Barb Hodgens
Barb Hodgens

Barb Hodgens loves to cook with alternative, healthy whole food ingredients, with a focus on gut health. Barb has overcome her own gut health issues through healthy eating. Share your ideas, comments and photos at the end of this post :)

L Gasseri superfood yogurt

A probiotic superfood for weight loss.

Lactobacillus Gasseri is a strain of Lactobacillus, a bacteria naturally found in the digestive, genital and urinary tracts. Dr. William Davis, author of Super Gut found that large doses of L. gasseri provided impressive health benefits. On the back of his success amplifying L Reueteri probiotic bacteria through fermentation, (a process similar to yogurt making) Davis began experimenting with fermenting L Gasseri with the same method.

The process is different from that of conventional yogurt. L. gasseri must be fermented at a low temperature for 36 hours and requires the addition of prebiotic fibre – food for the bacteria.  The process generates very high probiotic bacterial counts, far higher than any store-bought or homemade yogurts. The outcome is technically a fermented dairy and a very delicious way to get more L. gasseri.

CHECK OUT THE BENEFITS

Dr Davis website claims that L. Gasseri yogurt “can reduce waist size by about one inch, reduce cross-sectional abdominal fat by around 13 square centimetres when consumed over 90 days even in the absence of any change in diet or exercise. He says it can also reduce symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome, reduce blood and urinary levels of oxalate that lead to kidney stones, and can be instrumental in protecting against SIBO or SIBO recurrences due to its vigorous bacteriocin-producing properties.”

L GASSERI SUPERFOOD YOGURT

Cutting Edge Cultures are excited to include L. Gasseri Superfood Starter culture to their range of probiotic starter cultures. Yogurt made with LG Superfood starter packs about 30 times the punch of supplements. A half-cup of cultured dairy L. Gasseri Superfood contains about 306 billion live bacteria. For comparison, most L. Gasseri supplements that we know of currently on the market, have a count of 10-12 Billion per capsule. 

L gasseri superfood yogurt

WHAT TO EXPECT

LG Superfood yogurt is thick and creamy. It may have a hint of a light "fizz", as a natural result of the long fermentation. Separation is common with some types of milk. Separation is mostly a cosmetic thing, and not usually a sign of a problem. In terms of bacterial counts, the texture doesn't matter. A separated jar contains the same quantity of beneficial bacteria as a non-separated jar. The L. Gasseri are present in both the solids (curds) and the translucent liquid (whey), and therefore both should be consumed.

WATCH THIS L GASSERI TROUBLESHOOTING VIDEO


TIME

It's extremely important to let L Gasseri ferment for 36 hours. The long fermentation increases the bacterial strains exponentially. Lab studies show It only starts to increase the bacterial strains at 24 hours, so don't take it out too early or you'll miss the benefits.

TIP: Start fermenting either early morning or later in the evening. Otherwise, if you start at 3 in the afternoon, for example, you'll be having to get up to your Yogurt Maker at 3 am.

WHICH MILK TO USE & HOW TO ACHIEVE THE BEST TEXURE

Dr Davis created his method using ultra-pasteurized half and half milk, which is a full-fat milk commonly available in America. It is not available in Australia, in the UK and Europe, it’s known as ‘half cream’. If half and half milk is available in your area, we recommend you use it because from our feedback, this milk produces reliable results. Where half and half milk is not available, we recommend the following options:

  1. Heating full cream milk (or ‘whole milk’ in America and Canada). Be sure to choose the best quality whole milk that is free of pesticides, hormones, antibiotics, fertilisers, and GMOs. Organic is best. If quality dairy is important to you, then choose this option. When milk is not heated it will likely separate into curds and whey during the long fermentation. Dr Davis does not heat the milk in his method however we have found doing so improves the texture. Traditional yogurt making practises have always heated the milk. Heating changes the dairy's composition, eliminates competing bacteria, and will prevent it from separating into curds and whey. Furthermore, heating and holding the temperature at 82° C (180° F) for 10-20 minutes denatures the milk proteins so that they bind and set together producing a thicker and creamier final product. Let the milk cool down to 100°F before adding the starter.

  2. UHT or long-life milk (Ultra-high temperature processing). If you use UHT milk, you can follow Dr Davies original method (no heating) producing consistently thick yogurt without separation. Organic UHT milk may not be available. 

L GASSERI SUPERFOOD STARTER CULTURE

One sachet of L. Gasseri superfood starter is sufficient to ferment up to 2 litres of dairy. There are 4 sachets in each packet. Once you’ve made a jar of LG Superfood yogurt, you can use some of it to re-ferment subsequent batches. Reculture for as long as your batch comes out thick and pleasantly tart. When significant changes begin to occur (not tart enough or conversely, too pungent), although you're doing the same thing – begin with a new sachet.

PREBIO PLUS PREBIOTIC FIBRE

L Gasseri are living bacteria and need to eat. The food that they like to eat are known as prebiotics. These prebiotics encourage the growth of beneficial bacteria already living in the body and can also aid in the growth and maintenance of probiotics. Cutting Edge Cultures have formulated ‘Prebio Plus’, a custom blend of three different organic prebiotic fibres to maximise the benefits of Lactobacillus Gasseri.

L Gasseri superfood yogurt

PREPARATION

Before you begin it is important to sterilise the Luvele yogurt making glass jar and any utensils you use, in boiling hot water. Do this by boiling a kettle and carefully pouring the hot water in the jar and over the equipment. The danger of not sterilising is that other bacteria may overpower your culture and affect the quality of your ferment.

L Gasseri superfood yogurt recipe

L gasseri superfood yogurt recipe
L gasseri superfood yogurt recipe

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L Gasseri superfood yogurt