Gettin' My Fix

So, caving in to my impatient nature, I decided I couldn't wait on tracking down the Snog cookbook in order to whip myself up some tasty frozen yogurt. Besides, I have Teh Interwebz, don't I? There was clearly no need to wait! So onto the web I hopped, quickly tracking down several frozen yogurt recipes. These two seemed the most legit:

Spoon Me-style recipe
Pinkberry-style recipe

Basically, though (for anyone too lazy to follow the links), the rule of thumb I followed is to have one part sugar for every 4 parts yogurt. So: 4 cups of yogurt? 1 cup of sugar. 2 cups of yogurt? 1/2 cup of sugar. You get the picture. Oh. And I used Greek-style yogurt for this endeavour as well, so that's what I'd suggest. Especially if, like me, you're a big fan of the "natural" flavours...or just prefer to add your own vanilla extract/fruits/syrups to the mix.

Getting started: measure out the desired quantity of yogurt and put it in a sieve lined with a few paper towels (or cheesecloth if you're not poor and lacking in fancy kitchen supplies like I am) nestled in a bowl. This lets some of the watery yogurt juice drain off. And, because pictures are always helpful, here's my yogurt draining and chilling out in the fridge.

So now what? Well, now you mix in the sugar until it's dissolved, then pop it all into a plastic container in your freezer.

But wait...I spy a problem. Good point. Anyone else currently riding on the I-don't-own-an-ice-cream-maker bus? Because I sure am. I sit in the back of that bus like a champ. Luckily, I found this tip from David Lebovitz...it takes longer and does involve pulling my butt of the couch every 45 minutes to stir the yogurt, but in the end it wasn't that big of a sacrifice to have a tasty treat. After all, making apple pie is more involved and I do that all the time.

Alright...so how did it turn out? Not too bad, actually. But I do have a few tweeks I'd make to the whole process:

First: I'd use way less sugar. I put in about 1/4 cup and had about 1 1/2 cups of yogurt and even that was quite sweet for me, considering how tangy I prefer it. I'd also use a 0% fat Greek-style next time (I forget what this stuff was) so that it comes out lighter and not so heavy and creamy. I'm not too sure about straining it, either. I have the feeling that does just make it denser, but I can't be sure. With a bit more trial and error, I think we might be on to something! (Can we tell I'm a kitchen maverick? I wing it when it comes to spices and seasonings. And for tried-and-true recipes, I don't even bother with measuring the ingredients. Psht! Measuring is for wusses. Okay, not really.)

Speaking of cooking, can I say how freaking excited I am for Thanksgiving? I know it's still just barely August and all, but my bebe gets borned about a month before Turkey Day, so it'll be his/her first holiday (being [hopefully] a week old and dressed as a burrito for Halloween doesn't count). Plus, I have the dubious honour of being the only American on the Husband's side of the family. While this could be the source of teasing, this Thanksgiving it's like my own special holiday. My mother-in-law wants to rent a cottage and get the whole family together to celebrate...and the entire dinner is entirely at MY discretion.

Awesome fist pump! I'm totally in charge of a huge family Thanksgiving meal and, I just have to be management. I can plan the menu and then tell everyone else what to do. (The power trip isn't going to my head, honest.) I just direct, hold my baby, and perhaps make a pie crust. If only I could have the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and a James Bond marathon on in the background...