Without getting a professional machine to keep in your kitchen, there are two main ways of making frozen yogurt. The first method involves making a mixture that is similar to an ice cream base, albeit much lower in fat than a full cream-and-eggs mixture, and churning it in an ice cream maker until the desired consistency is reached. The second method involves a literal translation, where the yogurt is mixed with fruit and frozen. Rianna, from For the Love of Baking, whipped up this Mango Frozen Yogurt using the latter technique and it is bursting with fruit and flavor. Mixing it with fruit is crucial, because yogurt does not usually react all that well to being frozen if you just pop a carton in to the freezer, and the more fruit you use, the better the final product will be. If you don't mind trying something a touch more time consuming, try going for the more traditional version instead.

If you're not down at the boardwalk, it could be a little bit harder to find frozen custard. Though the rich, ice cream-like treat is very popular in some parts of the country, other stands are few and far between. There is a resource available to frozen custard lovers: the CustardList. This website not only has the locations for various custard stands around the country, but maintains a record of what daily flavors are offered at many locations! You can even get this information while you are out driving to the stand, since they have a setup that allows you to access the database of current flavors via a web-enabled cell phone.

To make your search for a stand easier, you can narrow the field by searching by state. Twenty different states have custard stands listed at the moment, and if you know of one that isn't listed, you can submit it to be added.

I've said it before and I'll say it again: if you're going to make ice cream at home, it is worth it to get an ice cream maker. In fact, it is necessary to get an ice cream maker because it ensures that you will always get the optimal results from your frozen desserts. There are a wide range of ice cream makers to choose from, but there will definitely be at least one that fits your kitchen and your budget. After a batch or three of homemade ice cream, every single one will pay for itself in taste alone.

Ice Cream Ball - play with it and make ice cream. It's a great way to give your kids something to keep them occupied while they wait for the ice cream to be ready. $29

Cuisinart 1.5-qt. Yogurt, Ice Cream and Sorbet Maker - a great, easy-to-use all-purpose machine that can handle most family-sized jobs. Keep the extra freezer bowl in the freezer at all times so you're ready to go. Recommended by me (I own this model, pictured, and love it) and America's Test Kitchen. $49.95

After much debate about the sorbet vs. ice cream issue in a post earlier this week, we can conclude that sorbets, by definition, do not contain any milk products. We also know the different fat contents that make the difference between low fat and regular ice creams. But what of other ice cream terms? Here are a couple of handy definitions that should help clear things up:

• Sorbet - does not contains dairy; always very light in flavor
• Sherbet - almost always has a fruit component, but also must contain dairy to produce a dessert that is lighter than ice cream, but richer than sorbet
• Frozen yogurt - contains dairy that has been cultured (though most do not contain active cultures), and is churned to resemble soft ice cream, with a smooth, rich texture.
• Ice milk - just like an ice cream, but made with milk rather than cream; a little used term for strict constructionists of the word "ice cream," since most home chefs would say ice cream anyway
• Ice cream - must have at least 10% milkfat (or 8% if there is a mix-in) by volume (if sold commercially); may or may not contain eggs
• Frozen custard (also called French ice cream) - ice cream that is made with at least 1.4% egg yolks, giving it a richer texture than ordinary ice cream.
• Gelato - ice cream with a mixture of milk and sometimes cream in the base, often including eggs. It is churned less than regular ice cream and has less air in the final product, which gives it a dense texture.

I debated over what to name this dessert. The recipe that inspired it was in a recent issue of Cooking Light and was called a sorbet, but I felt that the rich, smooth taste of the dessert did not really fit the sorbet name. To me, sorbet inspires an icier treat and not a creamy one, not to mention the fact that most sorbets contain no dairy products at all. Ice creams usually have cream in them, but I think that in this case we can make an exception because the dessert, Black Cherry Buttermilk Ice Cream, is delicious enough to satisfy any ice cream lover.

A L.A.-based frozen yogurt shop is currently causing locals to wait in very long lines on these very chilly West Coast nights. Located in West Hollywood, Pinkberry serves frozen yogurt that's slightly sour, a little salty, and totally yummy because it's not too sweet. In short, it's frozen yogurt that actually tastes like yogurt (it tastes a lot like very cold, plain Dannon yogurt to me). The yogurt comes in plain or green tea; toppings include fresh fruit and granola. There's talk that Pinkberry will open up more outposts in L.A., but I really hope the chain goes national one day. Simply because Pinkberry needs to save the frozen yogurt/low fat ice cream genre from the evil Tasti-D-Lites of the world! Pinkberry: 868 Huntley Drive, West Hollywood, California, (310) 659-8285.