Almond Milk Yogurt

Prepared and photographed by NutraMilk nutritionist, Florencia Tagliavini.

When making your own dairy-free yogurt, most people agree you must use homemade milk otherwise it will not culture properly. With the NutraMilk is super easy to do. Follow these steps.

INGREDIENTS

For almond milk: Yields 1 quart (4 cups / 946 mL)

• 1 cup (150g) almonds
• 1 quart (946ml) water
• 1/8 teaspoon Pink Himalayan salt (optional)

For yogurt

• 4 cups almond milk made with the NutraMilk
• Yogurt starter culture or probiotic capsule
• 1 tbsp. of premium gelatin powder or 1 tsp. of powdered agar agar
• 1 tbsp. arrowroot starch or GMO-free cornstarch (optional)
• 1 tsp. of white sugar or 1 tbsp. of pasteurized honey

INSTRUCTIONS

For almond Milk

• Start by making fresh almond milk with the NutraMilk:
• Place almonds in the NutraMilk container.
• Press Butter cycle, set for 7 minutes.
• Press Start.
• Add water and replace lid.
• Press Mix (do not change the default Mix time).
• Press Start.
• Press Dispense, open spigot and fill your container with almond milk.

• Thoroughly wash or sterilize your yogurt making jar, whisk and other utensils with boiling water.
• Pour a quarter of a cup of almond milk into a small bowl. Add the thickening powder of choice and whisk to combine. (1 tbsp. of gelatin powder or 1 tsp. of agar agar) and set aside for 5 minutes. Note: Gelatin will swell and thicken.
• Pour the remaining nut milk into sauce pan then stir in the thickening mixture.
• Place the saucepan of nut milk on the stove-top.
  • For Gelatin: Gently warm to 95⁰-104⁰F (35⁰- 40⁰C) to activate the gelatin. Stir with a wire whisk to ensure the gelatin has dissolved and is not settled at the bottom. Do not boil.
  • For Agar agar: Gently heat the almond milk to 190⁰F (87⁰C) and hold the temperature for 10 minutes. Do not boil. A double boiler can be helpful.
• Remove from the heat, add the sugar or honey (if it wasn't included when making the almond milk)
• Let cool to below 110° F (43° C). The temperature of the nut milk must be below 43° C before adding the starter culture.
• Pour the nut milk into the yogurt making glass jar.
• Add your preferred starter culture and gently whisk it in. Note: Each starter culture will come with different instructions. Please follow the instructions unique to the starter culture and use the amount specified.
• Put the lid firmly on the glass yogurt jar.
• Cover the almond milk yogurt with a lid or a piece of cheesecloth and let the yogurt culture for 6 hours at 105°F. You can use a yogurt maker or your oven with the light on.
• After about 6 hours, taste the yogurt. If the yogurt is tart enough for your taste, place it in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours to chill. If it's not tart enough, let it culture for a few more hours, checking on it periodically.
• Store the yogurt in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Notes:

*The yogurt will not culture properly if you use store-bought milk.

*Choose a probiotic capsule that has the correct strains used in yogurt making: Lactobacillus bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophiles.

*You will need to use a thickener to get a thick consistency- Agar agar is a good vegan option, otherwise you can use a good quality gelatin. You can try also using arrowroot starch or cornstarch as well to add a thicker and creamier consistency.