Yogurt drinks are a favourite snack of mine. They are easy to grab and drink when I’m in a rush or not feeling well or when I know I need to eat something but nothing seems appealing.

The store-bought ones can be pretty expensive. A bottle of Yop can cost me like $2. When I make yogurt drinks myself, they cost less than $1 each – significantly less if I buy the larger containers of yogurt and frozen fruit. The ones I make myself also have about half as much sugar as the store-bought ones.

Blenders

To make these yogurt drinks, you’ll need some sort of blender. Something strong enough to blend frozen fruit. I’m using my Magic Bullet because it works better than my full-sized blender. Mine is almost 20 years old and came with a pitcher attachment. It doesn’t look like that’s included in the newer kits, at least not on Amazon. It looks like there is an off-brand pitcher that is compatible.

If you own a blender already, even an older one, it’s probably fine for the purpose of making yogurt drinks, it just might take some patience. Shake the pitcher periodically and blend it longer. If you’re in the market for a new blender, I’d recommend a NutriBullet. I don’t personally own one, but I have used them a few times, and it is what I will probably buy if my Magic Bullet dies on me.

Containers

You’ll want some containers to store your yogurt drinks in. When I first made a batch of yogurt drinks, I stored it in a pitcher, but that didn’t work well. It separates, and stirring the pitcher is inconvenient. So, I went looking for containers that I could store single servings in for convenience. I wanted to find something around 200ml (the size of normal yops) that was easy to clean and had a lid that made it possible to shake before drinking.

It turns out that half pint mason jars are exactly the right size. I had been saving a bunch of these jars for years with no particular use in mind. I just thought they were cute and might be handy. It’s always satisfying to find a use for something I’ve been saving.

I didn’t want to fiddle with the usual 2 part mason jar lids daily, so I bought these plastic ones. They seal well and are easy to clean. I can’t say yet how they’ll hold up over time, but they’re inexpensive and have worked well the past few weeks. You can also buy silicone sleeves for them. I haven’t tried those yet, but they might be good for packed lunches.

The “recipe” for these drinks is simple:

• 1 part Greek yogurt
• 1 part milk
• 1 part frozen fruit

I think any yogurt, milk and fruit combination will work. I use plain 2% fat Greek yogurt, 2% milk and mixed frozen strawberries, blueberries and bananas. You can buy all sorts of frozen fruit mixes from the store, or you can freeze any fruit you have. It’s a great way to store any fruit you might have that’s going bad.

I have to do small batches with the Magic Bullet, so I use a half cup measure. Half a cup of yogurt, half a cup of milk and half a cup of frozen fruit. 3 batches (so 1.5 cups of each ingredient total) filled up these 7 mason jars.

I find it easiest to blend the milk and berries first and then add the yogurt. If I put everything in at once I end up with chunks of fruit in the bottom. This probably wouldn’t be a problem with a more powerful blender.

Once you’ve filled the jars, you can store them in the fridge for 3-4 days. They can also be frozen, just make sure you leave room in the jars, since the liquid will expand when it freezes. I put 4 of these in the fridge and the other 3 in the freezer. Later, I’ll move the ones from the freezer to the fridge. This way, I can make a week’s worth of yogurt drinks and they won’t go bad before I get to drink them.

That’s it! Let me know if you try it.
~Lauren