I grew up drinking powdered or goat milk with the occasional treat of whole milk. When grandparents visited, they came armed with fresh homemade English muffins and a carton of whole milk. I can tell you that after drinking powdered milk or goat milk, it was a treat. My husband also grew up with reconstituted milk when his family was stationed in Guam.
In addition, powdered milk stores wonderfully for a long time, sometimes up to 30 years, depending on which brand you buy and how it is packaged.
Not only is powdered milk great for storage . . . and having it when you need it, but you can also use it to make yogurt and cheese, which we will address in a future blog post.
As a parent, I tried saving money by buying nonfat powdered milk. I made the decision of saving money over taste. While there's no substitution for the taste of whole milk, I learned from experience how to pass it off to the rest of the family without too many complaints.
Reconstituting Regular Nonfat Powdered
Milk
Start with 3 to 4 tablespoons per cup of milk. If you need a stronger taste, go up from
there. There’s really no hard and fast
rule to how much powdered milk needs to be mixed with water to make a cup of
milk. This will vary due to the type of
product that you use and your personal preference.
Reconstituting Instant Nonfat Powdered
Milk
It takes approximately twice as much instant powdered nonfat milk to make a cup of milk as it does
using regular powdered milk, but it dissolves faster. Start with approximately 6 to 8 tablespoons
per cup of milk. However, each brand of
milk differs, so be sure to check the packaging for the proper
measurements. This milk has a tendency
to clump and is sometimes hard to mix. I
like to mix mine in a blender where I whip it into submission.
OTHER WAYS TO USE POWDERED MILK:
Baking with Powdered Milk
Powdered milk should work perfectly in any recipe where whole milk is
used. For baking, add the dry milk mix
to the dry ingredients and then the water to the moist ingredients. This will keep you from having to take the
time to reconstitute it first.
As a substitution for Buttermilk
Many great recipes call for buttermilk. I don’t use buttermilk enough to justify buying a quart of it, so I like
to make it up as I go. Mix 1 cup of milk
to 1 tablespoon of either lemon juice or vinegar and then let is sit for about
5 minutes. Making buttermilk is as easy
as that.
As a substitution for Evaporated Milk
Mix 1 cup of dry milk with 1-1/2 cup of water.
As a Whipped Topping for desserts
With equal amounts of powdered milk and ice-cold water, beat the
ingredients until they form soft peaks. Place the whipped topping in the refrigerator to chill for at least 30
minutes to an hour. Slowly add ½ cup
sugar while beating the milk. Add 2
tablespoons of lemon juice and continue to beat until everything is mixed.
As a substitution for Sweetened
Condensed Milk
Mix 1 cup of powdered milk with 1 cup of sugar. Pour ½ cup of hot water into a blender. While it is mixing, add the sugar and
powdered milk mixture. Blend until it is
smooth.
So, there you have it. When the cost of milk spirals out of control, or you run out of milk before you can get to the store, use powdered milk . . . hopefully without too much complaint.
Go forth and save $$$.
Peace Peeps,
Broke Girl
