Oikos Organic Greek Yogurt Strawberry

The Stonyfield’s Strawberry Oikos is rich and creamy with fresh tasting strawberry jam on the bottom for a stir in. Lives up the the standards of the Oikos name. Winner all around. One of my favorite flavored Greek yogurts because the strawberry flavor is fresh and not artificial tasting at all. Thick and creamy as always. Keep these delicious flavors coming out. May I suggest pineapple for a new flavor?

One 5.3 oz cup serving is 120 calories, 2 WW, no fat, no cholesterol, 80 milligram of sodium, 190 milligram of potassium, 16 grams of carbohydrates, no dietary fiber, 16 grams of sugar and 13 grams of protein.

As some of you may know, I tend to strain my own Greek yogurt from regular plain non-fat yogurts since I find it much cheaper that way. I normally just strain the yogurt overnight in a coffee filter, but there was one time where I was away for a few days and left the yogurt in the fridge, still straining for approximately 3 days. I came home to a wonderful surprise because A LOT of liquid came out and the yogurt became  super thick — like soft cream cheese. It even had a faint cream cheese taste to it too and it was absolutely DELICIOUS. Did I just make yogurt cheese by accident? I have been enjoying my yogurt a lot that way lately. Curiosity struck me and I wondered what would happened if I strain Greek yogurt instead. Will any liquid come out since Greek yogurt is already strained?

I did exactly that and strain 1 container (5.3 oz) of strawberry Oikos overnight in a coffee filter. Only a little bit of liquid came out and it was not as thick as I had hoped. Next time I might consider straining it for a few days. Will I get instant strawberry “cheesecake” that way?

I had hoped for instant strawberry “cheesecake”, but that was not what I got, just a slightly thicker version of strawberry Oikos, but it was much tarter than usual. I wanted cheesecake and I wanted it BAD so I made my own version with what I had lying around the house. A packet of stevia, some fat-free cream cheese, a bag of Annie’s Bunny Grahams plus some strained strawberry Oikos = some delicious strawberry cheesecake tarts. The stevia compensates for the tartness of the strained yogurt, the fat-free cream cheese compensates for actual “cheese taste” in cream cheese, and I picked Annie’s Bunny Grahams because it taste good and does not have trans fat like most other graham crackers on the market.

Lazy Strawberry Cheesecake Recipe:

– 1 container (5.3 oz) Strawberry Oikos
–  4 tablespoon of Fat Free Cream Cheese
–  1 bag (28g) of Annie Bunny Grahams
– 1 packet of Stevia (or any sweetener of your choice)
–  Optional: Garnish with slices of fresh strawberries

Directions: Strap a coffee filter over a large mug with a rubber band. Empty Contents into the coffee filter. Cover the mug with saran wrap and let sit in the fridge overnight.

Next day, mix in 4 tablespoon of room temperature fat-free cream cheese with the strained strawberry Oikos and the packet of stevia until evenly blended.

For the crust, pulverize the Annie’s Bunnie Grahams in a ziplock bag with a rolling pin. A of can soup or a jar of salsa will work if you do not have a rolling pin. Split the “crust dust” into 2 silicone bake cups and smooth it out. Next, split the cream cheese and strawberry Oikos mixture into the two cups as well.

Freeze for a hour. Remove from silicone cup and place them on a pretty plate. Garish with 1/2 a slice of fresh strawberry on each if desire when ready to serve. Let sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes for a slightly less frozen texture.

Recipe makes two servings and is approximately 145 calories per serving.

Calorie Breakdown:
1 Strawberry Oikos Strained: approx 110 calories or less
1 bag (28g) of Annie’s Bunny Grahams : 120 calories
4 tablespoon fat-free cream cheese: 60 calories
1 packet Stevia: 0 calories
1 Medium Strawberry (optional): 4 calories

Consider this as my official entry for the Stonyfield Oikos contest

http://www.facebook.com/oikos

Retails: $1.99 per 5.3 oz cup @ Whole Foods
My Cost: Free (w/ coupon from Stonyfield representative)
Calories: 110 per 5.3 oz cup
WW: 2