Since it's my blog, I get to write what I want, and today I want to tell you about any amazing experience I had yesterday--- and on the way, tell you how to make yogurt, a question I'm often asked.
If you know, you know that other than cooking, my real passion is cycling. I have been enjoying this sport in the past two years, and recently added a member to the family, Oscar:
The day was beautifully sunny and mild, and rode to 125th street. In a short break, I asked a couple sitting next to me to take a picture and we started talking. They recommended a ride on the Jersey side of the George Washington and I mentioned a fear-of-heights re-triggered by the GW ride last year. They so kindly suggested to ride with me over the bridge, to help me overcome my fear, and then to ride the bridge back to make sure was safe (they had parked on the other side, so no reason to come back to NY!). We indeed did that, and the feeling of crossing the bridge without wanting to curl into a ball was amazing! I CROSSED THE GW BRIDGE! but more overwhelming was the feeling of meeting amazingly nice people! NYC makes you forget that every once in a while!
Oli actually gives tours of NY, so seeing how nice he is, I recommend him if you ever have tourist that you want to show NY! olidaytours.com
Yogurt:
Making your own yogurt is really easy, and it's a great way to know what you're eating and save a lot of money. Since I eat a lot of yogurt, and can't live without Labaneh (strained yogurt, our traditional breakfast cheese) I had to learn it, and now I do it all the time!
Ingredients:
1 Gallon milk (organic)
4 table spoons yogurt (I use Fage, but make sure to use nice yogurt, not highly processed stuff, so you'd have live culture!)
Process:
Heat the milk to 37 degrees c (98.6 F).
- You could use a thermometer, but I found my mother's way best: put a (clean) finger in the milk and count to 15, if you can keep it there comfortably, you're there!
If you are using a think yogurt like Fage, stir it in a cup with some milk to make it smooth, and then stir into the milk thoroughly but not too much (you don't want to cool the milk)
Cover the put with its cover and then with some blankets. You should put a towel over the cover to protect the blankets from the splatter that might come from the chemical process. The blankets need to keep the milk at the 37 temperature so the culture can survive and reproduce.
Leave for 10 hours or so (really, it can be less, but my philosophy is why risk it!)
Take blankets off but leave the yogurt to sit over night (don't move immediately). Leaving the yogurt out for longer will get it more sour. Unfortunately, cow milk only gets sour to a limited extent. If you have access to goat milk, that is the way to go!
Now you have a lot of yogurt ! One of the best things to do with it is make Labaneh!
Labaneh
I love how you can find everything on the internet. So here's how Wiki describes this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strained_yogurt#Palestinian_labneh
The idea is simple: the best breakfast food ever! healthy and nutritious.
Ingredients:
Yogurt
salt
Process:
Stir in some salt in the yogurt (depends how salty you like your food and how sour the yogurt you have).
Place yogurt in Labaneh bag:
Simple concept: cloth sewed to a bag with a closing rope.
But since not everyone has an awesome mother like mine who made them one, here are some alternatives:
- Cheese cloth: but you have to use several layers.
- White pillow cover (not colored, color could seep!)
- Paper towels in a strainer. Use good paper towels a couple of layers, otherwise you'll be eating paper with your labaneh!
Traditionally, the yogurt bag goes in the sink, leave it overnight. I put it in a strainer over the pot.
Take it out of the bag in the morning, stir well, and voila!
Best served with good olive oil. I found the best olive oil in the US is: http://www.canaanfairtrade.com/products/olive-oils/
You get not only good olive oil but the goodness of fair trade that supports Palestinian farmers survive Israeli occupation!
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