Make Yogurt at Home

My family enjoys eating yogurt.  I like that they want to eat it, but buying high quality, organic yogurt can be costly.  How about a simple, easy yogurt recipe you can make in your crock pot?  You betcha!

Ingredients

• 8 cups of raw or whole milk
• 1/4-1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup organic, live cultured yogurt (or 1/2 cup saved yogurt from a previous batch)
• 2 tsp pectin (optional)

1. Set your crockpot to low and heat the milk and sugar to 110 for 2 1/2 hours, covered.  Make sure the temp does not rise above 110!
2. Cut your crockpot off and let sit for 3 hours.
3. Scoop out 2 cups of the milk and whisk the 1/2 cup yogurt into the 2 cups of milk. (Also add the pectin at this point if you are going to use it)
4. Pour back into the milk and stir all together.
5. Now pour milk mixture into large mason jars and put in an insulated bag and/or wrap in towels to keep the heat inside.
6. The next morning or after 8 hours, whisk the yogurt within the jars. *Whey will have risen to the top.
7. Refrigerate for 12-24 hours or if you just can't wait, dig right in.
8. The yogurt will last up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator.
9. Enjoy!

For a thicker, more Greek-like yogurt, strain through a cheesecloth after allowing it to sit overnight.  Save the whey to use in other cooking recipes for added protein benefits.