Fro-yo girl here. I spotted some new items in the yogurt section of Sprouts during a recent shopping trip. Lifeway Skyr was new and on sale. The regular price is $2.29 and it was on sale for $1.99.
The product is labeled as having less sugar, more protein, GMO free, 14 strains of probiotic live and active cultures and up to 99% lactose free. It’s organic and made in small batches with grassfed milk. The organic blueberry prep is kept in a separate container that can easily be folded over to add to the skyr section. It also comes with its own little spoon and a convenient cap, in case you don’t finish the cup in one sitting. One serving is 150g, 9g total fat, 7g sugars, and 18g protein.
* Blueberry skyr: The skyr was thick, creamy, and super sour, sourer than plain yogurt. It did have a slight grittiness. The blueberry prep was more like a jelly than a jam, though it had bits of blueberries in it, and even tiny whole blueberries. It seemed very sweet by itself but since the skyr is extra sour, the sweetness is a good thing. Once combined, the skyr still has that sourness but it’s not as intense. I turned it upside down and the skyr stayed in the cup, that’s how thick it is. This skyr is probably too sour for the mainstream yogurt eater but I liked the sourness.
Available flavors: Natural, Honey, Blueberry, Wildberries, Ancient Grains
Skyr ingredients: Pasteurized organic whole milk, vitamin D3, live and active cultures
Organic blueberry prep ingredients: Water, organic blueberries, organic sugar, organic blueberry flavor, pectic, organic locust bean gum, organic fruit and vegetable juice concentrate for color
4 out of 5 stars.
You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.
Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.
Fro-yo girl here. Mr. Froyo and I tried Ripple, the plant-based, pea protein milk, a couple of months ago and he really likes it. In fact, he prefers it to milk and consumes it regularly. We get the unsweetened original kind which has a good amount of protein, iron, and vitamin D and no sugar. It’s soy-free, nut-free, GMO-free, gluten-free, and lactose free. Even though there’s no sugar, it still tastes mild and sweet to me, like soymilk. And it’s not thin but it’s actually fairly rich and creamy. We were excited to try Ripple’s new product, Ripple Greek Yogurt Alternative with live active cultures.
It wasn’t easy to track down Ripple Yogurt in Los Angeles. I kept checking the shelves at Sprouts, Whole Foods, Gelson’s, and Target. No luck. But, I finally found it at Ralph’s for $2.39 each. This location only had two flavors, Plain and Vanilla.
* Plain Yogurt: It smelled different than Ripple Unsweetened Original Milk. The plain yogurt smelled like protein powder. I didn’t like the smell. The color was greyish brown, like Ripple milk. The texture was smooth and creamy. The taste was not what I expected. It wasn’t sweet, which was fine, or tangy but it was sour. I’m fine with sour yogurt but the chalky, yeasty, protein powder taste wasn’t pleasant. It was better than Vega’s because they didn’t add Stevia. I don’t think adding other flavors to it would make it taste better. Mr. Froyo thought it was okay. He said he could see "why most people wouldn't like it" and that he was surprised that Ripple released it. And he also wanted me to emphasize that he loves Ripple pea milk.
One serving is 140 calories, 5g total fat, 6g sugars, and 12g protein.
Ingredients: Water, Ripptein (pea protein), organic cane sugar, sunflower oil, tapioca flour, pectin, natural flavors, locust bean gum, dipotassium phosphate, yeast extract, citric acid, cultures (Bifidobacterium bifidum, L. Acidophilus, L. Casei, L. Bulgaricus, L. Rhamnosus, S. Thermophilus).
Pasteurized organic whole milk, vitamin D3, live and active cultures
Available flavors: Original, Strawberry, Blueberry, Vanilla, Maple
2.5 out of 5 stars.
You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.
Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.
Fro-yo girl here. Plant-based dairy alternative products keep taking up more shelf space at supermarkets. I spotted Vega Protein Cashewmilk Yogurt Alternative at Sprouts for $1.79 on sale ($1.99 retail price). It features 13g of protein, live active cultures (prebiotics and probiotics) and more protein than sugar. Also, Vega’s yogurt is certified vegan, gluten-free, and non-GMO project verified. One 150g serving is 180 calories, 8g total fat, 7g sugars, 6g dietary fiber and 13g protein.
* Vanilla Cashewmilk Yogurt Alternative: When I peeled the lid back, I was surprised to see such a dark greyish brown looking yogurt. It looked like coffee yogurt, probably because of the chicory root. It didn’t look attractive. The texture was thick and creamy (they use thickeners). The flavor was very strange. I could taste the nuttiness of the cashews but it was super sweet in that weird fake sugar way. It was super sweet but had a sour aftertaste. So weird. It tasted like sweet and sour chalky protein powder. I should have read the ingredients because stevia and monkfruit usually taste horrible. I do like some vegan yogurt, like Kite Hill.
Luckily, Mr. Froyo was interested in eating the yogurt because it has protein and low sugar. He didn't like the taste though.
Ingredients: Cashewmilk (filtered water, cashews), pea protein, chicory root extract, coconut sugar, natural flavors, fruit pectin, guar gum, vanilla beans, stevia leaf extract, monk fruit extract, live and active cultures.
Available flavors: Vanilla, Strawberry, Raspberry, Blueberry
1.5 out of 5 stars.
You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.
Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.
Fro-yo girl here. I’ve been going to Easy Breezy since day 1 of their first location, which opened in Noe Valley (San Francisco, CA) in 2012. I fell in love with their creative, fresh, hand-crafted flavors and their commitment to quality frozen yogurt and toppings. They even had premium and sometimes creative toppings. I’m definitely excited to see them expand; the newest location is in West Portal. The space used to be occupied by Tuttimelon and then Quickly, so I’ve been there many times. In fact, it was the first place that I ever met Mr. Tuttimelon on the day that Tuttimelon West Portal opened.
Since I moved away from San Francisco, I wasn’t able to attend Easy Breezy West Portal’s opening day, March 3rd. But, I did swing by recently during a quick trip to the Bay Area in April.
The shop was super cute with wood accents and the signature blue Easy Breezy color. Breezy, the mascot, appears outside the shop and inside too. The signs are super eye-catching and appealing.
It was very busy during our visit. All the tables inside were taken and people were sitting on the bench outside. The customers were mostly young families.
There were four machines serving 8 flavors. It’s self-serve like the other Easy Breezy locations. Toppings included sauces, candy, cheesecake, mochi, cookie dough, popping boba, fresh fruit (the blueberries and strawberries were organic), brownies, chocolate chips, yogurt chips, local granola, cereal, nuts, sprinkles, etc. I love the Belgian butter waffle cookies that I sometimes find there but they didn’t have any during my visit. It’s 81 cents an ounce.
Flavors of the day:
- Acai & me (vegan)
- Chocolate amaretto (vegan)
- Chocolate custard
- Vanilla bean (organic yogurt))
- Cookie dough monster (organic yogurt)
- Vanilla custard
- Original tart (organic yogurt)
- Mango tajin (organic yogurt)
The vegan flavors are made with different bases, including coconut milk and cashew milk. There were lots of organic froyo options, plus indulgent frozen custards as well.
Congrats, Easy Breezy, and welcome to West Portal.
* EASY BREEZY WEST PORTAL: 44 W Portal Ave, San Francisco, CA 94127
You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.
Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.
Fro-yo girl here. It’s been a tough year so far for froyo shops in Azusa. N Gelato, which closed earlier this year, didn’t last a full year. Pinkberry Azusa opened in 2009. In 2013, they converted the toppings bar to self-serve though the yogurt was still dispensed by the employee. Going half self-serve seems strange.
It seems like there was a change in ownership around then and regulars started complaining that the store had gone downhill. Portions shrunk and fruit wasn’t fresh.
I visited in 2015 and noticed that they were skimping on the yogurt and toppings. I wrote this at the time: “There was a hole in the middle of my froyo and when I asked for raspberries, I only received 3 raspberries. I asked for a waffle cookie and only got ½ a cookie – usually other locations give you the whole cookie. Hmm. Why so stingy?” I was the only customer there at the time and I remember it was dark inside. The self-serve toppings bar was no longer offered.
The only froyo shop left in Azusa is Yogurtland. Meanwhile, the next occupant of the Pinkberry space is…Afters Ice Cream.
You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.
* PINKBERRY: 862 E Alosta Ave, Azusa, CA 91702
Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.
Fro-yo girl here. I don’t make it out to Valencia too often, but I had a reason to be there, so I thought I would check out the old Brew Le space. When Brew Le closed in late 2016, Things-N-Yogurt took over the space. When I finally found the shop, it wasn’t Things-N-Yogurt. About a month ago, new owners took over and changed the name to Yogurt N’ Things.
Some digging revealed that before Brew Le opened, the space was occupied by Tutti Frutti Frozen Yogurt. Brew-Le went upscale and offered organic and vegan froyo, along with coffee drinks.
It’s a cute space (when it was Brew Le, it was owned by Sasha Pieterse of Pretty Little Liars fame (Alison DiLaurentis) with a chalkboard wall, dark wood panels, and a tiled toppings counter. Some of the drinks on the chalkboard menu are the same ones that Brew Le offered – the menu wasn’t changed. The frozen yogurt has changed though. They no longer have organic frozen yogurt.
Based on old pictures, the décor hasn’t changed much from the Brew-Le days. It’s right next to a movie theater and if you present your movie ticket, you get 15% off.
The froyo is still self-serve. There are 10 flavors a day and toppings. The price is 55 cents an ounce. Toppings included: candy, granola, chocolate chips, cookies, mochi, coconut, fruit, cookie dough, popping boba, nuts, sprinkles, and syrups. They had some interesting flavors like unicorn yogurt and White Russian gelato.
Service was friendly. Unfortunately, Yogurt N’ Things seems just a continuation of Things-N-Yogurt. Even the name is similar. And the shop is walking distance to Menchie’s and Yogurtland.
* YOGURT N’ THINGS: 24415 Town Ctr Dr., Ste 125, Valencia, CA 91355
You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.
Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.
Fro-yo girl here. On a recent visit to Lohas Fresh Mart in Arcadia, CA, I spotted Want Want Yogurt Smoothies in the frozen section. This was my first time seeing Want Want Yogurt Smoothies for sale. The soft serve picture on the packaging definitely caught my eye. It doesn’t look like a smoothie but maybe something got lost in translation. Want Want Yogurt Smoothies are imported from China. They are manufactured by Want Want Holdings, the largest rice cake and flavored drink maker in Taiwan.
Lohas was selling a package of Want Want Smoothies for $2.69. Each package contains 4 individual packaged smoothie pouches. Each pouch is 80ml. Each package has two flavors. One had Strawberry & Blueberry smoothies. The other had Peach and Vanilla smoothies. The pouches are small, about half the size of Korean frozen smoothie pouches.
The directions on the pouch were in Chinese with no English translation. The product was frozen solid, so the directions probably involve defrosting. Then you twist the top off, squeeze the pouch, and consume. After about 15 minutes of defrosting, the product was ready for consumption.
Blueberry yogurt smoothie: The frozen smoothie was creamier than the Korean frozen milkshake. It seemed to have more dairy. I was pleasantly surprised that it didn’t taste like Yakult but tasted more like a sweet milky blueberry candy. Yes, it was sweet but it tasted better than the Korean frozen yogurt milkshake.
Strawberry yogurt smoothie: The strawberry flavor was similar – creamy with a sweet strawberry flavor. It wasn’t the most natural tasting but it wasn’t unpleasant either.
One serving has 120 calories, total fat 5g, sugars 13g and total carbohydrate 7g.
Ingredients (strawberry yogurt smoothie): Water, sugar, whole milk powder, refined coconut oil, glycerol, citric acid, pectin, propylene glycol alginate, lactic acid, succinylated monoglycerides, sucrose, fatty acid esters, artificial flavor (strawberry flavor), sodium carboxymethylcellulose, potassium sorbate, sodium citrate.
3.5 out of 5 stars
You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.
* LOHAS FRESH MART: 1304 S Baldwin Ave., Arcadia, CA 91007
Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.
Fro-yo girl here. Another froyo bar maker has just introduced frozen yogurt pints! Nestle Outshine launched a new line of pints. The non-dairy frozen dessert is banana-based (yuck), so I won’t be trying it. The Yogurt & Granola pints have hit the shelves at Target and they’re supposed to be available nationwide in April (this month). The flavors are:
- Peach
- Blueberry Acai
- Strawberry
Target sells the pints for $3.99 (regular price). One pint is 14 ounces. A serving is ½ a cup, 140 calories, 4.5g total fat, 17g sugars, and 6g protein. My Target only had the strawberry yogurt flavor and two non-dairy flavors.
The product is described as follows: “Each spoonful of Outshine Yogurt & Granola is made with creamy yogurt swirled with crunchy granola and real fruit. It’s the snack that refereshes you from the inside out.” It’s made without high fructose corn syrup, artificial colors or flavors. Outshine Yogurt & Granola is kosher and gluten-free.
* Strawberry Yogurt & Granola: The frozen yogurt had a mild, sweet strawberry flavor. It reminded me of refrigerated yogurt. There was a fair amount of granola though the granola wasn’t chunky – it mainly seemed like rolled oats. I was surprised to see some chunks of frozen strawberry. The texture wasn’t very creamy but it wasn’t icy either. It was in between. I'd recommend letting it soften before you try to eat it because it does freeze into a very hard consistency. Overall, the product is somewhat bland but inoffensive.
Ingredients: Yogurt (Skim Milk, Cane Sugar, Strawberry Puree, Strawberries, Cream, Milk Protein Concentrate, Pectin, Beet Juice Concentrate Color, Guar Gum, Natural Flavor, Carob Bean Gum, Live and Active Cultures [S. Thermophilus, L. Bulgaricus, L. Delbrueckii Subsp. Lactis, B. Lactis, L. Acidophilus]), Granola Clusteres (Granola [Oats, Honey, Canola Oil], Coconut Oil, Cane Sugar, Salt, Spice).
Outshine isn’t the first frozen yogurt with granola. Haagen Dazs came out with vanilla honey & granola frozen yogurt years ago.
3 out of 5 stars.
You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.
Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.
Fro-yo girl here. Menchie’s has partnered with Mrs. Thinsters Cookie Thins for this month’s featured flavors. The two new flavors, both made with Mrs. Thinsters Cookie Thins, are:
* Toasted Coconut Crunch: This is a lowfat flavor. The texture was creamy and smooth but it tasted like coconut with a hint of cookies. I think coconut fans will really like this flavor. The cookies do make it taste a little different than a plain coconut flavor. Recommended toppings: Coconut, almonds, Nilla wafers
* Classic Cookie: Classic cookie is a sugar cookie. I was surprised by this flavor. It tasted like a butter caramel with a hint of cookie flavor. It was super sweet or maybe just too caramelly for me? Recommended toppings: Almonds, Nilla wafers, bananas.
Both flavors contain no artificial flavors or colors, no high fructose corn syrup and no partially hydrogenated oils. I didn’t spot any Mrs. Thinsters cookies in the toppings bar.
You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.
Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.
Fro-yo girl here. Spring is here and so are the NEW Spring flavors at Yogurtland. The new flavors, scheduled to be released on April 2, are:
Sea Salt Caramel Soft Serve: It’s another new indulgent soft serve ice cream flavor but it has live and active cultures. Sea salt caramel soft serve is made with real caramel and sea salt. It’s described as, “The perfect combination of salty and sweet in a smooth and creamy treat! This rich and buttery cultured Soft Serve is everything a caramel lover wants!” The flavor was definitely buttery and in my opinion, very, very sweet. Recommended toppings: Almonds, Nilla wafers, whipped cream.
White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake Frozen Yogurt: This flavor sounds like it has so much going on. Yogurtland describes it as, “a perfect balance of jammy raspberries, creamy white chocolate, and rich cheesecake! Made with real raspberries and white chocolate.” I think the white chocolate was the reason the raspberry flavor wasn’t tart at all. I couldn’t detect the cheesecake. Recommended toppings: White chocolate chips, raspberry puree, almonds.
Hibiscus Pear Tart Frozen Yogurt: Finally, another new tart froyo flavor. This one is tarter than average. I mostly tasted the pear. The hibiscus tasted fruity, like strawberries. It was refreshing and tangy – yum! Recommended toppings: Raspberries, strawberries, strawberry wafer rolls, condensed milk.
I also spotted new toppings: Sea Salt Caramel Truffles and Milk Chocolate Peanut Butter Buckeyes. I love Buckeyes though I don’t think that they go with the new flavors. They need to bring back their Peanut Butter froyo ASAP, but if they don’t, there’s always the peanut butter sauce.
You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.
Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.
Fro-yo girl here. Yoga-urt has just introduced Cookies & Cream froyo. Yes, it’s organic, vegan, gluten free, and vegan. They made their own cookies to make this flavor happen and you can get those cookies as a topping now.
The chocolate cookie flavor seemed mild. I thought the cream flavor seemed stronger than the cookie flavor. The texture wasn’t as thick and creamy as some of the other flavors, but it’s probably because the flavor wasn’t in the machine as long? I heard a lot of positive comments from other customers. The flavor didn’t excite me but I think I’m used to the more complex flavors that Yoga-urt comes up with.
Mr. Froyo doesn’t eat cookies (?!) and was hoping for a light, no sugar added, refreshing flavor for the spring.
You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.
* YOGA-URT, 1407 ½ W Kenneth Rd., Glendale, CA 91201
Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.
