OLS Week#4: One local breakfast

This was the meal that almost didn’t happen.

Our new EarthFare grocery opened about a week and a half ago, so I excitedly attended the opening day in anticipation of getting a few free gifts. A certain portion of the total sales from the first three days went to benefit the local community farm where I like to volunteer, so I was also interested in doing my part to chip in.

One of the things that is hard for me to find – amazingly – is good bread. I feel like a cheater for buying it and, since that’s what I’ve decided is best for me, I like to at least buy the real thing. I don’t want to see an ingredient list over about 6 items unless its chock full of goodies. There are a couple bakeries around that stock bread in other groceries, and some delis that make fresh breads, but – to put it frankly – I’m a bread snob. If I had it my way, every bread would be made with nothing but whole grain flours. I don’t want fluffy, spongy, country white. I want a heavy, hard as a brick loaf of good German artisan bread. Well, beggars can’t be choosers, so needless to say I was pretty excited to find that our new grocery stocks breads from a local bakery – among them: a sourdough whole wheat and whole wheat oat. Granted they’re not like the rock solid rye breads I was spoiled with in NY, but they’ll do.

Turns out, though, I’m not the only one with a soft spot for heavy bread. Nomad, my cat, apparently has a taste for flour – or maybe anything she can find. So far I’ve purchased three loaves of bread and, no matter where I’ve put them, she has found and stolen away with the bag, munching deep pits into the loaves in the secrecy of the night. On this particular morning, I had newly purchased a loaf of whole wheat and oat bread the afternoon before in anticipation of having French toast for breakfast. When I awoke, however, the scene that lay out before me was one of total bread annihilation: the bag had been dragged into the living room where it was wildly ripped open. A large amount of the bread had been eaten and little telltale crumbs lay scattered around the remainder of the loaf.

Luckily, I’ve learned that it takes me a while to eat a loaf of bread by myself so every new loaf gets cut in two; half stays out to be enjoyed fresh, the other half gets frozen. I pulled the second half of the bread from the freezer and, within a short amount of time, it had thawed enough to slice. I dredged the bread through a milk and egg dip (1 egg, 1/4cup milk for 2 slices of bread) to which I added a tad bit of sugar and cinnamon. I melted some butter in a pan, threw in the toast and voila an authentic French meal, so to speak. Along with the toast, I made a serving of vanilla yogurt (add about 1-2tsp sugar and 1-2tsp vanilla to a serving of your plain yogurt) and prepared some fresh berries. This is a great way to substitute local items for those tasty Vermont syrups.

Now, yogurt is one of my favorite things to make and, by default, one of my favorite things to have for breakfast. I always have a mason jar full in the fridge and can find ways to eat yogurt at pretty much any meal. My standard breakfast during the week is a bowl of fruit with yogurt and maple syrup. On the weekends, I like to be a little bit more lavish and use it to top my French toast or pancakes. For lunches, yogurt is great with hummus and falafel, and at dinner can be wonderful in soups and makes exquisite dips and dressings. Yes, yogurt is a multi-purpose tool around my house.

So, here’s how I make it:

Start with some really good, really fresh whole milk. It’s okay if it’s homogenized. It’s best if it isn’t ultra pasteurized, though (in fact, all milk is better if it isn’t ultra pasteurized. Heck, drink raw milk – it heals!). You’ll also need some good starter yogurt; you’ll want plain whole milk yogurt. I like Brown Cow brand. I buy the little single serving that comes with the cream on top.
Okay, measure your milk out in your quart jar and pour it into a pot. You’ll need a thermometer – I use a meat thermometer. Slowly heat the milk to 180F. This is just before the milk boils; if you whisk it around as the temp gets higher, it won’t form a skin. If it does, just stick a spoon in and pull it out, no big deal.
Transfer your piping hot milk back to your mason jar and cool it in a cold bath until the temp reaches 110-100F. I just fill the sink with water and ice and let the milk sit uncovered until it cools off. Just don’t get the water so cold that it cracks the hot glass (I’ve done this before, not pretty).
Once the milk cools, add in the whole single serving cup of your starter yogurt. Stir it up, cap it, and put it in a warm place to sit for 8-12 hours. I usually wrap the jar up in tea towels, heat the oven up to 100 (I turn it off once it reaches temp), and let the jar sit. It’s great to make it in the evening and let it sit overnight then throw it in the fridge when you get up.

That’s it! It’s not rocket science. Of course, there’s all sorts of fancy yogurt making contraptions that keep the temperature up for X number of hours but, maybe now you’ll se its not really that necessary.

Homemade yogurt is great. It has an entirely different taste and texture, and only one ingredient: milk. Of course, it’s also probiotic, so eat it up, your digestive system will thank you.