food hits and misses

Vanilla yoghurt and strawberry yoghurt were just divine, but not enough to get the breadwinner to try yoghurt ahead of ice cream. So I decided to experiment with chocolate.



Now clearly this is neither low fat nor low carb, so pretty much off the menu for anyone with an eye towards losing weight by cutting macronutrients. If, on the other hand, you want a slightly less energy dense frozen treat than regular home made ice cream, then this could fit the bill.

It's got a great chocolatey flavour, but retains the tang of the yoghurt. If that's not your thing, then up the sugar or add some other sweetener to taste.

Next on my agenda is this course so I can make coconut frozen yoghurt for Smidge.

Chocolate frozen yoghurt

375g dark chocolate
1kg Greek yoghurt
3/4 cup sugar
1 tspn vanilla bean paste

Method

Place everything in a large saucepan. Cook, stirring constantly, over low heat until the chocolate has melted and combined with the yoghurt. Refrigerate over night, then process according to your ice cream maker instructions.

Makes around 1.5 litres.

Ever since the making spectacularly successful vanilla frozen yoghurt, I've been thinking of all the different flavours worth giving a shot. Afterall, the vanilla is fabulous, but who wants to restrict themself to a single flavour for eternity?



Strawberry is slightly more time consuming than vanilla, but worth the effort. This recipe gives you the tartness you want from a frozen yoghurt, without making the strawberries taste sour. It's a beautiful colour, too. Look for jam quality berries to get the best flavour.

Strawberry frozen yoghurt

250g strawberries
1/2 cup sugar
750g Greek yoghurt

Method

Cut the berries into small pieces, quarters or halves depending on the original size. Add to a saucepan with the sugar. Cook, stirring, over low heat until the berries have softened and are coated in a thick syrup, around 5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool. Add to yoghurt, stirring well to get an even colour and flavour. Chill for at least an hour, before processing according to your ice cream maker instructions.

It's been a long time since it was last warm enough for ice cream and I had enough eggs in the house to make it. I had originally planned to make choc mint or pistachio; but tonight I felt like something a little different. And that's how I ended up with lemon curd.

I've seen a coconut variation. If that's more your cup of tea, replace the evaporated milk with coconut milk. Hmm... tea ice cream could be my next experiment...

Lemon butter ice cream

For the lemon curd

100g butter, chopped
4 eggs, lightly beaten
125ml lemon juice
250g caster sugar

For the custard

300ml cream
375ml evaporated milk
4 eggs
125g caster sugar

Method

Combine the butter, eggs, lemon juice and sugar in a saucepan. Stir over low heat until the mixture has thickened. This should take around 5 minutes. Set aside to cool.

Mix the cream and milk together and heat until scalding point - just before a simmer. Meanwhile beat the eggs with the sugar until light and fluffy. Add half the hot milk to the egg mixture, beat well, then return to the remaining milk. Place over low heat and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture coats the back of a metal spoon. Remove from heat immediately. If the custard has begun curdling, beat it until smooth again. Gradually add the custard mix to the lemon curd and stir until well incorporated.

Chill for at least two hours, then process according to your ice cream maker directions. If you don't have an ice cream maker, freeze the mixture until semi solid, then blend or beat until smooth. Repeat the freezing and beating process until the mixture is the desired consistency.

This recipe is a great base. I'll be experimenting with flavours over the next couple of days.

Vanilla frozen yoghurt

Makes around 1 litre
3 cups Greek yoghurt
2/3 cup caster sugar
1 tspn vanilla bean paste

Method

Combine all ingredients and stir until the sugar has completely dissolved. Chill for an hour, then process with ice cream maker. Freeze until mix reaches the desired consistency.

Yes, it really is that easy!

I was lucky enough to open the Kitchenaid Ice Cream attachment on Christmas morning. Life has been a bit of a rush over the last few days, but I've finally managed to get more than five minutes to start making some ice cream. My first experiment is the other pink ice cream - Turkish Delight. In reality, it's just ice cream flavoured with rose water and coloured with a bit of pink dye, but Turkish Delight sounds a little bit nicer.

Turkish Delight Ice Cream

400ml cream
375ml evaporated milk
300ml milk
3/4 cup sugar
6 eggs
2 tbspn rosewater cordial
1 tbspn rosewater essence
1 tspn vanilla essence

Method

Combine the cream and milks in a large saucepan. Slowly bring to scalding point. Meanwhile, beat the eggs and sugar together until sugar has dissolved. Add half the hot milk to the egg mixture and beat to combine. Return combined egg and milk to the saucepan, stir and return to heat. Add rosewater cordial, essence and vanilla. Cook, stirring constantly, over low heat for ten to fifteen minutes until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. If the mixture boils, it will start to curdle or separate. If this happens, remove it from heat immediately and beat until the mixture combines again. Set the custard mixture aside to cool, covering with cling wrap to prevent a skin forming. If possible, chill for an hour or two, then churn according to the ice cream maker's instructions. If you don't have an ice cream maker, place the mixture in the freezer for an hour, or until the edges start to freeze. Beat, then return to the freezer. Repeat until the ice cream has a soft serve ice cream, then return to the freezer to ripen for an hour or two. If the mixture becomes too hard, place in refrigerator for half an hour until soft enough to serve.