Fix Me A Snack

This post is a part of a series of 101 ways to flavor plain yogurt. For more information about yogurt in general, go to my Yogurt page.

7. Mint Yogurt

You could throw a little lime juice into this one and call it Mojito Yogurt.

4-5 medium fresh mint leaves
1 -2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 cup plain yogurt

Place mint and sugar in a small bowl. Grind together with a muddler or something similar until the leaves are crushed into small pieces. Add yogurt to bowl and mix well making sure to scrape all of the mint mixture off of the bottom. Serve.

 

8. Mint Yogurt with Pineapple

 

You guessed it, Mint Yogurt with some chopped fresh pineapple thrown on top. I got the idea for this one from 80 Breakfasts. Serve immediately because the pineapple contains enzymes or something that will break down the yogurt if left sitting together too long. 

 

9. Mint Chocolate Chip Yogurt

1/2 cup plain yogurt
4-5 fresh mint leaves
1 teaspoon sugar
1-2 teaspoons mini chocolate chips or chocolate shavings

In a small bowl, muddle together the mint and the sugar (see #7 Mint Yogurt). Add the yogurt and half of the chocolate chips. Stir well and top with remaining chips. Serve. 

 

10. Chocolate Yogurt

I’m not terribly fond of this flavor. Chocolate should not be tangy. But my preschooler guaranteed it’s inclusion on the list when she said, “I just want to eat chocolate yogurt all day Every chocolate yogurt in the whole world Then I’d get a tummy ache Just kidding!”

1/2 cup plain yogurt
3 teaspoons chocolate syrup
1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract
Small pinch salt

Mix the yogurt, syrup, vanilla, and salt in a small bowl until the color is uniform. Serve. Might be yummy topped with chopped banana or slivered almonds.

 

11. Lime Pie Yogurt

Ideally, this would be made with key lime juice. Alas, the world is not a perfect place and we do not live in Flordia.

1/2 cup plain yogurt
1-2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lime juice
Whipped cream for garnish

In a small bowl stir the yogurt, sugar, and lime juice until smooth. Garnish with whipped cream. Serve.

If you’re anything like me, you’re a little stumped by what to do with the giant bunch of leftover parsley sitting at the bottom of your crisper drawer. Occasionally, a dinner recipe calls for 1/4 cup of fresh parsley and I know it’ll make a difference in the end product, so I go ahead and spring for it at the grocery store. But then the rest of it  just rots in a bag in the refrigerator. So sad.

Well, those days are over! I have made a modified Green Goddess Dip that makes a special effort to use lots and lots of parsley and pantry staples that you are likely to already have on hand. And you’re getting some bonus greens into your family’s diet!

2 cups chopped fresh parsley, washed
1 cup plain greek-style yogurt or sour cream
1 small or medium clove garlic, peeled and crushed
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar or freshly squeezed lemon juice
Pinch salt

Place the parsley, yogurt, garlic, vinegar and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Cover and pulse for 20 seconds or so. Serve with fresh veggies or crackers. Store in a airtight container in the refrigerator.

Note: I’ve gone a little easy on the garlic in an attempt to go easy on kids’ palette. But, when I made it I used 2 cloves and my first grader loved it.

Yield: 1 1/2 cups
Prep-time: 10 minutes

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This post is a part of a series of 101 ways to flavor plain yogurt. For more information about yogurt in general, go to my Yogurt page.

I forgot to mention last week was that all of the recipes in this series offer ballpark measurements for the ingredients. Feel free to adjust to your own taste and eyeball it. No rocket science going on here.

Also, in case anyone is feeling a little anxious about the regularity of the series, I’ve decided that Thursday will be Yogurt 101 day barring any unforeseen craziness.

4. Butterscotch Yogurt

As you can well imagine, this one has been a hit chez nous. I am of the opinion that all things butterscotch flavored are due for a huge comeback.

1/2 cup plain yogurt
1  tablespoon butterscotch sauce

In a small bowl, stir together yogurt and butterscotch until smooth. Top with whipped cream and/or butterscotch chips, if desired. Serve.

 

5. Cucumber Dill Yogurt

The idea for this flavor sensation came from none other than Dina Rose of It’s Not About Nutrition.

When I served these to my kids my first-grader said, “Hey Mom, these are like the Willy Wonka cups!” She proceeded to gobble two down.

1/3 cup plain yogurt
1/4 teaspoon dried dill
1/4 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
Small pinch salt
Half of a cucumber, peeled

In a small bowl, stir together the yogurt, dill, lemon juice, garlic powder, and salt until smooth and well combined. Set aside.

Cut the cucumber half into thirds. Using a melon baller, scoop out the seeds of each cucumber section leaving the bottom in order to create a cup. Fill each cup with the yogurt mixture and serve.

 

6. Strawberry Yogurt

I like to use Trader Joe’s low-sugar strawberry jam for this recipe. If you have regular jam, start with 1 tablespoon and add more to taste.

1/2 cup plain yogurt
2T low-sugar strawberry jam (or to taste)

Stir yogurt and jam until combined. Top with fruit. Serve.

I recently authored a page all about yogurt for this blog which reminded me that I still haven’t tasted Icelandic-style yogurt. When I ventured into Stop & Shop last week, what did I see? You guessed it. Siggi’s now has prime shelf space in the refrigerator case. The price is steep at $2.39 for 6 ounces of yogurt. But I sprulged in the name of culinary research.

Icelandic-style yogurt is impressively thick. It stays on the spoon and has the heft of ricotta. It puts the creaminess of Greek-style yogurt to shame.

The ingredient list and nutritional information are quiet impressive. The first thing I thought is that this would make an excellent snack for pregnant ladies jonesing for a protien fix. Although I was always a big fan of whole yogurt when I was pregnant, and this yogurt (good or bad) has no fat. I also gained 50 pounds when I was preggers, so you probably shouldn’t be taking dieting advice from me.

Now, on to the important part: the taste. Compared to the flavored yogurt I’m used to (that is loaded with sugar and additives), the sweetness is quite dim. This stuff actually tastes like tart and tangy yogurt and not an ice cream sundae. It took me a few bites to get used to it. But then I kind of liked it.

Here’s my lastest super fantastic idea…make a list of 101 different ways to flavor  plain yogurt, the unsung hero of healthy snacking. I’ll be making my way to 101 gradually. Today I’m posting the first three.

To help kick off this series of posts, I’ve created a page all about yogurt in general.

1. Applesauce Yogurt

This is what I actually make my  preschooler for a snack these days when time is limited and I’m not feeling inspired. It also is responsible for weaning us off of flavored yogurt. So while the photo is somewhat sad, Apple Yogurt has to be numero uno.

1/2 – 3/4 cup plain yogurt
1/4 – 1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 – 2 teaspoons honey
Dash ground cinnamon

Put the yogurt, applesauce, honey, and cinnamon into a serving bowl. Serve.

 

2. Cornbread with Yogurt and Honey

I was recently drooling over the Lee Brothers Southeren Cookbook  and stumbled upon a mention of someone’s favorite after-school snack having been cornbread topped with sugar and buttermilk.

I made some cornbread – et voila!

 

1 cup crumbled cornbread
1/4 cup plain yogurt
2 tablespoons buttermilk
Honey (to taste)

Place cornbread in a serving bowl and set aside. In a small bowl, stir together the yogurt and buttermilk until smooth. Spoon the yogurt mixture over the cornbread. Drizzle honey on top depending on your preference and the sweetness of the cornbread. Serve.

Note: If you don’t have buttermilk on hand, you could just try some regular milk or make a substitute.

 

3. Peanut Butter and Jelly Yogurt

This idea came directly from the one and only Dina of It’s Not About Nutrition and it is a winner. My preschooler loves it.

1/2 cup plain yogurt
2 tablespoons peanut butter
1/2 teaspoon sugar (optional)
2 teaspoons strawberry or grape jam

In a small bowl, heat peanut butter in the microwave for 20-30 seconds. (Note: I was heating peanut butter that had been refrigerated. If yours is room temperature, start with only 10 seconds and check to see if has softened.) Mix peanut butter into yogurt. Sprinkle on sugar. Dollop jam on top. Serve.

Thanks Dina!

There’s nothing like a bag of inexpensive red grapefruits to brighten up these sometimes dreary winter days.

If your kids are younger, or if you just don’t feel like getting fancy with the skewers, you can serve the grapefruit on the side or simply on top of the yogurt parfait style.

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Recently, my three-year-old grew tired of clementines (gasp!). She is a great lover of novelty.  Here are a few ways I’ve found to rekindle the magic:

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I’m on a bit of a back-to-basics kick lately. I hope I’m not putting my dear readers to sleep. Believe me, I’ve been experimenting with crazy “innovative” snacks. But they’ve all been bombs. Sometimes I need to whip up something more predictable so my kids will not mount a rebellion. 

 

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I used some sweet and juicy Garnet Spy apples for this recipe today. Try to use fresh apples as I can see a mealy grocery store apple really ruining the party.

Adapted from “Apple and Sweet Potato Puree” in the Apple Cookbook by Olwen Woodier.

1 small sweet potato (yields approximately 1 cup of cooked potato)
2 medium apples, peeled, cored and cut into quarters
1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch ground ginger (optional)
Pinch freshly ground nutmeg
Pinch salt
1/4 cup plain yogurt

With a knife or fork puncture the skin of the sweet potato a few times. Microwave on high for approximately 4 minutes or until soft throughout. Test by inserting a knife into the potato. If there is little resistance, it is cooked. Set aside and allow to cool.

Microwave apples in a small bowl for 3 minutes or until well cooked. Transfer apples to a blender along with any juices that were released while cooking. Slice the sweet potato in half lengthwise and remove most of the skin. Put the potato plup in the blender along with the apples.

Put the remaining ingredients in the blender (butter, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, salt and yogurt) and puree until smooth. Allow to cool 2 minutes and serve in small bowls. If you feel like pulling out all the stops top with chocolate sprinkles. Store in the refrigerator in an air-tight container.

Yield: 4 servings (approximately 2 cups)
Prep time: 15 minutes

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A few days ago we went to the orchard and there were still raspberries waiting to be picked in the raspberry patch. They are terribly fragile and have a shelf life of about 10 minutes. But we nonetheless managed to turn them into a quick and delightful little snack.

1 cup plain greek-style yogurt
1/2 teaspoon fresh squeezed lemon juice (to taste)
1 tablespoon sugar
1/3 cup granola (preferably something with almonds)
1 pint raspberries

Gently rinse raspberries and allow them to air dry.

In a small bowl, mix together the yogurt, lemon juice, lemon zest, and sugar. Divide the yogurt between three small bowls (1/3 cup each). Top yogurt with 1 – 2 tablespoons granola and then with a generous handful of raspberries. Serve.

Yield: 3 servings
Prep time: 10 minutes

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