Lacto-Fermented Blueberry Soda

4 cups organic blueberries 1 cup organic cane sugar, dehydrated cane juice or rapadura 1/2 cup whey as a starter culture (there are other options – see below) 2 quarts filtered water

1. Simmer blueberries and sugar in a medium saucepan over medium heat or medium-high heat on your stovetop for about 20-30 minutes. 2. Cool to room temperature and strain out the blueberries. 3. Transfer what’s now essentially blueberry juice to a 2-quart glass ball jar or demijohn. 4. Add whey and let it ferment for at least 3 days. Look for visible signs of fermentation via a slight fizziness. You can let it go longer if you’d like a less sweet soda as the bacteria will continue to feed on the sugars. I let mine go about 5 days but you can go as long as 10 days. Taste the soda as you go to get the sweetness you desire. Note: there are several options for using starter cultures. If you use whey, you’ll have to make it yourself at home (don’t worry, it’s ridiculously easy). Other starter cultures include a ginger bug, water kefir, and champagne yeast. 5. Transfer blueberry soda to soda bottles via a funnel or measuring cup. 6. Keep the soda bottles at room temperature and check them every day. As the video above showed, carbonation can increase rapidly! Make sure to open the bottles every day to let some of the gasses escape. This is very important. If you forget, the pressure inside the bottles can increase to such a degree that they can actually explode the bottles. After a few days, you can move the bottles to your refrigerator where the fermentation will dramatically slow down. Makes 2 quarts.