An update on the Sister's Quilt (Bra Quilt)

I forgot to mention earlier that i am still collecting bras for the Sister's Quilt. I have over a hundred at this point. I'm not exactly sure how many it will take as, well to be honest, they do come in a whole bunch of different sizes and styles. Then there is the design. I have a few roughs of what i'm working on and i'll post them the next time i write on this topic. It is very much still in the works. It's a project that i'm passionate about. It's a project that i believe in. Lastly, it's a project i hope will bring about some good for someone other than me and the personal satisfaction i'll get from building them.
At this point, i am very thankful the majority of the donations have been laundered. Though some of them were washed in some pretty flowery soap and so i rewashed them to keep my eyes and nose from falling off of my face.
Again, i want to thank you all for your words of encouragement and for donating your undies to my project. my target number is 500 and i know i'll get them
Until next time, Peace be with you. Dave

Almond Milk and the Pudding Dilemma

Okay, so it's starting to warm up outside and my thoughts magically turned toward "Nanner Puddin" this last weekend. I'm neither bashful nor afraid to say that i make the finest Banana Pudding in Texas!!! The only problem is that dang'd old milk sugar; Lactose. It does ugly things to my body as it does many others. So, the question is, how do i make pudding with Almond Milk or some other milk substitute and have it thicken up. There is an answer. It's not a pretty one, but there is an answer.

In case you didn't already know, instant pudding mixes thicken by way of the casein in real milk. None of the milk substitutes, that i know of, have the casein to make the instant mix pudding thicken. (I said milk substitute, and Lactaid Milk is not a milk substitute. Given that Lactose Intolerance is varied by individual, i'm strictly speaking about alternatives to milk in this posting.)

Okay, so last weekend i made a recipe called, "Tiramisu Bowl" Click here for the recipe. I made it as written except i used almond milk with cook and serve pudding. I cooled the pudding in a large cake pan on a rack and this worked out great!!!(just kinda FYI) I made the pudding as written and it was alright. The desert wasn't bad. My kids enjoyed it more than i did. The pudding element was lacking something. It was a textural thing. The pudding just wasn't as smooth and creamy as i'd have liked it to be.

I got to thinking the texture of the pudding had to have something to do with the protein.Those magical little strings that give body to so many of our foods and drinks. So i looked at the Moo milk jug and it's 8 grams of protein per cup of milk, where as the almond milk is only 1 gram of protein per cup. Instantly, i went old school. The answer as to how to increase the protein in the milk had to be the egg. The average egg yolk only has about three grams of protein in it, but.... and it's a big butt; it was just what the doctor ordered. I added one egg yolk per box or that would be two egg yolks for the big box and cooked it in a double boiler and it was rockin. Again, i used my large cake pan to cool the pudding quickly and i finally got to make my banana pudding. It was really good. It's not ready for braggin yet, but i'm workin on it. The pudding had a better consistency and lets face it, basically i made a custard. It worked out perfectly.

I haven't tried to make the pudding using the egg white yet. I will, but i imagine i'm going to have to turn the whites into meringue first and then stir them into the pudding slurry before cooking. By the by, the white contains a little more protein than the yolk so i have high hopes.

Never fear, i'll keep you posted on this one. For those of you that have asked, now we both know.

Until i'm inspired again, Peace be with you. D