12 May Easy Peasy Coconut Yogurt

For those of us cutting back on dairy, or eliminating it altogether, switching to “dairy-free” alternatives is often expensive and sometimes disappointing. We have found dairy-free alternatives to be very pricey and often loaded with various thickening ingredients and chemicals we would rather not consume. What to do? What to do?

I was quite delighted to discover this “easy peasy” coconut yogurt recipe from one of my favourite cookbook authors, Dana of Minimalist Baker fame. I admire her devotion to delicious, plant-based recipe creation and commitment to keeping recipes easy and accessible. Life can be complicated enough!

I wanted to try her coconut yogurt recipe this week and share with you the results. Essentially all that is required is to gently add the contents of probiotics capsules to full-fat coconut milk. Cover with cheesecloth and let rest on the counter for 24 – 48 hours. We taste tested the yogurt after 30 hours and it had a really nice, light tang. I left it for another 15 hours or so, and the tang was a little strong for our tastes.

So much can alter the fermentation process, least of which is the temperature in your home. Warmer temperatures will definitely speed up the fermentation process. For us, next time we make a batch, we’ll halt the fermentation process by placing the yogurt in the fridge after about 30 hours. You could definitely enjoy this yogurt “as is” at this point or continue on as Dana suggests by making a delicious mango puree. This gave the yogurt a lovely sweetness and tempered the tang. You can see the full recipe by clicking here.

Your choice of probiotics can have a significant impact on the product as well. We used just one can of coconut milk (recipe calls for two), and the probiotics capsules we used contained 25 billion live culture, so we ended up using three.

Easy Peasy Vegan Mango Coconut Yogurt

1 14 oz can of full-fat coconut milk (I used Native Forest, and I also like Thai Kitchen organic)
3 probiotics capsules (I used NOW brand)
1/2 cup cubed mango
Juice of half an orange
1 teaspoon vanilla

Add contents of coconut milk to a 750 ml sterilized mason jar. Whisk if milk has separated. Open probiotic capsules and add contents to the coconut milk. Gently whisk. Place cheesecloth over jar and secure with elastic band. Let coconut milk mixture rest on counter for 24 – 48 hours…checking at 24 hours for desired “tang”. Store in fridge once desired level is met to halt fermentation process. In blender, combine mango and orange juice until pureed. Add puree and vanilla to yogurt and enjoy! This goes perfectly with our grain-free granola recipe from a few weeks ago. You can see that recipe by clicking here.