When we went on our trip to NZ I was introduced to the idea of making my own yogurt. What a neat idea. And Eloise made it sound so easy with her low tech set up that I couldn’t get it out of my head. I did some research and certainly you can buy electric yogurt makers or you can pull together things you have to make yogurt, but there is something nice about a product that is task specific. I mentioned this to Bill and he told me he bought himself an Easiyo and loved it and offered to get one for me. I am on my second batch of yogurt and I wish I could say that I was having great success… but I am not. My first batch was definitely yogurt, but more runny that I like. I prefer a thick greek style yogurt like Fage. This weekend I went out and bought a gallon of skim milk, powdered milk, UHT milk (aka Parmalat) and a small tub of Fage 0%. After heating and cooling the milk and putting the milk and yogurt in my Easiyo I went to sleep dreaming of thick rich greek yogurt. I was sad to find something along the lines of a yogurt drink waiting for me this morning. I am going to attempt to save the batch by straining the yogurt so this may not be a total bust. I am hoping my next round of experimentation goes better.
iamlizbeth.com 
Well, at least you’re getting a little culture.
😉
Get it?
In any case, I’m glad you lactic ….
Oh, I crack myself up…
B
OK, here’s the recipe from Eloise, recently modified with the discovery that less is more when adding the culture, yielding a thicker result with less straining and whey waste. It’s a little tarter than Fage, which is the king of yogurts, and we would just about kill for some here in NZ, along with Hebrew National hot dogs, or even Shofar or Nathans. And maybe a nice pastrami or brisket…and McCann’s steel cut oatmeal…but I digress:
1. put 2 Tablespoons, not more, of favorite plain active culture yogurt in the container.
2. add 1 cup of Parmalat (or any UHT) milk, and mix with yogurt using a whisk.
3. add the rest of the litre of milk (or quarts, for silly Americans) to the container and give it a shake.
4. add boiling water to the to of the red base in the maker. Put in the container.
5. don’t move it for 10 – 12 hours. Then open, strain if desired for thicker product, and eat.
Comment: The less whey you see at the top, the sweeter the yogurt. Generally using too much starter is bad.