Desserts - Blackberry Vanilla Frozen Yogurt

A cheap price on blackberries at Trader Joes and a new ice cream machine bought from our registry...plus some really good quality vanilla from Mexico...equals experimentation! My usual ice cream treat (individually portioned rainbow sherbet cups) runs me 140 cals for half a cup. This recipe yields 140 calories for a quarter of the recipe (about a cup) - in addition, it has some fiber and lots of calcium, with less sugar than my normal sweet treat.

12 oz fresh blackberries (2 small containers, or one of the packages from TJs)
1/2 cup skim milk
2 cups plain nonfat yogurt
2 tsp good quality vanilla extract
1/8 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup Splenda, or more depending on the sweetness of the fruit.

In a food processor, puree the blackberries. Push the puree into a medium bowl through a sieve to remove the seeds. In a separate container, combine the vanilla and skim milk, and dissolve the sugar and Splenda into it. Add to the blackberry puree. Slowly fold in the nonfat yogurt. Chill in the fridge until very cold, add to your ice cream maker and freeze according to the directions.

Next time I plan to add in some chopped dark chocolate...mmm...

Amount Per 1 cup
Calories 136
Calories from Fat 3.6
Total Fat 0.4g 1%
Saturated Fat 0g 0%
Polyunsaturated Fat 0g
Monounsaturated Fat 0g
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 100mg 4%
Potassium 450mg 13%
Total Carbohydrate 24g 8%
Dietary Fiber 3g 12%
Protein 8g 16%
Alcohol 1g

Vitamin A 4 % Vitamin C 21 %
Calcium 28 % Iron 3 % Vitamin D 6 % Vitamin E 5 %
Thiamin 7 % Riboflavin 30 %
Niacin 3 % Folate 8 %
Vitamin B-6 8 % Vitamin B-12 33 %
Phosphorus 30 % Magnesium 12 %
Zinc 11 % Copper 0 %

OK, adding on some additional info and a variation.

Apparently, using all nonfat dairy products yields ice cream that turns hard as a rock when you freeze it. From what I read, adding higher fat dairy can help with consistency. So when I made my fro-yo this time, I used whole milk yogurt and fat free half and half, rather than the nonfat yogurt and skim milk. The consistency on this one was great, but the fat was a little high. Next I'll use a lower-fat yogurt, or a combo of full-fat and lower fat, to get the best consistency for the least fat/calories. This one still isn't too bad on the calorie scale, with 1/4 of the recipe coming in just under 160.

In the meantime, though, I made a new variation....peach strawberry frozen yogurt! With all of the berries and other fruits coming into season, I can't wait to perfect my recipe! I love love love ice cream, especially fruity kinds, and am super excited to be able to make my own low-preservative, all natural varieties from real fruit, real yogurt, and other things I can pronounce....with nutritionals that I can control, in flavors that I like.

Peach Strawberry Frozen Yogurt
1.5 cups strawberries
4 small peaches, peeled, pitted, and diced
1.5 tsp good quality vanilla extract
1 cup whole milk yogurt
1/2 cup fat free half and half
1/8 cup white sugar
1/4 cup Splenda (or equivalent)

Thoroughly puree the peaches and 1 cup of the strawberries in a food processor. Press the mixture through a sieve to remove any lumps, and pour the puree into a medium bowl. In a separate bowl, combine the fat free half and half, sugar, splenda, and vanilla and stir until sugar is dissolved. Add the yogurt and stir until all lumps have been removed. Mix the yogurt/half and half mixture with the fruit puree and stir to combine.

Finely chop the remaining half cup of strawberries and fold into the mixture. Chill in refrigerator at least 2 hours or until very cold, then freeze in an ice cream machine according to manufacturer directions.

Amount Per Quarter Recipe (about 1 cup)
Calories 158
Calories from Fat 36

% Daily Value *
Total Fat 4g 6%
Saturated Fat 2g 10%
Polyunsaturated Fat 0g
Monounsaturated Fat 1g
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 77mg 3%
Potassium 400mg 11%
Total Carbohydrate 26g 9%
Dietary Fiber 3g 12%
Protein 7g 14%
Alcohol 0g

Vitamin A 14 % Vitamin C 49 %
Calcium 18 % Iron 2 %
Vitamin D 0 % Vitamin E 9 %
Thiamin 5 % Riboflavin 20 %
Niacin 7 % Folate 5 %
Vitamin B-6 6 % Vitamin B-12 17 %
Phosphorus 18 % Magnesium 7 %
Zinc 7 % Copper 0 %