Ice cream maker churning frozen yogurt beside a bowl with berries
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Cuisinart Frozen Yogurt Recipe You Can Make at Home

ByCraig Brockie Last updated

This Cuisinart frozen yogurt recipe blends 2 cups of plain whole-milk Greek yogurt with strawberries, blueberries, 1/4 cup of sugar and vanilla. You chill the mix for an hour, then churn it in a fully frozen freezer bowl for about 20 minutes. It makes six servings of soft frozen yogurt to eat right away or freeze until firm.

The recipe works in any ice cream maker with a frozen bowl. Ultimate Gut is not affiliated with Cuisinart, and this is not a recipe from Cuisinart’s booklets. For a no-machine method, or what freezing does to live cultures, see How to Make Frozen Yogurt: A Step-by-Step Guide.

Cuisinart frozen yogurt recipe: yield and time

RecipeServingsActive timeTotal time
Strawberry-blueberry frozen yogurt, soft610 minutes1 hour 30 minutes, plus 16 to 24 hours to freeze the bowl
Strawberry-blueberry frozen yogurt, firm and scoopable610 minutes3 hours 30 minutes, plus freezing the bowl

What Cuisinart’s instructions say

Cuisinart’s booklets for its 1 1/2-quart ICE-21 and 2-quart ICE-30 machines set the timing:

  • Freeze the bowl first: 16 to 24 hours (ICE-21) or about 24 hours (ICE-30) in a freezer set to 0°F (−18°C), at the back, where it is coldest. When you shake it and hear no liquid moving, it is frozen.
  • Turn the machine on, then pour the mix through the spout.
  • Churn: less than 20 minutes in the ICE-21, 25 to 35 minutes in the ICE-30. Recipes should yield no more than 1 1/2 and 2 quarts respectively; this one starts with about 3 cups of mix.
  • Refreeze between batches: the bowl must be completely frozen before each use.

Why Greek yogurt and a little sugar

Iciness comes from water. USDA lists whole-milk Greek yogurt at 81.3 g of water per 100 g and regular whole-milk yogurt at 87.9 g, and more water means more ice (Goff, University of Guelph). Sugar lowers the freezing point, and milk fat adds a smooth, creamy body (Goff). The 1/4 cup of sugar comes to about 8 g of added sugar per serving (USDA), below the 10 g per meal ceiling in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2025–2030, but this is still a dessert.

Strawberry-blueberry frozen yogurt

Adapted from USDA’s Fruity Frozen Yogurt (WIC Works Resource System), which blends plain yogurt, berries and vanilla and freezes the mix in a container. This version uses whole-milk Greek yogurt and 1/4 cup of sugar, and churns the mix so it sets smooth and soft.

Strawberry-blueberry frozen yogurt

Strawberry-Blueberry Frozen Yogurt

Plain whole-milk Greek yogurt blended with strawberries, blueberries, a little sugar and vanilla, then churned in a freezer-bowl ice cream maker such as a Cuisinart. Adapted from USDA’s WIC Works Fruity Frozen Yogurt.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 120
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 2 cups plain whole-milk Greek yogurt with live and active cultures
  • 1/2 cup strawberries hulled and sliced; fresh, or frozen unsweetened and thawed in the refrigerator
  • 1/2 cup blueberries fresh, or frozen unsweetened and thawed in the refrigerator
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 to 2 tablespoons milk optional, only if the mix is too thick to pour

Method
 

  1. 16 to 24 hours ahead, put the empty freezer bowl at the back of a freezer set to 0°F (−18°C). It is ready when you shake it and hear no liquid moving inside.
  2. Wash your hands. Rinse the berries under running water, pat them dry, and hull and slice the strawberries.
  3. Blend the yogurt, strawberries, blueberries, sugar and vanilla until smooth and the sugar has dissolved. If the mix is too thick to pour, blend in 1 to 2 tablespoons of milk.
  4. Cover and refrigerate the mix for at least 1 hour, or overnight.
  5. Put the frozen bowl, paddle and lid on the machine, switch it on, and pour the cold mix in through the spout right away.
  6. Churn until thick and creamy, like soft-serve: less than 20 minutes in a 1 1/2-quart machine, or 25 to 35 minutes in a 2-quart machine.
  7. Serve right away, or spoon it into an airtight freezer container and freeze for at least 2 hours, until firm.
  8. Wash the freezer bowl by hand in warm, soapy water (not in the dishwasher) and dry it completely before refreezing.

Notes

Adapted from USDA WIC Works’ Fruity Frozen Yogurt, made with whole-milk Greek yogurt and 1/4 cup sugar and churned in a freezer-bowl ice cream maker. Times exclude freezing the bowl (16 to 24 hours) and optional hardening (2 hours or more). Do not store it in the freezer bowl; keep it airtight at 0°F (−18°C) and eat within about 1 month for best texture. Soften in the refrigerator about 30 minutes before scooping.
  • Rinse the berries under running water and pat them dry (FDA).
  • Chill the mix at 40°F (4°C) or below (FoodSafety.gov) for at least 1 hour, as Foodland Ontario does for its churned frozen yogurt, or overnight, as the ICE-21 booklet recommends. Quick freezing makes smaller ice crystals (USDA FSIS).
  • Nothing is heated, so the yogurt’s cultures go into the freezer alive; freezing inactivates bacteria rather than killing them (USDA FSIS).

Variations

  • Other fruit: use 1 cup of chopped peaches, pineapple, raspberries or kiwi, fruits Food Hero (Oregon State University Extension) suggests for its frozen fruit yogurt. Drain canned fruit first.
  • Frozen berries: choose unsweetened ones and thaw them in the refrigerator, not on the counter (FoodSafety.gov).
  • Softer scoop: swap 2 tablespoons of the sugar for 2 tablespoons of honey, which is mostly glucose and fructose (USDA); those sugars make a softer frozen dessert than table sugar (Goff). No honey for babies under 12 months (CDC).
  • Mix-ins: add 1/4 cup of chopped nuts or mini chocolate chips about 5 minutes before churning ends, as Cuisinart advises.
  • Regular yogurt: strain 4 cups of plain whole-milk yogurt in the refrigerator to about 2 cups (see How to Make Greek Yogurt: A Step-by-Step Guide). Ultimate Health Solutions, which publishes this site, recommends checking it hourly and expecting about half the starting volume.

How to store homemade frozen yogurt

Serve it soft, or freeze it in an airtight container for 2 hours or more until firm, as Cuisinart directs. Don’t keep it in the freezer bowl in the freezer for more than 30 minutes (ICE-21 booklet). Wash the bowl by hand in warm, soapy water, never in the dishwasher, and dry it fully before refreezing.

Keep the freezer at 0°F (−18°C) or below (K-State Research and Extension). Food kept constantly at 0°F stays safe, so freezer times are for quality; airtight packing prevents freezer burn, which is dry but not unsafe (USDA FSIS). Food Hero suggests eating its frozen fruit yogurt within 1 month. Soften firm frozen yogurt in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes before scooping (Foodland Ontario). Discard any left at room temperature for more than 2 hours, or 1 hour above 90°F (32°C) (USDA FSIS).

More frozen yogurt and Greek yogurt ideas

Sources

Craig Brockie is the founder of Ultimate Health Solutions, the company behind Ultimate Gut, and the author of Ultimate Health, The Ultimate Gut Health Guide and The Unlimited Probiotics Guide. After injuries and chronic health problems in his twenties that conventional care didn’t resolve, he began researching health on his own and has studied natural health for 30 years. He is not a medical professional, and his articles are general information, not medical advice.

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