Flavoring Your Homemade Yogurt

Hello again! So, yesterday I wrote an article on making your own yogurt. I have made my own a few times now, and I absolutely love it just the way it is. However, hubby isn't a fan of the plain yogurt. SO... today I will be discussing some ways you can flavor your homemade yogurt.

(By the way, I have found the crock-pot method of incubating the yogurt to be the most effective and the easiest)

With all of the health benefits associated with eating yogurt, you can't deny yourself this delicious treat! Yogurt is full of "good" bacteria which helps with all sorts of things; from your immune system to your digestive tract. Along with this, it also helps to balance your "inner eco-system".

There are many ways you can flavor and/or sweeten your plain yogurt. You can use brown sugar, honey, maple syrup, or even just plain white sugar. A good way to sweeten it and flavor it is to mix in some vanilla sugar - remember my post on vanilla extract? I mentioned how to use your vanilla beans to flavor sugar. Also, fruit preserves make a nice addition to plain yogurt.

I am sure most of you have seen and even indulged yourself in a yummy parfait a time or two. A parfait is a yummy, yet versatile way of eating your yogurt. You can layer fresh or frozen fruit in any combination and top it with a bit of homemade granola! A parfait is good with plain and sweetened yogurt (if the fruit you use is sweet enough you don't need pre-sweetened yogurt). I have tried many recipes for granola, but I finally found one I like.

The following recipe is for a simple granola that clumps up into yummy bites of goodness!

4 C. Rolled Oats

1 C. Wheat Germ

1/2 C. Ground Flax seed

1/2 C. Brown Sugar

1 tsp. Cinnamon

1 1/2 tsp. Salt

1/3 C. Canola Oil

1/4 C. Honey

1/2 C. Water

2 tsp. Vanilla

**Optional - you can add raisins or other dried fruit, or nuts of any kind.

Preheat your oven to 250 degrees. In a large bowl, mix together oats, wheat germ, flax seed, brown sugar, cinnamon, salt and any nuts and dried fruit you may be using. In a separate bowl, mix together oil, honey, water and vanilla. Make a well in the middle of the oat mixture, then pour in the honey mixture. Mix all until the oats are evenly coated. Spread the mixture onto a baking sheet in an even layer, and bake in the oven. every 10 minutes or so take the granola out and using a spatula, turn over the oats a section at a time for even browning. When the oats are lightly browned the granola is ready, this should take 15-25 minutes depending on your oven. Remove from the oven and let cool. Transfer to an airtight container.

Now, another way to eat your homemade yogurt is topped with pie filling and granola. We had this last night and it was SOOO yummy! But of course, you don't want to buy any canned pie filling.. oooooohhh no! That disgusting goop called pie-filling-in-a-can will do nothing but taint your fresh yogurt! The way I see it, if I am going to go through the trouble of making my own yogurt, I only want fresh ingredients to go with it!

Here is my recipe for apple topping;


4 C. Thinly Sliced Apples
2 tsp. Lemon Juice
3/4 C. Sugar
1/4 C. Cornstarch
1/2 tsp. Cinnamon
1/8 tsp. Nutmeg
1/4 tsp. Salt
2 C. Water


Coat the sliced apples in the lemon juice and set aside. In a saucepan, mix together water, cornstarch, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Whisk together until all of the cornstarch is dissolved. Turn the heat on to med-high and bring the mixture to a boil. Add the apples, turn down the heat and simmer until the apples are tender - about 10 minutes. Transfer to a jar or other container and store in the refrigerator. Also, you can multiply this recipe for canning or freezing so you can make apple pies all year 'round!


Well, that's it for today's post. Hope you have found inspiration to make your very own yogurt! Always remember to be creative, and have a beautiful day!