Nomming

made from scratch: Yogurt, strawberry jam, and granola

I am in love with homemade yogurt. Made with raw milk and a little yogurt starter, it is like eating dessert for breakfast without the negative consequences. This stuff is creamy y'all, and unlike most commercial yogurts that I have tried, it's not very tangy. I'm not a fan of tangy yogurt, maybe it's because I'm a supertaster, but I much prefer a mellow-er yogurt. If you like your yogurt tangy you can use pasteurized milk, or just let the yogurt sit longer than six hours. 8 - 12 hours should do the trick, just keep tasting it. It's done when it's creamy and thick and tastes good.

In case you have a crock pot and a hankering for some yogie, here is how I make mine.

Yogurt in a Crock Pot:
prep time: one minute!
cook time: 10-16 hours

1/2 gallon raw milk (you can use pasteurized milk, but I think the best flavor comes from raw)
1 cup plain yogurt

Heat your milk in the crock pot on its highest setting. Once the temperature of the milk reaches 180 degrees turn your crock pot off. This takes me about 2 hours, but mileage will vary depending on your crock pot. You will now need to let the milk cool down to 116 degrees (another couple of hours--check your temp frequently!). Once it has, stir in the cup of plain yogurt.

Put the lid back on your crock pot and let the milk sit for 6-12 hours. I let mine sit for 6 hours. For me, this is the point where the milk has turned into a thick cream (yogurt!). You will need to make sure that the crock pot maintains a temperature between 90 and 116 degrees for the duration of the 6 to 12 hours. I do this by wrapping a polar fleece blanket around the crock pot to help insulate it. If you ever feel like your temperature is dipping too low, just turn the crock pot on for a few minutes to get the element warmed back up.

There will be some whey leftover from the yogurt making process--I drain mine off using a yogurt strainer but several layers of cheesecloth in a colander would work too.

Next time...home made granola!