This recipe came from my friend Mary, who has raised some amazing, brilliant, and talented children.  I take advice from Mary whenever I can get it!

Mary had been making homemade yogurt for awhile, but was concerned after the food dye post because she was using flavored gelatin to flavor up her yogurt and the gelatin contained dyes.  That's when reader Karen suggested she use fruit juice and plain gelatin instead!  Mary did, and it worked.

I tried it yesterday and had fabulous results.  Once again, the benefits of making your own are that you can control the sugar, the food coloring, the sodium, and a big priority for us right now, is you can control the cost!

Plain Homemade Yogurt Recipe

• 8 cups milk (any kind, I use 1%)
• 1/2 cup store-bought natural, live/active culture plain yogurt
• 0.50 ounces- 0.75 ounces plain gelatin (or three small packets)

Step 1:  Plug in your crock pot an turn to low.  Add milk, cover and cook on low for 2 1/2 hours.

Step 2:  Unplug your crock pot.  Leave the cover on, and let it sit for 3 hours.

Step 3:  Scoop out 2 cups of the milk and whisk in the gelatin and stir until the gelatin is dissolved.  Whisk in the store-bought yogurt.  Dump the bowl contents back into the crock pot.  Stir to combine.  Put the lid back on your crock pot.  Keep it unplugged, and wrap a heavy towel all the way around the crock for insulation.  Let it sit for 8 hours.  In the morning the yogurt will have thickened.

On another note, if you want to sweeten the whole batch, here is how she changed things:

After the 8 cups of milk has warmed for 2 1/2 hour and cooled for 3 hours,

• Sprinkle 2 packets of plain gelatin in 1/2 c of cold fruit juice and let it sit for about 1 min.
• Then add 1 1/2 cup boiling fruit juice and stir for about 5 minutes.
• Then add the 1/2 c of plain yogurt and about 1/4 cup of agave to the fruit juice/gelatin mixture, stir, add to the warmish milk in the crock pot, and stir again.
• Then wrap the crockpot in a bath towel and leave it on the counter overnight.
• I used to add the agave to each individual cup before eating but decided this is easier.

Notes from Mary:  I have tried Cran-Raspberry juice and white grape juice both which gave me a good tasting yogurt.  The yogurt is thin when it is finished but after cooling in the refrigerator it thickens and is similar in thickness to store bought yogurt.  No more nasty food coloring.

PS. I love your healthy recipes!  Thank you for sending them to me.  Keep it up

Related post:  Yogurt Cheese