Homemade Yogurt and Kefir is a a must have for everyone who loves milk based ferments or wants to start making them. I have a kefir culture that has been going now for years and aside from just making kefir smoothies or drinking kefir daily, I haven't been very adventurous with my culture, I love kefir, but just drinking tart, bubbly milk every day isn't always fun. Sometimes, despite knowing it's good for me, I just don't want to drink the kefir because I'm bored with it. For that problem, this is a great book to have. I can have cheeses, smoothies, desserts, all sorts of creations with my kefir. I can have the probiotics and different flavors and applications.

I didn't know the history of Kefir or where it comes from and so learning all about it was actually really great. I also learned about so many different things, types of yogurt, how to change the flavors and how to keep my cultures healthy. I'm encouraged now to try some ferments for yogurt and to try more recipes with my kefir. And maybe even branch out into Kombucha or something. I'm very excited about this book. I hope the author explores other ferments, pickles, and lactofermentation methods.

5 Stars.

An interesting book. We drink kefir daily to help with tummy upsets and it really makes a difference. Having a book that explains the health benefits and more is great. A super selection of recipes and actually really easy to make!

A useful, informative and well written book that explains how to make yogurt.
It's an interesting read and I found a lot of interesting ideas.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

This is a gloriously beautiful book with informative sections. I would read this cover to cover, just because it is fun, and then read it again to actually use the recipes. I was delighted to find a box titled "A Bit about Taxonomy." Anyone willing to write a cookbook and talk about history, geography, biology, and taxonomy deserves to be on the shelves in every kitchen and library. The best cookbook I've read this year--I highly recommend it.

A very thorough book on the topic - I thought I knew a good bit about cultured milks, but it turns out I did NOT.  Interested readers will enjoy the background information, but it's easily skippable by those looking to go straight for the recipes.  Also includes vegan recipes for cultured plant milks, which was a surprise.  

Long story short, here I am buying heirloom kefir grains when I was only reading this to evaluate it for the collection.

If you've ever wanted to make yogurt or kefir, this is the book you need! And if you've ever made your own, you know what a treat it is and so much better than store bought. It's a lengthy process, but not difficult and well worth the effort in my opinion. This book gives you some history of yogurt making, as well as detailed instructions on how to make it yourself and also recipes that you can use the finished product in.  The recipes, with some wonderful photographs,  include dips, soups, salad dressings, smoothies, cocktails, even mousse and crème brulee. I can't wait to try some of these for myself!

This has everything you'd expect from a book on dairy ferments. The author clearly loves the topic and it comes out in the book's colorful, personal approach. That being said, this didn't seem that different/special and personally I am more into veggie ferments. If I am recalling the correct book, there was one recipe on a plant based cheese I really liked. I wish there was more talk about using plant milks.

I haven’t completely finished the book and haven’t had a chance to make any of the yogurt yet. That said this book is informative (have read 50%) and goes into great depth on the origin and each time of yogurt and kefir. Although I haven’t made any of it at this time I’m going to keep this book in mind for when I’m interested in the future.

This book is really informative about yogurt, kefir. It includes detailed instructions on how to get a successful product with a ferment, as well as recipes on how to use those ferments into other dishes. I love that their chapter is devoted to Plant milk and is geared towards vegans, and people with dairy allergies

I hesitated before reading Yoghurt and Kefir as I live in rural France where we have the most wonderful selection of yoghurts and other cultured dairy products in local markets, but because so many of my neighbours make their own kefir drinks I was intrigued to find out more about it.   I am so glad I did - this is a superb book!

The first section covers the basic history of milk fermentation and goes on to explain the different products, equipment and fermentation techniques, including storing and maintaining ferments. The basic technique is well illustrated with good photographs. I really enjoyed the section on common milk bacteria, which was very clearly explained, and the detail on natural thickeners used in yoghurts.

The second section details core recipes for various ferments  - from warm ferments like yoghurt to room temperature ferments like kefir  (a fascinating glimpse into the biodiversity of kefir grains) and plant milk ferments made from soy, coconut and nuts.  The recipes include fermented products from all over the world: yoghurts include Indian Dahi, Russian Ryazhenka and Icelandic Skyr while the kefir section includes Finnish Viili and Bulgarian Matsoni, to name but a few.  A fantastic resource for understanding the range of these products across the world!

For me the most interesting section was the cultured butters and creams and cheeses. In even the smallest French supermarket the selection of fromage frais, fromage blanc and crème fraiche, is astounding and I enjoyed reading how they are made. 

I have to admit that I did not try any of the recipes, but that is not why I read the book - even if you are not going to make your own products this in a fascinating read for anyone who is interested in food and wants to find out more about the process behind cultured milk products they eat.

Too short' but good book! Make your own probiotics at home. Good to try to make your life more natural and healthier. I liked all the basic steps too. It was well written.

This book opens with a detailed history of the first fermenters—how yoghurt derived its name, origin of the word yoghurt, an excerpt on how kefir came to Russia.

The Milk and Microbes section covers diary milk, cow’s milk, goat’s milk, sheep’s milk, water buffalo’a milk and so forth. It includes essay of people who run goat milk products. 

The author talks about the components of milk that are critical for successful fermentation. This includes water, lactose, protein, fat and minerals.
The Plant Milks section covers include soy milk, almond milk, coconut milk. For Microbial Cultures- Powdered cultures, Fresh cultures, Heirloom cultures, and Kefir cultures 

In the following chapter she recommends tools and equipment for making yogurt, such as Pots and vessels, utensils (spoons, ladles, sieves, colanders, measuring cups) thermometer, and draining tools.
She also recommends incubation options that can provide a suitable temperature for cultivating microbes. Examples are Ice chest, Warm Oven, Sous Vide, Multicooker

For the Dairy Fermentation Techniques, the author list four basic steps in Dairy fermentation: heating, culturing, incubating, and chilling. The author guides you on how to make dairy ferments and suggests some basic steps including cleaning your equipment, heat-treating the milk and so forth. 

There are step-by-step instructions on how to make dairy ferments accompanied by photos. The reader will also learn how to make infusions such as Coffee or Tea, Lemongrass, Chai Spice Blend, and Herb-Infused Honey. You will learn how to store ferments.

Part Two of this book covers recipes such as Classic Yoghurt, Gianaclis’s Family Recipe, Dahi, Ryazhenka, and so forth. 
Succeeding chapters are devoted to Kefir and Heirloom cultures.

Another chapter is devoted to Plant milk and is geared towards vegans, and people with dairy allergies. But the author invites the reader to experiment and shows them how to make their own plant mills. . Recipes in this chapter include Soyghurt, Coconut Milk Mock Kefir, Coconut Milk Viili. 

In Part Three, the recipes in this section include salads and sauces such as Classic Indian Cucumber Raita, Ethiopian-Inspired Eggplant Raita, Savory and Sweet Tropical Raita. Soups include Cool Corn Chowder, Persian Fusion Yoghurt Soup,  and Gazpacho Blanco.
The reader will also find yoghurt-based beverages such as Whey Berry ‘n’ Ginger Punch, Lassi, Doogh, and Berry Good Smoothie. 
The book offers Sweets and Treats such as French Custard-Style Frozen Yoghurt, Simplest Frozen Yoghurt, Yoghurt-Cheese Pie, Easy Yoghurt Crème Brûlée.

The book concludes with resources to guide the reader on how to make their homemade yoghurt and kefir. Highly recommend. 

Thank you to the author, NetGalley, and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is a very comprehensive book that covers the history of yogurt and kefir as well as lots of detail about the different ingredients that may be used in the process. It talks about the science which helps to understand why things are done in a certain way.

There are sections telling of personal stories of people who've set up small businesses as they are passionate about yogurt and kefir, I really enjoyed reading about these people and would like to know more.

I haven't tried any of the recipes yet but about the last third of the book is recipes using yogurt and derivatives. There is also a section on making cheese which I am very much looking forward to trying out. I don't think you'll find such a comprehensive book as this. It looks lovely on my iPad and laptop (not so good on the Kindle) but I think would be stunning in paper version. The photography and format are lovely,

With thanks to NetGalley and Storey Publishing for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Great recipes!
Whether you are only just starting out or have been making your own kefir (or yogurt) for a while, this will give you some ideas. 
It's nicely presented with colourful pictures (though my presentation isn't always as good) and you can adapt recipes to fit your tastes or what is avaiable locally. 
Overall definitely worth recommending to people who like to try out new making foods themselves.

This book is for those of you who are interested in making your own yogurt and kefir from scratch.
At first you will be introduced to the types of milk that make the best yogurt, goats, sheep, cow’s, goats milk may be used, but the best yogurt is made from water buffaloes milk! 
You will also learn about the benefits of using Plant Milk, Soy Milk, Coconut and Almond Milk. The types of Microbial Cultures and fermentation are discussed along with the different types of cultures such as powdered, fresh, heirloom and kefir grains, each one is unique, but the heirloom culture can last for generations!
The tools used for making yogurt and kefir should be made from high quality stainless steel, glass or crockery. Stainless steel, wood and plastic colanders, ladles, spoons sieves, measuring cups and spoons should be used, and the wooden ones should be only dedicated for this activity. Your thermometer may be a basic one, but it must be calibrated at regular intervals to give accurate readings. You will also need PH strips, a colander, cheesecloth, and an ice chest to test ferments, strain cultures and incubate your ferments.
The process of making ferments is thoroughly explained in detail, you will learn to clean your equipment, heat treat the milk, bring the milk to incubation temperature, add the milk to culture, incubate and chill your culture, you can also thicken it after it has been incubated to make Greek yogurt.
You will be shown how to add spices, citrus zests and herbs to your culture in order to make it more flavorful.
The author also gives you the reasons why your ferment could fail.
Proper storage is crucial to keep the yogurt or kefir from spoiling, and you will also learn how to store your starter for future use.
The first recipe for classic yogurt uses milk and yogurt culture - the milk is heated, the culture is added, and it is incubated for 4 hours.
The Russian yogurt is baked or slow cooked for 8 hours, the milk is then cooled, the culture is added in, and it’s cooled for 8 hours, this process gives it a caramely taste.
The Vietnamese version uses sweetened condensed milk and ultra - pasteurized milk, and it also tastes like caramel.
Icelandic Skyr uses rennet in their yogurt, this gives the yogurt a very thick texture.
Kefir is produced by using kefir grains that are soaked in milk, then the mixture sits at room temperature for 12 - 24 hours then refrigerate it. You may also use Kefir culture, this procedure is done by warming milk, adding the culture, and letting it incubate for 12 - 24 hours and then chilling it.
You can even make vegan yogurt using soy milk and tapioca starch culture by heating the ingredients, incubating the mixture for 6 hours and chilling it.
There are also recipes for yogurt and kefir butter, ricotta, creme fraiche, sour cream, mozzarella curd, and even feta!
Enjoy your yogurt and kefir - making journey!

A wonderful book that gave the history of yogurt from several different countries. Directions on making these different yougurts, kefirs and  cheeses at home and delicious receipies in which to use them. I was able to try a couple and found them very tasty. A great addition to anyone's library of cookbooks.

The Homemade Yoghurt and Kefir book is a handy book for anyone wanting to try making their own yoghurts, kefir and butters at home. 

Part One of the book looks at the history of yoghurt, which is interesting to read and a small table is provided with the different names for yoghurt around the world.  the difference between Dairy and Plant milk is explained along with how the components of milk is made up depending on where it comes from.  A list of the common milk fermentation bacteria is provided, Latin names and all, what it's primary function is (add flavour, acid, aroma) and it's application.  There is a list provided of the tools need to make yoghurt and how to incubate the yoghurt.

Part Two is The Core recipes, which provides different methods from around the world which includes the ability to whip up ten yoghurt, nine Kefir, six plant based and nine butters, creams and cheeses.  The steps are well written, the ingredient measurements are provided in imperial terms, the temperatures to heat or incubate are in both Fahrenheit and Celsius. 

Part Three provides ideas for how to use the yoghurts you have made in the previous chapter, though I'd probably just eat it plain as it looks so yummy!   Again the ingredients are given in imperial measurements and not all the recipes come with a colour photograph to show the end product.

There is a table at the rear of the book that provides metric conversion chart and a quick history of manufactured yoghurt in the 20th and 21st century in the USA.  There are resources here too but again they are American based suppliers.

I received this book from Netgalley in return for a honest review.

I am so impressed by Homemade Yogurt & Kefir by Gianaclis Caldwell. It goes in-depth into the history of fermented milks and how we can enjoy them at home. I make kefir at home and was blown away about the new things I could do with my grains and kefir. For example, I could use some kefir to make ricotta or use the grains in half and half and make sour cream! Pretty epic! Great book for anyone diving into yogurt and kefir. I wouldn't recommend for those who are just looking for "fluffy" yogurt recipes like Strawberry swirl yogurt parfait. This book is all about fermenting and what you can do with it! It's awesome.

Have you ever wanted to make your own yogurt? If so, you're in luck! This cookbook is a thorough introduction into the world of milk fermentation for home use. Caldwell begins with a brief history of fermentation and different types of yogurt around the world. Recipes include Icelandic, Indian, Russian, Greek, and more. Plenty of photos and detailed instructions. You'll definitely want to try your hand at yogurt when you're done reading.

This is a great cookbook with many wonderful recipes and ideas. I can't wait to make my own yogurt and kefir!