Homemade Crunch n Munch

The other night my hubby and I were watching a movie and he wanted something...you know something crunchy, salty and sweet. Junk Food. Crunch n Munch is one of his favorite junk foods but because of cost it rarely finds its way into our home. Not to mention the children will find it and inhale it like the air they breathe. I occasionally find it at the discount store for a dollar a box, but the boxes are small and half empty so even discounted it seems like a waste of money. So I started looking around yesterday to see what I could do to satisfy that next craving for something crunchy that he might get. I wound up having all the ingredients to make my own crunch n munch. I made a ton of it and it probably only cost me the same price as buying one box. Here is the recipe that I used.


About 7 cups of popped popcorn
2 cups of almonds
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 1/2 sticks butter
1/2 cup of maple syrup( can use corn syrup instead)
salt
vanilla

I popped the popcorn, enough so that I had about 7 cups or so after popping. Then I placed the popcorn and the almonds in a very large roasting pan. I then placed the sugar, butter and syrup into a sauce pot and brought it to a boil. I let it boil for a minute or so until it was good and creamy. I then added the vanilla and stirred really well. I then poured some (not all)over the popcorn, sprinkled with salt and mixed. I kept repeating this process until I was out of caramel and all the popcorn was coated well. Then I place it in a preheated 250 degree oven for 1 hour and 15 minutes. I kept stirring and mixing the popcorn every 15 minutes while in the oven. This came out really well and is soooooo good. There will be enough for everyone to have a snack for the whole week. He was delighted when he got home and was greeted with a kiss and his favorite junk food. Incidentally, he said it was better than the store bought stuff. It takes so little to make him happy! Blessings all, Kat

Home Remedies to Heal the Sick

I have several home remedies that are my "go tos" when the children get sick. Now, I know that there are going to be folks thinking it so let me dispel any wrong ideas....These are my first line of attack on illness...if there are worsening symptoms or we don't start to see improvement we head to the doctor to get things checked out. However, 99% of the time these things work well for me and have been known to shorten the duration and intensity of a cold.

General All Around remedy
1 tbls. raw honey
1 tbls. raw garlic minced
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper

Take a tsp. every hour. We have never had the cayenne pepper burn. Even my little one takes this with no trouble. Raw honey and raw garlic are both antiviral/antibacterial and the cayenne pepper helps loosen congestion along with numbing a sore throat.

To Loosen up Sinus Congestion:

1 pot of steaming water
3 drops oregano oil

Add the drops of oregano oil to the steaming water and lean over the pot with a towel over your head. Make sure that you close your eyes as the steaming oregano oil can burn them. This might not be for real little ones as sometimes it can burn, but it will really open up sinuses. Oregano oil is powerful stuff and will burn so please don't think that you need to add a whole bunch of it. 3 drops is usually good for a couple quarts of water.

Sore throat remedy:
raw honey
coconut oil
cayenne pepper

Mix equal amounts of raw honey and coconut oil, then add a dash or two of cayenne pepper. Warm slightly, then take a tsp or two. Not only do the honey and coconut oil coat and soothe a raw throat but the cayenne pepper numbs it.

Colloidal silver
I use this in a nasal atomizer along with a throat atomizer and typically use with the above remedies.

The key with any of these remedies is to catch the illness at the very first sign and to use often. By often I typically mean every hour for the first day or two then you can back off. Often, if the children get sick and I know that usually I catch what they will I will start the General remedy while they are taking it and I never really get more than a few sneezes. Sure beats fever, chills, sneezing and coughing.

Good luck this winter and keep those hands clean! Blessings from the farm, Kat

***Disclaimer-I am not a doctor, just a mom. This is not meant to be a substitute for medical treatment when needed.

Oatmeal- Love it or Leave it

As a kid I hated oatmeal. My mom always cooked it to death. By the time I got a bowl, it was mush. A sticky, gloppy bowl of flavorless mush. Now, I love oatmeal and my kids love oatmeal. There are a few simple super easy tricks to cooking good oatmeal. Using these tricks allows you to add a super nutritious, super cheap, and super easy breakfast to your repertoire. First start with whole oats, not the instant stuff. Then in a pot put water, a pat or two of butter and a bit of salt. How much exactly will depend on how much oatmeal you are making. Bring this to a boil and then add your oats. Cook for about two minutes. You want to cook the oats long enough that they are soft, but not so much that you have a mushy gloopy mess. Remove from heat and serve. We like to add fruit, maple syrup, raw honey, or brown sugar to ours. The great thing is that the additions make it different each time. If I am adding hard fruit like pears or apples I will either used some already canned or chop the fresh ones up and cook in the oatmeal water with the oatmeal to soften them a bit. They are also great for adding some flavor and sweet to the oatmeal. A bowl of oatmeal combined with a boiled egg is one of our favorite breakfasts. Blessings, Kat

Tip for making yummy oatmeal

We all know that oatmeal is one of the healthier grains that we can eat. However, many people don't like oatmeal and my kids were some of the those people until I learned just a couple small tricks to cooking it. So here are my tips for yummy oatmeal that your kids will ask to have for breakfast. First, put some salt and butter in the water. Once boiling add the oatmeal (not instant) and then keep an eye on it. You want the oats soft but don't cook until it is mushy. Then serve with a dollop of raw honey or maple syrup, not sugar, and some fresh fruit on top. My kids gobble this up in the mornings and they are pretty picky eaters. Have a great day, Kat

Mediterranean Style Beef Salad

Ok, I used venison in this salad but I do realize that most don't have venison. Beef can be used. Ingredients: Mandarin oranges dried cranberries beef slice thin(skirt or flank steak would work well for this) salad greens cashews feta cheese sweet onion finely chopped balsamic vinegar olive oil sugar Season steak strips with garlic powder and a little salt, then sauté in olive oil until rare to med. rare in consistency. In a bowl combine the oranges, cranberries, onion, and steak. For the vinegraitte combine equal amounts of balsamic vinegar and olive oil and then mix in a little sugar to taste. My family likes this a little on the sweeter side as my husband doesn't like a vinegary taste. Use as much as you need or as little for your family. A little of this dressing goes a long way so you don't need to make much. 3/4 of a cup was plenty for our very large bowl of salad and I think I dumped a little afterwards. Serve this salad liberally topped with the cashews and feta along with the dressing. I served rice crackers on the side. It was delicious and filling.

Chicken and Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad

So my first summertime recipe is here. It was delicious if I do say so myself and thoroughly satisfying, especially since I didn't have much cooking to do at all. Ingredients: Cooked pasta (use what you like and the amount that you usually need for your family) 1/2 lb. cubed and sautéed chicken 8 strips of bacon cooked and crumbled 3/4 cup ranch dressing 3 carrots, cut small and blanched 6 small sweet peppers, diced small 1 stalk celery sliced thin 1/4 lb. mozzarella cheese diced small 1 cup blanched collards, sliced thin cut up all the veggies to the above specifications and then mix with the meat, cheese and pasta. Add the ranch dressing and mix well. I served this topped with the bacon crumbles and a sprinkle of parmesan cheese. It was a wonderful filling meal that wasn't too heavy and didn't heat up the kitchen. Considering we were in the mid 80s yesterday that was nice. this served our family of 4 with some leftovers for lunch today which will be served with deviled eggs. Blessings, Kat

Summer's Change in the Kitchen

So it is that time of year when the weather is warming up and it is time to put away the pots and the pans used to cook those big hearty winter meals. We eat light in the heat because frankly it is too hot to cook large meals and no one feels like eating them. When the heat of summer gets here all we want is light and refreshing. So, this year instead of spending time searching through my recipes I have decided to do something different. I am putting together a summer recipe folder. I will do the same at the end of summer with my winter recipes but for right now I will concentrate on summer recipes. Since today is going to be a miserable rainy day....yes I said rain...again, then I think it will be a good day to put this notebook together. Oh, I am so looking forward to the change of pace as I have gotten so tired of cooking big meals and trying to be creative. I am sure my family is a little tired because to tell the truth creative went out the window a while ago and we have been doing the same oh same oh for quite some time. I love summer when it is simply chop cut and throw together and the flavors are amazing. My goal today was to finish cleaning the goat barn out but since it is pouring and they can't/won't go out (goats melt you know) then that will have to wait. Now I have a good project to work on that will make meal planning simple easy and ever so delicious. I will try to post some of these wonderfully light and easy meal ideas through the coming weeks so that everyone can enjoy them. So are you changing things up in the kitchen for summer? Blessings, Kat

Be Careful When Tired

Yesterday I was exhausted. I woke up at 1 am and couldn't go back to sleep. So by 9 am I had all my housework done, my farm chores done and a few other little things. I started making some yogurt in the crockpot. All was going well, until it came time to put my starter in and my milk was a little cooler than it needed to be. So I turned the crockpot back on did a couple things in the kitchen, checked the temp on the milk, added the starter and covered my crockpot with towels for insulation. I forgot one very important thing.......turn off the crockpot. Last night about 8:00, I started to smell something like toast burning. I went in the kitchen and check the stove and oven...nope nothing on. About half and hour later, the smell was getting stronger and I was thinking that it was about time to pour up the yogurt. That was when it hit me....did I ever turn off the crockpot. Well, into the kitchen I run and sure enough I didn't. Needless to say every plastic piece on the crockpot was melted, the milk had burned completely up (that was probably the burnt toast smell), my towels covering the crockpot were covered in a brown stain. Don't know if they singed or if it was just the smoke from the burning milk. Needless to say my crockpot is ruined and I will never do something while so tired again that I can't think straight. So be careful ladies when you are really tired. I got a real good reminder last night of how easily it could have been to burn down our house. Oh, well....I needed a new crockpot anyway. Blessings, Kat

Yummy Venison Loin

We just love venison loin and yesterday it was amazing. I marinated the loin in brown sugar mixed with teriyaki sauce for about 4 hours. Then I wrapped it in bacon and baked it in the oven at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. I served it with oven roasted potatoes, english peas and asparagus. It was super yummy and tender. I think this is one of my favorite ways of cooking venison loin now. I can't wait to try this with goat loin as well. Blessings, Kat

Tips on Cooking a Roast

A roast typically tends to be a piece of meat that has very little fat or marbling. This is especially true of chevon (goat) or venison, but can be true of beef as well. Marbling is typically what keeps a piece of meat moist and juicy while it is cooking. So since these cuts that are used as roasts don't have much of that they can be dry and chewy. Nobody I know likes dry and chewy. So here are my roast cooking tips for meat that is moist and literally fall off the bone or falls apart.

1. Cook the meat at a lower temperature for a longer period of time. I typically cook my roasts at 250 degrees for about 4-5 hours depending on size of the roast.

2. Keep the roast moist by placing it in a pan with a little bit of broth or water in the pan. Then cover the roast to seal in the moisture. Keep the roast covered until the last 30-45 minutes of cooking. Just enough to brown the outside of the roast.

3. You can use a crockpot to cook a roast, but keep the temperature on low and cook for about 8 hours.

4. Don't try to cook a roast like other meat as it will be dry and tough. Cooking a roast takes planning on your part don't try to rush to process.

That is it. Simply season the meat like you wish and cook it low and slow with moisture and you will have fall off the bone tender delicious roast. Blessings, Kat

How To Make a Rich Homemade Broth

I have been making a good bit of broth lately since I drink so much of it. So since I have been making it I thought it would be good to share with my readers on how to make a really rich bone broth. Bone broth is great for adding lots of micronutrients to your diet. It is also a great pick me up on a cold day or even after a hard days work. For me it is a great start to my day. For loads of information on the health benefits of bone broths you can check out the Weston Price Foundation website. Here is how I make my broths.

Take a large stock pot and fill it 1/2 to 3/4 of the way with cold water. Then add your bones. If I am doing a beef or venison broth then I roast the bones for about 15 minutes in a 400 degree oven. Just to brown them a bit. This gives a nice rich color and flavor to the broth. After adding the bones I add about a cup and a half of apple cider vinegar. The vinegar will pull calcium from the bones into your broth. I let that sit for a couple of hours then I place on the stove and slowly bring it to a simmer. You don't really want a rolling boil, just a very slow simmer will do nicely. After it has been simmering for about 2-3 hours, I add a couple of carrots chopped up, a stalk of celery chopped up and an onion along with salt and pepper. These things deepen the flavor of the broth. Then it simmers some more. For beef, venison and pork I let the broth simmer for about 8 hours after adding the veggies. For turkey, chicken or rabbit I let the broth simmer for about 4-6 hours after adding the vegetables. The next step is to remove all the veggies bits, bone bits and meat bits from the broth. Let it cool then place it in the refrigerator overnight. The fat will congeal at the top after this and can easily be scooped off. This is a personal preference, I like my broth to be clear. You can leave it and jar it up right away if you don't mind the fat. After getting rid of the fat then heat the broth back up on the stove, jar it up and can at 10 lbs. of pressure for 20 minutes for quarts and 15 minutes for pints. That is all there is to it and you can drink it by itself, use it in soups and casseroles or even cook your rice and pasta in it. Broth is such a wonderful addition to the pantry and your diet. Blessings, Kat

New Year's Soapmaking

Over the past year I have been reading a lot about soapmaking. I have discovered quite a bit and while I like my first soaps that I made in December 2010 I can do better. First I discovered SoapCalc. They have an awesome lye calculator in which you plug in your oils, how much you want it superfatted or not and it will tell you the amount of lye and water to use. It will also tell you the properties of your soap. Different oils have different properties that they bring to the soap...things like hardness, conditioning, etc. While all soap cleans some oils produce a soap that cleans better. So I have been changing and tweaking some of my recipes. Here is what I made yesterday:

Laundry Soap #1
16 oz. coconut oil
16 oz. vegetable shortening
12.16 oz. water
5.191 oz. lye

This has a 0% superfat since I am using it for laundry and dishes and need it to attract oil rather than give it. This produced a very hard bar with very high cleansing properties.

Laundry Soap #2
16. oz. coconut oil
17 oz. lard
10 oz. tallow
16.34 oz. water
6.758 oz. lye

This made a hard soap with high cleansing properties also. Properties aren't as high as the previous soap, but they are high enough. It also is 0% superfatted.

Bath Soap
10 oz. coconut oil
20 oz. lard
7 oz. olive oil
8 oz. tallow
17.1 oz. water
6.408 oz. lye

This soap was calculated to give a 5% superfat. It is a moderately hard bar with good cleansing properties as well as conditioning properties. It gives a good bubbly lather also.

Goat milk Soap
8 oz. coconut oil
1 oz. cocoa butter
18 oz.lard
10 oz. olive oil
5 oz. shortening
5 oz. tallow
15.96 oz. goat milk
5.896 oz. lye

This was also 5% superfatted. It gives more of a creamy lather than bubbly. It is a moderately hard bar with good cleansing properties and high conditioning properties. I really like this one for use on the face, but it will work well as a bath soap also.

Again I used the hot process so that my soap cures while it cooks. This means that my bars are ready to use when they are dry. The laundry soaps dry quickly, but the goat milk soap takes awhile. I have found that you need to cut your soaps while they are still slightly warm to the touch and they cut much easier than waiting until they are cool. You get better bars and fewer bars that fall apart. Save all those chips and soak them in hot water then when they gel you have a liquid soap. I highly recommend using soap calc. I really think I have much better soap because of using the lye calculator and it is fun to play around with different oils and what properties they will bring to your soap. Blessings, Kat

Rendering Lard

There are many uses for lard so it is handy to know how to render it. Rendering simply means that you are separating the pure fat from the meat and gristle. So I thought I would share how I render my lard.

Step 1. Trim as much meat as possible off the fat.

Step 2. Grind the fat. This doesn't have to be a fine grind, a coarse grind works just fine. If you don't have a grinder you can chop the fat into small bits and this will work also, it will take a bit longer though.


Step 3. Place the lard in a pot or crockpot with 1/4 cup of water and simmer. If you do this on a stove use a medium low setting and if you do this in the crockpot use a low setting. Then cook and cook and cook some more. Periodically you will need to stir the lard so that the cracklins don't burn. This process will take a few hours stove top and about 8 hours in a crockpot depending on the strength of the crockpot. Mine is an el cheapo crockpot so doesn't have a whole lot of kick with temperature. If you have a really nice one it's low setting might be a higher temp. In other words keep an eye on your lard whether using the stove or crockpot.


Step 4: Your cracklins (meat and gristle bits) will sink to the bottom as the fat is separated out. Then they will start to brown a little. At this stage turn off the heat and let them cool for about 10 minutes.

Step 5. Take a strainer and line it with cheese cloth. You can either freeze your lard in chunks or pour it into jars. If you want to freeze it then take a pyrex dish that is square and pour the lard through the strainer. Place the dish in the freezer for a couple hours then cut your lard into chunks to place in a ziploc bag. If you are pouring into a jar then you can let it cool for a bit then place a lid on the jar and store in a cool place. Lard will go rancid if stored in a hot area.

Step 6. Use your lard. Biscuits and pie crusts made with lard are by far the best. Use lard to saute or fry. If your hands are really dry consider rubbing a tiny amount of lard on them. Make soap. Grease your cookie sheets and baking pans.

That is it. It is really an easy process even though it does take some time. You can use this same process for any type of animal fat. Tallow is great for making candles (they smoke alot though) or making soap (makes a nice hard bar) or making a leather preservative lotion. Lard is softer than tallow so don't be surprised if it is really soft at room temperature. Mine stays creamy even in the refrigerator. Oh, and don't throw away those cracklins! Use them for cracklin bread or you can feed them to the chickens, dogs or cats if you really don't like cracklin bread. How can anyone not like cracklin bread?! Use them, they certainly don't belong in the garbage. Blessings, Kat

Weekly Menu

I have decided in the spirit of low cost eating that I will post a menu plan for the week in the left hand column. If I have anything that needs a recipe then you can be sure that the recipe will be posted. Blessings from the farm,Kat

Eat What Your Garden Grows

We are fortunate here in the deep south to have almost a 4 season growing season. We truly only have a couple months out of the year where nothing will stay alive without protection or lots of water. However, we do have limited time in which to grow certain crops. Lettuce varieties only do well for a couple months out of the year in the spring and then again in the fall. They can't tolerate our heat and they don't tolerate frost very well. There are some varieties that last longer than others, but typically May is the last month for any lettuce to taste decent at least and even then it is iffy. So what am I trying to get around to? We love salad and eat it several times a week. While we have done well in the past with eating what was in season we truly missed our fresh green salad. Last year I used cabbage leaves instead of lettuce and over the winter I started thinking.....hmmmmmm. If I could use cabbage leaves and still get my salad fix could I use other things as well. So this year I have really put this thought to the test since our lettuce has been pretty much done for the past month. Broccoli plants actually last a good while in the heat, especially if grown where they get some shade. They don't make heads very well, but they do have loads of greens. And those greens make a great salad. Kohlrabi greens are also great in salad. When the spinach is done turn to swiss chard for a spinachy taste. Kale is a nice green to add to that salad mix also. And guess what collards last throughout most of the hot summer down here and are a great salad green. Now mind you if you are an iceberg lettuce eater you probably won't like these salads as they are full of robust flavor. These greens do have a mind of their own and they certainly don't mind telling you in flavor who they are. The bonus of this is that they are absolutely loaded with vitamins and minerals. Tomorrow's lunch menu....a rabbits chef salad made with broccoli and kohlrabi greens. One last thought on salads is that there are many herbs growing in the heat of summer that are fabulous to add in smaller amounts to your salads...lemon balm, basil, oregano, mint, parsley, cilantro, dill and others. Adding herbs to your salads not only beefs up the "green" part of the salad but packs a whollop of delightful flavors. So don't be afraid to experiment with your plants and substitute something that is growing for something that isn't growing. Blessings from the farm, Kat

How To Render Fat from Meat Trimmings

I started making soap not too long ago (December), so I started saving my waste fat to make more soap. I recently pulled out all those trimmings from the freezer so that I could render them. Rendering is the process of separating the fat oils from the meat and gristle. So I thought I would share the process if anyone is interested in rendering their own fat for candles, soap, lotions, etc. etc.

Step 1: Cut or chop the trimmings into little bits. A food processor helps with this or you can even use your blender. If using the blender only work with very small portions as it really overworks the motor. The smaller the pieces the easier the fat separates out in cooking.

Step 2: Put your chopped up trimmings in a pot that is big enough so that the trimmings only take up half the pot.

Step 3: Place about 2-3 inches of water in the pot.

Step 4: Bring the trimmings to a low rolling boil and keep them there for about 30-45 minutes. Keep the boil low enough so that the fat is cooked out but nothing tries to scorch or stick to the pan.

Step 5: Line a strainer with cheesecloth and pour the boiled trimmings though into a mold. I used a couple loaf pans for a mold. Let the fat cool, then place in the refrigerator overnight. The fat will rise to the top and harden somewhat. Now if you have any leftover liquid it will settle on the bottom. You can either choose to skim off the fat at this point or do what I did with the second loaf pan. I put it in the freezer, then when frozen i removed the whole loaf and simple cut the non fat (mine was gelatin) off of the fat layer. The fat layer will be solid white.

Step 6: Store your fat in the freezer for future use or use immediately.

Now the brown meaty bits that you have left after rendering is called suet. I feed it to the chickens. Dogs, cats, pigs love it too. I suppose you could make a suet type cake with peanut butter or such to hold it together and put it out for the wild birds. I just put mine in a large container in the fridge and each day add a good couple spoonfuls to the chicken bucket. They love it and it is a great source of protein and calories. The gelatin that I cut off the fat after molding was fed to the dogs. I used about half of the fat to make some laundry soap. Because the fat was tallow (beef fat) and lard (pig fat) mostly with just a smattering of other waste fat the soap turned out pretty crumbly. Of course, I might have done something wrong in the processing. However, even though it crumbled into little bits it definitely is soapy, and little crumbly bits are great for laundry since I don't have to grate the bars now. Anyway, I washed my first load of laundry yesterday with my new soap and it turned out just fine. So, don't waste those fat trimmings. They are a valuable resource for the home. Blessings, Kat

Mushrooms on Toast

I have been pigging out lately on one of my favorite meals....mushrooms on toast. It is traditionally a British food, but thanks to Gordon Ramsey this southern gal is hooked. So here is how I make it.

I take 3 large fresh mushrooms and slice them. I then saute them in a little bit of butter with minced garlic. You can use as little garlic or as much as you like. Just a hint of salt. Saute them until done and then place them on two pieces of toast. Then poach two eggs (I do mine soft poached and still runny). Place the eggs on top of the mushrooms and enjoy. This is oh so yummy and since we eat a large mid day dinner it makes a nice light supper. It is rich though because of the butter. Enjoy! Blessings from the farm, Kat

Butternut Squash Souffle

Kelly requested the recipe for my butternut squash souffle. It really is super easy and I hope she and any other butternut lovers out there enjoy!

Butternut Squash souffle
2 cups cooked and mashed butternut squash
3 tbls. soft butter
1 cup sugar
1/3 c. milk
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
3 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Heat the oven to 325 degrees and grease a 1 1/2 qt. casserole dish. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and beat with a mixer until well combined. Put it in the casserole dish and bake for 75 minutes or until set. For an added treat in the last 20 minutes or so add marshmallows to the top (this is the trick to getting my kids to eat some).

My hubby loves this recipe. I also have butternut squash soup recipe that is really good and truly is the only way that I can eat butternut squash. I will post that also. Blessings, Kat

Epiphany on Storing Winter Squash

I grow winter squash like butternut and pumpkin because my husband likes them. Personally, I can't stand them. This has always been an issue because the thought of gagging down that foul tasting squash tend s to prevent me from wanting to cook them. I have always stored my squash in our dining room where it stays relatively cool in the winter and the squash lasts for months. This past year though I decided to can some of the butternut and as it happened I only had pint jars in the house at the time. So I canned the squash in pint jars. My husband asked when I was going to cook him some squash, specifically butternut squash souffle. As I thought about it, I realized that the pint jar was just good enough for 1 individual butternut squash souffle. Why had I not thought of this earlier? Instead of wasting a whole squash by cooking the whole thing and then he being the only one to eat any measurable portion of it, I simply pulled out 1 pint jar and made up an individual souffle. Yippee!!!! I never have to choke it down again and will be happy to keep his belly full of butternut squash and pumpkin. Now, what to do with the spaghetti squash that I don't like either?! So if you don't like something, but others in your family do, think about canning it in pint jars for individual portions. Blessings, Kat

Sour Cream Recipe

This is such an easy recipe for sour cream. First you need to get your cream which is the hardest part of this recipe, especially with goat milk. I did manage to get a good amount of cream by placing my milk in some shallow pans and letting it sit in the refrigerator for a couple of days. The shallow pans seem to let more cream rise to the top than just letting it sit in the jars. I had a good thick layer of cream and wound up with about 3 to 3 1/2 cups. I skimmed off the cream and placed it in a quart mason jar. Then I added 5 tablespoons of cultured buttermilk, put the lid on the jar and shook it real well to mix it. Then I let it sit on the counter for 3 days to "sour". It made a decently thick sour cream that tastes delicious. About the only complaint that I have is that when it is put on hot food it turns liquid quickly, but the taste is there. The amount of butterfat will determine how thick your sour cream is. It did thicken a little more once in the refrigerator. happy milking!