Do you use yogurt in your baking?

[Karen Watson]

I have been making my own yogurt for a long time and use it instead of milk or water in everything I bake. I love the sour flavor and like that I am putting more nutrients into the food I make.

I found that skim milk makes more gelatinous yogurt, similar to what you get from the store and I recently switched to kefir which is yogurt with yeast in it. It is easier than yogurt to make. all you need is a table spoon of kefir to use as a starter and let it set in a plastic container for about 12 hours. The only challenge is to find a spot that stays at least above room temperature, at my place the cupboard above the fridge does this year round.

 

[jodiann12]

No, I've never though of using yogurt while baking. I think I might try that some time.

 

[RomanAnthonysMama]

I've never even thought about using yogurt as a substitute for milk. It makes sense, though. I bet it's a lot more moist and thick to the taste. It sounds like it'd be a great way to give classic recipe a little spin. I think next time I make muffins I'm going to try it out. I also wonder if it's healthier since yogurt offers so many good bacterias and protein.

 

[Diana Shapiro]

I have been making my own yogurt for a long time and use it instead of milk or water in everything I bake. I love the sour flavor and like that I am putting more nutrients into the food I make.

I found that skim milk makes more gelatinous yogurt, similar to what you get from the store and I recently switched to kefir which is yogurt with yeast in it. It is easier than yogurt to make. all you need is a table spoon of kefir to use as a starter and let it set in a plastic container for about 12 hours. The only challenge is to find a spot that stays at least above room temperature, at my place the cupboard above the fridge does this year round.

Do you find it difficult to bake with yogurt when a recipe is calling for milk or water? How do you know how much yogurt to put into a recipe in place of other liquids? Yogurt is much thicker. Is it equal parts? Also, do you have a yogurt recipe that you can share.

 

[Karen Watson]

Jodiann & RAM try it you'll like it!
Diana you can stir it in just like milk, that's all it is except the culture has eaten almost all of the lactose.

Here is my quick method to make yogurt; soak everything that will be touching it in very hot water. It's important to get rid of any microbes or bacteria that might grow faster than yogurt culture. Heat the milk to 110F which is the middle range of it being warm enough to grow without being so hot the culture will die. You need a thermos or small cooler that should still be hot from soaking ( I make about a half gallon per week). Mix the milk with 1 table spoon of yogurt from the store (make sure the ingredients say active culture and only use plain yogurt). Time will vary, let it sit for about 6 hours in a warm place and try not to move it while it sets. That's it!

I like the more jello like texture that I get with skim milk but if you want a creamier taste whole milk or 2% is fine.

Kefir which is a Russian yogurt drink (in most dairy sections now) is even easier because it has yeast in it so you don't need to heat the milk but you have to let it set for about 24 hours in a spot warmer than room temperature.

It should keep for a week then don't forget to make some more!

If the end product separates a little it's still good, the liquid is whey which is pure protein and best for baking!!!!

 

[blueeyes]

I have started to use yogurt in a lot of my cooking lately. Not only in baking but in sauces. I find it a great alternative to milk, creams etc. I find myself branching out in recipes because of this. When I first decided to try yogurt in my baking I went online to find a few recipes which opened up a whole new world of baking and cooking

 

[cefmac]

That sounds like an interesting idea, to make your baking a little thicker and creamier. Obviously yoghurt has a different consistency to milk or water - do you need to compensate for it elsewhere e.g. by reducing the quantity of butter?

 

[Cheerio]

I had never thought to make my own yogurt. It's still relatively inexpensive enough that I probably will just continue to buy it. I have a recipe for biscuits that substitute yogurt instead of buttermilk that I've been wanting to try. Maybe if everyone likes them enough I will take the plunge and attempt to make yogurt at home. I don't know. I am kind of on the fence about it.

 

[ACSAPA]

I only use yogurt in recipes that call for it and I usually buy the yogurt that I use. There are a lot of lighter recipes nowadays that call for using yogurt as a substitute for less healthy ingredients. I sometimes try these recipes but I don't use yogurt as a substitute in my normal, everyday recipes.

 

[Happyflowerlady]

I have also used yogurt in a lot of my recipes in place of plain milk, buttermilk, sour cream, or water.
It works great in just about anything, and I just use the same amount as the recipe calls for of milk, or whatever liquid is in there.
When I am making chip dip, I also mix in some yogurt and part sour cream, and this adds more vitamins, and saves the sour cream, plus it is less calories.
When I am cooking with cream of mushroom soup, I love the sour taste of yogurt in the sauce, rather than the plain taste of milk.
I have made my own yogurt, and have a yogurt maker that I use. I have tried making kefir with the kefir grains, and it came out terrible, but now I will try making it with kefir as a starter instead.

 

[LadyLuck7]

I love yogurt and its healthy properties, but have never thought of using it as a substitute in my baking. Since I have recently been on a healthier kick especially when it comes to desserts, this is something I will definitely want to try. I would not dare try making my own, so is store bought yogurt okay to use as a substitute or will it have an adverse effect on the taste or texture?

 

[LindaKay]

Wow...that's a wonderful idea. I have never tried that. I do use applesauce instead of oil in some of my recipes.

 

[True2marie]

Although it's healthier, I do not use yogurt in my baking recipes. If I am looking to lower the fat or change the texture, I opt for low-fat or skim milk. Maybe in the future I'll give yogurt a try.

 

[MoonshineSally]

Yes, I do put yoghurt into my bread machine, together with milk and olive oil (EVO). I have noticed that the yoghurt makes the structure a bit better.

I used to add Gluten into the dough, but that is a product which is getting more and more expensive, now it costs already about 3.50 a pack. Yoghurt we always buy at the close out for half the price, like 1,50 for a tub (pint).

So I have started to replace the Gluten with yoghurt, and I saw that the results were almost the sme, but a lot cheaper in the making.

 

[SmartPea85]

I think using yogurt while baking is an unusual but great idea! It's easy to do for most any recipe and can make your creations extra moist and (a little) better for you by cutting fat and adding a bit of protein and calcium. Who knew? This can also be a great alternative for vegans who need to find a no-egg recipe. Mostly I've found yogurt, specifically Greek yogurt, is being called to substitute for oil or eggs in brownie and cake recipes. The cake recipe I used most recently calls for 1 box of cake mix, 1+a quarter cup of non-fat Greek yogurt and 1 cup of water. That's it! Then 25 minutes in a 350 degree oven. Seems to simple it's too good to be true, but definitely worth trying.

 

[sweetkymom]

I've never thought to use yogurt in any recipes. I'm not much of a sour eating person so I don't think this would go far in my house. I do have a lemon yogurt bread I'd love to try sometime, though.

 

[Happyflowerlady]

I have also tried using cottage cheese in some recipes, and had good luck with that as well. It can be put into the blender and made into a creamy smooth texture, if the little clumps are an issue, but if you are cooking with it, they seem to just disappear when cooking.
One of my favorite bread recipes is called Cottage Dill, and it is made with cottage cheese and dill weed.
I also like it when I am making pasta, and add cottage cheese into the sauce, both the tomato and the alfredo kind of sauce. It can really add flavor to even a simple hamburger helper meal; so there are a lot of places that I add cottage cheese and have extra protein, and also better flavor.

 

[JGPangi]

Yum yum, yogurt! I actually want to get around to making greek yogurt at home first before using it for baking or cooking. I love that you can use the leftover whey as a substitute for protein powder in breakfast shakes.

 

[NThomas]

I started swapping out yogurt to replace some of the oil in my baking a few years ago. Greek yogurt works the best. No one seems to notice a difference in the taste and i think it makes cakes light and fluffy. This is a great way to cut the fat and calories.

 

[hhh]

I like my cakes deliciously sweet! I don't think I could add yogurt, as I wouldn't want to make my cake sour at all. But I could try it, for when I'm making a very sweet cake.