Homemade Yogurt

Ok, I've had this post saved in my drafts for much too long now.  So even though I'm still updating it and adding pictures along the way, I figured I'd just go ahead and post it.  Be sure to check back for updates as I post them every now and then.

I've been making my own homemade yogurt for a few months now.  I've tried quite a few different ways of making yogurt and mostly follow the method described on Kitchen Stewardship.  I've posted about my flop using the crockpot.  I'm not going to go into detailed posts about other ways I've tried, rather I'll tell you the way that works best for me and maybe mention a few things I've tried along the way.  I'm sure I'll also try some different things along the way, so I'll come back to this post and update if/when I do.

Making homemade yogurt may seem daunting, but it is actually so very easy to do.  Everyone should try it.  It may sound like it takes a long time to make it, but very little of that time is active time and you don't have to be home for most of it. You can expect about 15 minutes of active time and you'll need to plan a time when you're home for about an hour and a half to two hours.  We eat a lot of yogurt in our house.  We all love it.  Carson and I love it plain or with a slight honey or vanilla flavor.  Kevin likes to stir homemade jam into his.  And we all love it with fresh fruit and granola.  And I love knowing that its so good for us, feeding our guts with healthy probiotics!

Whey and Labneh/Yogurt Cheese

A few weeks ago, I made whey and labneh/yogurt cheese. This is also out of Nourishing Traditions. The labneh is very similar to a whipped cream cheese that you buy at the store and can be used as such (and is how we're using ours). I needed to make this so that I would have some whey to use in some lacto-fermentation recipes that I've been wanting to try. So I gave it a go. This has to be about the easies thing I've ever done. All you do is drain the yogurt, then string it up to drip some more. It only takes a few hours and voila! You have whey and what you can use for cream cheese! Brilliant! :) I have made some spreads out of my labneh. I chopped up some chives and mixed them in. I also mixed in some chopped garlic scapes into another small amount of cheese. Both were delicious spread on crackers! I'm going to try mixing in some strawberries for some strawberry cream cheese this week. There are so many possibilities!

Whey and Labneh/Yogurt Cheese/Cream Cheese

Cheesecloth or towel for straining (I used a floursack towel)
Glass bowl
2 qts. piima milk, whole milk buttermilk, yogurt or raw milk (I used whole milk yogurt)

If you are using piima milk or buttermilk, let stand at room temp 1-2 days until the milk visibly separates into white curds and yellowish whey. If you are using yogurt no advance preparation is needed. If you are using raw milk, place the milk in a clean glass container and allow to stand at room temp 1-4 days, until it separates.

Line a large strainer set over a bowl with a clean dish towel. Pour in the yogurt or separated milk. Cover. Let stand a room temp for several hours. The whey will run into the bowl and the milk solids will stay in the strainer. Tie up the towel with the milk solids inside, being careful not to squeeze. Let drain. When the bag stops dripping, the cheese is ready.

Store whey in a mason jar and cream cheese in a covered glass container. Refrigerated, the labneh keeps for about 1 month and the whey for about 6 months.

Homemade Yogurt in the Crockpot

I made homemade yogurt a couple of weeks ago. I have been wanting to try making it for a really long time. I even had a yogurt maker on my Christmas list last year. I didn't get it, so I am trying out some different methods using appliances and other items I already have. I decided to try making yogurt in the crockpot first. It sounded very easy - too easy, really. So I gave it a go. I followed the recipe/method on A Year of Slow Cooking. It was as easy as it sounded. It is time consuming, but it involves very little active time. Unfortunately, my batch didn't turn out as thick as I'd like. I know homemade yogurt is often thinner than the store-bought stuff, but this was way too thin... it was thicker than milk, but much thinner than yogurt... it was like buttermilk. It had a good flavor, though, so I saved it (some in the fridge and froze some) and will be using it like buttermilk. After doing some reading after-the-fact, I think my heating/cooling/incubating was just off. I've since read that many people have found that turning the crock on low for 10 minutes or so every hour or two during the incubation time will help keep it warm enough so it thickens up better. Maybe I'll give that a try sometime. Anyway, I wanted to post this method, even though it was sort of a flop, for future reference if I ever do try it again.

We eat a lot of yogurt and the cost savings of making your own is just too huge for me not to try it again. A quart of homemade costs less than half of a quart of organic yogurt at the store. So I wanted to try again... so I decided to try the cooler method the day after I tried the crockpot method. I'll post again soon with my second attempt (which worked very well, by the way).

Yogurt in the Crockpot

8 cups (half-gallon) of whole milk, pasteurized and homogenized is fine, but do NOT use ultra-pasteurized (I used pasteurized, non-homogenized milk)

1/2 cup store-bought natural, live/active culture plain yogurt (I used Stoneyfield Farms Organic Cream Top Plain)

frozen/fresh fruit for flavoring (optional)

thick bath towel

This takes a while. Make your yogurt on a weekend day when you are home to monitor. I used a 4 quart crockpot.

Plug in your crockpot and turn to low. Add an entire half gallon of milk. Cover and cook on low for 2 1/2 hours.

Unplug your crockpot. Leave the cover on, and let it sit for 3 hours.

When 3 hours have passed, scoop out 2 cups of the warmish milk and put it in a bowl. Whisk in 1/2 cup of store-bought live/active culture yogurt. Then dump the bowl contents back into the crockpot. Stir to combine.

Put the lid back on your crockpot. Keep it unplugged, and wrap a heavy bath towel all the way around the crock for insulation.

Go to bed, or let it sit for 8 hours.

In the morning, the yogurt will have thickened---it's not as thick as store-bought yogurt, but has the consistency of low-fat plain yogurt.

You can blend in batches with your favorite fruit. When you blend in the fruit, bubbles will form and might bother you. They aren't a big deal, and will settle eventually.

Chill in a plastic container(s) in the refrigerator. Your fresh yogurt will last 7-10 days. Save 1/2 cup as a starter to make a new batch.

Banana and Peanut Butter Yogurt

This is another breakfast idea that I saw in the May 2010 issue of Fitness magazine. This is very simple, tasty, and filling - three great aspects to a good breakfast.

Banana and Peanut Butter Yogurt

1 medium banana
1 Tablespoon peanut butter
Wheat germ
1/4 cup Greek yogurt
Honey

Peel banana; halve lengthwise. Spread peanut butter on one half. Sprinkle with wheat germ. Top with other half of banana. Slice into rounds. Place yogurt in a bowl. Top with banana slices and a drizzle of honey.

Bruleed Yogurt Parfaits

Forgot to post this one last night. I made these for breakfast on Friday morning. I found the idea on Baking Bites and thought it sounded good and fun. Plus, I got to try out my new kitchen torch that I inherited from my late grandma. These were super easy and very tasty. I'll definitely make these again! I made them with vanilla yogurt and thawed blueberries. Delicious! Can't wait to try out different combos!

Sorry, I forgot to take a picture.

Bruléed Yogurt Parfait

Vanilla or plain yogurt
fresh or frozen berries
sugar, regular or superfine

You will probably use 1 cup of yogurt and 1/2 cup berries per serving. Feel free to change the proportions to suit your tastes, the size of your dishes or the number of people you wish to serve.

In a single-serving heat-resistant bowl (glass or pyrex), layer yogurt and berries into 3-5 layers, making sure to top the parfait with a layer of yogurt. Sprinkle sugar generously over the top of the yogurt and toast with a kitchen torch until caramelized and bubbling. Let sugar set, then serve.

Parfait is best when berries have had a few minutes to soften.

Note: While creme brulee can go under the broiler to caramelize, I don't recommend it for this yogurt dish, as the heat from the broiler can curdle the yogurt and cause it to separate.