Yogurt is a dairy product produced by bacterial fermentation of milk.  Fermentation of lactose produces lactic acid, which acts on milk protein to give yogurt its texture and characteristic tang. 

People have been making and eating yogurt for at least 4,500 years.  Today it is a common food item throughout the world.  It is a nutritional food with unique health benefits.  It is nutritionally rich in protein, calcium, riboflavin, B6, and B12.    from wikipedia

................................................................................................................

I make yogurt...
Why do I make my own yogurt?  The main reason is that, even after supplies, mine is cheaper in the long run, and it also doesn't contain all the 'stuff' that is found in store bought brands.

These are the ingredients found in Yoplait's Trix watermelon/strawberry yogurt:

Cultured Pasteurized Grade A Reduced Fat Milk, Sugar, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Modified Corn Starch, Whey Protein Concentrate, Nonfat Milk, Kosher Gelatin, Citric Acid, Potassium Sorbate Added to Maintain Freshness, Natural and Artificial Flavor, Red 40, Vitamin A Acetate, Blue 1, Vitamin D3. Watermelon Burst: Cultured Pasteurized Grade A Reduced Fat Milk, Sugar, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Modified Corn Starch, Whey Protein Concentrate, Nonfat Milk, Kosher Gelatin, Citric Acid, Natural and Artificial Flavor, Potassium Sorbate Added to Maintain Freshness, Red 40, Yellow 5, Vitamin A Acetate, Blue 1, Vitamin D3.

Even Stonyfield Farms Organic Yogurt in the blueberry flavor, while healthier, has some additives including sugar unless you go for their plain variety:

CULTURED PASTEURIZED ORGANIC LOW FAT MILK, ORGANIC BLUEBERRIES, NATURALLY MILLED ORGANIC SUGAR, PECTIN, NATURAL FLAVOR, ORGANIC ELDERBERRY JUICE CONCENTRATE (FOR COLOR).CONTAINS OUR EXCLUSIVE BLEND OF SIX LIVE ACTIVE CULTURES INCLUDING L. ACIDOPHILUS, BIFIDUS, L. CASEI, AND L. RHAMNOSUS.

Also, it is pretty easy to make your own yogurt.  Please see a post a few days ago for my disclaimer though.... There are many ways to do this, some cheaper than others.  I haven't tried them, nor do I care to.  What I'm doing seems to work pretty well, so I'm going to keep it up.

The supplies you need are milk, a starter culture, a container, and something to incubate the yogurt as it forms.

Our family uses raw milk, labelled for pets here in GA, as our staple.  This milk is bottled on a local farm and is not homogenized or pasteurized.

Before making yogurt I pasturize the milk myself so that the yogurt cultures will have a easier time taking hold.  To do this I pour 1 quart of milk (my incubator holds this amount) in a large pan and bring it to 180 degrees over a med-high heat.  The milk should not boil and will form a skin on the top just before reaching this temp.  I use a candy thermometer to monitor for accuracy.

At this point the milk is too hot to add in the cultures.  I shoot for 112 degrees.

To cool it I pour the milk into the yogurt container that is in a water bath.  You can stir it to try and bring the temp down more quickly, but whether you do this or not, it seems to take about 20 minutes either way.  Again, I continue to monitor it with a thermometer.  You could probably check it by hand as 112 is going to feel just a bit warm to the touch, but not hot.

After it gets to 112 degrees, I remove the milk from the water bath.  I put a bit of the warm milk... a couple of tablespoons.... in a cup.  It is now time to add your culture.

..........................

There are 2 ways that I've done this.  First... buy a culture like the one I've used here.  Drawbacks include that they generally don't contain but 1 type of culture.  To counteract this I will add a capsule of a high-count probiotic. 

The alternative would be to use  actual yogurt as a  starter.  When I do this I use about half a container of an organic, plain yogurt without flavorings or sugar.  I also add a probiotic capsule as well.

THe issue with using any starter is the quality and quantity of the cultures.  If you use a homemade culture that is old the cultures are diminished.  That's really my reasoning for the addition of the probiotics.  Yogurt that doesn't have adequate culture growth will be runny and not so yogurt-y.

................................................................................................................

I kind of go in spurts with yogurt and I'll make it for a while weekly and then just get tired of it.  This is the reason I tend to keep the starter culture packs available.  I tend to never know when I might be in the yogurt mood.

................................................................................................................

After mixing the culture with the milk, you need to incubate it.  I know some people who use ovens or pilot lights, or whatever, but I just went and got an incubator especially for this purpose.  Sorry, but I don't have the patience for this.

Also... I've had my yogurt maker for several years and bought it cheap on amazon.  Apparently there has been an increase in the market for these things because prices have gotten incredible.  Mine was about $15, and there's not alot in that price range now.

The directions say to let the yogurt incubate for about 5-6 hours, but I generally go for the 12-15 hour range.  This increased time should allow for more culture development.

I then put the whole container in the fridge and let it cool and 'come together'. 

It's now ready to enjoy....

You can add flavors or fruit to it as well as honey or other sweetners, but we generally eat it plain without any additives with granola...