How To Make Curd At Home

     Our bodies aren't meant to live on processed foods. If you want to avoid the unhealthy and artificial ingredients that are found in most pre-packaged foods, making your own homemade food is a good way to go. Making yogurt, cheese, or even butter at home can be easier than you think! Here's how to make curd at home.

What is curd?

     Curd is a watery, smooth and creamy mixture of milk or cream and a coagulant. It is used in many recipes and can be made by adding an acid, like lemon juice, to milk or cream. You'll notice that curd will separate into two layers: the top layer is the liquid that you want, while the bottom layer is solid and won't mix back into the original liquid.

     Curd can be made from raw milk, but it's often just made with pasteurized milk for convenience. The process for making curd is simple: heat milk to 180 degrees F (82 C) until it reaches this point and then add your coagulant.

How to Make Yogurt :

What you'll need :

• a yogurt container with a tight lid.
• 2 cups whole milk.
• 1/4 cup plain, unsweetened Greek yogurt.
• 1 tsp fresh lemon juice.
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract.
• cinnamon stick or freshly grated nutmeg, to taste.
• 2 bay leaves.
• 10 large spoons of white sugar, plus more for sprinkling on top. - an oven that is preheated to 170 degrees Fahrenheit (about 3 hours).

What you'll do : Place the milk in a pot and bring it to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally to prevent scorching on the bottom of the pot. Meanwhile, mix together all the dry ingredients in a small bowl, including the bay leaves and sugar. When your milk has reached a full boil, remove from heat and stir in the dry ingredients until well combined; set aside for 15 minutes until curd sets up slightly (you can also refrigerate it for about 30 minutes). After 15 minutes, remove the curd from time and fold in vanilla extract until well combined; heat mixture briefly in an ovenproof pot on low heat to help dissolve any lumps that may have formed during cooling and add additional sugar if needed for consistency (this will last about 24 hours). Now transfer your curd into a refrigerator container with tight lid and store in refrigerator for up to 7 days!

How To Make Cheese :

     Milk is a liquid that has been separated from its solid components, which are called casein and whey. The process of separating the milk into its two parts, curd (the liquid) and whey (the solid), can be done by adding a bacteria to the milk that coagulates proteins in the milk. This is called "curdling."

     Curdling can be done with vinegar or lemon juice, which both contain acetic acid. When the acid reacts with proteins in the milk, curdling occurs.

     There are three main types of cheese--hard, semi-soft and soft--and they all come from different levels of curdling. Hard cheeses are made when the proteins have been completely coagulated by acids. Semi-soft cheeses have proteins mostly coagulated but also some uncoagulated protein particles left in suspension, giving it a slightly runny texture when eaten raw. Soft cheeses have some uncoiled protein particles in suspension but mostly all of them have been melted together by acids.

How To Make Butter :

     To make butter, you will need some heavy cream and a standing mixer. Put the cream in the machine and turn it on a medium-high speed until it starts to thicken. Turn off the machine and continue mixing until it reaches the desired consistency. Take your time and mix until it looks like regular butter, not curdled butter. If you have extra time and want to be fancy, add in a little bit of lemon juice or salt to give your butter an extra kick!

     If you don't have a standing mixer, you can use a hand mixer or do what I did: Get an old-fashioned whisk and use that! Just keep whisking your heated cream over medium heat. It will take about 10 minutes for it to slowly transition from liquid to curdled butter.