Greek yogurt is in now.  A dollop of the strained cultured milk goes a long away, too – as its sour creaminess blends well with many flavors and cuisines.  I love to use Greek yogurt in desserts as it has a mousse-like quality in your mouth.  Hint: to limit sugar and other additives, I use the plain, unadulterated stuff and add my own flavor to it – with either fruit, nuts, seeds, spices and herbs, and whole food sweeteners like agave nectar, brown rice syrup or honey.

From a nutritional standpoint, I can’t speak highly enough about Greek yogurt as it’s jam-packed with good stuff.   One cup has…

• Calcium {250 mg – that’s about one-quarter of what your bones need daily}
• Protein {20 grams of high quality, easily digestible}
• Probiotics {“good” bacteria that keeping your immune and digestive system happy and healthy}

Be sure to check the yogurt label for the statement: “Contains live, active cultures”, as well as list of the strains of bacteria to ensure that probiotics are actually alive and in the product.  {Check the manufacturers website to dive deeper into the product’s probiotic content.}

Today, I am going to plunk some sweet and vitamin C-rich strawberries + omega fats with hemp seeds aka Hemp Hearts + antioxidant-rich cinnamon into plain Greek yogurt.  And swirl it.  It’s that simple.

 Serves 4 (1 cup each)

Ingredients

4 cups plain Greek yogurt, 0% fat

2 cups strawberries, diced

2 Tbsp. hemp seeds

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 teaspoon agave nectar (optional)

Directions

Place all ingredients into a blender or food processor and pulse until combined.  Spoon into parfaits glasses. If desired, drizzle with agave nectar.

Nutrition Information (per parfait): Calories: 201, Total Fat: 1 g, Saturated Fat: 0 g, Cholesterol: 5 mg, Sodium 191 mg, Carbohydrates: 29 g, Dietary Fiber: 5 g, Sugars: 23 g, Protein: 20 g

Enjoy eating simply!

-Vicki