Cultured Dairy Products

Makes 5 cups whey and 2 cups cream cheese

2 quarts piima milk

whole-milk buttermilk

yoghurt

Makes 1 quart

1/2 cup good quality commercial plain yogurt, or 1/2 cup yogurt from previous batch

1 quart pasteurized whole milk, non homogenized

a candy thermometer

Yogurt is easy to make - neither a yogurt-maker nor a special culture is necessary. The final product may be thinner in consistency than commercial yogurt.

Makes 1 quart

1 quart whole milk, preferably raw but not ultra pasteurized
about 1/4 cup buttermilk culture*

This is the easiest of all the cultured milks. Place milk in a glass container, add the buttermilk culture, stir well and cover. Keep at room temperature (but not higher than 80 degrees) until themilk thickens and curdles slightly. Chill well. Reserve 1/4 - 1/2 cup in a separate jar in the refrigerator for the next culture.

Note: A similar culture from Sweden is called fil mjolk.

Makes 1 quart

1 quart fresh whole milk, non-homogenized
1 Tbsp. starter culture

1 cup good quality cream

1 envelope piima powder*

Piima culture (also called vili or Finnish culture) is derived from the milk of cows that feed on the butterwort plant. Centuries ago, Scandinavian farmers discovered that milk clabbered better when their cows consumed this herb.

Makes 2 cups

1 pint good quality cream
1 Tbsp. starter culture

1 pt good quality cream
1 Tbsp. commercial or whole-milk buttermilk or commercial creme fraiche

European-style sour cream, called crème fraiche (and pronounced “creme fresh”) is a key ingredient to French cooking. It has a delicious flavor and is wonderful in creamed soups and sauces. In larger cities, crème fraiche is available at gourmet and health food stores.