Any yogurt makers out there?

I just tried making my own Greek yogurt for the first time. It is part of my initiative to find cheaper substitutes for my favorite pricey foods, like granola and Greek yogurt. I am currently in the straining phase, and was wondering if there are any experienced yogurt makers out there who could offer some insight because I am a little freaked out:

The yogurt I made looks fine and tastes fine, but I think it might smell slightly cheesy. I am not sure because I have a cold and my nose is stuffed up. Should I be worried about this? Could it just be because the yogurt is at room temperature? Alternately, is this a sign of contamination that I should be concerned by? I wasn't very careful about sterility when I was making the yogurt. Also, I left it out for 20 hours instead of 12.

Or maybe I am just freaked out by the whole intentionally putting bacteria in your food thing. Anyway, if you make your own yogurt, let's talk!

I make my own yogurt.  Here's an article that should be helpful and the recipes for yogurt is midway down the article:

http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/000176.h tml

My yogurt pretty much smells like yogurt.  I've read that if there is "bad" bacteria present when you start to make yogurt, the good yogurt doesn't multiply as well and you don't get yogurt. You need to experiment with recipes and types of bacteria.  The longer you let it "cook" the more tangy it gets.  I use the salton brand of yogurt maker sold on amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Salton-YM9-1-Quart-Yogu rt-Maker/dp/B00004SUHY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8& ;s=home-garden&qid=1242084755&sr=8-1

You can make yogurt without the yogurt maker, but the temperature is consistant with a yogurt maker and it acutually uses less engery then some other methods.

To get the thick greek style yogurt I let the yogurt sit in a strainer with cheesecloth after it has cooled in the refrigerator.  I also find that when I use skim milk, I add some powered milk to the milk when I heat it, giving me a thicker yogurt.  You can also add sugar as well when you are heating the milk.

There are yogurt makers that make yogurt in individual containers.  I prefer to make it in one larger container and when I want some I scoop out what I want and then add fruit to it.  Sometimes the fruit if left in the yogurt for a while makes it a little watery.  It

I forgot to mention that when you strain the yogurt the watery stuff left over is whey and it is very high in protein and b12.  This is great to use in baked goods like muffins and when you make pancakes.  Good luck!

Original Post by cptmomma:

I've read that if there is "bad" bacteria present when you start to make yogurt, the good yogurt doesn't multiply as well and you don't get yogurt.

Sorry I let this thread die, yogurt buddies, and thanks for the reassurance. I definitely got yogurt!

I am embarrassed to say that I was still so freaked out by my yogurt that I left it untouched in the fridge for days. I was hanging out with my mom this weekend, and I told her about how I had a big pot of homemade organic Greek yogurt in the fridge that I was too afraid to eat. She basically told me to stop being such a wimp and eat the damn yogurt (my mom is awesome).

After all this, I finally broke down and ate it. Best. Yogurt. Ever. Go yogurt making!