Description
Fruit on the bottom yogurt is one of our favorite breakfasts: tangy yogurt swirled with fresh fruit is a great way to start your day. So why not make it at home? This Homemade Fruit on the Bottom yogurt is easier than you think, and tastier and cheaper than store-bought.
Ingredients
Yogurt:
- 4 cups whole or 2% milk
- 4 tablespoons plain, unflavored yogurt with live cultures*
- 1/4 cup pure maple syrup or another sweetener of choice
- 1-2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste (optional)
Fruit on the bottom:
- 1 cup fresh fruit
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice (juice of 1/2 lemon)
- 1/2-1 tablespoon maple syrup
Instructions
- Heat your milk. You'll need to heat your milk to 180-185˚F (~83˚C) to kill off any bacteria that might compete with your starter cultures. Let your milk cool down before proceeding to step 2.
- Combine your milk and active starter culture. Add the starter yogurt to a large heat-safe container or bowl. Add in about 1/2 cup of the cooled milk and whisk until smooth, then add in the remaining milk and whisk well.
- Heat your yogurt at ~110˚F for 6 hours. There are a few ways to do this: we have a countertop oven that has a "warming" feature, which we can set to exactly 110˚F. We covered the yogurt and let it sit in the warmed oven. Alternatively, you can put your mixture in a sealed, airtight container and place it in a crockpot filled with water and set it to "warm". You can also place it in the oven with the oven light on, which can heat your oven to around the correct temperature. This is the least reliable method and you might get mixed results with this method.
- After six hours, your milk will have turned into yogurt! Let cool, slightly, then place it into the fridge to cool off and thicken up even more.
- Optional: Strain your yogurt. Your yogurt will be pretty thick out of the fridge, but keep in mind it will thin out once you add in the maple syrup. If you prefer a thicker or even a greek-style yogurt, you can place the yogurt in a cheese cloth, tie a rubber band around the cloth, and let it sit in a colander to drain. You can squeeze it every once in a while to speed up the process. We did not strain our yogurt and we liked the texture.
- Whisk in the maple syrup and vanilla bean paste. Taste and adjust as desired.
- Make your fruit on the bottom mixtures while the yogurt is chilling. Combine 1 cup of fresh fruit of choice, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, and ~1 tablespoon of maple syrup in a saucepan over medium heat. Once the fruit starts to bubble and soften, mash gently with a masher or a wooden spoon. Continue cooking over medium-low heat, stirring often, until the mixture is jammy (about 10 minutes total). Remove from heat and let cool completely.
- Assemble your yogurts. Spoon about 1.5-2 tablespoons of the fruit mixture in to the bottom of a jar (these are the ones we use), then pour yogurt over the top. Seal, store in the refrigerator and enjoy within two weeks!
Notes
*Make sure your starter yogurt has live or active cultures. If you use organic yogurt, it should work. Look on the packaging to see if it specifically states that is has live and active cultures like L. bulgaricus and S. thermophilus.
Make another batch: Once you get this first batch going, you'll never need to buy store-bought yogurt again! Just reserve 1/4-1/2 cup of this batch of yogurt to use as your new starter for the next batch of homemade yogurt.
Be sure to not skip the step where you pasteurize your milk. The point is to kill off any non-beneficial bacteria that may compete with your starter cultures.
Cool off the milk to at least 110˚F before mixing it with your starter yogurt.
To heat your yogurt for a long period of time, the easiest option is to fill a crockpot with water, heat to the "warm" or "keep warm" setting, place your yogurt (in a sealed airtight container) into the water for 6 hours.
Don't touch your yogurt while it's culturing, it will result in a watery consistency if you're sloshing it around repeatedly. It will begin to start thickening significantly around the 4 hour mark.
To make greek-style yogurt, you'll need to strain the yogurt with a cheesecloth to remove excess moisture.
For every 1 cup of milk you use, use 1 tablespoon of your starter yogurt.
Keep this homemade yogurt stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. Reserve 1/4-1/2 cup of this yogurt to make another batch!
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Rest Time: 4 hours
- Cook Time: 6 hours
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Slow Cook
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/2 cup
- Calories: 106
- Sugar: 14.8 g
- Sodium: 64.3 mg
- Fat: 2.9 g
- Carbohydrates: 15.3 g
- Fiber: 0 g
- Protein: 4.9 g