Yogurt... Just Plain Yogurt!

In the last couple of weeks, the kids and I have gone peach picking at the orchard and have been going to the local farmers' market(A whole post unto itself). Well, last week, I ordered a yogurt maker from Amazon. I've never made yogurt, but figured how hard could it be?

While waiting for the machine to come in, I made the mistake of researching the origins of yogurt. The story goes, a herdsman accidentally left a clay jar of milk out all day. The natural enzymes found in the container activated in the heat. When he got back to it, at the end of the day, he noticed it was solid so he tried some and yogurt was discovered.

What the hell was this guy thinking? WTF... WTF... WTF...  If I walk into a 7-11, make a cup of coffee and even the smallest half and half sperm floats to the top, I throw the whole cup out. This guy saw a warm jar of solidified milk and thought, 'I have to try that.'...

Oh wait...

Approx. 6000 years later, I was waiting for a UPS truck to deliver a machine so I could do. . . just that.

The yogurt machine came in and I read the recipe.  Holy crap!   Nine hours to make a batch of yogurt?   Turns out to make yogurt you need yogurt cultures. Seeing as the yogurt cultures I ordered online were stuck in postal limbo, I had to buy a tub of already made yogurt to use as my starter cultures. So, I made a late night run to the store to buy yogurt so I could... make yogurt.

The next morning, I heated the milk, mixed in my starter and put the filled cups into the machine. Nine hours later, I put the cups in the fridge.  I decided to go shopping, knowing I'd have to double dare myself to eat the 'nine hour' solidified milk when I got home.

It was late and I had nothing else prepared for dinner. I reached into the refrigerator, pulled out a white filled cup, thanked god for the life I had and wished only the best for my kids. As the spoon pierced the surface I convinced myself that it was just like a snack pack; I'm sure if I knew how those delectable wonders of science were made I'd throw up today, just thinking about how many I consumed as a kid.

Wow! It was awesome! Creamy intense goodness! The cup was gone and I wanted more! I ate a second one. I then emptied the rest of the yogurt from the cups to a bowl, for storage, and started making another batch.