Almond Butter Yogurt Fruit Parfait

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parfait1

During the holidays there were a lot of special meals in our family. Starting with Christmas Eve, we served a smoked turkey, garlic green beans, macaroni and cheese, relish and chutney and a Honey Baked ham. Then again on Christmas night, we prepared another spread of beef tenderloin, Boursin cheese and kale mashed potatoes, winter salad and homemade biscuits.

There also was leftover smoked turkey soup and a fried chicken dinner in the mix that week, too.

With all that to enjoy, it is surprising we fit a meal in between, but somehow, we managed. I hosted a Christmas day brunch. Since I had a crowd of visitors who weren’t interested in much more than a cross country ski, we weren’t in any hurry to get going so I spent the morning preparing a brunch spread.

The buffet included freshly baked croissants (you can buy dough to cook at home from Persephone Bakery!), fruit salad, egg/sausage/bread casserole and a yogurt fruit parfait. I have to say, the yogurt parfait might be my favorite new dish to come out of all our holiday feasts.

I think this is going to be my new go-to breakfast for the winter. You can make most of it the night before, and the dish is a great blend of protein, fruit and a little fat to keep you full. The Greek yogurt mixed with almond butter made the dish so satisfying and rich, without feeling like it was going to weigh you down.

I added flax seeds, because I have a big bag of them and they are good for you, but you could add chia seeds if you like those as a substitute for or in addition to the flax seeds.

If you make this for just a couple of people, prepare it in individual small Mason jars, which are the prefect size for breakfast on the go. Use whatever fruit you like, but I thought it was great with raspberries, blackberries and bananas. I wouldn’t go with any watery fruit, which might make it less thick. Pomegranate seeds would be nice.

On Christmas, since it was a special occasion, I served it with a homemade whipped cream topping and added The Bunnery’s banana nut granola to the top. Indulgent, but delicious.While the cream wasn’t necessary, if you are trying to impress guests, I highly recommend it as it made it extra delicious.

I didn’t assemble the parfait until shortly before eating, but we had leftovers that held up pretty well the next day. Just don’t top it with the granola until you go to serve it.

I really liked this with the thicker, full fat Greek yogurt, though you could easily do it with lower fat Greek. I wouldn’t substitute regular yogurt, which is generally more watery and less creamy. Peanut butter would work if you prefer it to almond, but only the natural kind, not the processed creamy kind, which would be hard to get to blend.

Casey Alderman

Born and raised in south Georgia, Casey moved to Colorado after graduating college and has now settled in Jackson, where she loves to snowboard, hike and water-ski. She's a true southern food junkie, but loves every type of food (there's nothing she won't eat) and will try anything once. A lifelong love of food combined with a Journalism degree made her realize she could combine her two passions which led her to the position of Editorial Assistant. She loves hot sauce and anything pickled, and you'll always find her on the hunt for the perfect Bloody Mary.