Homemade Yogurt ~ Tutorial

Yogurt has been a staple in our home for many years.  And we have been making our own for quite a few now.  And I am shocked every time I peek at the price of yogurt in the store and just can't figure out why more people just don't make their own.    Not only is it truly easy to make but it is also frugal, more nutritious and taste so much better.  So while there are many tutorials out there for making yogurt I thought I would share mine in hopes that some of you will be inspired to make your own as well.

First you will need to get your supplies together.  Now don't let this intimidate you,  You don't need anything fancy, none of those expensive yogurt makers.  So here goes:

• Large pot
• Mason jars & lids, I use two quart jars as that is how much yogurt I make at a time
• Thermometer
• Small bowl or measuring cup
• Whisk
• Heating Pad
• Cooler, I use a soft side I got at the dump store (really any container, even a box would work)

Now for the ingredients.  As I said I make 2 quarts at a time, so that is what I'm going to give you here.  It should be easy enough to adjust to make more or less.  Really, making yogurt is that easy.

• 2 quarts milk - I use raw
• yogurt starter - this is the live bacteria you need to introduce to the milk  You have a few options here.  You can purchase a starter at your local health food store or online from someone like Culture for Health.  The next option is to purchase a cup of plain yogurt at the food store.  Just make sure it says it contains live cultures.  Many do.  And once you have your own yogurt you can use a little of the previous batch to make the next batch.  

That's it!  You are ready to make yogurt.  I will tell you that this takes a bit of time.  So it is best to do on a day that you will be home.  Most of the time is just waiting for milk to cool and yogurt to culture, so you will be free to do what ever your heart desires, but you should be around.

First you will want to make sure that all your equipment is clean.  You are growing bacteria here so no need to have some nasty strain hanging around.

Next pour the milk into your mason jars and set in your pot.  Fill the pot with water at least half way up the jars.  This is just a water bath.  It is a simple way to heat the milk without scorching it.  And it saves on dishes as the pot should be able to go right back in the cupboard as soon as you are done.

Heat the milk to 180 degrees.  True you milk isn't raw anymore, but this is the safe way to kill any nasty stuff that might be there.  You will also get a nice thick yogurt.  It is hard to get a thick raw yogurt.

Once your milk has reach 180 degrees remove it from the water bath and let it cool to 110 degrees.  This is where you need to be around but not totally tied to your kitchen.  The milk needs to cool so that when you introduce the culture you don't kill the bacteria.

Sorry about the blurry picture.  Not great with my left hand.  And as you can see I missed the 110 mark a bit.  That's because I forgot to take the picture before I started adding the culture.  Shhh don't tell.

Now you are going to pour a little of the milk into a glass measuring cup or small bowl.  To this add your starter yogurt.  I add about 2-4Tbsp of yogurt per quart.  It really is the amount left in the bottom of the jar from the previous batch(If you purchases a yogurt starter, you will need to follow the directions on the package).  Gently mix the milk and your yogurt really well.  Once mixed pour the milk/yogurt mixture back into the rest of the warm milk and mix again.

If you want plain yogurt you are all set.  If you want to flavor your yogurt you can add a little vanilla, honey, or maple syrup now.  I usually make one quart plain and one vanilla.  We don't sweeten our yogurt.  I don't also add fruit or anything else at this point, that way everyone can have it "their way" when the time comes.

All that's left now is to incubate the yogurt.  Basically you need to leave the jars in a warm spot for a while while the bacteria grows.   This is where the heating pad and cooler come in handy.  There are lost of ways to keep the yogurt warm.  I have heard of people using their crock pot or dehydrator.  Some use a cooler and pour the hot water in from heating the milk, just beware that you may have to add more hot water to keep it at temp long enough.  I'd forget.

As you can see, I just put the pad around the jars.  Zip up the lid and let it be.  The longer you incubate your yogurt the more tart and thick it will be.  About the minimum you can incubate is 6 hours.  Then it becomes personal preference.  I will tell you I have forgotten about it and left it overnight, when I was supposed to go in the fridge at 9pm, and it was still amazing the next morning.  So really you can't go wrong.

Once it is done incubating, all that is left is to put it in the fridge.  Warm yogurt is not all that yummy.  But once this had cooled down I promise you it will be some yummy stuff, thick and creamy.  Sorry for the yucky picture here too.  Yogurt just doesn't photograph well for me.

Now this turned into a long post for something that really is simple so here's a recap.

Take your milk and heat it to 180 degrees.
Cool milk to 110 degrees.
Pour off a little of the milk and add your yogurt with live cultures and mix well.
Pour milk/yogurt mixture back into the warm milk and stir to mix well.
Put lids on your jars and keep them warm for at least 6 hours more like 12.
Refrigerate until cold.
Enjoy!

See isn't that easy?  I hope you will give making your own yogurt a try.  It really is so much yummier and truly frugal.

Linking up over at the Homestead Barn Hop, Make Your Own Monday, Scratch Cooking Tuesday, Traditional Tuesdays, Healthy 2Day Wednesday, and Country Mama Cooks.

Don't forget my little one's giveaway!  There is still time to enter and she'd be thrilled if you'd enter.  Sorry this is closed!

DIY Mason Jars with Straw Lids - Summer Perfect Drink Container

With summer coming I have been looking for some lidded beverage glasses for a while.  I knew I didn't want plastic and there weren't many other choices out there.  I wanted lids for the little ones that always seem to spill their drinks and for everyone else to keep the bugs and stuff out.

I had been seeing these converted mason jars on the web but the prices on Etsy were way out of my range.  Others were using paper and cutting a slit for the straw.  Ok that would work for the bugs, but not the spills and really seemed like too much work.  I wanted something cheap frugal and reusable.

Thanks to my brilliant husband, the answer was more than simple it was very reasonable too!  And he even ended up doing most of the work, if you can really call it that.

Hannah "dimpled" the lid in the center.  This was done so the drill bit would have a place to rest and not jump.  Don't know if you really need to do this, but it worked and gave Hannah a job!

Then Doug drilled a hole through the lid.  He used a 3/8" bite.  It is hard to see but there is a scrap piece of wood under the lid.  He DID NOT drill right on the kitchen table.

I inserted the rubber grommets.  It was easy to do, but I couldn't take pictures and do it at the same time.  We found the grommets at Lowes in the fasteners aisle.  They come two in a package.  We bought the 9/16th size.  This fits a standard plastic straw perfectly.

Of course Rebekah couldn't wait to try out her new cup.

We made a set of six.  And seriously it took us all of about 10 minutes with all of us having a job.  And better yet the whole project cost $4.12.  That's 69¢ each!  And it would have been a lot less, but I couldn't resist the red and white check lids.  They scream summer, don't you agree?

Here's how it broke down:

• Mason Jars - in the pantry
• Lids - package of 6 on sale of $1.00
• Grommets - package of 2 for $1.04 bought three packages

Now I would like to add some reusable straws to complete the project.  I have seen both glass and stainless that I like, but I'm not sure which way to go.  The glass ones are definitely more pricey and I wonder about them with kids.  I'd love to hear what you all think.  Do you have reusable plastic, glass or stainless straws?  What do you love or hate about them?

I'm linking up with the Homestead Barn Hop, Make A Move Monday, Living Green Link-up, Sustainable Ways Wednesday and Creative Friday!

Homemade Lip Balm

So far so good with my goal of making one new health and beauty product a month. Last month was hand lotion. A month later and we are all loving this. It works fabulously and this mama know what is going on her family' skin. And on top of that it is quick and frugal. Who could ask for more?

This month we are making lip balm. Between the cold temps outside and the dry heat of our wood stove we are definitely a family that goes through a lot of lip balm. And while you can pick up lip balm cheap, the cost isn't the only thing that is cheap. Personally, I don't want all that stuff on my family's lips, especially if you have little ones who eat almost as much as they get on their lips. We have purchased a few high quality lip balms that we have been pleased with, that is with their ingredients and performance, not their price. It is hard to swallow paying upwards of $5.00 of a lip balm. There had to be a better answer. So we began playing with lip balm recipes. Here is our favorite so far - not to hard, not too soft and so yummy smelling, and you could eat it without any ill effects.

Cocoa - Coconut Lip Balm

1 1/2 tsp Cocoa Butter
1 7/8 tsp Coconut Oil
3 tsp Olive Oil
2 tsp Bees Wax
5 drops Vitamin E
6 Containers - Lip Balm Tubes or Little Pots


You are going to melt all the ingredients except the vitamin e together. I like to use a glass measuring cup and place it in a simmering pot of water. You could also put the measuring cup in the microwave. If using the microwave set it for short periods of time 15-20 seconds and check it often. When everything is melted add the vitamin e.

Carefully pour into your tubes or pots. Wait for the lip balm to cool and solidify. Your lip balm is ready! Easy peasy.

Come back next month when we try our hand at making goats milk soap.

Homemade Hand Lotion

One of my goals for 2011 is to make more of our health and beauty products. With four girls in the house we go through A LOT of health and beauty products. And while I try to purchase quality natural products the budget doesn't always allow. Yet, with our skin being our biggest organ I really want to watch what my family puts on it. So began the search for homemade recipes that would be frugal and natural.

Up first - Homemade Hand Lotion! With the wood stove going non-stop to keep us warm, the air in the house is so dry. On top of that the cold outside doesn't do wonders for the skin either. Everyone seems to have dry itchy skin this time of year and the result is we go through LOTS of lotion. So when I stumbled on a recipe for homemade lotion, I just knew I had to give it a try. The first batch was lovely, but not a thick and creamy as I would have liked so I have tweaked it a bit.

You will need:

• olive oil
• water
• emulsifying wax
• essential oil of our choice (optional)

We are going to make about 2 cups of lotion. I haven't tried to double this yet, but I think I will soon.

First put 1/4 cup olive oil in a glass measuring cup. Add a rounded 1/4 cup of the emulsifying wax. Melt either in a hot water bath on your stove top or in the microwave.

To the oil and wax mixture add your essential oil, about 20-40 drops depending on the oil and the strength of the scent you want. So are we have made lavender and peppermint. Both are lovely.

Heat up 1 1/8 cups of water. You want your water to be around 120-130 degrees. Pour the water into the oil and wax mixture and watch it turn a creamy white.

Pour the white liquid into a pint canning jar and let it sit over night. In the morning you will have homemade lotion. Really it is that easy! And as for cost. I found a great deal on olive oil not too long ago so a quarter up cost me $.16 and the quarter cup of emulsifying wax cost $.43. The essential oils can vary a lot, but I don't think the cost is all that much. So two cups of lotion cost about $.65.

I hope you enjoy this lotion as much as we do. Next up homemade lip balm . . .

Strawberry Fruit Leather and Giveaway

My children love fruit roll ups and fruit leather. However, I don't like all the extra stuff in most fruit roll ups and organic fruit leathers are not in our budget. The answer - homemade fruit leather. So easy! So good! And mom knows exactly what's in it.

You'll need:

• Strawberries
• Apple Sauce-I used our homemade which has cinnamon
• Honey-we like raw local honey

Wash and remove the stems from your strawberries. I don't measure the berries. I just fill my food processor. Puree the berries until smooth. Add about 1 cup of applesauce and 1/4 cup honey. Puree again until smooth. You can adjust the applesauce and honey to your liking. So taste away.

Line two sheet pan with parchment. Pour half of the puree onto each pan. Smooth making sure that the thickness is even.

Now there are a couple of ways you can dehydrate your fruit leather. It was so hot this last week that we dehydrated it outside on the picnic table. We just covered the pans with cheese cloth. This took about 15 hours.

You can also put it in your oven set on its lowest setting. Ours is 170 degrees. When I dehydrate in the oven it takes about 8 hours.

Or if you are lucky enough to have a dehydrator you can use that. Your dehydrator should have some guidelines or directions on how to make fruit leather.

You want to make sure that the fruit leather is completely dry, but not brittle. It can be tacky to the touch but no puree should come off on your finger when you touch it.

Once it is dry, cut into strips and store in an air tight jar. Of course if your house is like mine, it wont last that long. You can make this fruit leather with a variety of fruits. Have fun experimenting.

And if you don't have a dehydrator, but would like one you must hop on over to Lindsay's blog, Passionate Homemaking, and enter to win your own Excalibur Dehydrator. Her review and ideas on how to use a dehydrator will sell you on having one if you aren't already. Of course, I have entered the giveaway and really hope to win. But I would be psyched if one of my readers won, you will just have to share!

Sprout ~ How to Grow Them Yourself

Sprouts are supper yummy! Sprouts are super nutritious! Sprouts are super easy to grow yourself and this makes sprouts super frugal! You don't even need any super duper gadget or equipment to grow your own sprouts. Other than your seeds you probably already have everything you need.

First gather your supplies:

• quart mason jar with ring
• cheese cloth
• 2 Tbsp sprouting seeds (available at most health food stores)

Make sure your jar is clean. Pour your seeds into the jar. Cover the jar with the cheese cloth and secure with the ring.

Rinse the seeds with warm water. Pour off the water right through the cheese cloth. Add enough warm water to cover the seeds by about an inch. Put the jar in a warm, dark place for about 8-12 hours, overnight works well for us.

Here are our seeds soaking next to our kefir, but that's another post.

After the seeds have soak you want to rinse them 2 to 3 times a day. Pour off the soaking water and add more warm water. Gently swirl the jar around and them pour off all of the water.

Once the water is poured off. Gently shake the seed to cover the side of the jar and lay the jar on its side in a warm, dark place.

In about three days you will have beautiful sprouts! One last step before you can eat! Removing the hulls.

Transfer you sprouts to a bowl of cold water. The hulls will either float or sink. Either way you want to remove them from the sprouts. We skim off the ones that float and the remove the sprouts.

Here are our yummy, nutritious, frugal sprouts! We love them in sandwiches, added to salads and stir fries, even as a snack to just munch on. These sprouts were a salad mix, but sprout what you like.

It's Raining ~ Let's Make Play Dough

We woke this morning to chilly temps and rain. Good thing we worked in the garden and hung the laundry out to dry yesterday. I find it hard to stay inside when the weather is so nice, so a day of rain is good for getting inside projects done.

The first project: Make some play dough for the kids. Easy, fun and even allows mama some time to get other projects done with the kids are playing.

You will need

• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup warm water
• 2 tsp cream of tarter
• 1 tsp oil
• 1/4 cup salt
• coloring
• scents (optional)

Mix the first five ingredients in a sauce pan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until it clumps together forming a soft dough. This should take just a couple of minutes. Once the dough is cool enough to handle kneed it until it is smooth.

Now you are ready to add color and scents. We divided ours into four pieces. We like to use Wilton concentrated paste coloring and essential oils for scent. Kneed the color and scent in to your liking. That's it except for the best part . . .

PLAY!

Needle Book - A Tutorial

Needle books have been around for generations. Webster's 1913 dictionary defines them as "A book-shaped needle case, having leaves of cloth into which the needles are stuck." I've been carrying a needle book for a while now and I find it comes in handy for more than just my crafting. I've had a few people ask about my simple needle book and so I thought I would put a tutorial for those of you who would like a needle book of your own.


You will need three pieces of fabric 5"x7". One will be the outside. One will be the inside. And the third will be the pocket. You will also need a 5"x7" piece of fusible interfacing.

I like to use wool felt for the pages of my needle books, but any felt would work. You will need a 5"x5" piece for the page and the closure. Cut a one inch strip off the felt square. Set your felt pieces aside until later.

Follow the directions on the fusible interfacing and iron it to the wrong side of the piece of fabric that is to be the front of your needle book.

Next, fold the pocket piece in half and iron. The pieces should now measure 2.5"x7".

Next you will pin the layers together. Start with the piece that is to be the inside face up. Next place the folded pocket piece lining up the open edges along the bottom of the first piece. Then lay the one inch strip of felt halfway up the right hand side with the edges flush. It should line up closely with the height of the pocket. Place the front fabric on top with the interfacing facing up. Pin all the layers in place and then using a 1/2 seam stitch around leaving a two inch gap to turn it right side out.

Trim the corners being careful not to cut your stitches. This will help the corners from being too bulky. Turn the project right side out. Use a turning tool or knitting needle to help push out the corners and make them nice and square. Turn the opening under and press.

Top stitch close to the edge all the way around being sure to close the opening.

Center the large piece of felt in the middle of the book and stitch. Remember to stitch forward and back at the beginning and end to secure your sewing.

Fold your needle book along the center stitched line and press. Line up where your button should be placed and hand sew on. Cut the felt closure strip to size and cut a slit for a button hole. You're finished except to fill it with your needles and pins. I like to carry a few safety pins as well. They always seem to come in handy.

The pocket is a great place to tuck some thread and a band aid.

Hopefully this tutorial is clear. It is the first one I have written for a craft/sewing project. Please leave me a comment if something is unclear and I will try to explain it better. I would love to hear about the needle books you create or better yet see a picture. So please come back and leave me a comment.

Homemade Laundry Soap

Making your own laundry soap is easy and affordable. This recipe makes about 2 gallons or enough soap for 64 to 90 loads depending on the type of washer, load size, and soil level. For us it turns out to be less than 2 cents a load. Now that's a good deal.

1/3 bar Fels-Naptha

1/2 cup washing soda

1/2 cup borax powder

~ You will also need a small bucket, about 2 gallon size~

I store the ingredients in glass jars. They look much prettier in my laundry room than the cardboard boxes. On the right is the grated Fels-Naptha. The middle is the borax and the right is the washing soda. I am able to purchase all three of these items at our local Wallmart.

First you will need to grate the Fels-Naptha. I use my food processor to due this quickly. Next put the grated soap in a sauce pan and add 6 cups of water. Heat this until the soap melts.

Add 1/2 cup of borax powder and 1/2 cup of washing soda to the melted soap & water mixture. Stir until it is dissolved. Remove from heat.


Pour 4 cups of hot water into the bucket. Now add your soap mixture and stir. Next add 1 gallon plus 6 cups of water and stir. If you would like to add a fragrance to your soap you can add essential oil here.

Cover the mixture and let it sit for about 24 hours. During this time it will gel. I like to use my hand blender to make the soap a more uniform consistency, otherwise it seems to have clumps of gel floating in liquid.

Use 1/2 cup per load. I have a front loading washer and only need about 1/3 of a cup.