DIY Coconut Yoghurt

Brenda Godinez

If you are looking for a dairy free yoghurt, and you haven't tried coconut yoghurt - then I absolutely urge you too.  Its delicious.  The only thing with the shop bought versions is that they are incredibly expensive.  Making your own really isn't difficult so I urge you to give it a go.

Coconut yoghurt is wonderfully creamy with a sense of indulgent richness.  Great as a snack with some chopped up apple and some almond butter.  Or have for breakfast with some scrummy granola - I'll post some of my favourite recipes shortly.

Makes 400ml
1 x 400ml tin of coconut yoghurt - choose the full-fat version if you want a creamier yoghurt
1 tsp. maple syrup / rice bran syrup
2 capsules of probiotic culture - you can get probiotic capsules from any health food shop but make sure you capsules contain one of the following strains: Lactobacillus bulgaricus, Streptococcus thermophilus, Bifidobacterium lactis or Lactobacillus acidophilus

Method
You can control how thick your yoghurt will be by the proportion of coconut cream to coconut liquid you sue from the tin.  For example , if you want a thick yoghurt use mostly the cream and omit the coconut liuqid from the tin, if you want a runnier yoghurt, use everything in the tin.

Pour the coconut milk into a bowl and whisk until smooth and uniform.  You are looking for a smooth homogenous texture - in some cases you may have to heat and coolthe coconut milk to reach this homogenous uniform textture. Ensure it has been cooled to below 37C before addint the culture (other wise the bacteria will be killed and won't be able to do their job).  Add the maple / rice bran syrup.  Next add your culture of choice: either add the contents of your probiotic capsules and mix well or gently whisk in the store-bought coconut yoghurt.

Pour the coconut milk into any sterilized jars and screw on teh lids.  Place in a warm airing cupboard or preheated over - put the oven on the lowest temperature possible and leave the door slightly open.  Leav for 24 hours without distrubing.  Ideally the temperature is between 30-40C.

Place teh set yoghurt in the fridge for at least 6 hours.  The yoghurt will become thicker as it chills.  After this stage, you might find that the mixutre has separated, with a yellowish, translucent layer at the bottom and a thicker white layer on top.  Stir to recombine, or scoop off the top layer for thicker creamier coconut yoghurt.

Keep your coconut yoghurt refrigerated and use within one week.

Let me know how you get on.
​Emma x

(Recipe from The World of The Happy Pear)