Have you ever had a probiotic beverage? Because if you had then you would know they are normally really chalky tasting and not very flavorful – or even vegan. But I have just tried this awesome vegan, gluten-free and organic probiotic grainmilk that is absolutely awesome tasting, full of good for your tummy bacteria, full of grains and comes in fruit flavors. Yes, everything you could ever wanted in a sweetened milk and still be awesomely good for you and also happens to be vegan and gluten-free is in the Graindrops – Powered by Koji.
I was fortunate enough to receive a couple of product coupons to get two free bottles of Graindrops – which in my area is only available at Whole Foods (find a location here) – an amazingly wonderful tasting probiotic nondairy drink. Graindrops comes in three different flavors: Mango Ginger, Wild Blueberry, and Vanilla. I bought the fruity mango and wild blueberry bottles because who doesn’t want to try some new fruity-flavored milk? These probiotic drinks are full of gut-healthy live and active cultures from seven different types of bacterias – sounds creepy right? But it’s not – it’s good for you! Those healthy little bacteria’s will not only help move food through your gut, but may also help with other body issues like eczema, oral health, and allergies. Who knew, right?
But the best part about this drink? OMG! They both taste amazing right out of the bottle! Like, drink right out of the bottle good. So sweet tasting, but does nothing terrible to my blood sugar, even though it has a high sugar content. That sugar “occurs naturally as the culturing process converts the starches of our five organic, gluten-free whole grains into natural grain sugar.” Add a little agave for sweetness and there you go. Amazingly creamy milk that tastes great as an easy after-workout drink that will help your gut get grooving. And since this drink is full of five gluten-free whole grains that are mixed with Koji – an artisan Japanese culturing process that is used to create soy and miso – helps to create a drink that will only do good to and for you.
I decided to make two fruity and different types of goodies. The first is this Grapefruit Mango Ginger flavored smoothie. While I was at Whole Foods they had grapefruit on an amazing sale so I figured what a great way to use these super-sour fruit – in a sweet smoothie. I froze the peeled grapefruit in chunks with a banana then blended those with the Mango Ginger Graindrops milk and boom. One big or two small smoothies that were so amazing. Light tasting, no extra sugar added, and all good for you. I drank the first one in the morning and stuck the second one in the freezer. I couldn’t stand it so I took it out in the afternoon, and oh yum, it was frozen but still a little soft. Gosh, so good.
Grapefruit Mango Ginger Smoothie
Ingredients:
- 2 cups Mango Ginger Graindrops
- 1 teaspoon Allspice
- 1 Banana, frozen in chunks
- 1 Grapefruit, frozen in chunks
Preparation:
- Freeze banana and grapefruit in chunks.
- Dump frozen fruit, allspice, and Graindrops into a blender.
- Blend until smooth.
- Enjoy!
The second goody was a Stewed Blueberry Cherry Berry Compote with the Wild Blueberry Graindrops milk. Who in the world doesn’t like stewed fruit? If your like me and totally in love with making your own fruit sauce or jams, then this stewed berry compote is just the thing you will be wanting to make over and over again. It turned out so creamy, like a loose yogurt. I didn’t use enough pectin to make this a jelly on purpose, I really wanted something that would be good to eat with a spoon or as a topping on my plain gluten-free rice cakes. Because you always need something to make those kinda blah rice cakes taste better. And this semi-tart yogurt-like compote? Mmm, perfect.
Blueberry Cherry Berry Compote
Ingredients:
- 12oz Frozen Cherry Berry Medley
- 2 cups Wild Blueberry Graindrops
- 1 tablespoon Ball Pectin
Preparation:
- Dump frozen berries and pour Graindrops in a small pot and turn burner to medium heat.
- Keep on medium heat and bring to a boil; continue to stir while berries defrost.
- Once mixture is boiling smash fruit with a potato masher.
- With the mixture still boiling sprinkle in pectin and stir.
- Pour compote into a container and let sit out about 30 minutes then put in fridge to cool.
- Enjoy warm or cold!