pumpkin & spice frozen yogurt

You learn so many things when you experiment. For example, I learnt that yogurt doesn’t have enough fat in it to keep the frozen yogurt creamy once frozen.

Do you know how I know this?

It’s because the first time I came up with this recipe, I diligently went back & forth to the freezer to ensure I was keeping the mix moving & breaking up those ice crystals, and at some stage, it just turned on me & stopped being a nice creamy concoction, but rather had the consistency of very hard slushed ice.

So, I thawed it out & started again thinking I hadn’t quite been diligent enough, this time stirring it every 15 minutes instead of every half hour. Nope, same result.

I sat there frustrated looking at it & realized that if it was getting this hard & falling apart, there wasn’t nearly enough fat in it.

Ahhhhh, so here we go, the age old question… is it better for my frozen yogurt to be creamier, or healthier?

Creamy won. No surprise really since I always choose flavor & texture over calorie count.

…and wouldn’t you know it, adding an egg yolk & some sweetened condensed milk turned my frozen treat from a slushy mess into a creamy, delicious dessert.

So I have to ask myself, what’s really in all those frozen yogurts out there? Maybe it will require some investigation, maybe not, maybe that’s all for another post. We shall see.

I know it’s getting colder outside, but it’s still warm enough for me to get away with this fall concoction. I’m combining the last of the warmth with the flavors of the fall.

Machinery:

Electric Scale - Etekcity - http://amzn.to/2xkKpQk

Hand Mixer - Kenwood - http://amzn.to/2xkjowh

Silicone Spatula - Zyliss - http://amzn.to/2y3Srkw

Organic GF Vanilla - Simply Organic - http://amzn.to/2xXdt2e

Ingredients: – 400g sweetened condensed milk – 1 egg yolk – 400g canned pumpkin puree – 400g full fat greek yogurt – 50g honey – 1 tsp vanilla – 0.5 tsp cinnamon – 0.25 tsp allspice – just a dash of nutmeg

Directions: 1. pour the condensed milk into a pot & bring to a simmer over medium heat making sure to stir it constantly. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolk & then set aside. Once the condensed milk has come to a simmer, remove it from the heat & add a tablespoon of the milk to the egg yolk. Whisk the egg yolk with the milk immediately to temper the egg. Add another two tablespoons of milk to the egg & whisk, then pour the egg mixture into the pot & return it to the heat for another two minutes, again stirring constantly. Allow to cool slightly before proceeding. 2. combine all the ingredients in a tupperware along with the milk & egg mixture, & give it a good mix to ensure it is thoroughly combined. 2. place the mixture in the freezer & go back & give it another good stir every half an hour. You want to do this so that you break up the ice crystals that form, this will ensure you have a nice creamy texture as the end result. It should take approx. 4 hours to completely chill.

#vanilla #yogurt #icecream #pumpkin #cinnamon #allspice