As much as I love plain and Greek-style yogurts, I can’t quite get on board with most of the flavored varieties I’ve tried. Many of them are so sweet I feel like I’m eating strawberry pudding or mousse instead of yogurt, because they’re often made with jam or preserves.
But it’s August, and the lure of fresh summer fruits has never been stronger. In an effort to marry them with the tangy yogurt I adore, I zoned in on a weekend project: homemade peach-cinnamon yogurt.
Why peach-cinnamon? Peaches have been on my breakfast menu all season, so that part was a no-brainer. And after chatting with blogger Christy Jordan about her Peach Cobbler, I came to understand the sparks that fly when peaches meet cinnamon in any dish.
The process of making the yogurt base was almost identical to the first time I made my own yogurt. I used a freeze-dried starter culture last time, so this time around I decided to try it with a prepared yogurt starter (either way works). I chose my usual suspect, Fage 2%, stirring it in after the milk cooled to 111° to 113°F.
The next step involved making my peach mix-in. I have the Automatic Yogurt Maker from Euro-Cuisine, so I checked out the recipes on their website for inspiration before starting. They recommend making a simple compote from fruit, sugar and water, then whisking that mixture into the yogurt base. Thus, I came up with the following recipe:
Peach-Cinnamon Compote
1 peach, pitted and chopped
1 cup water
1 to 4 Tbs. agave nectar, to taste (you can substitute sugar or honey)
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
In a small fry pan over low heat, combine the peach, water, agave nectar and cinnamon and cook, stirring occasionally, until thick, about 20 minutes. Makes about 1/3 cup.
Then make the yogurt base according to the instructions with your yogurt maker (or check out my instructions for making plain yogurt). Both the fruit mixture and the yogurt base should be cooled to around 110°F before they are combined. Combine, pour the final mixture into yogurt jars, place them (uncovered) in the yogurt maker and let them incubate as usual.
Since I like my yogurt on the tart side, I used only 1 tablespoon of agave nectar and was very pleased with the results. The yogurt was soft and mild, with a fresh peach taste that didn’t overpower. The consistency was slightly different than my first plain batch — a little grainier — which may be related to the added moisture from the peach or to the different starter I used.
Every morning I top plain yogurt with a chopped peach or nectarine or a handful of strawberries. Adding fruit at the beginning of the process has definitely saved me a step on busy weekdays!
Have you tried any flavored yogurt experiments? Tell us in the comments!
About the author: Olivia Terenzio grew up in Mississippi, where she cultivated a love of sweet potatoes, crawfish and cloth napkins at a young age. A passion for sharing food with friends and family led her into the kitchen and later to culinary school, where she learned how to roast a chicken and decorate a cake like a pro. As a Williams-Sonoma blog editor, she’s now lucky enough to be talking, writing and thinking about food all day.
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in here they us 2% milk, you should be using the most fat milk or cream you can. it makes thicker yogurt and the more fat you eat the skinnier you get.I use 33% whip cream in mine and i have lost lots of body mass.
[…] For something a little more filling and protein rich, try mixing fruit with some Greek yogurt to get the sweet dessert taste you crave, without all the calories and sugar you don’t need. Your teeth and your waistline will thank you. Yogurt is an excellent way to add some variety to your snacking as sugarless varieties abound at the grocery store, or you can whip some up at home for a tasty, homemade snack. […]
I think fresh fruit added fter is a better choice. I think cooking the fruit is not as good food your overall health.
This is just what I was looking for, since I also have the same yogurt maker. I wanted to reproduce that great Dannon prune yogurt that is no longer available here in the States. Do you think if I added more than 1/3 compote (like 1/2 c) I should reduce the amount of milk? Thanks!
I will try that yogurt
I recently visited Paris, France for my 1st time, and they have the most wonderful yogurt I have ever tasted, and it comes in glass jars! No plastic containers there! I found it everywhere we went whether is was a cafe, hotel restaurant, or patisserie. I was sad to be without that wonderful yogurt arriving back to the USA.
So, I purchased the yogurt maker and I just made my first batch of home made yogurt. I was surprised by the fresh fruit “yogurt maker” recipe calling for 4 to 5 tablespoons of sugar added to the fruit, so I reduced the sugar to 2 tablespoons. I used 1 quart of 2% milk and Dannon plain yogurt as the starter. The batch came out perfectly firm; however, a little more tart than I like (more like sour cream). It was fairly smooth, but I wonder how to make it smoother. I think I will try honey instead of sugar for my next batch. Any suggestions on how to make it smoother and a little less tart in a healthy way is appreciated.
It’s all to do with your starter. Also. I add a bit of dried milk to mine as I use non fat everything. I thought that’s why it was not as smooth, at first. But the more I played around. I figured it was because of starter. The starter is what makes the tang strong or not too. So add a bit of dry milk I do 1/2 cup per gallon of milk. And then play around with different starters for the tang.
I have the same yogurt maker and tried this with strawberries, following their recipe. I cooked the fruit, sugar and water mixture for 40 minutes and it didn’t thicken like your picture shows and my yogurt was watery. My plain yogurt has turned out great every time but this flavored stuff isn’t working for me. Any suggestions? Thanks!! And, once I get the hang of this, I am definitely going to try your recipe!!!
flavored yogurt have effect on health or not
I am fond of yogurt but have never tried fruit flavored yogurt. I will definitely try my own. Thanks for sharing the tips of preparing it.
I’ve searched and search for a recipe and came across yours. Thank you. I’m going to try it today. Can’t wait. I am a diabetic, I cannot use the sugar, so I’m going to use Equal instead. I hope it works. Plus, I have a yogurt maker, which I was going to give away, but decided against it because I buy a lot of frozen yogurt, so why not make it.
Try lime yogurt !!! Just zest and juice, add to your homemade yogurt, mix well and enjoy. Even my 2 year old grand daughter LOVES my lime Greek yogurt. Or Coconut. OMG !!! Make your yogurt and stir in creme of coconut. Super yummy !!!!!
I just tries this with strawberries tho–cuz they are my fav– must say amazing. 🙂 blackberries tomorrow. 🙂
ClayW, glad it worked out! I think any cooked down fruit mixture would work (frozen berries would be ideal right now) and I’ve also been wanting to try a tea-infused yogurt, such as green tea or earl grey with honey. Let us know what you decide!
I just tried it and its AMAZING! I should have listened to you though about the amount of milk. I ended up not having enough to fill all the jars. I think the difference may be that I let the milk boil a few minutes (I like a firmer consistency), and I let my fruit mixture reduce much more to almost a syrupy consistency. The final product tastes so good! I’m already thinking of other possible flavor combinations to try. Do you have any you’d suggest?
Good luck, ClayW! Let us know how it turns out.
Thanks for the prompt reply! Wish me luck as I’m trying your cinnamon peach yogurt tonight but using whole milk and the freeze dried starter. I’m going to follow the guidelines in the user guide and incubate it for 7 hours because it’s whole milk, not 2%. I’ve tried a couple batches so far, and my first batch using chopped fresh blueberries was decent, though not as firm as I’d like. My second batch using fresh chopped strawberries was worse as it seemed like the yogurt sort of separated and the texture was just wrong (though the taste was good). The reason I asked about reducing the amount of milk was because the fresh fruit recipe ( http://www.eurocuisine.net/index.php?p=recipie1 ) that came with the yogurt maker said to use 32 ounces instead of 42. I think I’m just going through the trial and error phase.
I have heard that adding fresh fruit will have an adverse reaction, because of the natural acids in the fruit. Always cook your fruit to alleviate this issue.
ClayW, I did not adjust the amount of milk called for in the original recipe, because the fruit mixture I mixed in wasn’t a huge amount. If you are adding a lot of fruit, I would cut down the milk. I used 7 “jar-fuls” of milk; also keep in mind that a bit of the milk evaporates into steam on the stove, so you may end up with less than you started with. The average peach weighs approximately 5 to 6 ounces, so I would use that as a guideline for how much frozen peach to use. I incubated the yogurt for 9 hours.
So when you make yogurt with fresh fruit, do you use less milk than the plain yogurt recipe calls for? The yogurt starter package calls for 42 ounces of milk, but if you add your fruit compote, you’ll have more liquid than you have room for in your jars. How much milk did you use when you made this yogurt? Also, I only have frozen peaches, and I was curious about how many ounces of frozen peach would be equivalent to one peach chopped. How long did you let it incubate?
Thank you for awesome way to make fruit flavored yogurt. but, i want to know about making another flavored yogurt.
Try making your yogurt with lemon curd instead of fruit compote. It’s delicious!