Make Your Own Yogurt (in your crock pot!)

Make Your Own Yogurt

(in your crock pot!)

• Turn your crock pot to low and pour in 1/2 gallon of milk. Skim works well, whole is much creamier.

• Heat on low for 2 hours and 30 minutes.

• Turn your crock pot off (make sure it isn’t on “warm” setting). 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 6 ounces of plain yogurt with live active cultures and mix very well. I always save about a cup of my homemade yogurt in a glass container when I’m done so I always have a starter for the next batch – it keeps for at least a few weeks.

• 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.

• Place it in a warm place. I use my oven which is NOT preheated or turned on at all. I always put a sticky note that reminds me that yogurt is in there. Once I started preheating the oven, forgetting it was in there. Luckily I did not burn our house down (obviously, major point) or ruin my yogurt (I still would have been sad).

• 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.  Remember to set aside some to use as a starter for your next batch. 

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

• For Greek yogurt or yogurt cheese (can get to as thick as cream cheese consistency)place colander in a large bowl, line colander with coffee filters, pour in yogurt, and place in the refrigerator. In a few hours much of the whey will be strained off. Leave it for 24 hours and you will have yogurt cheese. You can always mix some of the whey back in if you want it thinner.

• You’ll have a lot of whey that can be used in smoothies, in baking in place of buttermilk or other liquids, or I’ve even used it instead of water when mixing my Emergen-C. Be creative.

Read here about the Benefits of Yogurt Whey.



Leftover Whey

• Mix it with homemade sauces, use in smoothies, or top with granola.  

There are a ton of ways to enjoy your yogurt!

This post has also been linked to:
Mouthwatering Monday at Southern Fairytale
Tempt My Tummy Tuesday at Blessed with Grace
Tuesday at the Table at All the Small Stuff
What's on The Menu Wednesday at Dining With Debbie
Hearth and Soul at A Moderate Life
Recipe Swap at Prairie Story (Thursdays)
Colleen's Fall Recipe Swap at Colleen's Kitchen (Fridays)

FNCCC - Week 32 - Robin Miller

I hadn't heard of Robin Miller before this week but I'm glad I did. I found a keeper in her Minestrone Soup with Pasta, Beans, and Vegetables. It was a snap to put together (int he crock pot!) and had excellent flavor. I was out of Parmesan so topped it with an asiago mozzarella mix. Everything else I did exactly as written. I'm OK that my older girls didn't eat it because I can't wait to eat the leftovers myself. The baby loved the beans, carrots and pasta. It would work well as a veggie soup - just leave out the pasta. This is definitely going into my recipe box.

Minestrone Soup with Pasta, Beans and Vegetables
Recipe courtesy of Robin Miller

Ingredients
3 cups reduced-sodium vegetable or chicken broth
1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 (15-ounce) can white (cannellini or navy) beans, drained
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
1 cup onion, chopped
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried sage
2 bay leaves
Salt and ground black pepper
2 cups cooked ditalini pasta (subbed macaroni)
1 medium zucchini, chopped
2 cups coarsely chopped fresh or frozen spinach, defrosted
4 tablespoons grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
Basil sprigs, garnish, optional
Directions
In a slow cooker, combine broth, tomatoes, beans, carrots, celery, onion, thyme, sage, bay leaves, and 1/2 teaspoon each salt and black pepper. Cover and cook on LOW for 6 to 8 hours or on HIGH for 3 to 4 hours.

Thirty minutes before the soup is done cooking, add ditalini, zucchini and spinach. Cover and cook 30 more minutes. Remove bay leaves and season, to taste, with salt and black pepper. Ladle soup into bowls and sprinkle parmesan cheese over top. Garnish with basil, if desired.

So what did you cook this week? Link your post to MckLinky below. You still have time to enter the giveaway - I'm picking the winner tonight. Enjoy the rest of your week!

Tempt My Tummy - Crock Pot Refried Beans

I have been crazy for homemade for quite some time. This past week, while buying the hundredth can of refried beans this year, it dawned on me that I could be making these myself. Which turned out to be a great idea because they are easy, incredibly tasty AND a fraction of the cost of canned. I bought the 4 pound bag of dried beans and made a bunch - they freeze well.

Crock Pot Refried Beans

1 pound dried pinto beans, soaked overnight in cold water, rinsed, and drained.

1 medium onion (minced, if you want to keep them in there, or cut into big enough chunks to take them out after cooking. I left them in and you couldn't tell they were there)

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tsp cumin

1 tsp coriander

1 TBS kosher salt (I would use a little less regular grain salt)

Combine all in the crock pot, add enough water to cover the beans and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours or until the beans are tender. Strain (reserve liquid in case you need to thin the beans a little). Mash beans with a potato masher using reserved liquid to get them to the desired consistency. Enjoy!

While checking out recipes for this (the above is a combination of many) I made a list of things that could be added as well. If you are daring, try a variation!

Salsa

chili powder

bay leaves

cilantro

paprika

ham hocks

jalapenos

diced tomatoes

Enjoy! Go find more Tempt My Tummy recipes at Blessed With Grace!

Tempt My Tummy - Crock Pot Turkey Breast and Stock

I made a turkey breast in the crock pot yesterday, which was nice and easy BUT the best part about it for me is the turkey stock I got to make with the carcass.

What I did....

Put a frozen turkey breast (breast down) in the crock pot and add a stick of butter and a packet of onion soup mix. Cook on low for about 10 hours. Could not be simpler. I made gravy with some of the juices but left the rest of the juices in the crock pot for the stock.

Once all the meat was off the bones I threw the bones back in. You can use bones from a rotisserie chicken you picked up from the deli as well. Added some carrots, celery, and a few cups of water. I would have added an onion, but I was out. I have heard that a tablespoon or two of vinegar helps get the nutrients out of the bones but I forgot about this until now. I set it on low again for 10 hours. It isn't pretty but it smells wonderful and gives you the best stock.

At this point you should wait until it cools and pick out the bones. If you want clear stock you can strain out all of the veggies. I use it to make a tortilla soup so I keep the veggies, dump it in the blender, and puree it. It comes out looking creamy and gives a nice base for the soup. I put the leftover turkey meat in a freezer safe container, pour the stock over top and freeze it until I make soup. Delicious. Nutritious. Best of all, Easy!

Visit Blessed with Grace for more Tempt My Tummy recipes!

Come back tomorrow for the first installment of Food Network Chefs Cooking Challenge and see what everyone has been cooking!

Tempt My Tummy Crock Pot Baked Beans

You haven't tried a good baked bean until you have made them from scratch. Canned baked beans have nothing on them. Really. And because they are made in the crock pot they are very easy! AND because it's getting nice out....don't you want to BBQ this weekend?

This is enough food to feed 8-10 as a side dish. I always double the recipe and often freeze a bunch so we have them handy for quick weekday dinners. Feel free to use soaked dried beans.

Crock Pot Baked Beans

3 cans kidney beans, drained and rinsed

2 medium onions, chopped finely

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup molasses

1/3 cup ketchup

1 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp dried mustard

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/2 pound of bacon - I use cheap bacon as most if it gets thrown away.

Drain and rinse your beans, and add them to the crock pot. Add onion and brown sugar. Pour in the molasses and ketchup. Add spices. Stir to combine.Lay slices of uncooked bacon over the top of the beans.Cover and cook on low for 5-7 hours, or high for about 4. I discard the bacon after cooking, but you could salvage the meaty parts and leave them in there.

Visit Blessed with Grace for more Tempt My Tummy recipes!

On Thursday visit Gayle at The Grocery Cart Challenge for her Recipe Swap

Also on Thursday is Slow Cooking Thursday at Diary of a Stay At Home Mom.

On Friday Overwhelmed with Joy and Favorite Ingredients Friday is featuring side dishes.

I'm multi-tasking this week :)

Crock Pot Chicken with black beans

I made this crock pot meal last night and it was a little bland but could easily be spiced up with hotter salsa (we used mild) or some taco seasoning. I served it with cheese quesadillas, white rice, and refried beans. I plan on using the leftovers with rice and beans for burritos. The kids said it looked yucky but they ate it. I loved it. My husband was sick but the little he ate he liked. This is, perhaps, as easy as you can get for meal preparation.

Crock Pot Mexican Chicken

4 or 5 chicken breasts (mine were frozen in a big ball)

1 can corn (drained)

1 can black beans (drained and rinsed)

1 jar 15 or so ounces of salsa

8 ounces cream cheese

Put the chicken in the crock pot and top with corn, beans, and salsa (make sure the stuff completely covers the chicken so it does not dry out). Cook on low for 4 to 5 hours. Check to make sure the chicken is done. It should easily shred with a fork. Turn the crock pot off and put the block of cream cheese on top (not on top of the crock pot but on top of the chicken mixture), cover and let set for 30 minutes. It will then be melty and easy to stir into the chicken.

Serve on rice or in a burrito!

Check out Slow Cooking Thursday over at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom!

Almost Friday :)

Tempt my Tummy Stew

So in honor of my elegant dinner last night (Huckabee and Me) which consisted of a blue cheese topped filet mignon surrounded by fingerling potatoes, baby carrots, and asparagus in a sauce that reminded me of stew (elegant, yet comfort food, who knew?).....here is my crock pot rendition of Crock Pot Turkey Stew.

1 1/2 lbs turkey tenderloin

1 large sweet potato, cut up

1/2 bag baby carrots

4 potatoes, cut up

2 packets of onion soup mix

1 1/2 cups water

Throw it all in, in the order above, and let it cook for 6 to 8 hours.

The sweet potato completely mushes (for the lack of a better term and that I'm only on my first cup of coffee) and makes a wonderfully thick and tasty base. You don't need to cut up the turkey before you add it as it will just fall apart when it is done. Also, if you cannot find turkey tenderloin use a turkey breast and cut the meat off the bone (discard skin as well - yuck!). I just did this this morning and it took about 15 minutes to assemble. Why are raw sweet potatoes so much harder to cut than regular potatoes??

Check out Tempt My Tummy Tuesday for more delish ideas!

***I know it's supposed to be a Christmas Goodies recipe, but I am yet to start my Christmas baking.....and with the list I have I need to start soon! This would be great for those baking days....throw it together, set it aside, bakes lots and lots of cookies, enjoy your stew after the madness.

EASY Crock Pot Chicken-Fried Chops

I have a go-to pork chop recipe which I love. It has a nice gravy and caramelized onions that I adore (and pick out for the kids). Goes great with my "mashed potatoes" (aka cauliflower and very few potatoes). It's making my mouth water right now. The problem was that I wanted to go to spinning class which was at dinner cooking time (so I could eat the gravy without regret) and it took too long to start it after I returned. SO....I went to Taste of Home and took my chances.

I found this Chicken-Fried Chops recipe for the crock pot. I knew the "Chicken-Fried" part would go over well with my husband. Little did I know this will now be my go-to chop dish. It was incredible and the time it took was so much less than the other. I am always a little suspect of dishes with canned cream soup, but the crock pot turns it into something magical. Now that I think about it, the crock pot potato soup recipe that we always battle for the leftovers also has cream of chicken soup. Anyway, you should try it if you are looking for a quick fix. I'm even going to make it next week when my relatives come to town. It was THAT good!

For the faux mashed potatoes, steam cauliflower and boil just a few potatoes. With mine the cauli far outweighs the potatoes. You could do half and half if you are skeptical. I leave some potatoes in because it gives them a better consistency. Mash them all together like you normally would. I add chicken bouillon, butter, and milk. Now you have some sneaky mashed potatoes that have a little better nutritional content. AND you are getting two veggies in one. Nobody noticed when I made the switch. I couldn't help tell my husband that what he was eating had cauli. I don't dare tell the kids....

Enjoy your day.