Strawberry yogurt ice
Taken from "VEG: simple, stylish and seasonal vegetarian cooking" by Catherine Mason (Pauntley Press, 2001, ISBN: 0-9534879-2-8, price £12.99)
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This yogurt ice tastes disproportionately delicious in relation to the minimal effort it takes to make. Don't be tempted to substitute a low fat yogurt though, as the result is likely to be disappointing. It is best consumed within a day or two of making, while the flavour is at its most intense. If you make it with frozen berries it's virtually instant.
- 500 g (1 lb 2 oz) strawberries, fresh or frozen
- 125 g (4½ oz) caster sugar
- juice of half a lemon
- 200 g (7 oz) full fat Greek cow's yogurt
For fresh strawberries, rinse them in water, pat them dry with kitchen towels and remove the stalks. If you are using frozen strawberries allow them to partially defrost at room temperature for about 1 hour.
Put the strawberries, sugar and lemon juice into a food processor or blender and process until smooth. Add the yogurt and process again, just long enough to blend.
Either churn in an ice cream machine following the manufacturer's instructions or freeze by hand, as described here.
If your freezer has a fast-freeze facility it's a good idea to use it. It usually has to be turned on a few hours in advance, to allow the temperature to fall. The colder temperature means the ice crystals will be smaller so the texture of the ice will be smoother, and the whole process is speeded up.
Pour the mixture into a wide, shallow dish, cover with foil or a lid and put it in the coldest part of the freezer. After 1 to 2 hours, the mixture will have started to freeze around the edge. The speed at which this happens depends on the efficiency of your freezer, the size of dish used, etc., so the timings given are approximate. Check after an hour, as you need to catch the mixture at the right moment when some ice has formed but before it is entirely solid.
Remove the dish from the freezer and beat the contents vigorously to break up the ice crystals. Use a food mixer or processor if you have one, otherwise an egg-beater or a fork. Return the dish to the freezer and repeat the beating twice more at 30 to 60 minute intervals.
To serve the ice immediately, return it to the freezer for about half an hour after its final beating to firm up. If the yogurt ice has been frozen overnight, allow it to soften in the refrigerator for 20-30 minutes before serving.
SERVES 4-6
Recipe copyright © 2001 Catherine Mason | other sample recipes