Bring 5 cups water to a boil. Remove 1 cup of water and pour it into the glass jar to sterilize it. Cover tightly and shake it around so that the hot water reaches all parts of the jar. Discard water.

Allow the remaining 4 cups of water in the pan to cool slightly, then stir in the non-fat dry milk powder; stir until dissolved.

Remove 1 cup commercial buttermilk from the refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature.

When the boiled water/milk powder cools to 70-80°F, stir in the room temperature buttermilk.

Cover jar with cheesecloth (do not cap). Set aside until the mixture is clabbered (about 12-18 hours). The buttermilk will thicken.

Cover tightly and refrigerate until needed.

Always reserve 1 cup of the buttermilk as a starter for the next batch. Making buttermilk is similar to making yogurt; to be successful, you'll need to start off with buttermilk that contains active live cultures.

Cooks Note: If you're in a hurry, the boiled water step may be skipped, but we like to begin with sterilized water to make a good environment for the buttermilk cultures. You may also use bottled or filtered water.

Submitted by: CM