Make Your Own Pet-Friendly, Probiotic-Packed Old Fashioned Yogurt

This recipe was taught to me many years ago. It is a generations old Eastern European recipe. It really, really works and it’s great for your whole family, dogs included!

Ingredients *Choose organic ingredients whenever possible.

1 litre of whole milk, for example, homogenized cow milk or whole, naturally homogenized goat milk

1 small container (175 grams) of Balkan style yogurt (or goat milk yogurt, water buffalo yogurt, or sheep yogurt)

Instructions

1. Place milk in a large pot and bring to a boil. This is a “watch the pot carefully” recipe. Small bubbles will form around the edges first, and then bubbles move towards the center. Watch the milk carefully to ensure it doesn’t burn. You can do this by simply turning the heat down just before the milk reaches a rolling boil. Boil the milk for 15 minutes. A timer is useful for this step.

2. After 15 minutes, turn the stove off, and let the milk cool down until it is lukewarm. Do not remove the pot from the stove.

3. Then, in a small mixing bowl, whisk a small amount of the yogurt with a small amount of the boiled milk until smooth. For example, combine four tablespoons of milk and six tablespoons of yogurt. The more yogurt used, the more firm your own yogurt will be.

4. Place the mixture back in the pot that contains the rest of the milk. Cover the pot and leave it until yogurt has formed. You can check the pot from time to time. As the yogurt is forming, it looks a bit like Jell-O. The yogurt can take anywhere from eight to 12 hours to form. Semi-firm yogurt, perfect for dips, sauces, and meal toppers, will be ready in as little as four hours if you use whole goat milk. Whey will come to the top of your homemade yogurt, and it is good to use too. Serve as is, or, if you prefer to strain your yogurt, skim the whey (the liquid-y part) from the top.

5. Store homemade yogurt in containers and refrigerate or freeze. Homemade yogurt will last as long as commercial brands do.

6. Fruits, vegetables, herbs, and spices can be added to yogurt after the base has been prepared.

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