When I tell people I make my own yogurt, they react as if I’d said I could transmute base metals into gold. But as you’ll see, it’s easy to make and considerably cheaper than buying the commercial stuff. “Officially,” plain yogurt has 12 grams of carbohydrates per cup, but Dr. Goldberg and Dr. O’Mara point out in The GO-Diet that most of the lactose (milk sugar) is converted to lactic acid, leaving only about 4 grams per cup. So if you like yogurt, enjoy!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 tablespoon plain yogurt
• 1 1/2 to 2 cups instant dry milk, or a 1-quart envelope
• Water
• Optional: 1/4 cup heavy cream for richer yogurt

YOUGURT INSTRUCTIONS

1. Fill a clean, 1-quart, snap-top container half full with water.
2. Add the plain yogurt to the water and stir. Add the powdered milk and whisk until the lumps are gone.
3. Fill the container to the top with water, whisk it one last time, and put the lid on.
4. Put the container in a warm place, such as inside an old-fashioned gas oven with a pilot light, on the stove top directly over the pilot light, or even near a heat register in winter.
5. Let the yogurt sit for 12 hours or so until it thickens. If it’s still a little thin, give it a few more hours.
6. When the yogurt is ready, refrigerate it and use it just like store-bought plain yogurt. Alternatively, add vanilla or lemon extract and some Splenda or stevia/FOS blend to flavor it. You can also stir in sugar-free preserves or mashed berries.

NOTES

• Using 2 cups of dry milk will result in richer, creamier yogurt with more protein and calcium, but also with a couple of extra grams of carbohydrates.
• If you want to make a higher-fat “whole milk” yogurt, substitute 1/4 cup of the water with heavy cream.
• Making yogurt from liquid milk is possible, but it requires scalding and cooling the milk before adding the starter yogurt.

BUTTERMILK INSTRUCTIONS

1. Follow the same steps as for yogurt but substitute a couple of tablespoons of commercial buttermilk for the starter yogurt.