I know people who are lactose-intolerant have various triggers. Some can eat cheese, but not yogurt. Some can drink a little milk, but not ice cream. For me, I cannot drink milk or eat yogurt, well until now. If you are like me and missing yogurt, try Greek.
I realized I missed the very easy snack of yogurt, so I set out to find substitutes. I tasted soy, and yuck! I like soy milk, but soy yogurt? No. It tasted terrible. I tried this probably about eight years ago, and did not even continue my search.
But flash forward five or six years, and I decided to give dairy-free yogurt a try again. I read about So Delicious Coconut Yogurt, so I figured I'd try it, but none of my go-to stores had it. I would go to the more upscale grocery stores, like Trader Joe's or Whole Foods, one day. That day never came, and it doesn't appear it ever will, thanks to my trying So Delicious Coconut ice cream. Tasted more like coconut water than coconut milk, let alone ice cream.
Greek yogurt was/is the rage and I wanted to learn more. One blogger mentioned Greek yogurt could work for the lactose-intolerant because of the straining process. And I knew several brands had a few varieties at my go-to stores, so I decided to give it a try. What really clinched it was Dannon Greek yogurt going on sale for $1 a cup. Pricy? Yes, but I pay $2.50 to $4 for Lactaid milk, and $5.49 for Lactaid ice cream.
I did not know what to expect but Dannon Activia was on sale as well as Dannon Oikos. I bought four with plans to buy more later before the sale was over. Dannon Oikos was very thick. I had to really work the cup to get the fruit at the bottom thoroughly mixed. I really liked the taste. Oikos came through. If I had any issues, they were nonexistent or so low I didn't even connect it to the yogurt.
Dannon Activia was not okay. It taste like yogurt, but whatever is added to make it Activia took away from the yogurt. But, I can eat Greek yogurt.
I've removed so many things from my plate to be healthy or keep symptoms in check that to add back yogurt gives me joy. And the next week, Chobani yogurt was on sale at one store and Yoplait Greek yogurt at another. I bought more, and tried the two brands.
Chobani did not disappoint and they had a lot more varieties to choose from. From mango to honey to pomegranate, I've had a bunch. While the Yoplait was priced much cheaper, I prefer Chobani and Dannon Oikos.
All brands have similar flavors. Oikos has a much smaller variety than Chobani. I was even willing to try key lime if none of my other flavors were available, but they didn't have it. Meanwhile, Chobani had several of my favorites, including the always excluded, pineapple. Only one flavor caused me to gag and that's honey. The pomegranate made me work hard to enjoy the little cup. I assumed they had removed the seeds. Silly me.
No unwanted side issues with Greek yogurt. I also found a few brands that, while cost more than regular yogurt, are still available at my go-to grocery stores and chains. Now if I could just find a tasty coffee substitute, I would be overjoyed.
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