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Whenever we get together at my parent’s house with my family for a barbecue during the summer, you can usually count on my mom making this broccoli raisin salad. It’s one of our favorites. My mom’s friend Trish first brought it over years ago and since then my mom has made it several times for our family.

What I love about this dish is it’s simplicity. It’s filled with just a handful of wholesome ingredients and can be made ahead, which makes it great for summer picnics, barbecues or pool days. It’s the perfect combination of flavors from sweet carrots and raisins (have you tried the Jumbo Raisin Medley from Trader Joe’s? Game changer.) to crunchy walnuts – and of course, plenty of broccoli.

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It’s hard to mess up a smoothie in my opinion. Once you get a basic formula down, and you’re using a blend of naturally sweet fruit with yogurt, milk or a little juice, then really the sky is the limit as far as combinations go. If you look in my freezer you could pretty much always find a few bags of frozen fruit ready to be put into a blender. Though I love to eat fresh fruit daily, frozen fruit is usually my go to when it comes to smoothies because I find that it makes them extra creamy and thick, and keeps them extra cold.

How do you make a smoothie with yogurt?

First, you need a blender! There are so many great blenders on the market these days. I’ve been using my Blendtec (affiliate link) for so many years, it’s high powered and worth the investment in my opinion (tip: buy a refurbished one if you can!). You could also use a Vitamix, Ninja, or Magic Bullet blender.

If your blender isn’t a high powered blender, then I suggest you let the frozen fruit sit in your blender jar a few minutes to defrost and slightly soften up to make it easier to blend. Always add your liquids to the jar first, then layer with your softest to hardest fruits to get a better blend.

Is Greek yogurt good in smoothies?

Yes! What I love about making smoothie recipes with Greek yogurt is the added protein. Greek yogurt typically has around 10 – 15 g of protein per half cup, depending on the brand. Depending on the flavor, it will have sugar and carbs too, so watch for that. If you are drinking a smoothie as a post workout drink your body needs the carbs so fruit and yogurt can provide them. A Greek yogurt fruit smoothie makes a great post-workout recovery drink!

These days, there are so many recipes that include Greek yogurt, the options are endless. I even went a little crazy and baked up a version of these Peach Yogurt Muffins for my kids (I really need to do that more often, why oh why don’t I like to bake?).

More smoothie recipes to try:

Refreshing Cantaloupe Smoothie

Cinnamon Pear Green Smoothie

My Green Smoothie

Strawberry Banana Smoothie | Add A Pinch

Pear Me Up Smoothie | Picky Palate

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Fruity Greek Yogurt Smoothie

• Author: Aggies Kitchen
• Total Time: 5 minutes
• Yield: 1 smoothie
• Category: Beverage
• Method: Blender

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Ingredients

• 1 cup pineapple Greek yogurt (I used Chobani)
• couple of splashes of your favorite milk (nut milk or cow milk)
• 1/2 banana
• 1/4 cup frozen mango
• 1/4 cup frozen sliced peaches

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Instructions

1. Place ingredients into blender starting with Greek yogurt and milk and ending with frozen fruit. Let sit for a few minutes to let frozen fruit defrost just slightly (for easier blending).
2. Blend and enjoy.

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This post is created with America’s Dairy Farm Families and Importers, in partnership with the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy. However, the views and opinions included are my own.

My kids love asking for parfaits when I offer to make them as an afternoon or after dinner snack (aka dessert). I started making parfaits years ago and they get excited about eating them every single time. Parfaits are not only pretty to look at, but they can be filled with some pretty tasty ingredients. With my recent trip to a local dairy farm here in Florida, as well as a trip to a dairy farm in Rhode Island, I can’t help but think about and appreciate the hard-working families that are really behind the wholesome dairy, like the Greek yogurt in these parfaits, that my family enjoys. You can read more about my experience at the farm here.

Whether I’m making a parfait for me or my kids, I always go with whatever combination of seasonal fruit, yogurt, nuts or granola I have on hand. This particular parfait was inspired by one of our favorite fall fruits, pears. We love pears this time of year, and you can pretty much always count on finding a tub of good vanilla Greek yogurt and nuts in my fridge too. Call it a snack or call it dessert (or even breakfast!), a parfait like this creamy Greek Yogurt Parfait with Pears and Walnuts always hits the spot.

To make our parfaits extra tasty (and fancy!) I like to spice them up a bit. I added a sprinkle of cinnamon and ginger and a drizzle of sweet honey and it was the perfect touch. I like to chop the fruit and the nuts to the same size so that it’s easier for each spoonful to have a taste of everything combined. The perfect flavors for fall and my kids absolutely loved the combination.

You can make the parfaits with traditional layers, or if you are in a crunch for time and just want to keep it simple you can add your ingredients to a bowl and enjoy it all the same. If you are looking for an entertaining idea for breakfast or brunch, set out the ingredients separately and offer a build-your-own-parfait bar.

Greek Yogurt Parfait with Pears and Walnuts

Yield: 2 parfaits

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups vanilla bean Greek yogurt
• 1 pear, chopped small
• ground cinnamon, for sprinkling, to taste
• ground ginger, for sprinkling, to taste
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• honey, for drizzling

Directions:

1. Add 1/3 cup of Greek yogurt into the bottom of parfait glass. Top yogurt with chopped pears and sprinkle with cinnamon and ginger, to taste. Add chopped walnuts and drizzle with honey. Repeat layer, then top with a dollop of yogurt.
2. Serve immediately for best presentation or cover and refrigerate for up to 6 hours to serve later.

This post is created with America’s Dairy Farm Families and Importers, in partnership with the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy. However, the views and opinions included are my own.

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I’m a sucker for chicken salad and love having it for quick lunches and dinners, especially in the summer when cooking a hot meal for dinner isn’t always appealing.

This Grilled Lemon Pepper Chicken Salad with Greek Yogurt was inspired by one of the coaches at my gym who got me craving chicken salad so bad at 6am recently that I immediately came home and made this for my parents who were coming over for lunch that day. I love people who can talk about food passionately in the early morning while pushing through burpees, squats, push ups, box jumps and all others forms of self inflicted torture in the spirit of fitness and health.

These are my kind of people.

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It’s June and that means the lazy days of summer are officially here. It’s also National Dairy Month and what a better way to celebrate than with a summer-friendly dip filled with nutrient-rich dairy like this kicked-up Chipotle Ranch Greek Yogurt Dip! National Dairy Month isn’t just a celebration of the deliciousness of dairy or to promote drinking milk, though that may be what first comes to mind. It’s also a time to bring attention to the hard working dairy farmers and their responsible practices, which include care and commitment to their animals as well as to our environment – you can learn more about the dairy farming industry’s sustainability efforts here.

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This is about as timely of a holiday/post-holiday recipe I think I’ve ever been. Egg salad the day after Easter – you got it!

I know if you are like me, right now you probably have a handful of hard boiled eggs in the fridge. I actually have been getting back into the habit of making hard boiled eggs the last couple of weeks to have for snacks, add into salads and make egg salad, which I love. I usually have eggs for breakfast but I’ve been trying to switch things up lately so that I can eat them at other times of they day.

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In need of last minute appetizer ideas for Easter? Well you are in the right place…

For some reason, when I’m hosting any holiday meal, appetizers (finger foods, snacks, munchies…whatever you want to call them) seem to fall way low on the priority list as far as menu planning. It’s not because I don’t love them, they are actually my favorite part of any meal and I personally could eat a whole shlew of apps and happily forgo the rest of the food any day. But if I’m making the main meal, I usually get so preoccupied with that part of the meal I tend to forget the easy stuff like apps and snacks! However, if I’m planning to bring a dish to a holiday get together, I love to bring a dip or two with fresh veggies and pita chips.

I’m a snacky kind of girl – put some pickled or fresh veggies, dips, chips, cheese (like the one up there) and stuffed mushrooms in front of me and I will snack happy all day long.

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My kids don’t believe me that Thansgiving is next week. Actually, they believe me now, because they looked into their school planners this weekend and saw that a 2-day school week is just around the corner. It creeps up pretty fast doesn’t it?

As we were discussing our Thanksgiving plans, of course we talked about what we would be eating. I love that my kids are now old enough to really get excited about food holidays like Thanksgiving and remember traditional parts of our menu, like my family’s Italian Thanksgiving Stuffing, which was the first thing they requested. The second thing they requested? Mashed potatoes. My kids love mashed potatoes so I decided to try out this Slow Cooker Mashed Potatoes recipe out on them this past weekend.

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This recipe was created in partnership with Fleischmann’s® Simply Homemade®.

I think it’s no secret here that I don’t bake very often. It’s not that I dislike baking, it’s just more of a process for me than cooking (and it’s hard to find the time!). Cooking comes to me very naturally, I don’t always feel the need to use exact measurements or ingredients and I can be really creative with what I have on hand. There are times where I wish baking came to me more naturally, but the reality is it doesn’t so it takes a bit of persuading from my sweet kids to talk me into baking them treats.

When I told my kids I was going to try out a new line of baking mixes for the blog, they were thrilled (and so was I!). I couldn’t wait to try the new Fleischmann’s® Simply Homemade® Muffin & Bread Mixes, not only because they are filled with ingredients I feel good about (real fruit and juices!), but they are also created to use with Greek yogurt – an ingredient I love to include in recipes whenever I can.

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I know what you are thinking, of all things for me to come home from my cruise obsessed with, it’s this Bircher Muesli, right? Not the mango margaritas, seafood dinners and chocolate journeys desserts I indulged in on the Ruby Princess, but a breakfast I found on the breakfast buffet – this is what I feel the need to share with you immediately. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, even when you’re cruising. Humor me please.

Typically I’m an egg for breakfast girl, but when I stumbled onto the section of the breakfast bar that was holding bowls of Bircher muesli, dried fruits and plenty of nuts I was instantly intrigued. What in the world is Bircher Muesli anyway? That’s what I was wondering! It’s basically overnight oats (or what I sometimes call refrigerator oats, but a little different and invented by the Swiss physician, Maximilian Bircher-Benner (a bonus history lesson for you!). I go on an overnight oats kicks every now and then and needless to say, I’ve been on one since I got home from my Princess Cruise a few weeks ago.

I can not express enough how generally impressed I was with the food on our cruise. When I remember cruising with my husband and parents back in the day, I definitely remember food, but I remember the quantity of it more so than the quality. My friend (and plus one) Heidi and I both ate breakfast and a couple of lunches in the main buffet area and we commented more than once on the selection of food items that were being served. You know how I am with my salad so of course I was seeking out the salad bar on the very first day. Guys, I was loving my salads all week long, especially with whatever fish or sandwich they were serving nearby. I really tried to keep things light (when I could!) and the variety of food and dining really made it possible.

Just a sampling of the many many food items I had while on the ship…

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