Raw Milk Yogurt

I decided a while back to start making all of my yogurt at home. I reasoned that I could make yogurt with better ingredients (raw milk) and could also save a little money. We go through a lot of yogurt at our house! So, I had a yogurt maker all picked out when I stumbled across this post about making yogurt in your slow cooker. I was so excited to try it, and let me tell you, it is just as easy and wonderful as she says that it is! I am thrilled with the results, and am equally thrilled that I don't have to buy another kitchen gadget! So, here's what you do:

1. Pour 1/2 gallon of raw milk in your slow cooker and let cook on low for 2 1/2 hours.

2. Turn off slow cooker and let sit, covered for 3 hours.

3. Whisk in 1/2 cup of prepared yogurt, (to be used as a starter) cover and wrap the whole slow cooker in a big towel. Let it sit this way for 8 hours.

4. That's it! Wasn't that easy? :)

I started mine around 4pm, and by the time I whisked in the starter yogurt and wrapped it up, it was time for bed. It sat out all night and went in to the refrigerator first thing in the morning. The flavor is very mild, not as tangy as I like, but I'm going to experiment with other starters and see what I can come up with. It is also pretty thin, but she states in the original post that you can strain it with cheesecloth if you like it more thick. The best part about that is that the liquid can be saved for soaking! We like it thin, the kids LOVED it and ate it without any sweetener at all. It was wonderful and we will definitely be making it from now on.

This is what it looked like right before I added the starter yogurt in. I love all of that bright yellow fat!

The finished product.

This post is part of Pennywise Platter Thursday at The Nourishing Gourmet.