I recently read this post about eating clean and it caused me to look more closely at the food I eat.  Especially yogurt.  I don’t eat too many packaged foods but I do eat yogurt every day, usually greek yogurt with strawberries.  Alexis, at hummusapien.com, points out that some yogurts contain things like cornstarch, sucralose and “natural flavors” as ingredients – what exactly are natural flavors anyway??  I took a  look at the ingredient list of the yogurt I usually eat and it contained a lot of things other than yogurt and strawberries. So I decided to make my own flavored greek yogurt using strawberries, jam and honey and it turned out great.

Yes, it’s a bit more work than just grabbing a container out of the fridge but if you plan it out and make the strawberry topping in advance all you have to do is stir in the honey and the strawberries and you’re done.  Make a larger batch of the strawberries topping and keep it in the fridge to add to your yogurt or ice cream or oatmeal or a slice of pound cake…oh, you get the idea.

The problem with using just fresh strawberries is they are too firm.  You need to soften them up somehow – and this is where macerating comes in.  You are basically marinating the fruit in a touch of jam.  It softens the strawberries and helps them release their juices.   It’s best to do this overnight if you can.  But it can be done in 30 minutes if the strawberries sit at room temperature.

A couple of notes:

I like to swirl a squeeze of honey into my yogurt – I think it tones down the tartness of the yogurt.

You can make a big batch of strawberries in the evening and leave it in the fridge to macerate overnight and it will be ready in the morning to use for the next couple of days.  The ratio of strawberries to jam should be roughly 8 berries to 1 tsp of jam.

Don’t like strawberries, then try another fruit like raspberries, blackberries or maybe cherries.

Greek Yogurt with Strawberries

Greek yogurt swirled with honey and topped with marinated strawberries – a great way to start the morning or a delicious afternoon snack.

• Prep Time: 30 mins
• Total Time: 30 mins
• Yield: 2 1x

Scale 1x2x3x

Ingredients

• 8 strawberries
• 1 tsp strawberry jam or jelly
• 2 cups of Greek Yogurt (I used no fat yogurt)
• 2 squeezes of honey

Instructions

1. Wash strawberries and remove tops. Slice strawberries and place in a bowl. Add 1 tsp of jam and stir to coat strawberries. Set aside at room temperature for 30 minutes.
2. Divide greek yogurt into two bowls (1 cup in each bowl).
3. Add one squeeze of honey to each bowl of yogurt and stir to blend.
4. Top each bowl with half of the strawberry mixture and stir to combine.