Lakeland EasiYo Yogurt Maker

My mum, in her infinite wisdom (or insanity) bought me an Easiyo yogurt making kit for my last birthday. No, I had never expressed any desire for a yogurt maker, and yes it did challenge my acting skills to seem pleased with her thoughtfulness and to hide my disappointment it wasn't something a little more glamorous and exciting.

The Easiyo yogurt maker is not glamorous or exciting. It's really nothing more complicated than a giant white thermos, and a 1 litre jar with screw-on lid. I think anyone would be hard pressed to make yogurt making look sexy, but as it is, it looks clean and uncomplicated and has the chunky, practical look of something you might see on Blue Peter. The starter kit also comes with one sachet of yogurt mix, a mini jar for your lunch box and a recipe book.

So how do you use it? Well:

YOU WILL NEED
1 Easiyo 1 litre jar
1 Easiyo yogurt maker
1 Easiyo yogurt sachet (there are lots of flavours to choose from - see below)
Cold water
Boiling water

HOW TO MAKE YOUR YOGURT
1. First, take your 1litre jar and HALF fill it with fresh, cold water.
2. Next empty the entire contents of your yogurt sachet into the jar and mix well (a fork works well if you haven't got a whisk).
3. Then add more cold water until the jar is full.
4. Put the lid on.
5. Shake well.
6. Fill your Easiyo yogurt maker with boiling water up to the line at the top of the red marker (called the Baffle, bafflingly).
7. Place the jar of yogurt into the yogurt maker and close the lid.
8. Leave it alone (and out of the reach of little fingers) for about 8 hours.
9. Remove and give it a stir.
9. Enjoy!

Well, a fool could follow those instructions, so despite my feeling that I had been condemned to middle-aged presents at the age of 27, I decided to give it a go. And I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised by the results. From a load of hot and cold water and a sachet full of what looks (unsurprisingly) like powdered milk, you get delicious, thick, creamy yogurt. And plenty of it. One sachet produces about twice as much as you get in one of those standard large pots of yogurt from the supermarket. The Easiyo information (also available at www.easiyo.com) tells you that fresh yogurt is also loads better for you as it contains tons more of that friendly bacteria they're always harping on about on TV. I had to admit, my Mum and her apparent insanity (or infinite wisdom) had struck onto a winner.

HERE'S ONE I MADE EARLIER…
Several batches of yogurt later, I feel I should pass on some of my tips...

Firstly, the sachets aren't that easy to get hold of unless you live near a Lakeland shop or a Julian Graves. Otherwise it's mail order, which of course adds to the cost. Not that they are particularly pricy. Single sachets are around £1.60 but Lakeland sells them in packs of 6 for £8 (although they don't stock all the varieties). For the really addicted, www.yogurtdirect.co.uk sells them in packs of 12 for around £15, but the site does use a strange delivery system and if you aren't in to receive your yogurt you have to go pick it up in a depot in the back of beyond.

Secondly, the sachets come in a range of flavours and varieties. As well as the basic natural flavour, the plain bases come in Greek, Bio (with even more friendly bacteria), Slimmers, Reduced Fat and Organic. Then there are the flavoured varieties: Banana, Caramel, Mango, Peach, Strawberry, Vanilla and Vanilla Custard, Bio-Nectarine, Bio-Boysenberry (all sweetened) and the low-fat flavoured varieties: Apricot, Berryfruit, Strawberry and Vanilla (unsweetened). HOWEVER, having tempted you with all those flavours, a small warning. All the sweetened varieties I have so far tried have turned out to be a really weird consistency. I made some of the vanilla custard flavour and it came out as this very slimy, very un-yogurty texture. Thinking I had done something wrong, I tried again, but it still looked like a prop from Ghostbusters. This may be your thing, but it certainly isn't mine and I've had to throw out about three batches of sweetened yogurt because I just couldn't stomach it. So I'm sticking to the plain, unsweetened varieties. Don't say you haven't been warned.

Finally, just a small tip. Many people like to make their yogurt overnight because then they have a fresh supply in the morning. I try to make mine during the day so that I can put it in the fridge overnight. It tastes much better cold.

So there you have it. Despite the slime and the mail ordering, I have to recommend Easiyo. It's quick, easy, healthy and relatively cheap (about £20 for the starter kit). Oh, and the yogurt tastes great. Even though it makes you feel about as glamorous as a Blue Peter presenter, it IS one of those things you never knew you always wanted. Which, after all, Mums have a knack for buying...