Frozen Yogurt - Smooth and Perfect, with xanthan gum

At last! A Frozen Yogurt recipe that has it all: a smooth, perfect texture, which doesn't become icy in the freezer. AND the just-right amount of yogurt flavour. Our secret? By adding one teaspoon of xanthan gum, this frozen yogurt gets it just right. Ingredients: full-fat strained natural yogurt (also known as Greek yogurt), heavy cream, sugar, xanthan gum. For quantities scroll down.
About this recipe: Creating the perfect frozen yogurt can be tricky; too much yogurt and it becomes icy, whereas increasing the heavy cream to reduce the iciness, can cause the yogurt flavour to disappear. To combat these issues, we added one teaspoon of xanthan gum. This gum has the unique ability to trap excess water, resulting in a creamy texture without the need for too much heavy cream. While there are many gums available, we prefer xanthan gum because it is easy to find in grocery stores and doesn't require much heating. All you need to do is add it to the ice cream mixture at the right temperature and blend for two minutes. Don't worry if you don't have a thermometer; we've created a foolproof method that eliminates the guesswork. Check out our video to see how it's done.
IMPORTANT: this recipe is only for full-fat Greek strained yogurt, which contains live active yogurt culture. Thanks to the live active culture, you can safely leave the ice cream mixture at room temperature for 2 hours (as in step 2) to further enhance the yogurt flavour, before putting it in the refrigerator overnight to chill. If the yogurt doesn't contain live active culture, cool it down quickly over an ice bath and store it in the fridge.
About the yogurt: strained yogurt (aka Greek yogurt) has the right texture for a perfect Frozen Yogurt. Use the best quality you can afford. Strained yogurt is creamy and thick; anything else is too watery in texture for this recipe. Use full-fat with at least 5% fat content. Strained natural yogurt contains only milk, cream, and live active yogurt culture. If there is anything else in the ingredients, like sugar, flavourings, sweeteners, or preservatives, it is not recommended for this recipe, as it will outbalance it.
Reducing the fat and sugar: using low-fat heavy cream or yogurt, reducing the sugar, or replacing the sugar with sweeteners also results in iciness in the Frozen Yogurt. If you still want to experiment, make sure you eat it as soon as it is churned; if you store it in the freezer, it will become icy due to the lack of fat and sugar
Ingredients:
400 g heavy cream 35-36% fat, divided (14.1 oz)
255 g regular sugar (9 oz)
575 g full-fat, Greek yogurt, natural (20.3 oz)
1 teaspoon xanthan gum (2.7 g)
⚖ makes:1.1 litre ice cream mixture (before churning), perfect for 1.5 to 2-litre ice cream machines
The steps at a glance:
[00:17] Step 1 | Make the ice cream mixture
Note: With a powerful blender, you can skip the mixing and stirring, and add the yogurt directly into the blender after blending the heavy cream and xanthan gum for two minutes. Be sure to pause as needed and scrape down any yogurt residue on the blender's sides. You can also store the mixture in the blender jug in the refrigerator, eliminating the need for separate bowls.
[02:08] Step 2 | Chill in the fridge
[02:30] Step 3 | Churn
Note: take care not to over-churn this one. Remove it from the ice cream machine as soon as it fluffs up. Overchurning it will make it lose its volume and become heavy in texture.
[03:25] Step 4 | Put in the freezer to set
[04:02] Serve or store
Note: Just like all other artisanal ice creams, this frozen yogurt freezes hard in a regular freezer over time. But don't worry, there's an easy fix! Simply place it in the refrigerator for about 45-60 minutes before serving to make it easy to scoop and enjoy.
Equipment used in the recipe:
✓ ice cream maker
✓ kitchen scale
✓ blender (regular / immersion)
Full TH-cam xanthan gum ice cream video playlist here:
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