Barefoot ‘n Honey Vanilla Yogurt
 
 
Ingredients
  • Automatic Yogurt Maker
  • (my brand is Euro Cuisine)
  • 1.3 liters 1% organic milk
  • 1 Vanilla Bean Pod, seeded
  • 6 oz organic plain yogurt with live cultures and no additives
  • (Liberté, Stoneyfield Farm)
  • 4-5 tbsp Organic liquid honey
  • Timer
  • Instant read thermometer
Instructions
  1. Every yogurt machine comes with a booklet of recipes and instructions. The following is based on my machine, but is simply to indicate that only two ingredients are necessary and a little bit of time…
  2. Measure out 7 of your yogurt maker’s jars of milk into a saucepan (mine is approximately 1.3 liters). Carefully slice one side of the vanilla bean from end to end. Open it flat and using the sharp side of the knife, scrape along to remove the vanilla beans. Add beans and the pod to the milk. Heat on Medium to Medium-High temperature until the milk boils. Use your instant read thermometer to check the temperature. Milk will boil at 180 F. Whisk occasionally at first and whisk constantly when boiling. Some prefer to use a digital leave-in thermometer that signals when the temperature is reached. This allows you to do other things while waiting for the milk to boil.
  3. When milk boils and begins to “climb” the sides of the saucepan, maintain a rapid boil for 2 minutes (set the timer).
  4. Remove the saucepan from the heat after 2 minutes and allow the milk to cool. The pan may be just set aside, placed outside with a tea towel over it or set in another pan of cold water. This is also when you need to check with a thermometer to know when the milk has cooled to 110 F. The digital thermometer (some even have a voice alert, like this one: http://tiny.cc/5n241 to let you know when it has cooled) can be handy for this. I just used an instant read and made sure I checked often enough until the milk temperature lowered to 110 F.
  5. In the meantime, measure out one jar (about 6 oz) of your plain yogurt into a small mixing bowl. Stir in 4-5 tbsp of Organic honey.
  6. Once the milk has reached 110 F, scoop a little of the milk into your mixing bowl of yogurt and stir to warm up the yogurt. Add a little more if needed.
  7. Then stir the yogurt mixture back into your cooled milk and stir. Mix well to ensure honey has distributed throughout evenly. Pour this milk into a large jug (for ease of pouring).
  8. Pour the milk into each yogurt jar and place in your machine, without the lids on. Cover with the plastic machine cover and set for the designated time. Mine runs for 10 hours.
  9. Remove and place the lids on. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours to set.
  10. I found these instructions worked perfectly and makes yogurt that is not too firm, nor too soft… just right! Your yogurt will expire in 10 days.
Notes
- yogurt from a previous batch may be used as the “starter” instead of store-bought yogurt
- purchased yogurt starter powder may also be used as the “starter”, just follow package instructions
- ignore the condensation on your yogurt machine, this is a normal part of the process
- yogurt can be made without a machine, but I prefer the accuracy and safety of a machine’s temperature control to ensure proper growth of the yogurt culture
Recipe by Just a Smidgen at https://justasmidgen.com/2012/01/31/barefoot-n-honey-vanilla-yogurt/