Temps are supposed to hit 90°F this week in Napa Valley, where I live, and it’s still technically winter. Forecasters say many states may experience record-smashing heat over the next few days. My advice: yogurt. I don’t have much appetite for cheese in hot weather, but yogurt salads and chilled yogurt soups have a lot of appeal. Yogurt is cool, tart and refreshing, and we know it’s good for us. But here’s a funny thing I’ve noticed lately about yogurt: Producers used to highlight how little fat their yogurt had. Now they boast about the opposite.
With full-fat dairy products getting more love from nutritionists these days, I’m seeing yogurt brands proudly declaring their elevated fat content on the label. One brand even has a QR code on the package so you can look up the milk’s fat content when the yogurt was made. Let’s hear it for full-fat yogurt, the best choice for these favorite recipes from Yogurt: Sweet and Savory Recipes for Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner by Janet Fletcher (Ten Speed Press).
Cucumber Salad with Yogurt, Golden Raisins, Walnuts, and Mint
Cucumber and yogurt salad (pictured above) is part of the repertoire in every yogurt-eating country, but for me the star recipe is this one. I love the burst of sweetness from the raisins, the crunch of walnuts, the coolness of mint. The salad complements grilled lamb, or you could serve it as part of a meze assortment with flatbread. I like to use the crisp, thin-skinned, nearly seedless Persian cucumbers that are about six inches long. Najmieh Batmanglij, the author of several Persian cookbooks that I admire, garnishes her version of this salad with dried rose petals.
photo: Eva Kolenko
I like the salad to have a thicker, creamier texture than I can get from plain yogurt alone, so I add a little Greek yogurt for extra body.
1/4 cup golden raisins
2 cups plain whole-milk yogurt
1 cup Greek yogurt (not nonfat)
1 to 2 cloves garlic, grated or finely minced
1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill, plus more for garnish
1 teaspoon finely minced fresh mint
Kosher or sea salt
2 cups diced Persian or English hothouse cucumber (no need to peel)
1/3 cup coarsely chopped toasted walnuts
Put the raisins in a small bowl, add water to barely cover, and let plump for at least 1 hour. Drain.
In a large bowl, whisk together the yogurts, garlic, dill, mint, and salt to taste. Add the raisins, cucumbers, and walnuts. Stir well, then taste and adjust the seasoning. Serve immediately, garnished with more chopped dill; or cover and refrigerate for up to 1 hour. If you want to hold the salad longer, leave the walnuts out initially and add them just before serving to preserve their crunch.
Serves 4 to 6
Chilled Avocado and Yogurt Soup with Tomato Salsa
photo: Eva Kolenko
All the flavors of guacamole meet up in this creamy soup, with yogurt adding body and refreshment. Serve with pita chips or tortilla chips.
2 large avocados, ripe but firm
1-1/2 cups buttermilk
1-1/2 cups plain whole-milk yogurt
2 heaping tablespoons chopped cilantro
1 large clove garlic, thinly sliced
1/2 serrano or jalapeño chile, seeds removed for less heat if desired, or more to taste
1/2 teaspoon toasted and ground cumin
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
Kosher or sea salt
Salsa:
1 large plum (Roma) tomato, halved lengthwise, seeded, in ¼-inch dice
1/4 cup finely minced white onion
2 heaping tablespoons chopped cilantro
1/2 serrano or jalapeño green chile, seeds removed for less heat if desired, finely minced
1 small clove garlic, finely minced
Kosher or sea salt
Lime juice
Halve and pit the avocados. Set aside one-half avocado for the salsa. Put the remaining avocado flesh in a blender with the buttermilk, yogurt, cilantro, garlic, chile, and cumin. Blend until smooth. Taste and add more chile if desired, then blend again. Transfer to a bowl and stir in enough cold water to thin the soup to a pleasing consistency, about ½ cup. Stir in 1 tablespoon lime juice, or more to taste, and season with salt. Chill thoroughly.
Just before serving, prepare the salsa: In a bowl, stir together the tomato, onion, cilantro, chile, and garlic. Cut the reserved avocado half in ¼-inch-dice and fold it in gently, then season to taste with lime juice and salt and stir again gently to avoid mashing the avocado.
If the soup has thickened in the refrigerator, whisk in ice water to thin it to the desired consistency. Taste for seasoning. Divide among 6 bowls. Top each serving with a spoonful of salsa and serve.
Serves 6