Creamy Yogurt Ice Cream

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This Creamy Yogurt Ice Cream is irresistibly rich and smooth while being a lighter and healthier dessert.

Hello, my friends. Happy Monday! It’s been raining all day, and it’s very gloomy outside. Thus I thought we need a positive recipe today. And what could be better than ice cream? Homemade ice cream? Maybe this Creamy Yogurt Ice Cream?

I made my first ice cream in 2011. In 2012 I had a tremendous kick on producing many homemade flavors. I had been making my favorite kind of dessert without an ice cream maker for almost three years, and I can say most of my attempts were successful. I actually never tried no-churn ice cream recipes, but I never minded some arm workout. The bottom line is if you don’t have an ice cream maker, that shouldn’t stop you from making some fabulous frozen dessert.

In 2013 I got my ice cream maker! Although I had successfully made dozens of ice cream recipes without it, I was excited about making sorbet and lighter ice cream versions (Please note sorbet without ice cream maker is 100% possible too). But my secret dream was to make yogurt ice cream.

I didn’t wait too long. I just dropped yogurt (Certainly I took the light one) and some pureed berries…and I got scrumptious but icy and hard-rock dessert – a gigantic popsicle; perfect for licking.

Yes, I was young and naive.

I tried making yogurt ice cream for a couple of times more; however, the results never were satisfying. And finally, ladies and gentlemen, I am presenting you this Creamy Yogurt Ice Cream. Many few trials and errors and sleepless nights resulted in almost perfect yogurt ice cream.

There are few tricks to make smooth yogurt ice cream.

  • If you think (Like I used to) you can make smooth and homogeneous yogurt ice cream with low-fat yogurt and no cream, I regret to inform you that’s not the case. You will need thick yogurt with some fat – fats are good here;
  • Greek yogurt or something similar would be perfect. Besides, I love that subtle tartness from the Greek yogurt. Alternatively, you can combine the Greek yogurt with another thick yogurt;
  • Moreover, you will even more fats by incorporating heavy cream. I know, yogurt ice cream and heavy cream – that’s upsetting;
  • I also added some cream cheese for a smoother and richer texture, but you can easily skip this ingredient;
  • Thick yogurt? That’s not enough. The water content is our enemy, that’s why straining of the yogurt is an important step;
  • You cannot skip the sugar as it helps to keep yogurt creamy, but you can experiment with natural sweeteners such as maple syrup or honey. I used some confectioners’ sugar;
  • Although corn syrup isn’t the healthiest ingredient, adding some into the yogurt mixture helps to fight those little ice crystals;
  • You can incorporate other flavors such as morsels of fruit, berries, chocolate or even fruit pure. Just remember – the higher water content is, the more little ice crystals ice cream might have;
  • Ice cream will harden in the fridge. I recommend letting this ice cream warm for 15-20 minutes before serving. It makes it much easier to scoop, and it enriches the texture;
  • Don’t have an ice cream maker? Try it anyways. All these recommended steps might be sufficient to create smooth yogurt desserts. You can try another trick – use some sweetened condensed milk instead of sugar. I am just guessing, but this step might be good.

The result? The soft and scoopable ice cream with a velvety texture and only a few ice crystals and a fabulous tart flavor. It might not be the healthiest dessert, but it’s lighter and healthier than regular ice cream. Besides, who doesn’t dream of having ice cream for breakfast? With this Creamy Yogurt Ice Cream, that’s legit!

Do you have any other secrets of making creamy and delicious yogurt ice cream?

6 thoughts on “Creamy Yogurt Ice Cream

  1. Shashi at SavorySpin says:

    Ben, your yogurt ice cream looks so good! So rich and creamy! I haven”t ever tried making yogurt ice cream or even frozen yogurt – but this one you have reminds me of some I had in Italy last year – so scrumptious! Thank you for all the testing and retesting to come up with this beauty!

  2. neil@neilshealthymeals.com says:

    I’ve never made yogurt ice cream Ben. I’m really impressed by your comprehensive guide here. Yoiu’ve gone to a lot of effort to experiment and to get this right. I’m made my own vanilla ice cream before, without an ice cream maker but I’ve always wanted to make my own yogurt ice cream. I don’t have an ice cream maker so one day I will need to try this. Bravely! Thanks for this recipe!! Pinned.

  3. David @ Spiced says:

    I’ve totally been there in the same position as you with making frozen yogurt. I remember Laura and I trying to make a batch back when we lived in Atlanta. It was tasty…but I’m pretty sure I could have hammered a nail with it! I know what you mean about needing a bit of fat to keep the yogurt soft(ish). You already said it, but my secret here is cream cheese. The fat in the cream cheese (plus the texture) leads to a delicious fro-yo. Thanks for sharing, my friend!
    David @ Spiced recently posted…Blueberry Citrus TartMy Profile

  4. Kim | Give it Some Thyme says:

    Ben, your post is right up my alley. I tend to have some sort of dessert with breakfast! It gets my sweet tooth over and done with, plus I have the whole day to burn it off. I run or cross-train daily so this is straight up healthy fuel. Thanks for sharing your trials and tribulations. We’ve all been there! Great recipe!!

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