Goat Milk Yogurt: Update

Mehhh!

I've made several batches of yogurt in the last few weeks and, although the flavor is lovely, neither Ivan nor myself were fond of the Elmer Glue like thinness - it had more of a kefir-like consistency than a yogurt. So I experimented with this last batch and added 2/3 cup of powdered goat milk to my quart of heated and cooled goat milk. Success! The yogurt was just as tasty (maybe a tick more tangy since the milk was not as fresh as I would have liked) but it now has a firm, creamy texture. I will need to sift the powdered goat-milk next time as it was difficult to completely dissolve it in the liquid milk resulting in small lumps that I had to skim off beforing jarring.

I may experiment further with other thickening agents like agar agar or tapioca to avoid adding more fat/calories to the finished product, but for now we are pleased with the results.

On a related note, I was asked about making rice-milk yogurt in a comment from my previous post. I did a little bit of research and it seems as if the answer is 'no' - at least not successfully. However, making soy yogurt is do-able and you can find recipe/instructions here, here and here. I would also recommend looking for a few other sites to ensure that you have a 'Plan B' and 'Plan C' in hand in case your first batch doesn't make it.

Next up: Yogurt cheese!