Hi ,

Scott says:

One of the things I learned going deep in the woods with my diet was that I'm not a big fan of fermented foods, I don’t love the tangy taste. This wasn't something I had previously realized, but looking at a list of popular fermented foods is like looking at a list of foods that I generally stay away from. Yogurt, kombucha, sourdough...all foods I avoid.

Setting aside the possible implications of what a lifetime of avoiding fermented foods might mean, I thought it would be a good idea to sneak some fermentation into my diet and help support my digestive system. An easy place to start would have been yogurt, particularly since Bertina runs on it, but I just don't care for the taste. And the ones that do taste good are loaded with sugar. Before IBD, I'd occasionally sneak plain greek yogurt into a smoothie or shake, but now I avoid dairy because it doesn't make me feel great. 

I thought coconut yogurt might be a good solution because it's not milk-based, but had a surprisingly difficult time finding a brand that tasted good and was affordable. Soooo... we took matters into our own hands and made our own. It tasted great, wasn’t as tangy as store bought yogurt, and was surprisingly easy to make. 

Something we love with homemade yogurt is the potential to have more probiotics than most of the store varieties because you control how long you ferment the yogurt. The longer you ferment the more probiotics (and less lactose) in the yogurt! The minimum time for fermentation to take place is 8 hours, but stronger yogurts can go for over 24. Plan accordingly :)

I never thought we’d be the type of people that make our own yogurt, but here we are. Once you get over the daunting idea of making yogurt, it’s really easy since it’s basically mixing a couple ingredients in an Instapot and waiting. I’m fine eating it plain, but sometimes I add a bit of granola and nuts. It's the perfect snack to eat while growing some good bacteria for my gut!  

The Yogurt Train

Looking ahead to the recipe for a sec, you might be wondering why there is coconut yogurt as an ingredient to make….coconut yogurt. Basically, when you are making yogurt, you are adding bacteria to a base and creating a warm environment ideal for bacteria and probiotic growth. That probiotic bacteria is what gives it that tangy taste. You can buy a starter pack at a store or use a spoonful of already made yogurt, which is what we do.

When we make yogurt for the first time in awhile, we buy some coconut yogurt and use it to make our first batch. Once that first batch is made, we are on the yogurt train. We use a spoonful of the last batch we made to start the next. The Yogurt Train.

In order to grow and ferment, the bacteria need sugar to eat. Milk has natural sugars included, but for coconut yogurt, it needs to be added (we use maple syrup).

Cooking Tips:

• We like the instapot because with a press of a button (“yogurt” setting), we can go about our day until its ready
• Good coconut yogurt starts with good quality coconut milk. We are big fans of Aroy-D brand coconut milk because it’s delicious and the only ingredient is coconut milk- no preservatives and gum free!  
• If you want a yogurt-like consistency, you’ll need gelatin. Without it, it’ll still taste great but the yogurt will be runny (kind of like kefir).
• Did I mention I don’t like the tangy taste enough yet? Bertina mentioned the longer you let it ferment, the more probiotics and that's definitely true. But so is the inverse. The shorter the cook time, the less tangy. As I got used to the taste, we gradually began to increase the cook time and increase the quantity of probiotics. We found our sweet spot between 10-12 hours.  

INGREDIENTS

• 2 full fat canned or boxed coconut milk (14oz size cans)
• 2 tbsp maple syrup 
• 2 tbsp plain coconut yogurt
• 1 to 2 tsp unflavored grass-fed beef gelatin (optional)

MAKE IT

1. Whisk the coconut milk and maple syrup into the pot of the Instant Pot 
2. Press the “Yogurt” button, and then adjust the setting until you see “boil.” whisking occasionally without lid on. This step is getting the temperature of the milk to 180 
3. Once the Instant Pot beeps when it is finished, allow the milk to cool until it is between 100º and 110º. This can take up to an hour.
4. When the milk is between 100 and 110, take out ½ cup of the warm milk and whisk the gelatin to the milk. Once it is mixed it, add it back to the instapot - this will act as the thickener
5. Add and mix the 2 tbsp of the plain coconut yogurt into the Instapot
6. Close the lid of the Instant Pot and press the “Yogurt” button and set the desired fermentation time. The bare minimum should be 8 hours, some folks prefer their yogurt to be fermented closer to 24-36 hrs which would result in a much more tangy yogurt like Greek yogurt. 
7. Once it’s ready, transfer the yogurt to a glass storage and keep it in the fridge. It will thicken as it cools . Enjoy!

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Did you know that smoothies are one of the simplest and tastiest ways for people with inflammatory bowel disease to consume wholesome foods, including fruits, vegetables and other high-fiber foods, like nuts and seeds EVEN while following a “low-fiber” diet.

Learn everything you ever wanted to know in our book Smoothies to the Rescue!  

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In good health,

Colleen, Bertina & Scott