One of the questions I frequently receive is what to look for when purchasing yogurt. I’ve broken it down to what is the “IDEAL” or “STANDARD” choices and then what to avoid.

IDEAL

Raw milk or low temp pasteurized WHOLE FAT yogurt from local farmers with pasture-raised cows. Wow, that was definitely a run on sentence. Find your local co-op for access to local farmers.

STANDARD

Yogurt from the store – look for WHOLE FAT grass-fed, organic, plain variety. There should be only a couple ingredients on the ingredient label including organic whole fat milk and “live and active” cultures. You may need to look in the large bulk containers to find one that fits this description. Avoid ones with added sugars (you can add your own fruit and honey for flavor later). Yogurt options will vary by location. However, some examples of store-bought yogurts I recommend would include Brown Cow, White Mountains, Stony Field Organic Greek, Stony Field Organic, Stony Field Organic 100% Grass-fed, Maple Hill Creamery, Green Mountain Creamery Greek, Mountain High (is decent – but not first choice). Note: all of these are in their plain, whole fat versions. If you’re looking for a dairy-free alternative, I like coyo coconut yogurt.

WHAT TO AVOID

– Added sugars (there’s many many names for sugar, so be aware!)
– non-fat milk
– non-fat dry milk
– added vitamins

Companies will add non-fat milk even to yogurts that are clearly labeled as “whole milk yogurt” on the front. It’s a pet peeve of mine — it’s deceptive marketing at it’s finest. So be alert.

My favorite snack using yogurt:

Banana Split 🍌

>banana
>whole fat plain yogurt
>drizzle of raw honey
>cacao nibs

What would you add to your banana split?