Yogurt is like your mother-in-law--you either love it or tolerate it. I'm convinced you'll learn to love calcium- and protein-rich yogurt when you try amazing-tasting recipes complemented with this cool-creamy food.

Yogurt Uses

• Try strained yogurt instead of mayonnaise in potato, tuna, or chicken salad.
• Cool off a fiery dish by serving with a dollop of yogurt.
• Swirl honey or maple syrup into plain nonfat yogurt, and top with sliced pears and toasted pecans.
• Top baked russet or sweet potatoes with yogurt instead of sour cream.
• Enjoy a breakfast of plain or vanilla yogurt blended with fresh fruit.

Low-down on Yogurt
We used either low-fat or regular plain yogurt in our recipes because they have a smoother and creamier consistency than fat-free yogurt.

• Regular: Made from whole milk with at least 3.25% milk fat.
• Low-fat: Made with low-fat or part-skim milk. It varies from 0.5% to 2% milk fat.
• Fat-free: Made from skim or fat-free milk and contains less than 0.5% milk fat. Many brands add gelatin for thickness. We tried fat-free yogurt in our recipes but weren't pleased with the results.

"Get A Kick Out of Yogurt" is from the October 2004 issue of Southern Living.