PROBIOTICS for you and your chickens

[WisconsinChickenWhisperer]

I mix about 2 cups in with my chickens treats about 3 times a week. I have 14 hens and a roo, never had any adverse reactions, and all of them LOVE it! I also give about 1/2 cup to each of my dogs a couple of times a week. They LOVE it as well, (in fact, they beg for it as soon as I start to strain off a batch!) and no ill effects with them, either.

 

[snowflake]

Thank you, !!

 

[GhostRider65]

Ernie have you ever tried yogurt cheese, I found a recipe on Mother Earth News page and immediately thought of you, would you like the recipe? also wondering how your Keifer is doing? I'm anxious to try making this stuff. LoL My kids think I'm gone off the deep end, cuz I'm making my own Yogurt. Kim

 

[austinandkara]

Thank you!! Lots of great info

 

[vmdanielsen]

making a red velvet cake....it is in the oven as I write......used kefir and a can of beets pureed. looks redder than the one last week...

 

[zekii]

How old should the chicks be before offering them yogurt ?
I want to try a mixture of yogurt, crumbles & hard boiled egg.

 

[vmdanielsen]

Quote:
another delicious cake...but not red.......

 

[SilkieCanada]

probiotioc yougurt mixed with rolled oats. THEY LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!

 

[emarble]

Quote:
Hi Kim
Yes I would love the receipe and will add it to my collectiion! I tried the Kefir Leban and Made some dip out of it and it was wonderful!! I really want to try the cheese but cant seem to get my life back in balance and keep all going in the same direction

Ernie

 

[GhostRider65]

Here ya go Ernie and anyone who would like to try it, seems simple enough I may even try it.
Yogurt Cheese

Yogurt cheese is mildly tart, somewhere between cream cheese and sour cream. For centuries, yogurt cheese has been a staple of Eastern and Mediterranean cooking. At banquets and celebrations in western India, the dessert of choice is shrikhand, sweetened yogurt cheese that's spiced with saffron and cardamom and topped with pistachios. For breakfast, the Lebanese spread the cheese on pita bread and sprinkle it with olive oil. Greek farmers mix it with chopped cucumbers for lunch. Yet, outside of Middle Eastern cookbooks and an occasional newspaper article, it has received little attention in the West.

Glossy white, smooth, rich and creamy, yogurt cheese is the consistency of velvety whipped cream cheese. Its taste is mildly tart, somewhere between cream cheese and sour cream, although that varies with the yogurt from which the cheese is made: Sweet flavors (such as vanilla and lemon) produce sweet cheese. Whatever its base, it looks, tastes and feels as if it's loaded with fat.It isn't. Look at the figures for one ounce: made from nonfat yogurt, 20 calories and no fat; made from low-fat yogurt, 25 calories and three-quarters of a gram of fat; made from vanilla low-fat, 31 calories and nine-tenths of a gram of fat. Both low-fats get less than 30 percent of their calories from fat.A homemade product, this cheese is child's play to produce. Since the milk has already been acidified by yogurt-making bacteria, all that's left is to drain off the whey. Leave yogurt in a fine sieve for eight to 36 hours, and you've got cheese. The timing is imprecise and a matter of preference: The longer the draining, the more whey is released, and the thicker the cheese. The most common time — 10 to 12 hours, or overnight — produces equal portions of whey and cheese.

The simplest approach is to buy an inexpensive (about $10) yogurt strainer, typically a plastic funnel lined with fine mesh. Spoon the yogurt into the funnel, prop the funnel in a container such as a Mason jar or two-cup measure, cover the top with plastic wrap, and refrigerate. Available in some kitchen specialty shops, yogurt funnels can also be mail-ordered from cheese supply companies, such as New England Cheese making Supply Co.

In the absence of a special tool, line a colander with several layers of cheesecloth, and add the yogurt, pushing it up the sides to maximize drainage. Set the colander in a pan to catch the whey (if the colander doesn't have legs, put it on a rack), cover the whole outfit with plastic wrap, and refrigerate it.

Cheese can be made from plain or flavored yogurts, from nonfat, low-fat or whole-milk types and from most commercial brands. Just make sure the yogurt contains no gelatin (check the list of ingredients), which holds the whey in suspension and prevents it from draining off. As with ricotta, freshness matters. As yogurt gets older, it gets tarter and more likely to produce a sour-tasting cheese. Try to buy well in advance of the pull date if you want sweeter cheese.

Once you've made yogurt cheese, what do you do with it? With added herbs, flavorings and other ingredients, it can form the basis for everything from dips and spreads to pies and cheesecakes.

If you've tried and failed for years to like yogurt on your baked potato, try herbed yogurt cheese; it's better. It's also good with raw vegetables, crackers or bread, or atop a spicy taco. Just add dried or fresh minced herbs to plain yogurt cheese in any combination you like, along with some salt and perhaps some freshly ground black pepper; let it sit for at least an hour, so the flavors can blend (overnight is better). Some suggestions: basil and garlic, chives and parsley, cilantro and cumin, tarragon, lots of fresh dill, a hefty amount of crushed or very coarsely ground black peppercorns or crushed green peppercorns. Or try some minced smoked salmon, chopped chives and a little Dijon-style mustard. If the cheese tastes under flavored, add more of the herb and allow it to sit awhile longer.