Yogurt With or Without a Machine

I'm making yogurt today. It's sort of a test to try out one of my thrift finds. I saw this brand new still in the box yogurt maker in one of my favorite little shops a while back and decided that for two dollars, it was definitely worth a try. I use organic yogurt every day in my breakfast smoothie so the thought of making my own for a fraction of the cost is very appealing. If you've never made yogurt before then we have something in common. I'll show you what's involved and, who knows, maybe you'll want to try making yogurt too! If you don't have a machine to do the job, here's a little tutorial you can follow. There are lots of other methods too. The ingredients are simple: milk and starter. Starter can either be a commercial product designed especially for making homemade yogurt or one to two tablespoons of plain store-bought yogurt.

Heat one quart of milk on the stovetop or in the microwave until it reaches 185 - 190 degrees. Remove from heat and let cool to 110 - 115 degrees.

Add one to two tablespoons of starter to a small amount of the cooled milk. Stir well and return to pan (blurry photo but you get the idea).

Pour milk mixture into yogurt maker containers. Cover with lids.

Set for desired time and press start. It's that easy. By the time I shopped for ingredients and followed the necessary steps it was 3:00 pm. That means that my yogurt will be ready to remove from the machine and refrigerate at 1:00 tomorrow morning. Perfect.

From what I've read, homemade yogurt tastes far superior to store bought, and you have the luxury of including fruit and flavorings without added sugar. Wish me luck!