An idiots guide to yoghurt making

I did it - I made yoghurt! And it was pretty good too. It was so cheap and easy, I don't know why we don't all do it. Perhaps because we've forgotten how. So, I'm going to teach you all. I'm not going to give you a recipe. Instead, I'm going to teach you the science so you can play around and work out your own method that suits you.

First, you need milk. The milk needs to be free of any bad bacteria that could interfere with the reaction. To achieve this you have two options:

1. Take a litre of milk from the fridge and heat it to almost boiling point (just as it starts to bubble), then let it cool to below 46C (any hotter and your yoghurt culture will die when mixed in.)
2. Cheat and use a carton of UHT milk (you'll probably need to mix in half a cup of milk powder as a thickener.)

Next, you'll need 2-3 tablespoons of live bio yoghurt. To begin with, you'll need to buy a pot, but once you've started making your own, just save a couple of spoonfuls from your most recent batch.

Mix the yoghurt with a litre of milk and then it's time for the magic. To make the magic happen your mixture needs to be kept at a constant temperature of 43-46C (110-115F) for around 8-10 hours. There are many ways to do this - in your oven, a slow cooker, using heat mats. I use an easiyo yoghurt maker for mine which is basically a glorified thermos flask. The longer you leave your mixture at this temperature, the thicker and tangier it will be.

Once your yoghurt has thickened, take it out of the heat and cool in the fridge for at least 3 hours before eating. To make it thicker you can either add milk powder to the mixture or drain it through a muslin or cheesecloth at the end. If you put yoghurt in a cheesecloth and let it hang to drain for a whole day, you'll end up with cream cheese! And it's worth catching the liquid that drains out of it (whey) as it can be saved and used for other recipes such as probiotic lemonade.

So, there it is - a magical method for making a never ending supply of yoghurt. Enjoy!

The unlikely art of hospitality

A while ago my husband and I were discussing what gifts we would like God to help us grow in and we both said hospitality. Back then I think I imagined this would look something like me learning to cook like Mary Berry and host elegant dinner parties with wine and beautiful homemade desserts in my spotless home. Oh, how wrong I was!! So, from what I've learned so far, what does good hospitality look like?

- it's being willing to be vulnerable and invite people round even though my house isn't perfect/I haven't cooked from scratch/I don't know them that well.

- it's deliberately not cleaning my house before my friends with kids come round cos I don't want them to feel like they're the only mama who can't keep their house spotless while looking after kids.

- it's having friends round to drink wine out of disposable cups in our pajamas cos I'm too tired to do much (even wash wine glasses) but don't want to miss the opportunity to connect with friends.

- it's not letting the fact we don't have enough chairs or cutlery or space prevent me from inviting friends to come for a very loud, very simple meal with kids all over the place.

- it's inviting the people that need it most instead of the people I like most or get along with easiest or are most like me.

Ultimately, good hospitality is about being willing to share our homes and lives with people and to be vulnerable enough to show them the real me, not a persona I put on especially for guests.

God has also shown me the power of receiving hospitality but I'll save that story for another day!

Everybody was stomach flu fighting....

So far 2017 in our household has mostly consisted of at least one person under quarantine due to norovirus! We're over it now but still feeling a bit fragile - my eldest has even developed secondary lactose intolerance while he recovers.

So, this mama bear has been hunting down ways to get her bear cubs back to full health and I've found some real gems that I want to share. In fact, what I've discovered is likely to transform how our family eats. (Don't you just love how God brings good things out of bad?!). I've discovered all kinds of more traditional ways to cook that are so much healthier than the processed stuff we buy (and cheaper too!). It makes me wish I'd known my grandmothers and learned to cook from them. And it makes me wonder if our more "developed" western culture has actually taken massive steps backwards in how we approach food and food preparation.

What did I find?

BONE BROTH - ever wonder why people talk about giving chicken soup to someone who is sick? This is why. It's really simple to make and has loads of health benefits, including healing your gut after a sickness bug. I've been to the butcher to get some bones and they're currently simmering in my slow cooker with some onions and a carrot. Maybe in a future post I'll share my results and any tips.

LACTO-FERMENTATION - lacto what?! Sounds like a science experiment I know. Basically, it's the process used to make yoghurt but can also be used to make all kinds of other probiotic foods too (like probiotic lemonade, saukraut, mayonnaise, chutneys, ketchup - yes, healthy ketchup!)

So now I'm all excited to try these new recipes. I'm excited by how simple they are, excited to see the health benefits and excited how much money we will save by making things at home. This week I'm going to be making yoghurt, cream cheese and lemonade. I'll let you know how it goes and plan on posting my idiots guide to yoghurt making in the near future. Watch this space!