Ingredients:

• ​1/2 gallon of milk (2 liters)
• One small cup of unflavored yogurt. (1/4-1/2 cup)

Instructions:

1. Set the yogurt on the counter so it can reach room temperature.
2. Pour milk into a large pot and heat on medium low until temperature reaches 190 degrees Farenheit (88 degrees Celsius). (Use a candy thermometer to keep track of the temperature. Mine has a clip on the side so it can hang off the edge of my pot.) Stir regularly while heating.
3. Once it hits 190 degrees, turn off the heat and let it cool until it reaches a temperature of 110 degrees Farenheit (43 degrees Celsius). 
4. Turn your empty crockpot on and heat it for a few minutes until it is warm. Turn it off. Pour the hot milk into the crockpot.
5. Remove about one cup of warm milk and gently stir the yogurt into it. (At this point, it should be room temperature.) Then gently pour it into the crockpot and stir it into the rest of the milk, with a very slow, gentle movement.
6. Wrap the crockpot with thick towels and leave it alone for about 8-12 hours. (I let it sit overnight.)
7. Do not stir the yogurt or remove it from the crockpot. Instead, unwrap the crockpot and place it into the refrigerator to chill. After it is cold, you may gently stir your yogurt and ladle it into glass containers for storage.

Tips:

• The next time you make this, you can simply use 1/4-1/2 cup of the yogurt as a starter for your next batch. After 4-5 batches, you will want to start over again with a fresh store-bought yogurt as your starter. 
• Obviously, the better quality of your ingredients, the better this will turn out. However, you can use anything you have. I've used UHT processed milk, and a friend of mine uses reconstituted milk from milk power, and it has turned out for us. It will affect the taste somewhat, though.
• If you don't have a candy thermometer for testing the temperature of the milk, you can guesstimate it. At 190 degrees, the milk will be steamy and foamy, with bubbles around the edges of the pan. If you hold your hand just above it, it will feel quite hot. However, you don't want the milk to boil! It will probably take about 10-20 minutes to reach the right temperature.
• I have found that it takes about one to one and a half hours to cool to the correct temperature. Of course, this is in a rather hot environment. If your kitchen is quite cool, it will take shorter. 

All in all, preparing the yogurt will take less than 2 hours of mostly hands-off time.

Do you like flavored yogurt? Try these ideas:

• Frozen fruit juice concentrate or lemonade concentrate
• Blueberry or Strawberry Pie Filling
• Jelly
• A little bit of sugar and a drop of Vanilla extract
• Toasted Carob Powder
• Honey
• Sliced or pureed fresh or frozen fruit

Besides eating it plain, try these ideas:

• Freeze it and eat it like ice cream.
• Make a breakfast parfait. Alternate layers of granola, sliced fresh fruit, and yogurt.
• Substitute yogurt for sour cream, cream, or milk in recipes.
• Add it to your fruit smoothies.

Trouble shooting:
If your yogurt turns out runny, try some of these options. . . 

• Make sure you are optimizing it by allowing it to reach 190 degrees and cool to 110 degrees. In my experience, this has the biggest impact on the way it sets.
• Add a little bit of powdered milk to your milk before you heat it.
• Use a different brand of milk and see if that makes a difference.
• Let it sit longer than 8 hours.
• Make sure you are not stirring it or removing it from the crockpot before it chills.

If none of these things work, don't despair! Runny yogurt is still yogurt. You can use it as a substitute for sour cream or buttermilk in recipes, add it to your fruit shakes, or pour it over granola. In Asia, we like drinking our yogurt. Add a little fruit flavoring or sweetener and try it as a drink. 

Another Option:
You can make yogurt from start to finish in your crockpot. No heating on the stove is necessary. Instead, heat the milk on low in your crockpot until the temperature reaches 190 degrees. Turn off your crockpot and wait until the temperature reaches 110. Then follow the directions given above. This will add about an hour to your time, but it may be worth it to you.
With this method it is harder to keep the thermometer where it needs to be. Try looping a ribbon through the handle of your crockpot lid and tying it around your thermometer in order to keep it in place inside your crockpot.

Mix together in a bowl equal parts:

Peanut Butter (this tastes best with all natural peanut butter--I use homemade)
Honey
Toasted Carob Powder

Refrigerate until it is firm, then roll into one inch balls.  
​You can roll these balls in flaked coconut, chopped nuts, or raisins, but I like it best just like this.

(Somebody recently told me this tasted like a Clif Bar in a ball.  Yum!)

I love leftovers.  
In fact, I plan for leftovers.  
I am disappointed when my chili disappears in one meal.  I tip the pot towards me and frown down into its scraped-clean depths.  
Uh-oh!  No burritos for tomorrow's lunch.   

Leftovers are one of God's good gifts to womankind.  They save us money and they save us time.  
As a busy mom/missionary/teacher/writer, I am always looking for new ways to save money and time!  
In addition, many leftovers (although not all) taste better on the second day.  What more could a woman ask for?  

With all these benefits, why do many leftovers suffer long, drawn out, painful demises in the back forty of our refrigerators?  
The truth is that we don't really have a plan for their proper usage.  

Here are the three ways you can use your leftovers:

1.  Eat it the next day, as-is.  
This is the default button for many people.  And it works!  Reheat and enjoy.  
If you are brown-bagging it at work or school, this is a tastier choice than PB&J or slimy ham sandwiches.  When you clear off the table, package it appropriately in take-along portions.

2.  Freezer it.
This is another great option.  Many recipes freeze well.  Stews, sloppy joes, chili, chicken, lasagne. . . it is wonderful to be able to pop them out of the freezer on a busy day!  Freezing leftovers gives you all the benefits of eating it the next day, but with an additional newness factor for your family.
Tips for freezing:  Freeze immediately after your meal.  Don't let it languish for days in the refrigerator.  If you made a baked pasta or other casserole and you have half a pan left, transfer it to a new casserole dish of appropriate size.  File it in the freezer for a busy day next week.  Congratulations!  You just saved yourself an expensive and waist-expanding trip through the Golden Arches.  

3.  Makeover that food:  Turn it into something new and tasty!
This is my favorite way to use leftovers wisely.  I take Wednesday's chili and give it a makeover for Friday's Tex-Mex Burritos.  Chicken casserole becomes soup (or vice versa).  Pork roast becomes Barbecue Pulled-Pork Sandwiches.  Baked potatoes get diced and browned and thrown into omelets or breakfast egg scrambles.
Learn to think outside the box when it comes to leftovers.  Get creative and see where it leads you.

(Busy Mom's Time Saver Idea:  plan for leftover makeovers this week.) 

Here are two Leftover-Makeover Menu Plans that you can use or modify to please your family's unique tastes.

Makeover #1:  Crockpot Chicken

Day 1:  Hot Chicken and Gravy Sandwiches with Veggies.
Set up your crockpot with a big batch of chicken!  I use my oversized crockpot for this.  Four or five pounds of chicken pieces (with bones--it is less expensive and makes better broth) get washed and skinned and placed in the bottom.  Then I add celery (don't waste!--include the leaves for extra nutrition and taste), onion, salt, pepper, quartered potatoes and carrots, and maybe some green beans (halfway through the cooking time).  I fill it to almost the top with water. Then I order my bread machine to go to work on a loaf of homemade bread. Just before dinner, I remove some broth from the chicken and make gravy.  
This chicken is so tender it falls off the bone.  We dish up hot chicken and gravy sandwiches with vegetables on the side. Then I strip the bones of any remaining meat and refrigerate it.  Leftover vegetables get bagged for use later in the week.  I strain the broth and freeze that also.  If there is leftover bread--which almost never happens at my house--I freeze it for bread crumbs or make homemade Butter-Herb Croutons.  Homemade croutons are devoured by my crazy crew of kids!

Day 2:  Chicken Broccoli Bake
Make a mouthwatering casserole like Chicken Broccoli Bake.  Use the leftover chicken from Day One.

Day 3:  Homemade Tomato Soup or Lentil Brown Rice Burritos
Sneak in a budget-friendly meatless meal.  Use the Leftover Chicken Broth.

Day 4:  Quick Chicken Sandwiches
Quickly transform leftover diced chicken into Exotic Chicken Salad (add a little soy sauce and sliced grapes to your chicken salad recipe; serve in pitas) or Designer Chicken Wraps (place bowls of your family's favorite wrap ingredients on the table:  tomato, lettuce, sauteed or fresh onion and bell pepper, mayo, mustard, salsa, cheese, pickles--let everyone build their own wrap!)
Brown those leftover potatoes and carrots in a frying pan with a bit of oil and some chopped garlic!  Serve it on the side.  Add some fresh fruit slices and you have a homemade meal in minutes!  

Makeover #1 can be done all in one week, for consecutive days, because the meals are varied in their tastes.   Makeover #2 works better if it is spread out over two weeks.

Makeover #2:  Tasty Pinto Beans and Cornbread

Day 1:  Tasty Cooked Beans with Cornbread and Salad
Soak pinto beans overnight.  In the morning, discard the liquid and stock your crockpot with the beans, spices, and water. Cook on low until dinner.  Make a pan of cornbread and serve it alongside the beans.   
These beans truly taste good enough to eat on their own.  Freeze the leftover beans in one- or two-cup portions.  This is one of our favorite meals for those late Sunday nights after church.  (If your children are not bean lovers, introduce this slowly and try to transform their tastebuds.  My husband grew up on this kind of meal, but it took me a long time to learn to appreciate it.  My kids, however, loved this from the first time I served it.)
Tip:  Freeze leftover beans immediately in one or two cup portions.  Drain liquid first. You can also use these beans for homemade refried beans.

Day 2:  Crockpot Chili
Use the beans from Day One.  Before serving, set aside enough chili to freeze for your family for the following two menu plan days, or you will also be gazing down into your chili pot with sorrow.  If you have leftover cornbread, serve it on the side.  

Day 3:  Tex-Mex Burritos
Reheat the Chili and spoon into flour tortillas with cheddar cheese and your favorite burrito or taco add-ons.  

Day 4:  Chili Corn-Pone Pie
Thaw the second portion of frozen chili, add a drained can of corn, and whip out this tummy-filling casserole in no time.

Now you have two of my favorite secret weapons for leftover makeovers.  What menu ideas can you come up with, using leftovers? Share them with us in the comments section below!

Nobody wants the same menu four days in a row, so turn on your creativity and watch the wow factor at your table go off the charts!
Makeover your leftovers and save yourself both time and money in the kitchen.

These burritos melt in your mouth!  They are also easy on both the budget and the body.  What more could you ask?  Make them with some easy homemade flour tortillas for a real treat.  This recipe is gluten-free when served over salad.  It is gluten-free and dairy-free if served over a salad with no cheese.  

3/4 cup uncooked lentils, green or red
1/2 cup uncooked long-grain brown rice
1 medium chopped onion
3 1/2 cups chicken or other broth
1/2 teaspoon basil leaves
1/4 teaspoon oregano leaves
1/4 teaspoon thyme leaves
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

Cover and bake for 2 to 2 1/2 hours at 300 degrees (F).  Or if your home is near the equator, cook in the crockpot for 5-6 hours on low or until soft.  

Serve on tortillas with salsa, tomatoes, lettuce, and grated cheddar.

Optional--Instead of the basil, oregano, thyme, and garlic powder, use a packet of burrito or taco seasoning.

** This recipe is modified slightly from The 15 Minute Meal Planner by Emilie Barnes and Sue Gregg.