I eat breakfast for 16 cents a serving

[riverwed070707]

I know one of the big budget busters that people are always looking to cut is grocery. I'm a big proponet of making things from scratch because its one of the best ways you can eat healthier and save more.

One of my favs is homemade yogurt. DD and I have it every morning for breakfast and sometimes for a snack. I usually mix in a little granola, fresh fruit or honey to sweeten it (otherwise we don't add any sweeteners) and that is figuered into the cost -- without any adds it comes out to be about 6 cents/ half cup serving. WAY cheaper than the store-bought variety.

If anyone's interested, it's made simply by heating a gallon of whole milk to 180 degrees in a large stock pot stirring frequently to keep from scalding. Cool the milk back down to about 110 (I use a meat thermometer to track the temp so no new gadgets needed). Stir in 1 cup of yogurt with active cultures (the first time you will need to buy this, from then on you can reserve a cup from your batch to cultivate the next batch). Cover the pot and place in the oven with the light on (no heat) for 8-12 hours. Refrigerate until chilled and serve

I have tried to make it with lighter varieties of milk and 2% is ok but with 1% and skim it just turns out too runny. I like to use whole because it comes out thick and naturally sweeter -- 2% can be quite bitter.

The process really sounds more intimidating than it is. Once you do it once, you'll be a pro.

[GREENBACK]

My cheap, quick, healthy breafast is a 1 cup of Almond Milk, 1 serving of oats, a handful of frozen mixed berries and a tsp. of SF strawberry syrup blended in a smoothie cup. I don't know the price but it's very cheap and filling. I sometimes add a banana or eat it seperately.

Get's me by til lunch.

[disneysteve]

That sounds good but considering I buy ready-made yogurt for 40 cents, it isn't a huge savings. Plus I don't eat yogurt every day (and almost never for breakfast). Saving 24 cents/day would be $87.60/year for someone who does it daily, though. Of course, if I ate yogurt daily, I wouldn't buy single serve cups - I'd buy it in bulk so the cost savings would be less. The benefit is getting a more natural product without additives and preservatives.

[riverwed070707]

Originally Posted by disneysteve

That sounds good but considering I buy ready-made yogurt for 40 cents, it isn't a huge savings. Plus I don't eat yogurt every day (and almost never for breakfast). Saving 24 cents/day would be $87.60/year for someone who does it daily, though. Of course, if I ate yogurt daily, I wouldn't buy single serve cups - I'd buy it in bulk so the cost savings would be less. The benefit is getting a more natural product without additives and preservatives.

But there are 2 of us that eat this daily, sometimes twice a day. The savings you calculated (x2 for 2 people) equals 5% of my annual grocery budget. It's small but my income is small so it adds up. Also, the savings doesn't take into consideration if you were to buy an all natural brand nor does it account for any fruit/granola/sweetener/etc. The stuff you can buy at my grocery store for $.40 is not worth eating.

I know its not for everyone, but I wouldn't shake it as too small to make a difference.

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by riverwed070707

I know its not for everyone, but I wouldn't shake it as too small to make a difference.

I agree. I didn't mean to blow it off. Actually, I'd be interested to try it sometime. Where do you get the active cultures?

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

Disneysteve, if there is any yogurt sold in the US with dead culture, I've never come across it. Just use any purchased yogurt to get started. I've even used a peach or banana flavored sweet yogurt (the store I was at did not have any plain).

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by Joan.of.the.Arch

Disneysteve, if there is any yogurt sold in the US with dead culture, I've never come across it. Just use any purchased yogurt to get started. I've even used a peach or banana flavored sweet yogurt (the store I was at did not have any plain).

So you just mix in some store bought yogurt in with the homemade stuff? That's easy enough. How much do you add to a gallon of milk?

[NetSkyBlue]

How long does it keep? I'm looking for a quick, cheap, breakfast idea, myself. Will it last long enough for one person to eat through a whole gallon?

ETA: can you use previously frozen milk? I sometimes pick up a gallon or two extra when it's on sale and freeze them. It doesn't work too well with the whole, it doesn't reconstitute as well as 2% but maybe the cooking would make that a moot point?

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

DS, there isn't precise answer to how much to store bought yogurt to stir into your gallon of milk. For a quart of milk, I use anywhere from about two tablespoons to a 1/2 cup. You just wait long enough for the bacteria to increase in number and do their job. Using less store yogurt just means you wait a little longer. Getting your milk too cool also means you wait longer. Using more store bought yogurt gives you a shorter wait, as does keeping the milk warm.

By the way, when I make a quart, it usually takes about 10 hours, if I keep the milk warm. I used to do that by putting my jar with milk and yogurt down inside a pan of "nearly-hot" (maybe 135 F) water. I put a lid on the pan. Then I wrapped towels around the whole thing for insulation. I'd replace the hot water a couple times in the process. But finally my DH bought me a quart size electric yogurt incubator....Some people set their yogurt makings on top of their refrigerator, but I don't find mine to be warm enough, especially in winter.

NetSkyBlue, I'd say the yogurt can last about 6-8 days, but always use a clean utensil in it. Keep it in the fridge with a lid. I think previously frozen milk would work just fine. What do you think, riverwed? I think a gallon of yogurt is more than you could eat before it goes bad. A gallon is 16 cups. Those small containers of yogurt in the supermarkets--what are they? 1/2 to 3/4 cup?

[NetSkyBlue]

What do you think about using a crock pot? Have you ever tried that? Or putting the yogurt in a container inside a crock pot with water? You could keep the temp consistent that way.

[My English Castle]

I've used this site for a crockpot yogurt.
Homemade Yogurt in a Crockpot | Our Life Simplified

My DH goes on yogurt benders, and I like the idea of making it myself.

Next stop: home-made cheese.

[photo]

Interesting that you mention yogurt because I'm about ready to make my own. I don't have a particular interest in doing so, but tonight (as usual), I couldn't find a quart of regular yogurt at the grocery store. Probably hundreds of varieties of yogurt, but they all are either flavored or have gelatin or are low-fat. I want regular yogurt, no more and no less!