Powdered Milk from the Home Storage Center, $1.40/lb. The bowl holds yogurt. You can make plain yogurt as cheap as $ .42/quart, or $ .10/serving.
If you don’t have your water storage yet, what is a good price for water drums? Prices vary, but generally figure $1 per gallon of storage capacity. The 55-gallon drums, then, will probably be $55 or less. Once in a while they go on sale; I've found them at Macey's (our grocery store) for $40. They're even cheaper if you can find them in the classifieds. Only use food-grade drums. Empty pop bottles or juice bottles work great, but milk jugs break down fairly quickly and will leak. If you are using chlorinated city water, you do NOT have to drain and refill these every year. The First Presidency has asked us to store at least 14 gallons per person. This is one gallon per person per day for 2 weeks.
Attached are the recipes from yesterday's class on powdered milk. Here's a list of what is there, and a few notes on them. Sorry, it's a scanned-in document, so I couldn't go through and type in my notes.
Anyplace I've put cost of a recipe, it's based on the following: $1.40/lb for powdered milk, $13 for 25 lbs of sugar, $2 for a pound of butter, $8 for 25 lbs. flour.
For the recipes that give you whey (any of the cheeses, including the yogurt cream cheese), save the whey. It has vitamins, minerals, some protein, no fat, and some milk sugar (lactose- very low on the glycemic scale). I use it in pancakes, muffins, bread, etc. If your whey has vinegar in it (most of the cheeses use this), you can add 1 tsp. baking soda for every 2-3 cups of whey. This will neutralize most of the vinegar. Yes, it will foam up, kinda like those volcanoes you made in 3rd grade…
Go to http://everydayfoodstorage.net/training-cooking/powdered-milk for recipes for evaporated milk, Magic Mix, and Condensed Soups using Magic Mix. And she has a great little chart you can print out and tape to the inside of your cupboard so you know how much milk powder to use when you're baking with it:
http://www.everydayfoodstorage.net/handouts/milk-conversion-charts.pdf
The Wooden Spoon class handout has a TON of info on powdered milk. It is from some classes that the LDS Church's Welfare Square was teaching for a little while. The collection is not copyrighted; the two ladies who compiled it just wanted to spread the information.
When I get a bunch of new recipes, usually most of them get ignored unless I'm already familiar with them. So let me familiarize you with all these possibilities....
The first couple pages include:
what the difference is between regular and instant dry milk
storage times- which are completely off! Ignore what it says; a BYU study shows that canned dry milk has been found to last 20+ years when kept at room temperature and below.
Mixing and drinking it- how to make it taste the best
Cooking with powdered milk
How much to store per person
How to determine if milk is past its prime shelf life
What to do with it if it's too old
Reconstituting chart
Now the recipes-
'whole milk' (powdered milk is powdered SKIM milk)
Buttermilk substitute
Evaporated milk- everydayfoodstorage link above gives quantities for a 12-oz can. This costs $ .25.
Sweetened Condensed Milk – for the closest version to a 14-oz can, use
1/2 c. (non-instant) powdered milk
1/2 c. water
1 c. sugar
0-2 Tbsp. butter
If you like to be precise, use 1 1/2 Tbsp. less than 1/2 c. water (this also gives a slightly thicker result, like the can), but the first way is very close (yields 14 3/4 oz) Other recipes use more -or less- of any of those ingredients. Really, they all work. That said, the 'closest' version costs $ .39 if you use no butter, and $ .53 if you use 2 Tbsp. What a deal! One important thing to know- these recipes call for hot or boiling water so the sugar gets completely dissolved. Otherwise you get grainy condensed milk. I usually put my sugar with the water, then microwave and stir until the sugar dissolves. Then blend with the milk powder and butter.
Hot Cinnamon Milk Mix- from an old 'Friend' magazine
Hot Caramel Milk Mix- like hot chocolate, only not!
Hot Chocolate Mix- one of many options out there, this one you just add water to.
Strawberry Shake- with a touch of orange to pep it up. yummy.
Creamsicle Drink Mix- uses 3 Cannery products. And it is really good.
Orange Julius- uses the church cannery orange drink powder. You could use Tang if that's all you have.
Presoaked Wheat Blender Pancakes or Crepes- blender pancakes that are a little easier on your blender. You just have to plan ahead with these.
Whole Wheat Pancake Mix
Fruit Syrup- no powdered milk here- just a really handy way to make a fruity topping for your pancakes. The handwritten note says "Can use peaches canned in syrup and you just add cornstarch and cook" Use 1-2 tsp. cornstarch per cup of syrup/juice.
Basic White Sauce
Cheese Sauce Mix- uses powdered cheese, pdr. milk and pdr. butter. And onion powder. (Remember my method of making onion powder?)
Low-Fat Cream Soup Mix -replaces 9 cans of condensed creamed soup, at $ .30 per can!
Potato Soup Mix- very very easy. (Well, they all are..)
Broccoli Soup- using all fresh ingredients except for the milk
Biscuit Mix- "Bisquick" where you add only water. Use for any Bisquick recipes. This makes as much as 2 40-oz boxes, at about $2.75/box
Honey Dinner Rolls
Whole Wheat Muffins
Weiner Schnitzel- not what you think, it's the old German dish. Uses noodles, cheese, hotdogs.
Macaroni and Cheese- using the little 5-oz jar of cheese sauce. This is a 'bag' recipe; everything can be put in a bag ahead of time and kept on a shelf (or given to a friend)
Microwave Caramels- mmmm
Whipped Topping- A little explanation here... Evaporated milk will whip like cream if it is ICY-cold when you whip it. This is glorified whipped evaporated milk, starting with the powder. They add a few things for flavor, some oil for richness, and gelatin to keep it from going flat. I think the gelatin gives it a strange consistency. Next time I'll use a couple teaspoons of Instant Clear Jel. Or cook some cornstarch with the water. Or forget stabilizing it, and just eat it fast- maybe just whip evaporated milk and add sugar and vanilla to taste.
Fudgsicles- don't these sound good?
Dry Milk Ice Cream- Bad name, but it uses sweetened condensed milk, which makes it really good. The recipe claims to make a gallon, but it's really more like 2 quarts.
Peanut Butter Chews- similar to Bit-O'Honey if you use the honey instead of corn syrup.
Vanilla Pudding Mix- fat free, and has variations for chocolate and caramel pudding. When you make it, you add a tiny bit of butter and an egg, so it’s still lowfat, just not fat free. If you cannot have wheat, substitute half as much cornstarch as the flour called for.
Plain Yogurt- really, this IS easy. The recipe says it makes 2 quarts, but part of the water got left off the ingredients list. Use 7 cups instead. If you use your hottest tap water, this will be about right to start incubating. You need the yogurt to start out between 105 and 120 degrees. The lower end gives sweeter yogurt, the higher end makes it more tart. Wrapping the jars in a towel help keep it warm. Some warm areas to incubate it are- on top of a heating pad (cover with a towel), an insulated cooler (I put in a jar of almost-boiling water to warm it up in there), a water-filled crockpot, a warm oven (an oven thermometer is helpful! Hotter than 130 degrees will kill those friendly bacteria.). Or get creative. This costs only $ .42 per quart if you are using your own starter.
Vanilla Yogurt- has gelatin in it, like most of the store-bought versions. This keeps it firm, even after stirring. (Yogurt with no gelatin will become drinkable after stirring.) If you want to use sugar instead of honey, use from 1 to 1 ½ cups. And dissolve (boil) it in some of the water first, or it will settle to the bottom. You could use a package of flavored Jello- a 3 oz box is just under ½ c. of sugar, and as much gelatin as one packet of unflavored. Or use juice/syrup from canned fruit as part of your water. Stir in fruit after the yogurt sets up.
Almond Crunch Granola- also no powdered milk, unless you count what you pour on top when eating this!
Strawberry Banana Smoothie- uses the yogurt you just made…
Yogurt-Fruit Smoothie- Banana-orange; uses yogurt as well as powdered milk
Yogurt Breakfast Waffles- yogurt makes them extra moist. They also have a hint of orange and cinnamon in them. I love these using the lemon yogurt.
Yogurt Dill-Veggie Dip- close to Ranch Dip
Yogurt, Berries, and Pecans on Crispbread- self-explanatory
Ranch Salad Dressing- do you have any idea how much better fresh made is?
Fruit Yogurt Salad- uses vanilla yogurt and whatever fruit you have
Yogurt Parmesan Chicken- uses yogurt instead of mayonnaise or eggs to get the coating to stick. Very good.
Granola, Yogurt, Berry Parfait- kinda like those little ones at McDonald’s, only you sweeten plain yogurt with honey. You taste the fruit better this way.
Mock Mozzarella Cheese- about $1.50 per pound. It only takes 10 minutes to make! And it melts wonderfully. Do use a blender to mix everything, otherwise the oil won’t mix in with the cheese curds and you’ll end up with a layer of oil on top of the whey. (Make bread!) NOTE- the recipe doesn’t tell you about salt. Unsalted cheese is not very tasty. I use 1 tsp. salt for this; I mix it in after rinsing the curds. Even wrapping in cheesecloth, and pressing (under whatever heavy thing I can find) overnight, this hasn’t ever been cohesive enough for me to grate. It crumbles, though. When I aged this for a couple months, it became very creamy and softer. If you don’t have cheesecloth, you can use a piece of cotton fabric- something that will let the liquid drip out. Cheesecloth can be found in some grocery stores in the kitchen tools section, or in fabric stores and Walmart over with the notions.
Parmesan Cheese- this is in already-crumbled form. Best flavor after aging in fridge for 3 months, but still good used right away.
Yogurt Cream Cheese, Yogurt Sour Cream- which one you make only depends on how long you let the yogurt drain. 16 ounces of yogurt will make just over 8 oz. of cream cheese, so it costs about $ .21 per 8 oz block.
Easy Homemade Cheese Ball- a cream cheese based cheese ball. Use your yogurt cream cheese.
Mock Ricotta Cheese- about $ .84 for the batch, using your homemade yogurt. ‘Real’ ricotta uses whey instead of milk, but normally you don’t have easy access to whey. If you do (from making mozzarella?), use ¼ c. vinegar in 2 quarts whey, heat to simmering, then let sit for several hours for the curds to form. Then strain through cheesecloth, salt, and press.
Jalapeno Cheese- variation on the ricotta.
Queso Blanco- this one does not melt; it holds its shape through cooking.
Homemade Cottage Cheese- this makes the curds. To make the creamy liquid the curds sit in, use a little yogurt, sour cream, or evaporated milk to the curds. I like it with ¼ tsp. salt. Add more if you like. The recipe makes about 8 oz. of curds and costs $ .36
Cottage Cheese Scramble- a form of scrambled eggs, only mostly cottage cheese, with chives.
Cheese-Stuffed Jumbo Shells- like Manicotti. For those of you unfamiliar with it, this is similar in flavor to lasagna, only you use shaped pasta and stuff them, instead of doing layers. The recipe calls for ricotta, cottage cheese, mozzarella, and Parmesan cheeses… but use what you have. When I made it for the class, I used only cottage cheese, with mozzarella just on the top. And only about a cup of spaghetti sauce.
Happy cooking!
-Rhonda
Attached are the recipes from yesterday's class on powdered milk. Here's a list of what is there, and a few notes on them. Sorry, it's a scanned-in document, so I couldn't go through and type in my notes.
Anyplace I've put cost of a recipe, it's based on the following: $1.40/lb for powdered milk, $13 for 25 lbs of sugar, $2 for a pound of butter, $8 for 25 lbs. flour.
For the recipes that give you whey (any of the cheeses, including the yogurt cream cheese), save the whey. It has vitamins, minerals, some protein, no fat, and some milk sugar (lactose- very low on the glycemic scale). I use it in pancakes, muffins, bread, etc. If your whey has vinegar in it (most of the cheeses use this), you can add 1 tsp. baking soda for every 2-3 cups of whey. This will neutralize most of the vinegar. Yes, it will foam up, kinda like those volcanoes you made in 3rd grade…
Go to http://everydayfoodstorage.net/training-cooking/powdered-milk for recipes for evaporated milk, Magic Mix, and Condensed Soups using Magic Mix. And she has a great little chart you can print out and tape to the inside of your cupboard so you know how much milk powder to use when you're baking with it:
http://www.everydayfoodstorage.net/handouts/milk-conversion-charts.pdf
The Wooden Spoon class handout has a TON of info on powdered milk. It is from some classes that the LDS Church's Welfare Square was teaching for a little while. The collection is not copyrighted; the two ladies who compiled it just wanted to spread the information.
When I get a bunch of new recipes, usually most of them get ignored unless I'm already familiar with them. So let me familiarize you with all these possibilities....
The first couple pages include:
what the difference is between regular and instant dry milk
storage times- which are completely off! Ignore what it says; a BYU study shows that canned dry milk has been found to last 20+ years when kept at room temperature and below.
Mixing and drinking it- how to make it taste the best
Cooking with powdered milk
How much to store per person
How to determine if milk is past its prime shelf life
What to do with it if it's too old
Reconstituting chart
Now the recipes-
'whole milk' (powdered milk is powdered SKIM milk)
Buttermilk substitute
Evaporated milk- everydayfoodstorage link above gives quantities for a 12-oz can. This costs $ .25.
Sweetened Condensed Milk – for the closest version to a 14-oz can, use
1/2 c. (non-instant) powdered milk
1/2 c. water
1 c. sugar
0-2 Tbsp. butter
If you like to be precise, use 1 1/2 Tbsp. less than 1/2 c. water (this also gives a slightly thicker result, like the can), but the first way is very close (yields 14 3/4 oz) Other recipes use more -or less- of any of those ingredients. Really, they all work. That said, the 'closest' version costs $ .39 if you use no butter, and $ .53 if you use 2 Tbsp. What a deal! One important thing to know- these recipes call for hot or boiling water so the sugar gets completely dissolved. Otherwise you get grainy condensed milk. I usually put my sugar with the water, then microwave and stir until the sugar dissolves. Then blend with the milk powder and butter.
Hot Cinnamon Milk Mix- from an old 'Friend' magazine
Hot Caramel Milk Mix- like hot chocolate, only not!
Hot Chocolate Mix- one of many options out there, this one you just add water to.
Strawberry Shake- with a touch of orange to pep it up. yummy.
Creamsicle Drink Mix- uses 3 Cannery products. And it is really good.
Orange Julius- uses the church cannery orange drink powder. You could use Tang if that's all you have.
Presoaked Wheat Blender Pancakes or Crepes- blender pancakes that are a little easier on your blender. You just have to plan ahead with these.
Whole Wheat Pancake Mix
Fruit Syrup- no powdered milk here- just a really handy way to make a fruity topping for your pancakes. The handwritten note says "Can use peaches canned in syrup and you just add cornstarch and cook" Use 1-2 tsp. cornstarch per cup of syrup/juice.
Basic White Sauce
Cheese Sauce Mix- uses powdered cheese, pdr. milk and pdr. butter. And onion powder. (Remember my method of making onion powder?)
Low-Fat Cream Soup Mix -replaces 9 cans of condensed creamed soup, at $ .30 per can!
Potato Soup Mix- very very easy. (Well, they all are..)
Broccoli Soup- using all fresh ingredients except for the milk
Biscuit Mix- "Bisquick" where you add only water. Use for any Bisquick recipes. This makes as much as 2 40-oz boxes, at about $2.75/box
Honey Dinner Rolls
Whole Wheat Muffins
Weiner Schnitzel- not what you think, it's the old German dish. Uses noodles, cheese, hotdogs.
Macaroni and Cheese- using the little 5-oz jar of cheese sauce. This is a 'bag' recipe; everything can be put in a bag ahead of time and kept on a shelf (or given to a friend)
Microwave Caramels- mmmm
Whipped Topping- A little explanation here... Evaporated milk will whip like cream if it is ICY-cold when you whip it. This is glorified whipped evaporated milk, starting with the powder. They add a few things for flavor, some oil for richness, and gelatin to keep it from going flat. I think the gelatin gives it a strange consistency. Next time I'll use a couple teaspoons of Instant Clear Jel. Or cook some cornstarch with the water. Or forget stabilizing it, and just eat it fast- maybe just whip evaporated milk and add sugar and vanilla to taste.
Fudgsicles- don't these sound good?
Dry Milk Ice Cream- Bad name, but it uses sweetened condensed milk, which makes it really good. The recipe claims to make a gallon, but it's really more like 2 quarts.
Peanut Butter Chews- similar to Bit-O'Honey if you use the honey instead of corn syrup.
Vanilla Pudding Mix- fat free, and has variations for chocolate and caramel pudding. When you make it, you add a tiny bit of butter and an egg, so it’s still lowfat, just not fat free. If you cannot have wheat, substitute half as much cornstarch as the flour called for.
Plain Yogurt- really, this IS easy. The recipe says it makes 2 quarts, but part of the water got left off the ingredients list. Use 7 cups instead. If you use your hottest tap water, this will be about right to start incubating. You need the yogurt to start out between 105 and 120 degrees. The lower end gives sweeter yogurt, the higher end makes it more tart. Wrapping the jars in a towel help keep it warm. Some warm areas to incubate it are- on top of a heating pad (cover with a towel), an insulated cooler (I put in a jar of almost-boiling water to warm it up in there), a water-filled crockpot, a warm oven (an oven thermometer is helpful! Hotter than 130 degrees will kill those friendly bacteria.). Or get creative. This costs only $ .42 per quart if you are using your own starter.
Vanilla Yogurt- has gelatin in it, like most of the store-bought versions. This keeps it firm, even after stirring. (Yogurt with no gelatin will become drinkable after stirring.) If you want to use sugar instead of honey, use from 1 to 1 ½ cups. And dissolve (boil) it in some of the water first, or it will settle to the bottom. You could use a package of flavored Jello- a 3 oz box is just under ½ c. of sugar, and as much gelatin as one packet of unflavored. Or use juice/syrup from canned fruit as part of your water. Stir in fruit after the yogurt sets up.
Almond Crunch Granola- also no powdered milk, unless you count what you pour on top when eating this!
Strawberry Banana Smoothie- uses the yogurt you just made…
Yogurt-Fruit Smoothie- Banana-orange; uses yogurt as well as powdered milk
Yogurt Breakfast Waffles- yogurt makes them extra moist. They also have a hint of orange and cinnamon in them. I love these using the lemon yogurt.
Yogurt Dill-Veggie Dip- close to Ranch Dip
Yogurt, Berries, and Pecans on Crispbread- self-explanatory
Ranch Salad Dressing- do you have any idea how much better fresh made is?
Fruit Yogurt Salad- uses vanilla yogurt and whatever fruit you have
Yogurt Parmesan Chicken- uses yogurt instead of mayonnaise or eggs to get the coating to stick. Very good.
Granola, Yogurt, Berry Parfait- kinda like those little ones at McDonald’s, only you sweeten plain yogurt with honey. You taste the fruit better this way.
Mock Mozzarella Cheese- about $1.50 per pound. It only takes 10 minutes to make! And it melts wonderfully. Do use a blender to mix everything, otherwise the oil won’t mix in with the cheese curds and you’ll end up with a layer of oil on top of the whey. (Make bread!) NOTE- the recipe doesn’t tell you about salt. Unsalted cheese is not very tasty. I use 1 tsp. salt for this; I mix it in after rinsing the curds. Even wrapping in cheesecloth, and pressing (under whatever heavy thing I can find) overnight, this hasn’t ever been cohesive enough for me to grate. It crumbles, though. When I aged this for a couple months, it became very creamy and softer. If you don’t have cheesecloth, you can use a piece of cotton fabric- something that will let the liquid drip out. Cheesecloth can be found in some grocery stores in the kitchen tools section, or in fabric stores and Walmart over with the notions.
Parmesan Cheese- this is in already-crumbled form. Best flavor after aging in fridge for 3 months, but still good used right away.
Yogurt Cream Cheese, Yogurt Sour Cream- which one you make only depends on how long you let the yogurt drain. 16 ounces of yogurt will make just over 8 oz. of cream cheese, so it costs about $ .21 per 8 oz block.
Easy Homemade Cheese Ball- a cream cheese based cheese ball. Use your yogurt cream cheese.
Mock Ricotta Cheese- about $ .84 for the batch, using your homemade yogurt. ‘Real’ ricotta uses whey instead of milk, but normally you don’t have easy access to whey. If you do (from making mozzarella?), use ¼ c. vinegar in 2 quarts whey, heat to simmering, then let sit for several hours for the curds to form. Then strain through cheesecloth, salt, and press.
Jalapeno Cheese- variation on the ricotta.
Queso Blanco- this one does not melt; it holds its shape through cooking.
Homemade Cottage Cheese- this makes the curds. To make the creamy liquid the curds sit in, use a little yogurt, sour cream, or evaporated milk to the curds. I like it with ¼ tsp. salt. Add more if you like. The recipe makes about 8 oz. of curds and costs $ .36
Cottage Cheese Scramble- a form of scrambled eggs, only mostly cottage cheese, with chives.
Cheese-Stuffed Jumbo Shells- like Manicotti. For those of you unfamiliar with it, this is similar in flavor to lasagna, only you use shaped pasta and stuff them, instead of doing layers. The recipe calls for ricotta, cottage cheese, mozzarella, and Parmesan cheeses… but use what you have. When I made it for the class, I used only cottage cheese, with mozzarella just on the top. And only about a cup of spaghetti sauce.
Happy cooking!
-Rhonda
RSS Feed