Storing Dairy Products

The USDA wants me to point out that home canning dairy products is not recommended. If you choose to do it, eat at your own risk.

So you went and got yourself a cow or goat. Now what? Well once you get down the basics of milking, you start drinking and creating.

Cheese is a great way to hold on to you dairy (sharp cheddar takes 2 years to make). You can freeze it. Add a half tsp baking powder to you jar of milk, shake well. Leave enough headspace for it to "grow". The baking powder will help keep the liquid and fats from separating in storage. Or can it.

If you choose to can your own milk, do not pasteurize it first. Make sure you are working with clean and sterile equipment.

Pour the milk into your hot sterile jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace, secure lids. Process in a pressure canner at 10 lbs. Minimum time is 20 minutes for pints, 25 minutes for quarts.

You might also think about canning your butter as well. mmpaints has a great post on how to do this.

If companies such as Red Feather can sell canned butter, than why is it when we can it at home it's not safe? There's plenty of information on the web concerning the pro's and cons of canning butter. I am here to tell you that I am currently eating butter out of a jar that's been on a shelf in my pantry for a year and I'm still alive.

Read the enitre post on the APN Forums here>>>