I recently happened upon the results of Cook's Illustrated low fat strawberry yogurt taste test review conducted back in 2009. I'm always curious about the "experts" have to say and how my opinion compares to theirs. I'm not a huge consumer of strawberry yogurt these days, preferring to stock plain nonfat Greek yogurt that I can use and flavor in lots of different ways instead. But, when I do buy flavored yogurt, strawberry is a favorite.
According to the article, Low-fat yogurt is the big seller in American supermarkets, far outselling full-fat and nonfat versions. To determine which low-fat strawberry yogurt was best, CI taste-tested eight national brands: Breyers Fruit on the Bottom Smart Strawberry Lowfat Yogurt, Brown Cow Strawberry Low Fat Yogurt, Colombo Lowfat Strawberry Flavored Yogurt, Dannon Fruit on the Bottom Strawberry Yogurt, Fage 2% All Natural Greek Strained Yogurt with Strawberry, Stonyfield Farm Organic Lowfat Strawberry Yogurt, Wallaby Organic Creamy Australian Style Lowfat Strawberry Yogurt and Yoplait Original Strawberry Lowfat Yogurt.
Who was the winner? Industry giant, Dannon Fruit on the Bottom Strawberry Yogurt, which scored high for its "solid" and "real" strawberry flavor. Tasters liked that it "wasn't too sweet," and had a "creamy" texture. Not surprising, strawberries (not sugar) was the second listed ingredient on the label.
The other two recommended brands were Wallaby Organic Creamy Australian Style Lowfat Strawberry Yogurt that received good marks for it's "strong, fresh dairy flavor," "bright berry flavor," and "good-sized strawberry bits." And Fage 2% All Natural Greek Strained Yogurt with Strawberry, which tasters either loved or hated and everyone agreed was "not your average yogurt." To enjoy this yogurt, you need to like Greek yogurt's super thick texture and strong tang.
The yogurts that were recommended with reservations included Yoplait, Breyer's fruit on the Bottom and Brown Cow because they were found to be "too sweet" and "artificial tasting"and Stonyfield farm organic, which was described as watery and lacking strawberry flavor. Columbo, placed last in every category and was not recommended. You may be surprised to know that it doesn't even have strawberries in it.
So, the bottom line? When shopping for lowfat strawberry yogurt, be sure to read the labels and seek out the brands that list strawberries ahead of sugar because the more strawberries, the more strawberry flavor the yogurt will have.
And just FYI, in 2011 Serious Eats conducted it's own strawberry yogurt taste test of 11 popular brands. The highest placing low fat and nonfat brands were Whole Foods 365 Non-fat strawberry, Emmi Swiss Low-fat strawberry, and Dannon fruit on the bottom strawberry.
Do you have a favorite low-fat strawberry yogurt?
Related Articles
A Review of Greek Yogurt Taste Tests
Healthy Cooking Picks the Best Bread Thins, Pockets & Wraps
The Essential Kitchen Tools for a Slim & Healthy Kitchen
Cooking Light & Healthy: Easy Ways Lower in Fat & Sugar
Subscribe to Get: Top 10 Reader Favorite Recipes
The Top 10 Most Popular Recipes (PDF) on Simple Nourished Living + Weekly Support Emails with Tips & Easy Healthy Recipes Not Found Anywhere Else!
Leave a Reply