Hm, thanks for the input guys :) I think I'll try it once more with the oven method, and if that fails, I'll poke around for a heating pad or a yogurt maker now that the garage sales are starting to pop up! DH seems not to mind the egg white consistency of this batch, anyhow. :p

I used to just keep my yogurt on the stove while my oven was on baking other things. Now instead of using the oven (since I've done all my baking for a while), I fill the sink with hot water and leave it there for a couple hours then change the water. After 3 times, it is pretty set. Only a couple of times did I have to change it more than 3.

Ooopppps!!!
 

I finally had a yogurt snafu! I went to the Food Net Work to see about A. Brown's yogurt making deal and decided that it was faster than my method. Now mind you I have had really good thick yogurt, but after cooking it to just under boiling, I have to let it sit for a will to come back down to 115 degrees to add the yogurt starter. With AB's method: 4 cups milk, 1/2 cup nonfat dried milk, and honey; you heat to 120 degrees add the yogurt starter and you are ready to go. I did that and then set it in my yogurt machine. Let it go for 8 hours and it was a runny mess. No form, no taste. I think that my machine doesn't keep it at 120 degrees like he suggested. So, I came home looked at it and decided that I could maybe reheat it and then add the yogurt back in. WRONG: it got separated, and huge chunks milk whey started forming on the bottom of the medium heated mixture. I though maybe I could use the yogurt chunks, but it had no taste what so ever. Lessons learned: Don't mess with it if it isn't broken and you can reheat a yogurt mixture. I've already made a new batch and happily eating it with granola and stevia and fresh strawberries.

Zenor, thanks for the info about the whey.

I did go to Trader Joe's, bought Fage and their house brand. Somehow, my spoon slipped and I ended up eating the Fage. I still have the other, and will try to keep my spoon out of it.

I notice that the Wal-Mart brand has pectin and tapioca starch. The house brands from the two grocery stores in my area have modified corn starch among other things. I think the starches are probably in there to thicken the final product. TJ's brand has no thickeners or additives, and that's what I am looking for, as long as I am doing "homemade".

Oh, for this ... I use the yogurt making as an opportunity to clean out my ice maker as well! :) I empty the old dead ice in the bottom of the icemaker into my sink and run about 2" of water in there. I turn the heat off under the milk and then lower the pan into the ice water, stirring it constantly. It cools down in a couple of minutes or less ... which I like becuase it gives less chance for bacteria to get into the milk as it sits and cools. (Which I also like because I'm impatient and I don't like to sit around and wait for the milk to cool!)

Then add the starter and the rest as usual.

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(Can you tell I've really gotten inot the yogurt making thing? I'm loving this!)

I went and looked at the AB recipe and I can't remember if he heated the milk just to 120 degrees in the episode or if he talked about it. I know that his method differed from mine a bit and my method works, so why change it.

I do remember him talking about the science of it and stirring the whey back in supposedly makes it a looser consistency, but then I never see the whey until I've scooped into the yogurt and let it sit awhile. I never seen excess whey after taking it out of my yogurt maker. Just goes to show all our experiences are different and we just have to find the method that works for us. :)

In The Tightwad Gazette the author talks about heating the milk to 180 degrees (or to nearly boiling) helps to tighten the structure of the yogurt, according to the "experts" she talked to. She also talks about uses for runny batches of yogurt. Failed batches get made into yogurt Popsicles or get used in baking. I hate waste, so I'm a big fan on finding uses for things that don't turn out.

My batches cool fairly quickly because I have a drafty kitchen, but at the places I've lived before I would time how long it took the first time and then just set the timer every time after that. That way I could go do something else and didn't have to watch the pot.

Hi my yogurt making buddies! I have a question about your yogurts. Does yours get sweeter with each batch? I started with the Fage then for my next batch I just kept some of the first batch and then so on. I'm on batch number 4 with the same "recycled" yogurt and I noticed it is getting sweeter and sweeter by the batch. This last one was soo light and delicate in a really good way. I find that even if I let it incubate for longer it doesn't really get tart. Does anyone know how long I can recycle my yogurt as a starter? I read on the internet it gets less "potent" but nobody really says when? I would just love to keep this going!

gastronome~I've found that after about the 4th time I have to use fresh starter. Not because of the taste, but because it starts to get runny after that. It may vary for everyone though. It probably depends on what you are using as a starter. I use one cube of Nancy's plain organic yogurt that I've frozen in ice cube trays (I thaw first.)

By sweeter do you mean more mild in tartness? I suppose subsequent batches to get more mild in tartness, I'd never thought about it. I'll have to pay more attention.

Hm. Interesting question. I use Stonyfield organic yogurt that I've frozen as a starter .. so my batches tend to be pretty consistent.

I haven't noticed any "sweeter" batches, but I *like* the tangy flavor of plain yogurt, so I tend to incubate a little longer and try to encourage that. :)

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New Starter
 

After the second back of yogart, I use a new starter. I like my yogurt thick and tangy and use 1/2 c. of Fage. I've tried the third and fourth starter and there is just no pizzazz for me. So, I know that in increased the cost of my yogurt from 67 cents to $2.66 a quart. I can live with that because it is excellent and I make yogurt cheese and use it for thick sour cream. I'm will always heat my yogurt to between 180 to 190 degrees and it sits in the yogurt maker for 12 hours and it turns out very thick and tangy. I learned my lesson.

Nancy - I haven't tried the Fage, to start mine. Do you think it makes a difference in the thickness vs. the Stoneyfield Farm Organic? I could try adding more starter yogurt to get it thicker ... I might do that with tonights batch.

Hm. Things to ponder! :)

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From what I've read, the main things that make yogurt thicker (aside from commercial thickeners like pectin & gelatin) are higher milk fat content and higher milk solids. That's why most recipes will have you add powdered milk to up the milk solids.

Perhaps the starter is a factor, but I can't find any information (I googled it) about different starters effecting thickness.

My batches don't seem any different whether I use 2T of starter or more, so I use 2T (I'm cheap.) Like I've said before though, there are so many factors and everyone's experiences are different. I guess you just have to tweak and figure out what works in your own kitchen.

Have any of you tried cooking a vanilla bean with the milk and removing it before adding the starter? I wonder how that would taste?

I really love Fage yogurt, and would love to recreate that at home. I don't like tangy yogurt, which is why I love Fage so much.

Yes, by sweeter I do mean less tart. I am draining my yogurt now and it tastes like the Fage and Trader Joes house brand stuff. By doing all this delicious experimenting I discovered that I just like yogurt -- tart, non tart, watery, thick..doesn't matter as long as its yogurt. Mmmm.. I recently discovered Trader Joes Mediterranean yogurt cheese which tastes like a cross between sour cream and Fage. It's 60 cals for 2 tbs and it is soooo good. I use this now to mix in to my oatmeal and it makes it taste so sinful. I'm going to see if I can use this as a starter for my next batch of yogurt...It doesn't have any thickeners or gelatin and lists active cultures so I'll give it a shot to see what comes out of it!