Greek yogurt is the latest power dairy snack, favored by teachers, moms, office workers and many others seeking a portable tasty yet healthy snack.  I eat it too.  But sometimes I want a more basic, yet way above average, yogurt.  My little secret for great yogurt is the brand; Stonyfield Organic.  I buy the large 32 ounce container of plain unflavored; cheaper than small ones and I can use a bit for cooking and the rest for lunch or snacks.  I usually get the one percent low fat yogurt.  Organic milk makes amazingly creamy flavorful yogurt, far superior to any made with non-organic milk.

Occasionally I treat myself to Stonyfield’s whole milk yogurt. This is thick, creamy and oh so delicious.  The top layer is like cream yogurt; crazy yummy!  I eat a dish of this yogurt with fresh jam, all that jam that I don’t eat on toast anymore.  I know, whole milk. But sometimes you have to enjoy the best that life can give you and frankly experts say that non-fat yogurt is less healthy than yogurt with some fat.  Go on, live wild and try this fabulous organic yogurt.

You can also enjoy this yogurt with honey drizzled on top.  Sprinkled with my homemade granola it is very healthy, filling, and delightful tasting.  It is also a great topping for apple crisp, smooth delicate flavor to match with the spicy crisp.

My latest version is with homemade lemon marmalade spooned on top.  Simple, clean tasting and tangy, a perfect after work snack before doing afternoon tasks.

Here is the lemon marmalade recipe if you want to whip up a batch.  It is much in favor with my friends and family. Great on toast too.  I bet it will taste great made with regular lemons too.  It is pretty easy to do; lots of chopping up lemons and stirring the preserves as they cook.  But the effort is well worth it as the lemony flavor is outstanding and buying some at a store will set you back quite a bit for a small jar. Yours will have more fruit in it and less stuff; two ingredients if you don’t count the water!  Make your jam reputation on this winter treat!

Meyer lemons are very fragrant and have a less sour taste.  The rind is quite edible. I make candied lemon peel sometimes after making lemoncello.  That is another blog post though!

Meyer Lemon Marmalade

Ingredients

6 or 7 Meyer lemons (1 1/2 pounds)

4 cups water

4 cups sugar

Special equipment:

Cheesecloth or small fabric bag to put seeds in

Kitchen string

The day you can it up:  you will need 6 half pint Mason jars, heated to boiling in a big pot of water.  Along with the lids and rings also heated.  The lids must be new ones.  You shouldn’t boil them more than a few minutes; turn down to low.

Directions:

Halve lemons crosswise and remove seeds and reserve them. Quarter each lemon half and thinly slice. Tie seeds in a cheesecloth bag.  Combine with bag of seeds and water in a 5-quart nonreactive heavy pot (I use my cast iron enamel coated pot) and let mixture stand, covered, at room temperature 24 hours.

Bring lemon mixture to a boil over moderate heat. I leave the seeds in for this part too.  Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, until reduced to 4 cups, about 45 minutes. Remove seeds; let the liquid drain off into the pot; full of pectin so your marmalade sets up!

Stir in sugar and boil over moderate heat, stirring occasionally and skimming off any foam, until a teaspoon of mixture dropped on a cold plate gels, about 25 to 40 minutes.  I scoop out any seeds that got in by accident!

Ladle hot marmalade into jars, filling to within 1/4 inch of top. Wipe rims with dampened cloth and seal jars with lids and rims.

Put jars in a water-bath canner or in a deep pot. Add enough hot water to cover jars by 1 inch and bring to a boil. Boil jars, covered, 5 minutes and transfer with tongs to a rack. Cool jars completely. The lid should vacuum seal within minutes of you setting them to dry and cool.

I like to let it ripen for 3 or 4 weeks before opening a jar. The jarred marmalade keeps a year in a cool dry place out of the sun; basement shelf works great.

Any extra marmalade that isn’t enough for a jar goes in the fridge and gets eaten within a few weeks.  Original recipe came from epicurious. com.