Combine starter, milk, egg, oil and blend thoroughly. Combine salt, sugar, soda, baking powder, and flour. Blend so no lump os soda or baking powder remain. Sprinkle over batter. Mix just barely until blended. (About 10 strokes) Stirring too much will make your pancake tough.
Ingredients: Milk Container of good quality PLAIN yogurt as a starter.
Heat milk on the stove. Heat to near boiling temperatures for standard yogurt. If you want a thicker yogurt, start a boil. Boiling evaporates some of the water, so it becomes thicker. Boiling probably also starts to caramelize the sugars for a richer taste. My recent batch I boiled and it was yummy.
Allow milk to cool to about 105 degrees. I suggest covering the pot and placing it in front of a fan to speed things up.
Stir in plain yogurt to start the culture. You could also buy starter cultures online, but store yogurt is easy.
Insulate the yogurt so it stays warm and let it sit over night (8-12 hrs). Here are some options: Oven method A (my method). Turn on the oven for 5 minutes to let it warm up a bit, then turn it off. Most ovens won't hold a temp below 200F, and anything over 110F will kill your culture. You can load up the oven with your stoneware and cast iron to help it hold onto the heat. Oven method B (my friend Brandon likes this one). Put your heating pad in the oven and turn it on. Cooler method. Put the yogurt in a cooler and add a hot water bottle as a heat source. You can wrap your pot in towels with any of these methods to add insulation. If its summer, leave the yogurt outside (in the shade).
Ta-da. You now have yogurt. Pour it into appropriately sized containers and chill. Feel free to add fruit, honey, or whatever floats your boat.
Or make GREEK YOGURT. Line a colander with cheesecloth. Leave enough excess to fold over the top. Put the colander in a bowl to catch the whey. Leave it in the fridge for 8-24 hours to drain. Once its done, put it into sealed containers. I am on a Greek Yogurt kick. I like to put some granola in a bowl, layer with Greek Yogurt, then top with berries. If you drain for a long time, it will be very firm and some would call it "yogurt cheese". I haven't tried this.
What do you do with the whey? Well, I haven't started the test kitchen on this yet. I searched online and found suggestions to use it to cook grains and pasta, make bread, and mix back into the yogurt for extra protein (What's the point of that!?). I saved the whey, and maybe I'll toss it into the bread machine instead of water. I'm guessing it will make something that resembles sourdough.
Some matters of food safety. Use a new unopened container of yogurt as your starter. There is a small risk of contamination with nasties such as listeria if you don't. The experts recommend always starting with a fresh store bought container of yogurt (not from some leftover from your last batch). If you do use your own as a starter, store it in a separate container that remains unopened until you're ready to start a new batch and do not do this very long. Start with a fresh batch after a couple of tries. It's not worth the risk.
If you are wondering if its economical to make your own, here's what I noticed on my last batch. Expenses: 1/2 gallon milk. I used the local organic stuff, it was $2.50. 1 carton yogurt. I used high quality greek yogurt at $1.19 a carton. Cheese cloth. I had this sitting in the pantry for 5 years, so I can't quote a cost. This made 1/2 gallon of standard plain yogurt. I strained it for Greek yogurt and ended up with 1 quart of yogurt and 1 quart of whey. Comes out to $3.69 for 32 ounces plus an equal amount of whey. Store yogurt is $4.99 for 16 ounces. So I came out ahead on dollars. Of course there was some effort involved, let's call it 20 minutes working time, but it is tastier than the store bought stuff and its real food, no preservatives, stabilizers, or fillers.
1 1/2 cups whole milk 1 cup instant oats 3/4 cup sifted all-purpose flour 1/4 cup oat flour or oat bran 1 T baking powder 1 t. salt 2 T honey 2 eggs, beaten 3/4 cup blueberries 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
Pour milk over oats and sift together flours, baking powder, and salt. Lightly stir eggs into oats mixture. Add dry ingredients and honey, stirring until combined. When batter is thoroughly mixed, stir in the blueberries and walnuts. Ladle batches of the batter ont a preheated greased or nonsitck griddle or frying pan and cook until tops are bubbly and edges look cooked. Turn over and finish cooking the other side. Makes about 10 pancakes. Serves 4. Calories:400 Fat:16g Carbs:52g Protein:15g (fromRunners World)
I made mine with 1% milk, whole wheat(white winter) instead of the mix of all-purpose and oat bran, and sliced almonds instead of walnuts. This gave me great energy for my long run,
16 slices firm white bread (I used a whole loaf of french bread, sliced.) 1 (8 oz.) pkg cream cheese, softened 1 pt blueberries, divided (works with frozen blueberries, too) 3 c. milk 3 eggs 1/3 c. maple syrup 1 t. vanilla extract 1 1/2 c. sugar, divided 1/4 t. ground nutmeg 1/4 t. ground cinnamon 2 T cornstarch 1 c. water 1 T butter
1) Butter a 3-qt baking dish. Cut 10 slices of bread into 3/4 inch cubes. Spread cream cheese over 1 side of each remaining slice of bread and arrange cheese-side up in baking dish. Sprinkle with 1 cup blueberries. Top with bread cubes. Combine milk, eggs, maple syrup, and vanilla, with 1/4 c. sugar. Pour over bread mixture; cover and refrigerate overnight. 2) Preheat oven to 350. Mix nutmeg, cinnamon, and 1/4 c. sugar. Sprinkle over bread mixture; cover with foil and bake 30 minutes. Remove foil, bake another 20-30 minutes or until top is golden and inserted knife comes out clean. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. 3) Meanwhile, in a small pot mix cornstarch, 1 c. water, and remaining sugar (1 cup) over medium heat. Bring to a simmer; cook until thickened, about 3 minutes. Add remaining blueberries and stir in butter. Allow to simmer until blue color is obtained from blueberries. Serve with the french toast.
(Your time in the kitchen is about 30 minutes. Ready to serve in 1 hour and 30 minutes, plus overnight time.) This recipe is from my aunt Lori and it is soooo yummy! We made it for Abric's blessing brunch in Sept and it was gobbled up before I could even get a photo.
2 c. flour 3 T. sugar 2 tsp. bkg. Powder 1 tsp. cinnamon ¼ tsp. nutmeg ½ tsp. bkg. Soda ½ tsp. salt ¼ c. butter, chilledand cut in small pieces ¾ c. fat-free buttermilk ½ c. pumpkin
Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups, and level with a knife. Combine flour and next 6 ingredients (through nutmeg); cut in chilled butter with pastry blender until mixture is a coarse meal. Combine buttermilk and pumpkin; add to flour mix, stirring until just moist. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface; knead lightly 5 times. Roll to ½ inch thickness. Cut into 12 biscuits with 2 ½ inch cutter.
Place close together on sheet coated with cooking spray. Bake at 450 degrees for 11 minutes or until golden. Serve with Orange-Honey butter.
Orange-Honey Butter ½ c. butter, softened ½ c. honey ½ tsp. grated orange rind
Combine in bowl and beat with mixer at medium speed until well blended.
I got this recipe online. It is copyrighted, so here is the link to her recipe website: SueGregg Cookbook. I make these waffles all the time. The kids love them. Although the directions are long and wordy, these waffles whip up really fast. I usually double the recipe and I make it with whole oats and white winter wheat kernels.
AMOUNT: 3 - 4 Servings ( 8--6" pancakes or 3 to 4--7" waffles )
1. Place in blender; blend at highest speed 3 minutes (less in a Vita-Mix or Bosch), while adding enough liquid to maintain a vortex:
1 cup buttermilk or yogurt thinned with water to same consistency or 1 1/4+ cups for waffles--a thinner batter is best (Non-dairy allergy alternatives: rice, coconut, almond milk, apple juice or apple sauce + 1 Tbsp. vinegar) 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional for flavor, omit with buckwheat) 1/2 cup uncooked rolled oats or whole oats or other grain 1/2 cup buckwheat, brown rice, corn, millet, or other grain These are raw whole uncooked grains, not flour! We urge you to experiment with millet, barley, spelt, and Kamut® grain for varied tastes and textures. Avoid bothersome allergies. For those who are gluten intolerant try the gluten free grains: brown rice, corn, and millet.
2. Cover blender and let stand at room temperature several hours or overnight for improved nutrition. Optional but recommended. (I have never done this and they are fine.)
3. Preheat griddle on medium-high (until water drops sizzle on surface), or waffle iron at highest temperature.
4. Just before baking, add and reblend for 1 to 3 or more minutes until smooth: 1 egg (or alternative) 1 tablespoon flax seed (Optional for added nutritional value) additional liquid (as needed to keep batter churning)
5. Blend in thoroughly, but briefly, "sifting" these through a small strainer (assist with rubber spatula, if needed):
1/4 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt, to taste (Believe it or not, a little salt enhances a sense of sweetness in whole grain baking It overcomes the "flat" taste feeling.) 1 teaspoon baking powder
Technique tip: If you can successfully drop the soda & salt into the spinning blades at the bottom of the vortex, you can omit sifting.
6. Bake on hot griddle or in waffle iron (3 to 5 minutes until crisp), lightly sprayed with non-stick olive oil spray as needed.
This is a fast and easy smoothie for a great breakfast! I got the recipe from a girl in my ward at church. Even my kids will drink it, and I don't even hide the spinach :-) I love it!
Ingredients: Washed spinach- fill the blender more than 1/2 full without packing it down 1-2 bananas 1- 1 1/2 cups frozen berries (I use the triple berry mix from Costco) 100% juice, to desired thickness (I use about 1 cup, usually apple juice) Ice- about 7-8 pieces
Put ingredients in blender. I start with the juice and spinach, blending it up well. Then I add the berries and mix a little bit, slowly adding bananas and ice. Just FYI, I have tried it without the banana and the spinach was pretty strong. I have done it once with only 1/2 a banana and it was ok, but just not as good.
1 1/2 cups peeled and cubed sweet potatoes (I used canned pumpkin) 2 cups all purpose flour 1 tablespoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 6 egg whites, at room temperature 1 cup milk 1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar 1/4 cup butter, melted 1 tablespoon grated orange rind Vegetable spray, for waffle iron
Special equipment: steamer basket and waffle iron
Put cubed sweet potatoes in a steamer basket. Place the basket in a large pot of simmering water that is no closer than 2 inches from the bottom of steamer. Allow potatoes to steam for 20 minutes of until fork tender. Mash cooked potatoes and set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt and set aside. In another bowl combine the sweet potatoes, milk, brown sugar, butter, and grated orange rind. Stir the sweet potato mixture into the flour mixture and thoroughly combine. Beat egg whites until stiff peaks form. Gradually fold egg whites into batter 1/3 at a time. The batter will be thick. Using a No. 20 disher (scoop), place 2 scoops of batter onto a preheated, oiled waffle iron, and cook until lightly browned, about 5 to 6 minutes.
*My friend Spring gave me this recipe. It is from Alton Brown. I used canned pumpkin and they were oh so yummy! Here is a recipe for Lemon Pie to use up the egg yolks.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine first 3 ingredients in small saucepan. Bring to a slow boil, then turn heat down to simmer. Meanwhile, mix dry ingredients then pour the wet mix over the top and stir until coated evenly. Spray 2 jelly roll pans with non-stick spray and pour 1/2 of mixture on each pan. Break into pieces until spread over pans in even layer. Bake 8 minutes ONLY. Mixture will appear sticky. Turn mixture with metal spatula. Bake another 8 minutes. Remove from oven immediately b/c mixture will dry quickly as it cools. Set pans on cooling racks until mixture is at room temperature. Break apart and store in air tight container.
This is a great cereal with milk on top. It also makes a great snack- we take it to the movies as a replacement for popcorn. Be careful- you'll get addicted!
1 c. brown sugar 1/2 c. butter 2 T. honey 1/2 c. peanut butter 1/2 t. vanilla 1 egg 1 1/3 c. fresh ground wheat flour 1 t. cinnamon 1/2 t. bkg soda 1 t salt 1 1/2 c. rice crispies 1 1/2 c. rolled oats 1/4 c. sunflower seeds 1/4 c. pumpkin seeds 1 c. chocolate chips 1 c. coconut 1 c. frozen berries, craisins, or raisins
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease 11 X 15 pan. In mixer, cream sugar and butter. Add honey, peanut butter, vanilla, and egg. Blend together. In another bowl, mix flour, cinnamon, soda, salt, rolled oats, rice crispies, sunflower seeds, and pumpkin seeds. Add to creamed ingredients. Remove bowl from mixer (unless you have a dough hook) and add the following by hand: chocolate chips, coconut, and berries/raisins. You don't want to overmix or it will be dry. Turn into pan and press flat. Bake 22 minutes.
This recipe is a great thing to have on hand. Cut into individual bars/servings and wrap in saran wrap or sandwich baggies. Add to kids' lunches, take in your purse for a mid-morning snack, or send to the office with your husband for his lunch or afternoon snack. You can add or remove whatever ingredients you like or don't like- nuts and dried dates would also be good in this. If you are a runner, this is a good post-run snack to replace all those carbs and give you protein you need.
This is for a dry pancake mix that makes the BEST pancakes!
Sift together and can store for up to 3 months: 6 c All-Purpose flour 1 1/2 t. baking soda 1 T baking powder 1 T salt 2 T sugar
Recipe for 2 cups dry mix 2 cups dry mix (shake the container before you measure out mix) 4 T melted butter 2 eggs, separated 2 cups buttermilk
Turn griddle on, so it will be warm when batter is ready.
mix egg whites with buttermilk mix egg yolks with melted butter. mix both wet mixtures together. Make a well in the center of the dry mix and add wet mixture. Only stir for 10 seconds, or you will have tough, rubbery pancakes.
Each 2 cup mixture makes about 10 4-inch pancakes. Well worth the extra effort!
Hot from-the-oven, these streusel-topped pumpkin muffins are scrumptious. Estimated Times: Preparation - 25 min Cooking - 16 min Yields - 24 muffins (2 dozen) Ingredients: 4 cups all-purpose baking mix (Bisquick)
1 cup raisins or chocolate chips, (optional )
2/3 cup quick or old-fashioned oats
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 can (30 oz.) pumpkin pie mix
2 large eggs (or 3 medium eggs)
Streusel topping: COMBINE 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour, 3 tablespoons granulated sugar and 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon in small bowl. Cut in 2 tablespoons butter with pastry blender or two knives until mixture is crumbly.Directions:
PREHEAT oven to 400° F. Paper-line or grease 24 muffin cups. COMBINE baking mix, raisins, oats, sugar and cinnamon in large bowl. Combine pumpkin pie mix and eggs in medium bowl; mix well. Stir into oat mixture just until moistened. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, filling 3/4 full. Sprinkle with Streusel Topping. BAKE for 14 to 16 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove from pans to wire rack; cool slightly. Serve warm.
(Chrsitine made these for book club and they were SCRUMPTIOUS!!)
1. In a bowl combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Make a well in center of flour mixture; set aside.
2. In another bowl stir together the egg, buttermilk, and oil. Add egg mixture all at once to flour mixture. Stir just until moistened (batter should be lumpy). Gently fold in blueberries.
3. For each pancake, pour or spread about 1/4 cup of the batter into a 4-inch circle onto a hot, lightly greased griddle or heavy skillet. Cook over med heat about 2 minutes on each side or until pancakes are golden brown, turning to second sides when pancakes have bubbly surfaces and edges are slightly dry. Serve warm. If desired, top with syrup.
