I have been forced to make my own yogurt. The brand I loved, Brown Cow, was bought by a larger company, and now it’s runnier and has a smaller cream top on it. 🙁 Given that the price has gone up lately, I decided it’s no longer worth what they charge for it, and I needed to find something else.
As usual, the Internet comes to the rescue. I read several make-yogurt-in-your-crock-pot recipes, and they were pretty similar; this one was done best, I think. I started in the afternoon with a half-gallon of organic milk and a little store-bought yogurt, and by bedtime, I had a beach-towel-wrapped crock pot on my counter. And the next morning, I had yogurt!
I added a bit of vanilla to a bowl of this perfectly white yogurt, topped it with homemade granola, and proceeded to eat the best bowl of yogurt ever. I’m sold on making my own yogurt now. Given that my crock pot is nearly 40 years old (one of the longest-lived of our wedding gifts, I think), I’m thrilled that I’ve found a new use for it.
Some friends taught me a fantastic way to keep the yogurt warm overnight. (Temps in my house vary enough that wrapping the yogurt in a blanket wasn’t working. And the oven is too new to have a pilot light.)
I use a small picnic cooler, just big enough to fit enough canning jars (1/2 gallon or quarts) that will hold my yogurt. I heat a gallon or so of water to 140-degrees. It has to be 138-140. If it’s 145, it’s too hot and will brown the yogurt a bit. Jars of yogurt go into the cooler. The heated water is poured into the cooler so that it comes up to the neck of the jars. Close the lid. In the morning [ta da!!] yogurt is perfectly done.
Oh, that sounds simple enough. I’ll have to try that. Thanks for sharing that idea!