Ingredients:
1 liter Borden Plus Hi-Protein Milk (or whatever milk you have)3oz Plain Yogurt of your choice (FAGE greek 0% Yogurt)Whatever fruit/sweeteners that you wish!

Directions:
*Wash all ustensils with warm soapy water and dry completely. You want to breed the good live cultures, not the bad! I usually wash my pot, spoons etc with soap and then rinse with White Vinegar and then rinse again.
*Place milk in pot and bring to a boil (don't wanna boil? See tips at bottom), stirring constantly so as not to scorch the milk. After brought to boil, turn off heat completely, and let it sit and come down to 110 degrees. If you don't wanna wait, you can fill your sink with ice water, and plunge the pot in cold water. Keep an eye on the temps - if it gets below 110 you will have to heat again.
*In a seperate bowl, temper some of the milk into the yogurt. If you don't wait for the milk to cool first, you will kill the cultures. After you have tempered it and it is smooth, stir the culture into the large pot of milk. When this is well mixed - place lid on, then wrap in a thick towel, to retain it's temp. Some choose to set the pot on a heating pad on low...this is a pretty good idea if you keep your home cold.
*Let the milk sit undisturbed for at LEAST 6 hours. This will give you a light tang. If you want it tangier, let it sit a few more hours. I wouldn't go more than 12 hours.
*Chill for a couple hours, then serve with whatever sweeteners and flavorings you wish.

TIPS:
**Powdered milk gives yogurt an added Protein boost, and also thickens the yogurt in the same way Manufacturerers use Pectin. On your first batch start with 10 table spoons.
**Don't wanna boil cause you don't have time or are super duper lazy like I am? Heat the milk to 110, remove from heat, and follow instructions. You DEFINATLY wanna add powdered milk if you do it this way, because it wont be as firm as boiled.
** Wanna keep your sweeteners healthy? Try Agave, Torani or DaVinci Sugar Free Syrups, Honey etc. You can even use Sugar-Free Jams, though I suggest you heat them slightly before stiring into your yogurt cause it will help the mix.
**Picky kidlet that doesn't wanna eat yogurt? Let them pick their toppings, or bribe them like I do by letting them color their yogurt with food coloring!
 
What is Kefir?
It's fermented milk drink. Some call it yogurt, but really - that can be somewhat misleading. And I'm not here to mislead you! It's a probiotic, nutrient filled milk drink. It does have a yogurt like flavor- and you can make yogurt out of it if you let it ferment long enough, but generally you leave it out 24 hours, which gives you a smooth, thickish liquid.


What do you do with it?
You can add it to Ice Cream recipes, make Smoothies, make it into cheese, sour cream, butter etc. And it's all super ridiculously healthy!

Where do you get it?
Well.....you gotta have the Kefir Grains. You can't buy these in the stores. You can usually find somewhere online and spend $20, OR you can find someone you know who already has some, and get some oftheirs for FREE. These little grains multiply like crazy - and before you know it, you have more than you can deal with. You can only consume so much kefir, and since they are a Living Food, you have to keep feeding them. So most either eat the grains themselves, or share them. I choose to share them - because I'm a big fan and I love introducing others to it!


How do I make Kefir?
I use a clean mason jar, add my grains in the bottom. Then I add about 2 cups of RAW milk (if I have it, if not I add Borden 2% Hi-Protein. You can use any milk that isn't ULTRA-PASTEURIZED). Then I cover with cloth (or coffee filter) and set aside on the counter. It generally takes about 24 hours for it to ferment. In the winter it takes longer. In the summer - shorter. I like mine semi-tart. If you like it more tart, let it sit longer. Wanna make cheese, let it sit 3 days.Then when it begins to coagulate or smells sour - taste it - if you like, then strain it to save your grains - and drink the freshKefir. Place the grains in a glass again and start again!
Ill do more information and recipes with Kefir soon - I'm trying to get enough together in order to do cheese!:)