DD FOOD: Lovely, luxurious Greek yogurt is easy to include in many meals to give an added dollop of protein to your diet.
Whether it’s a breakfast smoothie or parfait, lunchtime pitta sandwich, marinade for a BBQ or a swirl in a soup, it’s more popular than ever as a superfood.
The Greeks make yogurt by straining it to remove much of the sugar, lactose (natural milk sugar) and whey (the liquid remaining after the milk is curdled), which means not only is it thicker and more creamy, but it provides twice as much protein as regular yogurt, with less natural sugar.
So it should keep you feeling fuller for longer, offsetting its slightly higher calories — anything from 96 to 130 per 100g, depending on the brand.
Greek yogurt has up to 20 grams of protein per container; traditional yogurt may have as few as five grams. New rulings last year mean only yogurt made in Greece can be called Greek yogurt. Anything else has to be called ‘Greek style’.
Here’s some suggestions to get real Greek yogurt into your diet.
EASY GARLIC AND YOGURT MARINATED CHICKEN
Ingredients
For the chicken
150g (5oz) thick Greek yogurt
1½tbsp olive oil
1 clove garlic, crushed
2tbsp parsley, finely chopped, plus extra for garnish
few sprigs of thyme, leaves snipped
Mini chicken fillets (4-6)
*In a bowl, mix together the yogurt, half a tablespoon of oil, the garlic and herbs. Add the chicken fillets, cover and leave to marinate for a couple of hours or overnight.
*Preheat the grill. Place the chicken and its marinade into a foil-lined grill pan. Cook for about 8-10minutes until cooked through – check with a skewer to ensure they are cooked through – then wrap in the foil and leave to rest for a couple of minutes.
Serve with sweet potato wedges and a green salad.
You can also mix garlic and rosemary with some yogurt for an easy dip for the wedges.
GREEK YOGURT BREAKFAST BLAST
In a blender mix 4 tablespoons of blueberries, 200ml greek yoghurt, ½ tsp cinnamon, 1 tbsp coconut shavings (or 1 tsp coconut oil) and ice to taste.
ROASTED BUTTERNUT SQUASH SOUP WITH A DOLLOP OF YOGURT
Chop the squash, sprinkle with cumin and spray with oil of your choice. Place in oven for 30/40 mins. Add a stock cube to some boiling water and place the cooked squash in the pan and season with black pepper. Blend the soup and add two tbs of yogurt to each bowl.
