Baked milk is a fascinating product. It’s almost impossible to find much information about it in books or the English-speaking internet. Even a proper translation is lacking — while "baked milk" is literally correct, recipes are scarce, and most sources recommend studying Russian and Ukrainian cuisine to understand what to do with it. Besides, "baked milk" is often confused with ryazhenka.

I’ve loved baked milk since childhood, simply drinking it chilled. It also makes the best pancakes and fritters, the perfect cream for Napoleon cake, and enhances any recipe that calls for milk. In general, milk isn’t just a drink — it’s a complete food in itself, if you can call it that. Unlike regular whole or boiled milk, baked milk undergoes slight changes in its properties.

Properties:

• Baked milk is always richer in fat than whole milk. The heating process evaporates moisture but not fats.
• Prolonged heat treatment reduces the content of vitamins C and B1.
• However, this same heat treatment increases (or concentrates, so to speak) the levels of vitamin A, calcium, and iron.
• The content of vitamins D, PP, and H remains unchanged.
• Baked milk has a longer shelf life.

Contraindications:
Unfortunately, the same as regular milk — lactose intolerance and milk allergies.

The simplest and tastiest method turned out to be one of the most basic: making it in a thermos. I used whole, farm-fresh milk—delicious and very rich. I can’t yet say whether perfect baked milk can be made from pasteurized store-bought milk, as I haven’t tried it (if anyone has, let me know — I’ll update the post accordingly).