Homemade Yogurt- in individual cups

These are fairly easy to make but do take some time. This is the way my mom always made our yogurts in Portugal when I was growing up. The secret is in the temperature of the milk (heating up and cooling down) so please follow those steps.

Make sure you have everything you need on hand. If you have small children in the house, make sure you can do this at a time when you won't be interrupted (or recruit some help).

What you will need:
- 1 large pot
- 1 large bowl
- whisk and ladle
- cookie sheet
- thermometer
- canning jars (I used 4oz and 8oz glass canning jars but any type of small container with a screw-on lid will work)
- old bath towels or blankets (I used 2 beach towels, 1 kitchen towel and 3 large towels)
- kettle (electric or traditional)

Before you start, place your jars and lids/rings in the sink and pour boiling water over them, enough to cover. It is important that the jars be warm when you are ready to pour the prepared milk. I had to pour hot water on my jars twice while the milk was cooling down.
For this batch, I used 6 8-oz jars and 9 4-oz jars. I find the smaller jars to be the perfect serving size for children.

Ingredients:
- 1/2 gallon of 2% milk
- 1 plain yogurt (I used Yoplait Fat-free plain Greek Yogurt) (remove the yogurt from the fridge and let it sit on the counter)
- 1/2 cup of nonfat dry milk
- 1/4 cup of maple syrup or raw honey (optional)

- Heat the milk in large pot over medium-low heat until it hits 185°F (85°C), just before boiling point. Turn off the heat and slowly whisk in the nonfat dry milk. If you're using maple syrup or honey, whisk in at this time. Replace the lid to the pot and let cool to 110°F (43°C). Depending on the room temperature of your kitchen, this can take anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours. Keep checking regularly. At this point, pour the store bought plain yogurt in the large bowl and use the ladle to get some milk from the pot; whisk it together and repeat (2 or 3 ladles) until the yogurt is tempered (same temperature as the milk). Then pour the contents of the bowl into the pot and whisk again  (1 store bought starter yogurt will be enough for up to 2 gallons of milk, you will just need more jars).
- Pour your prepared milk into the jars (I worked with a ladle over the pot so I didn't have to worry about spilling the milk everywhere else). Work fast so the milk doesn't have the time to cool down too much. Wipe the jars as needed and place the lids and rings on tight.
- I lined a cookie sheet with a kitchen towel and placed my jars on top, all touching each other:

I tucked in the first beach towel underneath the cookie sheet and then draped it over; I repeated with another towel on the opposite side, and 2 more towels on top and around. The goal is to make a little cocoon around the jars; the cookie sheet is for stabilization so the jars don't tip.
When I made this batch, since it's Summer and we had the swamp cooler on, I turned on the oven on very low (150°F) and placed my cocoon of jars near the oven vent, on top of the stove. I then moved them to the counter after a few hours, on a corner with constant temperature and no drafts.
You will then leave your jars to rest undisturbed for 24 hours. When done, open one jar to admire your homemade yogurts- they should be dry and thick:

Move your jars to the fridge, wait a few hours for them to cool down and enjoy!

They will be a bit tarter than store bought yogurts, even if you use the maple syrup or honey. You may sweeten them with more syrup or honey, jams, fresh fruit and even chocolate syrup. I prefer to eat them with a few spoons of the homemade granola mix (will share that another time).

For the next time, I will use 1% milk for one batch and regular almond milk for another. My mom always used cow's milk so I don't know how the almond milk will turn out. I'll be sure to come back and update.

If you have any questions, leave a comment and I will try to answer.