Whey to Go

The whey from the cottage cheese has been in the fridge long enough. Time to find a use for it. 

Reddit hasn't let me down so far! Here's the recipe I chose from this thread: 

whey Carmel: 2 quarts Whey 2 cups Sugar 4 ounces Butter 1 tablespoon Vanilla Extract 1 Hefty pinch of salt Simmer the whey in a heavy bottom pot on medium until it reduces by about half. Skim the foam off the top if needed. You could probably do this part at a higher temperature while keeping a close eye on it and stirring frequently so it doesn’t scorch. I like the hands off factor of this recipe, so once I got it to a slow simmer I walked away from it for an hour. After about 1- 1 1/2 hours your whey should be reduced by half and you can add the cane sugar. Stir it until the sugar is melted and it comes back to a simmer. Leave it again to simmer and caramelize. Check on it periodically to stir and assess the progress. Once you add the sugar, the caramelization process will take just over an hour. As it cooks down and caramelizes it will start to bubble and foam, keep it going on low and keep an eye on the color. Once the color is a medium-dark amber (your preference) and the viscosity looks like syrup add the cold butter and stir as it melts, continue to stir until the butter is completely mixed in. Add salt and vanilla extract

Seems simple enough. I'm making a half recipe. 

Or, I was...

I poured the whey in my pot, keeping an eye on it as it heated. 

Seemed at a good place, so I went downstairs to tidy some things in the laundry room. About 5-10 minutes later, I heard a large thud from upstairs. Did something tip over? Fall off the wall? I couldn't think of anything that would do that. 

Upstairs I went, never suspecting I would find whey ALL OVER MY KITCHEN. 

Somehow, it had exploded. 

Whey now covered the entire surface of my stove, the wooden stove cover, the ceiling, the island countertop. Only 1/4 inch of whey remained in the pot. Where did it all go???

Little drops of what was left spattered out of the pot, so I shut it off and removed it from the heat. 

Not my wisest move. Pretty soon little sizzles on the empty burner drew my attention to the ceiling.

When I looked up, droplets of whey congregated on the ceiling directly above the stove, plopping down into my clean cast iron pan and onto the now empty hot burner. 

I laid a towel over the stove (and the gaps between the stove and countertops) to try to buffer the worst of it while I assessed the rest of the kitchen. 

Whey had sprayed onto the cabinets on the opposite wall, the window above the sink, the stools on the other side of the stove, and even on the floor behind the stools. 

Thankfully only a few drops landed on the couch (which was covered by G's sweatshirt and a quilt). 

Holy buckets. 

Emily, I know what we're going to do today! 

I mopped the floor, wiped down the counters, stood on a sturdy stool to clean the ceiling, washed the stovetop at least three times, using a rag and toothbrush to get in the crevices, wiped down cupboard doors, and cleaned the window. 

So, my kitchen is spectacularly clean right now. 😅 

The remaining whey? Went down the drain. Not enough to save now. ☹️ I'll have to save the recipe for when our goats begin producing milk.