Homemade non-dairy yogurt is a great way to offer probiotics for babies. This is a simple, nutritious plant-based yogurt recipe that uses almonds and cashews.
Many commercial yogurts, including plant-based ones, are high in added sugar. Luckily, making your own yogurt at home is easy!
One of the main reasons we enjoy yogurt is because it’s a great source of probiotics. These are good bacteria that feed the gut microbiome and can help promote regularity and overall health.
This recipe uses cashews and almonds, which are rich in plant-based protein, healthy unsaturated fats, fiber, and micronutrients like vitamin E, manganese, and iron.
And this yogurt recipe is a great way to offer nuts to younger children without the risk of choking that can come with raw nuts.
How to make homemade yogurt
This vegan yogurt recipe is super easy and uses just a few ingredients.
Raw nuts do best softened before pureeing them, for the smoothest texture.
The cashews and almonds can be soaked overnight in a bowl of water in the fridge. Alternatively, place them in a saucepan and cover with boiling water 30 minutes before using.
When the nuts are softened, drain and rinse them. Add to your high speed blender or food processor along with 2 cups of water and 1 pitted date for natural sweetener.
Once smooth, strain using a nut milk bag.
Place the strained milk along with 1 tablespoon of cornstarch in a medium saucepan. Whisk them together well, and then heat over medium heat for 5-7 minutes.
Continue to whisk often, until your yogurt has thickened, to help with even consistency.
Remove your yogurt from heat and let it cool completely in the saucepan.
Once cooled, whisk again. A film will develop over the top of it as it cools. You can reduce this by placing a piece of plastic wrap over the top of the saucepan while it cools, or just whisk it in once cooled.
Then, you’ll mix in just 2 teaspoons of store-bought non-dairy yogurt that contains live active cultures (probiotics) to help with your homemade culture. Cover the yogurt again.
Then, follow one of these methods to culture your yogurt:
- In the oven: Preheat to 200 F for 15 minutes, and then turn it off and keep the light on. Place your yogurt mixture in the oven for 8-9 hours (remove any plastic wrap you may have used).
- In the Instant Pot: Place the steam rack in your IP and your covered bowl of yogurt on top. Process for 8 hours.
If any film forms on top, just whisk once done to remove any lumps.
Enjoy your homemade yogurt as is, or stir in chopped fruit, vanilla, or other flavoring agents you like.
Find the full printable recipe below:
Equipment
- Oven or Instant Pot
- Nut milk bag
- Whisk
- Saucepan
- high speed blender or food processor
Ingredients
- 1 cup cashews
- 1/2 cup almonds
- 2 teaspoon non-dairy yogurt
- 1 date, pitted
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch or arrowroot powder
Instructions
- Soak the nuts overnight OR by covering with boiling water and letting sit for 30 minutes until softened.
- Drain and rinse the nuts, then puree with 2 cups of water and date for optional sweetness. Strain using a nut milk bag. If you don't have a nut milk bag, you can use a fine mesh strainer, though note that the nut milk bag will produce a much smoother liquid.
- Place the strained milk and cornstarch or arrowroot powder in a medium saucepan and whisk very well, then heat over medium heat for 5-7 minutes, whisking often, until yogurt has thickened.
- Remove from heat and let cool completely, then whisk again (a film will form on top as the yogurt cools. You can reduce this by placing a piece of plastic wrap over the top to reduce any film, or just whisk it in once cooled.
- Add in prepared non-dairy yogurt to help culture. Then cover and cook using either the oven or Instant Pot.
- For the oven: Preheat oven at 200F for 15 minutes, then turn off the oven and keep the light on. Place the yogurt mixture for 8-9 hours to culture.
- For the Instant Pot: Place steam rack in Instant pot and covered bowl of yogurt on top. Process for 8 hours.
- Whisk to remove any lumps.
- Enjoy as is, or stir in chopped fruit, vanilla, etc.
FAQs about this recipe
Why do you need non-dairy yogurt?
The non-dairy yogurt adds in cultures to create yogurt. You can then reserve 2 teaspoons of this yogurt to make your next batch with.
Alternatively, you can use a probiotic capsule. Just open, pour it in, and stir!
Can you make flavors with this?
Yes, stir in chopped or pureed fruit after making.
Can you use arrowroot starch?
Yes, arrowroot or cornstarch work best to thicken this yogurt. Agar agar can also be used, with varying results. We tried this a few times and couldn’t get it to set as easily as corn or arrowroot starch.
Homemade non-dairy yogurt is a great way to offer probiotics for babies. We hope you’ll enjoy this simple, nutritious plant-based yogurt recipe and experiment with it to make it your own!
Chime In: Have you ever made yogurt at home? What do you like to put in it?
If you found this post helpful, we think you should read some of these too:
What instant pot settings should we use? The yogurt button?
Yes, yogurt setting. It won’t work if your IP doesn’t have the yogurt button but you can use the oven method!
Hello. How much water do I need to use for blending? And there is arrowroot powder at the ingredients list but you used cornstarch at the instructions? Are they interchangable? Thanks!
I just updated the recipe! Sorry about that.
How long will this keep in the fridge?
About 5 days
Thank you! Finally got around to making this and it’s perfect for my kids!
So glad to hear!
I have an instapot without the yogurt button. What does “process for 8 hours” mean in this case?
Hi Stormi, if your instant pot doesn’t have a yogurt setting then you’ll need to do the oven method instead. The regular/low pressure hold of the IP without the yogurt setting are too high.
Yum! I’d love to make this with my sous vide (I could just pour the culturing yogurt in a large mason jar and then place it in a deep-sided pot with water and the sous vide stick). The question is… what is the temperature range you were going for? Presumably the timing would still be 8ish hours. The sous vide can hold it at whatever exact temp I tell it…. Do you know what temp sweet spot you were looking for with the oven or instapot method? Thank you!!
Oh! Love the idea of doing this with a sous vide– I don’t have one, but it would work perfectly. The ideal temp is ~110F.
Wonderful. Thank you!
It looks delicious! What kind of bowl do you use in the Instant Pot? I’m wondering what is safe. Thanks! 🙂
Hi Aryane, I used a glass bowl inside.
Thanks for the great recipe. I have three questions:
1. Is really necessary to strain through nut milk bag? ( too lazy and not having the bag)
2. Can I use flour instead of corn starch to thicken?
3. I have probiotic in the form of a tablet. Can I just dissolve it in some boiled and cooked water, and mix it with the cashew mixture? Or may be just crush it and add it.
Hi Ramya, thanks for the email. You don’t have to strain, but it may be a little grainy in texture. The nut milk bag helps with texture– do you have a fine mesh strainer? That will also work. It’s essentially homemade almond/cashew milk but you could also use a store bought one– I haven’t tried that, but another reader mentioned that she did.
You can try flour, but you may need more to thicken it than the amount called for here.
I don’t think a tablet will work– but you can try! The idea of adding in non-dairy yogurt to start is that you save a little, then keep repeating the recipe everytime you make it. LMK if the tablet works!
Hello! I want to try this recipe but I don’t have a instant pot, I do however have a yogurt machine. Can I use that ?
Thank you 😊
I think that should work!
I am going to try making it this week, but I am in a foreign country that does not have dairy free yogurts, so I will be substituting with a probiotic tablet and opening/sprinkling it in instead. I hope it works.
That should work– let me know how it works for you!
So, if I already have homemade almond/cashew milk (blended & strained) on hand, about how many ounces would I use to make this yogurt? 2 to 2.5 cups (16 to 20 ounces)? Does that sound right?
I’ve never used the yogurt feature on my InstantPot and eager to give it a try. Thanks in advance for your input! =)
Hi Kristen– yes, I’d think about 2 cups would be right. Keep me posted on how you like it! It’s a labor of love once you do it the first time or so to get the hang of it, but then it becomes fairly easy to make just a lot of hands off time.
Have you tested it with other nuts? I have a lot of hazelnuts, so will definitely try a cashew/hazelnut blend.
That should work– but we haven’t tried it yet to know 100%
Should the bowl also be covered for the oven method? Silly question.
I usually cover with a silpat but you could also cover with a dishtowel
Is it supposed to thicken up like traditional yogurt? Mine didn’t at all! Stayed the same consistency as when I put it into the oven…
Hi Gabriela. Yes, it should have thickened up. Was your oven warm enough to thicken with the cultures?
Do you have a probiotic you recommend? If not, does it have to be toddler specific? My son is 17 months old. At the store, I saw a toddler probiotic, kids probiotic, and one intended for adults (no age label) but I wasn’t sure. Thanks so much!!
Hi Hilary– for this recipe it does NOT have to be toddler specific. I usually use the one from Renew Life, but any will work!