Black Cherry Frozen Yogurt

Summer is on the brink and I realize that I still have some frozen fruit in the freezer.  Time to use them up and make room for the new summer offerings!

When I pulled out some frozen cherries, I thought why not make black cherry frozen yogurt?  Inspired from my friend's Facebook status that she took her kids to Pinkberry (a frozen yogurt shop), I thought that it was time to yank out the ice cream maker and churn something yummy. I have never gone to Pinkberry but I'm sure the family would enjoy some homemade frozen yogurt.

Last summer, I bought an extra bag of cherries on sale and pitted them with a cherry pitter.  A cherry pitter makes life so much easier!  I bought the OXO brand from Winners, several years ago.  I have also seen it at my local kitchen specialty store.  I would consider this a great tool for the foodie kitchen.  The taste of fresh pitted cherries is incredible!  The pits are a distraction... and I can easily pit them and cut them in half for the kiddies to enjoy.  

The cherry goes into the stainless steel cavity and squeeze the black handles like a stapler. 

I placed the pitted cherries flat on a parchment lined tray in a single layer.  When frozen, simply place them in freezer storage bags for future use.  Very simple!

Black Cherry Frozen Yogurt

 

2 cups whole pitted cherries (I used thawed, frozen cherries)

1/2 cup pasteurized liquid egg
2/3 cup sugar (Next time, I will cut down to 1/2 cup sugar for that extra "twang")

1 1/2 cups plain yogurt (I used 2.5% organic plain yogurt)

1/2 cup whipping cream

1/2 cup whole milk

1/8 tsp almond extract

1 tsp vanilla extract   

Toss 2 Tbsp sugar with pitted cherries.  Refrigerate the cherries and sugar for about an hour, to dissolve the sugar in the juice.  After an hour, place the cherry mixture in a food processor or blender.  Pulse or blend the cherries to coarse chunks or to a puree, depending on your preference for big or small cherry chunks in your frozen yogurt.

 

Whisk the eggs in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy, 1-2 minutes. Whisk in the remaining sugar, a little at a time, then continue whisking until completely blended, about 1 minute more.

 

Pour in the yogurt, cream and milk and whisk to blend.  Add the cherry mixture, almond and vanilla extracts and blend again. Transfer the mixture to an ice cream maker and freeze following manufacturer's instructions. 

Makes about 4 cups.   

 

- Adapted from Ben and Jerry's French Vanilla Ice Cream

 

 

Next time, I will decrease the sugar down to 1/2 cup to get more "twang" that frozen yogurt is famous for.  Frozen yogurt is now a hit in our household! 

Enjoy!