Daily Word

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When I see rain softly falling on my window and hear thunder in the distance, I feel a connection with something greater than myself. The air is being cleansed and the ground saturated with a renewing shower. The birds and other animals quench their thirst and plants are nourished. I am content knowing that each drop of water has a purpose.

I take a breath and become aware of the activity of Spirit in each element of nature. As I sense its beauty and symmetry, a feeling of inner peace fills me.

I go within to reconnect with Divine Presence;

I experience a feeling of spiritual balance, a calm peace in my soul.



Food Storage Series- Dairy Products from Powdered Milk- Sour Cream and Cream Cheese

Next up in the Food Storage Series is Yogurt Cream Cheese and Greek Style Yogurt.

This time I made the milk from powdered milk. I used 2 quarts of water and 4 cups instant milk. I used my blender to mix the milk but you could also just mix by hand until all the lumps are out.

I followed the directions for making basic yogurt as outlined in this post from the book Making the Best of Basics Family Preparedness Handbook

Now you begin making the Yogurt Cream Cheese and Greek Style Yogurt.

Ingredients needed

•Prepared Plain yogurt

•Salt (optional)

Preparation:

1. Line a strainer with a double layer of cheesecloth, and place over a bowl.

2. Pour the plain yogurt into the strainer.

3. I left the yogurt to drain for 8 hours. I collected the whey that had drained off.

4. The yogurt left was the consistency of Sour Cream and that is what I intend to use it as.

This is also what is known as Greek Style Yogurt.

Attempting to show consistency.

I think you can see it better

in the shot below.

5. I reserved some of  the Greek style yogurt and wrapped it tight in the cheese cloth. I then filled a bag with some water and placed it on top of the cheese cloth. This will act as added weight and drain off more of the whey.

6. I let it drain for an additional 4 hours.

The yogurt left was the consistency of cream cheese

and that is what I intend to use it as.

Again, attempting to show consistency.

I think you can see it better in the shot below.

It is pretty amazing that you can get 3 different dairy products from 1 thing.
The yogurt tastes like yogurt, the Greek style yogurt tastes just like sour cream and the yogurt cheese tastes just like cream cheese. I added no seasonings or anything. The flavor changes just by the amount of drain time.
All this takes a little time commitment but the overall process in not hard at all.

Tips:
1. Use your yogurt cheese as a substitute for cream cheese, sour cream or mayonnaise. You can use it in recipes for dips, spread, sauces and dressings.

2. If you don't have cheesecloth, you can use a coffee filter or an old (but clean) pillowcase instead.

3. Save the whey that drains from your cheese, and use it in place of the liquids in baked goods recipes for some extra protein.

Yogurt and Augason Farms

The yogurt turned out great! It was a little thinner than store bought yogurts but that didn't bother me and I found that after being in the refrigerator it did thicken up. From what I read on the internet you can thicken the yogurt by using powdered milk or gelatin.

I decided to use 8 oz jelly jars to store the yogurt. From the half gallon of milk I got 11 jelly jars of yogurt. So for less that $5.00 I got 11 jars on yogurt!

The process was really easy. The time commitment was the only "bad thing". Just be mindful of your time and plan ahead to do heating and cooling of the milk during the day and the culturing overnight.

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I also found a new company to get Food Storage items from. It is Augason Farms.

 
 
 

 
 
 

The prices are cheaper than other Food Storage Companies. I was also pleased to find that

Sam's Club offers their products also.

 

Augason Farms offers interesting combo packs. This time I ordered the "Starter Pack".

It has a nice variety of food storage items.

 

The Starter Pack included

Whole Eggs

Instant Milk

Beef Flavored Vegetarian Meat Substitute

Instant Potatoes

Freeze Dried Strawberries

Freeze Dried Sweet Corn

 

I was excited about the variety in the Starter Pack.

I have been wanting to try the meat substitute and the freeze dried veggies and fruits.

And then the idea struck me that I can use the Strawberries in the yogurt I made!!

 

 

This is what the Strawberries look like in the can.



 

Re Hydrating the Strawberries in warm water

 

Cut up Re Hydrated Strawberries

Add the Strawberries to Yogurt and Stir

Yum!

 

 

**I also cut up the freeze dried Strawberries as is and mixed them into another container of yogurt.

I want to see if the step of re hydrating the Strawberries could be skipped.

I will let you know how the experiment turns out.

Yogurt in your Crock- Pot

I had 3 failed attempts with the EasiYo Yogurt making. Tried 3 different variations of the recipe and all failed. Then I looked at the best if used by day on the packet and found it was out of date. So the failures can be blamed on out of date starter cultures.

In searching the Internet for yogurt making I came across how to's for making yogurt in a crock pot. Sounds interesting.......sounds easy. So I am gonna give it a shot!



Crock Pot Yogurt



•Turn your crock pot to low and pour in 1/2 gallon of milk. Can use whole milk or down to 1% .
(I did find variations where they used half real milk and half powdered milk with water. I will try that on the next attempt. It sounds like you can customize the recipe once you have got the basics down.)

•Heat on low for 2 hours and 30 minutes.


•Once 2 hours and 30 minutes have elapsed turn your crock pot off and unplug it. Let the milk cool in the crock with the lid on for 3 hours.


•After 3 hours remove 1-2 cups of the warmed milk and place in a bowl. To that add 1/2 cup of yogurt with live active cultures and mix very well.


•Pour the yogurt-milk mixture back into the milk and whisk thoroughly.


•Place the cover back on the crock and wrap the entire crock pot in a thick bath towel or two.


•Let it culture overnight, 8-12 hours.


•In the morning stir yogurt (if desired) and store in glass quart jars or a container of your choice.


•For optimum texture, refrigerate for at least 8 hours before using.

Food Storage Series- Dairy Products from Powdered Milk

Dairy Products from Powered Milk

Powdered Milk is a staple in food storage.
Most dairy products can be made from re hydrated Powdered Milk which makes it very versatile.

In this Food Storage Series, We will explore the how to make yogurt, cream cheese and cottage cheese.

First up will be Yogurt Making.

If you have been with me for a while you might remember this post about my EasiYo Yogurt Maker. I liked the EasiYo maker but had my concerns about the cost of the sachets.

In Making the Best of Basics Family Preparedness Handbook, I found a recipe for Basic Yogurt from Powdered Milk. The recipe is as follows:

2 cups warm water
1 cup powdered milk
2 Tablespoons yogurt starter

Slowly add powdered milk and yogurt starter to warm water.
Mix with whisk until all lumps are out.

I placed the mix in my EasiYo, following manufactures directions.
The yogurt will set in 3 to 4 hours.

I just set a batch out....... I will let you know how it turns out!


Search Amazon.com for yogurt maker

What I am Reading

CSN Stores Review

Look what I got from CSN Stores!

OXO Good Grips 3 Piece Angled Measuring Cup Set.

OXO has revolutionized liquid measuring with our Good Grips Angled Measuring Cups. A patented angled surface lets you read measurement markings by looking straight down into the Cup and eliminates the need to fill, check and adjust the amount of liquid you are measuring. The handle is soft and non-slip for a firm grip, and cup, ounce and milliliter measurement markings increase convenience. The set includes 1-cup, 2-cup and 4-cup versions.

The product came packaged well and it arrived in a timely manner. It shipped within 24 hours! My experience with CSN Stores.com was exceptional. Browsing the website was easy and informative. Checkout was a breeze!



My experience with the CSNStores.com was a great!




Please check out their 200+ websites at http://www.csnstores.com/


Note: CSN Stores contacted me with this promotional opportunity and I received a giftcard for my review. However, all opinions expressed are strictly my own

CSN Shopping Spree

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CSN Stores has over 200 online stores where you can find anything you need whether it be lights, fitness equipment, or even cute cookware!

Skin Cancer on my Eyelid

I had a what I thought was a sty on my left lower eyelid for a few years. It would get bigger and bigger and then finally it started to spread further. I decided it was time to get it checked out.


I went to a big time eye center here in Dayton.  The first Doctor was concerned enough with it that he contacted one of the eye plastic surgeons to see if he could come see me right away. Someone must have been looking out for me because he happened to be in between Patients. He came over right away. He was concerned enough that he scheduled a biopsy of the area the following week. The Nurse came into schedule me and told me how lucky I was.....there was normally a 2 to 3 month waiting period to see this Doctor.

                                                                Left eye before biopsy

So I came back the next week for the biopsy. The biopsy went well. They numbed the area and the area around it. When I got home I went to bed to rest awhile. When I woke up I had terrible pain in my left eye. It was red and swollen. Long story short.......I had rubbed my eye in my sleep and because I could not feel it I rubbed it hard enough to give myself a corneal abrasion.

                                                                Corneal Abrasion

                                                     Eye after biopsy and cornial abrasion


So after a week of treating the cornial abrasion and a scare that I might have lost some vision in my left eye, I got the results. It was Basal Cell Carcinoma. The Doctor was concerned enough with it that we told the nurse to bump some surgery's and get me in the next week. He explained to me that the area would have to be removed and that he would have to go 2 to 3 mm beyond it to get clean margins. Depending how much they had to remove would determine how much reconstruction they would have to do. With those words, I got a little worried. I have had skin cancer before but in regions that they could just cut it out or burn it out. We are talking my face here........reconstruction?!?!? I am real scared!!


So a week goes by. I have lots of people praying for me and I am praying hard too. Thank you all!


So another long story short.........the surgery went well. It was not best case scenario and a section about as wide as a finger tip had to be removed. The Doctor had to cut the corner of my eye in order to get enough skin to close the area. He reconstructed the corner of my eye by pulling the upper lid down and sewing it together.

                                                      

                                                After getting the Post Op dressing off

                                                      ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

                                                               

 
                                                                2 Days after Surgery

                                             ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

                                                

                                           7 Days after surgery after getting half of the stitches out

I get the rest of the stitches out next week. The Doctor says I will have "relatively normal looking eyelid" when it is all said and done.


So the moral of the story is........if you have areas on your body that don't look right, go get them checked out.


It could be skin cancer!!!

Bittman Recipe- Banana Bread

Banana Bread

Makes: 1 loaf

Time: About 1 hour

The best banana bread is a balancing act: It requires a fair amount of fat to keep it moist and to lighten the crumb; a little whole wheat flour gives its some substance. And in my opinion, the result should be sweet—but not overly so. Though coconut is my favorite secret ingredient, feel free to omit it or add more nuts, raisins, or other dried fruit instead, if you like. This bread keeps better than most quick breads, though it probably won't be around too long.


8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter, softened, plus butter for the pan
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
3 very ripe bananas, mashed with a fork until smooth
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
1/2 cup shredded coconut



1. Heat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9 × 5-inch loaf pan with butter.

2. Mix together the dry ingredients. With a hand mixer, a whisk, or in the food processor, cream the butter and beat in the eggs and bananas. Stir this mixture into the dry ingredients, just enough to combine (it's okay if there are lumps). Gently stir in the vanilla, nuts, and coconut.

3. Pour the batter into the loaf pan and bake for 45 to 60 minutes, until nicely browned. A toothpick inserted in the center of the bread will come out fairly clean when done, but because of the bananas this bread will remain moister than most. Do not overcook. Cool on a rack for 15 minutes before removing from the pan.

 
From the Cookbook: