Powdered Milk - It Does a Wallet Good

Every Frugal out there knows that powdered milk can be a valuable weapon in your money-saving arsenal. (Of course, that is, if you can find it for a very good per gallon price as compared to regular milk prices of your area). This is our only source of milk. Milk in Texas is very expensive (more than California, which is usually more expensive across the board), which is odd to me because there is a cow on every corner out here (even in the suburbs!).

Mixing powdered milk used to be a HUGE annoyance to me, but I still did it because I felt the savings were worthwhile. However, it’s like any cheapskate endeavor, I suppose (like hanging laundry) - once you get the hang of it, it is pretty easy to do lickety-split. So, if the reason you haven’t been using this tightwad mainstay is because you think it is very inconvenient, maybe these pointers will make you rethink this. Here is how the process goes for me:

1. Oops! Looks like I’m getting low. Time to make some more.

2. Easy to gather everything I need because I keep everything close by: Dry Milk (I always buy this brand no matter what because I really like the picture of the cow on the box. Ha, ha just kidding - this was purchased at Sam’s Club for 13.66 and makes 22 quarts (at 4 quarts to 1 gallon that equals 5.5 gallons per box. 13.66 /5.5=2.48 per gallon. Today’s Sam’s Club price for 1 gallon nonfat is 3.09 (this seems to change a lot, I was there last month and it was 3.48) a .61 savings per gallon. Good enough savings for me. I proceed); gallon of cold water I always have in the fridge; big wooden spoon to mix; big 4 cup glass measuring cup as well as a 1 cup and 1/3 cup size (it takes 5 1/3 cups of milk powder to make a gallon liquid - I measure 4 cups into the glass measuring cup, then add to it 1 cup than 1/3 cup - it is big enough to hold the entire 5 1/3 cups even though it is officially only a 4 cupper); Rubbermaid Gallon container (I purchased two of these at Walmart 2 years ago for 2.50 each; we go through about a gallon of milk a week so I guess I have used these at least 208 times. That means that today when I use this container it is costing me .02 to use it, but this goes down every single time I use it. I will tell you later why I felt it was worthwhile to buy these when there are readily available “free” options); funnel.

3. I pour the 5 1/3 cups of milk powder into my gallon container, using my big funnel to make it easier; all 5 1/3 cups of milk powder fits in this funnel (I can’t tell you how much the funnel adds to the price of my milk because I don’t know where I got it and how much I paid for it. If, as I suspect, I swiped it from my mother, then it was free, other than the incalculable cost that this act of larceny has taken on my soul).

4. Next, I pour cold water on top of the dry milk powder, up to the gallon mark on the Rubbermaid container. This will give your milk a nice frothy head, but you will still be able to make a gallon’s worth of milk; just ignore the exuberant bubbles coming out the top and keep pouring until you hit the top of that gallon mark. Don’t be frightened, it’s not that messy.

5. Now I use this big wooden spoon that I found in my messy “big” utensil drawer to mix the milk. I love this spoon for mixing up milk because it has such a big “paddle” on it that it makes the job very easy. A very little mixing with this monster makes for a smooth liquid with no lumps at all.

6. Aahhh! A fresh new gallon waiting in the wings. I never run out of milk.

Even with “staging” and taking photos, it took me less than 5 minutes to make this milk. Here is what I used to use when making powdered milk was a big pain for me:

A “recycled” milk jug: this was a “free” container, so the best cheapskate choice. However the small opening in the top made for tough mixing. Also, I used a lot of soap and hot water to make sure it was clean after each use - shaking and refilling a bunch of times to clean it (I didn’t have a small enough scrubby brush that would fit in that little hole.) Also, I only happened to have the one container, so I couldn’t have a fresh, full gallon waiting in the wings when the current gallon was on fumes. So, the $2.50 gallon Rubbermaid containers seemed a reasonable compromise considering these inconveniences. (Note: I have recently seen these self-same containers available at Target for $5.97. Yikes! This is the only difference from the $2.50 Walmart version- they are billed as a new “Spring” model, with pretty pastel-colored lids. Hee hee! A+ for effort, Rubbermaid.). The opening on the Rubbermaids is much wider, making it much easier to get stuff in, and to clean thoroughly; Funnel; Metal Skewer for Shish Kebobs: I used this upside down to mix my milk. It was the longest thing I had that was skinny enough to fit in the top of the milk jug. It worked ok, but I still had to do a lot of shaking after mixing, and lumps and sticky clumps where not always completely dissolved (though they would dissolve eventually after sitting in the fridge a bit). Also, this thing was always hard to find, it is so skinny and such an unobtrusive color that I always had a hard time locating it in my messy “big” utensils drawer - I had a hard time finding it today!; Single 1 cup measuring cup and single 1/3 cup measuring cup : Whew! It is a DRAG and a MESS to use these to measure out 5 1/3 cups of milk powder.

So there you go. Reading this is a lot, but doing it is very easy. And if you feel that the .61 cost savings is not enough to justify the time, remember that 1. you save by not having to run to the story for emergency milk runs;also, if you work it right you really never have to run out of milk 2. you may find less expensive powdered milk in your area (I have found store brands for less and I like them just as much as Carnation) 3. If you drink a lot of milk in your house, .61 adds up fast and 4. By doing this, you are probably doing your little “green” bit to help the planet survive another 10 years. There may be a taste consideration for you, but all I can say to that is that I like powdered milk just fine and I drink a lot of it. You can buy a smaller (much more expensive) container to give it a whirl before you decide to switch. It would be worth it. Even if you decide that powdered milk isn’t for you, this small (more expensive) package wouldn’t be a waste because you can use it in baking (if you bake, of course).

Well, with this post I have officially concluded my very first 5-day work-week of blogging. I have decided to blog Monday thru Friday just like a real (but much more fun, of course) job. So everyone have a nice weekend and I’ll see you Monday!