Making frozen yogurt at home is not, unfortunately, as simple as opening a carton of your favorite yogurt and putting it into your ice cream maker.
Yogurt contains a great deal of water – and simply freezing it as is will yield – in the beginning – a very slushy soft serve. . . and ultimately a frozen chunk of yogurt flavored ice.
There are a few basic tricks that will allow you to make homemade frozen yogurt that is creamy, delicious, and customizable to your liking. . . for pennies on the dollar.
You can use plain, unflavored yogurt (whole milk is best but lowfat will do).
If you choose to use this, you will need to do one of several things:
1) Drain it overnight by placing it in a cheesecloth bag and allowing the excess water to drain out (save the liquid and freeze it for using in smoothies, baking, . . . . it is whey)
2) Add eggs as a binder. (If you are concerned about using raw eggs, find out how to pasteurize raw eggs at home by clicking here.)
You can use Greek Yogurt (no need to drain – and again whole yields a superior product.
If you are lactose intolerant or trying to be dairy free, your yogurt does not need to be from cow’s milk. Coconut milk yogurt yields a fantastic finished product. Goat’s milk does as well.
You will need to add sweetener and flavorings.
As making frozen yogurt is similar to making a sorbet or ice cream, the more sugar you add, the softer the finished product will be. . . (it’s a chemistry thing – the sugar molecules get in the way of the formation of ice crystals and keep the finished product smoother and creamier)
The basic rule of thumb is 1 cup of sugar for every 4 cups of yogurt – but you can experiment.
Fruit can be added, – sweetened or not.
Flavorings – almond, vanilla, lemon – choose your favorite. . .
And a pinch of salt.
And, my favorite add-in . . . softened cream cheese – about 4 ounces per 2 cups of yogurt.
A wonderful tangy frozen yogurt can be made with only 3 ingredients –
1 quart whole milk plain yogurt, 1 cup granulated sugar and a pinch of salt . . . it’s that simple!
Churn in your ice cream freezer as you would ice cream. Pack it into an air tight container, and freeze for several hours (if you have the will-power).
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