[Sca-cooks] Re: A little diversion

[Tara Sersen Boroson]

Susan Fox-Davis wrote:

> Vincent Cuenca wrote:
>
>>Also, can anyone recommend a good yogurt maker?
>
> An ordinary large pot, warm the milk to blood-heat, add a cup of plain live
> yogurt, stir well and cover with a warm blanket.  In the morning you will have
> yogurt.  No need to buy expensive "starter kits" or electrical devices.  This
> has always worked for me.


Hrm... having done it both ways, I partly agree with Selene - there's no
fundamental need for a machine, a pot on the stove works just fine.
However, I've found that the machines are cheap and way convenient.  The
yoghurt is made right in the little cups that you'll store it in, so you
don't have to wash a pot, the machine is small and easy to put out of
the way, you don't have to watch it while it's heating up to keep an eye
on the temp, there's no chance of scorching by accident.  And, it's nice
and tightly contained, so you don't have to worry about cats knocking
things over trying to get at the milk.

I haven't used a machine since the '70's vintage one my parents had back
in the day.  So, I can't recommend a good brand.  I've been considering
picking one up myself, though.

On the stovetop, I never heat the milk directly.  I always put a small
pot of milk in a larger water bath and heat that.

-Magdalena