The very first time I ever heard of yogurt was when I was about ten or eleven. I was in bed, reading a book before I went to sleep—or probably yakking with Denise—when my dad came in with a little plastic cup of some green, almost pudding-looking stuff (lime flavor). He said, "Try this—it's really good." After I asked and found out it was called yogurt, and checked it out a little, I gave it a try. Yum! I was an instant yogurt fan.At that time there was this big "healthy food" kick of the 70's going on, and yogurt was the new, trendy, healthy food. Yogurt makers appeared on the market. My mom got one and she made lots of yogurt for a while. It was super-good when it was mixed with her home-made strawberry freezer-jam. After a while the yogurt-making stopped and we just bought it when we wanted some.
Well, I just did the coolest thing last week! I made yogurt! Home-made yogurt—without a fancy yogurt-maker. It takes time, but it's not like you're slaving over it all day long; in fact, it's way easy. And if your family likes yogurt—if you cook with it, or put it in your smoothies like I do—it'll save money, and there's the added bonus of your being so cool because you can make your own yogurt. ;-)
Look at this:
Here's how this translates: You get TEN (10) times as much home-made yogurt as a little carton of Yoplait, for only 33 cents more. Greek Yogurt is thicker, so you probably get about EIGHT (8) times as much home-made yogurt as Greek Gods, for 66 cents less.
To make all things equal, 6 oz. of home-made yogurt would cost you about 8 cents! How's that for cool? You do need a slow-cooker and lots of time, but it's really easy to make.
HOME-MADE YOGURT
This makes a very soft yogurt. Well, it's pretty normal until you mix jam or other tasty stuff into it; then it's still yogurty, but a little thinner. If you like it thicker, then make it into Greek Yogurt (directions at the bottom of the page).
1/2 gallon (8 cups) 2% milk [you can use 1% or even fat-free milk]
a slow-cooker (crockpot)
1/2 cup plain yogurt, with live and active cultures [the live and active cultures are the important part—they are your "starter," just like a sourdough starter]
2 more Tbsp. cold milk
1 pkg. unflavored gelatin (like Knox)
a slow-cooker (Crockpot)
heavy bath towels [seriously!]
Pour 1/2 gallon of milk into the slow-cooker.
Put the lid on, turn it onto "low" and let it sit for 2 1/2 hours.
Turn the cooker off, leave the lid on and let it sit for 3 more hours.
At the end of the 3 hours, stir the gelatin into the 2 Tbsp. cold milk to soften. Let it stand for 5 minutes.
Stir the softened gelatin into the 1/2 cup plain yogurt.
Remove 2 cups warm milk from the slow-cooker and stir it into the yogurt mixture.
Stir the yogurt-milk stuff back into the milk in the slow-cooker.
Cover the slow-cooker and completely wrap it in heavy towels. Put it some place where it won't get bumped or jostled and let it sit for 8 hours.
After the 8 hours you have plain, Yoplait-style yogurt! Yes it's still warm, so put it in the refrigerator to chill.
Now you can add honey, jam, cinnamon-sugar, or fruit—or whatever you like best—to sweeten it and eat it. Or you can use it for cooking with.
GREEK YOGURT
So, what's the deal with Greek yogurt? Why does it cost twice as much as regular yogurt? Well, it's just so darn tasty—probably because it's thicker and creamier than regular yogurt. This also means it makes a good substitute for sour cream. (In recipes I still cut it 1/2 & 1/2 with sour cream—mostly because of cost though. So maybe we're in for a change.)
To make Greek-style yogurt:
Line a wire-mesh strainer with a coffee filter.
Scoop it full of yogurt and set it over a bowl. Cover and refrigerate for several hours*; the extra liquid stuff will slowly drain out of it. Voila! (Or maybe I should say, "Eureka!") Greek yogurt!
Enjoy!
* p.s. (March 18) I actually strained my yogurt for 24 hours (I forgot about it) and then it seemed more like commercial yogurt, but not quite as thick as commercial Greek yogurt. Still tasty though!
