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Pete · 07-17-2009, 08:42 AM

Hi Clod, The yogurt recipe I have for goat milk yogurt is a vanilla yogurt with sugar and vanilla so it tastes yummy. It also has non-fat dry milk to help it get thick. You can probably skip this part if you don't mind it a little runny. We don't know how well the almond milk will set anyway.
I don't know if there's a milk-free starter. I just use store-bought cow's milk yogurt. It only takes about 2 tsp of starter for a gallon of yogurt so it's not much dairy. Or, assuming you get a successful batch of non-dairy yogurt, you can use a little of the first batch to start the second batch and that will be virtually dairy-free.
As far as cleaning the jars goes, I probably don't do as well as I should but it wouldn't take much to do better. I clean the jars with hot, soapy water then pour in boiling water (while they're still hot so they don't crack) then pour it out using a canning grabber so you don't burn your fingers. To improve on that, put them in a stock pot of water and boil for 10 miinutes or so just before putting in the yogurt mix and sealing.
To grow the culture, I fill a canning pot with 90 degree water and put the sealed jars in. (The yogurt recipe has you heat up the yogurt mixture to something like 120 so the contents will be close to 90 degrees by this point). Then put it in the oven with the light on and the door propped open a little. It's a little tricky to find the right environment to keep the temp close to 90 degrees (I think 90 is the right number). That's where the yogurt makers earn their keep. The recipe says it takes 4 - 6 hours but mine seems to take 8 - 12 hours to set up. It will set up a little more after it cools off in the fridge too. Now, if we've already decided that it probably won't get thick, I'm not sure how to tell when it's done. It'll probably get a slimy texture like, um, runny yogurt. And taste a little tangy.

I don't have the recipe with me but if you want, I can post it when I get home. It's probably similar to most yogurt recipes. Let me know how it goes.

07-17-2009, 08:42 AM	#11
Pete Resident President Join Date: Apr 2003 Posts: 81	Hi Clod, The yogurt recipe I have for goat milk yogurt is a vanilla yogurt with sugar and vanilla so it tastes yummy. It also has non-fat dry milk to help it get thick. You can probably skip this part if you don't mind it a little runny. We don't know how well the almond milk will set anyway. I don't know if there's a milk-free starter. I just use store-bought cow's milk yogurt. It only takes about 2 tsp of starter for a gallon of yogurt so it's not much dairy. Or, assuming you get a successful batch of non-dairy yogurt, you can use a little of the first batch to start the second batch and that will be virtually dairy-free. As far as cleaning the jars goes, I probably don't do as well as I should but it wouldn't take much to do better. I clean the jars with hot, soapy water then pour in boiling water (while they're still hot so they don't crack) then pour it out using a canning grabber so you don't burn your fingers. To improve on that, put them in a stock pot of water and boil for 10 miinutes or so just before putting in the yogurt mix and sealing. To grow the culture, I fill a canning pot with 90 degree water and put the sealed jars in. (The yogurt recipe has you heat up the yogurt mixture to something like 120 so the contents will be close to 90 degrees by this point). Then put it in the oven with the light on and the door propped open a little. It's a little tricky to find the right environment to keep the temp close to 90 degrees (I think 90 is the right number). That's where the yogurt makers earn their keep. The recipe says it takes 4 - 6 hours but mine seems to take 8 - 12 hours to set up. It will set up a little more after it cools off in the fridge too. Now, if we've already decided that it probably won't get thick, I'm not sure how to tell when it's done. It'll probably get a slimy texture like, um, runny yogurt. And taste a little tangy. I don't have the recipe with me but if you want, I can post it when I get home. It's probably similar to most yogurt recipes. Let me know how it goes.