Easy Coconut Yogurt

This Easy Coconut Yogurt recipe is simply divine. If you are dairy-free, on a detox, or just looking for a simple slow-food recipe to try, give it a whirl. I put it on granola, muesli or eat it alone with berries. You can use it to make a yogurt sauce, dressing or add it to smoothies. It also makes an incredible dip for fruit. Your friends will be so impressed.

Ingredients:

What You’ll Need for 2 servings:

  • 1 can 13.5 oz full fat coconut milk
  • 1 tablet of probiotic to use as your starter (crush between 2 spoons or with a mallet) 
  • 3 Tablespoons of Organic Flaked Coconut (optional for texture)
  • Other optional flavorings: pure vanilla bean, cinnamon, dark cacao nibs or powder
  • A Mason jar that’s big enough to hold the contents of the can of coconut
  • A vacant oven for 24 hours (with a light)

Directions:

Step 1: Sterilize the jar (two methods)

  • Sterilize the glass first by boiling it in water for 10 minutes
  • Sterilize the glass jar by putting it in the cold oven until it heats up to 350 degrees – this way you have to cool your oven before putting the yogurt mixture in.

Step 2: For Added thicknesss refridgerate the can of coconut milk

Be sure to use full-fat canned coconut milk. Native Forest is organic and BPA-free in the linings of their cans, so I recommend it. For thicker texture, refrigerate the can (unshaken) for 3 hours so that the cream rises to the top. Use the cream only for “Greek-Style Yogurt” (extra thick = extra calorie = extra richness). Use the remaining water in a smoothie, in this case.

I use the whole can of coconut milk. It’s runnier but that’s ok.  This way you get the full serving of yogurt this recipe states.

Step 3: Blend the 3 Ingredients

So simple as there are only 2 - 3 ingredients.  Place the coconut milk, or just the cream if you choose, as well as the coconut flakes into the sterilized glass jar with either the tablespoon of powder from the crushed probiotic tablet. Then mix it up with a wooden or metal spoon.

If you’re flavoring the yogurt, it could change the consistency so I recommend trying it once without flavorings first.

Step 4: Wait.

Put the sealed jar of yogurt in the oven with the light on. DO NOT TURN THE OVEN ON. Just close the oven door and turn on the oven light. Even in the midst of a freezing cold winter in New York, the closed oven and the light generate a stable temp of about 105-110°F, perfect conditions for the coconut milk to incubate. At 80°F it might take 2 days.

coconut-yogurt-jar

Eating cultured and fermented foods are some of the best ways to increase our immune system in the gut. Improve your digestion, skin, lose weight, feel happier and prevent colds and flus by eating cultured foods. Buttermilk, kefir, regular yogurt, kombucha, sauerkraut, borscht soup, pickles and all other deliciously tangy fermented things ought to be made this way.