Tart Cherry Frozen Yogurt

Tart Cherry Frozen YogurtGut Check

My sister is on a mission to convince the people in her sphere of influence to eat better, and to think about what we are putting in our bodies. Normally this would just affect her immediate family. Since we were all together up at Tahoe last week, her quest now includes my family. This is not a bad thing. My husband and I definitely need to make some changes in our diets—as do the kids, and paying attention to what exactly we are putting into our bodies is always a good idea.

The thing is, I hate diets. They are too restrictive and before you say “No kidding Genius. That’s the point.” I would like to say that It’s not the smaller amounts of food that get to me, rather I am not the kind of person who can eat the same thing over and over. That is what I mean by restrictive. I can eat more veggies. I have no problem swapping creamy mashed potatoes for the fiber of roasted sweet ones. (Okay it might be kinda painful.) I can even handle the occasional salad for lunch…if I must. I just require variety in my meals.

With that in mind, I have decided to make some of the changes that my sister is suggesting—minus the cleanse. No way is that happening. However, I’m doing it my way. More yogurt for gut health. (She’s all about the gut.) More veggies and fruits. Leaner meats, and way less red meat. Whole grains. Basically the obvious stuff. The key is that I am going to try to do it by eating the way people used to eat, and not buy the pre-packaged stuff. We’re going to eat REAL food.

It might be difficult at first, and certainly painful for me as the cook, but I think it will be a good thing all around. Once it becomes habit my kids will reach for a carrot rather than the crackers. I’ll let you know how it goes. School starts next week and I am sure there will be some discontent when the kids see their “new lunches”.

Of course, that doesn’t mean it has to all be bad, especially with the following recipe for Tart Cherry Frozen Yogurt adapted from Love and Lemons. If you make your own yogurt (which is incredibly easy by the way) so much the better…

Tart Cherry Frozen Yogurt
Adapted from Love and Lemons

Ingredients
3/4 cup frozen tart cherries
2 cups full fat greek yogurt (I use home made.)
1 can full fat coconut milk (refrigerate & scoop the solid part)
2/3 cups cane sugar
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon sea salt

For the Toppings
extra tart cherries
toasted sliced almonds

Directions
Allow the cherries to thaw on your counter top while you mix your yogurt base.

In a large bowl, whisk together the yogurt, coconut milk solids*, sugar, maple syrup, vanilla and salt. Whisk until well combined, and pour the mix into an ice cream maker. Follow the manufacturer’s directions.

Use a fork or a potato masher to gently break up the tart cherries. Near the end of the churning time, add them to the ice cream maker just so they swirl throughout.

*To separate the coconut solids from your coconut milk, put a can of coconut milk in the fridge overnight. When you’re ready to use it, open the can without shaking, and scoop the solid part out. (For this recipe, it’s okay if you use some of the watery part). Save the rest of the coconut water for another use.

After you’ve stored your frozen yogurt in the freezer overnight, it’ll harden more than normal ice cream, just let it sit out to thaw for 20 or so minutes and it’ll become creamy again.

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