Yummy Yogurt

Today, many times when I walked past our decorated Christmas Tree and admired the ornaments, memories floated ... There are so many treasured pieces that grace our tree.  Christmas' past - even from my childhood - are represented. Rudolph still has a "nose so bright" even though he is a tad faded after a few decades. It cannot be that long, can it? Ah, yes it is!  :) 

The nostalgia did not last long.  There was Yummy Yogurt to prep.  With all of the hubbub of getting ready for the holidays, the healthy staple foods that we enjoy daily need to be located quickly when the fridge door is opened for the next few days. 

Yogurt is a food my fam has always devoured.  Need that calcium!  Today my two Donvier Yogurt Makers quietly did their thing.  The 16 six ounce containers will last a few days.  :)  The 16th container will be saved as the culture, so the next new batch can be made - next week. 

I will be settling in to finish one last project using my Janome (sewing machine).

This weekend will be filled with FUN!  

Peace to all! 
Merry Christmas!

Enjoy!

  

Sometimes...

...rethinking the process is needed!  That certainly was the situation Sunday night after my yogurt fiasco!  In the early afternoon the milk was prepped and I happily filled my Donvier yogurt containers.  The timers were set.  I had a wonderful chat with neighbors and even more neighbors while taking the daily walk.  In other words, the entire afternoon was spent outside enjoying the sun filled day.  Later that evening the two yogurt makers' buzzers signaled that it was time to place all of the containers in my fridge.  Oh, much to my great surprise all was not well in the yogurt department.  Everything remained in a liquid state and down the drain it went.  :(

Perhaps the milk was too hot when I added the culture.  Maybe I miscounted the amount of yogurt I added.  It still remains a mystery to me, because I used my thermometer.  This did happen about 1 and 1/2 years ago.  Whatever the reason, I started anew today.  The view outside my front window still shows the tulip beds, but the flowers are closed while the rain falls downward.  

Sure hope the yogurt - with a new starter - is in a solid state tonight!  :)

     

Time to Make the Yogurt!

This AM there was one item that definitely needed to be started - the yogurt!  Every two weeks my two Donvier Yogurt Makers take their place on my side counter.  Each 6 oz. yogurt container is filled with milk that has been heated and cooled with the yogurt culture added.  The culture is taken from the previous batch.  When any batch tastes a bit strong, it is time to purchase a commercial container of plain, unflavored low fat yogurt to use for the next batch.  Then, I start the process, again. 

We enjoy Low Fat Yogurt that is ready in about 7 hours and 30 minutes.  The easy to follow directions are included with the handy Yogurt Maker.  Using 1% Milk, I add a tablespoon of Powdered Milk before the Milk is heated.  A very large mixing bowl comes in very handy when preparing Yogurt!  

My first Yogurt Maker was a 5 container Salton.  For a good 20 years it was put to such great use that suddenly one day it stopped heating.  Then, I purchased the 2 Donvier Yogurt Makers.  Making a double batch works very well.  Regardless if the Yogurt is eaten unflavored or with fruit or jam, this delicious source of calcium is always in our fridge.

The bananas in our fruit bowl are in the "great for eating" stage of ripeness, so tomorrow at lunchtime it's Yogurt with a little Freezer Jam + banana for me.  :)

Yummy!
I will enjoy!