Homemade Plain Yogurt and a Vlog Post

One of the hardest things about food blogging is that because I am the photographer and the cook, it is often hard for me to 'interact' with the food (Adam took the photo that you see below).  Taking photos of yourself eating, chopping, or holding your food can be kind of awkward and challenging. Particularly when your husband is gone during the best light of the day, and your baby doesn't use a camera responsibly.

I think interacting with food is the most interesting part, whether it is preparing, cooking, or eating, and I'm often sad that you all miss out on seeing that part of the process. I also find that describing the process of certain cooking techniques can be tedious or difficult. Often I wish I could just invite you all into my kitchen for a live tutorial, and show you what I am doing.  And so, a YouTube channel is born (there is also an embedded video below).

I will be vlogging (a blog post in video form) about once a week.  Some videos will be cooking tutorials, some will be about my food planning process, and some will just be about my life. If you have any questions that you want answered, let me know.

I am also happy to take suggestions for cooking videos, if there is a particular technique you are interested in learning, or can't find a good video for.  Here is for hoping I have something good to contribute to the YouTube cooking community!

I hope this is something you will enjoy, because we are having fun filming them!  Fox particularly enjoys being filmed.   Hope you are having a good week!  Happy Wednesday!

Homemade Plain Yogurt
recipe from Family Meals: Creating Traditions in the Kitchen
(makes 32 oz)
*As a quick disclaimer, I am still perfecting this yogurt recipe in the crockpot.  I typically use a yogurt maker to ferment the yogurt and using this appliance, works like a dream (this is not sponsored, I just like this yogurt-maker).  It keeps it at a constant temperature for the 8 hours of fermenting time.  A crockpot will work, but it is more temperamental, and has a harder time maintaining a constant temperature.  There are a few other ways that you can ferment your yogurt, and I will mention them below.  You can do whatever works for you!  Let me know if you have questions!  

4 cups whole milk
1/4 cup powdered milk
2 Tbs plain yogurt (with active cultures)

In a very clean, large heavy pot or saucepan, very slowly heat the milk over low to 185°F using a thermometer, whisking constantly.  Once the milk has reached this temperature, remove the pot from the stove and place in an ice bath in the sink.  Let the milk cool to 110°F -115°F, whisking occasionally.

While the milk is cooling, turn your crockpot on to warm and let it heat for about 5 minutes, then turn it off, letting it sit off for about 10 minutes prior to putting your mixture in.  If your crockpot has a temperature setting, set it to 110°F.  You can also let the yogurt ferment in an oven warmed to 110°F, or put it in jars and put the jars in a warm water bath in a cooler.

Remove your milk from the ice bath.  Slowly whisk in the powdered milk, and the yogurt.

Pour your yogurt mixture into the warm crockpot, put the lid on, and cover with two thick towels, once over the lid, and one around the body of the crockpot, to keep the heat in.  Let it sit, undisturbed for 10 -12 hours.

Once it is finished fermenting, put it in the fridge for about 4 hours, until it has cooled all the way.  Eat with granola, with chocolate granola, in a parfait, or plain with jam, maple syrup or cinnamon and brown sugar.

You can use 2 Tbs of this batch as a starter for your next batch of yogurt! Enjoy!