# 51 Sweetened Condensed Milk

I still have a few more beverage recipes to cover but I need to blog a couple ingredients first. Did you know you can make homemade sweetened condensed milk....you can! And it's easy!

Sweetened Condensed Milk

1/4 cup melted butter
2/3 cup sugar
1 cup instant powdered milk
1/2 cup boiling water

Pour everything into a blender and blend together until smooth. Be sure to scrap down the sides and blend some more.

 

I used a scale to weigh it and then labeled the jar with the amount in ounces.

 

I made two small jars because I knew I would need both for a couple beverage recipes that I planned to make. The batches that I made did not turn out too thick, but if that happens to you, just add a little more water. It will thicken as it chills. Store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. It is so yummy and tastes just the same as the store-bought stuff.  No need to buy the canned stuff anymore!

#50 Lemonade

I was waiting for summer to make homemade lemonade. There is nothing that says summer like lemonade! And I have never made it homemade...I know...weird!

Lemonade

1/2 sugar or honey
7 cups water
3/4 cup fresh lemon juice (from 4-5 lemons)

1. Combine the sugar and 1 cup of water in a small saucepan. Heat over medium-low heat until the sugar is dissolved. Then let cool.

 

2. Juice your lemons. Until you have 3/4 cup.

 



 

I had a little more....what the heck, I went with it!

2. Combine the sugar water, lemon juice, and remaining water in a pitcher. And stir.

Chill or serve over ice! Keeps in the fridge for 5 days, but it probably will not last that long! You could freeze it in a freezer-safe container for up to 6 months.

Yummy! The perfect summer beverage....and pretty easy to make homemade. I like the lightly sweet fresh lemon flavor!

#49 Coffee Liqueur

I'm staying with my beverage theme here for the next few posts. I have a few days left in June and I'm pretty sure I'm going to reach my goal of 50 recipes in the first 6 months of this blog...so here we are with coffee liqueur or people might be more familiar with Kahlua...that's what this is, only homemade and a lot cheaper! The recipe comes from The Homemade Pantry.

Coffee Liqueur

4 cups water
2 cups sugar
4 1/2 Tbsp. instant coffee
4 cups cheap vodka
2 vanilla beans

I only did half of this recipe because of the size of my bottle.


1. Combine the water and sugar and instant coffee in a large saucepan and bring to a high simmer, but not a boil. Cover and cook for 1 hour, taking care that it continues to simmer without coming to a boil.

 

2. Let mixture cool and add the vodka, stirring to combine. Transfer to a bottle or jar, add vanilla beans, screw on the lid, and keep in a cool, dark place for at least two weeks. Although it will taste even better as time passes.

I waited for at least three weeks. The other night my hubby and I gave it a try with some half and half added, making it a White Russian......oooooo so yummy!

Oh....in case you are wondering, I got my bottle at Pier One Imports.....and I have since got a few more bottles for making homemade liqueurs from Ikea.

#48 Water Kefir

You may have heard of kefir, since you can find it at most grocery stores now in the dairy section. It's kind of like a liquid yogurt drink. Like yogurt, it contains lots of live active cultures benefitting your digestive system with all those wonderful probiotics. Water Kefir has the same wonderful probiotics, but is dairy-free. Here is some info from the Cultures For Health website.

 Originating in Mexico, water kefir grains (also known as Sugar Kefir Grains) allow for the fermentation of sugar water or juice to create a carbonated lacto-fermented beverage. Incredibly easy to brew, the starter culture can create a new batch of kefir every 24-48 hours. This makes a fantastic non-dairy alternative to milk kefir and can be flavored after brewing to make a variety of delicious sodas. If you are looking to replace soda pop, your family will love it!

I decided to give it a try when it was said that it was the most kid-friendly cultured product. My kids already love all the yummy homemade yogurt I make, but I was all for homemade "good-for-you" soda pop. Perfect for the summer!

 

Water Kefir

You will need:

One glass jar- quart or half-gallon
One plastic or wood stirring utensil (it is recommended not to use metal)
Plastic Strainer
One towel or coffee filter
Water kefir grains
1/4 cup organic sugar per quart of water

            ~Evaporated cane crystals or unprocessed sugars like Rapadura or Sucanat are best.

            ~Honey is not recommended because it has antibacterial properties

Water (non-chlorinated)

            ~Well water or spring water is best due to higher mineral content.

            ~It is not recommended to use filtered water via carbon activated filter or reverse osmosis due to depleted mineral content.

~ If using tap water, remover chlorine prior to making water kefir be boiling the water and allowing to cool.

 

 

I got my grains at http://www.culturesforhealth.com/ the same place I got my yogurt culture. If you decide to really get into this, it might be helpful to also purchase a starter kit that includes everything you need. That is HERE. If you want to be able to make soda a couple Grolsch-style flip cap bottles might be good too. They are HERE.

After getting your grains in the mail, the first thing you will need to do it rehydrate the grains. There are instructions in the package, so follow those.

Making water kefir is very simple. All you need to do it dissolve 1/4 cup of organic sugar in a cup of hot water in a quart mason jar. Add cool water leaving 1-2 inches of headspace in your jar. Cap it and let it come to room temperature.

 

Strain your grains from the water they were rehydrating in or from the previous batch.

 



I'm using a metal strainer that I already had. I have since learned that if you must use metal it can be stainless steel only. Since I'm not sure what type of metal my strainer is, I will be purchasing a plastic/nylon strainer from the website.

 

Add your grains to the newly prepared sugar water. Cover with a towel and rubber band.

Allow to culture for 24-48 hours at a temp between 70 and 78 degrees.

 

24 hours results in a more sweet beverage and 48 hours less sweet. If you are sensitive to sugar let it culture 48 hours, but do not let them culture for longer than 72 hours. Strain your water kefir into a jar or bottle and start over again by adding your grains to a new batch of sugar water.

Since I started making water kefir I have only made lemonade. So to make it all you need to do is add 1/4 cup pure lemon juice to your strained batch of water kefir. It is so good. And so good for you!

 

The kids LOVE it! It's hard to believe it is full of probiotics because it really just tastes like lemonade. I also plan to try to make a fruit soda pop of some kind too. I just need to get to the store and find a good organic fruit juice. Like blueberry or raspberry soda pop! Yum! I will update this post when I get a chance to do that.

#47 Car Snack #3- Granola Bar

Here is the last of the granola bar(ish) recipes in The Homemade Pantry.

Car Snack #3

1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup coconut oil- or butter
3/4 cup nut butter- I used peanut butter
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
2 Tbsp. vanilla
1/3 cup honey
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
2 1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1 1/2 cups nuts- I used walnuts and pecans
3/4 cup chocolate chips- I used dark choc.
1/2 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
1/2 cup oat bran
1/2 tsp. cinnamon


1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 9x13 pan with parchment paper, leaving extra paper to pull the finished bars out of the pan.

2. In a medium saucepan, combine the butter, coconut oil, peanut butter, brown sugar, vanilla, honey, salt and 2 Tbsp. water. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until you have a uniform syrup.

 

If you happen to have coconut oil, be sure to use it in this recipe...you will not regret it. So yummy!

 

Remove from heat. In another bowl, stir together, oats, nuts, coconut, chocolate chips, oat bran and cinnamon.

Pour previous made syrup over the dry mixture and stir together until thoroughly coated.

Transfer mixture to the prepared baking pan and press into pan as firmly as you can. Use hands and spatula to flatten the top.

3. Bake until the edges start to darken, 35-40 minutes. The mixture will be soft when you take it out of the oven, but allow to cool completely before taking out of the pan and cutting into bars.

I cut 14 large rectangle bars from my pan and individually wrapped them in Ziploc snack bags.

 

This is a very yummy granola bar. The only problem is that I had to shoo the kids outside to eat them. They were really crumbly. It's not a deal breaker for me though because they were THAT good. Kid and mommy approved!

#46 Chocolate Pudding

I have already made vanilla pudding, so now I wanted to try homemade chocolate. I love warm chocolate pudding so my hopes were high for this recipe.

Chocolate Pudding

4 cups whole milk
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
6 oz. chocolate, roughly chopped, semi-sweet or bittersweet

1. Combine 3 cups of milk with the sugar and salt in a heavy-bottomed medium saucepan and set over medium-low heat. Heat until just steaming, stirring frequently.

2. In a small bowl or measuring cup, combine the cornstarch with the remaining 1 cup of milk. Stir well until mixture is fairly lump free.

3. Raise heat to medium high. Add the cornstarch mixture and cook constantly with a wooden spoon until the mixture starts to bubble. Reduce heat to low and stir continuously until the mixture thickens and coats the back of the wooden spoon. About 5-7 minutes.

4. Add your chopped chocolate and stir until melted. I used semi-sweet chocolate chips.

 

 

5. Pour pudding into dishes to cool. If you do not like pudding skin, press a piece of plastic wrap against the surface of the pudding.

 

 



 

Serve when cooled. I like my pudding warm, so I don't wait too long before eating mine.
So did the pudding meet my high expectations......not exactly. I liked it, but it really is only as good as your chocolate. Don't get me wrong, I love Nestlé's Tollhouse Morsels, but I like them better in cookies. I actually like the cook and serve chocolate box stuff better. My family liked it. Maybe if I had some fine chocolate to use...I would like it better.