We’ve made many changes in our home over the past few years to reduce our consumption of plastic and make things from scratch. And yet, we’ve continued to bring single serve yogurt containers into our home on a weekly basis. We are able to recycle them, but that only reduces the waste created by this tasty habit.

Folks have told me I need to buy a yogurt maker, but I am hesitant to own single use appliances (outside of the coffee maker). I don’t own a bread machine nor do I own a yogurt maker. However, I do own a crock pot, so imagine my glee when I came a across a thread on the Mary Jane Farm message board regarding making your own yogurt and then a few folks suggesting a particular simple recipe for crock pot yogurt. I was literally jumping for joy!

Now as you all know I am lactose intolerant, so I generally do not join in the yogurt eating fun at our house, except when I decide to indulge in a non dairy yogurt. These days there are a variety of non dairy yogurts, but none of them are really up to the job or for daily consumption: soy yogurt (not satisfying), a rice yogurt (spendy and weird flavor), or the newer coconut yogurt (tasty, but SPENDY).

So, I decided to try the crock pot recipe with coconut milk for a nice vegan yogurt that is also dairy, casein and lactose free! Start up costs were not cheap with cans of organic coconut milk at $1.99 each (needed 5) and a starter coconut yogurt at $1.59. This made about a dozen servings of yogurt, so the final costs are still less expensive than buying single serve ready made coconut yogurt. And, if you are able to find coconut milk in bulk you may be able to further cut costs. (EDIT 12/20/2009: Do not use the new So Delicious Coconut milk that is sold in the dairy case, I tried this and it did not set at all!) Now I have my own starter and just need to find a more affordable source of coconut milk.

Recipe and Instructions:

3 cans regular Coconut Milk
2 cans light or low fat Coconut Milk
2 tablespoons Arrowroot Flour
1 serving So Delicious Plain Coconut Yogurt

Instructions:
1. Shake cans of milk well and then open and poor into Crock Pot. Leave Coconut yogurt sealed and in Fridge.
2. Remove 1 cup of coconut milk from pot and whisk in 2 tablespoons Arrowroot until dissolved. Return milk to pot, whisking a few times to combine.
3. Cook coconut milk on low for 2 to 5 hours until it reaches 180 degrees Fahrenheit (or 82.5 Celsius). This is a very precise step and will depend on your particular cooker. I recommend that after 2 hours you start checking the temp on your yogurt with a candy or Instant Read Thermometer. The closer it gets to 180F the more frequently you should check. I go about 30 minutes, then 20, then 15, then 10 minutes. The last time I made yogurt I got distracted, over heated the milk and my yogurt did not set! I’ve heard similar stories of under heating.
4. When your milk reaches a temperature of 180F unplug the slow cooker and let it sit for 3 hours. Remove your coconut yogurt starter from the fridge at this time to bring it to room temperature.

5. After 3 hours remove 1 cup of coconut milk to a medium size bowl. Add in single serving of plain coconut yogurt and whisk until smooth. Return mixture to pot and whisk again until thoroughly combined.

6. Put the lid a back on the slow cooker and wrap the unplugged pot with a warm blanket. Let it sit overnight for 8 to 10 hours. By the morning it should have thickened up nicely. Eat plain or mix with nuts and or fresh fruit! Delicious, dairy free, gluten free, and vegan!

The important question however is: how did the yogurt turn out? Excellent! The flavor is delicious and only very mildly coconut. The texture is smooth and creamy. The consistency is thick, although more like Yoplait than some of the almost jello style yogurts.

Enjoy!