Sweetened Condensed Milk - Homemade

I was considering making a recipe that required sweetened condensed milk but I didn't have any.  My normal response to a missing ingredient is "I bet I can figure out how to make that myself".  I decided to begin, as I usually do, by looking at the label to see ingredients, fat percentage etc.

Sweetened condensed milk was developed in 1853 in America by Gail Borden Jr. who had been devastated by the death of several children from bad milk from the on-board cows on a ship on which he was sailing from  England to America in 1851.  Condensing the milk and adding sugar gave it a very long shelf-life.  Prior to that invention milk could only be kept fresh for a short while and was only available in the vicinity of the cow.  Borden's first two factories failed.  The third was a success and the US government ordered huge quantities of it as field rations for Union soldiers during the US Civil War (it was portable, relatively light, provided protein, fat, and carbohydrates, and the men loved the taste).  As the soldiers returned home they spread the good news and by the late 1860s Sweetened condensed milk was a major milk product being sold throughout the world.  It is still popular today and is used in numerous dessert dishes in many countries, including the United States, India, Germany, Argentina, Brazil, Venezuela, Vietnam, China, Lebanon, and Russia.

The key components to commercial sweetened condensed milk are evaporated whole milk (which concentrates the milk fat) and sugar.  I have a lot of non-fat powdered milk in my food storage and I certainly have sugar.  What I was missing was the fat which in sweetened condensed milk amounts to about 8% by weight.  That was easily remedied by adding coconut oil (with no-cholesterol and many other health benefits plus a great flavor--it's my new favorite oil).  My first batch ended up being a bit lumpy (though it was delicious), so I made a second batch and got rid of the hand-blender in favor of my powerful Blendtec.  That did the trick.  It turned out rich and delicious, way cheaper than store-bought, and actually healthier because of the coconut oil versus the concentrated milk-fat.

• 2/3 cup Sugar
• 1/2 cup Water
• 2 Tbsp Coconut Oil
• 1/8 tsp Vanilla Flavoring
• dash of Salt
• 1 cup of Powdered Milk

Put the first 5 ingredients into a microwave-safe container and heat, stirring every minute, until the oil is melted into the sugar water.  Pour into a good blender with the powdered milk and blend until it is smooth.  Put back in the microwave safe container and heat for 30 seconds.  Stir this until smooth and then pour into an airtight storage container.  You can keep this in the fridge or even in the freezer.

Now it's time to make your favorite recipe that calls for "Eagle Brand" sweetened condensed milk, or if you can-resist-anything-but-temptation try eating it by the spoonful--did I just recommend that?  I deny it...it was my doppelgänger!).