Soy Milk

Speaking of allergies, over half my family is allergic to milk. Those of us who can't have "cow milk" or "boy milk" as Sariah calls it, drink "soy milk" or "girl milk." At it's cheapest, soy milk costs a whopping $5 per gallon. The more expensive brands like Silk can be up to $7 per gallon. For this reason, a couple of years back, Joseph gave me some information about a soy milk maker. We bought it and I used it for a good while and then stopped. Recently, I started making soy milk again. It takes approximately 25 minutes per batch and I have to make 6 batches every 5 days. It's quite a bit of work, but while the machine is doing it's work, like right now, I can:

1) Catch up on my Book of Mormon reading. I'm in the Isaiah chapters of 2nd Nephi right now. Loving those chapters more and more!

2) Observe several phases of the lunar eclipse. Right now, the moon is half-way covered by the earth's shadow. Supposedly near the end of the eclipse, I may see some turquoise color! May really wanted to see it, so I got her up and we viewed it together for a while. She was really grateful that I got her up. Nathan, on the other hand, wouldn't wake up. I kept asking him over and over if he wanted to see the lunar eclipse and he kept telling me "yes" and then wrapping the blanket back over himself and zonking!

3) Write a post about 'soy milk.'

4) Eat chocolate!

I got started late tonight, so I'm wildly tired. We read Elmer and the Dragon by Ruth Stiles Gannett in it's entirety before I sent the kids off to bed. I can't wait to get the final book in that series (Book #1 is My Father's Dragon and Book #3 is The Dragons of Blueland). This book had enough pictures that even Sariah could sit through it and enjoy it.

To fill the time until I can go off to dreamland, here's how soy milk is made, in case you've ever wondered.

First, I soak a mixture of soybeans, flax seeds, and oats over night or from morning until night depending on when I'm going to make the milk. They soak for 10-14 hours. I drain the beans etc. in a basket which attaches onto the soy milk maker (I use SoyaPower brand). I fill the soy milk maker with filtered water and add brown sugar, vanilla, and salt to the containers that will eventually hold the soy milk.


Then, I screw the basket onto the 'blender' part of the soy milk maker. The machine heats up the water and then blends the bean mixture. The basket has a very fine sieve effect so that the tiniest particles go out into the water, making the milk.


When the milk is finished the machine beeps at me. This is what I see when I take the machine apart:


I spoon all of that froth off the top and then using a fine mesh sieve, pour the milk into the container.

Finally, stir and refrigerate. Ready to go. Brigham and Sariah don't really mind the taste of the homemade milk. It grows on me over time. May and Joseph try to avoid it. I probably save $30-$40 dollars a month making this soy milk. Brigham still drinks about three 8 oz. bottles a day, which reminds me, I need to wean him off those bottles...still.