Frozen Yogurt and Fruit Smoothies - the Easy Frozen Treat That's Almost Guilt Free

We all love ice cream, but it does come with a heavy load of guilt if you're trying to cut down on fat . The fat-free varieties just don't do it for me - after all, ice cream is supposed to be made out of cream, and it just isn't the same when it's not.

However, frozen yogurt made with whole frozen fruit tastes great - the added tang from the yogurt seems to make up for the fat you're not eating. If you're watching your weight you still have to worry about the amount of sugar you put in it, but this is an easy-to-make treat that puts you in total charge of what goes in it. In fact, it's so easy that I never use a recipe. I know there are many good ones out there, but it doesn't seem worth the bother to look one up. A version of this healthy dessert made it into my popular diet book, The Easy-Does-It Diet.

If you need to be careful about eating any sugar at all, you can substitute an artificial sweetener that your doctor recommends. And if you're lactose-intolerant, you still may be able to digest the yogurt, although this isn't always true.

Frozen yogurt was all the rage about 20 years ago and you could find little shops specializing in this treat almost everywhere you looked. Nowadays you usually find the same ingredients made up a bit juicier and sold as a fruit smoothie. If you prefer a treat you can slurp through a straw, just add more yogurt, or a dash of milk or soy milk.

To make your own personalized frozen yogurt treat, you'll need some frozen berries of any kind. Frozen peaches also make wonderful frozen yogurt and smoothies. Any fruit will do, as long as it's in little pieces, and frozen.

The next ingredient is obvious - yogurt. I always use non-sweetened, unflavored yogurt that contains live cultures. Here in Oregon we can always find the Nancy's brand in the local supermarket. It has a nice tang that is delicious when paired with the fruit and sweetener. You, of course, can use any brand you like.

You will almost always need to sweeten your frozen yogurt or smoothie, but you can choose between white sugar or honey, or an artificial sweetener. If you use honey, you might want to mix it in with the yogurt first before adding the frozen fruit, because it tends to be difficult to mix in when it gets cold. It's worth a little extra work, though, because a mild-tasting honey makes a delicious frozen treat, especially when you use peaches for the fruit.

Making the dessert takes only a few minutes in the blender. Put in the yogurt first, and then the frozen fruit. I use a bit more fruit than yogurt, which makes up a nice stiff "ice cream." You can experiment with the amounts until you find a combination that gives you the texture you want. Pour in the sugar or sweetener, put on the lid, and hit the blend button. You'll have to stop several times when a hollow bubble builds up around the blades - you'll know when to stir by the change in the sound. The frozen fruit freezes the yogurt, so in just a few minutes you'll be ready to scoop it out into your bowl. It takes such a short time to make, and it's so easy, that everyone in the family can make their own, and everyone can use their own favorite frozen fruit.

If you use a heavy-duty blender, like a VitaMix, be sure that you don't over-blend the mixture because the fast-turning blades will begin to melt your concoction, and you'll end up with a smoothie instead of frozen yogurt. It will taste good, though.