Here's my recipe for semi-zone friendly frozen vanilla yogurt. I copied below from the spreadsheet I use, but basically the ingredients are:

- 700 grams Full-Fat Fage Greek Yogurt
- 9.5 TBSP Sugar
- 1 scoop whey protein isolate
- 1 tsp vanilla extra (or 2 vanilla beans)
- 3/4 tsp Cardomon

Then follow directions of your ice cream maker (I use the OK-not great Cuisinart "ICE-21" (Amazon sells for ~$50)

Note, of course you could trade-off some of the sugar with stevia, but personally I find it to be a GI irritant and don't like the taste (in particular, doesn't go well with tanginess of greek yogurt). In contrast, the whey protein powder has a deep milky taste that actually goes well with the yogurt.

Note also fat percentage is actually lower than 30% in this version of the recipe, and even though 80% of the carbs come from unfavorable sugar, to my body I just don't get the same negative reaction as I do to other sweets, which may possibly be due to the extra-favorable protein source (?)


Ingredient Portions Grams P C F

Yogurt Full ; Per Gram 700 1 gram 700 63.0 28.0 35.0
Sugar 9.62 1 TBSP 121 0.0 115.4 0.0
Protein Powder 1.00 1 Scoop 30 25.0 1.0 0.0
Vanilla Extract 1.00 1 Tsp.
Vanilla Bean / Vodka
Cardomon 0.75 1 Tsp.
TOTAL 88.0 144.4 35.0
Ratio 61%
Fat % 25%

How is this Semi-Zone ????????????????????

It's protein to carb ratio is within the range of .6 to 1.0...

My take, maybe it isn't perfect, but ice cream is not perfect, either!

Jonathan, macrountrient balance on paper does not necessarily translate to Zone success. Sorry to break it to you, but this snack is in no way Zone friendly. You may not be feeling the effects of increased insulin (some people done't) but that doesn't mean it isn't happening.

Sue: what exactly is the problem with the snack (besides using high GI sugar?)

And I disagree--I think the key thing to focus on is your own sense of increased insulin.

What we have to keep in mind is that the Zone is not the same for everyone.

Not everyone fits the mold of a 40-30-30 balance of macronutrients. Some of us who are more carb-sensitive will need a bit less carb and a bit more fat. On the other hand, there are also a few people who are blessed with a higher degree of carb tolerance than others.

Without knowing Jonathon personally, I would not venture to guess which mold he best fits into.

Going back to the basics, one needs to eat zone balanced meals/snacks to include zone-favorable foods. Balancing is the easy part, IMO. Keeping the foods to the rule of 75% favorable and no more than 25% unfavorable is sometimes a challenge. Knowing whether or not one can tolerate some unfavorable carb is NOT really that hard, otherwise it would make the Zone literally impossible. Just follow the symptoms, listen to your body.

IMO this is a thread about a frozen yogurt recipe. I believe that when we are looking for recipes that substitute otherwise very unhealthy foods, we just need to keep in mind that it may not be perfect, but it is probably a better way of endulging. Personally, I think his recipe is good... he admitted that the carb was 80% unfavorable, but isn't that also true in store bought frozen yogurt and in ice cream, as well is the fact that those products are not zone balanced?

One thing that I would personally do or change in the recipe, I would probably push up the fat content a bit more, because that will help slow the entry of the unfavorable carbs as they break down in the digestive process. Might make this work for others who are a bit more carb intolerant.

Jonathan. Don't forget that the glycemic load (GL) is what really counts.

My daughter has a very old triple brownie recipe.
And in it, one of the layers is a fudge like chocolate.
It suggests a 3:1 ratio of cocoa powder to fat substitute (plus sweetener).
So your 1/3 cup Cocoa powder with 2 Tbl Olive Oil is in that range,
and explains why it tastes good.

P.S. I read you original recipe, where-in you (like myself) do not like the after-taste of Stevia.
You could try Pure Maple Syrup instead of Sugar?
Adds another flavor plus you'd be getting a lot of nutrients vs. none with sugar.
Does not help make it Favorable, but its an indulgence - not meant to be.