I still remember the sweet smell of crisp, white citrus blossoms the afternoon I went blood orange picking. Standing amongst a small collection of blood orange, lime, lemon and Valencia orange trees, I stopped for a moment to enjoy the warm sun and heady fragrance. After a brief zen moment, I continued on with the task at hand. Nimbly darting throughout the limbs, I eagerly plucked ripe citrus from the trees while trying to avoid the sharp thorns dotting the surface of each branch. The massive bowl of oranges pictured below is just a small fraction of the bounty I brought home that afternoon. As I organized each fruit into different bowls around my kitchen, I couldn’t help but smile at the collection.
Over the past few weeks, I’ve prepared a number of recipes utilizing my winter citrus. This Blood Orange Frozen Yogurt is one of my favorites 🙂 Made with blood orange zest and juice, this luscious fro yo is tart, creamy and complex. Orange liqueur bumps up the oranginess of the dish while honey lends a sweet, floral note reminiscent of those wonderfully fragrant citrus blossoms. If you can’t find blood oranges at your local market, you could certainly make this recipe with regular oranges. Continue reading for the recipe.
Blood Orange Frozen Yogurt
Ingredients
- 1 cup blood orange juice (from about 10 blood oranges)
- 1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons white sugar
- 1 1/2 cups plain Greek yogurt (full fat)
- Zest of 2 blood oranges
- 2 teaspoons orange liqueur (triple sec or Cointreau)
- Fresh lemon juice
- Honey
Instructions
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In a small saucepan, warm blood orange juice and sugar over medium-high heat, stirring to dissolve sugar. Bring mixture to a boil and cook until reduce by 1/2. Remove from heat and let cool completely.
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In a large bowl, whisk together reduced blood orange juice and Greek yogurt until smooth and fully incorporated. Add zest and liqueur, whisking to combine. Add a few drops of fresh lemon juice and a small squidge of honey, then whisk and taste. If the mixture is too tart, add a bit more honey. If the mixture is too sweet, add a bit more lemon juice.
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Refrigerate mixture for at least 4 hours (preferably overnight). Freeze the yogurt base in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Finish by freezing the yogurt until hard or enjoy soft immediately.
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Jorge says
Looks beautiful! I bet it tastes fantastic. I swear I could smell the sweetness and tanginess of the blood orange just by looking at the picture.
Averie @ Averie Cooks says
Absolutely stunning overhead shots. Tack sharp, beautiful composition, just….gorgeous.
I’ll take mine with the added triple sec or Cointreau 🙂
And the story telling in the beginning…fabulous.. Nimbly darted. Yes, I would love to nimbly dart my way into a bowl of this!
Brandon Matzek says
Thanks Averie 🙂 HA!!
Ahu says
The color on this is absolutely incredible!
Sharyn DImmick says
I had not thought to turn blood oranges into frozen yogurt. Seems simple now…
Cookie and Kate says
This looks so fabulous! I made a blood orange curd that turned out about that color. Now I want frozen yogurt!
Brandon Matzek says
Thanks! Blood orange curd sounds delicious.
Mara @ Elemental Custard says
Mmm I might have to break out my ice cream maker just for this! Have you ever tried making frozen yogurt with the 0-fat greek yogurt? I have a bunch in my fridge for whatever reason but never use it…
Brandon Matzek says
Hi Mara, I haven’t tried with the non-fat greek yogurt. I’m sure you could use it, but the texture would be different. Full fat = creamy frozen yogurt.
Norma says
Oh Bandon…you got me good with this yogurt….
Kristina says
This frozen yogurt is stunning! I’ve actually never had a blood orange 🙂 Would this work with soy yogurt too?
Brandon Matzek says
That’s a great question! I’ve never worked with soy yogurt, so I’m not 100% sure. But I’m thinking you could use the soy instead of greek yogurt. Two things to keep in mind: 1. If the yogurt is runny, you’ll want to drain it in a cheesecloth-lined strainer before using. Runny yogurt = icy frozen yogurt. 2. Fat content will also affect the texture of your fro yo (see comment above).
Stacey Rider says
Looks amazingly delicious… haven’t had a blood orange in ages!
RavieNomNoms says
That is gorgeous looking frozen yogurt. I tend to go towards the frozen yogurts more than ice cream too. So this is right up my alley! Love the color!
Suzanne says
Oh my this frozen yogurt looks wonderful and full of orange flavor. Congrats on the top 9
Brandon Matzek says
Thanks Suzanne!
April Porter says
I’ll definitely be making this. Instead of fresh blood orange juice I’m going to try a bottled Blood OJ that I buy at my local grocery. I believe it is called Noble Juice. It already makes the best margaritas so I’m excited to use it for frozen yogurt too!
Brandon Matzek says
Great idea! Just watch out for the sugar content in pre bottled juices. If the juice is sweet, you won’t not need to add the full 1/3 cup + 2 tbsp sugar at the beginning.
Ann P says
oh my word this looks delicious! It’s about time i got an ice cream maker…
CJ at Food Stories says
Congratulations on your foodbuzz top 9, today!
Vicky says
Congrats on the top 9! This looks amazing! Greek yogurt is one of my favorites. I haven’t seen blood oranges in my supermarket for a while but will definitely try regular oranges. Thanks for sharing 🙂
Tara Noland says
That looks so good. I am going to add it next Monday for my Mouth Watering Mondays post. Come on by to see it at http://www.noshingwiththenolands.com Cheers, Tara
Anna says
Hey there, just to let you know I included your recipe and one of your pictures in a feature about the color orange. Hope you don’t mind! Check it out if you like: http://nomoremindgames.de/fashion/we-need-more-orange/
– Anna
Brandon Matzek says
Thanks!
Anna says
You’re more than welcome. And thanks for letting me use your picture!
Looking forward to trying your recipe. 🙂
Wendy says
Hi, don’t have an ice cream maker…can I just freeze the yogurt after I’ve done everything else?
Brandon Matzek says
Hi Wendy, you’ll need to somehow incorporate air into the mixture or your yogurt/ice cream will be rock solid. Do you have a food processor? If so, you could try this: http://sweets.seriouseats.com/2010/07/how-to-make-ice-cream-without-an-ice-cream-maker-the-food-lab.html
Susan says
Just made this and it is fantastic. Thank you so much. Tart, creamy, sweet, flavorful. Just excellent.
Brandon Matzek says
Excellent! So glad you liked it Susan.
julie says
Do you need ice cream maker or can you use the still freeze method? Have a food processor, but no ice cream maker.
Brandon Matzek says
I use an ice cream maker, but I’m sure you could use other methods as well. The still freeze method is where you freeze it for a bit, break it up, blend in the food process, and return back to the freezer?