So far in my time as a blogger I’ve experienced a few awesome perks. I’ve been extremely lucky and have won a few KitchenAid mixers through contests and raffles, Wrigley sent me an absurd amount of candy and gum, and most recently, Olympus Greek Yogurt sent me a month’s supply of Greek yogurt. I put aside all of the yummy flavors to pack for lunches, but I knew I wanted to make some frozen yogurt with the plain varieties included in my super-size sample pack. I have wanted to make ice cream bon bons for awhile now, and I figured a delicate and tart raspberry frozen yogurt would be perfect inside these pretty rose-topped chocolate shells. The combination of raspberry and dark chocolate is a classic one, and these little frozen treats are a perfect testament to why we see these flavors together so often.
I used a combination of 2% and full fat Greek yogurt for this recipe, and the result was a super creamy texture that turned a beautiful shade of pink thanks to the raspberry puree mixed in. As with all homemade frozen yogurts, this freezes extremely solid when left in the freezer overnight, but after 20 minutes left out on the counter, it’s back to its dreamy, creamy consistency. You’ll probably want to leave your bon bons out for a few minutes before serving them too so no one breaks a tooth while biting into them :) The bon bons are made by coating candy molds with melted dark chocolate (I used these molds), filling the hardened chocolate shells with frozen yogurt, and covering the bottoms with more dark chocolate. It’s a fun way to serve frozen yogurt and they’re in perfect bite-sized pieces for anyone with the discipline to portion control.
My schedule has been extremely hectic lately – busy with patients, preparing for licensure exams, not to mention making 150 cake pops for a friend’s sister’s wedding this week (as instagramed here). I love baking and the intricacies of things like cake pops, but sometimes it’s nice to just throw together a recipe easily and have delicious results. That was the case with these bon bons – the frozen yogurt is a cinch and pouring them into chocolate molds is completely optional. A drizzle of chocolate sauce would also be acceptable if you’re having a crazy week like me!
Raspberry Fro Yo Bon Bons
Ingredients:
2 pints fresh or frozen raspberries (thawed)
Juice of 1/2 a lemon
1/2 cup granulated sugar
12 oz of 2% or full fat plain Greek Yogurt, strained
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp vodka (to keep the frozen yogurt from freezing too much)
Dark chocolate melts
Directions:
- The night before you plan on preparing the frozen yogurt, line a colander with paper towels and place the yogurt on the towels to drain over a bowl overnight in the fridge. This helps the yogurt attain maximum creaminess.
- In a blender, combine the raspberries, lemon juice, and sugar. Blend until pureed and smooth.
- Strain the mixture through a fine meshed sieve to remove all of the seeds (you can leave a few for texture if you'd like, but I hate getting them stuck in my teeth so I tried to remove them all).
- In a large bowl, combine the yogurt, raspberry puree, vanilla extract, and vodka and mix until smooth.
- Transfer mixture to your ice cream maker and follow the manufacturer's instructions for freezing the mixer, usually around 20-25 minutes.
- While your frozen yogurt is churning, melt dark chocolate melts and coat the wells of a plastic or silicone candy mold. Ensure there are no holes in the chocolate by holding the mold up to the light. Place chocolate mold in the fridge for 5 minutes to set.
- When frozen yogurt is done, fill chocolate molds with frozen yogurt. You will probably have extra (depending on how many bon bons you plan on making), so transfer the rest to a freezer-safe container.
- Melt more dark chocolate and spoon it over the frozen yogurt so that each well is sealed. Transfer molds to the freezer to set up for 2-3 hours. Remove bon bons from freezer and serve after 10-15 minutes of sitting out at room temperature.
Recipe adapted from http://cilantropist.blogspot.com/2011/03/berry-frozen-yogurt-with-lemon-sugar.html
Thank you Olympus Yogurt for sharing your product with me – I had a lot of fun making this frozen yogurt and even more fun snacking on all the delicious flavors every day at lunch :)
“fair share of KitchenAid mixers”???! omg I need to start a food blog. How awesome! Good for you!
Could I use just regular dark chocolate (like Trader Joe’s Dark Chocolate lover’s Chocolate bars) and melt them down?
A month’s worth of yogurt!! How much is that, exactly? I absolutely adore yogurt (i.e. go through 2 tubs a week–er, yes, it might actually be a problem), and will gladly devote another tub to making these. Also, is there anything that can be used in place of vodka (for us sad, prohibited souls)? Thanks!
A FEW KitchenAid mixers?! Lucky girl! Fortunately I got one for Christmas last year so I could stop praying to win one of Pioneer Woman’s contests haha. These look terrific!
I made after eight bon bons a few days ago. Yours are lovely!
http://worldofweicrafts.blogspot.com.es/
What a wonderful way to use chocolate and yogurt – and I’d eat a plate of these all on my own! I never would have guessed it was yogurt filling these bon bons – so creative. I’m featuring this post in today’s Food Fetish Friday (with a link-back and attribution as always). Thanks for continuing to inspire me with your creations…
I love your work and all of the amazing things you are making! I am so interested in how you get companies to send you things. Do you have a special trick? ;)
Erica — May 15th, 2014 @ 4:36 pm
No trick :) But you can reach out to brands directly if you really want something! Thanks for the kind words
Okay! What do you recommend the best way to do that is?
Erica — May 15th, 2014 @ 10:57 pm
Follow the brands on twitter and message them that way, or try to find a contact for their PR person. I’m sorry I don’t have much experience with this! But good luck!!