The IFYA Turns 3, Froyo Poem Contest Winner Announced

Fro-yo girl here. The International Frozen Yogurt Association (IFYA) just turned three on July 29, 2013. Since its founding, the IFYA has:

• Grown its membership base to nearly 1,400 members in 104 countries. The majority of members are frozen yogurt shop operators.
• Built a social media presence that includes over 2,000 Twitter followers on Twitter, over 1,000 followers on Pinterest, nearly 700 followers on Instagram and over 500 Facebook fans.
• Secured a wide variety of member discounts, including discounts from new ones from FrozenSolutions.com, Café Pofferazzi, FrozenYogurtParts.com and Soft Serve Solutions 

The IFYA also sponsored a froyo poetry contest to commemorate its third anniversary. The winning poem was submitted by @db_pottery:

‘Twas the night before the new promo
and I could hardly wait

to rush out to Yogurtland
and anxiously find out my fate.

New flavors and special toppings
all waiting just for me;

which one would be my favorite?

The time was getting close to see.

My heart danced with glee
as I skipped into the store;
this is what I live for after all,
special promos...give me more!

With eyes wide and sample cup in hand
I certainly wasted no time;
after all there was something tasty
and it was soon to be mine.

Once the sampling was complete,
my mind was made up;
I knew exactly which temptations
I wanted to have in my cup.

Some cookie dough and Reese's
along with a few chocolate chips;
this was sure to be pleasant
once it finally hit my lips.

And of course one last thing

I couldn't leave out... lots of fluffy whipped cream;
it's something I never go without!

The final order of business
now that the creation was complete,
was to pull out my Real Rewards card
and happily pay for my treat.

The moment was finally here
with one more special surprise;
a new collectible spoon
presented to me before my very eyes!

Like a child at Christmas
this had been the best day;
me and my beloved fro-yo... Hooray! Hooray!

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.

Yogurtland & Nintendo Game On New Flavor & New Spoon: Princess Peach Tart

Fro-yo girl here. A new Nintendo inspired froyo flavor is now swirling at Yogurtland, Princess Peach Tart. Since I love tart, fruity flavors, I was excited about the new flavor. Yogurtland already has a Juicy Peach Tart flavor that I like and I believe Princess Peach Tart is the same as Juicy Peach Tart, only with a new name.

Also, the new Princess Peach spoon arrived today. It’s pink and fit for a princess.

* Princess Peach Tart: According to the flavor card, “Princess Peach brings the flavors of summer to the Kingdom with this refreshingly fruity tart. It combines real, fresh-picked peaches for a lightly tangy taste with natural sweetness and vitamin C.” It’s made with real peach. It’s one of the sweeter tart flavors though it still has a mild tang and a juicy, refreshing quality. Recommended toppings: Popping boba, sour gummy worms, fresh strawberries, raspberry puree

Princess Peach tart is available while supplies last. Mark your calendar for the next new flavor, Donkey Kong Banana Cream on August 5.

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.

Yogurtland Testing Gelato Sandwiches

Fro-yo girl here. Yogurtland is currently testing a new offering, gelato sandwiches. They’re sold by the box, with four vanilla gelato chocolate chip sandwiches per box, for $5.95. There’s just one flavor at the moment and you can find them in the freezer at Yogurtland CSUF (Cal State Fullerton) and Seal Beach, CA. 

The chocolate chip cookies were thin and soft. For some reason my cookies were also wet and soggy – perhaps because it took two hours for me to transport them home (but I had them in an ice chest and they didn’t look like they melted). I liked the firm crunchy chocolate chips. I cranked up the freezer and tried the sandwich again – the cookies were still very soft and even oily but not as soggy. They’re like big cookie dough discs which is great if you like cookie dough. The vanilla gelato wasn’t smooth in texture, which is unusual since Yogurtland’s yogurts and gelato are always smooth. It was gritty/sandy; the flavor was fine though pretty sweet. The flavor of the chocolate chip cookies dominated the flavor of the gelato. The flavor of the sandwich was fine but the texture wasn’t what I expected.

Each sandwich is 4.8 fl oz. One sandwich is 300 calories, 12g of fat, 32g of sugar and 6g of protein. The vanilla gelato has live and active cultures.

Ingredients: Cultured gelato (pasteurized & cultured milk, skim milk, sugar, cream, dextrose, whey, stabilizer (mono & diglycerides, locust bean gum, guar gum), vanilla extract), Cookie (enriched wheat flour (wheat flour, malted barley flour, niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate (Vitamin B1), riboflavin (Vitamin B2), folic acid), brown sugar, chocolate chunks (sugar, unsweetened chocolate, cocoa butter, dextrose, soy lecithin an emulsifier, vanilla), palm oil, sugar, butter, eggs, invert syrup, salt, natural flavor, whey, baking soda.

Has anyone else seen or tried Yogurtland Gelato Sandwiches?

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.

Yoga-urt Turns One with a New Flavor and New Menu Item

Fro-yo girl here. This time last year, I attended the soft opening of Yoga-urt, LA’s first all organic, non-dairy, vegan, kosher, soy free frozen yogurt shop. Here’s the story from last year, http://froyogirl.blogspot.com/2015/07/innovative-froyo-shop-spotlight-yoga.html

This past weekend was the first anniversary weekend at Yoga-urt. To commerorate the special occasion, Yoga-urt introduced a new menu item, dairy-free, organic yogurt parfaits made with coconut meat and almonds and a new flavor, Radiant Golden Rose made with rosewater, turmeric and saffron. During the anniversary weekend they offered a $1 discount from 2-5 PM. They also have an Yoga-urt Turns One Instagram photo contest that combines yoga and froyo, the two things that inspired the business.

The shop has a new look with yummy looking pictures of their products on the walls.

* Radiant golden rose: This unique flavor has a beautiful rich yellow color and tastes mostly like saffron with a hint of rosewater. The texture is thick and dense and yet it’s still light and refreshing. It’s sweet and not tangy. Radiant golden rose reminds me of a Middle Eastern inspired dessert – so good! So different too.

Congrats to founder, Melissa Schulman!

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.

Find Waldo Local, Waldo Hiding at Yogurtland Pasadena

Fro-yo girl here. I was at my local Yogurtland (415 S. Lake Ave., Pasadena, CA) the other day when I spotted the Find Waldo passport by the door. Find Waldo Local in Pasadena is being hosted by Vroman’s Bookstore. As part of the scavenger hunt, your task is to find Waldo at local businesses in July. Yogurtland Pasadena is one of the 15 participating businesses. When you spot Waldo, tell the store and get the store stamp or signature. Once you’ve collected 10 stamps, bring your passport to Vroman’s to claim an “I Found Waldo” button (for the first 125 spotters) and be entered into the prize drawing.

Vroman’s is hosting a Where’s Waldo party and prize drawing on Friday, July 29 at 5 PM.

This is the fifth Find Waldo Local event. The nationwide event is co-sponsored by Candlewick Press and the American Booksellers Association. Two hundred fifty bookstores participate every year.

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.

New Yogurtland & Nintendo Game On Flavor: Goomba’s Iced Coffee

Fro-yo girl here. Goomba’s favorite froyo flavor has arrived at Yogurtland, Goomba’s Iced Coffee.

It’s the latest Nintendo inspired froyo flavor at Yogurtland.

I love coffee flavored froyo like Yogurtland’s Caramel Macchiato and Sumatra Coffee, so I was looking forward to this flavor.

* Goomba’s Iced Coffee: The flavor card says, “There’s no Goomba that wouldn’t want to take a bite out of this iced coffee froyo that blends together real Sumatra coffee and espresso for a lightly sweet and creamy guilt-free treat.” Goomba’s Iced Coffee is a No Sugar Added flavor that’s non-fat. It tastes very similar to Yogurtland’s Sumatra Coffee only it’s NSA; the Sumatra coffee gives it a distinctive taste but it's not harsh or bitter. I like crunchy chocolate with my coffee froyo. Recommended toppings: Chocolate shell, almonds, white chocolate chips, toffee bits

There was a new topping, sour twin cherries gummy candies. I don’t think sour twin cherries complement coffee froyo but I would add them to Plain Tart.

Goomba’s Iced Coffee is available while supplies last. The next new flavor is Princess Peach Tart which comes out on July 29, along with the Princess Peach spoon.

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.

New Fage Line: Crossovers Review

Fro-yo girl here. In the yogurt world, the competition is heating up for the snack market with a new wave of savory yogurts. Fage’s new line which was launched in May, Crossovers, promises “chef level snacking” with distinct, delicious flavors, lowfat Greek strained yogurt and crunchy toppings. The seven flavors are:

* Olive thyme with roasted almonds

* Carrot ginger with roasted pistachios: Interesting, with bits of carrot and bits of ginger, mixed with tangy not too sweet yogurt, the carrot adds texture, seemed thick and smooth, filling

* Caramel with honey roasted salted almonds: This was nice because the caramel wasn’t too sweet or overwhelming, the tangy yogurt flavor was still the star and the honey roasted salted almonds were crunchy and deliciously salty, sweet and nutty

* Coconut curry with cashews: Not a big fan of coconut but I really liked this flavor because the curry flavor is so distinctive yet not strong, it was still creamy and sweet with bits of coconut and the roasted cashews were so good

* Tomato basil with almonds: Very interesting and possibly my favorite, remember that tomatoes are a fruit, this yogurt plays on that. The tomato flavor isn’t strong but it’s lightly sweet with pops of basil flavor. I liked how the yogurt was tangy and not too sweet nor too salty

* Maple syrup with granola: The maple flavor wasn’t strong, the cinnamon and tangy yogurt flavors were stronger, the crunchy ancient grain granola was great too – with millet, amaranth, chia seeds, quinoa flakes

* Coconut with dark chocolate

The all natural yogurt is Greek strained and lowfat. The toppings are kept separate using the split cup container. You can fold the split cup over to easily add the toppings to the yogurt side.

I like yogurt and nuts as snacks and yogurt in savory applications (e.g., tzakiki, raita), so this seemed like a product that I would like. The combinations sounded good to me though the sweet ones were less interesting/less novel.

One serving is 5.3 ounces. The carrot ginger variety has 210 calories, 9g of total fat, 260mg of sodium, 13g of sugar and 15g of protein.

I really liked all of the flavors that I tried because the flavors were different and interesting, the tangy flavor of yogurt was still present and the yogurt wasn’t too sweet or too salty. The combinations were thoughtful and balanced. All of the toppings were delicious.

I found Fage Crossovers at Sprouts but they didn’t carry all 7 flavors. They were priced at $1.79 each. Ralph’s had Crossovers for $1.59 each regular price and 10 for $10 on sale.

Find crossovers with the store locator tool: http://usa.fage.eu/yogurts/fage-crossovers

You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.

4.5 out of 5 stars.

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.