This whole blog post here came about because I needed Ranch Dressing, because everything tastes better dipped in Ranch.
And all store-bought Ranch mix has MSG in it, and we don’t want to eat that trash.
And then I realized that to make Ranch Dressing, you need mayonnaise, and all store-bought mayonnaise has soybean oil in it, and we don’t want to eat that trash either.
So then I realized that I needed to make my own mayonnaise, and to make mayonnaise the Nourishing Traditions way I needed whey. Which, as it turns out, is an ingredient in, like, 98% of all Nourishing Traditions recipes.
So in order to make a long story into as many blog posts as possible, I’m going to show you how to make whey because I want Ranch Dressing.
Start with two quarts of good, organic, whole milk yogurt. And no, I’m not making my own yogurt today. Sheesh.
Oh… and also a bowl, a strainer, and a clean kitchen towel.
Please excuse the bad blurry pictures. THIS is why I need my super-brilliant and gifted photographer man…
The strainer goes in the bowl, and the towel goes in the strainer…. which probably goes without saying, but I like to cover all the bases for the other blondes out there.
Then dump two quarts of yogurt into the towel-lined strainer.
Cover the yogurt and leave it for a few hours so that the liquid (whey) can separate out from the solid (cream cheese). It will be ok on the counter; trust me.
It’s done when the dripping has stopped. You should have about four cups of cream cheese, which is what’s left in the strainer when the whey drips out. You can store in glass jars in your fridge for quite some time.
That yellowish stuff that’s in the bottle on the right? That’s the whey.
The bonus is that THIS cream cheese won’t have carrageenan in it like the store-bought brands. And carrageenan is BAD BAD BAD, but that’s the subject of my next ‘Five Things’ blog post.
Ranch Dressing, here we come! Recipe coming soon…
Just as soon as I make mayonnaise.
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I loved this! My littlest girl is allergic to all kinds of foods (nuts, milk, soy, eggs, peas), so I'm having to learn all about going natural and organic. Do you know if there are any dairy-free alternatives to yogurt? That may be a silly question…? But I'd love to be able to make your ranch dressing for our family and am just not sure what's even possible to have anymore.
Shannon, I'm afraid I don't have an answer… I would definitely not use soy ANYTHING, but I see your girl is allergic to soy anyway. I don't have any experience with allergies; my motivation to do natural and organic is because my youngest was diagnosed with a brain tumor at age 2. I believe food has healing properties and God gave us all we need to be healthy… and I try to stuff
We, too, tend to be ranch dressing addicts. At times. Not everyday.<br /> Have been wanting to find a good homemade recipe for ranch!
This traditional ways of making whey is quite interesting to do. Even though they are old style compared with the new generations of whey protein like http://proteinpowder.mercola.com/pure-protein.html and other similar brands out there. I think nothing beats the old style. What are your thoughts about this?