple cider vinegar is said to be a natural remedy...
3. Apple Crumble Crock Pot Recipe When I first saw this recipe I couldn’t imagine it...

Soy Fried Tempeh

Ingredients:
1 block organic tempeh
olive oil
wheat-free tamari or shoyu (soy sauce)

Instructions:
Slice the tempeh as thinly as you can. The thinner, the better, aim for a thickness of 5 mm or less.

Put enough olive oil in a frying pan to just cover the bottom of the pan. Heat up the oil over a medium heat. When the oil is hot, lay the strips of tempeh in the pan.

Heat for 2-3 minutes, then sprinkle in the tamari or shoyu and shake the pan to keep the tempeh from sticking and to distribute the tamari. Continue to cook until the tempeh is golden brown on the bottom and turn. Fry the second side until golden brown and remove from the pan.

Frying Tempeh

Serve and eat!

Cook’s Tips:
This tempeh is great as a starter, either on it’s own or with a peanut satay sauce or sweet chilli sauce. It’s also great broken into pieces and thrown into a salad or stir fry. Put any leftovers in the fridge and use in a sandwich the next day.

Related posts:

1. Quick Fried Cabbage with Olive Oil & Garlic Cabbage is one of the most under-rated and beautiful tasting...
2. Slow Cooker Lentil & Quinoa Stew This hearty lentil stew is an easy to cook, high...

Making Apple Cider Vinegar From Scraps

Like apple juice, the best apple cider vinegars are organic, unfiltered and raw (unpasteurized). Depending on where you live it may be hard to find really good apple cider vinegar.

Fortunately, it’s easy and very inexpensive to make. It just takes some time, naturally, to ferment. This varies depending on which of the two methods below you choose to use. This article will show you how to make apple cider vinegar using two different methods.

Method One – Make Apple Cider Vinegar From Scraps

This method uses scraps, like the peels and cores. I like this method because I get to eat my apples and make vinegar too. It’s also faster, taking around two months to complete the process.

You’ll need:
a large bowl or wide-mouth jar
apple scraps, preferably from organic apples
a piece of cheesecloth for covering the jar to keep out flies and debris

Leave the scraps to air. They’ll turn brown, which is exactly what you want. Add the apple scraps to the jar and top it up with water.

You can continue to add scraps for a few more days if you want. If you’re going to do this though, be sure don’t top the jar right up, leave some room for the new scraps.

Cover with the cheesecloth and put it in a warm, dark place. A water cylinder cupboard is perfect.

You’ll notice the contents of the jar starts to thicken after a few days and a grayish scum forms on top. When this happens, stop adding scraps and leave the jar for a month or so to ferment.

After about a month you can start taste-testing it. When it’s just strong enough for you, strain out the apple scraps and bottle the vinegar.

It’s ok if your vinegar is cloudy, there will be some sediment from the apples and what’s known as “the mother”. It’s all good. If you don’t like the cloudiness though, straining it through a paper coffee filter will remove most of the sediment.

Method Two – Make Apple Cider Vinegar From Whole Apples

This method uses whole, organic apples and takes about 7 months to ferment into vinegar.

You’ll need:
10 Whole organically-grown apples
a glass bowl, and later a larger glass bowl
a piece of cheesecloth to cover the bowls

Wash the apples and cut into quarters. You can optionally core and peel them. If you do the scraps can be used to make apple cider vinegar by method one, above.

Let the apples air and turn brown. Then put them into the smaller bowl and cover with water.

Cover the bowl with the cheesecloth and leave in a warm, dark place for 6 months. Again, a hot water cupboard is ideal.

After the 6 months is up, you’ll notice a grayish scum on the surface of the liquid. This is normal. Strain the liquid through a coffee filter into the larger bowl, and leave it for another 4-6 weeks, covered with the cheesecloth.

And there you have it, your own homemade apple cider vinegar

How to use Apple Cider Vinegar

Homemade Apple Cider Vinegar

There are lots of ways to use apple cider vinegar. It can be used diluted with water as a hair rinse (don’t worry – the smell disappears quickly), you can also mix with water or fruit juice and drink it. Find out more about the benefits of using apple cider vinegar, and here’s a recipe for an apple cider vinegar tonic that works especially well if you have nocturnal leg cramps:

A simple tonic can be made from 1-2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar, 1 teaspoon honey in a cup of warm water.

Related posts:

1. Apple Cider Vinegar Drink Recipe – Basic Tonic Apple cider vinegar is amazing stuff with a myriad of...
2. Benefits of Apple Cider Vinegar Apple cider vinegar is said to be a natural remedy...
3. Apple Crumble Crock Pot Recipe When I first saw this recipe I couldn’t imagine it...