If you haven't jumped on the Greek yogurt bandwagon yet, you need to get on it. And the best brand (in my not-so-humble opinion) is Chobani. What makes Greek yogurt so special? It's super thick and creamy, which makes it ideal as a substitute for sour cream or as a decadent sweet treat. Another reason why I love it is that it is nutritionally superior to other yogurts. It is much higher in protein than other yogurts, which means more nutrient bang for your calorie buck, and probably a lower glycemic index as well (though I can't be sure of that; I don't think it's been tested).
For example, 6 oz. dannon nonfat plain yogurt has 80 calories, 12g sugar, and 8g protein. This is pretty good!
But Greek yogurt has even better stats: a few more calories (100), but only 7g of sugar and a whopping 18 grams of protein!!
For people who aren't into plain yogurt, Chobani makes some great flavored yogurts, too. I had the pleasure of trying two of their new flavors: 2% strawberry-banana and 0% raspberry. They were both delicious! I hadn't ever tried the 2% yogurt before, but that could be a special indulgence because it was SO creamy and rich. Both of the yogurts had the fruit on the bottom that reminded me of the yogurt I ate as a child, before I cared about calories.
But even the sweetened yogurts are well within a reasonable range of calories for a snack. The flavored 0% yogurts have 140-150 calories, 20g sugar, and still pack 14-16g of protein. The 2% pineapple yogurt has 160 calories, 21g sugar, and 13g of protein.
In comparison, Yoplait light yogurt has fewer calories (100) but about the same number of carbs (19) and only about a third of the protein (5g). Original Yoplait's nutritional value is abysmal with 170 calories, 27g sugar and still only 5g of protein! You might save a couple of calories eating the light version, but the Chobani yogurt will be more filling (so you'll be apt to eat less later on) and will probably have a smaller impact on your blood sugar, which is more important than you know. I will be dedicating a post to this topic in the near future, so keep an eye out for it.
And if the superior nutrient profile isn't enough to convince you to switch to Greek yogurt, it just tastes a whole lot better! I know Yoplait has this "thick and creamy" line out, but that just tastes like yogurt mixed with jello, and essentially, that is what it is. The yogurt is thickened artificially with gelatin. Chobani, on the other hand, is naturally thick and creamy, and way better than anything else out there.
My only complaint about Chobani is that they don't have any truly "light" yogurts, sweetened with sugar substitutes. Although the flavored yogurts aren't very high in calories, I just can't bring myself to eat that much added sugar. I don't care if it's "natural" sugar, it's still sugar. As a result, as good as the new flavors are, I am going to stick with what I've been eating almost daily these days: Chobani nonfat plain yogurt, to which I add splenda and thawed, frozen blueberries. I don't think anything they could make could trump this combination in taste, but it would be nice to be able to have a no-sugar-added but still sweet version of this to take on the go when it's not so convenient to mix it myself.
Chobani, if you're listening, what are you waiting for?!! So many weight-conscious yogurt-eaters out there are currently gobbling up that watery, chalky tasting excuse for a "light" yogurt that's being pushed by that OTHER yogurt company (you know which one I'm talking about) simply because it's the lowest calorie option available. This is a travesty! With a few simple adjustments, Chobani could make the best-tasting AND most nutritious low-calorie yogurt on the market. I get that they're committed to "all-natural" ingredients and don't want to use artificial sweeteners, but even that's not an excuse anymore, what with Truvia and other erythritol-containing natural non-nutritive sweeteners now widely available. Time to get on the ball, people!
Check out Chobani's website
Become a facebook fan
No comments:
Post a Comment