Titus 2 Homemakers

The Kitchen is the Heart of the Home => The Recipe Box => : Shelly September 08, 2013, 07:57:33 PM

: Do it yourself - Make things you normally buy!
: Shelly September 08, 2013, 07:57:33 PM
I figured out quite by accident that you can make your own potato starch which can be substituted where you would normally use cornstarch.  I checked what I did online and sure enough, I did it right.  I didn't even mean to.  I just found the starch after grating potatoes and decided to try drying it.  ;D


Feel free to reply to this thread and include techniques and recipes for things you can make at home, but most people buy

So here's what to do:

Potato Starch

Grate potatoes (use later for hash browns or tater tots)

Scrape everything (potatoes and any liquid) into a bowl of cold water.  Be sure to scrape ALL milky water off of plate or out of processor or whatever you used to grate the potatoes.  That milky stuff is the starch!

Place a colander inside of a bigger bowl and line colander with cheese cloth doubled over.

Pour potatoes and water into colander

Gather up corners of cheese cloth and squeeze out the water.  Transfer this water to another bowl and place colander back.  Place potatoes back into original bowl and cover with more cold water.  Lay cheesecloth back in colander.  Dump back into cheesecloth and squeeze.  Transfer that water to the bowl with the first batch of water.  Repeat until water is pretty clear when squeezed out of cheesecloth.  Basically you're just rinsing the potatoes over and over.

Now, put your potatoes into some cold water and a dash of lemon juice and set aside (in fridge if you're not using them right now)

By now, your potato rinsed water should have a bunch of white sediment.  This is the starch.  Carefully pour off the water and gather the white sludge from the bottom of the bowl.  Using a scraper, spread it either onto a fruit leather tray for a dehydrator if you have one or spread it on some parchment on a cookie sheet.

If you plan to use a dehydrator, put it on low 105F to 115F for about an hour.

For the cookie sheet, I put it in my oven on low (200F on my oven) and it took about 10 minutes to fully dry.  I scraped it off and put it in a jar.  You can run it through any type of processor to get it really fine and powdery.  I used my little electric coffee grinder.  A magic bullet would work well too.  I'm sure you can use it unprocessed as well.



: Re: Do it yourself - Make things you normally buy!
: Andrea G September 09, 2013, 05:56:05 AM
I would never have thought of this. Does it work as well as corn starch for thickening things?
: Re: Do it yourself - Make things you normally buy!
: Shelly September 09, 2013, 09:20:50 AM
I'm going to be trying that tonight :)  I'll letcha know.
: Re: Do it yourself - Make things you normally buy!
: Shelly September 13, 2013, 10:45:37 AM
I LOVE this recipe for homemade tater tots.  I have made them many times and have substituted grated squash to make squash tots.  :)

http://www.canyoustayfordinner.com/2011/05/12/homemade-tater-tots/  She has many great recipes on her site.

Tater Tots

serves 5, as a side dish

3 medium potatoes, finely grated and dried well

1/4 cup all purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt, plus more for serving

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 cup canola oil

 

Mix the potatoes with the flour, salt, and pepper. Form into 1” logs.

Heat oil in a large pot until it is so hot that dripping a drop of water on the surface immediately sizzles and spatters. Add tots and fry until all sides are golden brown.

Serve hot with extra salt and an endless supply of ketchup.
: Re: Do it yourself - Make things you normally buy!
: luvs2scrpbk September 19, 2013, 05:21:26 PM
Thanks for the Tater Tot's recipe, I would never have thought.......

Homemade Catalina French Dressing

1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup vinegar
1/2 cup to 1 cup salad oil
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp paprika
1 small onion diced

Beat well until thoroughly blended

From More Family Favorites by Mary Beth Roe
: Re: Do it yourself - Make things you normally buy!
: Noora September 30, 2013, 03:11:30 PM
I would never have thought of this. Does it work as well as corn starch for thickening things?

I'm from Germany originally, and pretty much all we used there was potato starch. Usually it's storebought like you do with cornstarch here, but I noticed when peeling potatoes (and perhaps cutting them up for a recipe in advance) and putting then in cold water to avoid discoloration, this "white stuff" would collect in the bottom. Starch, of course! ;) I never went to the trouble of saving/using it, but yes -- it thickens just as nicely as corn starch.  :)
: Re: Do it yourself - Make things you normally buy!
: Shelly October 07, 2013, 10:51:15 AM
http://www.humblebeeandme.com/diy-natural-clay-mascara-that-actually-works/ 

I'm posting the recipe here in case the blog disappears, but please visit her blog for full description and LOTS of pictures and step by step instructions.

Homemade mascara!

Clay Mascara
4½ tsp Australian black clay
½ tsp Australian red reef clay
Pinch guar gum
¼ tsp vegetable glycerin
1¾ tsp water

Stir together the clays and guar gum in a small dish. Add the vegetable glycerin and water. Stir/mash to combine (you may have to add more water, but be cautious—too much water will give you a mascara that is not viscous enough to apply/have any effect).

You can store it in a new mascara tube if you have one (seriously, do not try to clean out an old one, that is an exercise in futility, only to then discover that you will not actually be able to get any mascara through the tiny hole at the top). However, I find I prefer to keep it in a small 5g jar, where I can dip my brush in and then wipe off the excess to my taste.

When applying, be sure to experiment with different brushes—I find bristley ones work better than the silicone/plasticky/spikey ones.
: Re: Do it yourself - Make things you normally buy!
: Shelly October 13, 2013, 08:28:28 PM
I would never have thought of this. Does it work as well as corn starch for thickening things?

I finally got around to using it tonight.  It worked the same as cornstarch as Noora said.  The texture was better IMO.  It's was... silkier?  That's the way my husband described it and I'd agree.  Much smoother.
: Re: Do it yourself - Make things you normally buy!
: gaggleofseven October 19, 2013, 10:37:11 AM
I've started making my own oatmeal "packets" so everyone can fix their own breakfast in the morning. I put 1/4 C. quick oats and 1 T. brown sugar into several small storage containers. I'm storing the containers in the cabinet, then each person can empty the contents into a bowl and add 1/2 C. boiling water. I like to stir 2 T. peanut butter into mine. One daughter puts dehydrated fruit into her bowl before adding the boiling water.
: Re: Do it yourself - Make things you normally buy!
: Cheryl October 19, 2013, 01:03:45 PM
I've started making my own oatmeal "packets" so everyone can fix their own breakfast in the morning. I put 1/4 C. quick oats and 1 T. brown sugar into several small storage containers. I'm storing the containers in the cabinet, then each person can empty the contents into a bowl and add 1/2 C. boiling water. I like to stir 2 T. peanut butter into mine. One daughter puts dehydrated fruit into her bowl before adding the boiling water.

I like this idea! :)
: Re: Do it yourself - Make things you normally buy!
: Cheryl November 02, 2013, 01:55:45 PM
Creamy Italian Dressing

From the Better Homes & Gardens New Cook Book

3/4 cup mayonnaise or salad dressing (I used mayonnaise)
1/4 cup dairy sour cream
2 tsp. white wine vinegar or white vinegar (I used white vinegar)
1/4 tsp. dry mustard
1/4 tsp. dried basil, crushed
1/4 tsp. dried oregano, crushed
1/8 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. garlic powder
1-2 T milk (optional)  (I didn't use this)
In a mixing bowl, stir together mayonnaise, salad dressing, sour cream, vinegar, mustard, basil, oregano, salt, and garlic powder.  Cover and store in the refrigerator up to 2 weeks.  If necessary, stir in milk to make of desired consistency.  Makes 1 cup.

*I tweaked it a little for our tastes.  Here's what I did -
I mixed it up as written then added 2 T red wine vinegar, about 1/4 teaspoon onion powder, and about 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic. 
: Re: Do it yourself - Make things you normally buy!
: wrancher November 02, 2013, 06:59:54 PM
Homemade Noodles for chicken and noodles

1 cup flour
2 eggs
and a little salt

Yep that easy! Stir together, roll out on flour and cut, and drop in soup.