I've made yogurt since the mid-1970's before switching almost exclusively to kefir about 5-years ago. Here are some hints and tips I learned along the way: 1. You can control the "taste" with the temperature of your milk. There is a window of temperatures when you can add the starter - usually somewhere around 110F to 120°F. If you add the starter on the warm side of that temperature window, you'll get a more tangy yogurt. Add starter on the cool side of the temperature window and you will make a more mild-flavored yogurt. I like tart yogurt when I make it into yogurt cheese and use it for a cheese-ball, but like mild-flavored yogurt when I eat it with granola for breakfast. Use an instant-read thermometer for accuracy. As you already found out, the length of incubation will also influence the taste - short incubation produces sweet yogurt. Yogurt also becomes more tart the longer it is stored in the refrigerator. 2. Once you have your yogurt maker filled and running, DO NOT move it or giggle it during fermentation. That can cause a breakdown in the curd and watery yogurt. Once the curd is broken, it will not set up again. Just as when you mix yogurt with a spoon to liquify it for use in a recipe, the curd is destroyed and will not resolidify. This is more evident in homemade yogurt than commercial yogurt. 3. I incubate it for 3 hours and then check to see if it's set. If it's not set, then I incubate it another hour. As soon as it's set I refrigerate it at least 6-8-hours before using it. It needs to "cure" (set-up) before use. 4. When I can find it (usually at a store 2-hours away and I bring it home in a cooler) I like to use Stonyfield Farm Yogurt for a starter. There are two bacteria common to all yogurts, but Stonyfield Farm adds other bacteria, so I think you get more bang-for-the-buck in the bacteria found in Stonyfield Farm Yogurt when you use it as a starter. They also have a GREAT cookbook, "Stonyfield Farm Yogurt Cookbook". I freeze the Stonyfield Yogurt in amounts I need for one batch of yogurt. When I need a new starter, I thaw the yogurt in the refrigerator and then bring it to room temperature before using it for making yogurt. 5. After using from the previous batch of yogurt for your starter for a period of time, the bacteria will become inactive and you'll need a new starter. This generally happens when you have a batch that doesn't thicken, or you notice it's not getting as thick as previous batches. That's the key difference between yogurt and kefir. Yogurt cultures eventually die and must be renewed, but when you use real kefir grains, they last forever, are living, renew and grow over time to make more kefir grains. Kefir is also made with cold milk out of the refrigerator and incubated at room temperature; rather than all the fussing with heating the milk, cooling the milk, temperature of the milk when you add the starter, etc.... 6. Adding non-fat dry milk powder will aid in thickening, and is especially important to add if you use low-fat or non-fat milk. Whole milk contains the most solids and produces a thick, rich and creamy yogurt. When you use 2% milk or less, adding non-fat dry milk will help replace those solids found in whole milk, or high-fat milk products like half-and-half and whipping cream. When I use fresh goat's milk, I treat it as I would skim milk. To produce an even thicker yogurt, add a package (1-tablespoon) of unflavored gelatin. Mix the gelatin with a little milk until it's dissolved, then add it to your cold milk. You can also use a combination of gelatin and non-fat dry milk powder. I use different combinations of ingredients for soft, firm, or very firm yogurt - rather than using an extended incubation time. Making yogurt with at least 50% half-and-half will also make a beautiful curd. Great for malts, shakes, and other beverages. Using a percentage of whipping cream is great when you serve the yogurt as a dessert with fresh fruit, or use it in a dessert recipe. I've also used recipes that include cornstarch in the recipe, which makes a smoother and creamier yogurt. Sweetened condensed milk for sweet yogurt. Your user's manual will probably have a trouble-shooting section to help you out, as well as suggested recipes for your yogurt maker. Happy yogurt making...... -Grainlady

Yogurt sieves? I'll have to look about. I'm intrigued by the yogurt cheese cheesecake. A bit off topic, but since yogurt cheese has been mentioned, I'm posting the recipe for one of my favorite party nibbles. You gotta love hors d'oeuvres that you can make days or weeks ahead of time and just whip out on 5 minutes notice and still impress people. I'm including my yogurt recipe 'cause it was attached for the sake of anyone who hasn't made it yet: Yogurt Heat 1 quart of milk to the boiling point for just 1 minute. Cool to 115 degrees (lukewarm to the touch). Pour into a heavy ceramic bowl. Mix in 2 T of fresh, plain yogurt (must have active cultures). Cover tightly with plastic wrap and set in a warm place. An oven with a pilot light is good, I use a goose-neck desk lamp bent low over the bowl. I know some people who use a heating pad set on low under the bowl. According to the recipe, 110 is the ideal temperature, but remember that people have been making yogurt for thousands of years without benefit of thermometers. Essentially, it should be warmer than youd like a bath to be if you were going to spend a half an hour in it, but as warm as youd like a bath to be if you came home on a cold winter night and wanted to warm up. The yogurt should be ready in about 5 to 8 hours. Tilt the bowl to see if it holds together. The longer you allow the yogurt to sit, the more sour it will be. Line a colander with a thin cloth, such as a dish towel or muslin. Pour the yogurt into the colander and allow it to drain for at least an hour. Refrigerate. Note: It does not help speed or improve the process to add extra yogurt starterin fact, it can make for a lower quality product. The cultures have to have enough food to poop enough yogurtsorry, I couldnt help myself. You can make yogurt with 2 % milk if you like, but it takes longer and you need to strain it more. Yogurt Cheese in Olive Oil Pour home made yogurt into a sieve lined with a thin cloth, such as a dish towel or muslin. Fold the ends of the cloth over the top of the yogurt, top with a plate big enough to mostly cover the yogurt but small enough that it wont get hung up on the sides of the strainer as the yogurt gets pressed down. Weigh the plate down with a large jar or lidded tupperware bowl full of water and set the sieve over a bowl to drain. Be sure and empty the bowl from time to time so that the yogurt isnt sitting in its own whey. I generally do this overnight, but times can vary depending on the weight etc. You want a product about the texture of cream cheese. Form the yogurt cheese into balls about 1 " in size, rolling them in your hands. Pack the balls into sterilized jars with an herb mix sprinkled over each layer. Fill the jar with extra virgin olive oil. Store for at least 2 days to moogle the flavors, and up to about 3 weeks in the fridge. For the herb mix, I usually use dried red chilli pepper flakes, fresh rosemary & oregano (minced), fresh garlic sliced paper thin and salt. Then I add other things to suit my fancy. Herbs, minced onions, spices etc. Get playful. I dont know how to measure amounts, but remember that only a bit of the flavored oil will make it onto the cracker or bread with the cheese, so you almost cant put too much "stuff" in the oil. The "cheese" balls should be served with their spiced oil.

You don't need a yogurt maker to make Yogourmet Kefir AT ALL, so that should take care of the yogurt maker delemma. Yogourmet Kefir Starter ferments milk at room temperature. Both my sister and I would hold back a 1/2-cup portion from a fresh batch to culture the next batch - and it would work about 3 times before we'd need a new package of the powdered Kefir Starter. Are you confusing Yogourmet Kefir Starter with Yogourmet Yogurt Starter? I sold and used both for years until I quit using them both after I got REAL kefir grains (which last forever). Another good option to use for a yogurt starter is Stonyfield Farm Yogurt. "It's the only U.S. yogurt brand with six live, active cultures, and the only U.S. brand with Lactobacillus reuteri culture." I used to be able to get it 2-hours away so I'd freeze it in 1-T. amounts in ice cube trays. Then I'd pop the yogurt cubes out of the trays and keep in the freezer until I needed a new starter. I'd thaw the amount I needed in the refrigerator, then bring to room temperature just before making yogurt. What beats any of the powdered Yogourmet Yogurt or Kefir Starters all to heck is REAL kefir grains. Check the link below for more information. Why pay so much for something you can often get free (or the price of shipping) and never need to replenish them EVER again. Some advantages of using real kefir grains... (source: "KEFIR Rediscovered!" - by Klaus Kaufmann) -Milk used for making kefir does NOT have to be preheated like milk for making yogurt, and it is left at room temperature throughout the incubation. -You can use almost any kind of milk (cold out of the refrigerator). -The smaller curds make kefir are far more digestible than yogurt. -Kefir contains "right-turning" lactic acid, usually called L+ lactic acid. How turning left vs. turning right makes a HUGE difference not only on the highways, but in your own bodily pathways. -Best of all, the cost of making kefir is far below the cost of making yogurt. The REAL kefir (unlike the powdered Yogourmet version) never dies. Thus, kefir cultures do not have to be bought time and again. Kefir grains are "immortal." Yogurt cultures are merely like "humans," they have a birth, childhood and youth stage, an adult stage, and sinking-towards-death stage. I use kefir as a substitute for buttermilk, cream cheese, sourcream, and plain yogurt. Depending on how long I drain the curd will determine what I use it for. I also use the very important whey as a refreshing beverage, or if you shake the jar of kefir, the curds will quickly liquify and mix with the whey. We consume kefir every day! -Grainlady Here is a link that might be useful: Dom's Kefir In-Site

Or mix a little jam or jelly into it and you have fruit yogurt. I like it on baked potatoes or pretty much anywhere someone would use sour cream. And yogurt cheese can be subbed in most recipes for cream cheese. I like it on my cereal too. Especially when I have cereal and sweet fruit. I usually put in milk and yogurt because the yogurt alone is a bit stiff. Or the ultimate yogurt cereal breakfast food IMO: bircher_muesli which is oats, fruit and yogurt left overnight in the fridge to soak instead of cooking the oats - great for summertime oatmeal. It can also be used as dressing on a cucumber, onion and tomato salad - kind of close to riata except mostly vegies with a little yogurt where riata tends to be mostly yogurt with a little veggies. And one might use different herbs like dill. There also are soups with a yogurt base but you might not be in the mood for soup this time of year. There is yogurt cheese cake - you would need to strain the yogurt for that. Here is a link that might be useful: Bircher muesli recipe