It's Greek (yogurt) to me!

Man have I dropped the ball.  I have two or three blog entries that are still in draft mode but life got away from me so I'm just now considering getting back to blogging. 

Anyway I recently overheard friends talking about Greek yogurt and how they would like to learn to make it but it just seemed really complicated. Several years ago I learn to make Greek yogurt. It was either that or make a serious investment in whichever food company makes Fage because my children were going to break the bank with yogurt consumption. So in an effort to take some of the fear out of this super easy DIY I am putting fingers to type writer once again so that everyone can see just how easy this is.

There are only two "special tools" needed to make Greek yogurt...and only one if you don't plan to make it "Greek".

Tools and ingredients needed are:

Large microwave safe bowl (or stock pot if you choose to prepare this on the stove top top)

2 quarts (or more!) milk 

Cooking thermometer (Special tool #1)

1 spoonful of high-quality plain yogurt (I use Fage if I haven't made it in a while and am completely out of my homemade stuff, otherwise just use a spoonful from your last batch.)

Optional tools are:

Large stainless steel bowl filled with ice

Gallon sized fabric paint strainer (Special tool#2...buy these at Lowes and reuse them. I've had mine for years!)

Pitcher the paint strainer can fit over

Unless I am planning to make a very large batch (1 gallon or more of milk) of yogurt I use the microwave.  It's easy enough to do while I'm getting the kids out the door for school in the morning and I don't run as big a risk as forgetting it and scorching the milk.

So let's get started…

Pour your milk into your microwave safe bowl and heat your milk to between 175° - 180°. In my microwave it takes about 18 minutes. I normally stop and check it at about 12 and then continue to heat in three minute increments until it reaches the desired temperature. The heating process does something to the proteins that allow them to all line up in nice neat little ways so that your yogurt will actually set once you have added your cultures. It is really important you get your milk hot enough but don't boil it.

Once it is hot enough the hard part is over! If you are like me and tend to forget things I would recommend using our optional tools at this point. Otherwise you can just let the milk cool on it's own down to 115°. I normally forget it while it's cooling and then have to go back and reheat it because it gets too cold before I remember it. 

My fast prep method requires me to put the cooking bowl in the bowl of ice to drop the temperature quickly. If I pour the milk out of the bowl into a smaller stainless steel bowl and put that in the ice it cools down really fast…Usually less than two minutes!  If you are using this method make sure you keep your thermometer handy. You do not want your milk to drop under 110°.  Once your temp is at 115° pour it back into your cooking bowl and stir in your plain yogurt. 

If I am using my fast prep method before I drop the temperature on the milk I preheat my oven (otherwise, I do it when I remember I have forgotten about it!) Just turn the oven on and once you see the temperature starting to climb above 100° turn it off but turn the oven light on. The light will help maintain the temperature in the oven for 12 or more hours at a temperature warm enoughto allow the cultures to multiply.

Once you have added the yogurt to your milk cover it with either a lid or kitchen towel and put it in the oven. (Keep the light on!) Now go about your day and forget about it.

I know in our instant gratification society this can prove to be very difficult the first time or even the first few times you make it but trust me, leave it alone! Every time you open the oven your temperature will drop and you want your yogurt to stay nice and toasty warm. Also, once it is in the oven...do not stir it. The more the yogurt is disturbed once the cultures are in it the less likely it will set properly.

If you do this in the morning while you are getting your kiddos ready for school it should be ready to eat by the time they get home in the afternoon assuming it's been at least 6 to 8 hours. Lots of times I make this right before I go to bed at night and it is ready when we wake in the morning.

If you like warm yogurt now is the time to enjoy it! Once it comes out of the oven and you can see it has set up you can just grab a spoon and stir the whey back into it and enjoy your delicious snack. 

If you are like me and prefer Greek yogurt to the more runny version you will have a few more hours to wait.  At this point you want to use your paint strainer and a tall pitcher. 

Carefully spoon your yogurt into the paint strainer and allow the whey to drain off of it. Be careful to not just dump the yogurt into the paint strainer as the weight of the milk solids will push too much through the strainer and you'll lose a lot of yogurt.  I usually use a large serving spoon to transfer the yogurt to the strainer and pitcher at this point.  Once it is in the strainer I put it in the fridge for a few hours. I pour the whey off of it a couple of times during this period.  The mass of the yogurt will decrease to about half its original size depending on how long you strain it and how firm you want it.

There have been a couple of times I have strained it much firmer than intended and it has come out of the fridge with a consistency more like cream cheese then Greek yogurt. Fortunately there is an easy fix for this!

Turn the yogurt out of the paint strainer into a mixing bowl and whisk in some milk until it is the consistency that you would like. I usually just use the whisk attachment on my hand blender as it is the fastest way to achieve a smooth texture. Once you are happy with the texture move your yogurt to an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to a week.  Or better yet, drizzle a touch of honey on it add nuts, fruits or whatever your favorites things are to add to yogurt and enjoy tasting your "hard work" pay off!

Is this thing on?

Have I mentioned how loud my dishwasher is? I'm not talking about noise of water draining into the sink or a distracting but tolerable white noise of the motor running. I have no idea why, but it makes a grinding noise (there is no hard food grinder or disposer in it). The only thing I can liken it to is a garbage disposal that has been turned on...with a spoon in it! The odd part is that it doesn't make the noise for the entire cycle, nor does it make it every time for the same amount of time even when running the same cycle.

The first time I heard it was the first time the machine was run after we moved in. We cleaned the kitchen after making dinner in our single unpacked frying pan and half a dozen plates. Five minutes after the cycle started I realize DH had doubled the volume level on the TV and my children are screaming to be heard over it. I realized that the relatively quiet noise level of the dishwasher had gradually increased over that 5 minutes and now you couldn't be in the same room with it and think.  Worse, you couldn't be in a DIFFERENT room with it and still hear reasonable noise levels like the television or human speech from a 4 and 9 year old.  Honestly it felt like a kick in the teeth, just one more thing to add to the Great Big List of Fixits!

Our home is on a septic system so we have to be cognizant of how much water we are using at any given time.  This means that if I have run a couple loads of laundry before dinner and the kids are taking a bath after dinner I need to wait to run the dishwasher until the middle of the night so that the system has time to process all the wastewater.  Not a problem as most dishwashers these days have some kind of time delay.  A week or so after learning how loud the dishwasher was we discovered that the time delay feature didn't work.  Of course we would learn this after putting approximately half a load of dishes back in the kitchen cabinets thinking they had been washed.  We began looking for a new dishwasher the following weekend!

Now I should say that I am a "gadget junkie".  In most households this trait usually falls to the men but to be honest DH doesn't have time most days to keep up with important current events much less learn about the latest i-device or television to hit the world of technology.  I, on the other hand, love "bells and whistles", I've never owned a VCR (yes, I am that old) that had the time perpetually flashing 12:00, and as you can tell from my previous post, I know the difference between a power cord, coaxial cable and high definition multimedia interface (HDMI) cable.  This all means that going to the store to pick out a new kitchen appliance wasn't going to be easy as I have to temper my desire for the "latest and greatest" with my desire not to have to spend an arm and a leg to get it.  What makes the situation even harder is I do research....LOTS of research and read user reviews on virtually everything I buy.

I have come to the conclusion that when purchasing appliances (regardless of the appliance type) that research may not be as important as an extended warranty.  Every brand has their fan-boys, but no brands are made the way they were 20 years ago. Gone are they days that the washer and dryer set that you purchased when you got married would be the same set that you load up and move for your kid's to use for few years while renting a house with their friends while they are in college.  Now days you'll be lucky to get 4 or 5 years of use out of low-end machines and 10 out of the mac-daddy units.

I finally found the one I wanted, and placed an order for it online (because being willing to wait to have it ship from New York saved me $500 and I still got a 5 year onsite warranty).  Unfortunately I received an email indicating that the appliance was now on back-order from the manufacturer so would take longer that usual to arrive.  Fast forward one month and it finally arrived today!

My mother asked me when the installer was coming to put it in.  HA!  Seriously?! There are very few things I will pay someone to do around my house for me and they usually entail dealing with a gas line.  For anyone thinking they need to pay $199 to have someone install a dishwasher you should know that the hardest part is making sure you connect your water lines tight enough to not leak...but not so tight that they crack a connector and cause a leak.

The steps are pretty simple especially if you are just replacing an old dishwasher with the new.


First remove the old dishwasher (turn off the water line and power to it first!) so that you know if you have an outlet or direct wire coming from the wall.

Dishwasher space with direct wire from wall.

Connect the power.  (I find it easier to do the power before the unit is slid in if your cord will allow)

Connect 3 wires (hot, neutral and ground)

Slide the dishwasher into the provided space.  (Depending on your insulation this may be the most time consuming part as you don't want it bunching up and hanging out the front under the counter)

The insulation is the most challenging part of sliding the unit in under the counter top

Finally connect the water lines, secure unit to cabinets and install the handle if necessary!

Installed and ready for use!

Obviously this is an over-simplification as each unit is different.  But it isn't nearly as complicated as most installers and contractors would have you believe.  The nice thing is that now most companies make owners and installation manuals available for download so you can see what you are getting yourself into before the unit is delivered.  

We love the new unit.  Now the only thing we hear when it is running is the sound of our voices saying "Is this thing on?"

Hi-Def Headache

If you saw my last post I mentioned the need to replace a cable in our home theater. Judging from the giant snarl of cables, I am under the belief that when the PO was removing AV components he was not under contract to leave with the house he became very frustrated. This mess of cables was pretty tightly knotted up and by the time I sorted them all I I had found 3 cables that were not even connected to anything. I am assuming he finally threw up his hands in frustration and figured the grief spent untangling the mess wasn't worth his time and he decided to just purchase new cables when he set up in his next residence. Unfortunately another by-product of this frustration was a broken connector on the HDMI cable that ran from the receiver through the wall, up into the attic, down from the ceiling and plugged into the theater projector.

Damaged HDMI cable

I originally thought that this was "no big deal".  As with most any other cord, I figured I could slice the end off of it and attach a replacement.  Uhhh...NOPE!  turns out all of those little wires (19 in total) you see poking out are measured to EXACTLY the same length and though the new cable may actually transmit an image or sound with a new end is attached you run a risk of damaging your component.  

So now I have to run a new line inside the wall.  This realization did not make me happy as looking at the portion of cable I could actually pull out of the wall indicated that there was a good chance the cable was installed before the drywall went in (judging from the amount of mud on the cable) which meant it was possible that the cable could be stapled in along the wall somewhere or zig-zagged so many time that running a new one in the same location would be impossible without tearing out the wall.  With the other issues we have run across, I was prepared for the worst.

After 4 trips into the attic I FINALLY located where the wire came up the wall and across the ceiling to the projector.  I gave it a pretty good tug but it didn't want to budge.  But since we are talking about roughly 35 feet of cable it was possible it was just getting hung up on one turn or even a rough edge of drywall inside the wall.  Since HDMI cables are notoriously fragile on their connectors I decided my best bet was not to try to connect the old cable to the new cable and hope they pull through together but rather to use the old cable to pull a snake up to the attic.  If the snake managed to make its way up then the I could attached the new cable to it and pull it back down. 

After much pulling on my part at pushing on the part of my 9 year old darling daughter we finally managed to extract the old cable into the attic and out of the wall...with the snake taped to it.    Now we had to tape the new cable to the snake and pull it back down into the wall and out to connect to the home theater receiver.  But as I have stated...these connectors break pretty easily so I had to figure out how to pull it through the wall without damaging the new cord.

First we taped the new cable to the snake...and made sure that the protective cover was secure on the end of the cable so that any insulation it encountered wouldn't get inside the connector. As you can see though...this left a pretty blunt end to pull through the "unknown".  I needed something that would reduce the risk of the new cord snagging on something and becoming damaged.

New cable taped to snake

My brilliant solution came in the form of an empty paper towel roll!

Empty paper towel roll taped around connector end of new cable.

By wrapping the cardboard tube around the end of the new cable I could create a funnel shape and prevented the cable from snagging in the wall.  With a bit of tugging by DD and me feeding it down from the attic we finally managed to get the new cable installed...and without damage!

And once again, I got the chance to teach my girl that the only way she will ever know if she truly can't do something is to try it!  I could have easily paid to have someone come in and do this for us...but it is much more satisfying (and cheaper!) to know I did it myself...and my kids get to learn that lesson as well.  

My DIY assistant pulling the new cord through the wall.

The great big list of FIXITS!

You would think that a house that is less than 10 years old wouldn't have much to fix.  Ok, I would think that...and it has proven to be a very foolish thought!

You see I do expect things to be wrong in a house. Our old Wisconsin home was nearly 80 years old when we moved in so I expected things to be wrong with it and there were.  But there was nothing "major" and more or less it was a bit of deferred maintenance and some bad DIY choices on that part of previous owners than needed to be rectified.

Then of course our last home was new construction.  There wasn't much to do with it except iron out a few things on the punch list that the builder took care of...and just maintain it.  Things like replacing toilet flappers when the toilets continue to run after they are flushed.  Snake and flush out drains when they begin to run slowly, replace sprinkler heads when the lawn guys go over them with the mowers.  Simple stuff really and not really a problem.  That is unless you NEVER do them and then you sell your home to someone else.  Then it is a problem....just not yours.

Which leads me to today's post.  The great big list of FIXITS.  This is the list of deferred maintenance items and other build issues that we have discovered since moving in the middle of December 2012.

• Coping stones on the hot tub need to be reset (they can be picked up and carried off!)
• Tuckpoint bricks and stonework on facade of home
• Reseal expansion joints in decking and around pool.
• Paint and seal fence.
• Find out why within 3 days of moving in 5 lightbulbs blow. (I simply love electrical issues!)
• Replace the dishwasher as it makes a horrible grinding sound that wakes the dead every time it is turned on. (Ok, maybe not that bad...but it doesn't clean dishes very well...so it's gone!)
• Replace toilet flappers.
• Correctly patch holes left by previous owner who decided to use toothpaste or some other non-hardening substance to fill holes left by wall anchors.
• Replace tub in master bathroom as it appears jets were never cleaned and lines are now filled with nastiness that is likely to spawn some type of water-born illness.
• Replace broken deadbolt on side entrance and reset strike plates on all 3 back doors so deadbolts can actually be locked without lifting the doors up.
• Replace the spring tension latch on library door so it can be closed.
• Repair scratch marks on interior library door courtesy of POs canine resident.
• Repair and patch nail pops in ceiling of master bedroom
• Replace springs door stopper caps as 90% of them are missing.  I am assuming this is also something we can thank POs dog for.
• Replace front door! When the wind blows it sounds like a freight train is heading into our foyer thanks to a wooden door and western exposure in the Texas sun.  (Never a good idea to defer maintenance on a door and allow a 1/4 gap to form due to warping heat.)
• Replace weather stripping on door leading into garage from house as it too generates incredibly loud wind noise.  (This baffles me though as first the wind must enter the garage through the CLOSED double bay door and then enter the house to make all it's noise)
• Repair magnetic latches and shutter fins in the library and master bath and entryway.
• Repair the not-so-lovely drywall installation in the home theater.  (This is where POs covered a window...and left a large bulge in the wall....and cracked drywall.)
• Replace septic aerator and pump.  (Actually, we already did this as waiting was not an option unless we didn't mind it backing up into the house.)
• Correctly install outlet "blue boxes" in kitchen and garage so that covers stay flush to the wall.  
• Repair or replace the west window in the library as seal has broken and a draft strong enough to blow out flames is present when the wind blows
• Rid home of fleas.  (Ok...this is another one we have already remedied.  Waking to find my DS covered in bites is a good motivator for immediate action...and a temper tantrum!)
• Correctly install light/fan switches in each room.  Roughly 3/4 the rooms with ceiling fans were wired with the fan being the first accessible switch instead of the second.)
• Discover why there is no power to outlets in the library...possibly they are on the incorrectly labeled breaker in box that cannot be reset.  
• Drill grommet holes in library desk to accomodate a computer.  
• Convert all "phone" jacks that terminate in RJ11 ends to RJ45 to accommodate the already installed cat5 wiring.  I'm still wondering why a house built in 2006 doesn't have a single data line in the entire house.
• Replace the mismatched kitchen faucet...or at least repair it so that the water selector doesn't turn every time you use it so you think you are using cold water when in fact it is scalding.  
• Re-run HDMI cable that runs through the wall to the projector in movie room as PO was kind enough to break the existing one when he removed his components.
• Remove the heinously stinky decorative grass in the back yard.
• Install prep sink in kitchen so cooks do not have to walk 10 steps from cooktop to sink while preparing meals.
• Install tip-out trays on tip out panels in front of sinks.  Not sure why a builder would bother with installing the panel hardware if he wasn't going to put the trays in...but that's what was done.
• Replace missing baseboard trim in kitchen
• PAINT, PAINT, PAINT! 

So there you have it! The initial list of things that need to be done in this house.  This isn't a list of things that I actually want to do as much as needs to be done for safety and or sanity...except for paint...because every room in this house is a shade of brown, on top of brown floors, next to brown cabinets. These are things that should have been done by the builder to complete the house or done by the owner to maintain the home.  

There are days I seriously wonder if the people we purchased the home from actually needed to downsize...or if they had just put off so much stuff for so long that it was just easier to sell and "start over".  

On a positive note, this is a list long enough to keep me busy and feel like I am contributing something other than babysitting skills and menu planning.  

A little bit about the "Duck House"!

In 2006 we built a large home and moved in. I spent 6 years in a love/hate relationship with that house.

Our previous home had been a 1929 Chicago Style bungalow in the Midwest that I had done a lot of restoration on before a job had us move to the Dallas area.

I discovered after using a mass-spec builder that new homes left a lot to be desired in regards to the "character" of a home. Where my bungalow had 5 bedrooms in 1900 square feet and every inch oozed with charm...like an built-in buffet (with original 1929 stained glass doors) in the dining room and matching bookshelves and fireplace mantle in the living room. My new home had 4 bedrooms in 4500 feet and was a big vanilla box...with no charm and required lots of cleaning. The construction was good and the attention to detail (what detail there was) was good and eventually I came to love the house after adding my own charm!

Fast forward 6 years to and we find ourselves in the middle of a bad job relocation. At the "eleventh hour" my husband's previous employer offered him a new job and we were able to stay in Dallas. However, our home was under contract to sell and no amount of begging (or offering of money) could convince our buyers to back out of the contact.

A quick search of the local market found us a home that was perfect for us. On paper it had everything we were wanting and even a few "wish list" items we had talked about should we ever decide to build another home. These things included:

• All bedrooms (4) on the main floor (so DH doesn't have to take stairs on bad knees to tuck kids in!)
• A game room and home theater (for resale in the price point)
• A large yard (1 acre) with a swimming pool
• Eastern exposure on the pool and back yard (a "must" for outdoor entertainment in the summer and keeping cooling bills down in the main living areas of the home)
• Split his/her closets in the master bedroom.
• Double-headed shower in master bath
• Same school district as our previous home...but fewer taxes.

Yes, lots of these are luxury items and by no means constitute deal breakers when looking for a home...so finding this house really did check a lot of boxes. Initially the only thing we thought the house lacked was instant hot water at all the taps that our previous home had had. With water being more expensive to purchase in the new home, and having a swimming pool adding to our monthly bill, not having to flush 2 minutes worth of cold water down the drain every time we take a shower was worth having the home retrofit for.

Reality set it immediately upon moving in!

Because the home was built the same year as our last home (2006) it too lacked some "charm" but having dealt with that in the past I knew it was easily taken care of. Unfortunately the previous owners (PO) were not exactly on top of maintenance issues so my focus has to shift from "charm" to lots of "fixits". In addition, the builder of this home really dropped the ball in a lot of areas either in ways to "finish" the home, or mostly, make it livable in 2006 and beyond.

So that's why we are HERE! Stay tuned for our adventures in making a "new to us" house feel like our home.