Whey: What's the Big Deal?

"Whey is such a good helper in your kitchen. It has a lot of minerals. One tablespoon of whey in a little water will help digestion. It is a remedy that will keep your muscles young. It will keep your joints movable and ligaments elastic. When age wants to bend your back, take whey...with stomach ailments, take one tablespoon whey three times daily; this will feed the stomach glands and they will work well again." Hanna Kroeger, Ageless Remedies from Mother's Kitchen, 1998


To make whey the Byrdfeeder way, you'll need the following items: a quart of Stonyfield Organic Plain Whole Milk Cream On Top yogurt (or your homemade, or another organic brand), a medium bowl, some cheesecloth, a strainer, a Mason jar, a tall glass or ceramic container (see picture below) and a lidded glass storage container.
Step 1: line your strainer with cheesecloth. If the cloth seems wimpy, use two layers - one north to south, and one east to west.
Step 2: place the strainer on top of a medium-sized bowl, one in which the strainer can nestle securely.
Step 3: empty the yogurt into the cheesecloth-lined strainer, being sure to scrape the gooey cream away from the yogurt container and into the bowl. Remove the yogurt container, and wash for recycling or reuse.
Step 4: place the yogurt in a safe place in your kitchen - away from your worm composting bucket, the hot stove, and your food prep area. Now, let it stand for several hours. Just leave it alone for a day and night.

Beautiful yogurt cheesing, wheying, and creating food art. Let it contemplate for a day.

The whey separates from the yogurt and runs into the bowl. Now, you have curds and whey, just like that Muffet person! Pour the whey into a glass jar and put in your refrigerator for later; tie the cheesecloth around a wooden kitchen spoon (a clumsy process, but nobody's watching), and place it across the top of a tall container so more whey can drip out. Be sure to give your little curd sack room so it doesn't sit on the bottom of the container. Let it weep for another day, then add the weepings to your whey jar. Whey will keep for 6 months, but you'll use it before then, I promise.

Inside this cloth sack is the curd, or cream cheese, ya'll. Remove it from the cheesecloth, put in your covered glass bowl, and store in the refrigerator. It'll keep for a month. If your cheesecloth is of good quality, hand wash it, air dry it, and store it for reuse.

Now what?
Mix that curd with a generous amount of minced garlic, fresh or dried herbs (dill, oregano, basil, or any combo you desire), a little sea salt, and plenty of ground pepper. Drizzle with olive oil and more ground pepper, and serve with raw veggies or crackers for a healthy alternative to processed cheese balls.
OR...
Add a tablespoon of turmeric, a couple healthy shakes of cinnamon, allspice, and curry (or garam masala), and a generous pinch of sea salt. Adjust seasonings, form into a ball, then let rest in the refrigerator for at least a few hours. When ready to serve, create a divot on top of your creation, fill the hole with spicy mango chutney, or a paste made from fig preserves and jalapeno peppers. Dig in with crackers or veggies.

For more whey information and recipes, click here to visit the Weston A. Price Foundation website. Type "whey" in the search box (right column).