Homemade Yogurt

I (Amelia) learned how to make yogurt through the instructions from Whole Grain Mornings by Megan Gordon, but now that I’ve made it many times, I do it a little (just a little) differently and have learned, through trial and error, just how much you can mess up before all is lost.

This yogurt is very creamy and fresh, with what I find to be an appropriate level of tang. I love it so much more than store bought yogurt - and now that we’re all trapped inside, there’s time to make it. If you’re a plain yogurt fan, I highly recommend it. If you’re a sweetened yogurt fan, I know from experience that stirring in some homemade jam or honey when serving makes for a heavenly combination. READ THE RECIPE THROUGH BEFORE STARTING! The yogurt will need eight hours to “set” in a warm spot and two hours in the fridge, so plan ahead and make sure you’re prepared. Once it’s made, please enjoy it with fruit, granola, muesli, cinnamon, or whatever suits your fancy.

NOTES:

I’ve overheated my yogurt! Is all lost? Nope! I’ve brought mine to a temperature above 200 degrees before and the yogurt was totally fine.
I forgot and let it drop past 115 degrees - what should I do? Gently reheat it back up and then stir in the store bought. I’ve brought it up from 85 degrees before and it worked like a charm.
I accidentally preheated my oven to 400 degrees while the yogurt was in it? Take it out of the oven and stir in fresh yogurt once it’s cooled down to 115 and then set it out for eight or so hours again. Depending on how long it’s been out, it could be pretty sour, but I imagine you could add it to a baked good like yogurt cake and enjoy the extra depth of flavor.
Do I need to make the yogurt nest? No, just make sure it has somewhere warm to rise. If you’re putting it in your oven, I recommend putting a sticky note on the oven to remind yourself and others not to preheat the oven.

Thermometer
5 cups whole milk
30g (or 1/4 cup) powdered milk
3 tablespoons whole milk yogurt (I use Fage 5%)

Pour the milk into a large pot and put over medium low heat (think 2.5 out of 10). Let it warm up for 15–30 minutes until it reaches 185 degrees. Remove from heat, and whisk in the powdered milk (vigorously if you're feeling aggressive).

Let it cool to 115 degrees (around 30 minutes), then whisk in the yogurt. Start a kettle of boiling water. Using some sort of ladle (I use a two-cup measuring cup) and a funnel, pour the milk mixture into two mason jars that together equal about a quart. The yield varies, but I usually fill one large and one small jar. Set out an extra mason jar. Arrange the mason jars on an oven safe dish (like a pie plate) and fill the empty one with boiling water. Cap all of the jars and wrap them with a towel (the boiling water will help keep things warm - this is the nest I refer to in NOTES). Put this nest in a warm spot for 8-12 hours.

After 8 hours, wiggle one of the jars a little to see whether it’s set. It may jiggle a little, but it shouldn’t be liquid. Cool the yogurt in the fridge for at least two hours, and then enjoy. Keep it stored in the fridge. After the first week, the yogurt turns more sour; we don’t usually have any left after the first week.