Greek Yogurt Recipe -- Phase 3

The batch of Greek Yogurt I made this week has turned out to be the very best, creamiest, thickest yet! If you enjoy Greek Yogurt and want to try to make it on your own here is the recipe I use. You first start with a base yogurt recipe, then you strain it, it is the straining of the whey that makes it "Greek". So if all you want is regular yogurt then don't hang it/strain it and you have a wonderful fatty yogurt.

Yogurt Recipe

1 quart cream (raw farm fresh or whipping cream)
1 quart whole milk (raw farm fresh or pasteurized)
1/4 cup (rounded) prepared Greek yogurt or plain yogurt

1. Heat the milk and cream to 110 degrees. Remove from heat as soon as it reaches the correct temperature.
2. Whisk in the prepared yogurt. Stir very well.
3. Pour hot milk/cream mixture into clean jars. Screw on the lids.
4. Place jars in your oven with the oven light on.
5. Allow jars of yogurt to incubate in the oven with the light on for 12-24 hours. The longer the better. The longer it ferments the more reduced the lactose sugars are.
6. If you do NOT want to make this yogurt into "Greek Yogurt" refrigerate it until use.

Greek Yogurt
1 yogurt recipe
muslin cloth
colander
pan or bowl larger enough to suspend the colander

1. Line your colander with muslin cloth. Please note: cheesecloth will NOT work. You must have a muslin bag or muslin cloth. Muslin cloth can be purchased from any fabric store for about $2 per yard. Buy a whole yard so you can cut the muslin the size you want it for straining.
2. Place the colander over a bowl or pot so that it is suspended. You want to have it suspended so the whey can drip. You do not want your colander sitting in the bowl or the yogurt will will be sitting in the whey.
3. Poor the yogurt into the muslin lined colander.
4. Place the bowl/colander in the refrigerator.
5. Every 4 hours or so, take a scraper or spoon and scrape the sides of the cloth around the base of the colander especially. Do not stir the yogurt, just scrape it away from the sides gently.  This last batch is the first that I scraped the bowl about every 4 hours throughout the straining time. You will want to strain the yogurt for about 12 hours or until all the whey has stopped dripping. I didn't scrape it during the night, but I did scrape it down right before bed, then again when I got up in the morning. I think that scraping the thickened yogurt off the sides of the muslin allowed for more whey to drain out of the yogurt. Please note: If you make a double, triple or quadruple batch (like I did) you will want to strain the yogurt for a minimum of 24 hours and scrape it a few times so that an optimum amount of whey will drain. I think it is harder to get a nice Greek yogurt when you do large batches. Scraping the muslin is the key to a GREAT yogurt when doing large batches. By large I mean 1 gallon of cream and 1 gallon of milk.
6. When the yogurt is nice and thick. Scoop it into a container. Lay the muslin on your counter and scrape off all the thick creamy yogurt that is stuck to it. Be sure to rinse your cloth very well immediately or it may not clean up well by the time you get around to washing it with your laundry.

Miscellaneous Information:

I do not know how long this recipe will last. This summer we had one batch make it about 10 days. If you are using pasteurized milk and cream I expect yours might last at least a couple weeks... if you don't eat it all by then. The milk and cream I use is raw and stays raw since I do not heat it above 110 degrees, so it does not last as long.

If you do not want to use a colander to drain your yogurt, you can tie up the ends of the muslin around a wooden spoon that is suspended above a pot or bowl, then put it in the refrigerator like that. You might not get as thick of a yogurt because you will not be able to easily scrape the sides of the cloth, so the middle of the yogurt batch in the middle of the sack/bag will be runnier.

I've had people ask me about adding sweeteners and flavorings. You can add sweetener or flavorings to your yogurt right after you heat the milk/cream. Add it when you add your yogurt starter. If you plan to make Greek yogurt I would not recommend adding sweetener until you are ready to eat it. Some of your sweetener will come out in the whey. How much sweetener you ask? If you are making a 2 quart batch you can use 1/4 cup honey, maple syrup, or organic sugar. OBVIOUSLY these sweeteners are not for those on phase 3 but your family would REALLY enjoy them! You may use your favorite phase 3 compliant sweeter. Just stir in some and taste it to see if it is as sweet as you might like it. Remember that as it ferments it will get tart. If you want to add vanilla flavoring or any other type of flavoring use 2 tsp per 2 quart batch.

Whey is a power food too. You can add it to your smoothies or use it to ferment fruits and veggies. For more information on using whey you can reference the Weston A Price website or see the many recipes in Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon. I know there are many that blog that also use fermented foods. I'm sure if you did a Google search for fermenting vegetables with whey you will find many recipes that you can try. Whey can be added to homemade mayonnaise to extend it's shelf life.