Greek Yogurt Hollandaise Sauce
Hey, guess what? I’m starting this recipe with a bit of a ramble!
The first time I had hollandaise sauce was at a (sadly now closed) restaurant in downtown SLC called The Wild Grape. They had THE BEST brunch and their veggie benedict was my favorite, second to the breakfast burrito. Hollandaise sauce is one of those things that can be done very well….or horridly wrong. Generally speaking, if I’m at a good restaurant for brunch, you can guarantee that I’ll be ordering whatever exists on the menu with that glorious fatty sauce.
When I first started learning how to cook, I looked up the recipe for this magical elixir and was super upset to see that it mostly egg yolks and butter…totally not something I could make on the regular and still make my doctor happy (yes, Dr. A, I am taking your cholesterol warnings kind of seriously). In an attempt to indulge in one of my favorites and still maintain some level of health, I set out to develop a recipe that would provide that rich taste and texture, but be a little gentler on my arteries…and half the calories.
I won’t claim that this is a true hollandaise sauce, because it for sure isn’t. However, I think it comes close and is delicious in its own right. Hell, I tricked my boyfriend into trying it and he said it was the best hollandaise he’s ever had…granted, I recently found out that he enjoys tamales out of a can, so let’s take that opinion with a grain of salt, yeah?
Greek Yogurt Hollandaise Sauce
Makes 2 servings (about 130 calories a serving, in case you’re curious)
Ingredients
2 large egg yolks
1tbs butter
1/4c (56g) fat free greek yogurt
1/4tsp cayenne
1/4tsp paprika
1tbs fresh squeezed lemon juice (sorry, the bottled stuff won’t do here. go fresh!)
Salt to taste
Directions
Prep a double-boiler, I like to use a medium sized pyrex bowl over a medium-sized pot. The key here is to add just enough water that, once boiling, it can steam the bowl without touching it. Place bowl over the pot (again, make sure the water in the pot isn’t touching it) and bring to the boil. Make sure that the bowl doesn’t fit too snug, we still want steam to escape.
Once the water is boiling, lower to a simmer, then combine eggs and butter in the bowl and start whisking. Timing here is a little tricky, it should only be about 3-5 minutes of cooking time total. You’ll want to keep whisking and occasionally scrape down the sides of the bowl so that the egg yolk doesn’t over-cook. You will know it is done once the consistency of the egg and butter mixture is similar to a thin pudding.
Once desired consistency has been reached, turn off the heat and add the greek yogurt, cayenne, paprika, 1/2 tsp lemon juice, and about 1/4tsp salt (fresh ground salt is the best here).
Continue whisking for about a minute over the cooling water, then move the pot off of the heat. The texture at this point should be like melted ice cream, it will thicken a great deal as it cools. At this point, taste the sauce to see if it needs more lemon or salt, this is all dependent upon personal preference.
To eat, spoon sauce over an egg, or anything else you desire! I really like it as a dip for bacon-y roasted potatoes. I like to garnish it with finely chopped chives and a light dusting of paprika.
If you have leftover sauce, store it in an airtight container for up to 3 days. To re-heat, place container in a dish of hot water and whisk to reheat it. Do not microwave, the high heat of the microwave will cause it to overcook.
Notes:
Since the egg yolks in this recipe are never fully cooked, food safety is pretty key. Serve the sauce fresh, don’t let it sit out for extended periods of time. Refrigerate leftovers soon after you portion out what you are going to consume and once you re-heat leftovers, discard any extra portions.
A really creamy thick greek yogurt makes a big difference here, my favorites are Chobani and Kirkland brands.