What to eat in record breaking heat

Today I thought I'd talk about the love affair I have been having...smooth and Greek. NO, not my affair de coeur, hes sweet and Jewish..but Yogurt.

Specifically Liberte Greek Yogurt

This yogurt is made using traditional Greek methods. Its strained according to the principles of old-time cheesecloth draining, which makes it incredibly rich and creamy and absolutely free of fat.

Now I have been a fan of Liberte yogourt for a long time, but I used to favour the Méditérranée Yogurt which sits in around 7%-10% fat. Mind bendingly good, but recently I have taken up this new "gaining weight easily" habit, so I had to kiss that one good bye.

I dont miss it a bit! I will admit I have monkey on my back, nutritionally, and its dairy. Perhaps it is my background in pastry. Perhaps it is because one of my "mottos" is " Salt and Fat make food taste good"  Whatever the reason its my downfall, so I am over the moon about ZERO FAT yogurt that tastes as rich and decadent as the full fat version.

I always but the plain, I have tried the fruit ones and they are good, but I prefer fresh fruit to the sweet jammy stuff that sits at the bottom of most yogurt cups. I sometimes add a touch of sugar, never honey, for some reason I do not like honey in it. I top it with fresh berries and usually my fav, Maple Oat Crunch cereal.

I swear its like a delicious fruit crumble with cream. It reminds me of a delicious decadent concoction I encountered as a young pastry chef.

When I was in catering at a high end corporate caterers called En Ville, we made a simple dessert, berries with "Russian cream". I think this name was specific to En Ville. None the less as a new pastry chef I was amazed that something so simple could be so good. It was quite simply, half sour cream, half yogurt, sugar to taste, and a splash of Grand Marnier. It tasted like a cloud of heaven dropped from the sky onto my berries.

Hey...did you know you can make your own yogurt and its dead easy!! I have made it a couple of times and it really is good. If you take the fiished yogurt and tie it up in a cheesecloth bag and hang it in the fridge( with a bowl underneath) you will end up with Greek yogurt, otherwise leave it as is.

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Ingrediants

1 litre (32 ounces) of full fat sheep or cow's milk (pasteurized)

2 tablespoons of previously homemade yogurt or plain unflavored yogurt with active live cultures

2 tablespoons of full fat milk (same type)

Get it together

Start with all ingredients at room temperature.

Heat the milk just to the boiling point and pour into a non-metal container.

Let cool to lukewarm (100-105F a little warm to the touch). A skin will form on top.

Mix the 2 tablespoons of yogurt (homemade or commercial) with 2 tablespoons of milk.

Add to the lukewarm mixture, carefully pouring down the side so that any skin that may have formed on top is not disturbed.

Cover with a clean dishtowel and place on another towel in a warm, dry place for at least 8 hours (or overnight) until it thickens.

Note: 8 to 12 hours is best. The longer the yogurt coagulates beyond that time, the more sour the taste becomes.

Good Luck!