Homemade Yogurt in a Crockpot

We're trying to cut down on $$$ spent on groceries and I stumbled on a recipe to make homemade yogurt for a FRACTION of what we spend here (2 people x 1 yogurt a day for lunch x approx .89-$1/yogurt= 10-14 dollars a week!)

It turned out so delicious that I had to share:

You will need:
-half gallon of milk (the recipe I used recommended not using ULTRA-pasturized, but I did and it turned out beautifully)
-1 small plain yogurt (I used chobani greek and heard that it makes thicker yogurt)
-1 crockpot
-1 large towel
-1 small bowl
-10-12 hours (start before bed and let it sit while you sleep, or on a lazy saturday)

1. In your crockpot pour a half gallon of milk
2. Heat it in the crockpot on high for approximately 2 hours or until the milk reaches 180º. This will kill all the bad bacteria.
3. Cool milk to 110-120º. I was in a rush and lifted the insert out and put it in an ice bath to speed things up.
4. Take 1 cup of the cooled milk out and mix it in a small bowl with the small, plain yogurt
5. Add milk/yogurt starter to the rest of the crock pot and stir
6. Put the lid back on the crock pot insert and using a large towel, wrap the closed crock pot insert to keep the heat on (I tried to put the most of the towel at the top where the most heat would escape
7. Place towel-wrapped crock pot in the oven and close the door
8. Let it sit for 8 hours (overnight?) to let the starter colonize the rest of the milk

Then you should have yogurt! With the ultra-pasturized it wasn't that thick, but after leaving it in the fridge for awhile overnight (I made my yogurt during the day), it was PERFECT when I woke up this morning.

Great taste and it made 10.5 servings for 40 cents each and that's considering I used organic milk! To make it sweeter, you can add honey, vanilla, fruit, or even jam. So easy!

Plus, with no added sugars or anything, each serving came out to 101 calories!

Had to share, I'm just so pleased knowing how easy it is to make, how healthy it is, and how much money we will save!