Thick and Creamy Vanilla Bean Almond Yogurt (Dairy Free and Lightly Sweet)

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This dairy free yogurt is so thick and creamy. It is lightly sweet with a tasty vanilla bean flavor. This recipe uses probiotics to grow good cultures that are good for your gut. Not to mention the ingredient list for this recipe is much shorter than the dairy free yogurts you find at the store. It is a great recipe for those with lactose intolerance and IBS, the thickeners are also gluten free.

What you will need for ingredients:

• Almonds

• Water

• Beef gelatin

• Arrowroot

• Probiotic capsules

• Vanilla beans or extract

Supplies:

• Instant Pot/Pressure Cooker

• High powered blender

• Mesh nut milk bag or cheese cloth

• Quick read thermometer

• Sauce pan

• Small jars

Start by soaking your almonds in water in the fridge for 8 hours or overnight. Then drain the water off your almonds and dump them into your high powered blender, then add 4 cups of water. Blend starting on low speed, gradually increasing to high then blend for 1 minute.

Using your nut milk bag (I found mine on Amazon), strain out the milk into a large bowl or measuring cup. You will need to squeeze the liquid out slowly until there is no liquid left.

You can dehydrate the almond pulp in the oven and make flour out of it, or discard it.

Add your vanilla, arrowroot, and beef gelatin to your milk and mix very well. Then add these to your saucepan. This process will be the most tricky so see the directions below.

I like to use arrowroot as my main thickener because it creates a nice smooth texture and doesn't clump easily. The gelatin adds some protein and additional gut health benefits.

You will need probiotic capsules, try to find one that contains the following strains: Lactobacillus acidophilus, Bifidobacterium bifidum, Bifidobacterium lactis and Streptococcus thermophilus. I used RenewLife Everyday Probiotics.

Next you will have to let the mixture cool, in order to prevent killing your probiotic cultures. Using a quick read thermometer, let it cool to a temperature between 100-110°. You can speed up this process by stirring the mixture.

For the vanilla I love adding vanilla bean paste. I have found this in the specialty baking section of craft stores or even Walmart. You can also use just regular vanilla extract.

After you do the cooking process on the stove and add your probiotics, pour 1/6 of your mixture into each of your jars. I used small Weck jars but you can use short Mason jars as well.

I have tried skipping the jars and found this makes it very easy to wreck your yogurt. Your pressure cooker often has a little bacteria in the lid, this leads to the growth of a pink bacteria/mold on the top of your yogurt. In order to prevent this, make sure to sterilize all your utensils, use stainless steel if you can, and use jars instead of dumping all the contents directly into your pressure cooker. I have made this mistake, and you can not eat it if this happens.

Set your Instant Pot or other pressure cooker to the yogurt function for anywhere between 6-12 hours. The longer you go, the more cultures will grow and it will have more of a sour, fermented taste.

After the 6-12 hours in your pressure cooker, put your jars in the fridge so that the yogurt can cool and set. Let it sit overnight or at least a few hours. Once the yogurt has cooled and set, top it with fruit, granola, cereal, or use however you would like! Try adding it to my Overnight Oats recipe.

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Ingredients

[Serves 6]

1 cup raw almonds (soaked)

4 cups water

1 Tbsp beef gelatin

1/3 cup arrowroot

1/4 cup cane sugar or regular sugar

1-2 probiotic capsules (I used RenewLife Everyday)

1 tsp vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract

Directions

1. Start by measuring out one cup of almonds and add them to a bowl or glass, then cover the nuts entirely with water. Cover the bowl or cup and place it in the fridge to sit for 8 hours or overnight.

2. After the almonds have soaked, drain off the water.

3. Now add your almonds plus 4 cups of new water to a high powered blender.

4. Blend the almonds starting on low gradually increasing to high speed, then blend for one minute. The almonds should be ground very fine.

5. Now using your mesh nut milk bag placed in a bowl or large glass measuring cup, or cheese cloth set in a strainer if you don't have one of these, pour the liquid through to strain out the almond pulp. Squeeze the bag or cheese cloth slowly to remove all the liquid until you have just the pulp left. You can dehydrate this in the oven to make flour (just search for recipes, I do not have one) or discard.

6. Now pour your milk into a small saucepan. Then add your vanilla, arrowroot, and gelatin and whisk these in well.

7. Turn your stove on to medium heat, it is important you don't have it too high. Now let this heat while frequently stirring and scraping the bottom to prevent the thickeners from setting on the bottom (I have found my electric stovetop isn't the best for this because the heat cycles, so some clumping may happen).

8. Let this mixture heat to about 160°, you will need a quick read thermometer to check this. This step of heating will take about 20-30 minutes. Once it reaches this temperature you will notice it beginning to thicken.

9. Now add in your cane sugar while stirring and mix it in so that it can melt.

10. Let this continue to heat while stirring until it reaches 180°. This should take about 5 more minutes.

11. Once it reaches temperature, transfer it to a bowl and stir it rapidly to cool it down to anywhere between 100-110°. This will take some time so you can speed it up in the fridge, however, it will dry on top so make sure to stir occasionally.

12. It is important to cool it to specifically 100-110° before adding your probiotics, otherwise it will kill your cultures. Empty your probiotic capsules into the mixture and mix in.

13. Now add 1/6 of your mixture into each jar and top with a lid (make sure to use the small canning jars, I used Weck brand). Then place these jars into your Instant Pot.

14. Select the yogurt function and set your time from anywhere between 6-12 hours. The longer you go, the more cultures will grow and the more tart flavor your yogurt will have. Make sure your valve is closed and press start.

15. Once the time is up, transfer your jars to the fridge to set and cool.

16. When the yogurt has had enough time to cool, typically a couple hours, it is ready to eat.

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