Welcome to Day 3 in Michele’s kitchen. Michele cooks in the Nourishing Traditions style and is always experimenting with new recipes. Her kitchen is frugal, healthy, and full of whole foods. We are very excited to see and share a week in her kitchen. We hope you enjoy this week in her kitchen.

Welcome to Day 3 in my kitchen! As I mentioned yesterday, I started making yogurt in the morning. I planned on it being completed late in the evening when I returned from my Book Club.

Here is my yogurt-making process:

1 Quart of Milk (I use raw, whole milk; do not use Ultra-Pasteurized)
1 Tbl. Good, Plain Yogurt with Active Cultures (Nancy’s or Trader Joe’s is good, or save some from a previous batch of yogurt)

Pour milk into a saucepan, and heat to 175 F, while stirring. (I keep a candy thermometer in the pot.) This recipe is easily reduced, if you wish to make a smaller batch of yogurt.

While the milk is heating, prepare jars and a warm place. Keep mason jars warm in some hot water. I use an insulated travel cooler for making yogurt, so I rinse it with hot water (to warm it up), and place a mason jar of hot water inside. I stuff a kitchen towel or two inside as well. Then, I just need to place my jars of milk/yogurt inside when they’re ready.

Once the milk reaches 175 F, immediately remove from heat, and cool to 110 F. Stir in yogurt, and mix well. Pour into a warm mason jar (or two, if needed). Add lids, and snuggle in your jars with the towels and jar of warm water inside the cooler. Let it sit for 12 hours. Do not disturb!

When you remove your jar of fresh yogurt, you may notice that there is a yellowish layer of cream on top, if you have used non-homogenized milk. Cool your yogurt in the refrigerator. The yogurt will likely produce liquidly whey. You can stir this back into the yogurt, or use it in recipes (such as soaking grains).

To serve, you can eat the yogurt plain, or add some raw honey, maple syrup, or fruit. This is delicious on top of granola, on curries, or used in place of sour cream. I learned how to make yogurt from the book “Wild Fermentation“.

I took a large bowl of fresh berries to my Book Club last night, and I had quite a bit left over. For breakfast this morning, we decided to make smoothies with the berries and my homemade yogurt!

We also had bowls of Breakfast Polenta, topped with chopped almonds and dried fruit. We drizzled raw honey on top, and milk was also available. We each had a fried egg on the side.

When I got home from my morning walk and running errands, we made a large batch of butter in the mixer. I divided it into two containers, with one labeled “Gluten-Free.” (This is to avoid cross-contamination from bread crumbs.)

For lunch, we mixed up a Curry Carrot Soup, in the blender. We used the bone broth I made from a chicken earlier this week. Once again, to accommodate lactose/soy sensitivities, we used Hemp Milk in the soup. On this hot summer day, we served the soup cold, but it is also delicious warmed up in the winter.

On the side, we had a selection of Sourdough or Gluten-Free Bread, served with Peanut Butter or Tahini (for those with peanut sensitivities). We also had dairy and soy cheeses available. We each had a few strawberries, too.

For snack in the afternoon, we each munched on leftover salads from the past couple of days (Red Potato Salad or Veggie/Pasta Salad).

We started a pot of Brown Rice soaking last night before we went to bed, and it has been soaking all day. I use this recipe, and it is delicious! An hour before dinner-time, I added butter and salt to the rice, and turned on the stove!

We had one of our favorite Asian-inspired dinners with Asian Turkey Lettuce Wraps, served alongside the Brown Rice. After cooking the ground turkey, I removed some from the pan before adding the peanut sauce. (This was for the peanut-sensitive child.) (Sorry, I don’t have any pictures of the whole dinner!)

We had Bragg’s Liquid Aminos (instead of soy sauce) available to pour on the rice, for anyone that wanted it. Watermelon slices and homemade spiced Sun Tea were served alongside. (I found some really cute little watermelons at the Farmer’s Market on Sunday!) The Coconut Ice Cream we made yesterday made a perfect dessert!

I have nitrate-free Turkey Bacon thawing in the refrigerator for tomorrow’s dinner. We will use leftover rice from tonight for a quick breakfast tomorrow. Tonight, I will be packing an assortment of leftovers in Calvin’s lunch bag for tomorrow, along with a salmon salad, veggies, and sourdough bread.

Thanks for stopping by and sharing my day! See you tomorrow!

Make sure you stop in throughout the rest of the week to see what other adventures Michele is up to in her kitchen. And don’t forget to stop by her personal blog, Frugal Granola.Thank you for your willingness to open your kitchen to us all Michele. It is going to be an inspiring, educational and encouraging week!

If you are interested in participating as a guest blogger for this 3 Moms feature, please leave us a comment or send us an email at 3moms@happytobeathome.net. We are looking for a variety of women willing to open their kitchens for one week to all of our readers. You do not even have to have your own blog in order to participate.

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