the power of greek yogurt: and the many things you can do with it
Greek yogurt is hands down one of my favorite foods on this planet… for several reasons. First, it is delicious. Second, it is highly nutritious. And third, there are SO MANY THINGS that you can do with it. Greek yogurt has become a staple food item within my household and I don’t plan on that changing anytime soon.
As a registered dietitian I first want to emphasize how HIGHLY nutritious greek yogurt is— and why I think that YOU ALL should add it into your diet if you haven’t already (unless you can’t and/or don’t eat dairy… or simply don’t like it). Greek yogurt has many MANY health benefits, including the following:
It is a GREAT source of protein…which is necessary for muscle development and maintenance, bone development, and skin health. It can also help you to feel more full until your next meal.
Probiotics… greek yogurt is a GREAT source of probiotics— which is a fancier way of saying it’s a great source of the “good bacteria” that provide significant benefit to the health of your gut microbiome. Probiotics also aid with digestion and improves overall immunity within your body.
Calcium… greek yogurt is a good source of calcium, which is imperative when it comes to bone AND teeth health.
Additional benefits: Not only is greek yogurt a GREAT source of protein, calcium, and probiotics… it also contains vitamin B12, B2, selenium phosphorus, zinc, vitamin A, and potassium.
Okay, you get the point… greek yogurt is good for you. You should eat more of it. But what if you simply don’t like the taste of it? Or the texture? Well I am here to tell you that there are SO many ways to incorporate greek yogurt into your diet, without eating it straight-up as is.
Shown below are several examples of the MANY things you can do with greek yogurt.
2-ingredient greek yogurt pizza dough. Hands down one of my favorite ways to use greek yogurt. There are so many recipes out there for greek yogurt pizza dough but the one that I typically use only requires two ingredients— greek yogurt & self-rising flour. Friday night is pizza night in our household and the greek yogurt crust is always a hit! One of my favorite parts about making this recipe is that (& my husband agrees) it never feels as heavy in my stomach after eating it.. especially when compared to traditional pizza crust!
Magic dough. Similar to the pizza dough, greek yogurt can be used when making other baked goods such as bagels, donut bites, flatbreads, garlic-knots, etc. I personally love making homemade bagels out of greek yogurt!
Homemade ranch dip/veggie dip/chip dip (whatever you want to call it really). This is another one of my favorite ways to utilize greek yogurt. Who doesn’t like dips? Next time you are craving that chip dip I encourage you to try making it at home with some greek yogurt! It’ll be delicious, nutritious, AND save you some money.
Substitute for sour cream. Greek yogurt is a great substitute for sour cream. From soups to Mexican food greek yogurt can be used in place of sour cream— by making this swap you’d be doing your body (& health) a favor!
Substitute for mayo in things like tuna salad, chicken salad, potato salad, pasta salad, etc. Again, one of my favorite ways to utilize greek yogurt. Whenever I whip up a tuna salad sandwich I use greek yogurt in place of the mayo. The best part? I don’t even notice a difference in taste!
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again… greek yogurt is highly nutritious and offers many health benefits. However, it’s important to keep an eye on the sugar content in greek yogurt as many brands will add sugar to enhance it’s flavor profile. As a registered dietitian my advice for you is to buy plain non-fat greek yogurt from the store and flavor it on your own at home. You can easily add vanilla extract or a homemade fruit puree to make it more sweet. And besides, by keeping your fridge stocked with a tub of plain greek yogurt at all times you’ll have the option to whip up other recipes when in a pinch (like the 2-ingredient pizza dough mentioned above).
Start today— prioritize your health by choosing to add greek yogurt into your diet!
Looking for more tips on how to clean up your diet? Are you experiencing symptoms that can be improved with diet and exercise? Interested in meeting with a registered dietitian? Nicole Baker Nutrition LLC is here for those in need!