Go Yogurt!

Yogurt has many health benefits. The benefit most people are aware that yogurt contains is how good it is for the digestive tract. It gives the digestive system what is known as a probiotics, a good bacteria. That good bacteria has been shown to decrease the affects of irritable bowels, diarrhea, constipation, and even lactose intolerance. However not all yogurt contains probiotics. Only those that are labeled “contain living bacteria” or “live cultures” will have probiotics. Besides aiding in the digestive tract, yogurt with live cultures also aids in balancing the immune system and the calcium and vitamin D in yogurt can help in staving off osteoporosis.

Making Yogurt 
Besides its nutritional benefits, yogurt makes a great substitute for sour cream and buttermilk in a lost any recipe (except fudge). It can be added to fruit smoothies, creamed desserts, fruit, sauces and gravies. It is cheaper and healthier to make than purchase and I found it is very simple.

For my first batch, I made a small amount to make sure I got the temperature and culture right. Making yogurt is like similar to making sourdough. It takes a bit of the old live cultures to make a new batch. So, when I notice I am getting low on yogurt, I reserve 3 T of the plain yogurt I have left to start the next batch.  


Ingredients:
1 cup milk any percent of fat will work 
2 T plain yogurt (home-made or store bought)
Some recipes recommend adding nonfat dry milk or flavorless gelatin to thicken up the home-made yogurt. My yogurt was just very thick without the dry milk or gelatin. 


Directions: 
1. Heat milk to about 170 degrees. Don't let it boil. I used the microwave to heat mine. It took about 3 minutes for 1 cup of milk.


2. Cool milk to about 108 degrees. I put the milk from the microwave to the freezer. It took 5 minutes to cool to 108 in my freezer.


3. Mix 2 T. of yogurt per cup of milk and blend well. 


4. Pour into an airtight glass (Pyrex or Corningware casserole dishes with a plastic lid work, or canning/jelly jars with a good lid work well.)

5. Place the yogurt in a mini crock pot and surround the dish with hot (not boiling) water. A yogurt maker can also be used.

My yogurt took a total of 10 minutes to mix up and 12 hours to thicken.



6. Let yogurt stay in the crock pot 8-12 hours until thickened.


7. Place in fridge and enjoy. 



I have found home-made yogurt is a bit stronger in flavor than store bought, so it may take getting used to. It really adds a wonderful flavor to baked goods in place of sour cream and mixes into fruits well.


Most yogurts have a refrigerator life of 2-3 weeks. I would not recommend keeping it longer.