Set 2% Yogurt with Strawberry-Peach Mint Compote

Steps

1. Wash a heavy pot, a whisk, a thermometer and four 8-oz jars in hot soapy water, rinse well, then pour boiling water over the jars, whisk and thermometer to sanitize them and let them air-dry on a clean rack.
2. Heat: pour the commercially pasteurized 2% milk into the pot and heat over medium, stirring often, until it reaches 180°F (82°C). Hold it at 180–185°F (82–85°C) for 15 minutes, stirring gently, for a firmer set.
3. Cool: take the pot off the heat and cool the milk to 108–112°F (42–44°C), about 30 minutes, or set the pot in a sink of cold water to speed it up, checking with the thermometer.
4. Add starter: in a small bowl, whisk the plain yogurt with live active cultures with about half a cup of the warm milk until smooth, then stir this starter mixture back into the pot.
5. Incubate: pour the cultured milk into the jars, cap them, and keep them undisturbed at 108–112°F (42–44°C) in a yogurt maker, an oven with only the light on, or a cooler with warm water, for 6–8 hours, until set and it pulls cleanly from the jar side when tilted.
6. Refrigerate: as soon as the yogurt is set, move the jars immediately to the fridge at 40°F (4°C) or below and chill at least 3 hours. This makes about 4 cups (about 1 kg) of set yogurt with no draining.
7. While the yogurt chills, rinse and dry the pot, then toast the oats and sesame seeds in it over medium heat for 4–5 minutes, stirring, until golden; tip them onto a plate to cool.
8. In the same pot, cook the strawberries, peach and honey over medium heat for 8–10 minutes, until the fruit softens and the juices turn syrupy. Stir in the lime juice, cool, then refrigerate the compote.
9. To serve, spoon the cold compote over each jar of yogurt, then scatter on the mint and the toasted oats and sesame seeds.