Frozen yoghurt with a cherry ripple

This is my first time photographing any kind of frozen food, up until now I've been terrified and in awe of those who regularly do it. I'm no longer terrified but definitely still in awe of those who do it well.

Late last year I was given the ice cream bowl attachment for my kitchen-aid mixer (which I was also given last year, thanks friends!) Since receiving it I've made ice cream and sorbet whenever I find an excuse. Now I'm venturing into the world of frozen yoghurt.

I've always loved frozen yoghurt, as a child my mother used to buy it on a regular basis and I used to scoff it down. Yet, up until yesterday I'd never had it freshly made and nor did I have the slightest inkling of just how easy it is to make.

Besides the home-made ice creams I've made I've really only had home-made ice cream once in my life. I would've been around 8 at the time and it was made using a hand cranked ice and salt mixer. I thought it was amazing. I can't remember what the ice cream tasted like but I do remember thinking just how great it was that you could actually make ice cream. It was like magic happening before my eyes. Of course, I didn't actually crank the ice cream maker so I had little appreciation of the effort involved - I still have little appreciation as I've never used an ice and salt ice cream maker!

Anyway, enough of that. Frozen yoghurt is amazing. The tangy-ness of the yoghurt offsets the sweetness of the cherries in this recipe, creating a delightful combination. if you've never made frozen yoghurt and you happen to own an ice cream maker, I highly recommend you make it now. The involved is absolutely minimal and the results are deliciously rewarding.

Frozen yoghurt with a cherry ripple

(adapted from Decadence: Desserts by Philip Johnson)
makes 600ml

For the frozen yoghurt

175ml (6 fl oz) whole milk
85g sugar (1/3 cup) caster sugar
35g (1/6 cup) glucose syrup
250ml (1 cup) Greek-style yoghurt
juice of 1/2 a lemon

For the cherry ripple

120g (1/2 cup) caster sugar
1 cup water
1 cup fresh or frozen cherries, pitted

Combine the milk, sugar, and glucose syrup in a small saucepan over medium heat and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Bring to the boil, then remove from heat and set aside to cool completely.

Put the yoghurt in a large mixing bowl. Whisk in the cooled milk mixture, then whisk in the lemon juice. Refrigerate until cold.

Meanwhile, combine the caster sugar and water in a small saucepan over a medium heat and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Add the cherries and crush them lightly using a wooden spoon to break them up slightly. bring to the boil and boil, without stirring, for 5-7 minutes or until the mixture is thick and syrupy. Remove from the heat and transfer to a small bowl. Cool to room temperature and then refrigerate until cold.

Once everything is cold, transfer the yoghurt mixture to the bowl of an ice cream machine, and churn according to the manufacturers instructions.

Once churned, transfer to a container for freezing, alternating between large scoops of the frozen yoghurt and small scoops of the cherry mixture. Freeze for an minimum of two hours.

Pear & yoghurt cake

Some cakes have the potential to be the most amazing cakes; they have the potential to be so delicious, and light, and full of flavour. They promise you that they'll fulfil all your cake related dreams and then they let you down.

Or rather, you let them down. You mix up the ingredients, or you mix it wrong, or you combine everything in the wrong order, or you take it out of the oven too early.

Yet the cake refuses to fail you, like a loyal puppy that tries and tries and tries. You screwed up but the cake refuses to suck. Even after all the issues it's still pretty delicious. Or as delicious as a cake with issues can be.

This cake is one of those cakes. It's a mess but it still tastes pretty good. Admittedly, I did have to chop the middle out because it wasn't cooked properly. Patience is not a virtue that I often have so naturally I removed the cake from the oven too early. I didn't realise until after I'd un-moulded the cake that the centre wasn't cooked. I swear I checked it, I may not have checked it properly or thoroughly but I checked it. lesson learnt, check things properly and be patient.

So, in short - this would be an amazing cake if I'd cooked it properly but it's not because I screwed up. The bits that are cooked are amazing though, the rest of the cake is significantly less nice.

I've included the recipe even though it's unlikely that anyone will want to try it after my disaster. That said, I know that I will be trying is cake again sometime in the future!

Pear & yoghurt cake

(adapted from Decadence: Desserts by Philip Johnson)
makes one 20cm cake

145g unsalted butter
165g caster sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
250g self raising flour, sifted
35ml milk
165g greek yoghurt
2 pears, peeled cored, and chopped

Preheat oven to 170°C (325°F). Grease and line the base of a 20cm spring-form cake tin with baking paper.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes, Add the vanilla, then the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. beat in half the sifted flour, then all the milk. Add half the yoghurt and mix well to combine. Gradually add the remaining flour and yoghurt and mix until just combined. Lastly, fold the pears through.

Pour the cake mixture into the prepared tin and bake for 1 hour, or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool on a a wire rack.