Dessert,  Recipes

My very first frozen yoghurt

Breakfast is my favourite meal and dessert is by far my favourite course. So much so, that I will first look at the dessert menu of a restaurant before even considering what to drink! And I judge both recipe books and restaurants based on the range and quality of their desserts.

And of all the desserts out there, I have a very special place in my heart (and stomach) for ice-cream. I adore ice-cream in all its varieties, from the classics to the new and weird (you have to try marsala ice-cream!). So I thought it best to launch my forays into recipe writing with not any dessert recipe, but an ice-cream recipe. Or a frozen yoghurt recipe actually.

I bought a little ice-cream machine a while ago. Nothing fancy. And since then I’ve been playing around with some recipes of my own. I (like my parents and sister) have a severe case of self, or the longer version of the affliction called I-will-do-it-myself with its variation of make-it-myself. Yes, I can find marvelous recipes in my mom’s mini-library of cookbooks and even more on the web, but where’s the fun in that? I’ve made some really nice ice-creams and a couple that was beyond terrible.

The other night I felt like chai frozen yoghurt. Interesting craving. I’ve never had chai flavoured frozen yoghurt (or ice-cream for that matter). But I had a bee in my bonnet and started scratching around in my cupboard for some chai. And then I realised I had the last the night before – typical. In preparation, I popped the ice cream machine’s freezer tank in the freezer (I have typed that word waaaay too many times in this post). And went to the shop first thing in the morning for some more chai and yoghurt. I decided on the Five Roses Chai Flavour Tea Latte because I could buy a few sachets instead of a box, and because its flavour is distinct but not too over powering.

I also always have plain yoghurt in my fridge. It’s a staple like cheese and eggs to me, and incredibly versatile. I prefer full cream and sugar-free. This recipe uses full cream versions of all the ingredients, but I’m sure you can substitute with low or no fat versions, but keep in mind the frozen yoghurt will not be as creamy.

Oh! Here is a very important note. The mixture is much thicker than a normal ice-cream mixture. And then opening in the cover of the machine looked a little small to my liking. And then I stopped thinking and almost made a huge mess. I took the paddle out, added the mix to the tank, instead of making sure the motor was on before adding the mixture (lekker rookie mistake). But when I put the paddle in again, the mix already started freezing on the side, and the little motor wasn’t strong enough to churn the mix. Fucking perfect. Out with the paddle, try to remove the mixture from the tank. Decide against that and start churning by hand. Realise why it’s a stupid thought, but keep on going until the tank warms up a bit and I could reduce the frozen layer on the side and insert the paddle again. By this time my right arm was almost dead, and my left side and hand almost frozen solid. I ended up only churning (using the motor) for another 15min or so before I reached a good soft-serve consistency.

This recipe should yield around 700ml of frozen yoghurt, but I spilled so much during my antics, I ended up cleaning and licking quite a bit from the spoons, bowls, and counter. But damn, this is a good one and worth the hard work!

Chai Frozen Yoghurt

The healthy-ish version of ice-cream
Prep Time 1 day 3 hours
Cook Time 0 minutes
Churning Time 20 minutes
Total Time 1 day 3 hours 20 minutes
Course Dessert
Servings 700 ml

Equipment

  • Ice Cream Maker

Ingredients
  

  • 3 sachet Five Roses Chai Flavour Tea Latte
  • 200 ml Full cream milk
  • 500 mi Full cream plain yoghurt Sugar Free
  • 1 tbsp Raw honey
  • chopped almonds For serving

Instructions
 

  • Place the freezer tank in the freezer for at least 8hrs. Although, I prefer to put mine in for around 24hrs. You shouldn't be able to hear fluid when you shake the tank.
  • Mix the chai latte and milk together. Make sure there are no clumps.
  • Add the yoghurt one cup at a time and fold through.
  • Add the honey, fold through and taste for sweetness. The chai latte already has some sweetener in, you can leave the honey, but I really like the added flavour it adds. If you prefer your frozen yoghurt sweeter, add more honey. Also keep in mind that flavour doesn't carry well in cold food, the flavour should be enhanced at this stage.
  • Place some cling wrap directly onto the mixture to prevent a 'skin' from forming in the fridge.
  • Place in the fridge for around 3 hours or until very chilled.
  • Remove the freezer tank from the freezer and assemble your ice cream maker.
  • Switch on the machine and pour the mixture into the machine. Please read the notes below about your ice cream machine.
  • Churn for 20-30min, or until the mixture has reached a soft-serve consistency.
  • Use a scraper to eat the left-over out of the bowl (I promise you won't be able to resist).
  • Dish into a freezer container and freeze.
  • Remove from freezer to soften before serving with chopped almonds

Notes

This mixture is quite thick compared to other ice-cream mixtures. It is important though to make sure that the machine is moving when you add the mix. The mixture will start freezing the moment you add it to the freezer tank. If you insert the paddle after the mixture instead of before, the layer of the frozen mixture will get too thick and you run the risk of burning out the motor on your machine.
I only use Bonnie Bio’s Biodegradable Cling Wrap. 
Keyword Chai, Dessert, Frozen Yoghurt

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