The Three Stages of Homemade Yogurt
I’ve always been a fan of yogurt and not only eat it as a breakfast treat and dessert, but use it in things like breads and muffins. Good news is it’s easy to make. I have a Salton yogurt maker but I have heard that lots of people use a thermos with great results. Whatever your method here’s my basic recipe and tips I’ve found that increase the likelihood of a successful batch-
4 cups milk…I’ve tried it with all types, skim, 1% but have had the best results with whole milk
¼ cup dry milk powder
½ cup plain yogurt…once again the best type is made from whole milk
Make sure you turn on the yogurt maker before you begin making the yogurt because I’ve found the warmer it is when the mixture gets added the thicker the end product.
In a saucepan add the milk and milk powder and heat it. It’s best to babysit it. Stir it frequently so it doesn’t start to stick to the pan. Once you see bubbles starting to form around the edges of the liquid, remove it from the heat . You don’t want it to boil. Let it sit for about 15 minutes and test to make sure it’s cooled to about room temperature.
Slowly add the yogurt. A note about the yogurt. Don’t go with on a cheaper brand. Make sure it’s top of the line because it will have active cultures that are needed to make your batch of yogurt. Mix everything together and then pour into the yogurt maker.
Instructions with the machine say it takes from 4-8 hours but I’ve found about 10 hours is perfect.
Make sure to take out ½ cup of the yogurt for the next batch you make.
Once you have some homemade yogurt you can also make Greek style yogurt by draining it in a cheesecloth lined sieve over a bowl for about 24 hours. Keep the whey that separates because you can use it when you make bread.
Once you have Greek yogurt you can make frozen yogurt. Mix it with some frozen fruit put it in a baking pan and in the freezer and keep stirring it and putting it back in the freezer until it reaches the right consistency.
And while on the topic of yogurt if you don’t want to make your own yogurt one brand I stumbled upon when the store had a BOGO sale…what budget smart girl can pass on one of those, is Noosa. The tubs are bigger than most other brands too so I think you get more for your money.
If you want to give it a try, check out their Web site because they have a 55 cent coupon you can print out-
http://www.noosayoghurt.com/