Last week, I received an invite for a foodie event hosted by Danone. This type of event is not my usual thing, but since the brand was Danone – which is the yogurt staple in our house, I was interested to find out what they had new and cooking.
The get-together was officially to talk about their new line of Greek style yoghurt, but really it was an eye-opening discussion on all things health and fitness.
The keyword was #thehealthyswap – and the theme was how you could stay fit without suffering hunger pangs, by simply substituting healthy options instead of junk food. This theme is probably age-old, but I have to say Danone covered it really well, with a talk by a knowledgeable nutritionist, and cooking demos by Chef Abhijit Saha.
On to the details.
About the brand
Danone is a French multinational food-products corporation based in Paris. It has four business lines: Fresh Dairy products, Waters, Early Life Nutrition and Medical Nutrition. Founded in the 1970’s, Danone is now a world agrifood leader in each of its four sectors.
Fact: Did you know that by volume Danone is #1 worldwide in fresh dairy products?
The location
The event was held at Fava in UB City, and the posh surroundings was perfect for an evening of listening and learning.
What I learnt
- Replacing unhealthy snacks with healthy options is not difficult at all.
For example, at that tummy growling moment at 5 pm, when you reach out for samosas, chaat, or chips, reach out instead for a plate of idlis, or a handful of nuts, or a bowl of prepackaged yogurt.
All these foods are easy to pack and bring with you. You could spend a day on the go, without having to buy stuff from outside.
The yogurt especially comes in small packs (125g), which makes it easy to not overeat.
- Greek yogurt is superior to regular yogurt.
I have always liked Greek yogurt more than the standard yogurt, because it’s thicker and creamier and tastier. I never thought about the health aspect until I attended this meet. The fact is that Greek yogurt has higher levels of protein (87% more) to be exact. And if you eat the plain version, there is no added sugar as well.
- Danone has some really delicious flavors of Greek yogurt.
All us bloggers were given gift hampers of their Greek yogurt, and I am sold on how delicious they are. I tried the Blueberry and the mango flavors, and they were mind-blowing – deliciously thick and creamy, and with chunks of fruit. The plain Greek yogurt is tasty too, and seems incredibly versatile. I had some morning cereal (Honey bunches of Oats with vanilla clusters, if you need to know) with the plain yogurt, and I can vouch they make a fantastic combo.
Healthy recipes with Danone
Chef Abhijit Saha was present at the event to demo some healthy recipes that you can easily make at home using yogurt. He showed us many dishes, but the one that really stood out for me (for ease and day-to-day use) was the smoothie.
All these ingredients (plus some superfoods like chia seeds, flax seeds, and so on) go into the blender, and within a few minutes, you have this delicious concoction.
There were some other cooking demos. Chef made us some delicious soup, a beetroot carpaccio that we used as a dip with some lavash, a mango ginger explosion, and more.
I especially loved the soup (made with yogurt), and the beetroot carpaccio with lavash.
As you might guess, the pinkish dish in the photo below is the beetroot carpaccio.
Overall, I came out of the event with a full tummy, a head full of knowledge, and my arms hugging a huge gift hamper of yogurts of all flavors. I wish I had a photo of the absolutely gorgeous gift hamper to share, but when I got home, my kids ripped apart the packaging in minutes – eager to sip the milkshakes and yogurts. Here is one of a few of them stacked one on top of the other at the event.
Thank you Danone for a very knowledgeable and fun event!
Consciously do opt for #thehealthyswap and live a healthy lifestyle.
I really love yogurt, so this sounds like a pretty awesome event to me!
I actually didn’t like Greek yogurt as much as regular yogurt for a while *because* it’s thicker, but it’s grown on me. Unfortunately, it’s also more expensive. But I’ve been trying to get some more protein my diet, and it is good for that, too. I’ve recently seen a new Icelandic-style yogurt in the store around me that I want to try. (But it’s also significantly more expensive. ) I might get just one to test it. 😛
@Johnna:disqus Icelandic yogurt? That sounds interesting. Actually once I started eating Greek yogurt, the regular ones just seem too watery for me.