Homemade Yogurt and Granola

I have made several attempts at homemade yogurt. This was the easiest and most successful try. The secret? Crockpot! Yes, a few years ago I wasn't even aware that you could make your own yogurt at home. Once I found out, I thought it was so neat I would give it a try. My first few attempts came out runny and/or did not work at all. But I think this crockpot method is pretty foolproof. You don't even need a thermometer. All you need is a crockpot, milk, a small amount of yogurt, and time.

Ingredients:
8 Cups of milk (or really any amount, I just used a half gallon)
1 starter yogurt (any plain store bought yogurt cup as long as it has "live and active cultures". I used brown cow this time and it turned out great)
2 Tbs sugar
1 Tbs vanilla - optional

Directions:
Pour the milk into your crockpot. Turn it on low for 2-3 hours depending on how hot your crock pot gets (you want the milk to reach 180 degrees). Then turn your crock pot off for 3 hours to let the milk cool a bit. Next, take a few cups of the milk and mix it with your starter, the vanilla, and sugar. Then pour back into the crock pot and stir. Put on the lid, cover with a towel to insulate. Let sit for 8-12 hours.

That is it, just leave it alone and the live and active cultures will do their work. The longer you wait, the thicker your yogurt will be. I accidentally let mine sit for 14 hours. It was almost a bit too thick for me - turning into more of a cottage cheese. I think 12 hours might suit me best.

Then here is another secret I learned this time. If your yogurt is still too runny for your liking, line a strainer with paper towels and set over a bowl. Pour your yogurt in and let it drain (in the fridge) for a few hours. Hey Presto! Now you have thicker yogurt and whey. You can save the whey to use as a substitute for water when baking. Apparently really healthy. I am going to try mine out today.

Additional options:

• You can leave out the vanilla and sugar until you have finished. That way you can set aside some unflavored yogurt to use as a sour cream substitute.
• You can add any sort of flavoring you want. Jams and jellies. Maple syrup, honey. I blended in some fresh strawberries to make strawberry yogurt.
• You can freeze in an ice tray to use for smoothies
• Whey can also be a substitute for buttermilk
  

Granola Recipe:
Yogurt and Granola! What a delicious breakfast combination. Here is my favorite peanut butter granola recipe:

Ingredients:
3 Tbs butter
1/4 C sugar
1/4 C brown sugar
3 Tbs milk
1/2 tsp vanilla
3 Tbs peanut butter
2-3 C oats

Directions:
On the stove, melt butter. Stir in sugars and milk. Bring to a boil and stir for two more minutes. Remove from heat. Add in peanut butter and vanilla. Then stir in 2-3 cups of oats until well coated. If you want it crunchier, you can spread on a pan and broil in the oven. Eat as a snack or over yogurt.

Blonde Brownies

I have always loved blonde brownies. In my opinion, people do not make them nearly enough. I think I probably enjoy them more that chocolate chip cookies. Let's face it, a blonde brownie is just a really thick, chewy chocolate chip cookie anyway. So if you are ever craving such a thing (and when are you not?), this is the perfect recipe to make. The dough/batter was delicious as well.

Also, a shout out to dehydrated eggs. I used them in this recipe and in every recipe I have tried them with so far, I cannot taste the difference. Makes for guilt free tasting of the dough!

While I am shouting out, I might as well thank real butter too. I bought some genuine butter to make my lemon bars and wow, I think it makes a big difference. Everything I have baked with the leftover butter has turned out so wonderful! Too bad butter is about 4 times more expensive than margarine. Oh well, I guess I have to keep using margarine in some things so I can appreciate the difference when I use butter.

Ingredients:
1 C flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 C butter (melted)
1 C brown sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 Tbs vanilla (yes, I thought it was a lot but it tasted great)
2/3 C chocolate chips

Directions:
Mix flour, baking powder, soda, and salt in a small bowl. Combine brown sugar and melted butter in a separate mixing bowl until smooth. Add in the beaten egg and vanilla. Slowly mix in the dry flour mixture. Add the chocolate chips.

Pour the batter into a greased 9x9 pan. Sprinkle a few chocolate chips on top. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes*.

*Note: I had to bake mine the full 25. Then I turned the oven off and left them in for a few minutes longer to finish cooking the inside without burning the outside.

Crockpot Salsa Chicken

My neighbor made this for us after we brought our baby home. It was delicious. I made it for dinner yesterday. I am turning into a big crockpot fan! So quick and easy but then you actually have a nice home cooked meal at the end of the day.

This is kind of like a Hawaiian haystack with a Mexican twist.

Ingredients:
2-4 Chicken breasts
seasonings for chicken (I used Mrs. Dash but you could use anything, salt pepper, or garlic powder)
1 can black beans (drained)
15 oz salsa
1 can corn (drained)
8 oz cream cheese

Directions:
Put blackbeans and half of salsa in crockpot. Put chicken on top, seasoned as you will. Pour remaining salsa on top. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. Shred chicken with a fork and add corn and cream cheese. Cook on high for 30 minutes. Serve over rice. Leftovers can be eaten in a tortilla with tomatoes and lettuce.

I was going to half this recipe and cook it in a smaller receptacle like the barbecue chicken. But I had two large chicken breasts frozen together and didn't know what to do with half a can of black beans and corn so I just made the whole thing. It looks like it would probably freeze well though so if you don't like to eat leftovers for a week you could try that.