Tzatziki Sauce

With summers abundance upon us, thought I'd share a great recipe for all those cucumbers and dill you've got!

Tzatziki is a sauce served with several Greek and Turkish foods. Made with strained yogurt (or Greek yogurt) and served cold, it also makes a great dip for veggies. You can make your own yogurt and strain it or purchase store bought Greek yogurt.

I made a fabulous lunch today inspired by a recent post by one of my favorite bloggers Joy Cho. Avocado, egg and tzatziki on toasted sourdough. Delicious!

Tzatziki Sauce

Ingredients:

• 16oz. strained yogurt or store bought Greek yogurt
• 2 cucumbers - peeled, seeded and diced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled

Directions:

1. Combine ingredients in a food processor and blend.
2. Transfer to a bowl or jar and chill for at least an hour.
3. Enjoy!

Weekend Workshop: More on Yogurt Making

Last night, I taught a yogurt making workshop in collaboration with Community Food Initiatives at AceNet as part of OU's Earth Month. The original posting for instructions on making yogurt at home can be found here.

A copy of the PDF handout from last nights workshop can be found here. It includes illustrated instructions on making yogurt, as well as a list of the health benefits, and some tips and recipes for making flavored yogurts, fruit-on-the-bottom yogurts and making Greek yogurt.

We had a great turnout for the workshop. Folks asked some great questions, and everyone was able to take home a cup of yogurt to start their own batch.

For those who asked about adding powdered milk to the recipe to thicken the yogurt, add 1/3 cup to your 1 qt. milk recipe.

A few members of the group asked about making non-dairy yogurts, such as soy and coconut milk yogurts. I have not had experience with this, but I promised to look into it. Below are a few links to some helpful tutorials. I have not tested these recipes, but they sound promising. I would love to hear from folks, if anyone tries these recipes out-- tell us about your experiences!

• Making Soy Yogurt
• Making Soy Yogurt in a slow cooker
  
• Making Coconut Milk Yogurt
• Coconut Milk Yogurt using plain yogurt as a starter (this recipe is not dairy-free)
  

Weekend Workshop: Making Yogurt

Do you love yogurt, but hate all the plastic packaging piling up in your home? Do you want delicious yogurt made from good milk without all the weird additives but hate paying upwards of five dollars for a quart? Well, it's time to start making it yourself. Yogurt making is so easy. In about 20 minutes you can prepare your yogurt, and be eating it for breakfast the next day.

To start off you will need:

• Medium to large cooler
• Kitchen thermometer
• Quart sized glass jar for your yogurt
• Assorted glass jars
• 1 quart of milk (non-fat, 2% or whole -- I recently used a blend of Snowville Creamery fat free and 2%)
• 1/4 cup plain unflavored unsweeted yogurt with live cultures. (Think Seven Stars, Stoneyfield Farms, or pick up some yogurt made from Snowville Creamery at the Village Bakery. As you begin to make yogurt, you can reserve a bit from your batches to make the next.)

To make the Yogurt:

1. Heat the milk. The milk needs to be heated to about 170-180F (76-82C). This kills any other bacteria that might be in the milk that would compete against the bacteria that converts milk to yogurt. It also changes the milk protein in a way that allows it to culture and firm up. Stir often while milk is heating to prevent scorching. Remove from heat when temperature is achieved.
2. Cool the milk to 105-110F (40-43C).
3. Stir 1/4 cup yogurt into your milk.
4. Pour your mix into a clean glass quart jar.
5. Place your yogurt in your cooler. Fill assorted jars with hot tap water and place in the cooler with your yogurt. This will create a nice warm environment for your yogurt to culture. The heat should be maintained and stable throughout the process, so try to avoid opening the cooler at all until the end of the process. The fermentation takes anywhere from 4-8 hours (about 6 is ideal).
6. Voila! Homemade Yogurt!!

Recipe Yields 1 quart of plain yogurt.