Yogurt - Homemade is best

When you think about the things that you make from scratch, yogurt doesn't tend to be on the list. However, if you are on a specific carbohydrate diet (SCD) like Evan, then if you eat yogurt you only eat the homemade kind.

Before I met Evan, I had no idea that yogurt could be made at home. I figured that it was some complicated process that milk had to go through in order to become yogurt and that it was best left to the "professionals." And, I'll admit that I prefer store-bought yogurt. However, after reading up on the subject, I'll be working to change my tastes.

Now, obviously this thinking is quite flawed. Before the mechanization of the food system there was yogurt, and the people that made it got along just fine without any fancy equipment. And, according to one article, they were better off for it.

In spite of catchy advertising and sophisticated equipment for making yogurt, the big companies like Yoplait and Dannon are getting it all wrong. Some store-bought yogurt is fermented for only one hour! This isn't nearly enough time for all the lactose to be broken down and for the probiotic cultures to grow. Instead, yogurt should be fermented for a full 24 hours if you want to see the full benefits - but you won't find these benefits in a store.

One of the best wedding gifts we received was from Evan's parents. They gave us a wonderful Yogourmet yogurt maker, which is the same one they bought when Evan went on the SCD 10 years ago. They found out about the Yogourmet yogurt maker through a lady named Lucy. Lucy maintains a website called Lucy's Kitchen Shop, which contains products especially for the specific carb diet.

Now, making your own yogurt is actually incredibly easy. The yogurt maker comes with specific directions, so I won't detail them here. However, if you have a digestive disease, I highly recommend purchasing a yogurt maker in order to replenish the good bacteria in your digestive tract. It will do you a world of good.