Have you ever read the nutritional info on those little cups of yogurt at the grocery store? Ack!
I can't tell you how many hours I've spent in grocery-store aisles going from one brand to the next, trying to find something that's not basically a molten candy bar, or loaded with all sorts of artificial sweeteners.
So my inner health nut went bonkers when I discovered this recipe for making my own ... in a Crock-Pot! It comes from a blog called A Year of CrockPotting, which chronicles one woman's vow to use that handy appliance every day in 2008. She did it, and you can too: crockpot365.blogspot.com.
Back to the yogurt: It works. Really, truly. YUM. It takes a lot of time, so I started my little experiment late on a Sunday afternoon. When I woke up Monday morning I had a bucket o' yogurt, and it firmed up nicely in the fridge.
I may be biased, but I think it's better than anything store-bought. Now I'm straining a batch to try to create the consistency of the Greek yogurt that's so tasty, but too expensive for me to buy regularly.
Maybe I'll take the advice of a co-worker and try something a little more risque next, like DIY beer.
SLOW-COOKER YOGURT
8 cups (half-gallon) of milk (The recipe recommends using whole milk until you get the hang of yogurt-making, but 2 percent worked fine for us. Just don't use ultra-pasteurized "long-life'' milk.)
1/2 cup store-bought natural, live/active-culture plain yogurt as a starter. We used Dannon's Activia.
1 packet plain gelatin (optional, but it will give your yogurt more of a store-bought consistency)
Plug in slow cooker and turn to low. Add the milk. Cover and cook on low for 2-1/2 hours.
Unplug cooker. Leave the cover on, and let it sit for 3 hours.
Scoop out 2 cups of the warmish milk and put it in a bowl. Whisk in yogurt and gelatin. Then dump the bowl contents back into the cooker. Stir to combine.
Put the lid back on the cooker. Keep it unplugged, and wrap a heavy bath towel all the way around the crock for insulation.
Go to bed, or let it sit for 8 hours.
Chill in a plastic container in the refrigerator. Your fresh yogurt will be good for seven to 10 days. Save 1/2 cup as a starter to make a new batch.
(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service www.scrippsnews.com)
Must credit St. Petersburg Times
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