incubations gone horribly wrong

Well, one time I was hiking on the Appalachian Train and I hadn't showered in four days. All the sweat and dirt had caked on me like plaster, and when I stopped at a trail station with a shower and took my shorts off . . . oh wait. You're talking about the kindof yogurt you eat . . .

TRAIL! Damn you tr33. Way to blow it, jackass!

My mom used to every night when I was growing up. Which leads me to my next, ignorant question -- what's a yogurt maker? The way she used to do it was to simply boil some milk, let it cool to room temperature, mix in some starter culture (a tablespoon or less of the previous night's yogurt), and then either leave it out on the counter, or wrap it in a shawl and put it in the oven (turned off), depending on how cold it was outside. Made perfect (plain) yogurt every time.

Now I'm thinking I should start making my own paneer, since finding it even here in New York can be such a pain in the ass.

My father made yogurt for many years, and it was quite yummy. I've had some training in microbiology and food science. My recommendation is to follow all the cleaning procedures as in the instruction manual, and don't take shortcuts. I can't stress that enough. Hitting your temperatures for the given time is essential so you don't bring over any stray bacteria from the milk you're using or elsewhere. Once you realize that bacteria are everywhere floating around, you'll be fine. Clean your countertops before you work, a light bleach solution works for this and is cheap.

When I'm brewing beer I'm very careful about cleanliness. I know when I brew with my brother he thinks I'm crazy, but I've also never had a batch spoiled. Really, it's not that much more work for a little insurance.