Save Money, Calories, and the Environment with this Yogurt 
Tuesday January 5, 2010
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Is it possible to find a yogurt that tastes great and doesn't inflate your waist? Yes! Does yogurt have to have Sucralose or other artificial sweeteners to be low calorie? No!
You can mix your own yogurt with your favorites, put it in a small container and you will have a great tasting snack that is better for you and the environment.
But you do have to do a little work. This is a DIY yogurt for taking to work or lunch. All you have to do is mix your favorite brand of PLAIN yogurt (no-fat, greek, low-fat, all the fat) with your favorite jam (fruit, sugar, no sugar), in a small container.
You will save money, calories, and it will taste SO much better than a Yoplait Strawberry Yogurt. AND, you will save the environment, because you won't be tossing out the package at the end.
The containers photographed here are from Glad, they are BPA free, and approved for your dish washer (top rack). They retail for about $2.00 for 8 containers.
How do I get 60 calories? I have 4 ounces of non-fat yogurt (50) and 1 teaspoon or so of jam (10). This may not be enough sugar for some of you - but you can add more and then get used to having less.
Or you can add Stevia or another sweetener. IT IS UP TO YOU. You don't have to worry about added stuff that you didn't want in your yogurt in the first place - for example Yoplait Strawberry Yogurt (there are a bunch of other brands that add yucky stuff too).
As for money, a large container of yogurt might cost you $3 for 32 ounces (8 servings) and lets say $3 for the jam. That is $6 for 8 servings and you can usually get Yoplait Strawberry Yogurt (on sale) for 4 for $5.
So, it will cost you (without the cost of the containers) $6 versus $10 for your yogurt. A savings of 40%!
Of course, this is going to vary based on your part of the country and what you choose to buy - but it is, on average, cheaper to mix your yogurt yourself.
Please share your packaged food replacement ideas below?
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print10 Comments:
We live on yogurt in our house and these are great ideas. When my daughter was just beginning to eat solid foods, we would mix oatmeal into yogurt, maple syrup and all kinds of jams also. We've never stopped! If you buy frozen fruit it is cheaper and lasts longer. Just pop some pieces into the microwave to thaw them out.
Deb on January 5, 2010
Mmm, this is a great idea... I love vanilla yogurt, I bet I could just add a little vanilla extract to my plain yogurt. Can't wait to try this out!
stephv on January 5, 2010
My favorite lunch is plain yogurt with a few peanuts, raisins and just a sprinkling of healthy, slightly sweetened cereal. Since cutting down on sugar, I don't crave it nearly as much as before. Finally able to drop those last few pounds with this new, lower sugar approach! :)
EasyLunchboxes on January 5, 2010
I also add frozen fruit to both my plain yogurt and greek yogurt. For a frozen treat, I eat it while the fruit is still frozen without thawing it. Cherries and mangoes are my favorite frozen additions.
Sweetening greek yogurt with maple syrup gives it a caramel taste that I don't find if I use honey.
Candice on January 6, 2010
make big meals and freeze them in individual containers! i do it all the time! vanilla and almond extract are gret in soygurt
roo on January 6, 2010
One of my toddler son's favorites is vanilla yogurt with cinnamon mixed in. No added sugar but delicious. I've started eating it that way myself!
Abby on January 7, 2010
I do the same thing with cottage cheese...just add a little apple butter or strawberry jam. Yum.
doreen on January 14, 2010
I make my own yogurt and then swirl in my grandma's homemade raspberry jam. My grandma swears it is easy to make jam but I still haven't tried it. I can attest that the yogurt is easy to make and very cheap. 48 oz of milk makes six servings. All you need is some store bought yogurt to start with for the culture and then save a little bit from your homemade batches for next time.
Linda on February 11, 2010
I do use a yogurt machine. I have one that uses lots of little glass jars. The nice thing about that is that my son really enjoys eating out of them versus using a bowl. Also, just basic small jelly jars and other random jars that I have collecting (like the kind that hold chopped garlic) fit in there so I don't have to wait until all six jars have been eaten to make another batch. The bad thing about it is that if I want to strain the yogurt I have made to make lebneh (yogurt cheese) then I have to scrape out all the little jars, more dishes, more work.... bah! But I still like my little yogurt machine.
Linda on February 12, 2010
Okay, I went to the store and there was jelly, jam, fruit spread, and preserves. The only specifically named jam had HFCS so I'm confused if that's what I should be using. Should I be looking for certain brands?
Jennifer on April 15, 2010
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