Homemade Yogurt

This is a basic yogurt recipe. You can add sweetner or pureed fruit later after it's made.

4 cups (1 quart) milk - whole, 2 %, 1% or skim ( I use organic)
1/4 - 1/2 cup instant non-fat dry milk powder
1/2 cup plain yogurt (with live cultures)I use organic or yogurt from a previous batch

In a saucepan, combine milk and dry milk and heat over medium heat, stirring frequently to just below the boiling point.

Remove the milk from heat and allow to cool until lukewarm (about 100 degrees).

To cool the milk quickly, place the saucepan into the refrigerator or a sink of cold water, stirring occasionally to cool evenly. This takes about 20 minutes.
Pre-warm the yogurt maker's heating base by plugging the cord into an electrical outlet. The signal light will glow when base is plugged in.
Add plain yogurt to the warm milk, stirring gently to blend.

Do not beat or whip.

Pour the mixture into the yogurt container, secure the lid and place the covered container into the heating base.

Cover the Yogurt Maker and process undisturbed and out of drafts for 4-10 hours, depending on tartness desired. (It usually took my yogurt about 6 hrs.)

Yogurt should be partially set after processing and will thicken further after refrigeration.
After processing, unplug the cord from the outlet.

Remove the cover and lift the covered yogurt container out of the heating base.

Place the container in the refrigerator and chill at least two hours to thicken.

If desired, remove 1/2 cup of the yogurt to use as a starter for future batches, before adding any fruit or flavoring.

Keep yogurt refrigerated until use.

I used a Salton Yogurt "maker". It's basically a heating unit that keeps the yogurt at the right temperature. I know you can do this in a crockpot or whatnot but I like the no brainer method. Plus I only paid $22.00 for this brand new. Here is a picture of the final product.