I'd like to suggest the book "Not Milk... NUT MILKS!" by Candia Lea Cole if you are interested in making your own nut milks (cost savings - and fresh always seems to be best). She has some really great "milks" in her book besides the run-of-the-mill almond milk. Along with rice, there are other grain milks you can make (spelt, wheat, oats). Use a variety of nuts and even sunflower seeds, hemp seeds, sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds for non-dairy milks. You can also fortify your non-dairy "milk" products with things like mesquite meal, flaxmeal, chia seeds...which all have health benefits. Just two ounces of Chia seeds contain 600 mg of Calcium, compared with 120 mg for milk and they are high in other minerals (including Boron) helpful for bone health. Oat milk, although pretty tasty, great on cereal, has more protein than rice milk, but doesn't work well in cooking/baking. Rice milk doesn't work well in cooking/baking either. Hemp milk has enough protein to work fairly well in cooking. The protein content, and the type of protein, is where you may find you miss milk in cooking and baking. Milk proteins coagulate or precipate to form a solid clot or curd under certain circumstances. Some sauces may work well using a non-dairy milk substitute, some won't. To make pudding you will need to use a thickener like arrowroot, agar-agar or cornstarch. Almond Milk Pudding is actually very easy to make and you can find recipes on-line. Milk, in bread and many baked goods, is a tenderizer, adds protein and contributes to crust color, and you may miss some of those attributes, but it depends on how much milk you are substituting in any given recipe and what it contributes to the recipe. Look at the labels of the commercial non-dairy milks. Some of them are so loaded with ingredients to thicken and fortify it, and who knows what else, I'd tend to make my own. There may also be a down-side - there are many allergens associated with the nut milks, and many people who may be sensitive to avenin protein found in oats should avoid oat milk. If you are also avoiding butter, may I suggest coconut oil. It works not only in cooking and baking, but you can also use it as a bread-spread. You will find lots of recipes for using nut/seed/grain milks if you visit raw food sites, or check out vegan recipes. Sometimes it's easier to use recipes designed for those ingredients, to get accustomed to them, then start incorporating it into your favorite recipes. As a YUMMY non-dairy substitute for yogurt I have been fermenting coconut milk with real kefir grains, just like I make kefir with milk. I use coconut milk from reconstituted coconut milk powder. If you don't like the taste of coconut, this won't be a good substitute for you. Be sure to share more of your personal experiences using non-dairy milk alternatives. I, for one, would be interested in hearing your real experiences.... -Grainlady

Rusty asked, "So how would switching [to other forms] be of any benefit, price wise?" Buying ahead at current prices is the benefit. Forewarned is forearmed..... Think of it this way, if I buy $100 of powdered milk products at today's prices (something I normally use and it would be enough for a year) and it goes up 300%, I'll save a lot more on that purchase than if that same amount of money was in a savings account at today's interest rates over that same year. If dairy prices skyrocket for 6-months and then drop again over the next 6-months, I'm going to be able to use what I have in my home food storage, not change my buying habits or what I normally use, and my $125/month food budget won't take a hit - and that's my bottom-line. If nothing happens to the price of milk, I'm still good.... It's also easier to get accustomed to, or learn how to make and incorporate substitutes, before they are needed. I remember a few years ago on this message board during an ice or snow storm, people were posting us lists of food items they had on hand and were asking for help with what they could make to feed their families because they couldn't get out to go shopping and had to rely on what they had on hand. Those of us who practice home food storage do so to save money - first and foremost, be prepared for emergencies such as loss of income, natural disasters, interrupted food supplies, power outages, etc., and we are often good at finding options. I'm not going to wait until AFTER a disaster to prepare. -Grainlady

To dehydrate kale: Wash thoroughly. Remove stems (save to use in another dish, stir-fry, or soup). Cut the kale leaves (kitchen scissors work well for removing the stem and cutting the large leaves into smaller portions) or tear the kale into manageable-sized pieces. (After you've made dried kale once, you will decide what size/s of pieces work best for you and fit in your dehydrator.) Dip the cut pieces in an acidic water bath (1 t. citric acid powder, OR vitamin C powder,OR Fruit Fresh per quart of water). This aids in preventing bacteria growth, helps maintain color, and adds a little vitamin C. Drain (I give the cut pieces a gentle spin in my salad spinner). Place same-sized pieces together in a single layer on a dehydrator tray - or on one side of a tray if you mix sizes on a single tray. Equal-sized pieces will dry in approximately the same amount of time. If you put a combination of large, medium, and small pieces together on the same tray, the small pieces will finish drying first, and you will need to remove them so they don't over-dry - so keep the same sizes together as much as possible. Dry between 105-120-degrees F. until crispy dry (or about 4-6 hours). When crispy, allow the kale to cool to room temperature while on the trays (20-30 minutes). Don't let the dried kale sit in high humidity or it can rehydrate, and if enough moisture is absorbed, it can mold in storage. As soon as it is cool, store in an air-tight container and keep in a dark, cool place. This is a great way to "save" some less-than-perfect kale you forgot in the crisper drawer. -Grainlady

As long as there is no foul smell, you will know it if it is , then it should be ok.. I remember in the beginning I was using panty hose as a strainer , then realized they may be too tight to allow movment of the microbes from the hose. I then got me a 1 gal paint strainer and like it much better . Easier to use and you can wash it out and reuse it over and over.