Homemade Yogurt

I have been making yogurt the past couple of months.  I was hesitant.  I don't like plain yogurt.  Why on earth would I make some?  Yes, I know it's healthy.  But it's sour.  It doesn't taste good.
Now that I'm 2 or 3 months into it, I like it.  My taste buds have changed.  I don't mind the sour.  When I eat it as a snack I add granola, jam (especially rhubarb pineapple jam), applesauce, canned fruit along with the syrup (especially home-canned plums), or some combination of these.  It's good.  My favorite way to eat it is with applesauce on pancakes.  I also eat it instead of sour cream on tacos and chili.  I really like it in smoothies with fresh and/or frozen fruit (if it's too sour, I add a little honey; too thick, a little milk or juice).
Yogurt is easy to make.  It takes about 12 hours to make, but only about 13 minutes of active time.
You can use any type of milk.  If you use powdered milk from the LDS cannery, it will be very sour.  Regular milk from the store is not quite so sour.  Morning Moo's milk alternative does not work just by itself.  It does work 1/2 and 1/2 with other milk (powdered or regular).
Here is a brief synopsis of how to make 2 quarts of plain yogurt:
1.  Heat 8 cups milk to 180° F.
2.  Cool milk to 115°.
3.  Add 1/2 cup plain yogurt (You want one with lots of LIVE bacteria, and no added ingredients; I use Dannon, then my own homemade)
4.  Pour into 3 clean quart-sized jars and screw on clean lids.  Try to pour even amounts into each jar.
5.  Keep milk between 90°-110° for 8-12 hours to allow bacteria to multiply.  I accomplish this by pouring lukewarm tap water into a cooler, and keeping the water between 90° and 110°.  I check the water every few hours to make sure it's still warm enough.  If it's below 95° I replace half the water with warmer water.
6.  When the milk looks like yogurt (hard), put it in the fridge for 12 hours.  I like to start the yogurt making process first thing in the morning, then let it refrigerate all night.  Fresh yogurt for breakfast!

Prior to making yogurt for the first time, I would highly recommend reading more detailed directions.  Use your favorite search engine (I love Swagbucks!) to find one.  I used this recipe without any of the sweeteners.

Everydayfoodstorage.net is currently doing a series on yogurt making.  The first post has a video with a lot of good information on the health and cost benefits of making your own yogurt.  She makes yogurt in a crockpot.

Granola Bars

When I posted about granola, one of my readers told me that she uses milk instead of water, and less brown sugar. I like the idea of more nutrition, and less sugar, so I tried it. I thought it tasted good with milk and yogurt, but not sweet enough for just a snack. Here's the revised recipe:

Granola

14 cups oats
2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
3 T dry milk powder
3/4 cups brown sugar
1 cup water
1 cup oil
1/2 cup honey
1 Tbs. vanilla

Mix oats, salt, cinnamon, and powdered milk together in a very large bowl (or 2 large bowls). Add remaining ingredients, and mix until combined. Spread on 2 cookie sheets. Put in oven set at 325 for 30 minutes. Turn off oven. Remove cookie sheets from oven and stir. Put baking sheets back in oven. The oven should be off, but still hot. Allow to sit in oven for 2-3 hours. If oven cools down, you may turn it back on to heat the oven, then turn it back off again.


How I really liked it, though, was in granola bars. I may even try this again using even less brown sugar than the recipe above. I got this recipe from USU Extensions. It would be really good with dried fruit, nuts, or M&M's stirred in with the granola.

Peanut Butter Granola Bars

1/2 cup corn syrup
2/3 cup peanut butter
3 cups granola

Lightly grease a 9x9 pan. Heat corn syrup in a large pan. Boil 1 minute. Add peanut butter, stirring until smooth. Add granola and mix, off of heat. Pat into pan. Cool then cut into bars.

Granola

I made my usual granola recipe yesterday, but I changed the baking directions. Usually I cook it for about 2 hours at 225, stirring ever 15-30 minutes. Yesterday, though, I cooked it at 325 for about 30 minutes before I realized I had it at the wrong temperature. Then, because I wasn't able to stir it as often as I thought I should, because my kids needed my attention, I shut off the oven and just left it there. The result was that the granola stayed in clumps, and that it wasn't as crispy as it typically is. It was wonderful! Thus, my new baking directions were born.
This granola recipe is a very simple one. I love granola with nuts, dried fruit, and coconut. This does not have any of that. I add it after if I really want it. But, it is delicious just as it is as a breakfast cereal (either warm or cold), with yogurt, or as a dessert with ice cream or chocolate chips.

Granola

14 cups oats
2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 1/4 cups brown sugar
1 cup water
1 cup oil
1/2 cup honey
1 Tbs. vanilla

Mix oats, salt, and cinnamon together in a very large bowl (or 2 large bowls). Add remaining ingredients, and mix until combined. Spread on 2 cookie sheets. Put in oven set at 325 for 30 minutes. Turn off oven. Remove cookie sheets from oven and stir. Put baking sheets back in oven. The oven should be off, but still hot. Allow to sit in oven for 2-3 hours. If oven cools down, you may turn it back on to heat the oven, then turn it back off again.