Making Yogurt is Fun and Easy!

To begin, find yourself a:

Pot. A thick one is nice. I use a Le Creuset pot, but I think any biggish pot would be ok.
Heating pad - This is what turned me into a yogurt maker. Before, when I read yogurt recipes, they said to put the yogurt-to-be into an oven with a pilot since it's warm, and leave it there for 8 hours. The problem is hardly anyone has ovens with pilots that are always on anymore (Arggh, technology!) and there aren't many places that are consistently warm for 8 hours at a stretch. I had thought my yogurt making would have to wait until I had space for a big cumbersome yogurt maker, so this heating pad advice has made me (and my belly) so happy and changed everything!
Thermometer - I guess you don't have to have this - there is a method where if your finger can stay in the hot milk for 10 seconds without it hurting, then you are at the right temp, but my obsessive compulsive side loves to (try to) get it exact.
Little bit of plain yogurt. I keep having to buy new little tubs for this purpose, but if you have more willpower than I, you can save a little bit of the yogurt you made previously and use that. You should use about 3 - 4 tablespoons for a 1/2 gallon of milk.

Here is what you do:

Pour the milk in the pot and turn it up to medium, or medium high if you are daring. I am an impatient cook, so I usually turn it up a little too high, but if you have a thick pot that should be ok.* Clip the thermometer to the edge of the pot. I use an old metal bulldog clip, but I think you can find special candy thermometers that are made for this that have their own clips. Also, if you are a super careful type of cook, or don't want to have to scrub the bottom of your milk pot, you can also use a double boiler for a gentler approach.

Put your 3 - 4 tablespoons of yogurt into a bowl/pyrex measuring cup, so that it has time to get a little more room temp-ish while you wait for the milk to heat.

Stir the milk once in a while and wait until it reaches 185 degrees. This is to help the yogurt to be thicker in the end. When it reaches 185, turn it off if you are using a big heavy pot that will hold the heat for a while, or turn it way down if you are using a thinner pot.

When the milk temp comes back down to 110 degrees (this usually takes about 45 minutes to 1 hour to cool down in a Le Creuset pot) and ladle some into your awaiting plain yogurt to temper it (warm it up). Then pour the yogurt with a little milk back into your pot of milk and stir.

Turn your heating pad on a medium setting and lay it out on a wood cutting board or counter. Place your pot, covered with it's lid, on top, and then a bath towel on top of that, like a tea cozy.

Go to sleep! Honk shoo...honk shoo...honk shoo...

Wake up, look under the lid and celebrate the miracle of yogurt in there!

Put the yogurt into containers, or just put the whole pot in the refrigerator and let it chill for a while before eating. This will help it to thicken even more, and be even more impressive.

Yogurt, lazing about on the windowsill, waiting to be eaten.

Why do all this? Well, as I said before, you will feel amazing. Almost like you baked a loaf of bread. But the other, perhaps even more important reason is that it is crazy good. It tastes seriously fresh, because it is. Also, you can know that your warm yogurt has not been sitting around in plastic pots absorbing scary chemicals. Instead it's been becoming it's delicious self all cozy, in enamelware or whatever you choose, right there in your own kitchen.

Yogurt everywhere, over the summer in Seattle.

*You may need to do a bit of scrubbing of the bottom of the pot if you get too carried away with a high temp. Some people use a big double boiler to prevent this from happening, I just don't have one (yet)!