A tub of plain yoghurt is one of the more flexible things you can have in the fridge when it comes to dessert. It works chilled and no-bake, frozen and scooped, frozen and snapped into shards, or baked straight into a cake. Four versions worth knowing, from the simplest to the most involved.
Yoghurt Bark (No Cooking, 10 Minutes of Work)
The simplest of the four. Line a large baking tray with baking paper. Combine 500g full-fat plain yoghurt with 2 tablespoons honey and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, stirring until the honey is fully incorporated. Spread onto the lined tray in an even layer, about 5-7mm thick – too thin and it shatters, too thick and the pieces are unwieldy. Add toppings, pressing gently so they stay attached, then freeze for at least 3 hours or overnight. Lift the paper off the tray and break into irregular pieces.
Good topping combinations: fresh or frozen berries with crushed pistachios and a drizzle of honey; mango, desiccated coconut and lime zest; melted dark chocolate drizzled over the surface with flaky sea salt; or a layer of granola pressed in for crunch. Eat straight from the freezer, since it softens quickly at room temperature and loses its snap.
Homemade Frozen Yoghurt (No Machine Needed)
Strain 1kg of full-fat yoghurt through cheesecloth for 2-4 hours in the fridge to remove excess whey (the same first step as making labneh, just stop before it gets too thick). Combine the strained yoghurt with 4-6 tablespoons of honey, tasted to slightly stronger than you want in the finished product since cold dulls sweetness, plus whatever flavouring you’re using. Pour into a freezer-safe container, freeze for an hour, then stir vigorously with a fork to break up ice crystals. Repeat every 30-45 minutes for 3-4 hours until smooth, or churn in an ice cream machine for about 20 minutes.
Four flavours worth making: mango and lime (2 blended mangos plus the zest and juice of a lime); strawberry and vanilla (400g macerated strawberries with vanilla, the most crowd-pleasing of the four); dark chocolate and sea salt (100g melted 70% chocolate, cocoa powder, and a generous pinch of flaky salt, the salt is not optional); or honey, fig and walnut (a touch more honey in the base, plus chopped fresh figs and toasted walnuts folded through as it freezes). Keeps in the freezer for up to two weeks. Let it sit out 5-10 minutes before serving to soften to scoopable.
No-Bake Greek Yoghurt Cheesecake
Blitz 200g of digestive biscuits into fine crumbs, combine with 80g melted butter and a tablespoon of honey, and press firmly into the base and up the sides of a 20cm springform tin. Refrigerate at least 20 minutes to set. Beat 500g full-fat Greek yoghurt with 300g full-fat cream cheese until completely smooth, then add 150g icing sugar and a teaspoon of vanilla and beat until combined. Whip 200ml double cream to soft peaks separately, then fold it into the yoghurt mixture in three additions, keeping as much air in as possible, since overmixing deflates it and produces a denser result.
Pour onto the chilled base, smooth the top, and refrigerate at least 4 hours, preferably overnight. Don’t freeze it, since that changes the texture of the yoghurt. A simple berry compote (300g frozen mixed berries simmered with sugar and lemon juice for about 10 minutes, then cooled) is the classic topping, though lemon curd, fresh stone fruit, or honey and crushed pistachios all work. Serves 10-12 and keeps covered in the fridge for 3 days.
Yoghurt Honey Cake (The One You Actually Bake)
The only one of the four that goes in the oven, and the most forgiving cake you’ll bake: one bowl, no creaming butter, no folding egg whites. Whisk together 3 eggs, 1 cup full-fat plain yoghurt, three-quarters of a cup of good honey, half a cup of neutral oil, and a teaspoon of vanilla. Sift in 2 cups plain flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder, half a teaspoon bicarbonate of soda and a pinch of salt, then fold until just combined, adding the zest of a lemon as you go.
Pour into a lightly greased and lined 900g loaf tin or 22cm round tin. Bake at 170°C for 45-55 minutes (loaf) or 35-40 minutes (round), until a skewer comes out clean. While still warm, brush the surface generously with 2 tablespoons of warmed honey. It only takes 30 seconds and gives the top a glossy, lacquered finish. Worth trying: orange and almond (swap the lemon zest for orange, replace some flour with ground almonds), lavender honey, or a tablespoon of chopped fresh rosemary folded through the batter. Serve in slices with a spoonful of plain yoghurt on the side, since its tartness cuts through the honey’s sweetness.
Which One to Make
Short on time and want something ready in the freezer for weeks: yoghurt bark. Want a proper scoopable dessert without an ice cream machine: homemade frozen yoghurt. Need something to bring to a gathering that looks like more effort than it was: the no-bake cheesecake. Want to actually bake something that keeps for days: the honey cake. All four start from the same tub of yoghurt in your fridge.