Yogurt Recipe

One of the first things people ask me when I tell them I make my own dairy products is do I make yogurt. Actually yogurt was the first thing I learned how to make. Many years ago I purchased an electric yogurt maker and proceeded to make the delightful dairy product using powdered milk. But now that I have plenty of goat milk I've experimented with making yogurt as simply as possible without the use of special equipment.

Yogurt is the Turkish word for milk that has been curdled with a lactic starter. Many countries have a long tradition of cooking with and eating some form of lactic cultured milk. Yogurt is easily digested and it keeps better than milk, which is why it's popular in tropical climes.

Yogurt is formed by the growth of two bacterial organisms in milk; Streptococcus thermophilus* (a warmth loving bacteria) and Lactobacillus bulgaricus (a strain of bacteria from Bulgaria, where we all know they make great yogurt) which turn the milk sugars into lactic acid. Lactic acid is much easier for your body to digest than milk sugars, so even people who can't drink milk (lactose intolerant) can still "handle" yogurt. Oft times you will also find yogurt that contains other "Probiotic" cultures such as Lactobacillus acidophilus, Bifidobacterium longum, and Bifidobacterium infantis which are bacterium normally found in your intestines. Together these bacteria aid in digestion and the synthesis of vitamins. If you are taking antibiotics, which tend to kill your "intestinal flora" as well as whatever is making you ill, you should eat plenty of yogurt to help replace the "good guys" in your digestive system. Continue Reading >>