How to make yoghurt

• Take one bag of milk, pour into saucepan, and put a lid on
• Turn on the heat to about 4 (medium-low), leave lid on and heat gently for 10 minutes
• Stir to get sticky bits off bottom
• The milk is ready when the smell changes to 'nutty', and little, frothy bubbles show up when stirring (depending on the stove between 10-15 minutes)

• Let it cool until the outside of the pan is the temperature of a very warm bath
• You can put the sauce pan in a larger bowl with a bit of water to speed up the cooling
• When the milk is a good temperature sprinkle the powder, or dump in reserved yoghurt from last batch, and stir well

How to become a little bit more self-sufficient (even if you live in the city)

Being more self-sufficient also means saving a bit of money. This is what's called a 'win-win', I believe! If this is super new for you choose one item off this list, and start from there.

1. Have some herbs in pots in a sunny window.

My kitchen is too dark to keep plants in, so all of my herbs, and my lemon and bay trees have ended up in my daughter's 'study'. She likes being surrounded by plants while she works, and her window faces nearly directly south, so everybody is happy. Between this and my outdoor herb garden I haven't had to buy anything except annual herbs for years, and I have enough to give away as gifts, as well as make my food extra yummy for the whole year. I honestly believe this is why my roast chicken and soups are as good as it is. Fresh, or freshly dried, herbs really do make all the difference.

Thrifty garden goodness- pea pod soup

Pea Pod Soup

Ingredients
a colander's worth of empty pea pods (use fresh pods from your garden)
water
1 large onion
1 large or 2 small potatoes
a handful of fresh mint leaves (from your own garden if possible)
1 clove garlic
1 Tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper
garnish with chopped green onions and/or cream or yoghurt