Easy-Peasy Homemade Greek Yogurt

Tess loves flavored yogurt, but all the sugar-free ones in the store taste like aspartame.  Blech.  So I looked online for a method of making yogurt that didn't require a yogurt maker...or a bunch of effort... and I found one.

It sounded way too easy to actually work, so I kept looking.  and I found another recipe almost identical to the first.  hmm.  could I really make greek yogurt in my crockpot???

I can.  and it is delicious.  I shall strive to remember to take pictures of the steps next time I make a batch.  until then, here's the basic recipe.

Homemade Greek Yogurt

makes: about 32 oz

ingredients 

·         ½ gallon (8 cups) milk

·         ½ cup (6 oz) plain yogurt (with live cultures)

directions 

1.      Pour milk into slow cooker. Cook on LOW for 2 -2½ hours, or until temperature is 180 ºF.

2.   Turn off slow cooker and unplug it.  Let milk cool in slow cooker on counter for 3 hours, or until temperature is between 105 ºF and 110 ºF.

3.    Pour 1 (ish) cup of warmed milk into a small bowl.  Add yogurt.  Whisk to combine.  Pour milk and yogurt mixture back into slow cooker.  Whisk to combine.

4.      Put lid back on slow cooker.  Wrap entire bowl and lid with a towel and place in oven with light on.  Let sit in oven for 7-8 hours.

5.      Remove from oven.  Place in refrigerator for 3 hours, or until yogurt is cooled.

at this point you have "normal" yogurt.  to make it Greek:

6.    Line a strainer with multiple layers of damp cheesecloth or a layer of damp cotton (muslin).  Place strainer over a bowl.  Pour yogurt into strainer.  Return to refrigerator for 1 hour. 

7.      Pour off liquid in bowl and return to refrigerator to strain for 1 more hour.

8.      Sweeten yogurt to taste if desired and store in refrigerator in sealed containers.

notes:

~I usually scoop out 1/2 cup of unsweetened yogurt and save it in the fridge as the "starter" for the next batch.

~unsweetened it can be used as a sour cream substitute. (I used it in a bean dip this weekend and no one could tell it was yogurt)

~I've used both whole milk and 1%.  I liked the 1% better, it tastes less fatty.

~The liquid that is strained off is whey.  It can be used in cooking or fed to tomato plants.  Personally, I soak a bunch of oatmeal in it overnight and feed it to my chickens in the morning.  They love it.

costs:

a 1/2 gallon of milk cost me $1.44, and the initial yogurt purchase was ~$1.00, so that first batch cost me $2.44 for about 32 oz of yogurt.  Since then, I've been using my own starter, so now, it's about $1.44 for 32 oz, which is less than $0.30 a serving. 

I've been making about a batch a week, and then turning most of it into Low-Fructose Fruit-at-the-Bottom yogurt cups.

Perhaps you'd like to see how I do that?