EASY almond milk and yogurt

if you read my blueberry gummie recipe then you will recall that laziness motivates much of my cooking adventures. btw- this all started because i was disgusted that one tiny lil almond milk yogurt cup from the healthy section of the grocery store had 17 g of sugar in it and cost almost $2.00

so i scoured the interwebs for the easiest, least ingredients, recipe for almond milk yogurt. and then because im incapable of actually following a recipe, i created my own, exact measurements below are my best guess, as i tend to pour and dash and toss, and then add some more ;) 
SO SO delish, and thats all that matters. 

~I do this at night. 

~I recommend making your first batch with JUST honey – no other sweetener or flavoring, so as not to waste if it doesn't turn out. There is always a learning curve involved.

~Be forewarned, the milk is not going to taste like the super sweet stuff you buy in a box. If its not sweet enough for you, add a titch of raw sugar cane, honey, maple syrup or vanilla as needed to your milk in the blending phase.

Milk: 

ingredients: raw almonds. water. yes thats it. 

3 cups of raw almonds. 

Soak on countertop for 24 hrs. don't soak in the fridge. Add more water to soaking bowl as needed.
rinse almonds very well in fresh water. Drain.

blend soaked almonds with 2:1 fresh water.

           ie 1 cup of now soaked almonds with 2 cups water.

               if you have a food processor or vitamix... shhh i dont wanna hear it. 

Strain with cheese cloth into storage container/juice pitcher. 

              lets talk abt this for a minute. im going to assume youre like me and not familiar with straining and milking things. i mean, why would you be when you can buy everything you need strained and milked off the shelf?! #firstworldproblems #hollyhomemaker

heres what i did. btw i got faster and faster at it and soon it was no big deal. at first it was more of a 'how the heck' type of situation. 

so.... i cut a large enough piece of cheesecloth to fit over the top of the juice pitcher with enough hanging off the sides, while still allowing a little bit to slack into the pitcher that i would fill the slack with the blender concoction, and then bundle the extra cloth up and twist around the top of my almond bulge and squeeze the bulge with my CLEAN hands into the pitcher. make sense? youll get good at knowing how much to pour into the cloth before needing to grab it from overflowing pretty quick like. 
dry out leftover almond meal in the oven on a baking sheet on 350’ or less until dry 

         (a couple hours depending on the temp of the oven) check and stir it periodically

          to make sure moisture is escaping and its not burning, may as well bake a gf/df cake at the same
          time since this is like the epitome of domestic behavior 

bag and store in freezer if not going to use right away. 

            google all the wonderful things you can do with almond meal. 

milk can be in fridge for 3-5 days before spoiling. It will separate- Stir well before using.
** this quantity will provide enough for a batch of  yogurt and a bit leftover for drinking, cereal usage, etc. if you don't want that much, use less almonds to begin with. If you want creamer milk, use less fresh water in the blender. If you want thinner milk, use more fresh water in the blender. **

Tip: Can freeze leftover milk in ice cube tray for easy usage in smoothies
Another tip: in true laziness i figured out that putting the meal in a bowl was quite dumb, just dump the meal right onto your cookie sheet for oven drying. duh! 

viola! all the parts - blender, milk, cheesecloth, meal, more almonds waiting to become milk and meal

its so beautiful. brings a tear to my eye

Yogurt:
-4 cups almond milk (that you made 1 or 2 days prior) 

-Honey 

-Vanilla if desired (3 tblspns)

-Grassfed beef gelatin (great lakes) 1-2 tblspsns, depending on how stiff you want your

yogurt. I like 1.5 tblspns= not too runny and not super thick like flan dessert. Nothing wrong with flan, sometimes a hearty thick yogurt is superb, and its easier for kids to get it from their spoon to their mouth.

-Lemon zest/oil if desired. 5 -10 drops essential oil. (or orange, or other ‘flavor’) i use doterra oils

-Culture start. Plain yogurt with LIVE bacteria. 3 tblpsns. I use goat milk yogurt or greek brand plain
            yogurt bc im not completely cow milk intolerant, and I am not a proponent of soy.

-Crock pot. Hand towel. Bath towel.

1. heat milk to 180’ on stove top. Don't let boil, stir frequently. 

Meanwhile:

1. Blossom gelatin in abt 1/3-1/2 cup almond milk, use just enough milk to blossom all the powder.
2. Turn crockpot onto low, close lid.

2. add blossomed gelatin to pot of milk. Mix with hand blender to avoid clumps.

3. cool milk to 90’. This can take a bit of time. Stir often. Do not put in fridge. Putting on a different surface will help cool faster ie countertop 

4. while cooling - Add sweetener of choice ie honey. 3-4 tblspns.
also add vanilla or essential oil - lemon, lime, grapefruit, lavender, orange or fruit puree etc. 

mix with hand blender for equal distribution.

5. Once cooled: add culture- Don't want to kill the beneficial bacteria with the heat. 

Mix with hand blender.

6. Do a lil lick test to ensure no other flavor modifications are needed

7. pour into crockpot. Cover top with ceran wrap. Cover that with a hand towel. Place lid on top of ceran/towel. Turn it off. Wrap the bath towel around the crockpot. Can heat up towel in the dryer just prior if desired so its warm and cozy. 
Let it incubate. whaaa?? yes. and dont think that turning the crock pot back on 'for just a few minutes' after a few hours passes is a good idea. cuz its not. just trust me. 

8. after 12-18 hours, ie the next morning, pour liquid from crockpot into storage container and place in fridge. Should have ready-to-eat yogurt in a couple of hours or less.

yeilds: one of those tall yogurt tubs that doesnt fit on half your shelves in the fridge, however many ounces that is.

remember: save a few tblspns at the end of the batch to use as the next starter. 

sorry, no yogurt pics, i inhaled it too fast.