Here’s a recipe for Yogurt-Cheese.

This is a tasty substitute for butter, mayo, sour cream or creme fraiche.

Ingredients:

1 pint or quart of yogurt (unflavored). Remember to use a healthy organic yogurt!

Put the yogurt into a strainer over a bowl. If you use a colander, line it with cheesecloth or a handkerchief. Cover with a cloth and put in the fridge overnight or for the day. Then discard the liquid that lands in the bowl, and scrape the “yogurt cheese” into a container for the fridge.

Here’s how to use the yogurt-cheese.

1. On toast, spread thickly with jam.

2. As a substitute for mayo on sandwiches.

3. As a finish to pasta when the recipe calls for any form of cream.

4. As a dip for crackers or veggies.

You can flavor it for whatever you’re using it with. Add some honey for fruits or desserts or add salt and pepper and herbs for mayo uses.

Alison, who sent me this idea, says that after a while you’ll get to like it better than the fatty foods.

Do you have any foods like Yogurt-Cheese you’d like to share with us? If so, send them along because as promised, I do pass them along!

shelli

Popular from Europe to Japan, and getting more popular in America as well, kale is hardy, tender and HEALTHY!

Kale, a yellow-green vegetable native to the Mediterranean, is an ancestor of more recent vegetables such as cabbage and broccoli.

It comes in several varieties including curly and flat forms. It does not have a head like cabbage and is a hardy crop, keeping it immune to insects and disease. It thrives through the winter and early spring. Kale with smaller leaves is generally more tender and mild. In the refrigerator it will keep several days but is best used within one or two days after buying it.

Kale is traditionally used in salads and stir-fries, as well as soups and stews. I use it in smoothies as well.

Kale is superrich in nutrients, with proportionally more vitamins and minerals than other vegetables. It has good amounts of fiber, vitamin C, carotene, potassium and calcium. Kale helps protect against allergies, cancer, diabetes and osteoporosis.

Fresh organic kale is available year round in most natural food stores. For those of you with gardens, plant some kale and enjoy its benefits.

I’m always encouraging people to try different foods. If you’re stuck in a cabbage/broccoli/spinach rut, get some kale and give it a try! And if you have any particular recipes using kale that you absolutely love, send them to me and I’ll be sure and pass them along!

shelli