a peek inside the fishbowl

Yesterday, I mentioned that a good breakfast was one of the essential things I need if I’m going to have a good day and function well within it. Here’s what I eat, almost every day:

What you see:

– blueberries (although I usually eat frozen berries that I zap in the microwave)
– All-Bran Buds (don’t laugh, they have changed my life)
– homemade granola
– plain yogurt

For awhile we were buying a sweetened plain yogurt by Activia, but since I’ve been reducing on my sugar intake I thought that cutting out sweet yogurt would be a good place to start. Over the past year or so I’ve tried all kinds of unsweetened yogurt but never really found one I liked. Most were too tart or sour, or had gelatin and corn starch and other thickeners in it. And so, with that, I decided to see if I could make my own.

Making your own yogurt is a lot easier than you’d think. I’ve tried this recipe-slash-cooking lesson at thekitchn.com twice now, and although I’m still tweaking the resting time I consider it a keeper.

All you do is warm some milk on the stove, let it cool, stir in a bit of plain yogurt, let the mixture rest, and voila, it’s done.

It is light tasting and has the right texture. It is not as thick as store bought yogurt, but given the way I eat it every day it almost doesn’t matter. If this was an issue I could strain it through cheese cloth, but I don’t bother. If I wanted a fruity yogurt I’d just add a spoonful of jam or cut up some fresh fruit in it.

The whole process makes me happy. I can’t say why exactly, but it is remarkably satisfying. Much like baking bread, the process is kind of magical. You mix some inconspicuous ingredients together and get something different in the end. It’s alchemy!

Let me know if you try making your own. I’d love to hear about it!