Recipe: How to Make Yogurt

MAKING YOGURT
Source: Cooking With Yogurt: The Complete Cookbook for Indulging With the World's Healthiest Food
by Judith Choate

Homemade yogurt is quick to prepare but slow to ferment. All you need is milk, enough heat to bring it to a boil, yogurt starter, and time.

It's best to use the freshest milk you can obtain. Fresh milk and yogurt products purchased directly from a local small dairy will generally be fresher than those from a supermarket. You should also use the same type of milk as yogurt starter - whole milk, whole milk yogurt starter; low-fat milk, low-fat yogurt starter; nonfat milk, nonfat yogurt starter.

The yogurt starter is simply a few spoonfuls of fresh yogurt. It may be purchased or homemade yogurt but, above all, it should be no more than two days old.

When making nonfat yogurt you may wish to add agar to the starter to help create a thicker, smoother, more flavorful yogurt. Agar is a gelling agent derived from marine algae which is easily obtained in either flaked, powdered or granular form from health food stores.

HOMEMADE YOGURT
Makes 4 cups

4 cups milk (whole, low-, or nonfat)
2 tablespoons nonfat dry milk powder
3 tablespoons yogurt (whole, low-, or nonfat)
1 teaspoon agar, optional (available in health food stores)

Combine milk and milk powder in a medium saucepan over high heat. Stir to dissolve powder and bring to a boil, immediately remove from heat and pour into a clean, nonporous container. Combine yogurt starter, agar, and about 1/2 cup of the boiled milk and stir to blend. Carefully stir yogurt mixture into the remaining milk. Cover with plastic wrap and place in a warm, draft-free spot (an oven with a pilot light is perfect) to rest undisturbed for 8 hours. Alternatively, place in an electric yogurt maker and follow manufacturer's instructions or in a preheated wide-mouth thermos.

When yogurt has set, remove it from the warm spot. Stir to blend. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

Note: If the yogurt is too thin the incubation heat was probably too low. If the yogurt tastes too' sour the incubation heat was probably too high. If either happens use the yogurt: mixture for cooking or baking and try again.