If you get inspired to get the cookbook I wrote about in my last post...and if you decide to tackle some of the fermented veggies (sauerkraut, kimchi) or make your own homemade mayonnaise (wonderful recipe), you'll find you need to make whey for the recipes...you know, that clear, watery stuff that separates from yogurt.  This is not to be confused with powdered whey--that won't work.

     The book tells you how to do it--straining it through cheesecloth, which essentially makes a sort of cream cheese from the yogurt part.  The whey you keep in the fridge to use for the recipes.  (By the way, we like to use whole milk yogurt.  It makes the cream cheese richer--and now I feel free to enjoy it after reading the cookbook!)

     But there are all sorts of things you can do with the yogurt-cream-cheese.  One of our favorites is to blend to taste onion powder, garlic powder, dried parsley, and a bit of salt with it to make a veggie or cracker dip that tastes just like ranch dressing.

     You can also add honey and cinnamon for a sweet bagel spread or apple dip.  Yum!  Or spread it on a whole wheat tortilla, add a banana and roll it up for a quick, nutritious snack for the kids.

     You can add creamed horseradish and thin it a bit with milk for a tasty condiment for roast beef.  (Or spread it on your roast beef sandwich!)

   Yogurt cream cheese is healthy and full of probiotics that pack a nutritional punch for your family's health.