Homemade Sour Cream

On April 18, 2025April 18, 2025 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn cheese, ColumnLeave a comment

I rounded out a collection of homemade dairy products this week in my Twice as Tasty column for the Flathead Beacon with sour cream. I love the tangy richness of sour cream and spoon it over everything from nachos to baked potatoes to Sourdough Empanadas. It’s an essential flavor on and in Mushroom-Filled Blini and makes Onion Lover’s Dip irresistible.

I bake with sour cream as often as buttermilk, because it provides loft in recipes like Chocolate–Sour Cream Cookies and lightens scones, including Savory Herb and Sour Cream Scones. But homemade sour cream, cultured buttermilk, and fresh yogurt are just the starting point. Once you become comfortable with the techniques and ingredients for soft creations, your first homemade cheese is just a recipe away.
Learn to make Homemade Sour Cream

Cultured Buttermilk

On April 11, 2025April 11, 2025 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn cheese, ColumnLeave a comment

There’s a distinct difference between the baking shortcut of using vinegar or lemon juice to sour milk and the creamy, tang taste of cultured buttermilk. As I explain this week in my Twice as Tasty column for the Flathead Beacon, the former has its uses. For example, in Loaf-Pan Lemon Cake, the double dose of lemon boosts the citrusy flavor. But in icings and salad dressings, and even baked goods and savory dishes, it’s worth splurging for cultured buttermilk—or making your own.

Homemade buttermilk takes less effort than homemade small-batch yogurt, but it does require a powdered starter culture. That shouldn’t be a deal breaker; buttermilk is an easy way to see just how powdered starters work. Once you try it, you’ll be far more comfortable making your first batch of Dry-Salted Feta or Homemade Fromage Blanc.
Learn to make Cultured Buttermilk

Homemade Small-Batch Yogurt

On April 4, 2025April 4, 2025 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn cheese, ColumnLeave a comment

Dairy fermentation is a bit different from fermenting vegetables for pickles or sourdough for bread, but all of these techniques have a gateway recipe that opens a whole new food world. As I explain this week in my Twice as Tasty column for the Flathead Beacon, yogurt was my fermented dairy gateway. Once I realized how easy it is to turn milk into fresh yogurt at home, the idea of making cheese and other dairy products became far less daunting.

These days, about half of the fermented dairy products in my fridge are homemade. I make sour cream every time I reach the bottom of the jar and fresh yogurt nearly as often. Cheeses come and go as the whim hits me: sometimes I crave Dry-Salted Feta for shakshuka, and sometimes I’m pressing Homemade Farmer’s Cheese for Paneer Tikka Masala or cutting and salting squeaky cheese curds to serve over oven fries with Vegetarian Mushroom Gravy as poutine. I gained the confidence to make these and even pressed and aged cheeses after mastering homemade yogurt.
Learn to make Homemade Small-Batch Yogurt

How To Make Cheese, Step by Step

On April 25, 2023November 19, 2023 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn cheese, FermentingLeave a comment

I’m excited to share my first pieces for The Old Farmer’s Almanac website—all about cheese! I created a basic cheese making guide to help beginners make their first cheese and experienced cheese makers learn some of the history and details about the process. It includes a recipe for a classic cheese from pioneer days: Farmer’s Cheese. You’ll also find that recipe in a separate post that includes step-by-step photos of the process.

I’m just as excited that by creating these pieces for Almanac.com, the editors have added more recipes to their website for making cheese and other dairy products. The website’s collection now includes recipes for homemade ricotta, yogurt, and butter. I have another piece in the works for their website, too.
Learn how to make cheese, step-by-step