Yogurt delight

I have recently become addicted to homemade yogurt. I read a half dozen recipes online and then combined a few of them for the bits that seemed easiest. I almost bought a yogurt maker but felt such a craving for yogurt I searched until I found recipes that didn't mention it. I wanted to try the crock pot recipe, but was using it to make ham for dinner that night. Consequently, I discovered another method for maintaining the temperature optimal for the cultures to yogurtify my milk--a cooler and hot water (to be described later).

Ingredients:

1/2 gallon milk (I did not notice a significant difference between using skim and using 2%)

1/2 c powdered milk (I used vanilla milk--a recipe online said that powdered milk makes it creamier, but lots of recipes don't have it)

2 tbsp plain yogurt that specifically says live and active cultures

Add powdered milk (whisk in until dissolved) while heating milk up to 180 degrees (I use a digital thermometer that beeps and tells me when it's reached that temperature. One recipe suggested keeping it around 180 for 20 minutes to create a thicker consistency. It thickens alright even if you flip off the burner once it reaches that point and only gets a little thicker if on longer. However, you risk getting the temperature above 180 and scalding it to the bottom of the pan.)

Cool milk to between 105 and 120 degrees (either use the thermometer or test with your finger--the milk will be comfortably warm).

Mix in 2 tbsp of the plain active cultured yogurt. You can take out a cup of warm milk and mix in the yogurt to that to break it up and smooth it into the milk. Add this yogurt/milk to the entire pot of milk.

Pour your milk-urt into containers; you can use glass mason jars or the large 1 quart plastic yogurt containers (will make two quarts).

Place milk-urt in a cooler.

Heat up water (microwave) in two glass mason jars (scalding temperature) and place these jars in a cooler between the two quarts of milk-urt.

Cover cooler with pillows or blankets to seal in the heat.

Let sit for 5-6 hours.

Put yogurt in fridge overnight.

Enjoy!


Notes:
This may turn out a little thinner than store yogurt and you may see more whey than in the store stuff, but you can mix it right back in. If it's too thin, it is still great to add to smoothies etc.

The longer it sits in the warm cooler, the stronger the flavor of the yogurt.

I love plain yogurt but think the vanilla powdered milk may take the edge off its plainness.

One recipe said that the yogurt you use as the starter directly impacts the taste and texture of your yogurt.

According to most recipes, you can also use some of your yogurt as starter for the next batch; some say to limit this to about 3 generations because it becomes weaker.

You can add flavors: Jam, Honey, fruit, etc. (Simon loves strawberry jam mixed into the yogurt.)


And the best part (aside from its delicious taste)!!!
Cost Analysis: 1 gallon milk= 2.50 (Creamery 1.90), plain active culture yogurt $1.20 (used for 3 batches, 1.5 gallons milk)

This is about $5 for 6 quarts of yogurt. A single quart generally costs around $2.50 ($15 for 6 quarts).