Homemade Sweetened Condensed Milk (Using Milk Powder) – The Pantry Swap That Saves Us Buying Cans

We didn’t start making our own sweetened condensed milk because we were trying to make everything from scratch.

We started because we realised we kept buying the same little things over and over again.

One can for a cheesecake.

Another for a slice.

One more for caramel.

It didn’t seem like much until we added it up.

Now we keep milk powder in the pantry and make condensed milk whenever we need it.

It’s one less thing to buy each grocery shop, and one more way we’ve made feeding a family of seven feel a little more manageable.

This is part of how we do it.

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Ingredients

• 2 cups white sugar
• 2 cups water
• 3 cups full cream milk powder

Method

1. Add the sugar and water to a saucepan.
2. Heat gently until the sugar has completely dissolved.
3. Simmer gently for 5 minutes.
4. Remove from the heat and allow to cool for about 5 minutes.
5. Pour the syrup into a blender.
6. Add the milk powder.
7. Blend for 1–2 minutes until smooth and creamy.
8. Pour into a clean jar or airtight container.
9. Refrigerate until thickened.

Makes approximately 750 ml (about two standard cans).

Homemade Sweetened Condensed Milk with Milk Powder (Easy Pantry Recipe)

Easy Sweetened Condensed Milk Recipe Using Milk Powder. This easy homemade sweetened condensed milk is made with pantry staples in just a few minutes. It's perfect for baking, desserts, slices, cheesecakes and making dulce de leche. A great make-instead-of-buy recipe when you run out of canned condensed milk.

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 4 minutes mins

Servings: 25 Servings of 2 Table spoons per serving

Course: Condiment

Cuisine: American, Australian, New Zealand, South African, United Kingdom

Calories: 130

Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 2 Cups White Sugar
• 2 Cups Water
• 3 Cups Full Cream Milk Powder

Equipment

• 1 Medium Sauce Pan
• Measuring Cups
• 1 Heat Proof Jug
• 1 Blender I use the Ninja Stealth IQ Blender
• 3-4 Airtight Heatproof Containers or Jars

Method

 

1. Add the sugar and water to a medium saucepan.
2. Heat over medium heat, stirring until the sugar has completely dissolved.
3. Simmer gently for about 5 minutes. Do not allow it to caramelise.
4. Remove from the heat and allow the syrup to cool for approximately 5 minutes.
5. Pour the syrup into a blender.
6. Add the milk powder.
7. Blend for 1–2 minutes until completely smooth.
8. Pour into a clean jar or airtight container.
9. Refrigerate until completely chilled. The mixture will thicken as it cools.
The condensed milk thickens after refrigeration, however it is more liquid than what you buy in the store.
Store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
Stir before using if any separation occurs.
This recipe makes enough for approximately two standard cans of sweetened condensed milk.
Perfect for baking, slices, fudge, cheesecakes and making homemade dulce de leche. (Check our other recipes for more info)

Notes

• Great pantry staple to keep on hand.

• Much cheaper than buying multiple cans when you bake regularly.

• Because it's made from milk powder, you can make it whenever you need it—no last-minute trip to the supermarket.

• This is one of our favourite "make instead of buy" swaps because it helps reduce repeat purchases while keeping simple pantry ingredients on hand.

Once chilled, it’s thick, creamy and sweet—just what you want for baking.

We’ve used it in:

• Cheesecakes
• Fudge
• Caramel slice
• Peppermint slice
• No-bake desserts
• Dulce de leche
• Coffee
• Homemade ice cream

Most people wouldn’t know it wasn’t from a can.

Yes—and that’s one of the reasons we keep making it.

Instead of buying cans whenever a recipe calls for them, we make a batch from ingredients we already keep in the pantry.

Milk powder is something we always have on hand because we use it in several of our pantry swaps.

That means we’re buying one versatile ingredient instead of lots of individual products.

For us, that’s where the savings really start to add up.

The biggest benefit isn’t just saving a few dollars.

It’s convenience.

If someone decides they want to bake on a Sunday afternoon, we don’t need to check whether we’ve remembered to buy condensed milk.

We already have everything we need.

That means fewer last-minute trips to the supermarket and fewer impulse purchases while we’re there.

People sometimes ask if we make everything ourselves.

Definitely not.

That isn’t the goal.

We’re simply replacing the things that make sense. Some swaps save money. Some save trips to the supermarket. Some reduce waste. Some just make life easier.

Over time, those small changes have helped us reduce our grocery spending without feeling like we’ve missed out.

We don’t buy everything every week. We buy versatile pantry staples and turn them into what we need.

That’s the system we’re building.

If you’re trying to reduce grocery costs without making life more complicated, these are some of our favourite swaps:

• Homemade Brown Sugar
• Homemade Hot Chocolate Mix
• Homemade Cream Cheese
• How We Buy 8kg of Sour Cream for $20
• How to Fix Frozen Sour Cream
• Why Budgeting Didn’t Fix Our Grocery Spending (And What Actually Did)

We didn’t start making homemade condensed milk because we wanted a perfectly stocked Pinterest pantry.

We started because groceries kept getting more expensive, and we were looking for practical ways to spend less without giving up the things we enjoy.

This recipe won’t cut your grocery bill in half overnight.

But it’s another small swap that helps us rely less on convenience products and more on ingredients we already have.

And for us, that’s made all the difference.

This is just one of the ways we’re reducing grocery costs while feeding a family of seven.

Follow Grey Haven Living for more Make Instead of Buy ideas, real grocery numbers, and practical systems that actually work in everyday life.