Homemade Greek Yogurt ... So easy!

This recipe allows you take a gallon of milk, some powdered milk and a single serving cup of yogurt and make an entire GALLON of Greek yogurt in your crock-pot!  AWESOME!

I got the recipe from OneGoodThingbyJillee.

I think one of the best things about Greek yogurt is the ability to substitute it for sour cream in any recipe!  So you make this and you have yogurt and "sour cream" until its gone!

I like that Greek yogurt is high in protein which makes it a great snack for you and the kids!  My kids love it with honey and fresh berries!  Yum!

I love Greek yogurt and buy it when I feel like splurging, because it is more expensive.  Although it is becoming more common, so at least there are more choices out there.

Ingredients:

-1 gallon whole milk

-3 cups powdered milk

-1/2 cup (single serving cup) plain live culture Greek yogurt

Process:

1. Pour gallon of milk into crockpot.

2. Add 3 cups powdered milk to milk.  {This increases the proteins.}

3. Whisk to combine thoroughly.

4. Heat the milk mixture on low until it reaches 180 degrees.
5. Turn off crock-pot and allow milk to cool to between 95 and 115 degrees.  {I didn't start this process until after supper so I transferred the mixture to a large stainless bowl to speed up the cooling time.}

I placed the bowl on a wire rack to also help speed up the cooling time.

{I used a candy thermometer, you could use any thermometer you have.}

6. In a small bowl whisk a small amount of the crock-pot milk mixture with the live culture yogurt.

 Combine well.

7. Then, whisk the yogurt mixture into the milk mixture.

8. Transfer mixture into air-tight storage containers. {I used a funnel, because otherwise I know I'd make a huge mess!}

9. Place the closed containers in your oven with the light on for 8 to 12 hours {I left them overnight} to finish the culturing process.  {I used all different sizes of jars; large canisters, canning jars and small jars for baking yeast.}

10. After the 8-12 hours, move the containers to the refrigerator and chill completely.

 11. Enjoy!

***Note: The containers that I filled first {the large containers} had the best consistency {just like any store-bought Greek yogurt}; the small containers that I filled with the last of the mixture turned out a little "slimy"; I think staining the last couple jars would have taken care of that.  I didn't bother with straining them; I just used them little by little in things like scrambled eggs, mashed potatoes, cheesy potatoes and other recipes where you mix the yogurt/sour cream in.

* I love my collapsible funnel {like the one below, this set looks awesome; at under $6 and you get three different sizes and it even comes with a strainer!  Cool!}, these are super handy and easy to store in the drawer with all of your other utensils.