Here's a cold, healthy-ish treat to beat the sweltering summer heat—blueberry froyo!
Packed with antioxidants plus a hint of cooling mint, Frozen Blueberry Greek Yogurt is fast to churn up and makes a stunning red, white, and blue-themed dessert for a Fourth of July barbecue.
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The recipe for this cold, creamy snack is so quick and easy, you can enjoy it all summer long. Indulge—one spoonful at a time—by the pool, in the backyard when seeking refreshment on a hot, sunny day. It only takes five ingredients!
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Ingredients
- Blueberries
- Plain Greek Yogurt
- Maple Syrup
- Lemon Juice
- Mint
🫐Blueberries: Either fresh or frozen is fine, but if you choose frozen (and why not, frozen is easy to keep on hand), thaw the berries slightly in the microwave. This makes blending go easier.
If you have access to small, wild blueberries, count yourself lucky! These are the sweetest little gems!
Plain Greek Yogurt: For the creamiest, most indulgent taste, select whole milk. Stay away from non-fat varieties unless you are catering to a dietary restriction.
🍁Maple Syrup: This sweetener adds a few vitamins and minerals (including calcium) as well as excellent flavor. It also mixes smoothly with the fruit puree base of the froyo since it is a liquid.
🍋Lemon Juice: A bit of acid cuts the sweetness and helps the flavor of the fruit shine.
🌿Mint: The recipe was tested with the fresh herb, which is often growing like a weed in backyard gardens during the summer. (Here's your chance to harvest a few stalks!) You can also use dried. The amount of dried is in the recipe card below.
😎Minty note: Adults usually appreciate this cool flavor more than children, so if you are making cones for kids, feel free to omit the herb.
How to Make
Wash your hands, lathering with soap and rinsing with running water for 20 seconds, before starting.
Choose your favorite piece of equipment: food processor, immersion blender, or regular blender.
Place all the ingredients, except for the mint, into the bowl of a food processor; a regular blender container; or a tall, high-sided container for the immersion blender.
(I prefer the immersion blender, and use it whenever possible.)
Puree the blueberry mixture until smooth. (If necessary, partially thaw the blueberries in the microwave first so this happens faster with fewer icy chunks to break apart.)
Stir the fresh mint into the blueberry puree, distributing the herb evenly.
Start your ice cream maker (affiliate link). As it turns, pour the blueberry-mint puree into the machine through the opening at the top.
Let it churn for 10 to 15 minutes, until the froyo is frozen and sits in mounds on a spoon. At this point, it will be frozen-looking in the machine and won't slide around the beater.
Serve immediately: It will be an appealing, soft-serve texture, or pack it into a freezer container for storage.
If the froyo is frozen for a long time before you eat it, let the freezer container sit at room temperature for at least an hour before scooping, since it becomes hard and bricklike during frozen storage.
Making Yogurt Pops
You can also pour the puree into popsicle molds (affiliate link) for fun frozen treats! This is the way to go if you don't have a machine! 😀
Another alternative to an ice cream machine is a bowl attachment (affiliate link) for your stand mixer can be frozen plus a special paddle that churns the frozen dessert.
Storage and Tips for Dishing Delicious Froyo
I highly recommend an insulated container for the freezer (affiliate link), especially if you're a fan of frozen desserts. I like this one from Tovolo that holds 1.5 quarts. It can go in the dishwasher.
You might try this excellent aluminum tool for scooping (affiliate link). It will not freeze and can go in the dishwasher.
🧊The blueberry froyo should last at least two weeks in the freezer.
You can scoop into onto cones or into dishes. In a dish, a tasty garnish such as whipped cream and/or chopped nuts is a welcome add-on.
Other good toppings are mini chocolate chips, toasted coconut shreds, and crumbled cookies like vanilla wafers, or graham crackers. A small butter cookie is perfect when the froyo is dessert at a sit-down sort of dinner party.
Party Tip: Dinner guests happily eat a dessert that tastes indulgent but has a healthy-ish vibe!
⚕️How Healthy Is It?
There is no denying this dessert has a few delicious grams of sugar.
With just 18 grams of carbs, this blueberry froyo is diabetes-friendly. A single portion, which is two-thirds of a cup, counts as one and a quarter servings of carbohydrate for a diabetes diet.
However, many of the sugars in the dessert are not added. Each serving contains about 8 grams of added sugar—the amount you often find in breakfast cereals! A wee bit of added sugar is a minor downside to this dessert.
The same size portion of sorbet might contain four times as much added sugar!
➕Blueberry antioxidants: Anthocyanin power
These phenolic compounds, responsible for the blue pigment in the berries, may lower the risk for many chronic diseases, such as certain cancers, heart disease, dementia, and more. They are good at reducing inflammation in our bodies.
These phenolic compounds, responsible for the blue pigment in the berries, may lower the risk for many chronic diseases, such as certain cancers, heart disease, dementia, and more. They are good at reducing inflammation in our bodies.
🦴Healthy Bones
The blueberries, Greek yogurt, and maple syrup all support skeletal health. Studies have shown that regular intake of berry anthocyanins may increase bone mineral density.
Greek yogurt, of course, contains calcium and protein. Both nutrients fortify your skeleton.
Maple syrup is a shockingly good source of calcium and other nutrients. Each Tablespoon contains nearly 20 mg of calcium.
Other Nutrition
This low-fat frozen treat also has 4 grams of protein, a decent amount of potassium, and some fiber and vitamin C.
Any food that has 3 grams of fat or less per 100 calories is low-fat. Less than 30% of its calories come from fat.
FAQ
No. You could pour the blueberry-Greek yogurt-maple syrup puree into loaf pans and freeze for two to four hours. Stir every 30 minutes to prevent ice crystals from forming.
The ice cream maker method yields a creamier consistency.
Yes, in fact, it's a good idea to taste your blueberries. Their sweetness (or sourness) will help in deciding how much sweetener to add.
My favorite replacement for the maple syrup is agave nectar. Honey and date syrup are other choices.
Because the blueberry-yogurt base for the froyo is not cooked, avoid using sugar in crystal form.
Unlike commercial brands, it does not contain stabilizers. You could add a little corn syrup or vodka to help it stay softer, but neither of those ingredients is healthy.
Other wonderful summertime recipes...
🍈Here's another idea for a light summer dessert: Honeydew Salad with Mint and Lime. Similar to the froyo, it contains the refreshing, cooling flavor of mint.
🥒Cucumbers probably rank number one for their hydrating and restorative qualities. This French-style Cucumber Salad comes together in 10 minutes. Jazz it up with strawberries or mangoes. Recipe variations are included in the post! 🍓
Pasta Salad with Greek Yogurt Dressing is a hearty warm weather favorite with a dressing that harnesses the nutritional power and creamy goodness of Greek yogurt.
Dogs love frozen treats, too, and these two-ingredient, pumpkin-yogurt treats come together before you can say, "Who's a good boy!"
Blueberry Frozen Yogurt with Mint
Equipment
- 1 Immersion blender food processor or blender
- Spatulas
- Measuring cups
- Ice cream maker. electric
Ingredients
- 3 cups blueberries, can use frozen, but partially thaw first
- 1½ cups plain Greek yogurt, whole milk preferred
- 5 Tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- pinch fine salt, optional
- 2 Tablespoons chopped mint, or 2 teaspoons dried mint
Instructions
- Wash hands thoroughly, lathering with soap and rinsing with running water before starting to assemble the froyo.
- Place all ingredients through salt (if using) in a high-sided container suitable for use of the immersion blender or into the bowl of a food processor.Blend for up to two minutes to puree, stopping once or twice to push ingredients on the top down and scrape any yogurt off the sides of the container.Or, use the food processor or a blender.
- Stir the chopped mint into the blueberry-yogurt puree.
- Start your ice cream machine. Pour the fruit puree into the machine. Once the machine has done its magic and turned the puree into a frozen dessert, serve the yogurt as soon as possible.Or, place in a storage container in the freezer. It's best to let it sit at room temperature for at least an hour before you plan to serve if it has been in the freezer overnight.
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