Rachel's

Rachel's Organic

Whenever I go to food shows , Rachel's always has a really busy stand... people can purchase yogurts, chilled desserts and children's products then collect them in little chilled bags later in the day. Now I will admit that I always thought that queueing to buy yogurt was a little odd but now that I have tasted Rachel's products I can understand why people queue.Have you seen the adverts where they eat a well known cereal with different toppings everyday? Well whenever they use products other than milk I used to cry out "Uurgghhh!".

Rachel's have produced a 'Pouring Yogurt', its like a regular yogurt except it is slightly thinner and runnier ... this helps it to soak into the cereal (or whatever you want to pour it onto) and give good cover.

Now don't think that they have just added a bit more milk to make it so it pours, they haven't ... it still has a yogurt consistency and smooth punchy flavour.

Pouring yogurt is available in 3 flavours: Natural, Hint of Strawberry and Hint of Honey. All 3 flavours are low-fat and totally organic. The pouring yogurt has a natural sweetness in the 'hint of' flavours and so extra sugar or sweetener is not needed.

Rachel's Pouring Yogurt is available from Tesco, look out for offers.

Rachel's Organic Low Fat yogurts are creamy, filling and very very moreish. My favourite from the 6 flavours available is the mango, pineapple and passion fruit (see image above), it is very creamy and thick which surprised me, being a 'low-fat' yogurt I expected it to be a bit wishy-washy when it is a very fruity thick yogurt.

One word of warning though, if you have no self control buy the smaller pots (single serving) and not the large 3 serving size ... yes they are 'low-fat' but eating a whole pot to yourself in one serving and then feeling quite sick (own fault!) kind of defeats the object.

Some people eat a lot of Organic Natural yogurt, I personally do not like it on its own as a yogurt but I do like to use it in recipes. Rachel's organic natural yogurt was particularly good to cook with. The natural yogurt spooned out of the container easily and mixed well to combine with other ingredients.


Fluffy Yogurt Scones Recipe

The scones rise up nice and fluffy due to the yogurt. The golden raisins lend a touch of sweetness. Try experimenting with other fruits instead of the raisins such as cherries and blueberries.

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes

Ingredients:
•8 ounces (225g) white all-purpose flour or fine wholemeal (wheat) flour
•2 teaspoons baking powder
•1/4 teaspoon salt
•1 ounce (25 g/2 tablespoons) golden granulated sugar
•2 ounces (50g) butter, cut into small pieces
•3 ounces (75g) sultanas (white raisins) (optional)
•4 to 5 fl ounces (125-150ml)Rachel's Natural Yogurt
•For the glaze:
•A little of the Rachel's Natural Yogurt
•Golden granulated sugar

Preparation:
Preheat the oven to Gas No. 7 (425 degrees F./220 degrees C.).

Line a baking sheet with silicone or parchment paper.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Rub in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. (This can be done using the pulse action in a food processor, or in a mixer.) Turn into a bowl, stir in the sultanas, make a well and add the yogurt, then mix with a knife to a soft non-sticky dough.

Turn it out on to a lightly floured board and knead gently for 30 seconds to smooth the underside. Roll out the dough 1/2 inch (1.25 cm) thick and cut it into 10-12 rounds with a pastry-cutter.

Place the scones on the baking sheet and brush with yogurt. Scatter with sugar and bake for 12-15 minutes, until they begin to brown on the top. Cool and then eat or freeze (up to three months).

Yield: 10 to 12 scones

Rachel's Greek Style yogurt is spot-on when it comes to smooth, flavoursome taste. They come in different sized serving pots (single and 3 servings 150g pots), there are also 4 different flavours to choose from: Honey, Coconut, Cherry and Natural.

Emma loved the coconut yogurt, it has tiny bits of coconut in it with a light coconut flavour. I'm personally not that keen on coconut so I had a little taste, then Emma finished off the rest of the pot.

I did however tuck into the honey Greek Style yogurt, it was quite sweet and I literally only could eat a proper sized portion (unlike the low-fat variety).

All in all I am very impressed with Rachel's Organic Yogurts. They are tasty, filling, fruit and adaptable to different tastes and needs. They have differentiated their products to suit diets, styles, trends and even make products especially for children.

Rachel's have their own facebook page:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Rachels-Official-Fan-Page/332480254815

For more information about products and the company please visit: http://www.rachelsorganic.co.uk/

NOM Naturally Light Yogurt

NOM 'Naturally Light' Yogurt

At present its Easter and we are surrounded by calories and sweet flavours, but what if you are diabetic or dieting and fancy something 'nice' for a snack or to round off your meal?

NOM’s new ‘Naturally Light’ yogurt range is made with 100% natural ingredients, NOM Naturally Light contains less than 132 calories per 180g pot and less than 93 calories per 125g pot, they also contain 0% fat – making them a rare guilt-free treat!

There are loads of different yogurts on the market, some are thick and creamy, others full of fruity bits and others that just don't 'look' special (so you don't bother with them).
NOM are different, they are presented in good sized proper yogurt pots, are light but filling and are available in four different mouthwatering flavours: Senga Strawberry, Morello Cherry, Alphonso Mango & Passionfruit and Bourbon Vanilla.

I liked the Morello Cherry flavour the most, big chunky cherries in a light cherry flavour yogurt. It was 'too cherry' just enough to satisfy my sweet tooth. The Vanilla was also very tasty with a nice aftertaste of vanilla after every spoonful.
I found the Mango and Passionfruit a little tarty for my liking, however the strawberry was divine.

For a yogurt I would have preferred them to be a little thicker, but these are a 'light' range. I would expect other yogurts from their range to perhaps suit my taste better like NOM's Naturally Creamy or Naturally Good yogurts.

NOM Naturally Light yogurts are available from Tesco, Morrisons, Iceland and Nisa stores.

Naturally Light yogurts are also available in single pots or flavour multipacks of 4.

My rating 8/10

Total Greek Yogurt

Total Greek Yogurt

I'll admit ... Greek Yogurt has always been, well, a bit Greek to me! When buying yogurt I have always been lazy (and unadventurous) and have purchased the usual 6-pack of strawberry processed rubbish because, well its easy and everyone likes them.

I have had the chance to broaden my culinary skills by trying Total Greek Yogurt, available from leading supermarkets it is on the shelves ready to buy ... its just that I never have - until now.

Did you know that you can use Greek Yogurt with Roast Shoulder of Spiced Lamb? No nor did I until the lovely people from Total sent me a really good cookbook to tempt me. The yogurt for the lamb is actually a marinade, now fancy that! You can use Total Greek Yogurt for soups, pate, salads, fishcakes, chicken, loads of fancy puddings and even good old fairy cakes.

I am astounded! Its like Total have opened my eyes to the fact that cakes are not always made from butter, sugar, flour and eggs - if you add yogurt you still produce a cake, but a much smoother more muffin type cake .... you can use Total Greek Yogurt for the toppings too.

Above is an example of a recipe - I know you cannot read the details properly (don't worry its only an example).

http://www.totalgreekyoghurt.com/site/ChocolateChipCookieYoghurtCheesecake_270.aspx Here is the link to the above recipe online.

http://www.totalgreekyoghurt.com/site/recipes_147.aspx Plus! If you visit this link there are loads of different recipes for you to choose from, everything from Starters to Desserts ... scrummy stuff.

Also from their website is the following information about TOTAL Greek Yoghurt that you may not know:
Total Greek Yoghurt is made from completely natural ingredients. Total Greek Yoghurt is live, pasteurised and contains no artificial additives, preservatives or thickeners. Total has no added sugars or sweeteners, just naturally occurring lactose.

Total Greek Yoghurt is a good source of protein. Protein is essential for the body to function properly. It’s used to help build up and maintain body tissue and for enzyme development.
Yoghurt plays an important role in nutrition. Produced by fermenting milk with healthy cultures, yoghurt contains the same number of calories as milk – but it’s easier to digest.

Vegetarians can eat Total Greek Yoghurt. And it’s also suitable for diabetics, pregnant women and people on gluten-free diets.

So now you can tuck into that Total Banana Smoothie, followed by Total's Penne with Wild Mushrooms, with Total Christmas Pavlova to finish .. and not feel an ounce of guilt as Total Greek Yogurt is good for you.

For more information please visit: http://www.totalgreekyoghurt.com/
Available from all major Supermarkets - look out for deals in the chilled areas.

Excuse me ... I'm off to make a Carrot Cake with Total Greek Yogurt cream cheese topping!