The Dairy Making 101 workshop also covered making yogurt. Yogurt is produced by fermenting milk with bacteria. The bacteria lives on the sugar in milk i.e. lactose and produces lactic acid. The lactic acid acts on the milk protein to form yogurt and makes the yogurt slightly tang.

Yogurt is very nutritious and is rich in protein, calcium, riboflavin, vitamin B6 and B12. Yogurt is good for people with poor bowel movement i.e. not regular.

We started with heating the milk to between 110F and 180F. Some people preferred to heat to the higher limit for food safety reason. You may flavour the milk with vanilla bean or extract or even cumin as Thomas did.

Let the milk cool to 110F.

Thomas prepared some 1 litre bottles by filing them with hot water and fill a cooler with the bottles and covered them with towels. This helps to keep the cooler warm.

Thomas then empty the preheated bottle and fill it the warm milk.

Into the milk, he added a tablespoon of plain yogurt (preferably organic and made of just milk and culture) to start the fermentation process. The bottles have to be kept in a warm place for 8 to 12 hours. The ice box which Thomas has preheated is a good way to store them. You may want to replace some bottles of hot water to keep it warm for the period of fermentation. Another good way is to keep them in a gas stove with pilot light. Someone in the group suggested to use an electric blanket, great idea.

You may sweetened the home made yogurt with honey when you want to eat them.