The Skinny on... Yogurt

Cooking with yogurt
Baking is the easiest way to use yogurt. Substitute plain yogurt for half the liquid (like milk or juice) in recipes for cakes, waffles, pancakes or muffins. In general, yogurt works best in cakey baked goods; it requires more complex chemistry if substituted in cookies and crusts.

Yogurt is a fine substitute for sour cream on baked potatoes, in creamy soups, salad dressings and as the base for dips.

Or use yogurt instead of cream or coconut milk to enrich a sauce, soup or stew. It may make the sauce more tart than intended, so seasonings may need to be adjusted.

One warning: Yogurt will “break” over the heat (that is, break down into a watery liquid and thick threads). To avoid this, make sure the yogurt is at room temperature, do not let it boil over the heat, and stir 1 teaspoon cornstarch into it before using. Goat and sheep yogurt tend to be the most stable in cooking.

Can frozen yogurt make any health claims? Yes — but only if the label specifically says that the frozen yogurt contains active bacterial cultures. Heat kills the bacteria — and some frozen yogurts are made by heating the mixture before freezing it, thus killing off the good stuff in yogurt.