Greek Yogurt Revisited

As with chess, and other strategy games, I had beginner's luck. This Greek yogurt was also one of those times when I had a little bit of luck.... After wasting a few gallons of milk, I decided to try a different way to make Greek yogurt. Maybe it was the type of Greek yogurt I'd mix in with the milk. Maybe it was the milk. Maybe it was the crock pot. I don't know. Regardless, I felt like I needed to change things up a bit.

My mom gave me the following "word of mouth" recipe:

Greek Yogurt

Ingredients

2 % gallon of milk

1 c unflavored Greek yogurt

Directions

Pour milk into crock pot.

Turn the crock pot onto HIGH for one hour.

2 hours on LOW.

3 hours OFF.

Take out 2 c of the warm milk and pour into bowl. Whisk in the Greek yogurt. Then pour the yogurt/milk mixture back into crock pot.

Wrap crock pot with warm blanket and leave overnight.

In the morning, drain for 5-6 hours. (To drain: set colander in large container or bowl. Lay unfolded cheesecloth in colander. Pour yogurt/milk mixture into colander.)

Reserve the whey. 

This recipe worked great! I know it's hard not to, but don't "peek" on the yogurt. Thinking about how the milk is turning into yogurt is neat, but if you lift the lid the heat will escape and may negatively affect the outcome of your yogurt.  Because of how long this process takes, I've found that starting this recipe at 2 or 3 in the afternoon works best for our schedule.  For me, this recipe seems to be easier/more fool-proof than the previous one I posted.

Speaking of the previous post, I haven't yet tried the "Indian Street Beverage of My Dreams".... Cardamon is the magic ingredient for that special recipe and it is nearly $13 at the grocery store. I just couldn't put it in my cart. I couldn't even touch it, actually. Maybe someday I'll be able to try this drink or find a smaller portion of cardamom somewhere. In the meantime, I need to find something to do with all of this whey!