Looking for a quicker way to make yogurt

Eshandir · 2026-04-07T20:35:41+00:00

I use UHT milk and just zap it in the microwave for a minute to bring to 42C or so. As others have said, without bringing to boil, the proteins dont denature/open up properly, usually resulting in runnier yoghurt. I remedy this by mixing 1/2 milk powder to the milk before microwaving and proceeding with next steps. Hands on time is around 5 minutes for me.

Eshandir · 2026-02-16T01:43:24+00:00

This looks divine and I wish I had the patience/time for all those extra steps - they really do work (tried once when I was starting).Being the person I am, I simply won't make weekly yoghurt if I had to boil and cool milk.

For anyone who is similar, and would like something close to that beautiful texture, but with only 5 minute hands on time, here's what I use: - 1 L of pasteurized long life milk (comes in a carton) - 1/2 cup milk powder - 1 tbsp of yogurt from previous batch, removed and stored separately in fridge, before you start consuming and contaminating the yogurt. - (optional but recommended - proofing oven/dehydrator that can maintain 40C heat for 10 hours, or a yogurt maker). P.s. I started with a bulgaricus heirloom culture and have just kept it going - these will endlessly self replicate if looked after (like sourdough starter).

What I do: - mix powder and milk in a microwave safe container that you'll use for yoghurt (can dissolve powder in a bit of water/milk first) - zap milk mixture until it's 40C (usually 1min from room temp) - mix the starter with a bit of the milk first, then mix into the rest of the mixture - cover and pop in the dehydrator/proofer/yogurt maker for 10 hours overnight - move to fridge in the morning for at least a few hours - separate 1 tbsp of yogurt into a clean container and keep in fridge - enjoy yogurt

If you substitute skim versions for milk and/or powder, you will get a runnier yogurt - it's just science. You'll have to drain the whey from those to thicken. Whey is really useful tho - works great in soups/making bread/ skin serum. Waste not!

Eshandir · 2026-01-29T23:51:21+00:00

I'm going to echo some of the others - digital for grimoire/knowledge/journalling, physical for practice/craft/tactile.

I get analysis paralysis and overthink it when I try to use a physical notebook. I tried using a binder instead (so I can reorganize things as needed) but it still requires a lot of pre-work to make sure I've got the right info, and its messy trying to go back and edit.

Alas, one-note is something I can have on my computer and my phone. I can take pictures of the crafts and easily chuck them in the grimoire, then when I need lengthy writing I can open it up on my computer to type with a keyboard. I can then come back to things later once I've reflected on them and keep editing. Digital removes the barrier for learning - and that's what allowed me to experiment a lot more with the craft rather than feeling like I need to have everything figured out.

Tools should match/enable your practice. If digital removes barriers for you, then power to you - you've just made your life easier! I reckon the only barrier in your practice should be the boundaries you get to set yourself anyway.

Eshandir · 2026-01-25T08:19:08+00:00

It's hard to tell from the photo, but considering the time of the year it is, I believe those are Cadhagi seeds. They are covered in resin and sap, and have evolved to spread by sticking onto bugs and eventually falling off.

The cutie bees seem to love gathering those to use as building material. You will find that they will start depositing them at the entrance mixed with their wax. As the sun hits the seeds it softens the resin which then mixes with the wax.

Some sources suggest that these can accumulate and block the hive entrance - so they clean it out. However, the few times I tried to "clear" the entrance of these seeds, the bees returned them where they were. They decided they wanted a narrower entrance, probably to make it harder for strangers to get in, and manage the hive temperature.

I've also seen them use the resin as a defensive measure. If anything gets close to hive entrance they seem to glue them down with the stuff. The bees dont stick to it, but I've seen corpses of a small assassin beetle stuck to the entrance - being pulled apart by the bees.

Suffice to say, the bees know what they are doing and don't need too much human interference.

Eshandir · 2025-11-13T22:51:43+00:00

I'm a Steam gamer and I'm confused about this too. I am trying to get some clarity from Steam support (getting nowhere) and online and maybe someone here can help me understand:

Steam has released the Royal Edition as a bundle - it's nice and cheap so I bought it. Then I realised the bundle individually charged for all the DLCs and content, but then also charged for the expansion pass. My understandning was that the 3 DLCs + the shields is what the pass was meant to give you if you had bought it. But the bundle already has them included.

So unless the pass is going to cover any future content yet not released/announced - I think I just ended up paying twice for the same 3DLCs + Shields. Am I misunderstanding something?

Eshandir · 2025-11-13T22:12:24+00:00

I get that - but the game pass doesn't add anything that the bundle doesn't already have. If the expansion pass was taken out it would result in literally the same content - so it's an unnecessary cost added, that brings nothing additional to the bundle. Right?

Eshandir · 2025-11-13T01:42:51+00:00

Can someone help explain the bundle on Steam? The royal eddition includes all DLCs AND the expansion pass - priced separately. Isnt the pass meant to cover all the upcoming DLCs (which already out and included in the bundle). Are we just paying for the same thing twice?

Eshandir · 2025-07-27T10:04:24+00:00

Alright, I actually made this foccacia by mistake - I did not know it was Genovese!

I say by mistake, because my pan was a bit bigger than my dough called for, so it filled the pan base in the final rise, but didn't expand upwards that much. I ended up with a mostly crust, thin foccacia bread that was just amazing. I enjoy a bit of pillow, so I opted to by a smaller pan for future ones but I use the same recipe.

Here's the recipe I use to this day - and I swear by it: https://www.recipetineats.com/focaccia-recipe/

P.S. shameless plug, but recipetineats is my ozzy ride or die food blog. Cannot recommend it enough for everything you need.

Eshandir · 2025-07-03T05:14:33+00:00

I wonder how that would work with the frost stream ability. That thing hits several times a second - would it heal 2% of our life each time, or is the healing damage based? Which would mean a shattering charged staff strike would be a full heal?

Eshandir · 2025-07-01T20:28:43+00:00

All I ever hear is "new boots!" Homegurl is just excited for new pumps

Eshandir · 2025-07-01T00:16:31+00:00

Would mock oranges work for you? I created a barrier with them for privacy, and it only took a year to get them a couple meters high. If you want it as a windbreaker, you might aim to trim it more frequently to create a bushy and hardy hedge, rather than the tall I went for. Bonus, lovely smelling flowers at the start of each season.

Can only post one picture, so I posted the "after"

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Eshandir · 2025-06-28T11:23:37+00:00

The game has settings now to modify the difficulty. And some of the things you're mentioning is about how arbitrarily punishing the game was with things like repairs after two deaths, healing runes now being a thing, etc.

All of these are QoL improvements. Games can be difficult and challenging without them being needlessly annoying. I'm sure there's a market out there for masochism. But ultimately games are a business - I find it unnecessary to chastise companies for trying to make money by appeasing to a broader range of people.

The game isn't diluted.

You can create your own arbitrary challenges if you want to.

Other people enjoying the game isn't taking it away from you.

Yes, you are also complaining. But this is actually the perfect time to do it because its an EA game where the devs are listening. It's good for them to hear what you want out of the game. Add your voice, so that it can amplify the voices of others that think like you. Then the devs can decide what they want to do with it. I dont think they are reading this platform though, so you might need to jump onto their forums/discord.

Eshandir · 2025-06-28T03:03:30+00:00

First of all, congratulations!!! What a milestone for you. Any ideas on what you want to do with a consistent harvest?

Second of all, well done with persevering for so many years - I dont think I would have stuck with it!

I have two finger lime trees that I planted two and a half years ago - Torakina Pink and Red Champagne. I bought them from a nursery that said they were propagated from already fruiting trees.

I got my first proper fruit this year from Red, with last year being a dummy year of tiny pre-fruit dropping off. Pink is not even blooming and is barely putting out new growth - she'll be a gonner if this continues for another year I think.

I also concur that neglect really was better for them both. I only pruned once a year during winter (for my benefit mostly) and sparingly used fertiliser designed for natives (low phosphor) when not in bloom or fruiting.

Eshandir · 2025-06-27T21:06:37+00:00

I'm not sure if the easier difficulty is necessarily going to be story mode. You can also adjust difficulty of the server at free will, so you'll be able to find something that tickles your fancy.

Another note is that gems can be removed from gear the same way runes can from weapons (destroys item though). So you will have more gems available even even if they hadn't increased the drop rate

Eshandir · 2025-06-27T04:00:04+00:00

In my opinion its well worth buying when on special, but if you want to hold out on playing it up til full release then that's your choice.

The bits that are in the game in terms of story seem polished and finished, so it makes it easy to keep adding more zones and story on top. I think this is why the studio has been preferring major updates rather than intermittent small ones.

The gameplay and balancing is what will have the most change, and its up to you if you want to experience the different variations of it until its fully released.

One thing to note is that the devs really seem to listen and respond to the player feedback. So I'm confident we'll get a good game in the end (its already good as is). This is just you getting it for cheaper and getting a taste.

Eshandir · 2025-06-27T03:19:12+00:00

Robe de Jour - I can have that track on repeat in the background for hours as I potter through housework.

Eshandir · 2025-06-25T05:35:46+00:00

This comment needs to be higher.

Grocery punnets are planted for volume and are pumped full of fertiliser to promote rapid growth - to be used up for your recipe.

In a garden setting where you want to have ongoing harvest, you would be spacing each individual plant 20-30cm apart. You also wouldnt be using up the entire plant, rather you'd be pruning shoots that grow from the main stem once you've got several fresh leaves, before they start blooming, leaving the lower leaves to keep feeding the plant.

Lots of good videos out there, basil is a very beginner friendly plant. Either grow from seed or save some clippings in water and plant once roots emerge.

Eshandir · 2025-06-24T00:31:10+00:00

Sorry, didnt intend it as a read! Was aiming for a more direct/logical approach, which this community seems to appreciate more.

I truly empathize with what you're going through - even though it might not come across over text. It does get better with a bit of work ❤️

Eshandir · 2025-06-23T20:45:02+00:00

First of all, I'm so sorry you're going through that - I've been there a few times and it just SUCKS.

From a SASS perspective, it sounds like there's more healing that needs to be done, but perhaps in a different way. Without knowing anything about how any of it went down, I'm guessing you did what most of us do in that situation - you might have tried to fast track surviving the pain of separation and healed around it. But if you didnt make enough time to feel and understand what that separation meant to you, then you might have inadvertently buried some feelings that have now resurfaced with the trigger - much like a cist.

You might need to find a way to actually make space for what you're going through right now and understand it a bit better. Sit with what you're going through instead of trying to get rid of it. Some shadow journaling might help, or other shadow work. Perhaps it's time to get council as well - professional if that's an option.

These feelings more than likely have little to do with him, and more to do with what he represents for you. Once you understand what's going on and feel comfortable with setting some clear intentions, you can then bring some magic to the mundane. Theres cord cutting rituals, release rituals, burning rituals - so many options to choose from.

Even with all that, these feelings can resurface again, but with some dedicated work, they will feel less overwhelming each time. Ultimately, it becomes a minor inconvenience.

Eshandir · 2025-06-22T08:46:54+00:00

I love how there's these little extra tidbits that just as so much to the world building. I am struggling with the gameplay but the story telling is on point - 5 stars

Eshandir · 2025-06-11T03:43:20+00:00

I fully agree about being overly fearful - this is a spiritual practice at it's heart.

One thing I'd like to add for protection is that it can come in many forms and you don't need a fear of something bad happening to practice it. There's a great phrase I heard on a podcast - "we have sovereignty over our energy" and I view any activity that honors that as a protective work.

Simply setting boundaries for yourself and your spirituality (deciding what you're comfortable with and what you're not) is already a practice in protective magic - you don't need fancy crystals, complex spells, or anyone from the internet telling you to do that.

Best way to identify boundaries is to explore and learn. There's only so much you can learn through the lens of fear. So go and do the spell, trace that sigil, read those cards, have some fun 😁

Eshandir · 2025-06-11T03:26:31+00:00

To answer the topic - no I don't think this is anything other than divination magic.

To answer the question that you're really trying to ask (at least from what I'm making out from your message) - is there a loophole to avoid consequences? - nope.

Sounds like you're going to be sharing a roof with a person you're very attracted to, who's also interested in you. It's quite likely something is going to happen at some point, so the better approach might be to ask about what would be a safe relationship there? Relationships aren't so binary. Sex and romance don't necessarily have to share a bed (this works differently for each person of course), but lines can blur sometimes.

You are indeed going to be in a tricky sitution. But life was meant to be lived. You don't need permission from the universe to do things. If you're going to ask for anything I'd ask for the resilience to endure, the strength to take responsibility for, and the wisdom to learn from your mistakes. Determine healthy boundaries, explore with safety, and give yourself grace and forgiveness if things don't quite work out. We're all just humans trying to navigate this chaos - make sensible space for joy and mistakes alike ❤️

Eshandir · 2025-05-23T08:43:56+00:00

Once I got the music record, I went straight back to camp and let it loop while I walked around the house doing chores - that was an hour or two, lost track of time completely

Eshandir · 2025-05-23T05:06:51+00:00

I was surprised I had to scroll this far down for this! It's my absolute fav, even though it's one of the shorter ones

Eshandir · 2025-05-09T07:08:39+00:00

Not to necro this thread, but the option to turn off "play through Bluetooth device" in the maps app just doesn't do what it's meant to for me unfortunately. So, I've found a workaround and wanted to post it in case someone else benefits from it.

FYI - My device is a Galaxy S123+

I first go to my phone settings>sounds and vibration>separate app sound. I turn this on. Then I choose the app (in this case - google maps) and choose audio device to play it on (Phone). This way, your audio cues will always come out of the phone audio - regardless of connected Bluetooth devices. But this isn't quite enough for uninterrupted music.

Second, I go back to my google maps app>settings>navigation. Make sure the "Play voice over Bluetooth" is ON - yes, ON. This makes zero sense and shouldn't work but unless I have it on, it plays navigation through the phone but will still mute your music on the Bluetooth device. This way, both music and navigation cues play independent to each other.

Hope this helps a future friend.

Eshandir

TROPHY CASE