Yogurt conspiracy

[smilingcat]

make your own yogurt? then strain to make it into greek yogurt by straining out the whey.

Gotta brush off my yogurt maker. Why not? I've been busy making pickled greek pepperoncini (greek style fermented in salt water). pickled pepperoncini in vinegar (like the kind you see in store), dill pickle (fermented kind), tomato sauce,sweet cucmber relish and other things.., So I guess I'll be making yogurt and lightly cook some homegrown blueberries/strawberries we froze earlier in season. hmm maybe I'll pick some golden/yellow raspberries and cook it down then strain to remove "seeds"

So I just pulled my yogurt maker out. DUSTY!! Found a box of Yogourmet OOPS expiration date is 2008. box says refrigeration recommended. OOPS and more OOPS!!

BTW, you don't need a yogurt maker. You can do with baking dish and few glass cups and oven set on warm.
here is a good video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZZAUqFqAnY

[DebW]

I make yogurt in a quart mason jar and set it in a cooler with some jugs of warm water. Store-bought plain yogurt with live bacteria works as the starter. I've recently tried 2 varieties of mesophilic yogurt (cultures at room temperature) and it's OK but thinner and less tasty. So back to heating the milk to 180F and cooling it to 115F. I'm eating whole milk yogurt, as it keep you full longer and keep your blood sugar more steady (less urge to snack). If you drain off whey to turn it into Green yogurt, you can use the whey as starter for fermenting vegetables.

I've also been culturing buttermilk - super easy, cultures at room temperature, keeps for a couple weeks in the fridge. Buttermilk is nice in pancakes, muffins, and breads. Also nice for soaking breakfast oats overnight.

[Owlie]

I just buy the huge tubs of plain Fage (the full fat stuff) and add fruit and honey as I see fit. Not as portable, sure, but I can spoon it into a container and take it with me. (It's also not as likely to get stolen out of the communal fridge.)

I can never find the big containers of full-fat Fage. It's all 2% or 0. My Fry's carries the small containers, but sporadically and I get two to three smoothies out of those. I have to make a trip to Whole Foods on the other side of town to get them. (On the other hand, the one near me just opened up again after being closed for a year for a remodel. I'll see if it's there.)

[smilingcat]

OMG OMG OMG!!! I made the Greek yogurt by following the youtube video instruction. I'm in heaven.

Okay so first thing first. For a change I followed the instruction with one change. It took far longer than 4 to 4-1/2 hr to set up. It took overnight. Then I drained it for about 4 hours because that was all I could take.

The yogurt was really thick. I mixed in two table spoon of raspberry/blackberry honey into 8oz of yogurt. And OMG!!

And OMG I figured out the calories. around 360 calories per 8oz.
1/2 gallon of whole milk
one cup of heavy creme
1/2cup of plain greek yogurt
and it looks like it will make about 3 pints of yogurt after the whey is separated out.

The man in the video used T-shirt to strain. ughh. I used a blank tea bags (extra large one from Monterey Bay Spice) or use large coffee filter and a colander. It takes about three to four hours to separate out the whey.

Now I'm trying with non-fat milk. The video warned that it will not taste as good as the whole milk with heavy creme. If it is good enough then I'll start making it with non-fat milk.

ONE THING THAT BOTHERED ME ABOUT THE VIDEO WAS STERILIZING THE CONTAINERS, SPOON AND WHISK AHEAD OF TIME. When ever I pickle food, I'm extra careful about sterilization: boiling the spoon, whisk and the containers. yes bad bug is supposed to be overwhelmed by the good bugs but why not spend little extra time to reduce the bad bug count.

My yogurt machine is going to be donated since it is so much easier with a pot, spoon, broiler tray (Bain-marie) for waterbath and few mason jars.

[OakLeaf]

You can use butter muslin and set it up to drain overnight. Just tie the ends of your cheesecloth over a wooden spoon or dowel, to make a sling for the yogurt, and hang it over a 5 gallon pail. Nice and thick by morning.

[ZoneFive]

I realize I'm pulling this thread out of the deep freeze, but I make my yogurt in a crockpot. I have about 2% involvement in the process, and the crockpot does all the rest! I strain the yogurt through cheesecloth -- I tried the coffee filters but they clogged up and didn't let much whey through. Nielsen-Massey makes a vanilla powder that I love to put in with yogurt and muesli, but fresh blueberries are just a little bit of heaven too.

[katluvr]

I have to chuckle! I can barely make dinner more than 3 nights a week due to time or just being tired (or lazy). Making yogurt? I just can't imagine! Good for all of you that do!

K