A Month-of-Mediterranean: Dessert Anyone?

After all these savory dishes, are you hankering for a bit of sweetness in your diet? Yeah, us, too. And, yes, a traditional Mediterranean meal might well feature fresh figs (with or without cheese) and other fresh fruits. Of course, in a decadent meal you might savor baklava, lemon olive oil cake, or tiramisu.

But we’re not doing those this month, right? This month the focus is on delicious but nutritious, and while fresh fruit is nutritious, something in us wants more.

So here are a couple of ways to reward yourself at the end of your savory repasts. Try my Strawberry Fudge Frozen Greek Yogurt and my Balsamic Berries with Honey Yogurt. There are lots more of these types of recipes on the Internet. So don’t deprive yourself in the dessert realm of the Mediterranean Diet. It can taste decadent without being decadent.

As you can see from these recipes, I like Greek Honey Yogurt. I use it for breakfast with some granola or I make parfaits with fresh fruit and yogurt layers. Yeah, it’s sweet. I know that. But, Yum! However, you can make your own Honey Yogurt (to control the amount of sweetness) by mixing plain Greek yogurt with honey.

Strawberry Fudge Frozen Greek Yogurt (makes about 1 pint)

1 ½ cups Greek Honey Yogurt

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon vanilla

Pinch of salt

2 tablespoons strawberry jam or preserves

2 tablespoons chocolate syrup

For serving: shaved chocolate and fresh strawberries

Whisk yogurt, lemon juice, vanilla, and salt until smooth.

Process in ice cream maker according to directions.

Five minutes or so before the mixture is fully processed, drizzle in strawberry jam and chocolate syrup just to swirl the flavors through the frozen yogurt.

Put in airtight container and freeze for 2-4 hours until frozen. Prior to serving, remove from freezer and let stand for several minutes to soften. Frozen yogurt freezes harder than ice cream.

While waiting, chop up strawberries and grate chocolate to serve on top.

I don’t stint on balsamic vinegar. I buy the expensive good stuff that is syrupy thick, not the very liquid stuff in the grocery store. If you buy really good balsamic vinegar, you can drizzle it on ice cream! This recipe may not even work with the watery stuff. I wouldn’t know since I haven’t tried it.

Balsamic Berry Trio with Honey Yogurt (serves 4)

1 cup strawberries

1 cup blueberries

1 cup raspberries

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1 cup Greek Honey Yogurt

Coat berries with balsamic vinegar and let sit for ten minutes.

Distribute berry mixture among four ramekins or dessert dishes and put 2 tablespoons of yogurt on top. Serve immediately.

DH’s Rating: 3 Tongues Up for the Berries; 5 Tongues Up for Strawberry Yogurt

He’s an ice-cream kinda guy, so the Balsamic Berries didn’t ring his chimes. Did I mention how much he really, really likes sweet stuff? “They’re okay,” he conceded, but he really liked the frozen yogurt mixture. Given his druthers, he’ll go for frozen sweetness over cake or pie (though sometimes he combines them). But he always opts for sweeter over less sweet.