Homemade 3-Ingredient Real Frozen Yogurt
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Made with just three ingredients — Greek yogurt, sugar and vanilla — the base for this homemade frozen yogurt comes together in one minute, and after an hour of chilling, it’s ready to be churned. So simple, so delicious!
I’ve been eating frozen yogurt for 15 years. My sister, who used to run to TCBY during high school cross country “practice,” introduced me to it; roommates in college fueled the addiction; California taught me to consider it a major food group.
Over these past 15 years, I’ve genuinely loved each and every bowl of frozen yogurt I’ve eaten, despite how sugary and artificial tasting and generally crappy most of them have been. There’s just something about the ritual of getting a fro-yo with friends that makes whatever’s squirted into the bowl inconsequential, for me at least.
But when I took one bite of this homemade version, a David Lebovitz recipe made with full-fat Greek yogurt, I thought, “Ohhh. This is what frozen yogurt should taste like.” I couldn’t believe it. It actually tasted like, wait for it, frozen yogurt. I know, I know, mind blowing.
How to Make Frozen Yogurt
Made with only three ingredients, this recipe comes together in a flash. Here’s how you make it:
- Whisk together Greek yogurt, sugar, and vanilla extract.
- Chill this mixture for at least 1 hour.
- Freeze in your ice cream machine according to the manufacture’s instructions, about 25 minutes.
I find this creamy treat to be irresistible, which makes it impossible to walk by the freezer without giving a spoon a little dip-a-roo into its storage container.
If you struggle with self-restraint, this is the sort of thing that should only be made while you have a houseful of guests prepared to tuck in immediately after it’s finished churning. Not a squirt will remain. I promise you.
PS: 3-Ingredient Strawberry Sorbet in Almond Cookie Cups
A fun presentation: homemade cookie cups:
Homemade 3-Ingredient Real Frozen Yogurt
- Total Time: 1 hours 25 minutes
- Yield: 1 quart
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Source: The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz
If you want to make a homemade cookie cup, see this post for Strawberry Sorbet.
Notes:
I prefer using 2/3 cup sugar — it’s just a touch less sweet — but you may want to adjust with more (or less) sugar after you make one batch. Take notes!
Ingredients
- 3 cups plain whole-milk Greek yogurt
- 2/3 to 3/4 cup sugar*
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Mix together the yogurt, sugar and vanilla. Stir until the sugar is completely dissolved. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Freeze in your ice cream machine according to the manufacture’s instructions.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Category: Ice Cream
- Method: Freeze
- Cuisine: American
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
46 Comments on “Homemade 3-Ingredient Real Frozen Yogurt”
I recently made some frozen yogurt from the most amazing over ripe strawberries. The flavor was perfect, but the texture was dreadful. All those little seeds just did not get pulverized. If you have any tips, I would be graateful.
Jeri — I think Hannah has it right. Do you cook the strawberries at all? Either way, after you purée them, push them through a fine-mesh sieve. That should help the texture issues.
looks like you used a kitchenaid mixer after the initial refrigerator chill. How long did you mix it for? Did you cool it afterwards or serve it immediately?
there is no frozen yogurt in Zürich, like none, can you believe it? I grew up at TCBY and ate my weight in Durfees/dinning hall froyo and then transitioned to FroYo world when I was living in New Haven (their yogurt is tart like pinkberry). I’d go ahead and say that Froyo is my guilty pleasure. I adore it. I’ve been contemplating an ice cream maker for a while now, and this post/recipe has finally sent me over the edge. I’m going to get one this afternoon. Cannot wait to try this! I’m already imagining endless possibilities – banana, strawberry chocolate! yum!
Talley, you must get an ice cream maker. I have a feeling you will have a ball with it. Do you have a stand mixer? I use the kitchen aid ice cream maker attachment — works beautifully.
I use a 4cup measuring cup with a stick blender. Oh my! Sooo easy & soo good!
Wonderful to hear this!! Thanks so much for writing and sharing your method. So helpful for others.
So easy and so customizable! I’m excited to try this recipe out.
I have “The Perfect Scoop” but have just flown past the frozen yogurt recipe! I will need to remedy my oversight, as you certainly have shared a scrumptious frozen treat!
Great minds! I actually mixed up a batch homemade yogurt this morning so I could make some frozen yogurt! It’s in the dehydrator culturing at this very moment. It won’t be ready until tomorrow because once the yogurt is done I will need to strain the whey to make it “Greek”. My mouth is watering just thinking about it!
Susan — fun! I have always wanted to make yogurt. My mother went on a kick a little while ago and was obsessed. I need to try. I can’t imagine how delicious this froyo will be when homemade yogurt is added to the equation. Yum!
I make my yogurt in my Instant Pot…easy peasy!
Amazing!! I have been meaning to do this for years … maybe 2021 will be the year of IP yogurt for me 🙂 Thanks for the encouragement.
I busted out my old Cuisinart ice cram maker earlier this summer and have been on an ice cream making binge ever since – coconut, peach, strawberry. I grew up in CA & also considered frozen yogurt a part of my personal food pyramid. Loved TCBY and Humphrey Yogurt, but, until recently, my local fro-yo options have been limited or non-exsistent.
So excited to try this frozen Greek yogurt option! Gonna run out now & get the yogurt so I can surprise my boys tonight with fro-yo topped with a dollop of my freshly-made quad-berry jam.
Lollie — I have been making ice cream all summer too. Coconut flavored I have yet to try, but that sounds amazing! Hope your boys liked their treat.
How can I make some TART froyo like my favorite Cali froyo?? I will have to start researching this… but this looks amazing, I will make ASAPPPPP, once again you have inspired my until-i-met-you-nonexistent inner chef, love you!
Katykat — this is on the tart side… you will love! It almost tastes lemony despite no lemon. Greek yogurt has a nice tang!
jeri, to address the unwanted strawberry seeds, just puree them in a blender and then push them through a fine strainer. I’m not sure how this juice will affect the consistency of the yogurt, but it will at least eliminate seeds.
I can’t wait to try this frozen yogurt. 🙂
Has anyone made this recipe using agave nectar instead of sugar?
What if you don’t have an ice cream maker? Any work around?
Shut Up & Cook — I’m stumped. I’m not sure there is a work around with this recipe. Have you made the kitchn’s one-ingredient ice cream?
I love a good, tangy fro-yo. I can’t be trusted with it though!
I made this today with nonfat Greek yogurt (since I bought the wrong kind!) It turned out good, but a little too sweet. I will put less sugar in next time. Thank you, Ali! We need to plan a no kids fun cooking day sometime soon!
Nadine! I didn’t get you in time — I’ve been making it with 2/3 cup sugar. I updated the recipe. I like it both ways, but I think 2/3 cup sugar is plenty sweet. I think if you are using nonfat yogurt especially, less sugar is better.
oh I want to make this so badly but I don’t have an ice cream machine, my friend is buying one, I will have to make her make some, only problem is she lives on the other side of the world from me!
For those of us without an ice cream maker, pour the mixture in a shallow container like a casserole dish, cover and put it in the freezer. Every hour or so, pop it open and give it a good stir. Keep doing this until the FroYo is where you want it consistancy wise. I made something similar earlier this summer…had cream cheese in it too…tasted like cheese cake!
LindaG — thanks so much for the tips for those without an ice cream maker. I have a recipe for an ice cream made with with cream cheese bookmarked. Can’t wait to make it.
The most delicious and inspiring photographs!
I tried this last night using Fage 2% and my ice cream maker (a KitchenAid) locked up. The yogurt began to freeze almost immediately and within minutes the paddle was stuck. Is there something about the fat content that acts as an antifreeze?
Kelly, this is so bizarre. I’m so sorry to hear this. I have never had an issue, so I’m not really sure how to advise, but you might be onto something in regard to fat content. Do you use the kitchenaid attachment? Or is it a free-standing ice cream mixer?
I used the KitchenAid bowl and dasher. I transferred it to a container and put it in the freezer, fully intending to devour it; however, a day later it was hard as a rock. I’ve had to let it sit out and soften a bit before I can even get a spoon in it. (And I am determined to get a spoon in it! Clearly, I’m unfazed by the consistency…)
Oh no! I have to admit, I haven’t made this in ages, and when I did, I probably ate most of it in one sitting. I find I often have to let homemade ice creams/yogurts sit out at room temperature to get them to the right consistency, and I’m glad to hear you are unfazed by your frozen yogurt rock. I have been meaning to revisit this recipe ever since discovering Jeni’s splendid recipe — I made rhubarb ice cream with it — which made the best consistency of a homemade ice cream/yogurt I have ever made. I feel like it might be able to be adapted to a yogurt, though nothing beats the simplicity of this recipe. I will report back if I make any discoveries…as soon as it warms up around here. Sorry for the trouble 🙁
Could I substitute honey for the sugar? My favorite way to eat FroYo is with honey and granola drizzled on it. Plain, no sweetness.
Go for it! And then report back 🙂 I’ve never tried, so I can’t say for sure, but I imagine it will be delicious.
Can Stevia be used to replace the sugar?
Not sure as I’ve never tried!
So easy, a caveman could do it! Really, three ingredients? It’s perfect!!!! The only change I made is that I also had 1/2 tsp. Vanilla Bean Paste, to give it those beautiful vanilla specks we find in premier ice creams. Couldnt be easier, or more delicious! I served it with a rhubarb crostata (cant wait to make Alexandra’s Rhubarb Custard Cake!) – you just cant eat like this, unless its home-made!
So happy to hear this, Nancy! Pairing it with a rhubarb crostata sounds absolutely divine! I’m going to email you if I don’t hear back, but what ice cream maker are you using? I’m in the market for a new one! Thanks for writing 💕
Ive had it for quite a while, but its the Cuisinart! It’s been discontinued, “The Classic,” but still available from vendors on Amazon. But just their basic one would be a good substitute.
You are going to laugh if I tell you the whole story on my frozen yogurt! So since COVID -19, I’ve been making my milk from powdered Hoosier Hill Farms (on Amazon – its amazing, and tastes just like the real thing, or almost). So I had my “homemade” milk. I also have been making my own yogurt with my homemade milk – I dragged out my old yogurt maker. Your recipe calls for Greek yogurt, so I strained my yogurt to make Greek yogurt, to make my own Frozen Yogurt! So….Powdered Milk into homemade yogurt, strained to make Greek yogurt, so I could make Frozen Yogurt. I feel like a real pioneer woman, and its so satisfying to me!
Good luck on buying a new yogurt maker!
Oh my goodness Nancy! You truly are a pioneer woman! I love this so much. I have used dried buttermilk to make buttermilk, and it works beautifully … how have I never seen powdered milk? Definitely going to check it out. I’ll add it to my Amazon cart along with Freeze Tite and (hopefully!) a Cuisinart ice cream maker. Thanks for the reply!
I tried this recipe. I used 2/3 c sugar. It was sweet enough for us but… all we tasted was the tang of the yogurt.
I’ve never had any commercial frozen yogurt that tasted like this. We didn’t find it all that pleasant.
Sorry to hear this, Karen! There definitely is a tang. What brand Greek yogurt were you using?
2/3 cup sugar is still super sweet. I thought it would only be slightly sweet since there’s a range of 2/3 cup to 3/4 cup. Unfortunately I’m out of yogurt so can’t fix this mistake.
My family loves this recipe. I always start with plain yogurt so I can control the sugar. At the end, I mix in chopped maraschino cherries and freeze in a special ice cream cream container. The container keeps it scoopable so no need to let it sit out before scooping. Yummy.
Great to hear this, Robin! Are you able to recommend the container? I’d love to try it out. Thanks for writing!
Love TCBY White Chocolate Mousse – any way to make this Frozen yogurt in the white chocolate mousse flavor? I am guessing adding melted white chocolate but I’m not a baker or cook so need lots of guidance here. Thanks!!