Fun with Yogurt

I was recently gifted an older yogurt maker by a good friend, and I finally decided to give it a try.  It's surprisingly easy to make your own yogurt.  All you need is milk, and some leftover yogurt to add to it.

All you need to do is measure out your milk (I used about half of a half-gallon of milk per 5 jar batch), and heat it to the boiling point.  Then, you let it cool down and add the yogurt, whisking it in well.

Fill the jars and pop on the lids, and place in the yogurt maker for about four hours.  The yogurt will thicken up to the consistency of thick cream, and then you chill it (it'll thicken more as it cools).  And there you have it, easy homemade yogurt.  While I don't have my own dairy animal yet, I can buy a quart or so of organic, local milk and make fresh yogurt whenever I need some.  Plus, you can strain the yogurt overnight through cheesecloth and make a delicious, tangy homemade cream cheese.  Now THAT I am looking forward to trying.