Why You Should Make Your Own Yogurt

One of the best habits I have started is eating yogurt on a daily basis. I eat it every morning for breakfast no matter what. The benefits of yogurt are too good to overlook. Yogurt is rich in B vitamins such as vitamin B12 and riboflavin which may help reduce the risk of heart disease. Yogurt is also a great source of calcium which helps maintain strong bones which can lower the risk of osteoporosis in women. Yogurt tends to be high in protein which can help aid in weight control. A study conducted by the Pennington Biomedical Research Center suggests that protein may have a big impact on your body-fat percentage, so it stands to reason that by increasing your muscle mass you can boost your metabolism. Yogurt can also be great for your digestive health as well.

I have gone on a yogurt journey so to speak. I started my journey eating Yoplait but after awhile it was too sugary. I then moved to the greek yogurts such as Oikos and Chobani and again after a time they became too sweet as well. I then moved on to Fage greek yogurt. It took awhile to get use to Fage because it had a tangy and way less sugary taste. I then read about making your own yogurt and I thought wow that would be nice but I am not that kinda gal. Well I was wrong, I am that type of gal and I have not looked back. Last Christmas I asked for a yogurt maker and my mother-in-law ordered one for me on Amazon. Now at first it was hit and miss ( thank goodness my husband doesn’t mind being a taste tester) but I finally came up with a recipe that I love.

The benefits of making your own yogurt is that YOU decide what goes in your yogurt and how much. If you look at just about any store bought yogurt the sugar content can be unbelievable. There are 16 grams of sugar in Dannon Oikos Traditional Greek Yogurt Raspberry which is about 4 teaspoons of sugar. Chobani Raspberry Greek yogurt has 18 grams, Yoplait Peach has 26 grams! My yogurt has 12 grams but it is pure sugar and not sugar additives, and I do have a sweet tooth! I also use whole organic milk and five percent fat content plain Fage yogurt as my starter. I want good quality products in my yogurt, and despite what you may have read the fat from yogurt is considered fat that is good for.

Homemade Yogurt

Another benefit to making your own yogurt is the cost of buying versus the cost of making. My husband and I both eat yogurt for breakfast every day and that really added up. We were spending $21.00 a week on yogurt. Now that I make our yogurt we are spending roughly $6.49, which is a weekly savings of $14.51! With that money saved we buy fresh fruit to top our yogurt and yummy granola.

Making yogurt is not for everyone, but if you give it a try you may just be that kind of person! Also don’t give up because with just about everything else practice makes perfect. It will take several attempts to get your yogurt how you want it so don’t give up!

Homemade Vanilla Organic Whole Milk Yogurt

Equipment needed

  • One yogurt maker (glass jars and lids should be included (Euro Cuisine Brand))
  • One cooking pot
  • Thermometer (Euro Cuisine Brand)
  • Whisk
  • Medium size bowl
  • Four cup measuring cup
  • Cheesecloth
  • One measuring tablespoon
  • One ¼ measuring cup
  • One wire mesh strainer

Ingredients

  • Four cups organic whole milk ( I use Aldi brand and save about $3.00)
  • ½ cup dry milk (Nido brand)
  • Sugar to your taste ( I use six tablespoons but it is now tasting a little too sweet so I am going to take it down to four Tbsp)
  • One package good quality plain greek yogurt ( I use Fage plain 5% fat)
  • One tablespoon vanilla

Directions

  1. Pour 4 cups of milk in to the pot at medium to medium high heat. Set the thermometer in the milk, making sure the thermometer doesn’t touch the bottom of the pot. Bring the milk to 180 degrees F. Remove pot from the heat and remove thermometer.
  2. Whisk in the dry milk a ¼ cup at a time. Next whisk in the sugar a few tablespoons at a time. Make sure dry milk and sugar is dissolved.  If you see little lumps don’t be alarmed, this will be strained off towards the end. Put the thermometer back in the milk mixture, again making sure it does not touch the bottom of the pot. Let the milk cool until it reaches 95 degrees F.
  3. Meanwhile, set out the yogurt maker, glass jars, and lids. Empty yogurt starter into medium bowl. When the milk mixture has cooled to 95 degrees pour a little bit of it in the bowl with the starter to temper. Whisked until combined. Combine the yogurt starter mix in the milk mixture and whisk until smooth. Add 1 tablespoon vanilla and stir lightly.
  4. Get your cleaned 4 cup measure and put the mesh strainer over opening and cover with the cheesecloth. Slowly pour milk mixture through the cheesecloth.  When all of the mixture is strained slowly pour the mixture into the individual glass yogurt jars. Put glass jars in yogurt machine, cover with lid, and turn machine on. Once the maker is on do not move or shake. Leave yogurt in the maker for 12 to 14 hours. When yogurt is finished remove jars and cool slightly. Cap the jars and refrigerate for least 4 hours before eating.

If you decide to start making your own yogurt drop me a message I would love to know how it goes for you.

I recommend topping your yogurt with homemade Meyer lemon curd!