Butter!

Every week, the nice Oberweis man delivers our milk and one container of heavy cream.  It's my standing order.  I intend to make homemade icecream once a week.  It hasn't happened yet.  As a result, we had four containers of cream that I did NOT want to waste, so I knew it was time to make butter.

I've done it before.  It's super easy with a food processor.  It takes all of about 5-7 minutes.  Here's a great video.

So, begin with pouring cream into the food processor.

 Now you're going to turn it on and let it go for a spin. The cream will be liquid at first, obviously.

Then it will gradually thicken.

In no time at all you will have whipped cream.

And then it will get really firm.

Just when you think nothing else will happen, the butter milk separates from the butter and starts splattering all over the food processor.

That's when you know you have butter!  Strain out the buttermilk (this is not the same as the cultured stuff you buy in the store, but it is great in pancakes and muffins, so be sure to save it.)  Then what you want to do is rinse the butter with COLD water in a bowl (sorry, I didn't take pictures)  I find that 3 times is a charm... squeeze the butter (the more liquid you get out, the longer it will last) and rinse.  When the water runs clean, you're good to go.

And just because I don't want you to do what I did, please don't think it's a good idea to make butter while you have milk heating on the stove to make yogurt.  This is what you will end up with:

It was not fun to clean.  At all.

Homemade Greek Yogurt

Here is a great tutorial on how to make your own Homemade Greek Yogurt.

I have been making homemade yogurt for awhile (minus a long break this summer while we moved) but I didn't like that it was so watery.  Neither did the kids.  Taking the one extra easy step at the end to strain it through cheesecloth makes a world of difference.

In a nutshell, here are the steps.  Try it!  You'll never by the expensive stuff again!

1.  Heat a half-gallon of milk to 180 degrees (Reserving 2 TBL for later).  DO NOT USE ultra-pasteurized milk.  I used Oberweis and love the results, even with low-fat milk.
2.  Transfer it to a glass container and let it cool to 105-110 degrees.
3.  Turn on the oven light.
3.  Combine the 2 Tbl milk with 2-3 Tbl yogurt.  Add to the milk.  If you want, add in a TBL or so of vanilla.

4.  Cover with a lid, then wrap with a couple towels.  Place in the oven, making sure the towels are nowhere near the light.
5.  Leave for 8 hours.
6.  Take it out and admire the yogurt goodness.  Chill in the fridge for 2 hours.
7.  Place 4 layers of cheesecloth in a colander (or sieve) over a bowl and strain.  Save the whey that results, as it is great for using in any baked item in place of water.

8.  Store in an air-tight container in the fridge (I like to use a freshly washed mason jar).

Ta-Da!  You have your own delicious yogurt.  Best of all, YOU get to decide how to sweeten it and what flavor to make it.  I love to mix in a little homemade jam which gives it sweetness and flavor at the same time.  Or, add honey or maple syrup.  Granola.  Fresh fruit.  Whatever YOU want.  YOU are in control here, not the folks at Dannon or Yoplait!  Read the ingredients on commercial yogurt sometime.  Notice the added sugar.  And preservatives.  You don't need to put that junk in your body.  Not when you can make perfectly yummy yogurt with ONE ingredient: milk!

It costs me about $3.30 for 4 cups of Greek Yogurt, which is much cheaper than buying it... and it really takes very little 'hands-on' time.  If you don't make your own yogurt already, you should definitely try.  No fancy machines required!